Chapter 46

Adelina clutched the torn front of her dress and glared at Lexion.  

‘What a piece of trash! A bad guy! A scumbag!’  

To tear such an expensive and beautiful dress! What on earth am I supposed to wear to the wedding now?  

“D… Duke!”  

At Adelina’s sharp cry, Hailyn, Stephan, and the staff of the dress shop hurriedly opened the door and came in.  

Lexion also yanked off the jacket of his formal attire he was wearing.  

With a flick, buttons flew off in all directions.  

Lexion tore off his cravat and shirt, letting them fall to the floor.  

“Your Grace… here. Please put on these clothes.”  

Stephan hurriedly gathered the clothes Lexion had worn when he came in.  

The owner and staff of the dress shop stood with their hands clasped in front of them, heads bowed low like sinners before Lexion.  

Lexion’s icy gaze pressed them further into the ground.  

They had a rough idea of it.  

They realized that the Empress hadn’t made this attire for Lexion.  

“I’ll pay whatever it takes. Remake the ceremonial outfit.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”  

They answered obediently.  

It seemed like their lives wouldn’t be spared if they upset Lexion now.  

“My wife will not wear a veil. She will walk into the wedding hall proudly with me, so prepare accordingly.”  

‘Not wearing a veil? Walking in together? …Damn it!’  

The staff turned their heads to the owner of the dress shop, beads of sweat forming on their foreheads.  

The owner closed his eyes tightly and then reopened them.  

“Yes, Your Grace. We will prepare it in the Ernst style.”  

“Now you understand.”  

‘Damn it! I’m going to get killed by the Empress, not Lexion…’  

The owner and staff of the dress shop bowed deeply to Lexion once more and hurriedly left the place.  

Lexion turned, meeting the gaze of Adelina, who was still glaring at him while held by Hailyn.  

‘I should have just killed Leophris.’  

If he had been even a little late, it would have been Leophris standing next to Adelina in that wedding dress, not him.  

“Stephan.”  

Lexion spoke, his gaze still fixed on Adelina.  

“Yes… Your Grace.”  

“Prepare a rose tiara. The most splendid one. To suit my beautiful wife.”  

At Lexion’s words, Adelina shook her head vigorously, her eyes wide with emotion.  

‘Adelina. You know what that means. Yes, as my wife, you should wear a rose tiara. A symbol of Ernst.’  

Lexion draped his jacket over Adelina’s shoulders to cover the torn front.  

“Yes… understood, Your Grace.”  

Stephan wanted to dissuade him, worried about the repercussions this tiara might bring, but seeing Lexion’s eyes grow even redder, he bowed his head.  

+++

“Are you still angry?”  

On the way back to the palace, Stephan arranged for Lexion and Adelina to ride in a carriage alone, hoping Lexion would comfort the startled Adelina.  

Lexion sat beside Adelina, leaning his face towards her.  

“I’ll have the wedding dress made very expensive.”  

Adelina kept her arms crossed, staring only out the window.  

“Sure. Do that.”  

“I’ll have the tiara made very expensive too. Enough to bankrupt the Ducal estate.”  

“Sure. Whatever my wife wants.”  

Lexion uncrossed Adelina’s arms and deeply kissed her palm.  

Adelina hid her now warm hands behind her back and looked out the window again.  

‘Trying to seduce me! No matter how much you look at me like that, I won’t fall for it!’  

“Whatever you want. Until your anger subsides.”

Lexion’s voice, whispering from behind as he hugged her, sounded so pitiful.

Clearly, she was the one who should be angry, yet she didn’t understand why he looked at her with such a pleading gaze.  

“Make sure to find the mirror.”  

“Got it. So, which position did you like?”  

“What?”  

What is this sudden question?  

Adelina pressed her palms against her ears as Lexion’s breath tickled them.  

“They say we tried various positions? Rated 19+. Shall we research our positions tonight?”  

His hot, humid breath seeped into her ears through her fingers.  

“You’re crazy!”  

Goodness! That’s only possible in pictures or writing! It’s impossible in 3D!  

Adelina covered her face, which felt as if it would explode, with both hands.  

+++

That night, Adelina was undergoing physical training under Hailyn’s guidance.  

Today’s training was called “Lizard on Desert Sand.”  

It involved building strength in the arms and legs by placing the right palm and left foot on the ground, then switching to the left palm and right foot at regular intervals.  

“Miss?”  

Hailyn called out to Adelina.  

Adelina, who had her right palm and left foot on the ground, seemed lost in deep thought and didn’t think of changing her position even though quite some time had passed.  

• Who dared, without permission. 

Lexion’s voice lingered in Adelina’s ears, continuously replaying.  

‘Oh dear. That’s a bit… I guess I am a bit rudely pretty…’  

Adelina blushed, smiling foolishly to herself.  

“Miss? Please come to your senses.”  

Even after calling her several times, Adelina didn’t respond, so Hailyn crouched beside her to meet her gaze.  

“Ah. Hailyn…”  

“Though it’s impressive to hold one position for so long, please move.”

‘Ah? Was I? My wrist does feel a bit sore.’  

Adelina changed the direction of her palm and foot, turning her head towards Hailyn.  

“Hailyn. I guess… I’m pretty.”

She blinked rapidly, urging Hailyn to agree.  

“You don’t seem tired enough. I’ll double the intensity of the training.”

“Ugh… Hailyn…”  

Hailyn, with a reluctant expression, got up and sat on Adelina’s waist.  

+++

The next morning, just as Adelina finished her grooming, a maid from the Empress’s palace arrived.  

“I’ve come to deliver a message from Her Majesty the Empress to the Marquis’s daughter.”  

“Is that so? Please deliver it.”  

Adelina stood face-to-face with the maid she had already recognized.  

‘It’s that maid.’  

The maid she had seen in the mirror of the Empress’s palace bathroom.  

The same maid who had secretly informed her of “Leophris’s 11 Tricks” via a note.  

‘In the mirror, she was crying and clinging to Leophris. That scoundrel mercilessly kicked her stomach.’  

Due to the nature of the mirror, voices couldn’t be heard.  

But seeing such a beautiful woman from a decent family, who was even a maid in the Empress’s palace, abandon her pride and cling so desperately, Adelina could roughly guess the reason.  

“Her Majesty the Empress is unwell, so she said it would be difficult to continue the etiquette lessons.”  

“Oh dear. She needs to recover quickly.”  

Adelina feigned ignorance, furrowing her brows with concern.  

The maid’s expression didn’t particularly look worried.  

“She will recover soon.”  

Instead, the maid raised her head and smiled at Adelina.  

Then she placed her hand on her stomach.  

“In that case, it’s fortunate amidst the misfortune.”

Adelina looked at the maid’s hand and smiled softly.  

“Congratulations on the Duke’s safe return, Miss.”  

The maid, still with her hand on her stomach, bowed deeply to her.  

Her every action was quite relaxed yet cautious.  

Adelina stepped closer to the maid, clasping her hands and whispering so only she could hear.  

“Take good care of the child.”  

“Thank you. I wish you happiness too, Miss.”  

The maid whispered softly in Adelina’s ear before leaving the room.  

‘The Empress will soon rise. Will she attend my wedding?’  

Thanks to the maid whom Leophris had cruelly kicked, the Empress’s family line wouldn’t face extinction.

Adelina looked at the busy banquet palace preparing for the wedding with a light heart.  

+++

Just as Adelina was relieved that the Empress’s etiquette lessons were gone, Princess Isabelle invited her to the princess’s palace.  

There, besides Isabelle, several of her followers were already embroidering.  

“Princess, thank you for inviting me.”  

“Come, Marquis’s daughter. Sit here next to me.”  

Isabelle instructed Adelina to sit right beside her and ordered the maids to place a basket full of embroidery supplies in front of Adelina.  

“Though you may not know as a commoner from Ernst, in the empire, women embroider handkerchiefs for the men they love before marriage.”  

Isabelle took a handkerchief from the basket and placed it on Adelina’s palm.  

“Yes, I know. Thank you for pointing out something I hadn’t considered.”  

Adelina forced a wide smile.  

Hearing the stifled laughter of the followers, it seemed they already knew she wasn’t good at embroidery.  

‘I’d rather practice swordsmanship! Embroidery is too hard!’  

Petrus-style embroidery was quite three-dimensional.  

Using knots of thread to express the stamens and pistils of flowers and multiple threads to depict the texture of petals…  

Even after an hour of embroidering, completing a single flower the size of a thumb was a daunting task.  

Though the theory was well-ingrained in her mind, Adelina’s hands were still unskilled, making her progress slower than others.  

“I’ve prepared 10 handkerchiefs. Let’s embroider together.”  

Isabelle subtly showed Adelina the arduous labor in the basket.  

“Miss, you’ll have to work diligently to finish by the wedding.”  

“Normally, during the engagement period, there’s ample time to do it with care, but you’re quite pressed for time, Miss.”

“This is how it’s done, Miss. This is the very basic pattern.”  

Some of the followers showed their embroidery, looking at Adelina’s blank silk handkerchief.  

‘10 of them…’  

Adelina rubbed the fabric.  

The silk was tightly woven and slippery, making it difficult for the needle to penetrate.  

Damn it! I won’t be sleeping tonight.  

But I can’t lose in this power struggle with them!  

“Hahaha. I understand you ladies don’t have fiancés yet, but you’re already embroidering like this. You’re so well-prepared. If you leave embroidery for too long, the colors will fade. The handkerchiefs will turn yellow.”  

Adelina smiled at each woman and Isabelle, picking up the thread and needle.  

“What’s the point of embroidering 10 or 20 handkerchiefs if there’s no man to marry?”  

She threaded the needle, grumbling loudly as if talking to herself.  

+++

After two long hours of embroidering, Adelina finally completed one handkerchief.  

“It’s getting late. Finish the rest in your palace.”  

As dinner time approached, Isabelle, not wanting to dine with Adelina, put down her needle and glanced at Adelina’s handkerchief and hand.  

“Thank you, Princess.”  

Adelina gently placed the fairly well-embroidered handkerchief back into the basket.  

‘Hey! I don’t want to eat with you either!’  

She left the princess’s palace with a light step.  

Back in the silver palace, Adelina continued to embroider, tapping her shoulders.  

‘I’ll embroider the remaining nine with roses.’  

Well, as she keeps doing it, she’s getting a bit used to it.  

Since she’s doing it anyway, embroidering with roses, the symbol of Ernst, might please Lexion.  

“The thread isn’t going in well.”  

After dinner, she sat on the sofa, spreading out the embroidery.  

Hailyn had left

to pack her things, as she was returning to the Tiola Empire right after the wedding.  

“I’ve only done two so far…”  

Am I overworking myself lately? Why do my eyes keep closing already?  

Adelina continued to wet the thread with her saliva, trying to thread the needle.  

“What are you doing?”  

Lexion, entering from the terrace, sat beside her.