Surviving As A Cannon Fodder

Chapter 145

Seeing Master Gilbert constantly grumble at the end of each lesson, I got curious.

"I can't believe I let that brat fool me! Me! The great Axel Gilbert!"

"If only she used that bratty brain for good!"

However, every time Master Gilbert complained about this particular student, he refrained from mentioning a name or a family.

It wasn't hard figuring out the person responsible for his fury. 

The only other family Axel Gilbert was affiliated with other than the Frosts was the western country nobles, the Ashfords due to his friendship with the former Countess.

And by 'she', he meant the youngest of the kin, Angelica Ashford.

Not many people knew of her existence owing to a fragile physical constitution that had rendered her bedridden and unfit for social activities.

It didn't seem peculiar as it was not surprising for noble families to suppress information about their children since any weakness in one of their kin might appear as a liability to the entire clan, no matter how secluded they may be.

That was it. After that incident, I had eventually forgotten about her until years later the name was brought up the day the Saintess was kidnapped in the Emperor's private office.

"It was the daughter" said Commander Norton with pride in his eyes.

Back then I brushed it off. But now that I think about it, despite being a central noble, the Nortons were one of the few families in close relations with the Ashfords.

When I first learned from Nathaniel that Angelica Ashford was the one selected as my marriage partner I didn't think much about that as I was focused on the curse that was eating away my soul.

According to Nathaniel, the reason Angelica Ashford was chosen amongst the hundreds of young ladies of marriageable age was due to the nature of her circumstances. 

For the past few months, Ashford county was suffering from an unusual array of natural disasters that had depleted its financial resources to the point of bankruptcy. 

As a young lady from a traditional noble family with a long history that was in dire need of financial support, Angelica Ashford became the ideal candidate for an emergency political marriage.

Once the marriage was approved by both sides of the family, the transaction was completed and the contract was signed.

With the Dark Wolfs continuing the search for the Saintess, Sir Luther and his squadron of Knights safely escorted her to the estate.

For the people in the Frost estate, the newly wedded duchess's arrival was like a beacon of hope in the dark times.

Up until the moment Angelica arrived at my doorstep, the atmosphere was buzzing about the news of the young duchess.

And when she finally came I noticed that something was odd.

"This must be the wife" 

When High Priest Thesser addressed Angelica as my wife, she more than anyone was surprised by the fact, as if it was the first time she was hearing about it.

"What happened to him?"

After inquiring about the state of my being, almost hysterical she plunged her hands into a bowl of boiling water much to the fright of the attendants.

"I...I... I need to wake up" 

Anyone who had heard her that day would have thought that the young lady was kidnapped against her will and thrown into a den of wolves rather than being married into a prestigious family.