[The Beast’s Day Was Hotter Than the Night]

It always rained on picnic days. It rained during carefully planned vacations too. And that vacation became her last. After that day, she no longer had parents to go on vacation with. That’s why she hated rainy days.

It always rained during all her important moments. Even after praying desperately for it not to rain and going to sleep, it would rain as if to mock her. And this time was no exception.

The noble ladies who had dressed up elaborately were chatting in small groups. However, she, the hostess, couldn’t join their conversations and only stared at the pouring rain. Watching Belita with worried eyes, Rian turned his attention back to the noble addressing him.

That’s when someone spoke to Belita.

“Grand Duchess, you seem to have lost weight since last time. Is something troubling you?”

“……What? Oh, no. I just haven’t been sleeping well.”

So it finally begins.

Glancing sideways, she saw Rian far away, absorbed in conversation with the nobles.

Though it seemed like a kind question, Belita brushed it off knowing full well the intent behind it. To endure this inevitably starting time, Belita only stared at the teacup in front of her. She chose the teacup this time merely to avoid the eyes desperately wanting to crush her.

If there was any consolation, all of Belita’s attention was now focused on Rian. Since last night something had felt unsettling, and sure enough, when morning came, it started raining.

Though it was still a light rain and the sky was quiet, Belita felt completely uneasy not knowing how this crazy weather might suddenly change. So now she was less concerned about the predatory gazes targeting her.

Please…… just don’t let there be thunder.

As she desperately prayed while glancing at the ominously darkening sky, another noble lady spoke up as if she had been waiting. And this time, it was the woman who held the strongest hostility toward Belita among them.

“My, did the Grand Duke keep you up all night…?”

At the woman’s absurd words, Belita raised her deliberately avoided gaze to look at her. It seemed she had been waiting for the right moment while unusually keeping quiet.

A woman openly mocking the Grand Ducal couple’s intimate night. Despite the woman’s overstepping remarks, a mere Countess daring to mock the Grand Duchess, Belita just kept her mouth shut. She knew that responding to each provocation from this woman who constantly picked fights would only make her a laughingstock.

“Oh my! Lady Ventum, how could you say such an absurd thing……”

“Ah….. I seem to have made a mistake. Of course, that couldn’t have happened. I apologize, Grand Duchess.”

The other ladies giggled at the two ladies’ words, which were like pouring oil on a fire. Glancing sideways again, Rian seemed completely absorbed in conversation with the nobles, discussing something serious.

Lady Ventum smiled brilliantly even while exaggeratedly bowing her head. She didn’t look sorry at all. A woman of outstanding beauty, elegant and beautiful enough to catch even other women’s eyes. Belita knew well why such a woman acted this way toward her.

A woman raised like a noble flower in a family that was both the Emperor’s closest confidant and leader of the nobles. This woman who had gotten everything she wanted had only one thing she couldn’t have — Rian, her husband.

How hurt must her pride have been when someone as insignificant as herself had snatched such a man? Though she had no desire to understand, it wasn’t particularly incomprehensible either.

While pretending to be polite on the surface, they subtly looked down on and crushed her, who had been a viscount’s daughter. And the level of mockery kept rising. Perhaps it was her own fault that they could be so rude. The low self-esteemed viscount’s daughter hadn’t learned how to deal with noble ladies of high status.

Still, she didn’t want to tell Rian about all this like a tattletale. These people were necessary for the Grand Duchy, and she didn’t want to cause discord because of herself. Above all, the biggest reason might have been that she wasn’t confident he would take her side. The trust between them, less than strangers, was only this much.

As a result, Belita had no choice but to endure helplessly. All she could do was hope this time would pass quickly. Her eyes met Rian’s as she glanced at him.

Did he hear? Or did he not? Maybe….. he’s pretending not to have heard.

Unusually, the topic changed quickly and the mocking gazes fell away. Belita deliberately stood up to fill even an empty plate. She could have called a servant, but she wanted to use this excuse to escape this place even briefly. After all, she never knew when the arrows would be aimed at her again.

Just as she was picking up an umbrella to leave the annex while trying to calm her burning cheeks, suddenly a terrible boom struck the building.

Rumble, CRASH—!

“Eek! Oh my, how startling. Really, this thunder is going to make me lose the baby!”

“Oh my, Lady Ventum, could you be…?”

“Oh, no, I’m not.”

“Come now, that’s not—”

The voices of people suddenly felt distant to Belita’s ears as she stood frozen. The explosion that burst next to her ear seemed to have deafened her. The fear gradually invading her mind buzzed like noise, and goosebumps rose all over her body. Her legs trembled and her heart beat wildly. Her face turned pale as if she might collapse at any moment.

That’s when someone grabbed her arm.

“Wife? Are you unwell?”

His tone was beyond sweet. However, his voice was so chilling that Belita’s hazy consciousness returned to clarity in an instant. As she creaked her neck to look up, she saw Rian looking down at her with concern in his eyes.

Oh…… Damn it.

His face was full of worry. But the corners of his mouth were curved upward, as if he was greeting her unexpectedly.

If he were the Grand Duke, he would never have looked at her with such concern. Had she not seen his indifferent expression countless times before? No, he wouldn’t have even come over to help her up. Above all, the goosebumps that erupted all over her body were proof enough. The fear he instilled in her was always the same.

As if reading her mind, he whispered in her ear, ‘You should have run away when you had the chance.’

“Belita, where are you going?”

As if his words were a gunshot, Belita pushed Rian’s hand away, threw down the umbrella she was holding, and bolted into the rain. Then, without looking back, she started to run.

“Oh, my. You’re quite fast.”

Rian picked up the umbrella she had dropped and chuckled leisurely as he watched Belita sprint away. But his eyes were filled with the tenacity of a predator determined not to lose its prey.

To catch his impudent wife, who had the audacity to run away without even making eye contact with her husband after all these days, Rian lifted her umbrella. He frowned at the delicate object in his hand. The lace-trimmed umbrella seemed to suit her, yet somehow didn’t.

The simple lace, devoid of any jewels, suddenly caught his eye.

The predator’s expression was relaxed as he set off to catch his prey. He was confident that he could catch her in less than half an hour, even if he walked. His heart pounded with excitement at the thought of this long-awaited game of hide-and-seek with her. She was a woman who made his heart race, a woman who became more and more intriguing the more he saw her.

‘This is why I can’t help but want to tease her.’

A wide smile spread across Rian’s face. He wondered where she could have hidden herself this time. As he thought about how he wouldn’t let her go all day if she showed him her frightened eyes, he was about to leave the annex when—

“Your Grace…?”

At the sound of someone confidently calling out to him, Rian frowned and turned his head. His gaze immediately fixed on Lady Ventum, as if he knew who she was just by her voice.

Lovia Minière Ventum. A woman like a poisonous mushroom, raised as the apple of her eye in a high-ranking noble family. That was the image Rian had of her.

The corner of Rian’s mouth, which had been expressionless as he acknowledged Lovia, twisted into a smirk. He couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of the woman, her ample bosom on full display, gazing at him seductively with a bright smile.

“Where are you going? We’re just about to start the meeting.”

At her words, Rian turned and scanned the faces of the nobles who were looking at him, one by one. The nobles gulped at the sight of Rian, who was exuding a completely different aura than before.

Rian, with Belita’s umbrella slung casually over his shoulder, gave them a faint smile and began to saunter around them. He resembled a ferocious predator choosing its next prey. The white lace umbrella, which seemed so out of place, strangely suited him.

“So, what was the topic for today again…?”

His pleasant voice flowed out, as sweet as honey. But for some reason, the nobles felt a chill run down their spines and exchanged uneasy glances.

“I’m sure you gentlemen have already discussed the funds for the Grand Duchy. As for the other matter, didn’t the Grand Duchess tell you? I specifically asked her to let you know. Don’t tell me the two of you still haven’t spoken?”

Rian let out a small chuckle at the woman’s attempt to drive a wedge between him and Belita by pretending to criticize her work ethic. Lovia pretended to brush her hair aside, further exposing her ample cleavage. Count Ventum’s brow twitched at the sight.

It was no secret that Lovia had once harbored passionate feelings for Rian. Count Ventum’s insides twisted with displeasure at the sight of his wife, who had never shown him such allure, flirting so openly. But he was in no position to say anything. If it weren’t for her father, Count Thorne, he wouldn’t even be able to keep his title as a Count.