Chapter 13. Verification Process

* * *

I thought getting rid of Paris would be the end of it, but I was wrong. Not long after, Helen showed up.

“Oh no.”

It was when I arrived at the salon to try on dresses. A staff member looked out the window and gasped.

Following their gaze, I frowned.

“Helen?”

Helen Blanche was just getting out of a carriage with the help of a knight. After sending Paris, now Helen had come.

I frowned at this deliberate interference. With so much meddling, it almost felt like marrying Aster would be the best way to spite the Blanche family.

“They’re really determined.”

Aster, having spotted Helen, muttered through gritted teeth. His cold eyes showed his anger.

Anyone could see that the siblings were conspiring to interrupt our date. It seemed like it was Helen’s plan.

If I had listened to Helen more carefully, this wouldn’t have happened. No, even if I had properly refused, those siblings wouldn’t have taken it well.

They were impossible to reason with.

I sighed and said,

“What should we do? Meeting her will be exhausting.”

“This won’t do.”

“Shall we leave?”

“No. I have an idea.”

Aster, looking determined, suddenly pushed me into the wardrobe. Before I could react, he followed me in, filling the space.

Even though it was a wardrobe for dresses, it was too cramped for two people. Pressing my back against the space behind the hanging clothes, Aster whispered with one hand on the wall and the other on my shoulder.

“We should stay like this until she leaves.”

“Your idea was to hide?”

“For now, yes.”

“What a brilliant plan.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at the somewhat cute plan. I had thought he was planning a confrontation with Helen, but instead, he suggested hiding in the wardrobe.

It felt like going back to childhood. I used to hide in wardrobes to avoid attendants, especially when I didn’t want to attend certain parties.

I whispered, holding onto his shoulder,

“You must have hidden in wardrobes often. You’re quite good at it.”

“Someone once told me there’s no place like a wardrobe when you want to be alone.”

“Oh, that’s interesting. I used to do that often as a child too.”

It seemed people thought alike. Aster lowered his head, and I felt a tickling sensation on my forehead.

His gaze seemed to land on the top of my head, and he murmured with his chin resting on it.

“Indeed, it is interesting.”

With that, our conversation stopped. A subtle tension filled the air, or was it just my imagination?

Just as I was about to speak, feeling uneasy,

“Um, Aster.”

“Shh. She’s coming.”

At Aster’s signal, the door burst open, and Helen’s sharp voice echoed.

“Camilla! I came to help you with your dress… huh? Where is she?”

“Lady Blanche, this is inappropriate. You can’t barge in without a reservation….”

“Where are they? Why are you here alone?”

“Huh? Where did they go?”

“Could they have run away already?”

Helen’s voice, filled with suspicion, came closer as she opened and closed the dressing room doors. My heart pounded, fearing she might open our wardrobe. Fortunately, Helen’s search skills were poor.

“Ugh, nothing’s going right today!”

Helen, after a cursory glance around, stormed out in frustration.

It seemed she couldn’t imagine that two grown adults would be hiding in a wardrobe. I hadn’t expected Aster to suggest hiding either.

I sighed in relief once Helen’s presence completely disappeared.

Dealing with those troublesome siblings was a hassle even in broad daylight. I tapped Aster’s chest with my hand.

“Honestly, tell me. Your relationship with your family is really bad, isn’t it?”

“Saying it’s bad would be an understatement.”

Aster let out a self-deprecating laugh. It seemed to carry a lot of meaning. Unable to bear the heavy atmosphere, I spoke up.

“Let’s go out for now.”

Then I gently pushed against his chest, but he grabbed my hand. As I looked up in surprise, something soft brushed against my lips and then slowly pulled away.

“……!”

As if that slow movement was a prelude, our lips met again. I felt the heat of his hand as it stroked the back of my neck.

Being in such a confined and enclosed space, there was nowhere to escape. His body pressed closely against mine, and I could feel his hardened manhood between his firm thighs.

“Ah.”

A moan escaped my lips, and he swallowed it with another kiss. His hand slid down my exposed back.

As a shiver ran through me, my dress began to slip down. We had hidden while I was trying on a dress, so it was loose-fitting.

Aster’s hand caught the dress in the darkness, which only made it more stimulating, causing me to squirm.

As I reacted, he began to knead the fabric of the dress he was holding. At the same time, he rubbed between my legs, making my body heat up.

“Ah… mmph!”

The lewd act in the cramped space made my mind foggy. It was hard to move in such a small area.

I forgot my sense of duty and pressed against the wall, eagerly chasing his lips. Even now, I wished he would invade the inside of my dress.

“Aster…”

At my voice, Aster stopped kissing and lightly stroked my earlobe. His hot breath tickled my nose. It seemed I wasn’t the only one feeling heated.

“I apologize.”

Aster, who pounced like a beast, spoke politely. Then he started to straighten my clothes with his hands.

“Phew.”

His hot breath made me feel his warmth. Then he led me outside and said,

“I felt it would be a shame to just leave.”

“…Is this why we hid?”

“I can’t deny it.”

Aster chuckled. I fanned my flushed face with my hand.

What should I do with this man?

With temptations coming as naturally as breathing, I was at risk of surrendering in less than a month, maybe even a week. If we weren’t in this place, I might have completely given in.

As I was calming down, Aster spoke.

“This seems a bit suspicious.”

“What does?”

“I thought Paris was a coincidence, but with Helen showing up, it seems strange.”

“Indeed. How did they know we were coming here?”

It was odd. It had been quiet until I met Aster, and then Paris and Helen appeared. It was as if they knew where we were headed.

I muttered with a sudden sense of unease.

“Could they have put a tracking device on us? Or maybe a listening device.”

“It wouldn’t be surprising if those two did.”

Aster’s assessment of the siblings was harsh but accurate. I quickly nodded in agreement.

“Indeed.”

“We need to check. Right now.”

With that, Aster’s fingers gently touched my cheek. I looked up, wondering what he meant by checking, and felt tense under his intense gaze.

Having just kissed, I could only interpret his words in one way. Like a body search, for example.

His fingers were already sliding smoothly along my neckline. The spot he touched sent shivers down my spine.

Somehow, his idea of checking seemed very dangerous, and my voice trembled involuntarily.

“H-here?”

* * *

A little later.

I watched as knights inspected the carriage and various items with magical devices. They had arrived just minutes after Aster called them.

The knights, dressed in the Red Knight Order uniforms, searched the carriage with serious expressions as if on an important mission.

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, I muttered.

“Is this what you meant by checking?”

I hadn’t expected him to summon the Red Knight Order for this.

And more than that, why didn’t he just say so instead of making me misunderstand with those looks and gestures?

It seemed Aster really liked physical contact. He kept touching me whenever we were alone.

Embarrassed by my misunderstanding, I couldn’t hide my curt tone. Aster looked at me curiously and said,

“I thought it would be reassuring to check with my own eyes.”

“Is that so.”

He’s really thorough!

As I glared and fanned myself, Aster chuckled. Whether he knew what he was doing or was just laughing, he had a knack for playing with people’s emotions.

Just then, a knight approached and reported.

“Vice Commander, we found something suspicious under the carriage floor.”

“This is…”

“It appears to be a tracking device. We detected a mana wave centered on this item.”

“Of course.”

Aster muttered coldly, looking at the object that appeared to be a simple magnet but was actually a tracking device.

I was also surprised to see an actual tracking device.

“Oh my. It really was there.”

Have these siblings lost their minds? How could they do something like this so nonchalantly?

I was appalled by Helen and Paris’s behavior. How much did they want to keep tabs on us to plant a tracking device?

They must have tampered with the carriage Aster would use to monitor his every move.

I was wondering how they knew our location so well, and it turned out they were using such a trick.

It was fortunate that Aster checked thoroughly; otherwise, we might have missed it.

Aster crushed the tracking device in his hand, ensuring it was no longer functional, and put it in his pocket.

“I apologize. I didn’t expect them to use such a crude trick.”

“At least they didn’t loosen the carriage wheels.”

“I always check the wheels for that reason.”