Couldn’t she just leave this place without making any choice?

The offer of a choice somehow felt even more frightening. Whatever it might be, it would surely be painful.

“C-could I make amends with money?” 

Ciella desperately cried out.

The Roxburrow ducal family was the wealthiest in the empire. They had been wealthy before, so they must still be wealthy after three years, meaning they could give him whatever amount he wanted.

Of course, she shouldn’t speak carelessly without knowing the details of the engagement process, but her father would grant her wishes no matter what. He always had.

“I seem to have plenty of money myself. I received quite a sum when I was granted the title of Count.”

The man crossed his arms with a relaxed expression.

Huh? So the engagement wasn’t about money?

“Sh-should I kneel? You can trample all over my pride if you want.”

“Coming to my bedroom n*ked already shows you have no pride, doesn’t it?”

He wasn’t wrong. Not only had she been n*ked, but she had also shown him intimate places she never wanted to reveal, so she had no pride left to uphold.

What else could she offer?

No matter how hard she tried to think of ways to atone for her sins, nothing came to mind. From the moment she met the cruel man’s gaze, her breath caught, and her mind went blank.

“Since you can’t choose, it wouldn’t be bad for me to decide. Ah, you were quite fond of my pet, weren’t you? Then I hope you’ll show the same affection today.”

Pet?

When he whistled, a black form slithered toward her with an eerie presence, writhing slowly.

Except for the candlelight, it was too dark to see clearly, but suddenly a chill ran down her spine.

What on earth?

As it approached, the slithering sound from the floor made her skin crawl.

Soon after, Ciella’s eyes widened when she met a pair of bright yellow eyes, like yellow glass marbles, with scale patterns on the surface.

A s-snake?! His pet was a snake?

The snake’s cold gaze resembled the Count’s. Just looking at it gave her a strong sense of threat and creepiness, like her neck was about to be bitten.

Her body began to stiffen, and her mouth went dry.

The black snake approached, flicking its tongue. Its intense, exploratory gaze made her feel like it was already constricting her entire body.

The one fortunate thing was that, having lived as a dog and faced the threat of vipers before, she could quickly tell this snake wasn’t venomous. Gulping down a dry swallow, Ciella tried to appear calm.

“I told you it’s not venomous. So this time, I hope you’ll show Kan as much affection as you’ve shown me. Just keep in mind that it might bite.”

As the standoff continued, a wicked laugh escaped the man’s lips. His eyes were so full of murderous intent that even though the snake wasn’t venomous, she felt she might die from its bite.

‘Get a grip. Don’t be scared! This isn’t the first time you’ve faced something like this!’

Ciella tried to encourage herself and maintain her composure.

She steadied her breathing and remained calm. Even if she got bitten, she wouldn’t die, so there was no need to be afraid. She had no intention of being attacked without resistance.

Ciella lowered her body, perked up her ears, and bared her teeth. Just as she was about to growl fiercely, she remembered that she had returned to her human body.

‘Ah, I can freely use tools now, can’t I?’

Ciella hurriedly looked around for anything that might help her.

‘There it is!’

At that moment, she spotted a cane standing next to a table.

Facing off with the snake, Ciella carefully backed toward the cane. Fortunately, the snake didn’t seem intent on approaching and attacking.

“I-I’ll borrow this.”

Having finally grabbed the cane, she found herself in another standoff with the snake. The sight of the snake constantly flicking its tongue made her shudder.

Just try coming closer!

She intended to strike its neck with the cane if it approached. She needed to focus since there wouldn’t be many opportunities to attack the snake.

Cold sweat began to trickle down her body from the tension. That’s when it happened.

“Kan, come here.”

Suddenly, the man called the snake, and it slowly slithered toward him. It wrapped tightly around his legs, then gradually climbed up his body, settling around his neck.

Ciella could only stare blankly at the scene, unable to speak. The chilling aura was so intense she couldn’t take her eyes off them.

Especially the image of the snake wrapping around his body looked so threatening that it filled her with terror, making her feel frozen in place.

The sound of her gulping echoed through the tension-filled space.

‘What should I do? Is he trying to kill me this time too?’

She couldn’t relax her guard since she still didn’t understand the situation.

“Enough.”

At that moment, she heard the man’s voice concluding the situation.

“That’s as far as the affection goes. Kan, return to your place.”

With an overt cold sneer, the Count gestured to the snake. The snake that had been wrapped around his neck slowly descended and then disappeared into the darkness, leaving behind an eerie presence.

Only then did Ciella exhale a sigh of relief and put down the cane she had been holding.

“You… who exactly are you?”

When the snake’s sound completely disappeared, the Count’s face was filled with displeasure, and he still looked at her with murderous intent.

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“How can your attitude change so suddenly?”

Could it be that the possessor had screamed and run away at the sight of the snake?

Knowing she would be frightened in advance and releasing the snake… was he planning to kill her while she was unconscious?

Thinking him a truly cruel man, Ciella looked at him with a dignified gaze.

“You said it wasn’t venomous.”

Wanting to show her determination not to fear whatever he might do, Ciella looked directly at the man and spoke clearly.

“…”

The man didn’t respond. Instead, he strode over and forcefully grabbed her neck.

Wh-what is this!

She struggled to push his hand away, but his strong grip made it impossible.

“Gack! Ugh!”

As his grip tightened, it became increasingly difficult to breathe.

Could he be trying to kill her? She had nothing to say even if he killed her like this. No excuses came to mind.

However, judging from the fact that he had released a non-venomous snake, he was more likely trying to intimidate rather than actually kill her.

He might think that by intimidating her, she would be too scared to ever come near his bedroom again.

Realizing she wouldn’t die, her fear gradually subsided.

At that moment, her eyes met his.

His gaze looked somewhat languid. Though he was the one choking her, he appeared to be in more pain than she was. His contorted face somehow looked beautiful.

She wanted to keep looking at him, but she couldn’t.

As his grip on her neck tightened, it became even harder to breathe. Her eyes began to glaze over, and her complexion turned increasingly pale.

“Cough.”

At that moment, the man released his hand, and Ciella could finally breathe comfortably. However, she continued coughing lightly.

“Wh-what are you doing? I almost died. No matter what wrong I’ve committed, isn’t k*lling me going too far?”

Once her voice steadied, she shouted accusingly.

“…”

There was no response, but the man’s condition was strange.

His gaze, now even sharper, was filled with murderous intent. She felt she might really die if she stayed there.

Was he a man who had murderous impulses when drunk? She needed to get away from this madman quickly.

Ciella gave up on finding clothes and hurriedly tried to walk toward the door, but the man grabbed her arm.

“Let go of me!”

She tried to shake off his hand by swinging her arm, but his strong grip made it impossible.

“So you don’t want to die.”

Then he muttered in a small voice. Just as she was about to retort that it was obvious, the man spoke again.

“Then I’ll let you feel what you wished for.”

“What? W-what do you mean?”

“What else? I’ll let you taste my c*ck. I originally had no intention of doing so, but I’ll make an exception just this once.”

All of a sudden?