Swallowing a sigh at his endless persistence, Belita slowly opened her eyes and looked at Rian. His eyes were filled with expectation, like an innocent child waiting for a wonderful gift.

Why was he suddenly so fixated on love? Just like an awkward child who had never received love before.

“Rian. ……I love you.”

“……!”

Rian’s face turned red again. It seemed like he must have eaten something strange today. Suddenly, he placed her hand on his chest, over his heart. Belita’s eyes widened at the violent pounding of Rian’s heart.

With his face still flushed, he grinned mischievously. Then, in a playful tone, he smoothly delivered a confession that may or may not have been sincere.

“I love my wife too. Of course, there’s nothing here yet, but I’ll tell you every day until this place is filled with love for you. So you should say it every day too. If we keep saying the words, real feelings might develop someday.”

Despite his casual words, Rian’s heart beat even more fiercely. It pounded so hard that she worried it might burst. And strangely, Belita’s heart began to beat faster too. Even though it was just empty words without a trace of real emotion, why did she feel this way?

“Oh, and you can only love me, not that bastard.”

That bastard is also you.

“Then I’ll only love you too.”

“……”

“Now, shall we share love with our bodies?”

“……”

His curved lips gently touched hers. Willingly accepting his kiss, Belita closed her eyes. She wasn’t sure if she would ever truly develop love for Rian, but for the first time, she felt a little flutter of excitement.

He pulled her waist close, and their joining parts began to burn passionately again, matching the intensity of their kiss. Was it because of the word “love”? His movements somehow felt tender. It wasn’t the first time she’d been in his arms, but today his embrace felt exceptionally comfortable.

As if intoxicated by the atmosphere, Rian’s hip movements were incredibly sensual. Making eye contact while being stimulated below was maddening. He gripped her b*ttocks tightly and pushed his already fully inserted c*ck even deeper. Then he whispered seductively.

“Squeeze tighter. As much as you love me.”

With eyes growing hazy, Belita embraced Rian’s neck. “Love” was truly a strange word. Even though she didn’t have an ounce of real feeling yet, just exchanging that word made him feel so comfortable to her.

For the first time, Belita revealed her honest emotions and surrendered her body to him. It was a strangely, maddeningly good night.

* * *

After several days of bright sunshine, the rainy season returned, and the sky poured down rain again. And Rian’s body was still possessed by the crazy beast. Perhaps she had grown accustomed to it, but the rain wasn’t so frightening anymore. Although the sound of thunder still made her skin crawl, just not having the added fear of his arrival made life bearable.

Watching the raindrops falling outside the window, Belita enjoyed tea alone. Having time to herself after so long was immensely satisfying and relaxing. After spending several days with him, her body was tired and exhausted, but they seemed to have grown much closer.

He still occasionally became petulant and glared over trivial matters, but since this behavior only appeared when he was jealous of his other personality, it was both absurd and amusing. But he was more affectionate than Grand Duke Rian, and it felt like they had become a real couple now, making her heart flutter.

The couple who had used separate rooms now shared a bed, ate together, and fell asleep together. Although it had started as a promise made for fun, Rian truly told her he loved her every day. As if he were completely immersed in this love game.

Even though she knew it wasn’t sincere, when he held her tenderly and whispered to her, her face would flush and her heart would race. To the point where she worried she might actually fall in love with this man.

“I wonder how much he’ll torment me tonight. Sigh……”

Despite her deep sigh, a subtle smile played on Belita’s lips. Suddenly remembering the previous night, her fair cheeks turned pink.

‘Squeeze tighter. As much as you love me.’

As if those words had been the trigger, that night had been even more intense. The memory of him biting and sucking on her body like a beast all night vividly flooded her mind.

“Goodness, what a beast.”

Even as she pouted, she was about to unconsciously look out the window to see when the beast who had gone out would return.

Knock, knock!

“Yes.”

“My lady.”

“What is it?”

“His Grace has arrived.”

“I understand. You may go.”

Belita’s face was strangely flushed as she hurriedly left the room. The butler, noticing her expression, had a slight smile on his lips. He had been worried about the masters who, despite being married for quite some time, not only used separate rooms but also acted like strangers. Now his mind was considerably lighter seeing how their relationship had improved to the point of merging their rooms.

“Please walk slowly, my lady, or you might fall.”

“Ah…. Don’t worry.”

Belita, her face reddening at the butler’s words, consciously slowed down her hurried steps. Then, a sudden thought darkened her expression.

As the person responsible for the Grand Duchy, he had quite a lot to do. He needed to tour the territory and meet with nobles. With all the other minor tasks, even ten bodies wouldn’t be enough for him. And after causing such a scene with the nobles who had been sharing those burdens, it was honestly no small problem.

Although he had told her not to worry, it was impossible not to. Due to the poor climate, the lives of the people in the Grand Duchy were not very prosperous. The frequent rains often rendered their hard agricultural work useless, and houses collapsing or rivers flooding were commonplace.

Each time, all restoration costs were covered by the Grand Duke’s household, but they couldn’t keep doing this forever. They could have asked the Emperor for help, but for some reason, Rian was reluctant to seek assistance from his brother.

At least the nobles who had gathered that day had been helping the Grand Duchy, so there hadn’t been any major issues so far. Of course, they each had their own desires, but they had been sharing not only funds but also Rian’s duties, so their help was quite substantial.

Despite their rudeness, the Grand Duchy desperately needed their help, so Grand Duke Rian had deliberately avoided pointing out their disrespectful words and actions. If he endured for just a moment, the lives of the people in the Grand Duchy would improve.

But now that even that support had turned its back, Rian might truly have to take responsibility for the people of the Grand Duchy all by himself. Feeling as if it were all her fault, Belita let out a soft sigh.

“Is greeting me so unpleasant that it makes you sigh?”

“Ah…. You’re back?”

“As you can see, I’ve returned safely.”

“Mmph!”

Belita jumped in surprise at Rian’s sudden kiss while the butler was standing right beside them with wide open eyes. She noticed the butler tactfully looking aside, but she struggled to push Rian away. However, there was no way she could overcome the strength of a man who was determined to use his power.

After satisfying his desire fully, Rian handed over his clothes as if nothing had happened and said,

“I’m hungry, let’s eat.”

“I’ll prepare it right away.”

The butler, seemingly pleased by the sight of his two masters, smiled slightly before quickly responding and leaving the scene. Seeing the butler’s retreating figure with twitching shoulders, Belita frowned deeply and growled quietly.

“What do you think you’re doing!”

“Don’t tempt me. I’m a bit tired right now.”

“I’m not tempting you!”

“Should we have a drink tonight?”

“……Huh?”

Although he was smiling, the dark circles under his eyes suggested he’d had some trouble. Finally noticing Rian’s condition, Belita closed her mouth and followed him up to the room.

As he loosened his tie and let out a deep sigh, Belita’s eyes reflected worry and sympathy. It seemed his outing hadn’t gone well.

“Rian.”

“Don’t worry. Don’t you know who I am?”

“……”

“I’m going to meet my brother soon.”

“What?”

Meet the Emperor?

“The people of the Grand Duchy are also imperial citizens, so my brother should help too. I don’t know why this bastard has been stubbornly trying to handle everything alone until now.”

For a moment, Belita’s mind became confused. For unknown reasons, Grand Duke Rian absolutely refused to ask the Emperor for help. But if he woke up and found out about this…?

His Grace would hate it…….

As she was debating whether to stop him or not, Rian wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her forehead. Then he said tenderly,

“I know what that little head of yours is worrying about, but you just worry about me. I’ll take care of everything.”