Chapter 3

BANG!!

“This is absurd!”

Rose slammed the desk and fumed. It was a rare sight to see Lady Clematis so agitated, but unfortunately, the only spectator was her aide Kathleen.

Kathleen, rather than feeling sympathy for Rose, regretfully gazed at the fountain pen that had fallen to the floor, having met its end.

‘Ah, that fountain pen alone could buy 1/3 of a townhouse…’

Kathleen, who had secretly dreamed of becoming a real estate mogul, said a prayer for the limited edition fountain pen from a traditional company. May you be gifted to a kind wealthy household in your next life.

“What’s the matter, my lady?”

Kathleen asked politely. It was merely a courtesy question.

“You don’t need to know.”

Yes, right. I’ll remain ignorant. The reason Kathleen wasn’t surprised or flustered was simple. For the past month, Rose had been in this depressed state every single day.

‘To think you’ve been obsessing like this without attending any of your beloved parties or balls…’

And it wasn’t just parties and masquerade balls. She hadn’t been to any salons, nor had she called for any designers. This was unlike her usual self, who would meet designers and attend tea parties every three days, claiming that falling behind trends was the shortcut to becoming lazy.

Rose, for her part, was frustrated.

“Kathleen.”

“Yes, my lady.”

“Am I not pretty?”

Kathleen’s expression read, ‘What the hell are you talking about, my lady?’ Rose liked the aide’s harshly wrinkled face. Yes, I am pretty.

Pretty wasn’t even the word. She was the Empire’s greatest beauty.

“Is it because my br*asts are too big?”

“…Pardon?”

This time, Kathleen’s expression said, ‘Damn it, I don’t want to know about my lady’s s*x life more than necessary!’ Her face showed disgust.

“My waist? Legs? What’s the problem? Or is it my way of speaking? Is that the issue?”

But Rose had her reasons to complain. It was just too frustrating!

‘Why on earth isn’t my charm working?’

Rose, who had gone almost all the way with Maverick on the first day after her regression, had assumed the rest would be like ‘eating cold stew’ — easy. She had built up her confidence, believing all her social experiences until now were for this moment.

That confidence crumbled within two weeks.

‘What brings you here?’

‘I want to sleep with you.’

‘……’

‘Where are you going?’

‘I’ll sleep in the next room.’

Thinking the clothes might be the problem, she prepared an outfit so provocative that even she thought it was eye-popping. It not only revealed her chest curves but also showed her bare skin, and the triangle below was completely visible through the fabric. The result? Disastrous.

Right, this was too explicit, that must have been the problem! Let’s change it! So the next day, she went for an innocent look…

‘You can go out just like that.’

She was kicked out. Damn it.

Of course, she didn’t give up. When you can’t figure out someone’s clothing preferences, what do you do? Just show everything, right?

Of course, since simply being n*ked didn’t seem to work, she mixed in some different methods.

One night, she visited Maverick’s bedroom and poured water from a flower vase all over herself.

‘I’m hot.’

The thin nightgown clung to her body. Having foregone undergarments covering her chest, her full br*asts and protruding n*pples were clearly visible. They stood *rect due to the cool temperature.

‘I’m still hot, I wish you would cool me down.’

‘……’

‘Soak me inside. Better yet, thrust into me.’

Maverick frowned with contempt at her suggestive and explicit words. But looking closely, beneath his rigid response, his face showed *rousal. He strode forward and reached out his hand. When his large hand touched her cheek, Rose was slightly startled. His fingertips were rougher than expected.

Thump thump, Rose felt her heartbeat growing louder. It was her own pulse.

Her cheeks flushed like a teenage girl’s, an unstoppable reaction despite her embarrassment.

Maverick slowly brushed her hair aside.

Rose couldn’t help but grab and pull at his clothes. He obligingly offered his lips. At least he didn’t push her away roughly, even if he frowned.

Her body heated up from the clumsy kiss. She wanted more, much more. Because she was soaked, his body became wet too as he held her. She could feel his hardened member against her waist, and Rose smiled triumphantly.

Yes, this is it.

When their lips parted slightly, Maverick stared at her intently from up close.

‘It seems my wife has quite the vigorous s*xual appetite.’

The man standing against the night sky through the window was magnificent. She was breathless.

‘So, why don’t you bring in a man for your s*xual needs instead of me?’

What, what? What did he say? While it was common for both men and women of means to satisfy their s*xual desires with people from the red-light district… She had never been suggested to do so.

Unless it was countless young men desperately wanting to spend a night with her!

Rose was dumbfounded. So much so that she failed to notice just how rigid his c*ck had become beneath his pants. By the time she came to her senses, she was already alone in the room.

She was furious!

‘What’s the problem, what!’

She even asked directly. She was immediately refused dialogue by Maverick. Of course, he comes when called. The problem is that he remains silent until told to leave, with that crooked expression. He answers when asked, but every answer is a rejection.

Rose finally realized it then. To this man, she was the daughter of his enemy, and he was merely following his father’s orders to not go against her words, for some reason.

“Haah…”

However, Rose didn’t give up easily. Why should she? He was legally her husband. There are various ways to win someone’s heart. But they all commonly require sincerity as an ingredient.

“I need to change my approach.”

Should I try something more classic? Or should I go for something more maniacal?

For Rose, who had lived life to the fullest without regrets, she was rather weak when it came to such pure relationships. It was quite a predicament.

As Rose sighed, she noticed the envelopes spread across the desk. Kathleen, who had been observing her lady’s expression for a while, spoke.

“These are invitations that arrived for you this morning. Shall I dispose of them today as well?”

Just as she was about to nod, Rose spotted one envelope.

“What’s this? When did this arrive?”

“Ah, it seems one that was meant to be thrown away got mixed in. I apologize. That arrived three days ago, must have been a servant’s mistake. I’ll dispose of it.”

“No, that’s fine.”

After examining the envelope from various angles, Rose spoke with a grave expression.

“Bring this person here immediately.”

* * *

Ramona, the young lady of the Count of Gallager, was originally one who ran with Rose and Lady Salematia’s crowd.

But one day, she suddenly abandoned her wild lifestyle and got married. Her partner was the young master of the Carpenter family, Count Carpenter. A young count who had spent 10 years in the temple during his childhood and lived a pure, honest, and ascetic life. Surprisingly, Countess Gallager fell for him at first sight and succeeded in marriage after passionate courtship.

Until just before their marriage, their romance was the hottest topic in the capital.

This was because Rose and Lady Salematia’s group typically either played to their heart’s content until just before marriage and then dutifully entered into political marriages to produce an heir, or reached implicit agreements with their political marriage partners to continue their individual pursuits even after marriage.

“…Hello, Lady.”

Lady Gallager, now Countess Carpenter, one of the few exceptions from their group, watched Rose nervously. Though they had spent years playing together as part of the same group.

There was an insurmountable gap between her and Lady Clematis.

I only sent the invitation because my mother had been nagging me lately about not seeing Rose, saying I should get in touch.

I didn’t know I would be summoned like this.

“It’s been a while.”

It had been a long time since we met, as I had cleared out all my previous lifestyle after becoming Count Carpenter’s lover.

Being nervous was natural. Even the haughty Lady Salematia would act up while secretly keeping an eye on the lady before me.

“Don’t be afraid.”

“Y-yes!”

“I’ll get straight to the point without beating around the bush.”

“P-pardon?”

“In return, feel free to enjoy yourself at my mansion.”

Countess Carpenter blinked. Somehow, Rose seemed slightly different from when she last saw her. How to put it… she appeared anxious.

“I have just one question.”

“Yes, my lady.”

“How did you seduce your husband?”

“Yes, seduce… what?”

“Let’s not play coy, Ramona.”

Ramona’s shoulders shot up at her gentle tone.

When they were in the same circle, Rose always addressed her companions this affectionately. So much so that some had misunderstood and overstepped their bounds.

“Your husband, Count Carpenter, was known as the ‘Blue Priest’ in the capital for being pure, fastidious, and ascetic.”

“Y-yes…”

“And you’re the one who ended up marrying him after dating. That’s quite impressive.”

But Ramona wasn’t fooled.

“How did you do it? Please tell me. Your romance was quite the talk of the capital, wasn’t it?”

“Ah, well…”

The question was certainly strange, but it wasn’t difficult to answer.

“How did you sleep with him? Did you strip first?”

“Cough!”