CH 1

Dana sighed bitterly as she looked at the crumpled cobalt-colored dress.

“It took me a month to get the fabric…”.’

On the carpet under the tea table where she was lying, a sticky liquid fell between her legs and stuck together.

It was vigorous and hot as if on fire below, but it wasn’t her pleasure. The repetitive and rough friction still left bitter pain.

“…Rian.”

Dana turned her head and saw him sitting down. Rian was disappointed these days, but Dana was still only a lover and an old friend.

Rian had a slightly lost face with a cigarette in his mouth.

Rian came today out of the blue, laid Dana randomly on the table, drove her into his own needs, and shoveled his weights as he wanted as always.

But for Dana, Rian was the only partner, so she thought sex was only like this. So to be honest, Dana didn’t like sex, but if she didn’t even do this, Rian, who hasn’t been around lately, would not come at all.

However, Rian, who had always disappeared as soon as the relationship ended, was sitting next to her and not going today. That alone was comforting for Dana.

Dana woke up slowly, picking herself up. Her eyebrows were frowned at the stiff sensation of the groin, but she smiled and carefully asked in a sweet and friendly voice.

“Ryan, what… Do you have something to say?”

As she tried to get down the table, Dana saw a broken glass of wine that was shattered. It was a glass that was pushed down earlier as he was pushed to the table.

Expensive wine turned redder on the red carpet. And next to it was a colorful scabbard connected to the belt, thrown away randomly.

Dana picked it up.

“…. Whoa.”

While sucking deeply into the cigarette and spewing smoke, Rian did not answer Dana’s question.

Dana lowered her skirt and carefully stood in front of him. She patted the scabbard, which was embroidered with intricate patterns, carefully as she spoke her words.

“Congratulations, Rian. Finally, your wish came true.”

That sword was the sword that Rian received with the official title today and was bestowed upon him by the Emperor. Rian threw the cigarette he held onto the carpet where wine poured out.

The spark burned the carpet and soon went out.

Rian glanced up at Dana.

“Thank you, this is all thanks to you. How would a half-nobleman like me be crowned without you?”

Somehow, Rian’s tone contained a sarcastic nuance. Rian was an illegitimate child of a noble family, but Dana supported him both materially and mentally.

Originally, Rian was able to enter an academy where only children of first lady could attend, and thanks to Dana’s large donation, he was able to enter safely.

And throughout attending the academy, Dana paid for his living expenses and tuition. Anyway, Rian graduated safely with the money and was able to receive a formal title.

“Then did Rian become a Baron now?”

Even so, the title that an illegitimate child could receive was only a Baron at the most, and at the highest, it was a Viscount.

“…No, Count.”

“Oh? How?”

“Dana.”

Rian stood up from the chair facing Dana. He affectionately drew a line around her mouth and gently patted her cheek with his hand.

“Yeah, a count for an illegitimate child, this is great. I’m sure you know what kind of humiliation I’ve gone through and tried to go up.”

Dana smiled together, questioning his friendly eyes after a long time.

“Of course, you worked really hard.”

She tried to wrap her arms around his arms with her words of encouragement, but Rian smiled awkwardly and pushed her away a little.

“Rian”?

“Dana.”

As if she had remembered, Dana opened the drawer and pulled out a seal with a rolled with and a bird-shape. It was the management right of the ‘Deniz merchants’, which she had just officially inherited as an adult.

“I’m so glad you became a noble. Because we always needed a nobleman to look at the top.”

“I’m going to be the representative, right?””

“Yes, if you have this document and stamp, it will have the same effect as I have. Your order will soon be mine.”

Only then did Rian smile and hug Dana.

“Okay, thank you, Dana.”

The tightly held hand fumbled down her back and fiddled with her waist and hips. Dana looked at him flinching but embarrassed.

“Rian, again?”

“I want to, but I have to go soon.”

Rian smiled and reached out with a sincere expression of regret. And he received the scroll paper and seal in Dana’s hand and put them in his arms.

“Are you going to go right away? Right, there’s a party. Rian, when are you going to introduce me? Can’t I attend today?”

Dana’s request was not unreasonable. She was Rian’s biggest supporter, and she had a right to attend Rian’s celebration. However, Dana has not been showing off until now because she thought it would hurt his pride.

‘No, this time…….”

Rian refused Dana’s words and made eye contact with her, looking at her with a disappointing look. In the meantime, his sweet eyes had disappeared out of nowhere.

“You just said, you can understand me.”

Suddenly, he ran out of cold attitude, paused, and replied.

“What… Do I understand?”

“Dana.”

Rian took a little time and opened his mouth.

“I’m getting married.”

Dana blinked her big eyes once. She asked again if she heard it wrong. However, she soon read the answer from Rian’s face, which had little change in expression.

The marriage partner was not herself.

“What are you talking about? Rian…”

Dana felt a sense of distance and stepped back a little. But this time Rian stuck close to her, and Dana stepped back even more. Soon her back touched the wall.

Rian’s face did not contain any sorry feelings. But he didn’t even put on a straight face. He was raising his mouth with a fishy face full of a little joy.

“The Duke of Hamilton had a good view of me since a long time. I’ve been dating the young lady for a year. If I marry her, I’ll be able to wear her wings and fly higher.”

“…Rian, Rian… What the heck…”

Dana grabbed the hem of the dress tightly. Her hands trembled and looked at Rian as if she couldn’t believe it.

“You can’t do this to me… Rian.”

“Dana.”

Rian held Dana’s shoulder tightly with both hands.

“I know you helped me a lot. But money is just money. You’re not a noble.”

“Is that what you want to say now? I’m the one who made you a noble.”

Rian made a dry sound.

“Dana, you have to say it right away. It’s possible because even if it’s only half the blood of the noble flowed in the first place.”

Dana looked at him speechless with an amazing look. Then, as if she remembered, she reached out her palm to Rian.

“Give it back to me.”

He knew right away what it meant, but Rian did not respond easily. Instead, he began to soothe her, softening her determined tone.

“Dana, listen to me for a second. I’m not saying I’m going to abandon you. We’re going to stay the same way we are now. It’ll be hard right after marriage, but when the situation stabilizes, I’ll come to you from time to time..”

“Do you want me to be your mistress?”

Dana spoke in a trembling voice and headed her watery eyes at him.

Rian looked coldly at her, who was at a loss for anger and sadness, and recited it low as if she knew it.

“You don’t like it? That’s the best you can do”.

“Rian, you can’t do this to me. Think about it again, Rian. I’ve loved you so much so far….”

“Yeah, I know, I know. Enough to make that door. We were the only ones coming in and out of that door, right?”

Rian pointed to the door he had entered. It was covered with curtains, so it was hard to tell at first glance whether it was a door.

Rian wanted to hide his relationship until the time came, so it was a secret passage that Dana made for him.

“You know that… Rian, give it back to me… ! I can’t give it to you!”

Dana reached out to search his arms. However, Rian simply grabbed the hand and put her body closer together.

“Dana. You have a loud voice, they’ll hear everything outside.”

“What’s so important now…”(Sighs)

Rian hurriedly closed her mouth with his palm. When his large body weighed down, Dana couldn’t move.

In the meantime, the hand that was arresting Dana came up and stroked her blonde hair one by one, muttering low, facing her eyes very closely.

“Dana, our pretty Dana, you will be the only woman in my life who is as beautiful as this. No matter what anyone says, your face can’t keep up with any woman. Yeah, that’s a shame.”

Rian expressed an unexpected compliment for a very long time as if he was disappointed.

At first glance, at the touch of him stroking affectionately in a sighing tone, she couldn’t notice it even when he was right in front of her.

His eyes were shining with life.

“Dana, why didn’t you just love me more, to the point where you’re blind, so if you’re just a mistress, I’ll just..….”

It was a time when the sound of speech was cut off, and his smile, which was hanging thin, completely disappeared.

Dana felt something and tried to get away from him.

“Ughh Let go… Rian! Oh my god!”

“Shh, it’s noisy, Dana.”

Rian’s big hand pressed Dana’s thin neck hard and grabbed her. Drunk Dana tried to hit him like crazy and push him away, but it was useless.

She looked at Rian with frightened eyes. Rian smiled with his eyes bent thin.

“The dress suits you very well today, Dana.”

Her legs were completely floating on the floor, led by Rian’s grasp. The veins turned red like bursting on the white of blue eyes.

“Ugh…ggh….”

“I’ll use the things you gave me well, too. Even that power of attorney. I will never use it in vain. Don’t worry.”

Looking at Dana in pain, Rian calmly conveyed his last words.

“To be honest, I’m sad. There is no woman who satisfies my lower limbs as much as you. I still can’t believe it.”

Dana glanced down and smiled, kicking him and pinching him with her fingernails. However, his limbs gradually slowed down and she lost strength.

“But I think you’re going to get in the way now. Sorry, Dana. I need you to disappear now.”

Blue eyes full of resentment disappeared under the eyelids with tears in them.

Rian slowly lowered her completely limp body to the floor. Measuring the trajectory outside the door, he opened the curtain and wrapped Dana’s body around it.

He opened the door and looked around, carried Dana around his shoulder, and hurried out of there.

Only Rian and Dana knew that Rian had been here today.