6. Subtle Excitement

Rihanel froze in place.

When and where did you have your first experience?

Asking such a question so directly was extremely rude. Especially to women under the social climate of this country, Bendar.

The textbook answer would be the first night of marriage. But even if that were the answer, saying it directly would be unthinkable.

Rihanel looked at Janet. If he found this so rude, how mortified must she look…

“That’s our little secret, Your Majesty. Is there something else you’d like to know?”

She answered with surprising composure and skill.

Is this sort of thing really not bothersome to Janet? As Rihanel was thinking this, Janet’s left hand touched his hand that was holding her right hand.

Whether it was unintentional or not, she twitched her fingers and then returned her left hand to its place.

‘Ah.’

She must have habitually tried to touch the finger where her ring was. Clearly, if she found the question so uncomfortable and distasteful, she was doing an excellent job of hiding it.

“Don’t you like it? Maybe it’s too public to talk about here…”

The emperor muttered as if stating the obvious was somehow troublesome. Then he offered what he thought was an alternative, but was really just more nonsense.

“If you’re too embarrassed to say it directly, let’s do this. You can both write it down on paper at the same time. When, where, and under what circumstances it happened. In detail.”

“Your Majesty.”

“It’ll be fun. Think of it as a kind of affection test. To see if one of you hasn’t forgotten.”

Airus seemed to have already decided and called for an attendant to bring paper and pens.

“Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone else. Everyone else will understand this is necessary, right?”

Airus raised his eyebrows as he looked around the table.

Half of those present were appalled by the emperor’s latest outlandish question. Yet they tried hard not to appear displeased, either gulping down water or forcing smiles.

The other half silently rejoiced at this question designed to cross-check their answers.

There had been rumors circulating that although the duke had married Janet Wilton for some reason, he actually found her filthy and didn’t even spend nights with her.

They were already convinced those rumors were true.

The easiest answer to avoid suspicion would be their wedding night, but with the emperor’s personality, he would surely probe further.

The room heated up with anticipation of the truth about to be revealed and the titillation of such a suggestive question.

“It’s just between us.”

Airus blinked slowly as he looked at Rihanel’s rigid expression.

“You don’t like it?”

As usual, it was a question with a predetermined answer. But this was simply unacceptable. Rihanel spoke without relaxing his expression.

“For this kind of question…”

Janet squeezed his hand tightly. It meant to stop.

The situation had already developed, and refusing to answer at this point would only amplify dissatisfaction and suspicion. The emperor might even ask more persistent questions.

So simply writing a brief answer was the best option. After all, they had created circumstantial evidence on their wedding night.

Meanwhile, paper and pens were placed before them.

“……”

Rihanel’s gaze at the paper looked like it might burn a hole through it.

Won’t tell anyone else? Could he really trust that such a capricious emperor would keep his word?

He might unfold the papers and read them right here out of curiosity.

Then rumors about their night would accompany all the other gossip about this woman.

Janet Wilton the arsonist. Janet Wilton who set a fire while whispering sweet nothings to another man. And Janet Wilton who seduced the duke into marriage with that body.

But what if he didn’t write an answer? He wasn’t being asked to say it out loud, just to write it secretly on paper. If he refused even that, they might become suspicious.

After all, such a thing had never actually happened between them.

They might gossip that he couldn’t write it because it never happened.

‘Damn it.’

Rihanel cursed inwardly several times and looked to the side. But Janet was already writing something on her paper.

Damn it, he cursed again internally as he too wrote something on the paper.

While everyone held their breath, the sound of pen nibs scratching filled the hall. After the brief sound ended, both of them looked up.

The emperor received their answer papers with a friendly smile. His face filled with interest as he carefully read both answers.

What on earth did they write? The nobles swallowed hard.

If the answers were different, or not detailed enough, the emperor would surely pursue it…

“Good. The answers are boring, but they match.”

“……!”

“These two are definitely a loving couple.”

Airus said this and raised his glass.

“To the happy married life of the young couple.”

Everyone at the table raised their glasses somewhat dazedly and drank the wine. Despite being clearly expensive wine, it tasted rather bland.

“……”

Some still couldn’t abandon their expectations and looked at Airus, wondering if he might suddenly throw out another question.

But Airus merely shrugged at them.

“What’s wrong? Does the count want to share about his wedding night too?”

“Ah, no, not at all…”

The emperor truly had no intention of continuing this topic. Whatever they had written, the couple’s answers apparently matched.

Given his comment about them being boring, they probably didn’t provide detailed descriptions… Yet they still satisfied the emperor’s tastes.

Whatever the case, if that capricious but sharp-minded person had concluded that these two had indeed married for love… could it be true?

The nobles’ minds were in turmoil as they tried to interpret the emperor’s judgment based on his usual temperament.

“Duke, how would you describe your wife?”

The emperor was even acting like a matchmaker now. He didn’t seem to care about hiding his interest anymore.

“…She’s passionate. Someone who shines on her own—I find that admirable.”

“Hmm. And you, my lady?”

“Ah… my husband is…”

Janet fell into thought briefly before speaking again.

“Like the ocean. Broad and deep… he always makes me feel at ease.”

It wasn’t a lie. Janet truly had thought of Rihanel that way. Though now… she wasn’t so sure.

Forced to wear the mask of lovers in this setting, they revealed a little of what was inside them. Holding hands while saying such things made them feel strangely unsettled.

They both tried to ignore this complex, subtle stirring.

“Fire and water? Opposing elements.”

Airus laughed out loud. Adding that it was a joke, he put a spoonful of grapefruit sherbet in his mouth and smiled gently.

Janet and Rihanel also tasted the sherbet.

The sherbet sliding down their throats was extremely cold and bitter, yet…

Sweet.

***

Emperor Airus put down his fountain pen to take a break from handling official business in his office.

He unfolded one of two notes placed on one corner of his desk. It was the one written in neat handwriting.

[Wedding night.]

The straightforward and resolute writing seemed to reveal the character of the woman who wrote it.

Airus burned the note over a lamp and unfolded the remaining one. He smiled wryly.

At the dinner, he had said their answers were the same, but in fact, they had written different answers.

The other note, seemingly written in anger with a scrawl, read,

[I cannot answer.]

The emperor laughed heartily.

How could both the content and handwriting be so different!

But there was one similarity.

Both answers were extremely concise.

“I told them to write in detail…”

Such disobedient people. If that principled couple ever fought, reconciliation would probably take quite some time.

And whether they fought or not, the reason Airus acknowledged they had married for love was precisely because they had evaded and refused to answer.

Honestly, Janet’s answer didn’t matter.

What mattered was Rihanel’s response.

Newlyweds would naturally have spent many hot, passionate nights together. But if they truly married for love, one couldn’t boast about it in front of others.

Because in this society, such a question was extremely rude and potentially devastating to a woman.

Even if it was the emperor’s question, if you truly loved someone, you would refuse to answer.

But if it wasn’t a love marriage, they would surely have prepared a response to this, and would have written their prepared answer.

In detail, to avoid suspicion.

But contrary to his worries, Rihanel had admirably met his expectations.

Moreover, he didn’t even need to unfold the notes. The anger from the one who refused to answer, and their concern for the other’s feelings, had been all too obvious.

“That was fun…”

Muttering briefly as he burned Rihanel’s note too, Airus’s gaze fell on the fountain pen on his desk. It had been a gift from someone precious to him.

‘No matter how much you love someone, how could you wait to marry a criminal?’

…Maybe you could.

The emperor vaguely recalled his former lover. Then, as if nothing had happened, he picked up his fountain pen and resumed his work.

***

“Good job.”

Climbing the second-floor stairs of the mansion, Rihanel loosened the button at his neck as if feeling stifled.

Walking while unbuttoning was not proper etiquette, but Janet didn’t point this out. He truly looked exhausted.

On the way back to the duke’s residence, Rihanel hadn’t said a word. As if he was disgusted by having to pretend to be her lover, and was trying to forget it.

Moreover, he had clearly shown his dislike even in front of the emperor. At first he seemed to be cooperating well, but after writing the note about their first night, he had become completely uncooperative.