With Someone Other Than You

Article 27-2 (Termination of Engagement)

③ Notwithstanding Clause 2, neither party shall be held responsible for the termination of the engagement under the following circumstances:

2-3. When one party falls into an irreparable love with a third party.

The clause above, part of one of the 144 standard contracts in the kingdom—specifically, the standard engagement contract used among nobles—is known as the “Lovron Clause,” a provision for terminating engagements without fault.

It was named after the ill-fated Countess Lovron, who assassinated her husband alongside her lover with whom she had been deeply involved even before her marriage.

“Irreparable love? What kind of love in this world is irreparable? If anything, it’s the heart of the betrayed party that can’t be mended.”

Danielle Odillon always thought that way.

But would Cyril Frey, her fiancé of twelve years under the standard contract, think the same?

A strained history between their two families.

Childhood enemies who had never gotten along.

Even the careers they chose as adults were steeped in a legacy of mutual antagonism.

Cyril Frey, the rising star of the Royal Knights,

and Danielle Odillon, the pride of the Royal Investigation Bureau—

their tense engagement had dragged on for twelve years without any progress.

She had thought she would go through with this marriage, not knowing whether she wanted it or not,

and resign herself to finding meaning in her professional life instead of her personal one…

“I will dedicate my faithfulness to someone other than you. I can no longer maintain this engagement with you, so please annul our contract.”

Cyril Frey.

What did you just say?