Of course he’ll be fine. That was so long ago. Kais doesn’t even remember it anyway.

Nodding his head, Worklan continued walking down the corridor with heavy footsteps.

* * *

When he turned at the end of the corridor, a long staircase leading up to the third floor appeared.

Now he just needed to climb these stairs, but his legs, which should have moved more quickly, gradually slowed and then stopped completely in front of the first step, as if shackled.

Kais looked down at his immovable legs, then raised his head to look up at the tall staircase blocking his path.

This was the first time he had stood here since Drake’s death. He thought that after eight years had passed and he had thoroughly erased all traces of Drake in his own way, he would now be able to climb these stairs without any problem.

But when he actually stood here, his vision wavered dizzily, and his throat tightened with tension.

Kais swallowed dry saliva with his parched throat and reminded himself:

He was no longer the fifteen-year-old who had been dragged by his father and confined to the office. Nor was he the helpless boy who had to drag his heavy feet up these stairs when his father called, forced to watch vulgar prostitutes clinging to his father.

Now he was the master of this castle. Everything in this castle was his, and there was no place in this castle he couldn’t go. And what was up there now was not his father embracing n*ked women and rolling around like a beast, but his dazzlingly beautiful bride.

“Hoo……”

Kais exhaled a long breath after taking a deep inhale. Then, instead of his immovable legs, he stretched out his long arm and grabbed the railing. When he pulled on the firmly gripped railing, his feet, which had been rooted to the spot, were uprooted and placed on the bottom step of the staircase.

Kais placed one foot, then another, on the stairs like that.

The higher he climbed, the heavier his legs became, and a cool sensation settled like a crust on the back of his neck. It felt like Drake’s ghost was standing up there, pushing him back, telling him never to come up here.

But Kais didn’t stop. He couldn’t kneel before his father’s ghost now.

Somehow he would climb these stairs to the end, erase the dirty stain of his father’s traces that remained in his mind, and embrace the lovely bride who would be waiting for him.

The tendons in his arm bulged as he pulled on the railing. Beads of sweat that had formed on his smooth forehead flowed down past his temples to below his chin.

Climbing one step, then another like that, when he finally reached the top of the stairs, his two ankles, which had felt as heavy as if dragging iron weights, suddenly lightened.

Breathing heavily, Kais glared fiercely at the long corridor stretching before him and the Duke’s room visible at its end.

He stood there until his breath, which had risen to his chin, subsided, then wiped away the remaining sweat on his forehead with a long exhale. Then he turned and opened the door near the stairs.

“Eek, you startled me!”

Only when he heard Lariella’s shriek did Kais realize he hadn’t knocked on the door before opening it. His mind, jumbled with excitement and tension, had forgotten even the courtesy he should have observed.

He should have immediately apologized, but surprised by Lariella’s appearance as soon as he opened the door, he forgot to do even that.

Whatever she had been trying to do, Lariella stood in front of the door in a half-crouched position, like a stealthy cat. Her peculiar bride’s posture might have been amusing, but he froze stiffly without laughing because of her attire.

Lariella wore only a flimsy nightgown over her n*ked body without any undergarments, her luscious hair falling down to her b*ttocks.

Her round, plump br*asts with prominently er*ect n*pples, and the soft curves flowing from her dipped waist to her full b*ttocks were precariously visible through the thin fabric.

Lariella in her wedding dress had been beautiful, but greater beauty was hidden inside the dress. From the moment he first saw Lariella until now, he had imagined her n*ked body countless times, but this far exceeded his imagination.

Add to that her round eyes wide with surprise, her flushed cheeks, and her small hand gently pressing her swollen left br*ast. There wasn’t a single part of her that wasn’t pretty.

But…… something felt wrong.

How desperately he had waited for this moment, her real n*ked body now before his eyes after undressing her hundreds of times in his mind, and now he could freely bite and suck on her to his heart’s content without worrying about anyone’s eyes—yet somehow, he couldn’t move a finger.

Moreover, her revealing nightgown, which had initially caught his eye, and her n*ked body faintly visible through it were somehow becoming increasingly irritating.

Kais felt a throbbing at the back of his head and his mood gradually souring. His stomach turned queasy, and nausea rose in his throat. This was similar to how he felt when seeing women who would desperately pounce on him at any opportunity.

What’s going on?

The person in front of him wasn’t one of those women but Lariella. She was the very one whose voice alone had endlessly aroused him. She was his lovely bride with whom he had finally pledged to become husband and wife before God today, after waiting patiently for months.

He had never felt this way whether seeing her from afar, up close, walking together, or dining together—why now…… and why especially now……

Kais was extremely perplexed. But he couldn’t reveal this state to Lariella, who was standing right in front of him with sparkling eyes.

He tried hard to hide his confusion and speak in his usual voice.

“May I come in?”

“Ah…… I’m sorry. Please come in.”

Lariella quickly stepped aside and lowered her long eyelashes.

It was a demure and pretty gesture, but Kais had no leisure to give her his attention.

He had hoped things would improve once he entered, but the situation was worsening. The fragrance wafting around the room turned his stomach, and he began to feel seasick, as if he had been on a ship all day.

Since he couldn’t just leave again, Kais strode past Lariella toward the bed. He knew she was following behind him, but he couldn’t bear to turn around. He knew how terrible his expression must look without needing to see it in a mirror.

Looking only forward, Kais walked steadily to the bedside and reluctantly removed his robe while watching Lariella climb onto the bed and lie down straight out of the corner of his eye.

Now there was only one thing he could rely on: his lower region that would get aroused just from hearing her voice. If only that remained the same as usual, he might somehow manage.

But after feeling below his nightclothes with his last hope, Kais’s expression became even more miserable. His lower region, which would swell at all times when Lariella was around and always put him in difficult situations, was quiet. Too quiet. Even when he prodded it with yearning touches, there was still no response.

Worklan had warned him not to get too excited to avoid the misfortune of finishing before entering, but this situation called for some excitement, any excitement at all.

Perhaps he was too shocked by seeing Lariella’s appearance for the first time?

Thinking her overly seductive appearance might be the problem, Kais turned off the lamp and climbed onto the bed. But even the darkness, which adequately concealed her appearance, provided no help.

Then perhaps kissing her might improve things?

Recalling those moist and soft lips they had shared with a vow, Kais moved closer to her.

But unlike during the wedding ceremony, the closer he got to her, the more nauseous he felt. By the time their lips were about to meet, the urge to vomit became unbearable. Feeling like he might retch right onto her lips if he stayed any longer, Kais could only briefly touch his lips to hers before pulling away.

To make matters worse, his head felt like it would split open, so he finally declared surrender.

“You must be tired, let’s go to sleep. Good night.”

After painfully delivering these words, Kais turned his back to her and lay down on the opposite side. His stomach churned so violently that he could neither face her nor lie straight looking at the ceiling.

He thought his condition might improve after lying down to rest, but even until dawn, his state hadn’t improved at all.

After spending the night clutching his churning stomach and pounding head, Kais fled Lariella’s room like an escapee when the wooden shutters began to turn grayish white.

It had been a terrible night.

The first night was far more painful and bitter than the wound inside his lip that he had bitten on the terrace.