They were excited and kept chattering. Theo, a soldier who arrived a bit late due to having a very brief conversation with Blair, observed them from a distance. He pondered about his extraordinary superior who gave the outrageous order to monitor another man’s woman.

Cedric Fitzgerald.

He was a talent who appeared like a comet in the Eleanor Imperial Army one day. He had detailed information about the Litunia ships and was skilled in handling ships and the sea.

Before long, he played the most significant role in successfully fighting naval battles. As a maritime power, Litunia’s ships had unique characteristics specific to their country, and Cedric knew about them.

His way of talking carried a strong Eleanorrian accent, and he had great patriotism. He had a strong determination to win in war and return to his homeland. Additionally, due to his large stature and muscles, he was strong even in hand-to-hand combat.

The Emperor of Eleanor’s desire to end the war quickly manifested in exceptional promotions and rewards for the meritorious soldiers, and one of the beneficiaries was Cedric Fitzgerald.

Perhaps due to his imposing figure and reserved nature, he was someone who suited high positions well. Even among the soldiers of Eleanor, he stood out, partly due to his chiseled face. This made him both envied and admired by many, but it wasn’t easy to openly show dislike with the formidable Fitzgerald family backing him.

Theo continued his thoughts while maintaining a blank expression.

In fact, there was a fact known only to noble-born soldiers like himself. Cedric was actually an adopted son from the Fitzgerald family during the war.

Theo had met the original heir of the Fitzgerald family at a party where noble heirs gathered in his early days. The child with pale skin looked frail at first sight.

And one day on the battlefield, a strange man who had been appointed as his superior was bearing the emblem of the Fitzgerald family.

There were two possibilities. Either the heir had died, and they brought in an illegitimate or a relative of the family line, or they adopted someone with no blood ties as an heir. It was impossible to know which was true.

At that moment, one of the soldiers spoke up.

“…I’ve monitored a superior’s woman before.”

The man who spoke was Mark, a mercenary from the town. Theo also listened attentively to Mark’s voice.

“We had guards watching her all day in case she tried to escape. But do you know what happened in the end?”

“What happened?”

The soldiers inquired.

“He got tired of her after a month and switched to a new woman. And he told us to deal with that woman ourselves.”

Mark’s former superior said that when he married into a good family, his old lover started to bother him. Despite trying to break up with her, and even offering money, when the old lover wouldn’t let go, the superior told Mark’s group to handle the woman.

“So? Did you have some fun before killing her?”

Someone’s low-quality remarks made everyone chuckle. The laughter of the crowd drowned out what Mark said in response.

“…Ha,”

Theo spat a sarcastic laugh at their low standards.

On the battlefield, there were those who kindled patriotism but turned into troublemakers when they returned to the village. People like Mark belonged to that category. Perhaps his superior didn’t know he was one of them and had sent him to this mansion.

After the war ended, the world is now peaceful. His job was least needed at times like this. It was ironic that he was in the limelight when the world was in chaos.

There were always people who would make such low-quality jokes. But demanding punishment from his superior to that extent seemed too much. Anyway, it wasn’t something he deeply cared about.

* * *

“…Hooh,”

Having finished the laundry and entered the mansion, Blair let out a deep sigh. Unable to go outside, there was no way for her to know about her husband’s situation.

‘I hope there won’t be any men who will be wronged because of me now.’

She felt a sense of guilt as she moved. Blair shifted to the kitchen and started making a simple stew.

As she mechanically stirred the spoon, memories of her humiliation from the previous night kept coming back to mind.

He had certainly changed. While she had changed safely staying within the empire, there was no way he hadn’t changed after experiencing such a big incident. She knew nothing about the changed him. The only thing she was sure of was… to him, she was just an object of hatred now.

‘When Cedric returns… I’ll ask how my husband is doing.’

She only hoped to release her husband as promised. Of course, she didn’t trust his words at all.

Sighing, Blair began clearing away the dishes after finishing her meal. As she filled hot water to rinse the dishes, steam rose up, clouding her vision and reddening her eyes.

Suddenly, memories from three years ago came flooding back.

Ever since she knew her parents sold him, she hadn’t been in her right mind. She just hoped he could at least hang on to his life. She prayed to God every moment, begging not to kill him but to spare him. She had imagined him walking towards her with intact arms and legs hundreds and thousands of times. Their reunion was far different from what she had imagined, but nonetheless, the heavens granted her wish.

It was truly a sight so different from what she had expected. Her heart felt surprisingly cold as she thought back to last night.

Clunk. She placed the cleaned dishes on the towel. As the kitchen window creaked open, steam escaped through the sunlight.

The next morning, the mansion door opened slightly, and a basket of groceries was brought in. She wished they could bring the basket to the kitchen, but the attendants were not allowed inside the mansion. It seemed to be Cedric’s instruction.

Blair placed the heavy basket on the floor and dragged it into the kitchen.

The freshly butchered red meat had a good mix of fat and lean meat. The freshly harvested green vegetables seemed to have morning dew on them. The fruits were the same.

‘…Let’s grill only a small amount of meat and make jerky with the rest.’

It would be good to dry the fruits for long-term storage. Blair brought out a knife and started preparing the meat.

‘I don’t think he has the heart to kill me for now.’

Preparing jerky and dried fruits was necessary in case she would be confined longer.

‘Today, he sent a food basket, but who knows if a second one will come.’

If a new woman arrived, he might conveniently forget about keeping her confined.

The meat and fruits were neatly sliced and diced with a sharp knife. Blair spent the rest of the day turning most of the received ingredients into long-term preserved food.

Cedric returned to the Cavendish Mansion two days later.

2. The Man Who Comes and Goes as He Pleases

When Cedric found Blair again, it was in the wee hours when most people in Eleanor were fast asleep.

The bedroom door creaked open, and Cedric entered. When a sudden stranger burst into the dimly lit room, with only the candlestick on the bedside table illuminating, Blair, who was just about to fall asleep, froze in place.

“…Ah.”

Then, with a slight cough, she sat up from leaning on the head of the bed. Stepping onto the floor with small feet, the layers of lace attached to her white negligee cascaded down. Her taste in nightwear was extravagant.

Thunk.

Cedric wordlessly removed black leather gloves from his hands and dropped them on the bedside table. He scanned Blair from head to toe with indifferent eyes. Under his cold gaze, Blair instinctively examined her nightdress.

Even as Cedric removed his cloak and jacket, his gaze remained fixed on Blair.

Blair felt like a doll being judged. At the same time, she wondered if she had chosen an overly flashy nightdress. The wide lace draped over her shoulders and the ribbon in the center of her chest suddenly felt ostentatious.

He hadn’t visited the mansion yesterday.

‘I didn’t expect him to come today either, so I just put on whatever…’

In fact, it was her favorite nightwear. Blair absentmindedly clenched and released the hem of her nightdress with both hands.

‘But really… why does he always show up like this unexpectedly…?’

As the man’s massive frame entered the bedroom, it felt like the room shrank despite the spacious bedroom.

The cold-faced man briefly surveyed the room.

For three years, Blair, who had been busy with business affairs, considered her bed a priority. To ensure a good night’s sleep, she surrounded it with thick velvet curtains to keep out the sunlight and made her bedding with the finest fabrics and lace obtained from abroad. She also decorated her dressing table with leftover ornaments.

Her husband’s room was located at the eastern end of the second floor, and his bedroom preferences were completely opposite to hers. He preferred to minimize items other than the bed in the bedroom.

As a tall man took a step closer, Blair’s shoulders tensed. The interior design preferences that had briefly dominated her mind about the couple’s bedroom decor flew far away.

“Are you okay?”

Cedric asked softly.

“……”

She wasn’t sure how to respond, so Blair just nodded slightly.

In the darkness, the eyes of the two met. Blair felt suffocated by Cedric’s gaze as he stared intently without saying a word. Clutching her delicate nightgown, she felt the fabric in her palm was too thin. Blair found it easier to fall asleep when wearing thin nightwear.

Cedric’s gaze lingered on her chest and waistline.

‘…Are we going to bed right away?’

Although there was a slight tension, it wasn’t unbearable. If it had been three years ago when she had a good relationship with Cedric, she would have been honest, but now their relationship was different. Above all, giving an answer like ‘I’m a little sore’ might make him think she was exaggerating and ruin her carefully laid plans.

If he came back again, she intended to inquire about her husband’s well-being. That was her plan.

Rustle. Thunk.

Cedric removed the cravat that was tightening his neck. As his neck felt lighter, glimpses of his solid chest muscles showed through the opened shirt.