Please, I hope Adeus didnât hear anything. Or if he did, I hope heâs a fool who canât infer anything.
"Is the House of Laphireon making things difficult for Her Highness the Grand Duchess?"
"âŚHuh?"
I had been praying inwardly, but my spirit was crushed by Adeusâs serious voice. How could he come to such a conclusion? It was absurd, even though it was fortunate that the curse wasnât detected.
'So heâs a fool who canât infer anything.'
I sighed and waved my hand.
"Itâs not like that. The people of the House of Laphireon treat me so well."
"Why did His Excellency the Grand Duke send Her Highness the Grand Duchess to such a dangerous place alone?"
Adeus looked at me with a doubtful expression.
"No! I just came here on my own. There wasnât time to ask you to come with me."
"Nothing happened with His Excellency the Grand Duke, right?"
"Nothing happened. We didnâtâŚ"
Didnât⌠did we? Did we really? The image of Terdeoâs intensely passionate appearance flashed in my mind.
'Well, then I should kiss you properly this time.'
"Wh-whatâŚ!"
No, am I crazy? Why did that come to mind all of a sudden? Am I crazy? My brain! Do you not want to work?
"âŚHer Highness the Grand Duchess? Why are you like this?"
"Itâs notâŚ"
My heart was pounding as if I had sprinted to the top of a mountain. Despite the cold mountain breeze, my face was burning hotter than the sunset.
'Forget it! Forget it!'
I hastily shook my head and quickly came down from the rock.
"Letâs go down. Itâs getting late, and the sun will set soon."
"âŚAre you okay?"
Adeus looked at me with a slightly darker expression than before, worried.
"Iâm fine. And nothing happened. Really! Absolutely! Nothing at all!"
His repeated praise made me feel uncomfortable. Adeusâs eyes, which had been looking at me, suddenly turned fierce.
"Thatâs why I donât want Her Highness the Grand Duchess to be unhappy."
"âŚHuh?"
"People who marry into the House of Laphireon always end up unhappy."
Adeus seemed to have thoroughly investigated the House of Laphireon.
"Dead, injured, or disappeared. They donât even mention the house, as if theyâre afraid to speak."
How does he know this in such detail? Is this kind of rumor circulating in society? I thought it might be because there are many people who envy and resent the House of Laphireon. I smiled calmly and said nonchalantly.
"Thatâs just a rumor. As I said, the people of the House of Laphireon treat me well. If someone is spreading such rumors, Adeus, you should tell them itâs not trueâŚ"
"âŚIs it because you donât trust me?"
Huh? Adeus frowned, looking displeased.
"Because youâre suspicious, because you seem suspicious. Is that why you canât rely on me and canât tell me the truth?"
"Even if I wanted to, itâs the truth."
Adeus stopped walking. The arms holding me tightened, and then he gently put me down.
"âŚHuh? Why? Are you tired? Should I walk?"
The cold mountain breeze brushed against my cheeks.
"Her Highness the Grand Duchess, you asked for an answer to the question you asked earlier, right?"
"Yeah, you didnât answer and ran away then."
"Iâll give you the answer now."
Adeus looked at me with his deep, blue eyes.
"Yes, itâs true."
A low voice revealed the truth.
"I approached Her Highness the Grand Duchess intentionally to take revenge on His Excellency the Grand Duke of Laphireon."
"âŚ!"
My eyes widened. There was no trace of falsehood in Adeusâs serious expression.
'Itâs true.'
He was showing his sincerity.
"Why� Why did you suddenly answer that, or rather, why take revenge on Theo�"
"Because in the war led by His Excellency the Grand Duke, someone I cherished died."
I took a deep breath. His calm tone, his emotionless faceâit felt like I was facing his usual masked expression. At that moment, his icy, cold eyes shimmered with moisture. I had the illusion that Adeus was choking with sorrow and crying.
"âŚTheo, even if the war was led by him, the war itself isnât his fault. He just received orders to go to battle. âŚAnd Theo doesnât like war."
"But the fact is, the person I cherished died because of His Excellency the Grand Duke of Laphireon. Can that be ignored just because he has achieved something?"
My heart sank. I didnât know what to say, and my mind went blank. Then, 'rustle.' The sound of footsteps on the grass came from the right. I was startled, my shoulders shaking, and I quickly turned my head.
"âŚTheo!"
Terdeo stood there, looking at Adeus with eyes that seemed ready to kill. His hair and clothes were disheveled, as if he had been searching for me. Adeus didnât seem surprised by Terdeoâs sudden appearance.
"Did you hear our conversation?"
"Yeah, I heard it all."
"Listening in on a conversation isnât very dignified for a Grand Duke."
"âŚMy wife, who was supposed to go to the temple, wasnât seen on the mountain top, and she hasnât arrived at the mansion yet."
With each word, Terdeo walked straight toward me.
"According to the guard who was following her, my wife didnât come out of the temple, so I searched the surroundings. I found footprints leading down the mountain and followed them."
I had seen his face this morning, but it felt like a long time had passed, and it was a face I missed.
"Iâm glad I came."
Terdeo turned his gaze to me as he walked up to me.
"Fereshati."
A familiar voice rang out. The voice that stabbed my heart like lightning.
"The damn prison guard didnât tell me the carriage had arrived, so I received the message late. Iâm sorry for making you wait."
I felt like he was late, but it was because of that. He smiled and reached out his hand.
"Come here."
My heart ached. When I was about to walk toward him, as if possessed, thud. Adeus, who was standing behind me, firmly grabbed my wrist.
"âŚAdeus?"
Adeus, who had stopped me, glared fiercely at Terdeo.
"You said you would protect her, but youâre not doing a good job at all."
Terdeoâs face hardened instantly. His bloodshot red eyes turned to Adeusâs hand holding my wrist.
"How dare you."
Terdeo, who walked over as if he wanted to bite, grabbed my other wrist.
"Let go of my wife, Fortun."
Terdeo clenched his teeth, revealing his anger.
"I clearly told you last time to stop following me. And yet you dared to use my wife?"
His anger was so intense that he would have drawn his sword and beheaded Adeus if I hadnât been there.
"Would you send the wife you cherish to such an unknown place alone?"
Terdeo glared at Adeus with a fierce gaze and gritted his teeth. Then, in the blink of an eye, he struck Adeusâs injured wrist with the edge of his hand. Adeus, whose wrist was injured, released my hand weakly. Immediately, Terdeo pulled me into his arms. The familiar scent, the comforting embrace. The person I had been unconsciously waiting for while fighting Dodorea. The sound of his heartbeat in my ear instantly calmed my heart.
'Ah, I was anxious.'
Only then did I realize why I was so anxious. I had been relying on Terdeo more than I knew.
'Iâll feel very lonely when the contract ends and I have to live alone.'
Even just thinking about it made my chest feel empty, as if autumn leaves had fallen. To soothe the emptiness, I burrowed into his embrace, and Terdeo held me tightly, as if he didnât want to show me to anyone. Terdeo sneered lazily and arrogantly.
"I thought your body was recovering quickly, but it seems not, Fortun."
Despite clearly hearing that Adeus wanted to take revenge on him, Terdeo seemed more concerned about Adeusâs injuries.
'What a kind Terdeo.'
"Thanks to Your Excellency. Your Excellencyâs personal care helped me recover. I focused on recovery, knowing you would worry like this."
"If you want, just say so. Last time it was your ankle, but next time Iâll massage your back."
"Resting in bed was quite comfortable and pleasant. Next time, Iâll make sure you can feel that comfort, Your Excellency."
The conversation was strange. It felt like a blush-inducing conversation.
"Youâre still so bold even after being caught trying to take revenge on me."
"Youâre also calm after finding out I wanted to take revenge on you."
"I told you before, didnât I? People like you are not rare to me."
"You seem to have made many enemies. Or do you enjoy it?"
"Are you confident, or just bold? Or are you asking to be killed now?"
"Do you know that I protected Her Highness the Grand Duchess today when she was in danger?"
Terdeoâs body, which had been roaring, trembled violently.
"Her Highness almost got stabbed in the chest and almost burned to death in the fire on the mountain and inside the building. Where were you then, Your Excellency?"
It wasnât his usual mocking tone. Adeus was genuinely angry at Terdeo for not protecting me. I had seen Adeus show hostility, but this was the first time I saw him so emotionally angry.
"âŚI didnât plan to reveal the truth like this."
Adeusâs clear eyes, devoid of sadness and anger, turned to me. His eyes held only me.
"Everything was perfect, but it kept going wrong. Like today. âŚToday, I only planned to scout, not to get involved."
Adeus, who had stopped talking, suddenly took off his shirt without a care. The sight of his bare, battered body made my eyes wander. His body was a mess, with bandages wrapped around him so tightly that he didnât need clothes, and fresh blood seeped through the bandages, especially his wrist.
"Even with this body, I didnât think about it and saved Her Highness the Grand Duchess. Thatâs when I realized I canât deceive Her Highness the Grand Duchess anymore."
He laughed helplessly and spoke softly.
"Her Highness the Grand Duchess, now that you know the truth, will you hate me?"