Chapter 10.1

“…….”

“…….”

The attending physician carefully poured the antidote into Kadis’s slightly parted lips. Lyla stood silently among the servants, holding her breath as she watched.

Clink.

The physician placed the empty bowl onto the table and stepped back. Lyla approached the bedside.

She held Kadis’s hand tightly. Each passing second felt unbearably long. The physician and the servants stood at a distance, anxiously praying for the medicine to take effect.

“Lord Kadis…”

Lyla hesitated, fumbling with Kadis’s calloused hand before finally speaking.

“Lord Kadis. I am a coward. Just as you said, I tried to achieve through you what I couldn’t on my own. But I won’t do that anymore. I won’t force anything on you. Just… please, open your eyes safely.”

Lyla rested her cheek against the palm of Kadis’s hand. Tears, which had silently overflowed, pooled in his palm. At that moment, Kadis’s fingers twitched slightly.

“I was so… so scared. It felt like I ruined everything. Even… even your life. Because of me…”

“…Alright, enough with the sniffling.”

“L-Lord Kadis?!”

Kadis regained consciousness.

Lyla quickly lifted her head and looked at him. Apart from the faint shadows under his eyes, he appeared as he usually did.

“…”

Kadis glanced at his hand, held in Lyla’s grasp, then pressed his temple with his other hand as he slowly sat up.

“…What’s with all this? Did someone die? This looks just like the day my father passed. Everyone crowding around the bed like this.”

How annoying. 

Kadis frowned at the servants gathered nearby.

“Heavens! The Duke has awakened!”

“It’s a miracle!”

“It’s all thanks to the Earl who found the herbs.”

The servants, overjoyed by the Duke’s recovery, were beside themselves with happiness. Some even burst into tears.

What a spectacle. 

Kadis thought, clicking his tongue.

Though unconscious while bedridden, he had a general sense of what had happened. It seemed he had fainted after ingesting a small amount of potion poured by Charlier.

That level of potion? His body would surely detoxify it on its own. After all, he had survived poisoned arrows on the battlefield and still fought the next day.

‘Herbs, huh? Did she really go and fetch them?’

Kadis glanced at Lyla.

Knowing her family history, he couldn’t entirely blame her for this chaotic situation. She must have genuinely feared for his life. After all, a person only has one life.

Kadis himself had recently come to understand that simple truth.

When he saw Lyla bound and imprisoned in the storage room, something inside him snapped. In this peaceful era, after the war, he had never imagined losing Lyla.

“Stop crying already.”

“Sniff…”

Kadis gently wiped Lyla’s tears with his palm. Though his tone was scolding, his touch was soft.

“Sniffle… Lord Kadis. Lord Kadis…!”

Lyla, still sobbing, grabbed his wrist and rubbed her face against his palm.

Her tear-streaked face, pressed against his hand, looked so endearingly foolish that Kadis let out a small laugh.

“Now then, shall we finish the conversation we couldn’t earlier?”

“Huh? Oh…”

Lyla quickly composed herself, releasing his wrist and sitting upright with her hands neatly placed on her knees.

‘Be honest. Tell him I’m a woman.’

Lyla resolved herself and opened her mouth to speak.

“I already knew. That you’re a woman.”

“How did you… No, when did you find out?”

Kadis cut her off, leaving Lyla flustered.

“It’s been a while. Probably about a year after you came here.”

That soon?

Wait, then that means…

“I’m not into men, so don’t worry. I only pretended because your shameless act annoyed me.”

Kadis paused for a moment before continuing in a heavier tone.

“When I was younger, I was afraid of losing you. That’s why I let you live as a man.”

“Losing me?”

“…If people knew you were a woman, someone else might have taken you away.”

Kadis answered hesitantly.

His embarrassed expression, so out of character, was both intriguing and endearing. It also tugged at Lyla’s heart.

“I secretly hoped you’d come clean on your own. I didn’t think you’d keep it a secret forever.”

Kadis smiled faintly at Lyla before straightening his expression and asking seriously.

“Were you really planning to keep it a secret from me forever?”

“Well…”

Lyla clenched her hands tightly on her knees.

To her, the title of Earl was more than just a rank. It was a connection to her father, mother, and Lyle—a testament that the Cardia family had once existed in this world.

Even if it meant giving up her true life, she endured, thinking that the title kept her tied to her deceased family.

Lyla is weak. Lyla can’t do anything.

Living with such thoughts constantly…

“I was afraid.”

“Of what?”

“If it became known that I’m a woman, I’d lose the title. And then… it’d feel like I was saying goodbye to my family forever. Like I’d be left alone in this world…”

Lyla bit her lower lip hard.

Kadis, noticing, gently rubbed her lips with his thumb, urging her to stop. Only then did Lyla release her lip.

“While you’ve been here, has your uncle’s family ever bothered you?”

“Huh?”

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Lyla thought for a moment before shaking her head.

“No.”

“Have you met him?”

“Hmm… Come to think of it, I haven’t since entering the Ducal Residence…”

“Of course not. I told you, I never let anyone take what’s mine.”

Kadis pointed his finger at Lyla.

“You’re mine. Do you think I’d just stand by and let your uncle’s family take your title?”

Kadis spoke confidently.

Ah.

Only then did Lyla realize that Kadis had been protecting her from her uncle all along. 

Why hadn’t I noticed something so obvious until now?

“Anyway, I understand that the title holds special meaning for you. I’ll change the law if I have to, so you won’t lose it.”

“Lord Kadis…”

Lyla looked at Kadis with deep admiration. 

How had he grown to be so reliable?

“But… won’t there be backlash if a woman holds the title? Is that really okay?”

“Who dares say anything to me?”

Kadis scoffed before falling silent. He then looked at Lyla with an unusually serious gaze.

“More importantly, you’re not alone anymore.”

“What?”

“Don’t forget. We still have unfinished business from that inn. We’re going to finish it.”

Kadis smirked.

Lyla froze like prey cornered by a predator.

“If you don’t want to hold onto the title, pass it to our child. Come now, it’s your privilege to carry the Duke’s heir for months. Don’t even think about refusing.”

Kadis arrogantly tilted her chin up.

Lyla, snapping back to her senses, struggled frantically.

“P-Privilege? W-Wait a moment! People are watching…!”

She shouted, covering Kadis’s approaching lips with her hand.

Smack!

Kadis pressed his lips against her palm, then glanced irritably to the side. Following his gaze, Lyla turned her head toward the door.

“Who’s there?”

“Uh, uh…?”

The attending physician and servants, who should have been gathered nearby, had all disappeared. Kadis leaned closer to Lyla and spoke.

“There’s no one here.”

“W-What? Where did everyone…?”

“They’re gone.”

“Huh? Who… Ah!”

Taking advantage of Lyla’s confusion, Kadis pulled her onto the bed and laid her down. He quickly climbed over her and pressed a deep kiss to her lips.

“Mm, mmph…!”

Each time their tongues intertwined softly, Lyla’s vision blurred into whiteness. Yet, the heat spreading through her mucous membranes was as intense as the summer sun. Though she had never experienced a hot summer in the cold North, Lyla thought it must feel just like this.

***

Kiss. Suck. Lick.

Kadis sucked on her lips and tongue as if trying to drain every drop of moisture. The obscene sounds of their kiss didn’t cease. When their tightly sealed lips parted slightly, saliva dripped down from her mouth.

“Haah… Mm, mm…”

“Phew…”

Kadis licked the droplet of saliva trailing down Lyla’s chin before capturing her lips again. He resembled a parched beast.

‘I feel dizzy.’

Even though it was only the repetitive act of licking, rubbing, and sucking her tongue, Lyla found it hard to breathe. Meanwhile, Kadis showed no signs of weariness as he persistently explored her mouth, as if his tongue never dulled.

He meticulously traced each of her small teeth as though counting them, or scraped the roof of her mouth with the tip of his pointed tongue to stimulate her nerves. It was no wonder Lyla’s face turned as red as someone being strangled, and her mind felt hazy.

Smooch.

Kadis finally released her lips after giving her lower lip a lingering suck.

“Phew… Hah…”

Only then did Lyla manage to take a deep breath. Her saliva-slicked lips were swollen, as if they had been bitten by an insect. She gasped for air, her dazed expression resembling an apple dipped in honey.

“Do you want to do it?”

“Huh?”

Kadis tilted her chin up slightly as he asked, leaving Lyla tilting her head in confusion. It wasn’t easy to grasp his meaning immediately.

It wasn’t until Kadis’s other hand touched her chest that Lyla understood his words. She was still wrapped in bandages around her chest. Kadis gazed at her with a deep look and asked again.

“Or should I do it for you?”

“I-I…”

Lyla glanced at Kadis nervously before lowering her head and mumbling shyly.

“I’ll… I’ll do it myself. Please let me.”

Her blushing face and timid reply were so enticing that Kadis felt his mouth go dry. He wanted to tear her clothes off immediately, but he barely restrained himself, summoning patience from deep within.