Chapter 1 – Gambling Failure? Success? (Part 3)

Unlike the leisurely Duke Keallad who sat down, Ellerdin hesitated and sat in front of him.

Being inside a closed space after being in an open area made her feel a bit calmer.

‘He must be the Duke, right?’

A pure doubt arose.

She hadn’t seen him properly earlier because she was in a rush, but now, sitting down and looking at Duke Keallad closely, he didn’t look like someone cursed by the devil at all.

Among people with brown or black hair, Duke Keallad, with his silver hair, stood out anywhere with his beauty.

Under his thick eyebrows were sharp eyes and red pupils, a high nose, and under his sharp jawline, dense muscles could be seen.

His collarbone protruded through his loosely worn shirt.

To Ellerdin, who had only seen the Earl and the Baron until now, Duke Keallad felt like a completely new existence.

As she stared at him blankly, his red pupils quickly looked at her.

Startled by the eye contact, Ellerdin stiffened her shoulders.

‘Get a grip. There’s a reason you came here.’

Ellerdin lightly shook her head to clear her mind.

Looking at Duke Keallad’s indifferent gaze, Ellerdin opened her mouth.

“I know how to break your curse.”

“……Curse, you say.”

Duke Keallad’s red pupils stared intently at Ellerdin.

From a certain day, his ruined vision couldn’t show him things properly.

The obvious fact that the sky is blue and the grass is green was now hard to remember.

Fernan lightly looked around.

The surroundings still appeared black.

Objects like chairs and doors were distinguishable with red stripes, but the problem was that people also looked the same.

He could see a small, hunched red silhouette trembling.

Since he couldn’t see the appearance clearly, it was difficult to assess the person’s condition.

‘Doesn’t matter who it is.’

Whoever this person was, they undoubtedly came to him hoping for something.

This wasn’t the person he wanted to meet.

The Duke sighed inwardly.

The reason he, who was stuck in the North, came to this cathedral almost daily was to fix this damned vision.

His once clear vision had deteriorated and never returned. But there was one possible way to fix it.

‘Is this method really right?’

The Duke sighed inwardly.

The reason he, the Duke, appeared in the same place so often that rumors spread was to meet the Saintess.

As someone who hears the voice of God, he hoped the Saintess, who detests devils, would come to him, but she hadn’t appeared yet.

‘I thought I might find a clue if I caught the Saintess… but anyway.’

The Duke quietly rested his chin on his hand.

His eyes turned to Ellerdin.

‘……Interesting.’

Despite not being the person he wanted, he wasn’t very annoyed.

Ironically, he found her voice quite pretty.

“What do you want? Money? Fame? Power? Speak up. You even mentioned the word ‘curse,’ which is a taboo for me.”

Duke Keallad leaned his upper body towards Ellerdin with a faint smile.

‘What would she say this time?’

In fact, she wasn’t the first to approach him like this.

Although most people avoided him, there were occasionally those who risked their lives to come to him because they wanted something.

‘This person must be the same as them.’

“…….”

Ellerdin leaned back and mumbled with her lips.

When she tried to speak, the words didn’t come out easily. She turned her head slightly away from the Duke, who was smiling brightly.

“……Please propose to me.”

“What?”

The Duke asked back, dumbfounded, at the completely unexpected words.

However, Ellerdin’s unwavering appearance didn’t seem like a joke.

At her boldness, the Duke chuckled and eventually burst into laughter, leaning back.

“Hahaha!”

“I’m serious! Please consider it seriously.”

“Oh… I’m sorry. It was too funny. But…….”

Keallad asked playfully, his eyes twinkling.

“What if I don’t want the curse to be lifted?”

“What?”

This time, Ellerdin asked back with a dumbfounded expression.

She never expected that he might not want the curse lifted.

Ellerdin’s pupils shook violently.

She had come all this way hoping for this, but if she was sent back now, everything would be over.

Soon, the Earl would hear that she had moved outside and come to catch her.

Ellerdin pressed her trembling fingertips and began to speak rapidly.

“I’m not asking you to live with me forever. Just maintain a marital relationship with me for three years.”

Three years would be enough to prevent the Earl from doubting the marriage, and it wouldn’t be a burdensome period for the Duke either.

“I promise not to be noticeable or offend you. I will manage the estate perfectly. I will give you everything you want during that time. I will do anything. Please… I don’t want to go back there.”

Although her last words were almost a whisper, they were clear to the Duke.

He wondered why she was so desperate. He was curious.

The Duke fell into thought for a moment.

He thought of what benefits he could  gain from taking this woman as his wife.

‘There’s no way she can lift the curse… Ah, if it’s known that I’ve married a human, the Saintess might come.’

If the Saintess came, it would be a significant gain.

A quiet stillness flowed, and Ellerdin bit her lip anxiously.

If this didn’t work, she was thinking of revealing that she was a half-blood mermaid.

It might repeat the tragedy her mother faced, but it seemed better than going back there.

“All right.”

However, for some reason, the Duke nodded and answered lightly.

Ellerdin gasped and looked up at him.

“Really?”

“I don’t say things twice. Let’s draft the contract now.”

The Duke conjured paper and a pen out of thin air.

Ellerdin inwardly gasped at the magic performed with a single gesture.

Using magic without a mana stone or tool.

He truly wasn’t called cursed by the devil for nothing.

“Please write it for me. I can’t see well.”

The Duke handed the contract and pen to Ellerdin.

She hesitated but took the pen.

‘I’ve never heard that he couldn’t see. Is he testing me? Or has the past changed?’

As Ellerdin didn’t move the pen, the Duke guessed the reason and spoke.

“Writing simple text is not a problem, but writing within specific boundaries like documents or contracts is a bit difficult when you can’t see. It’s not dangerous, so don’t worry.”

Although the Duke seemed to have misunderstood something, now wasn’t the time to clear it up.

Since quite some time had passed since she left the Earl’s mansion, Ellerdin hurriedly began to write.

The contract stated that while the Duke and Ellerdin maintained a contractual marriage for three years, Ellerdin would do everything the Duke wanted.

After finishing the contract, the Duke smiled and asked.

“The contract is done. Do you have anything else to say?”

Ellerdin opened her mouth as if wanting to say something. She wasn’t sure if she should say it. But she would regret it if she didn’t speak now.

She tightly grasped her trembling hands.

“I have a request…….”

Duke Keallad looked at her intently as if urging her to speak.

“I will do everything well, so please don’t hit me.”

At the absurd request, the Duke’s eyebrows furrowed.

Not seeing his expression, Ellerdin hesitated for a moment and then spoke again.

“And please don’t throw things at me. If you must starve me, make it only for two days……. And don’t… No, never mind. I’ll do well in bed too. So please keep the contract.”

Just as the Duke was about to ask what she meant, someone burst through the door with a bang.

“Ellerdin!”

Earl Pure, panting with rage, ran to Ellerdin and grabbed her hair as soon as he saw her.

“I told you not to go outside! An important person is coming to take you tomorrow, and now I have no choice but to punish you!”

The Earl raised his hand as if to strike her.

At that moment, the Duke grabbed his arm firmly.

Earl Pure looked up irritably, then gasped and stepped back.

“……Duke Keallad.”

“It’s been a while, Earl Pure.”

As Ellerdin stood still, accustomed to the Earl’s beating, the Duke naturally stood in front of her.

Even when sitting, his frame was large, but standing up, his body completely blocked her view.

The imposing presence of his 191cm frame was extraordinary.

The Earl flinched and glared fiercely at Ellerdin.

“Let’s talk at home.”

As the Pure Earl reached out towards Ellerdin, the Duke grabbed his arm.

“It’s good that you’re here, Earl.”

Leaving the bewildered Earl and Ellerdin, Duke Keallad knelt on one knee before her.

He took a ring out from his magical inventory space and placed it on her ring finger, saying,

“Ellerdin Pure, will you marry me?”

Ellerdin, who never imagined that Duke Keallad would act so immediately, looked at him in surprise.

The Earl was completely frozen at the proposal scene.

Ellerdin glanced at the Earl and answered in a trembling voice.

“Yes.”

As soon as she answered, the Duke stood up and whispered in her ear.

“The situation seemed urgent… I’ll give you a better ring later.”

Ellerdin checked the ring on her ring finger. The pink diamond was sparkling brightly.

‘Better than this? What could be better to this person?’