Obsessed by My Husband’s Loyal Dog

Leaving this place was a little unsettling, but Kallian pulled Elliope effortlessly into his arms without hesitation.

“If we leave like this…”

By now, Theodor had probably calmed down from his tantrum, and the knights and servants guarding the corridor had probably returned to their positions.

If they were to leave in this state and be seen, someone would surely become suspicious.

But Kallian remained calm as he carried her into a small adjoining room.

It was a room Theodor often used – either for his afternoon naps or for his affairs with Charlotte.

In one corner of the room was a narrow bed, a plush armchair and a bookcase, long untouched and now covered in layers of dust.

“Why here…?”

For a moment, Elliope wondered if Kallian intended to continue their entanglement in this very room.

Just then Kallian let out a short chuckle, as if he had read her thoughts.

“As much as I’d like to, there’s still a chance we could get caught, just like you said.”

“…….”

“But the thought of giving in to my wife’s shameless expectations is quite tempting… Makes me wonder if I should just do it anyway.”

Elliope’s face flushed uncontrollably.

Seeing this, Kallian planted a soft kiss on her forehead and whispered,

“Someday it wouldn’t be so bad to try it that way.”

“…Kallian.”

As she spoke, Kallian reached out and pressed a spot on the wall.

With a metallic clang, the dust-covered bookshelf shook and slowly shifted.

As it turned, it revealed a narrow, pitch-black passageway.

“…….”

“It’s one of the secret passages within the Grand Duke’s estate – just in case.”

“Ah.”

“Every building His Grace uses has at least one of these.”

Elliope suddenly remembered.

In her past life, when she had just become a Grand Duchess, Elliope had also been told of the existence of secret passageways in the Grand Duke’s palace.

However, both the Chief Steward and the Head Maid had been reluctant to reveal their exact locations to her.

As a result of their behaviour, the other servants were also reluctant to share information with her.

As a result, even though she was the Grand Duchess, she knew almost nothing about the secret passageways of the palace.

“You’ll find them easily.”

“Easy?”

“If you look closely at the walls, you’ll see small red marks indicating their locations.”

“…….”

Wouldn’t that make it a secret passage?

Before Elliope could voice her doubt, Kallian replied as if he could read her thoughts.

“His Grace never bothers to memorise the locations of the passages.”

“Ah.”

“His closest knights… did their best as his guards to ensure his safety.”

At first, Elliope thought that such an obvious marker would make the passageways easy to find. But then she remembered – she hadn’t known about them in her previous life, simply because no one had told her.

‘I didn’t even think to question the red marks on the walls then.’

The narrow corridor was cold and damp, with the musty smell of mould.

As soon as Kallian stepped inside, he reached out and felt along the wall, returning the bookshelf to its original position.

Even as they walked through the dim corridor, he never let Elliope down, carrying her tightly in his arms the whole way.

Without a single complaint of exhaustion, the man walked with a steady breath, occasionally burying his nose in Elliope’s crown or pressing his lips against it.

Each time he did so, a warm, fluttering sensation filled her chest.

Even without words, even without indulging in anything explicitly carnal, the sheer closeness between them felt overwhelmingly intimate.

When they finally reached the end of the corridor, she was a little disappointed that the walk had come to an end.

With ease, Kallian pushed open the heavy stone door, revealing a path that led directly into the dense forest behind the Grand Duke’s estate.

“I’ll get some clothes and a carriage.”

Having said that, Kallian carefully set Elliope down among the dense foliage, still wrapped in his cloak.

True to his word, he quickly returned and took her with him once more.

As they sat safely in the carriage on the way back to their lodgings, Elliope couldn’t help but notice the strangely tense atmosphere in the air.

***

It didn’t take long for the tension to become reality.

“Is that madman seriously planning to put the Viscount on trial?”

Elliope was no longer surprised.

From the beginning, Dylan, Sien and the other members of Kallian’s staff had never hidden their hatred for Theodor. Sometimes it seemed as if they didn’t even recognise Theodor as the true Grand Duke.

The only good news was that most of the citizens of the Grand Duchy seemed to share Sien’s opinion.

“Every time I go to the market, that’s all anyone talks about. When they find out I’m the viscount’s maid, they come right up to me and ask if the rumours are true!”

As she listened to Sien’s chatter, Elliope turned her gaze to the window.

For some reason, she couldn’t shake the thought that Theodor might actually go through with his plan.

Elliope knew Theodor all too well. She knew how foolish he became when his emotions got the better of him, and how he always managed to make the worst possible decisions when he was in a bad mood.

But in her past life, those mistakes had only occurred towards the end of his days. Now everything was happening much faster than she had expected.

What had Charlotte given him, and how much?

‘This is moving too quickly.’

It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing if Theodor made a mistake – but when that mistake involved Kallian, it was another matter entirely.

To make matters worse, the Imperial messenger who had summoned them had once again delayed responding, claiming that the Imperial Court had changed its position.

The summons had probably been a trap all along.

As Elliope gazed out of the window, her eyes suddenly caught sight of something.

A heavily guarded mansion stood in the distance, its security unusually tight, as if hiding something inside.

“That place is…?”

“Ah, that is the residence of the Seor Embassy.”

“Hasn’t the ambassador left yet?”

“It’s more like he can’t leave. With the current negative sentiment towards Seor in the Grand Duchy, it seems he’s staying in seclusion.”

Elliope quickly picked up on some strange details.

After all, this was an incident in which the Seor Crown Prince had been injured – so why was the Seor Embassy so silent?

‘And…’

The moment something clicked in her mind, Elliope spoke without hesitation.

“Prepare me for an outing.”

“You’re going out?”

“Yes. The viscount… is he inside?”

“I’ll go and see.”

Lately, Kallian had made a habit of letting Elliope know when he was going somewhere.

Since Kallian hadn’t mentioned anything today, Elliope assumed he was still in her quarters – but she asked anyway, just to be sure.

Soon Sien returned, practically dragging Kallian with him.

Despite the loud rumours spreading outside, Kallian looked at Elliope with a calm and collected demeanour.

Since that night in Theodor’s study, Kallian had become noticeably softer and gentler towards her.

He seemed completely content, as if he had finally achieved something he had long desired.

The cold, stoic knight of before was nowhere to be seen.

“You were looking for me, my lady.”

Kallian’s voice carried a hint of languid ease as he spoke.

Elliope held out her hand, but before she could fully extend it, Kallian quickly grabbed it and pulled her towards him.

“You have prepared to go out.”

“If you don’t mind, come with me.”

“Are you asking me out?”

“Well.”

She wanted to say that this wasn’t the time for something as leisurely as a date.

But for some reason she couldn’t bring herself to say it.

Kallian was oddly suited to this casual attitude. He was the kind of man who seemed untroubled by any battlefield or debate, as if no conflict could truly trouble him.

Still, Elliope had no intention of letting this situation pass without doing something about it.

“If calling it a date makes it easier… then fine.”

“…….”

“Come with me.”

It was the first time Elliope had ever pleaded so openly with Kallian.

For some reason, her cheeks felt warm.

Kallian’s eyes curved slightly in amusement.

Of course, that expression disappeared the moment they reached their destination.

“You said we were going on a date.”

At her request, Kallian had donned a hooded cloak to blend in with the crowd. Now he tilted his head as he stared at the embassy in front of them.

The Seor guards, their sharp eyes scanning their surroundings, stood stiffly, their shoulders squared as they watched the passers-by.

“I want to go inside.”