God, she hated looking at him!

“If you’re a cultured gentleman, don’t say anything.”

“About what?”

“About anything!”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

“Hey! Stop playing around and just tell me where the inn is!”

Hungry and with a long way to go, Marienne finally shouted in the middle of the street, fed up with the man’s endless teasing.

Passersby avoided them, shocked by her embarrassing words.

“Ha, haha. Ahaha!”

As the man burst out laughing, Marienne thrust out her arm with a huff.

“Take it, hurry!”

The man obediently took Marienne’s arm as she was about to cry from frustration, and pointed to a restaurant.

“Let’s eat first.”

“Mr. Joseph Miller, I asked for your lodgings.”

“Not Seph, it’s Sh…… Josh. Alright. Alright. I’ll stop teasing. You look like you’re about to cry. Just take me to the restaurant. I’m hungry too. The inn isn’t far, I can go by myself.”

Marienne haughtily lifted her face, red with shame, and walked toward the restaurant. Deliberately ignoring the man’s snickering.

Thunder kept rumbling in her stomach.

As if trying to harmonize, the man’s laughter didn’t stop either.

Reaching the restaurant, Marienne curtseyed primly.

“Well then, goodbye. Thank you, Mr. Joseph Miller.”

“It’s Josh, Josh! Haha!”

“Seph or Josh! I’m so sick of this, really!”

As Marienne turned away in anger, the man hurriedly grabbed her.

“Let’s eat first. If I let you go like this, I feel like I’ll regret it for a long time. You don’t want that either.”

“Thank you for the offer, but I’ll decline. Well then.”

“Marienne.”

Marienne glared at the rude man who casually called her name.

“I don’t have any money. Since I saved your life, couldn’t you at least buy me a meal?”

Grrrrowl!

“Your hungry stomach is also making quite a fuss.”

“I regret to say, Mr. Miller, I won’t spend even a moment with you…… Eh? Your Grace……”

As the restaurant-tavern door opened, Nigel emerged with the Lion Knights.

Marienne quickly turned and buried her face in Josh Miller’s chest.

She didn’t want to meet him. Moreover, she didn’t want to be seen with such an insufferable man.

“Hide me. Please hide me quickly! Hurry!”

At her urgent request clutching his collar, Josh Miller embraced Marienne and covered her with his cloak.

Then he looked around with sharp eyes.

He thought the assailant might have returned, but someone even more unwelcome caught his eye.

Walking with such commanding presence, as if he were a god among men.

That pup not even worth throwing to wolves as food, Nigel Bernac.

Perhaps noticing the glaring gaze, ash-colored eyes pierced back.

Josh Miller shifted his gaze away smoothly while holding Marienne, whose heart was fluttering like a bird’s.

Damn. He was approaching.

* * *

“Lester Godwin.”

“You have good eyes. How did you recognize me when it’s been years since we last met?”

“It’s been a while.”

Hidden in the cloak, Marienne rolled her eyes.

Lester Godwin?

This worthless fellow even lied about his name. Seph or Josh, after all that teasing!

Marienne ground her teeth while staying quiet in his arms.

She wanted to tear him apart, but if the Duke discovered her……! She didn’t even want to think about it.

When Marienne’s shoulders trembled, the man misunderstood and tightened his embracing arms.

Already suffocating from the corset, now covered by the cloak with his arms pressing in, she could barely breathe.

Marienne lightly tapped the man’s chest, and when there was no response, she firmly stepped on his boot with her heel.

Lester groaned and wrinkled his nose.

“Ugh! Your Grace…… as you can see, my woman is quite heated.”

The ash-colored gaze fell on the green skirt visible outside Lester’s cloak.

“I’ll properly greet you soon. It would be an even greater honor if this humble one were invited to the Madam’s banquet.”

“Regrettable. That’s beyond my authority.”

“Can’t be helped. Would you tell Elizabeth I’ll be waiting here? Though please leave out the tattling about me playing with other women while waiting.”

Enjoying Nigel’s contemptuous gaze, Lester raised the corner of his mouth.

“Don’t cause any unsavory incidents in my territory.”

“I’ll try my best, but……”

Holding the woman’s waist, Lester pressed his lips to the cloak and widened his eyes.

Hector whistled at the lovers’ blatant display of affection, and the knights, high-spirited after completing their subjugation, snickered while making lewd jokes.

Just as Nigel was about to turn his gaze away from the pathetic man—

“You kept a bella, right? Must be having fun.”

As Nigel was about to ignore him and walk away, Lester’s fiery gaze pierced his back.

“Isn’t it cowardly? Holding onto a woman’s heart for over ten years and turning away. Using her as the Emperor’s shield and then discarding her with a bella once your inherited ducal title became secure. Even trash like me wouldn’t do that.”

The knights’ grinning faces instantly hardened.

They exchanged glances before disappearing to the stables where their horses were tied.

Nigel slowly turned back to Lester.

Perhaps because of the Nucria festival, the air was thick with flower fragrance.

His nerves were already on edge from the scent similar to Marienne’s body……

Was there still that savage left in him who tore apart monsters’ limbs, broke their joints, and carved their flesh? Killing intent easily churned in his gut.

Nigel stared directly at Lester Godwin.

“So. Are you bitter about losing to someone worse than you?”

“Who lost?”

“The idiot who’s been trailing after a woman for over ten years, sacrificing a leg for her devotion.”

“I wonder if others know? That the Empire’s brilliant Grand Marshal is such a bastard?”

Nigel grabbed Lester’s throat. He instantly subdued Lester’s raised fist and pinned it against the wall.

The ash-colored eyes drew close, pointing at his opponent like a sharpened sword.

This caused the woman in the cloak to be squeezed between the two men.

“Insult me one more time and I’ll personally crush your mouth, Godwin. So you’ll never whine again.”

After squeezing Lester’s windpipe until the whites of his eyes burst with blood vessels, Nigel lowered his hand.

“Hgghh! Haaack!”

As Lester collapsed onto the cloaked woman while gasping for breath, Nigel looked down at him.

The knights, seeing the situation was resolved, brought their lord’s horse.

“Commander, we must go now.”

Mounted on his horse, Nigel headed toward the castle, leaving behind the worthless trash and what was surely his equally worthless woman.

* * *

“You’ve worked hard, Duke. And you knights as well.”

The Duchess welcomed the subjugation party with a bright smile.

The nobles who had arrived early for the banquet also came out to the central hall to welcome Nigel.

But Marienne was nowhere to be seen.

Nigel spotted Marienne’s maid at the very end of the lined-up servants.

When their eyes met, the maid flinched and ducked her head.

However, since that was how most maids typically reacted to him, Nigel didn’t think much of it.

The sunset lazily melted in the corridor leading to his room.

Nigel stopped in front of Marienne’s door before entering his own chambers.

As he entered the bath prepared by the servants, his exhausted body relaxed.

Though he hadn’t expected her to throw herself into his arms, he hadn’t thought she wouldn’t even show her face.

Resting both arms on the edge of the bathtub, Nigel tilted his head back.

Water droplets trickled down his protruding Adam’s apple.

Suddenly, Lester Godwin’s rage-filled eyes flashed in his mind.

To think he’d become such a pathetic figure, driven mad by love.

Though they had once stood shoulder to shoulder at the Imperial Academy, he had fallen to begging for the Imperial Princess’s affection.

All because of that formless thing called love.

Yet because it was such a dangerous emotion…

After relieving his old fatigue in the warm water, Nigel walked to his bedroom wearing only a pair of loose sleeping pants.

The sky outside had grown dark.

Nigel grabbed an apple from the fruit plate and leaned against the table. Then he stared at the door.

The place where he had hoped the red witch would enter with a smile, asking if he had a good trip.

A bitter laugh escaped when he looked at the bed where he had hoped she would whisper that she had waited for him, covering her n*ked body with just a sheet.

Was this her demonstration not to cross the line of their contractual relationship?

Crunch. As he bit into the apple, he cast a troubled gaze out the window.

His chest felt oppressively hazy.

Knock knock.

Nigel’s jaw stopped at the polite knock at the door.

But it was just a servant entering with a bow to light the candles.

His jaw grew slightly fiercer as he bit into the apple.

In the dusky twilight after sunset, the door opened again.

Nigel rose from where he sat at the table, gripping the browning apple tightly.

“Master, it’s Bell.”

Nigel furrowed his brow as he brushed his dried hair.

“I’ve committed a mortal sin, Master. It seems Miss has been kidnapped by a ruffian. It’s my fault! This happened because I suggested going to the festival!”

“Speak clearly, slowly, and start over.”

At her stern master’s command, Bell wiped her tears and began speaking.

“Miss and I went out early this morning to the Nucria festival.”

Bell’s detailed explanation continued after that.

“That man struck down the assailant with his cane and ran off with Miss. I collapsed with weak legs and could only scream. The assailant fled but I couldn’t find Miss. The knight Her Highness sent appeared to help, but it was in vain. Since it was getting late, I returned to the castle first. I hoped she might have come here but…… I was about to ask Madam for help when the Master returned……”

“The man’s description.”

“The man who attacked Miss wore a mask and I was behind them, so I couldn’t see properly. Only that he was tall and strong. But I remember the man who took Miss clearly. He was about a hand shorter than you, Duke, with a slim build and blonde hair down past his shoulders. He had fair skin and a face handsome enough to make women weep, and wore a cloak. Ah! He carried a cane and limped on one leg. Oh yes! Miss was wearing a green dress.”

The apple in Nigel’s grip shattered, dripping juice.

Looking up at her master, Bell suddenly wanted to bite her tongue.

Because the Duke’s distorted face looked as fierce as a monster’s.

Bell sobbed with her forehead to the floor.

“It’s my fault! Miss was being ignored and I wanted to create a happy time for her. I should have stopped that man when he first started bothering Miss! Sob sob.“

“Ignored?”

“Well……”

As Bell wiped her tears with her sleeve and opened her mouth, the Imperial Princess entered the room.

“Duke, shall I give you some advice? You shouldn’t keep loose-lipped ones by your side. How dare she disturb her master’s mood with her long tongue when she can’t even fulfill her proper duties.”

The Imperial Princess glared down at Bell.

Bell trembled like an aspen tree, clutching her fingers that had been cruelly broken.