“Oh, so that’s why you act so high and mighty.”

April mocked him, nodding her head up and down. However, Calsion just stared at her, his expression unbothered. When April realized his gaze was sweeping her from head to toe, her face flushed red.

She’d thought it before, but he really was a rude man. Even knowing she was a duke’s daughter, he was blatantly looking her up and down.

“What are you staring at?”

“You’re a bit different from last night.”

At Calsion’s words, April panicked and hurried over to cover his mouth. Calsion’s hand, which was gripping his sword hilt, twitched at her sudden approach, but that was all.

“Shh! Why are you acting like this when you’re usually so sharp?”

April’s voice dropped to a whisper as if coaxing him. Calsion, looking down at her, parted his lips.

“Move your hand.”

“Oh!”

April felt his lips move right beneath her palm and quickly pulled her hand away. In her haste, her palm brushed right over his lips.

The unfamiliar sensation made April open and close her hand in confusion. His lips had been soft, leaving a strange, lingering feeling.

Staring blankly at her palm, April didn’t dare look up at Calsion for fear he’d see how red her face was. Instead, she pushed him away without meeting his eyes.

“Anyway, don’t come into my bedroom, and keep that matter a secret.”

“For nothing in return?”

“What?”

April, who had stubbornly refused to meet his gaze, snapped to attention at Calsion’s question. The memory of last night, when she’d tried to offer him a brooch as payment for his silence only to be accused of theft, flashed through her mind.

“What do you want from me, exactly?”

‘Since yesterday!’

She wanted to scream if she could. April bit her lip. The man who had prevented her escape kept hanging around, and it was driving her crazy.

“You.”

“What?”

“I want you, April Bright.”

April’s jaw dropped at Calsion’s answer.

‘What kind of nonsense is this?’

Was she really hearing him correctly?

“Are you insane?”

Honestly, she wanted to hurl insults at him. He was the one who’d trapped her here when she tried to run away to avoid marrying the second prince, yet now he was saying he wanted her? What kind of absurdity was this? She wanted to smack that smirking face of his.

“That’s not it.”

Calsion gave a sly smile, clearly teasing her. Realizing he was just messing with her, April decided there was no point talking to him any further.

She pushed him out completely and slammed the door in his face.

***

As soon as she closed the door, April tried to steady her angry breathing. She’d briefly forgotten, thanks to Calsion’s appearance, but she was about to be married. To the second prince, no less.

If even the captain of the knights was bold enough to tease her, she could only imagine what his master would be like.

Would she even be able to live properly after the marriage?

‘Does anything really change just because you get married?’

She wasn’t sure. The second prince wasn’t the empress’s biological son. He was royalty, but he’d spent his life wandering outside the palace. Rumors said he was cold-blooded, terrifying in appearance, and had a rough, violent personality.

If she really ended up marrying someone like that…

“No.”

It didn’t matter if nothing changed. All she had to do was leave the ducal house after the wedding and get a divorce. Then she could get a generous settlement and start over with that money.

Once her thoughts were organized, April finally managed a smile.

‘That’s right. I can do this. Don’t be afraid.’

She braced herself and stood up. At that moment, the door suddenly burst open.

“…You really have no manners, coming in without knocking.”

April spoke calmly as she saw who entered. The duchess’s eyes flickered at her composed tone but quickly returned to normal.

The duchess strode in proudly, surveying the room as if she owned it.

“Still such a filthy room. Not at all befitting a noble lady.”

The duchess looked April up and down, her hand rising as if to strike her. April dodged back to avoid the blow and stared steadily at the staggering duchess.

‘I’m tired of getting hit.’

The duchess tried to hide her red face in embarrassment, but it was no use. April secretly snorted.

“What brings you all the way to this dirty room, Duchess?”

“Hah! Listen to you talk.”

The duchess glared sharply at April.

“You upset my daughter with your insolent words.”

“But I only told the truth.”

April deliberately raised her voice. Her clear tone rang out like that of an innocent child, and her eyes sparkled with feigned innocence.

“If I marry the second prince, won’t I become the princess consort?”

“You!”

“So you should address me properly.”

Her back straightened. April lowered her shoulders and stood tall, no longer shrinking away.

The duchess blinked in surprise at April’s sudden change. This wasn’t the April who always watched her warily.

‘She’s changed this much just from the prospect of marrying the second prince?’

It was hard to believe.

Only then did the duchess realize April had been hiding her claws all along. She also realized she’d been fooled by April and left her alone because of it.

If April had revealed her true nature sooner, the duchess would never have let her live. If she’d known April was just like that wretched woman who’d ended up in the duke’s bed, she would’ve killed her by any means necessary.

The duchess gripped her fan so tightly the frame cracked, and the servants watching barely dared to breathe.

“You’ve become so arrogant since I last saw you.”

“It’s not arrogance. I’ve just come to my senses.”

April answered calmly. She could see the servants’ faces, full of resentment, but she didn’t stop.

“There’s nothing for me to be afraid of now, is there?”

She glanced at her neatly trimmed nails and blew on them. Her fingers trembled slightly—she wasn’t entirely free of fear toward the duchess—but she clenched her fist so it wouldn’t show.

“I’ve let this go on long enough!”

The duchess raised her hand as if to throw her fan at April, but April spoke first.

“But are you sure you want to do that? If your fan leaves a mark on my face, the duke won’t stand for it. The prince will be visiting in a few days—how strange would it look if I greeted him with a scar?”

“Hah!”

The duchess scoffed, as if to say she wasn’t scared by such words, and swung her hand. Just as her fan was about to pass over April’s head—

“Oh my!”

April dodged to the side and stepped on the duchess’s dress.

“You, how dare you… Ahh!!”

The duchess, thrown off balance, tried to steady herself but tripped over her own dress where April had stepped. With a loud crash, she fell, and the startled servants rushed to help her up.

“M-my lady! Are you all right…?”

“Let go!”

Seeing the fury in the duchess’s eyes, April instinctively sensed what was coming.

‘She’ll probably slap me now.’

‘She looked like she might send an assassin after me tonight if I let her leave like this.’

April hesitated. Should she swallow her pride and bow down now?

‘I hate it, but maybe I have no choice if I want to get through today. I’ve endured for years—what’s one more time on my knees?’

Just as she sighed and prepared to retreat, someone appeared to save her.

“What is the meaning of this!”

Before she could kneel, the duke of Bright arrived.

The duke had been walking down the hallway to see April when he noticed the crowd of servants outside her room and rushed over, alarmed by the duchess’s voice inside.

April was a valuable asset. If she got even a scratch on her face, not only the second prince but even the emperor might be enraged.

He had been the one to propose this marriage, but the emperor also approved of it. If anything happened to April, he’d have to present someone else as the second prince’s bride.

‘That can’t happen.’

There was no way he would offer Wendy, his legitimate daughter, as a bride to the second prince.