“Ugh, ahh.”

Jean swallowed a groan as the pain tore through his flesh.

Slowly, he unbuttoned his shirt to look at the black dragon scales that had grown over his heart.

He tried to reach out and remove the scales, but they didn’t budge, firmly attached to his flesh.

There were already five of them.

Since his coming-of-age ceremony, a black dragon scale had emerged every year on his birthday.

Five scales were now attached to his heart, shining like an ugly life form.

The scale that had emerged a month ago was lighter in color compared to the others. It would probably become as dark and hard as the others over time.

And just as it had been until now, it would surely take root in his heart and rage to devour him.

The silver-blue eyes looking down at the black scales were like darkness.

It felt like being trapped in a vast prison without a single point of light.

“How long do you think that will last? You must have felt it too, when the dragon’s power first manifested? That you couldn’t control that power. Isn’t that why you’ve been wandering battlefields until now?”

“I’m not just acting like I know everything—I do know everything. At least more than you do. And I’m also the only one who can help you.”

Jean recalled what Simonetta had said. She had assured him she could help him.

Her whisper was sweet like futile hope.

So it must be poison.

Seeing how the words she uttered were already trying to take root in his mind.

Even knowing it was hopeless, he couldn’t shake off the lingering thought of “maybe…”

‘Has the moment come when I must drink from the poisoned chalice, knowing full well what it is?’

Jean reached out and pressed firmly on his heart.

Realizing it was where Simonetta’s cheek had touched, he quickly withdrew his hand in embarrassment.

He knew well that human warmth was futile. That’s why he had never allowed anyone close to him until now.

He trusted no one except the Black Knights belonging to Reushden.

The woman who introduced herself as Simonetta was no exception.

The only reason he didn’t kill Simonetta was because she slightly piqued his interest.

“You should look forward to it. Despite appearances, I’m an excellent merchant. You’ll definitely end up making a deal with me.”

His lips twisted into a cold sneer as he recalled Simonetta leaving the study with those confident words.

“The Duchess of Roxburgh made a public proposal.”

It was completely unexpected.

They had never met before…

A public proposal, of all things.

Wait, come to think of it, there was exactly one time when she had seen the Duchess of Roxburgh. No, back then, it was the young heiress of Roxburgh.

And she had seen that heiress at none other than the carriage accident scene where the misfortune of the Roxburgh ducal family began.

‘Back then, she was in a terrible state, barely clinging to life… It seems she fortunately survived.’

Jean smirked for a moment. How ironic that he would feel sympathy for the young heiress, given his own situation.

“But I really don’t understand. Why me of all people…”

Jean’s expression suddenly darkened.

‘Could she possibly know that I was at the scene of the accident?’

No, that’s impossible.

When Jean helped the young heiress, she was completely unconscious. If she had known, she would have certainly come looking for him long before now.

Jean sighed softly, recalling the rumors about the Roxburgh heiress that he couldn’t help but hear.

Because of that accident, the young heiress became an orphan and inherited the title, becoming a duchess.

Although she was the sole owner of a family with wealth and power that anyone would covet, not a single nobleman proposed to her.

This was because the accident had turned the young duchess into an ugly monster with scars covering half her face and body.

‘The duchess who became an outcast in high society must have been good prey for greedy nobles.’

It was only natural that such a powerless and young heiress would become a target for assassination.

Rumors said she had narrowly escaped death numerous times from the constant assassination attempts.

The last assassination attempt was said to have happened two months ago, which meant she had been suffering from constant death threats for ten years.

‘Yet she managed to survive somehow.’

An impressive will to live.

“How interesting. Two women suddenly appearing.”

Jean had good intuition. It was partly innate, but this was clearly the animal instinct of the dragon flowing in his blood.

And right now, that instinct was warning him.

“I smell danger. Something’s suspicious.”

But he had no intention of running away. If he wanted to, k*lling the woman would be easy at any time.

So it seemed fine to watch and wait for just a little while.

* * *

“My lady, my lady!”

Roen, sitting in her study, looked up at the voice of her nanny Emma.

“Emma, what is it?”

“I brought some tea and snacks. You didn’t seem to have had a proper dinner.”

Emma appeared worried about her, as she had been sitting motionless in her private archives for hours without rest since returning from the Reushden mansion.

“Thank you. I was just getting hungry.”

Putting a crispy baked biscuit in her mouth, her mood improved considerably.

“Did something happen? Cecil said you visited the Reushden ducal mansion. Did you perhaps experience something unpleasant there…?”

“Why would you think that?”

Roen looked at Emma while lifting a steaming cup of tea.

“Well, the rumors say that. That he’s handsome but so cold-blooded you couldn’t draw a drop of blood if you stabbed him. And they say he’s spent so much time on battlefields that his manner toward ladies is incredibly rude. So I was worried he might have treated you harshly…”

Emma mentioned the rumors while gauging Roen’s reaction. Roen couldn’t help but smile at how Emma emphasized his handsomeness.

“Emma. Are you actually asking if the Duke appeared as crazy as the rumors suggest?”

Emma’s face reddened instantly. It seemed Roen had hit the mark.

“Well, yes. Were the rumors true?”

“Hmm, half true and half false, I’d say. He is devilishly handsome, but not completely insane. He seemed several times more dangerous than that, though.”

Remembering Jean’s cold eyes as he choked her neck, Roen clenched her fist.

He was more dangerous than she had expected.

He seemed to have no hesitation in k*lling anyone who displeased him.

He wasn’t someone who killed out of madness—he was a cruel man who killed with a sound mind.

“What happened? No, first tell me why you went to the ducal mansion in the first place.”

A week ago, Emma had been surprised when Roen made a public proposal to the Duke of Reushden, with whom she had no previous connection, but she hadn’t asked any questions.

However, today, after hearing from Cecil that Roen had gone to the Reushden ducal mansion without any preparation, she decided she couldn’t let it pass.

She needed to know. It was clear that something was happening to her mistress.

“You must have heard from Cecil? That I met the Duke in the Recluse’s Forest a month ago and fell in love with him at first sight.”

“Are you asking me to believe that story?”

Emma sighed.

She had cared for her mistress from the moment she was born, for twenty years now.

In some ways, she prided herself on knowing Roen better than her own daughter, Cecil.

Emma had taken care of her mistress with all her heart and soul for that long.

She could tell her mistress’s emotions from the slightest expressions and tone of voice.

And now she was being asked to believe that her mistress had fallen in love at first sight?

There was clearly something more going on, but her mistress was holding back. That made her even more anxious.

“Then would you care to explain the wound on your neck? I believe I saw the same wound a month ago.”

At Emma’s observation, Roen touched her neck and sighed softly.

It seemed she couldn’t hide it any longer.

“The Duke of Reushden did this.”

“Ah, I thought as much. But why would you make a public proposal to marry such a madman? What are you thinking?”

Emma trembled with anger. She looked like she wanted to do the same to the man who had choked her mistress.

Seeing this, Roen smiled warmly.

“Only you, Emma. Only you get this angry about my affairs.”

“Is that all you have to say? I’d like to scratch that supposedly handsome face of his with my nails. So he can never charm women with that face again. Now tell me, what were you thinking when you made that public proposal?”

The smile that had appeared on Roen’s lips disappeared. She then looked at Emma with a serious expression.

She was gauging how much of the truth to tell.

“My plan to marry the Duke of Reushden is sincere. And it’s true that I went to the ducal mansion to learn more about him.”

Emma looked genuinely surprised at Roen’s answer.

She had always thought that someday a marriage partner would appear for her mistress. But she never imagined it would be a madman who had tried to kill her mistress twice by choking her.

Emma couldn’t understand why her mistress had made such a decision.

“Are you serious? Do you really consider the Duke of Reushden husband material?”

“I think I have to. Because I discovered the secret he’s been hiding all this time.”

“What secret could possibly make you want to marry him?”

Emma bit her lips nervously.

Roen hesitated again.

She wasn’t sure if it was right to hastily reveal the truth when Jean Reushden hadn’t yet clearly agreed to make a deal with her.

But Roen decided to tell the truth.

“I saw dragon scales on his heart.”