Elliope looked up at Theodor with a cold expression on her face. Noticing her gaze, Theodor applied more pressure to the finger resting on her lips. As her lips softened and gave way under the pressure, Theodor licked his lower lip lightly, watching her closely. 

“Are you saying you wouldn’t even take a sip of wine from me?” 

Elliope slowly looked away from the red liquid. The wine glass was already in front of her, and she could clearly smell the strong scent of alcohol wafting from it. 

“If you don’t like it, maybe you’d prefer the snacks over there. Hmm?” 

“…”

“Your precious husband left you to starve and then made matters worse by recklessly attacking Nahir.” 

Theodor continued, pressing her even harder. 

“If you want me to fix this, you’re going to have to please me a little, all right?” 

Theodor tilted the wine glass in Elliope’s direction. When she remained silent, the wine began to drip from the glass, sliding down her lips and chin, slowly falling drop by drop onto her chest. Theodor noticed, but didn’t stop tilting the glass. In fact, he seemed ready to pour the entire glass of wine over her face if he could.

“Drink.”

Once again, Elliope felt her mind swirl with anger. The urge to scream that someone like him didn’t deserve to be a duke rose in her throat. But instead she closed her eyes, parted her lips and took a single sip of the wine.

She felt it trickle down her thin, pale neck, the skin of her throat trembling as it moved. Theodor’s smile deepened as it lingered on his lips. The moment he let go of the glass… 

“…!” 

Clink! After swallowing the single sip of wine, Elliope coldly knocked the glass away. The sound of the glass shattering against the wall echoed loudly through the waiting room. If anyone had passed by outside, the noise would have been enough to make them jump in surprise.

But no one came running. It was as if someone had bitten them on purpose.

“You must be satisfied now, whining like a child for just that.”

“…”

Elliope’s hand, which had knocked the wine glass away, began to swell and blush. Theodor’s eyes darkened for a moment. His hand, which had come closer as if to grab Elliope’s hair, tightened around her throat instead. Elliope gritted her teeth.

“Right. If you’re going to drink wine, you should have something to eat.”

Elliope narrowed her eyes. 

She had expected Theodor to get angry, as he usually did. She thought he would grab her by the hair and throw her against the wall, as he had done before when she threw the wine glass. But for some inexplicable reason, Theodor just smiled gently, his hand repeatedly brushing across Elliope’s face. His grip on her neck tightened, pulling her head closer. 

“Come here, Your Highness. I recommend this cheese.” 

As he spoke, Theodor brought a thin slice of cheese and pressed it to her lips. 

“…”

A familiar sensation washed over her. Heat gradually spread from her lower body and with it came an unbearable itch. When she opened her mouth, the strong scent of wine overwhelmed her senses, so strong that it was difficult to discern the original taste. Slowly, she raised her hand and watched as her fingertips turned red at an alarming rate. At that moment, Elliope bit down hard on the inside of her mouth. 

“Your Highness.” 

She had bitten too hard and blood began to flow. Seeing this, Theodor grabbed her. 

Slap! 

Elliope used all her strength to push his hand away. But Theodor stubbornly reached out again and grabbed her chin. Elliope closed her eyes and let out a hollow laugh, as if in disbelief.

“Ha ha.”

The sharp shock hit the back of her head as strongly as the itching sensation that was burning her body. How could this be?

‘The man who told me to die like a stone woman.’

The same man who, while saying that, was rolling around with other women and ruining himself. And now he’s using drug.

The words “become a concubine”, which were not only meant to insult her and Kallian, but were said sincerely, sparked anger in her mind.

As the anger continued to bubble in her head, it began to be replaced by excitement. Her skin felt unbearably itchy, especially between her thighs, which she could barely stand.

As she closed her eyes, a voice that now made her sick to her stomach crept into her ears.

“See? You should have stopped playing hard to get.”

“……”

“You just have to let me use you once. Isn’t that right?”

Still, she had no intention of giving in to this man.

If anything, she would rather take an aphrodisiac at his funeral and roll around with Kallian again than ever get involved with this man in such a way.

In that case, she would rather…

Just as Elliope, still with her eyes closed, was about to bite down hard on her own tongue, a rough, thin hand forcefully entered her mouth.

“Ugh!”

Theodor’s face contorted in pain as he hastily jammed his fingers in to stop her. A moment later his voice erupted, thick with anger.

“Even with a face like that, you still don’t want me?”

“……”

“Even with that lewd, flushed face…!”

His voice sounded genuinely hurt, leaving Elliope completely stunned.

Did he really think she wanted this?

Did he really think she would beg, plead, desperately ask him to have s*x with her?

‘Just like in my past life?’

It was absurd.

The woman who had once entered his bedroom wearing nothing but a thin negligee had died with him the day he died.

Elliope gritted her teeth at Theodor’s fingers.

If she could at least bite them off, it might bring her some small measure of satisfaction.

“Kghh!”

Despite biting down with all his might, Theodor did not pull his hand away. His face contorted in pain, but he refused to back down. Instead, he used the moment to slam her against the wall.

Thud!

As the back of her head hit the hard surface, Elliope shook her head violently.

She wanted to push him away, but the moment she put her hands on his body to do so, she had no idea how reckless she would end up being.

Cold sweat ran down her brow.

“Do you hate me that much? Hm?”

“Ghh…!”

“You hate the idea of lying with me so much that you’d rather bite off your own tongue and die?”

Theodor, breathless with excitement, placed his hand on her neck.

Then he pulled the other hand away from between her teeth and pressed down hard with both hands.

Her throat tightened rapidly.

Her vision flickered quickly.

“If you hate it so much…!”

Her breath came in ragged gasps.

Elliope let out a strained chuckle between her shallow, rasping breaths.

An unbearable itch crawled between her fingers, making it impossible to summon any strength in her hands.

Even as the drug burned through her veins, making her head boil and her skin feel as if it were on fire, what excited her most was not the heat coursing through her body – but the twisted expression on Theodor’s face and the fear in his voice.

‘…Kallian.’

Suddenly she thought of Kallian.

‘You said you would be my loyal dog.’

He had once begged her to take him with her wherever she went, but in the end he had gone to the Nahir Plains alone.

If she were to die like that…

Would he mourn her?

As thoughts of Kallian surfaced, a deep, aching sadness began to well up within her.

She didn’t know why, but the image of a little black puppy waiting endlessly for a master who would never return suddenly came to her mind.

But he was not a puppy – he was more like a massive wolfdog. A beast that shouldn’t be tied to a master, one that wouldn’t be surprised if it turned and tore its owner apart.

Memories flashed before her eyes like a lantern flickering out its last light – riding through the canyons with him, the time spent in the cabin, wandering through the carriage stations, the knights’ quarters and the bustling night market.

Even the moment he had whispered to her, telling her to do everything she had ever wanted.

‘So this is it.’

The moments of one’s life that people were supposed to see before death.

Remembering her time with Kallian, this life no longer seemed so unbearably cruel.

For a fleeting moment—she even felt happiness.

The only thing that disgusted her was the fact that she was dying like this – in front of Theodor, and worse, under the influence of an aphrodisiac.

‘…Honey.’

The title Kallian had told her never to use slipped quietly through her clenched teeth.

The moment Theodor flinched violently—

Bang!

A deafening roar filled Elliope’s ears. The sudden explosion of noise overwhelmed her senses.

“…Ha!”

“Your Excellency!”

“…No!”

The chaos of screams and shouts washed over her like waves, shaking her body with every moment.

Then, all at once, the pressure on her throat vanished.

Gasping, Elliope sucked in air greedily, coughing uncontrollably as her lungs burned from the sudden rush of air.

“Cough, cough, cough….”

The sound of something flying through the air, followed by urgent screams, rang out around them.

The pungent smell of alcohol filled the air – perhaps a wine bottle had been shattered.

But even in the midst of the chaos, her body burned with an unbearable itch. The heat poured out of her in ragged breaths.

Elliope curled up into a ball and let out a soft moan as she shivered.

Then, suddenly, someone grabbed her arm and pulled her up violently, lifting her into their arms.

For a brief moment, she instinctively tried to struggle – but the scent of wood surrounded her.

Strong arms and a firm chest held her close, and a trembling breath escaped her lips.

“My lady.”

It was only when a cold hand, chilled by the night air, brushed across her face, wiping the moisture from her eyes, that Elliope realised –

She had been crying.

Slowly she opened her eyes.

Kallian was looking down at her, his eyes piercing and cold as frost.

This realisation made her even sadder, and fresh tears streamed down her cheeks.

Without hesitation, Kallian wiped them away as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“…Kallian.”

“Yes. I’m here.”

“Honey.”

She saw Kallian bite down on his lip, his jaw clenching.

She stared at him blankly for a moment before planting a soft kiss on his chin.

Kallian let out a deep, heavy sigh.

“Honey.”

“…….”

“My body… it’s too hot.”

Dazed, she reached for his hand.

The moment she did, Kallian quickly unfastened the cloak draped over his shoulders and pulled it over her, completely covering her body and face.

‘Why…?’

As her thoughts drifted lazily, the frantic voices of others rang out around her.

“It’s the Viscountess, Your Excellency!”

“Let go of me! How dare you!”

“Please, restrain him! This is Viscount Elsen!”

“You cannot treat your vassal’s wife like this!”

“You fools! Do you even recognise me as your Grand Duke?”

“Restrain His Excellency!”

A cacophony of shouting and chaos filled the room, turning it into a battlefield of voices.