Marked By An Angel

The Foolish Aren

"Franny, I know you are upset that the Fourth Prince didn't want to marry you. However, I can assure you that he would change his mind after I deal with him."

Heh… this old man spoiled this body too much. Coercing a prince just for his spoiled granddaughter? This old man… was he sane? She could only sigh inwardly.

This woman was so used to getting her way. And every time she wanted something, she would always use her grandfather's influence to get it.

Now that Francesca thought about it, this old man was pretty unlucky to have a granddaughter like the previous Aren.

"No need." Francesca smiled. "I'm sorry for making you worry, grandfather. However, I already know my mistake. If anything, please tell his highness to forgive me for the things that I did."

"…"

"Grandfather?" she blinked at him. The old man was staring at her as if she just said something wrong. Seeing this, Francesca continued, "Grandfather, I want to apologize for embarrassing you. After jumping into that lake, I realized how foolish I was. It was wrong of me to do something that would tarnish the name of Rochester. Please forgive me." Of course, she kneeled in front of the old man and started kowtowing.

"This… what are you doing!? Stand up! What…" The old man's panicked voice made her want to laugh. For some reason, he found this grandfather of hers a little cute. The old man immediately helped her up and let her sit on the chair.

"This… it seems that you have suffered a lot because of that incident! I will surely ask some compensation from his highness, the fourth prince. I— "

"Grandfather, please. Let's not mention that incident anymore." Compensation? This old man is really… making her speechless. She forced a smile from her face. It seems that this old man was hell-bent on punishing that prince? "Grandfather, please calm down. This is my fault. Please don't punish the prince or ask for any compensation. I just — " Seeing her grandfather's teary eyes, Francesca didn't know if she would laugh. She really wanted to continue her acting, but this old man was making it hard. "Grandfather, I wanted to be someone that you would be proud of."

"…"

She immediately got up and walked towards the window, hiding the expression on her face. Honestly, she didn't want to laugh while watching the old man's reaction.

"Franny, I am always proud of you. What are you talking about?"

"Grandfather, I know I have been an embarrassment. This incident made me realize that life is short and that… I needed to appreciate what I have in this life." It wasn't actually a lie. She had been a very successful businesswoman who received both local and international recognition in her past life. She had fought against countless of schemes and survived every single damn time.

But in the end… she was alone, cold and lonely.

For a change, Francesca wanted to at least have a life in this world.

"Oh, Franny…"

"Grandfather… I wanted to become a sorcerer." And a warrior. But she didn't say it in front of her grandfather. She didn't want to surprise the old man. Her changes were too much. She didn't want him to suddenly suspect her identity.

In fact, she didn't think of becoming a sorcerer until she saw how Alferes appeared and disappeared into thin air. How awesome is that? Moreover, there is a high chance that she could learn about the secrets of the soul if she studies sorcery.

"But I thought you hated being a sorcerer?"

"Grandfather," she looked at the old man. The only reason why she wanted to be an Elementalist was because of that damn Prince. He could use the element of fire, and Aren thought that it would be extremely cool to marry someone like that. After all, wielding elements looked really awesome.

However, the testing a few months ago showed that this body lacked affinity with the elements. This made her really depress, she cried for a week and got sick. She stopped attending events and become really moody. "I wanted to become just like my mother." Her late mother was a very powerful sorceress, who disappeared when she was five years old.

"Please let me prove myself to the Rochester," she added.

…..

"Miss, the madam wanted to visit your room."

"Let her," she nodded. Talking to her grandfather about being a sorcerer was proven more difficult than she originally thought. Her grandfather didn't want her to learn sorcery because he thought it was dangerous, especially because she had a weak body.

She only managed to convince him to at least let her learn the basics and if she could handle a level one spell, he would allow her to become a sorceress.

She looked at the view from outside of her window. She only has seven days to learn a level one spell. To everyone, this was almost an impossible task. After all, normal sorcerers would take a month to comprehend a spell. She looked at the garden that contrasted the snowy ground. She especially designed the garden below and make it look pretty for her tea parties. She even hired some sorcerer to make the flowers bloom, even when it was winter, just to make it look pretty.

By now, Francesca wasn't surprised by this body's actions anymore. The stupidity is just too much; she needed to accept it or she would die from irritation.

"Franny?"

Madam Isabell Rochester walked inside her room. "I brought fruits and your favorite cake." The woman had a kind smile on her face. From this body's memories, Francesca knew that Isabell truly treated Aren well. But just like her grandfather, this woman had the tendency to spoil her. Just like the old man, Isabell was also scared of Aren's temper.

"Thank you."

"Your grandfather said that you will start studying with a new teacher tomorrow. He also asked me to bring you these books in advance. How about the academy?"

Ah, she was talking about the imperial academy where elementalists study. Despite Aren's lack of talent, she still insisted on studying in that school just to get close to the fourth prince.

"Please send them a letter. I am taking a break from school." Honestly, she would prefer to learn alone.

"I understand. How about your body? Are you feeling any discomfort anywhere?"

"I am fine. Thank you." Aren's father married Isabel at the insistence of Aren's grandfather. It was because the old man and Aren's father were always in the military camp. No one would take care of Aren in the mansion. Despite her father's refusal, the old man insisted that they needed someone to love and take care of Aren like a real mother. They were lucky that Isabell volunteered for the role.

Without love, Isabell and her father slept in the different rooms and didn't really spend time with each other. Aren was lucky to have someone like Isabell who truly cared for her like she was Isabell's daughter.

"What about the fourth prince? I heard that he complained to his queen mother and the queen mother was upset about your actions. If you want, I could convince the father to ask for some— "

"Thank you, mother but I don't need any compensation. However… I would love it if you could spread some rumors about me."

"Rumors? Why would I— "

"Just tell everyone that my grandfather grounded me for six months." She needed that much time to familiarize herself in this world. Moreover, this would also benefit the old man who was known to spoil his granddaughter. As if sensing her thoughts, Isabell lowered her head and nodded.

"I understand. Thank you for thinking about your father's reputation. I will inform him about this."

Francesca smiled. She couldn't understand why Isabell would marry into this family just to become her nanny but she isn't someone ungrateful. Since this woman treated her well, she would reciprocate, too.

"Madam... Miss… There's trouble!" Cui's sudden interruption immediately changed the atmosphere.

"What is it?" she asked the poor maid, who tried to catch her breath.

"It's the fourth prince… The Fourth prince is here!"