Chapter 74

“We’re going to test him.”

Juan’s eyes were sharp as he agreed with Agnita’s words.

“There are a total of 24 tests that Agnita and I have created. If he passes all these tests, we will acknowledge him as a ‘lover.'”

Juan explained that the 24 test items included height and health, family relationships, personality and drinking habits, thievery or gambling tendencies, interpersonal relationships, and things he could do for Meia when there were no attendants or maids, such as brushing her hair, giving her a facial massage, washing her feet and hands, and so on.

“What kind of test is this, as if you’re recruiting a servant!”

Quini held his head, grateful that Helena, the gardener and spiritist of the Hatzbellua Ducal House, wasn’t present. If she had been, she would have joined in with Agnita and Juan, ensuring Theodore couldn’t come near Meia.

“Did you test the Crown Prince too?”

“Since he was the fiancé, there were 48 tests. About 20 of those were created by Helena. For the record, the Crown Prince didn’t pass the tests.”

Agnita followed up on Juan’s words.

“After the engagement with the Crown Prince was called off, the number of tests for a fiancé increased to 56.”

Quini sighed, recalling the strange incidents that happened once with the Crown Prince at the Ducal House, and resignedly said,

“You guys won’t live long like this. Honestly, where else would you find someone with conditions as good as Grand Duke?”

“We’re not looking at conditions.”

“We’re just checking if he’s willing to lay down his life for Lady Meia.”

“The Grand Duke truly likes  Lady Meia.”

“That’s that, and tests are tests.”

Quini felt sorry for Theodore.

*

During dinner, Diana, who had been hit hard by Meia, eventually shed tears. Theodore, even more upset by the sight, wanted to tell Lady Nordic to go back home but instead directed her to return to the guest room to hold her accountable for embezzlement.

Escorting Meia, Theodore walked with her to his office, engaging in conversation.

“That was very generous of you.”

Theodore said with a still-unsettled expression.

Even though she hadn’t acted generously at all, it seemed Theodore saw it as quite generous.

The sight of him fuming and huffing was so endearing that Meia looked up at him with a satisfied gaze.

“They’re people who will disappear anyway, so I don’t want to waste my emotions on them. Please calm your angry expression, Grand Duke. You look better when you smile.”

Theodore’s face, which had been angry, softened into a smile.

The way he changed with just her words was incredibly cute. 

Can a man be this adorable?

Looking down at the constantly smiling Meia, Theodore wrapped his arms around her slender waist and lifted her.

In an instant, their eyes met at the same level.

“I was really angry.”

His low, deep voice brushed her ear and pierced her heart.

The hand trailing up her waist made her whole body shiver. She didn’t dislike it, but the sudden unfamiliar sensation made Meia squirm slightly in Theodore’s embrace.

At that moment, maids coming around the corner of the hallway saw Theodore and Meia and quickly retreated, disappearing from view.

A short sigh escaped through Meia’s teeth. She could already predict what stories would spread among the servants.

“Please put me down, Grand Duke.”

“Understood.”

Theodore, holding her with his right arm, reached out with his left hand to turn the handle of the door right in front of them.

He entered the empty room and gently set her down from his embrace.

“I’ve put you down.”

He said playfully, lifting the corners of his mouth.

Why did we suddenly come into the room? 

His sudden, unexpected actions made her nervous.

And the memory of the kiss in the drawing room floated to the surface. Her cheeks naturally turned red.

“You shouldn’t hug me in the hallway. What would the servants think if they saw?”

“That’s why I came into an empty room.”

Seeing his face with sparkling eyes, as if asking for praise, only made her laugh.

There was no other unleashed black retriever. Suddenly, she remembered something her father had once said.

<Dogs are animals with strong loyalty. They are unconditionally loyal to their master. But an unleashed dog becomes obsessive.>

He had said that loyalty and obsession were just a hair’s breadth apart. She didn’t know why her father’s words came to mind.

But what mattered now was that they were alone in this room.

Before she knew it, her heart was beating fast, just like his heart right next to her.

Their eyes met. As she touched his cheek, he kissed her palm, showing a playful smile.

She could predict what he was going to do. She needed to tell him not to, to go to the office and work, but the words wouldn’t come out.

Theodore lightly wrapped his hand around Meia’s neck.

Then, coming close enough to feel his breath, he lightly kissed her red lips. The small kisses continued repeatedly.

His hands moved slowly, caressing her back as they wandered.

Their breaths brushed against each other’s noses, and their lips parted and met again like taking a bite of an apple, exchanging breaths and warmth.

Meia’s body trembled from the intense, thrilling sensation. Each time their lips, which had felt soft and light at first, parted and came together again, it grew hotter.

It felt very different from the first kiss. It felt like a deep thirst, as if they desperately wanted each other.

“Lady Meia…”

“……Yes.”

“I will never forget today. I want to make it a Florence anniversary.”

“An anniversary?”

Theodore intended to remember today’s date and make it a lifelong anniversary.

People say that once you start taking drugs, you can’t stop. Honestly, Theodore thought that was because they were pathetic people with no self-control. But now he could understand why they lost control.

Her lips are a sweet drug to me. No, they’re a divine gift that is even more addictive.

“It’s the anniversary of the divine gift coming to me.”

You are such an existence to me.

Theodore smiled gently as he watched Meia tilt her head in curiosity.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Because I want to kiss you again right now.”

His natural remark made Meia’s ears turn red, and she screamed inwardly.

“We need to go to the office!”

“You don’t dislike kissing me… do you?”

His expression and voice, smiling with his eyes, made Meia show her flustered emotions.

“Do you really have to ask?”

Theodore nodded with a smirk.

“I enjoyed it very much. Did you, Lady Meia?”

Embarrassed by his question, she couldn’t answer, so she just nodded.

It was the first time this had happened. From the moment she was born, she had lived controlling her emotions. Showing emotions was like revealing weaknesses, so whether angry, happy, sad, or embarrassed, she showed no emotions. That’s what she had learned until now. She had been confident she would never express emotions in her life.

But since meeting Theodore, her emotions kept coming out. The rules she had learned and had to follow were crumbling little by little. Her body and mind weren’t following her thoughts.

No matter how calmly she thought about it, she was gradually changing after meeting him.

As the emotions hidden deep in her heart broke through the walls and came out, Meia found joy and satisfaction in spending time with Theodore. Even when she asked herself repeatedly what these feelings were, the answer was always the same. She didn’t want to be apart from him.

Theodore revealed his deep, dark eyes and kissed Meia’s forehead.

The touch of his lips on her forehead was soft and warm. An indescribable emotion swirled inside her.

Meia had memorized the families, positions, financial situations, and family relationships of people as the flower of the social world. Things she had to memorize even if she wasn’t curious. So she never thought of being curious about anyone.

But in her mind, a voice whispered that she wanted to know more about him. What flowers and trees he liked, what books he usually read, what his favorite color was—she became curious about every little thing.

“I love you, Lady.”

His breath, which was getting closer, overlapped with Meia’s lips. Unlike the first time, the heat that came into her mouth without hesitation wrapped around them endlessly.

“My lips hurt.”

His kisses showed no sign of stopping. When she said it hurt, he stopped. When it ended, Theodore looked incredibly embarrassed. If she hadn’t said it hurt, she thought she would have been completely devoured.

‘Wow, this wasn’t a black retriever; it was a black wolf.’

“Did everything go well when you left?”

“I have something to tell you.”

“Please tell me.”

“I got an important confession from Roman.”

“What did he confess?”

“He confessed that human traffickers have been coming and going in the Florence territory. But…”

His expression turned complicated.

“I received a report that the ship Roman mentioned suddenly sank due to a storm.”

It smelled suspicious. As soon as Roman and one of the human traffickers were caught, the ship sank?

“Was the sinking really a natural disaster by chance?”

“I don’t think it was a coincidence either. But…”

“Do you know who the owner of the ship is?”

“It’s Baron Lakia. He’s a vassal of the Florence Ducal House.”

“Can you find out what the ship mainly brought in?”

“It imported wine and fabric and exported salt to other empires.”

Deep in thought, Meia spoke to Theodore.

“That Lupatz or Luinz, is he still alive?”

“Yes, he’s alive. But he hasn’t confessed like Roman. However, there was something strange.”

Deep in thought, Theodore continued.

“He keeps showing his tongue.”

“His tongue?”

“At first, I thought he was sticking his tongue out to insult us, but his eyes looked so aggrieved that I just nodded. He nodded back, saying he understood, and when I asked questions, he only answered ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ And he kept sticking his tongue out.”

Meia had a strong intuition that there was something to this.

“Can I meet him?”

“It’s a very shabby and dirty place.”

Theodore didn’t want to guide Meia to such a dirty place.

“The kidnapped people were trapped in a magical space. If he’s sticking his tongue out and appealing with his eyes as if he’s aggrieved, it might be related to magic.”

“Then could you wait for a moment?”