Thadeus’s mouth produced the exact opposite answer from mine. Our gazes locked in midair. 

What on earth possessed him to blurt out such a lie? He knew perfectly well what Schwein would think.

Even as I cursed him with my eyes, Thadeus showed no sign of backing down. We glared at each other like we were locked in a battle of wills, and then that frivolous mouth of his struck first.

“That’s right. My fiancée.”

“Hey, seriously! What are you doing?”

“Then give me another way to describe it.”

I bit my lip hard, worried some vulgar words might escape his mouth. I mean, he had a real fiancée somewhere else. Since I couldn’t exactly say I’d secretly read his letter, I felt ready to explode. As the atmosphere grew increasingly hostile, Schwein looked troubled.

“If you’re fighting because of me, I’m sorry. I’ll disappear now, so please enjoy the rest of your time together.”

I couldn’t let Schwein leave like this. Hadn’t I already learned the hard way how misunderstandings snowball once they start? I grabbed hold of Schwein as he tried to leave.

“That’s not it, wait…!”

“Miss Clea, I’m not just saying this—I really do have urgent business.”

Schwein held out both hands to show me what was inside. Cradled in his palms lay a small bird with a broken wing, fluttering weakly. Its pitiful condition stirred sympathy just looking at it.

I’d wondered why he was standing on a perfectly good flower bed, but kindhearted Schwein must have spotted the injured bird and couldn’t just pass by. 

I couldn’t bring myself to hold him back any longer and stared blankly at his retreating figure. Then my burning frustration flew toward Thadeus, the source of this disaster.

“You completely ruined everything! Why did you say something so pointless to Schwein?”

I wailed in despair, feeling like my world had collapsed. Thadeus just looked at me and kept up his infuriating mockery.

“Nothing’s really ruined. We already know Schwein isn’t the type to gossip to others.”

Thadeus paused briefly and let out a scoff of disbelief.

“Considering the commotion at Schwein’s estate a few days ago, it would’ve seemed stranger if I’d said you weren’t my fiancée in that situation.”

That might be true, but I couldn’t understand why he’d tell a lie that would be exposed soon enough. Come to think of it, Schwein seemed unaware of who his fiancée was or even if she existed.

Could she be a commoner? 

I didn’t know why he was hiding it, but even when the truth came out, it would be too late. I had to convey my feelings to Schwein within the deadline Father set.

“Take responsibility! You messed everything up!”

I threw an unreasonable tantrum in my misery. But unlike my agitation, Thadeus continued in a calm voice.

“No, well. I’d need to have done something wrong first to take responsibility. What did I do?”

That made me even angrier. His relaxed attitude while I was the only one worked up. That smug face of his looked nothing but irritating. So I shouted.

“Why wouldn’t you take responsibility! At this rate, my plan to confess my feelings to Schwein will fall apart!”

“So has that plan ever actually succeeded?”

“That’s…!”

My voice shrank at his sharp point. Thadeus continued with what looked like a mocking smile on his lips.

“You’ve had plenty of time to confess your feelings. And as a result, you two are nothing to each other right now, aren’t you?”

“That may be true, but… who knows what’ll happen from now on. I’m prepared to do anything now if it means I can confess my feelings to Schwein.”

“Oh, really?”

One corner of Thadeus’s mouth twisted. That expression was a bad sign. Ever since childhood, whenever he made that face, he’d pull some seriously nasty prank.

“Then should I help you?”

“With what?”

“To confess those feelings to Schwein.”

Why would Thadeus suddenly want to help me? I stared at him with eyes full of suspicion at his unbelievable words.

“How are you going to help?”

“If you want things to work out with Schwein, you should at least know what he likes.”

There was publicly known information, but nothing really decisive yet. Since Thadeus was close with Schwein, he’d naturally know things only those closest to him would—like his secret preferences in women. I set aside my rising suspicion slightly and asked in a cautious voice.

“What does… Schwein like?”

“I’ll only explain once, so follow me.”

I followed Thadeus, practically dragged along, to a building with an eerie atmosphere—blackout curtains hung everywhere. I stopped walking, feeling increasingly uneasy, but Thadeus pulled my arm, urging me to hurry.

“Ow, that hurts.”

At my complaint, his grip on my wrist noticeably weakened. A masked woman and man standing at the entrance spotted us and bowed their heads.

When Thadeus nodded, the woman handed over a box containing two half-masks. As she explained where we should go inside, Thadeus listened half-heartedly and handed me a white feathered mask from the box.

“Put it on first.”

“Why am I wearing this now?”

“Don’t if you don’t want to. Just don’t regret it later.”

I got the feeling I’d face serious disadvantages if I didn’t wear it. I snatched the mask back from Thadeus as he tried to take it away. Then I grumbled as I put it on my face.

“Fine, I’ll wear it. Happy now?”

Thadeus had a black mask, while I had one with white feathers.

“Then I hope you have a wonderful time.”

What wonderful time could we have in such a creepy place? I tilted my head at the woman’s meaningful smile before stepping inside.

Only dim candlelight flickered in the corridor. The further we walked, the darker it became until I could barely see ahead. After walking quite a ways inside, I heard faint moaning sounds from somewhere.

‘That sounds like a woman’s voice…’

I tried to stop in confusion, but Thadeus grabbed me and pulled me along. We arrived at a spacious room bathed in dim lighting. Suspiciously shaped objects of unknown purpose lay scattered about, and the interior seemed to lead to another passage.

One strange thing was that mirrors surrounded us on all sides. Every time I turned my gaze, I met eyes with myself in the mirrors, which felt somehow chilling. I’d never been to such a bizarre and strange place in my life, and discomfort bloomed within me.

“Why did we come to a place like this?”

“You said you wanted to know about Schwein.”

“This place… is related to Schwein?”

“Of course. He likes places like this.”

There was no way Schwein, who was like bright sunshine, would like such a gloomy place. Thadeus was clearly messing with me. I held back my rising irritation and said.

“Stop joking around.”

“Fine, then. I’ll skip everything and get to the point.”

Thadeus approached me with threatening steps. He looked furious, and I instinctively stepped back. When my back hit the wall, I heard a click, and something cold and metallic fastened around one wrist. At the same time, Thadeus’s twisted eyes were revealed.

“Wh-what is this?”

“You asked me to tell you. What Schwein likes.”

I still couldn’t understand what this had to do with Schwein. I tried to shake my wrist free, but only heard the clinking of metal—it wouldn’t come off.

“Let me go right now. What the hell are you doing?”

“I’ll explain very carefully from now on, so engrave it with your whole body.”

Thadeus lifted my chin and pressed his lips to mine. His tongue thr*st in roughly, and blood rushed through my entire body in an instant.

The movement that had been gently caressing the soft mucous membrane quickly transformed into a massive storm, ravaging the inside of my mouth. 

I belatedly came to my senses and wildly pounded his shoulders and chest with my free hand.

“Mmph, mm!”

‘Stop this insane behavior right now. Did eating that chocolate cake drive you crazy?’ 

But Thadeus grabbed my other hand and pushed me against the wall. Then he embraced me like he’d crush my whole body and continued his fierce kiss.

I had no time to breathe. It was a kiss that seemed to steal my soul. When I tried to resist him, he pounced even more desperately and drove me into the wall. 

At some point, I forgot about resisting and found myself continuing the kiss with him without realizing it.

“Mmm, ah…”

My mind went blank. The wet sounds of lips biting and sucking echoed loudly around us. It was purely movements driven by desire. Thadeus’s large hand that had been cradling the back of my head slowly descended down my nape.

It was a chilling sensation. His fingertips passed over my protruding collarbone and descended further, then grasped one br*ast. Confirming my flinch, Thadeus repeatedly squeezed and released the br*ast in his hand, seemingly to calm me.

Feverish heat boiled up. An uncomfortable sensation of something gathering in my lower abdomen washed over me. Thadeus’s hand, which had been fondling over my dress, now burrowed inside my clothes. The invading fingers found the sensitive peak that had been hiding.

Thadeus continued his nasty teasing, gently rubbing the small flesh between his thumb and forefinger, then twisting it. Yet my shameless body trembled and squirmed, seemingly playing along with his teasing. Then Thadeus pulled away his clinging lips.

His lips moved very slowly to my earlobe. His tongue brushed softly past and nibbled on the sensitive flesh. Every time he bit down with his teeth, my pulse throughout my body pounded violently, ready to burst. I instinctively rubbed between my legs.

“Haah…”

When hot breath burst out, Thadeus devoured my lips once more. The hands that had been kneading gently now mercilessly crushed the br*ast that filled his palm.

The strong grip made me feel like tears might leak out, yet my body heated up in this situation. 

Then Thadeus pulled his lips away and met my eyes. His pupils, swallowed by darkness, gleamed dangerously.

“Schwein said he likes women who drip just from being touched.”

“Women who drip just from being touched…?”

“Right. Women who get drenched down below.”

There was no way prince-like Schwein would say such things. As I debated whether to believe Thadeus’s words, his hand burrowed beneath my skirt.

“So I’ll check for you whether you drip enough for Schwein to like.”

“There’s no need…!”