The golden bracelet in her hand sparkled. The two knights startled and patted their bodies in shock. 

 “H-how did you!” 

 “It was definitely in my pocket. When……” 

 Claire watched the flustered knights without erasing her smile. She even swayed the bracelet held between her thumb and index finger as if showing it off. 

 “Your Highness, please return it. That bracelet belongs to us.” 

 “How do I know this is yours?” 

 “……If you found it in the snow, then yes, I dropped it. There couldn’t be such a bracelet in the forest in the first place.” 

 Hamel stepped forward and spoke. Claire turned her head sharply and approached Cedric. 

 “Finders keepers, right?” 

 “Your Highness. That is an important item to us.” 

 “And?” 

 Claire blinked. Her golden eyes, identical to the Emperor’s, curved lovingly. 

 “If it’s important to you, I should return it?” 

 She tilted her head to the side. 

 “Why should I?” 

 Then she smiled even more brightly, as if indicating she had no intention of returning it. 

 Cedric found himself laughing at Claire’s behavior. She said she would check earlier, and it seems she got the answer she wanted. 

 Vahalla and Kaven looked at each other, racking their brains to understand the situation. Soon, as if unable to find the answer, they turned their heads simultaneously to look at Cedric. 

 He shrugged lightly, and the two’s gazes, having failed to get an answer, naturally turned to Claire. 

 Seeing the gentle smile blooming on her lips, Cedric leaned back in his chair. 

 “Your Highness, please tell the Grand Duchess. It’s not good to detain us like this. It’s just a bracelet bestowed by His Majesty.” 

 “Acting like you’d be in trouble if this disappeared while saying it’s just a bracelet. You lie well.” 

 Claire put the golden bracelet on her wrist and smiled broadly. 

 “Y-Your Highness.” 

 Unlike before, the knights’ faces had turned pale and looked somewhat anxious. The reason Claire could talk with the divine beast must be because of the bracelet. 

 An interested expression crossed Cedric’s face. 

 Though she had told them where the divine beast was, those who saw the bracelet didn’t leave the room. 

 It had been strange from when they sent the divine beast with the knights. Though a divine beast wouldn’t listen to anyone but its master, hadn’t only the knights come? 

 ‘That bracelet must be a restraint needed to control the divine beast.’ 

 If it had nothing to do with the divine beast, they wouldn’t look like they’d lost their country. 

 “Then you two can return to the capital without the divine beast.” 

 “Th-that……! We cannot return without the bracelet.” 

They bit their lips at Cedric’s words. 

 “That’s your problem. It has nothing to do with me.” 

 At his words, the door opened and knights rushed in. Then they dragged Hamel and Calom out. 

 “Wife.” 

 Cedric turned his chair to look at Claire. She was staring at the direction where the knights had been dragged away. 

 He stood from his seat and stood behind Claire. When he leaned down and placed his hands on the desk, her body trembled slightly. 

 “Your Highness?” 

 She turned her head slightly to look behind her, meeting his gaze. Cedric tucked her hair behind her ear with his finger and traced her jawline. 

 “……Y-Your Highness?” 

 His throat went dry at her trembling voice. 

 ‘This wasn’t my intention.’ 

 His desire rose looking at her shaking golden eyes. Her round, bewildered expression was so lovely it made him thirsty. 

 The desire to see more of her lovely expressions welled up. 

 “Ah.” 

 Gone was her earlier confidence as she shrank like a shy maiden. His gaze moved from her rising and falling chest to her reddened ears. 

 “Don’t we have something to discuss?” 

 “That…… huu.” 

 Claire, trembling and unable to speak properly at his touch, looked like a small herbivore before a predator. 

 He had a talent for drawing out desires he had forgotten about. 

 “J-just…… let’s talk……” 

 Please. 

 Cedric nodded at her trembling voice. Yet his fingers didn’t stop, and just as they were about to pass her nape, his brow furrowed deeply. 

 “Wife.” 

 Teeth marks clearly imprinted on her snow-white skin. 

 With one hand, he completely pushed back her hair and examined her exposed nape. 

 He hated when someone left marks on what was his. When he firmly pressed the traces where sharp beast-like teeth had dug in with his finger, Claire let out a moan. 

 “……nh.” 

 “I see something unfamiliar.” 

 Judging by the still-present pain, it seemed quite recent. 

 “How should I take finding such marks where they shouldn’t be? Wife, please say something.” 

 Cedric immediately recognized what those marks were. The only one who would dare touch Claire’s body besides himself would be that beast. 

 ‘I thought imprinting wasn’t possible.’ 

 What should he do with this beast. It must have tried to persuade Claire to make a contract before leaving the mansion. 

 ‘Or perhaps Claire suggested the contract.’ 

 Either way, he didn’t like it. 

 “Well, I decided to make a contract with Zeno…… Ah!” 

 She hurriedly explained. Cedric was quietly trying to listen but lowered his face. 

 “You did.” 

 And? Cedric repeated her trailing words. 

 Flutter flutter. Her body trembled again. When he exhaled, his hot breath hit her soft skin and returned to him. 

 Her chest rose and fell at her sweet scent mixed with a subtle floral fragrance. 

 “I didn’t know…… the contract had to be made like this.” 

 She barely managed to speak while catching her breath. Thinking he would let her go now, she turned her head back to look at him holding her. 

 “What’s done is done, what can we do about it?” 

 “Then, do you understand?” 

 Her golden eyes sparkled with hope. If they hadn’t shone like that, he might have let it go. 

 But he couldn’t overlook having another’s marks carved into her delicate neck while wearing such an innocent face. 

 “Wife, unfortunately…” 

 It seems I’m not that generous a person. 

 When he murmured lowly, Claire’s eyes grew wide. 

 He learned through Claire that he was strong in jealousy and possessiveness. 

 First, he needed to deal with what bothered him. He lowered his head and buried his face in her nape. 

 He pressed his lips to where the teeth marks were. Though he couldn’t see her expression because of this, he could imagine what her face looked like. 

 The sensation of holding her, her scent, came back vividly and he took a deep breath. 

 “Y-Your Highness.” 

 Claire tried to pull her body away, but he held her firmly from behind. 

 “Forgive me, wife. I can’t leave another’s marks as they are.” 

 “Huu.” 

 Cedric buried his face deeper into the nape of Claire, who was barely breathing in his arms. 

 When he gently sucked on the thin, soft skin, a soft moan escaped between her lips. 

 “Nh.” 

 He parted his lips and hoped the marks on her nape would disappear. His hot breath intertwined with desire, making his thirst surge. 

 Slowly pulling away, he laughed lowly while looking at Claire’s reddened ears. 

 Red petals remained over the teeth marks. Cedric lightly kissed Claire’s nape with a satisfied face and spoke. 

 “Now it looks better.” 

 Cedric lightly stroked her straight collarbone with the hand that had been gently rubbing her nape. 

 His thick knuckles protruded as his fingers moved toward her beautifully angled shoulders, then traced down her forearm to reach her wrist. 

 Cedric tapped the bracelet with his finger. 

 “Now then, shall we continue our earlier conversation? Wife? What do you plan to get from the Emperor with this bracelet?” 

 He laughed lowly while watching Claire holding her breath. Then he strode to stand in front of her. 

 ‘……Dangerous.’ 

 He couldn’t take his eyes off her still-reddened cheeks. 

 Finally, Cedric placed his hand on her flushed cheek. The warm temperature felt in his palm kept making him smile. Claire lightly stroked her nape and looked up at him. 

 “Hmm, it seems Father can’t make contracts with divine beasts.” 

 She carefully removed his hand. Then she went to sit on the sofa while subtly avoiding his gaze. 

 Claire tried to cool her heated cheeks. She placed both hands on her cheeks and rolled her eyes while continuing to speak. 

 ‘……To think she looks cute even in this situation.’ 

 He laughed inwardly, certain he was completely smitten.