1.3

Julian’s unrestrained teasing was too much for a timid lady to bear. Shocked, Vanessa couldn’t move, held by Julian.

“Since there seems to be no other source of money, how about selling your body to me? I’ll treat you well.”

The thug’s hand slid between Vanessa’s b*ttocks. His thick fingers pressed gently on a sensitive spot, stimulating it through the wet fabric. The heat that blossomed like a spark from where he touched quickly enveloped Vanessa’s entire body. She had no time to discern whether it was shame, anger, or an inexplicable pleasure.

Slap!

Vanessa slapped Julian hard enough to make her palm sting. A bit of blood appeared on Julian’s lips, possibly from a cut inside his mouth. Even though they saw Julian getting hit, his comrades didn’t seem particularly surprised. They just watched with interest, like onlookers at a distant fire. Meanwhile, Vanessa trembled all over like a small bird in a panic.

“I thought it was a mutually satisfying deal, but if you don’t want it, there’s nothing I can do.”

“You, you insolent…”

“Insolent? You seem to be mistaken; you are a criminal now, not a noble Viscountess.”

Julian looked down at Vanessa and smiled coldly.

“I am not a wh*re! My body is not something trash like you can take at will!”

“Heh, you came to ask a favor from someone like me who would be bitten to death by a dog, since you have nowhere else to turn to. Aren’t you even prepared for that much?”

“…”

“Vanessa Cloet, your only son must be crying, waiting for your return. What makes your precious body so valuable that you can’t spare it?”

When Julian brought up her young son, Vanessa’s expression darkened rapidly. She hadn’t come to Julian merely to save her own life. If Vanessa didn’t survive, her son wouldn’t be safe either.

Though her sister-in-law Anna Spitzer was protecting her son, there wasn’t much time to spare. Her stepdaughter Miriam might find some excuse to drive Anna Spitzer out of the territory. Or she could stage an unfortunate accident to get rid of Anna. A woman who poisoned her father wouldn’t have any reason not to kill her aunt.

Vanessa recalled what her sister-in-law Anna had said when she secretly helped her escape from prison, avoiding people’s eyes. She had told Vanessa to use any means necessary to survive. Perhaps those means include offering her body to a man she barely knew.

Her mind went blank.

Vanessa bit her lip hard. Shamefully, she began to seriously consider Julian’s proposal.

Born as the third daughter of a poor Baron’s family, Vanessa couldn’t marry until she was nineteen because her father couldn’t provide a dowry. Fearing she would grow old and end up in a convent, leading a meaningless life, she rushed into marriage with an old Viscount thirty years her senior.

On their first night together, Vanessa lay on the bed like a corpse, waiting for the act to end. She became pregnant with a son from just one night together, and after that, Viscount Michael never asked Vanessa to share a bed again.

It was so long ago that she barely remembered, but the act hadn’t been unbearably painful. She just had to close her eyes and let him have her body.

However, there was also the possibility that this trashy mercenary would take her body and not keep his promise. In fact, it was highly likely.

Vanessa Cloet realized that coming to Julian had been a huge mistake. She had suffered enough insults from these lowlifes. The world was no longer a safe place for her, but Vanessa wanted to escape somewhere, anywhere.

As Vanessa tried to leave the tavern, passing by Julian, Max blocked her path.

“I’m as good a fighter as Julian. I’ll be your champion for half the price. In return, I’d like you to warm my bed tonight.”

Max grinned, showing a broken tooth. Faced with his repulsive face, Vanessa felt nauseous.

“Let her go. She won’t survive long anyway.”

Julian spat blood-tinged saliva on the floor and told Max.

On the road, hungry wolves roamed, bandit knights ran rampant, and soldiers tracking criminals could discover her. Vanessa would meet her end one way or another, whether she died on the road or was beheaded at the guillotine.

Beyond the stormy scenery, Vanessa’s precarious figure disappeared. The wooden door slammed shut in the wind, concluding the brief encounter with the uninvited guest.

Julian sent her away as if he wouldn’t regret it, but a belated sense of regret crept in. Julian sniffed his fingers, which had touched Vanessa’s private parts. He smelled the leather of a saddle, the scent of rain, and a faint hint of flesh hidden within.

For a mother, she had a remarkably firm backside. And her face, as shy as a virgin’s. What kind of expression would she make if he indulged in her beautiful body?

“Michael Cloet… I remember who he is now. Didn’t he lose two grown sons in the Holy War?”

Donnie clapped his hands as he spoke.

So many had lost children in the Holy War, yet Donnie remembered such trivial details. That was just like him.

Awakened from his thoughts, Julian recalled the fierce Holy War.

In the process of delivering the blade of judgment upon the heathens, some lost their children, others their fathers. And Julian lost the meaning of life. Or could it be said he lost it, because perhaps it never existed in the first place.

“Right. Because of that, Sir Michael struggled quite a bit to see another heir for the family. That woman, Vanessa, was probably his fourth marriage partner. No matter how respected a knight he was, he wasn’t fated to have a good wife. Dying on the battlefield would have been better than such a miserable death.”

Pierre clicked his tongue and spoke coldly.

“With such an amazing wife waiting at home, would he have wanted to die on the battlefield? To hold her one more time, he had to survive like a dog.”

Julian’s lips curled into a faint smile at Max’s crude joke.

After a round of chatter, they dragged their tired bodies to their respective rooms. Lying on the bed in the room closest to the stairs, Julian found it difficult to sleep. The occasional gust of wind rattled the window, and the sound of raindrops hitting the roof disturbed Julian’s mind.

If I chased after her now, could I catch her?

He might as well enjoy himself since he was going to die anyway. Why was he being so picky?

In Julian’s experience, noblewomen weren’t much different from other women. They pretended to be dignified and refined in public, but when alone, they often turned into seductresses. Fearing future trouble, he had rejected noblewomen’s requests for intimacy, but in Julian’s eyes, noblewomen were as lewd as common women from the streets.

She probably only had experience with her old husband, so why refuse a young and fit body like his? He could offer her an experience so amazing it would make her eyes pop.

Before long, Julian was consumed with thoughts of sleeping with Vanessa. He grabbed his er*ect member but soon let go. What he needed to quell his lust wasn’t m*sturbation but a living, breathing woman.

Creak. Creak.

The sound of rotten floorboards being crushed under someone’s feet reached his ears. The sound grew closer, coming from downstairs through the stairs. It was a faint sound that only someone light-footed or stealthy would make.

Who could it be?

The footsteps stopped at the door. Julian gripped the dagger under his pillow and turned to his side, pretending to sleep. He waited for the intruder to open the door and enter. Whether they were cowardly or cautious, the wait was long and tedious.

Just as he thought it might not be a bad idea to attack first and throw them off guard, the rusty hinges groaned, and the door opened. The intruder tiptoed into the room like a thief cat. They had approached quite closely but showed no sign of attacking. As if to check if he was asleep, they gently touched Julian’s shoulder.

This thief has some nerve. To dare target my purse.

Julian opened his eyes wide and lunged at the intruder. He twisted their arm behind their back and pinned them onto the bed. He thrust the dagger right next to the intruder’s face.

“Ugh, huh…”

At that moment, violet lightning flashed across the sky. Light seeped through the closed window frame, illuminating Vanessa’s terrified face.

Boom, crash!

With a thunderous roar that shook the earth, the room was plunged back into darkness.

Julian was dumbfounded by the unexpected person.

Why is she here?

As the strength left his grip, Vanessa took the opportunity to escape from Julian. She retreated as far back as possible, pressing herself against the wall as if to become one with it.

Julian silently placed the dagger on the table and lit a candle to illuminate the room. Beyond the flickering light, Vanessa’s figure emerged.

“What are you doing here?”

“…”

“Have you changed your mind?”

“…”

She was maddeningly silent. Julian anxiously shook his leg, keeping his gaze fixed on her.

He waited a long time, but Vanessa never met his eyes. However, she didn’t leave the room either. Vanessa had mustered the courage to return to Julian, but she couldn’t bring herself to say she would offer her body.

“If you stay like that, you’ll catch a cold.”

“I, I…”

Julian approached Vanessa and tried to take off her wet coat, but he was stopped by a small hand. Vanessa’s hand, wrapping around the back of Julian’s hand, was soft and cold. It was weak but hard to shake off.

Vanessa seemed unable to make up her mind.

“If you want to leave, go now.”

Of course, he had no intention of letting her go even if she wanted to leave. His lower body was so swollen it felt like it would burst through his pants.

Vanessa, as if making a decision, raised her head and met Julian’s gaze. Her eyes were sharp, like a taut bowstring. Julian felt his heart race for some reason.

“Swear to me you’ll keep your promise.”

“I’m not a knight, but what promise?”

“Then promise me. Fight as my champion in the trial by combat.”