Chapter 8

With just that one sentence, the time Lizette had endured was vividly drawn before him. Thinking of the scars of the past engraved long ago, Killian thought,

‘Please let my choice become the right answer for this woman.’

Though that answer would by no means be easy to prove.

“Wow, Your Grace, even your desk is incredibly neat.”

Was it because of Lizette’s bright voice? That heavy mood quickly faded.

“I don’t particularly like disorder.”

Killian answered casually and glanced at his desk. As Lizette had said, his desk was orderly. It was the sort of sight from which one could roughly infer his personality.

On the spotless, well-arranged desk, ink, pens, and sealing wax stamps were lined up with precise order. And along with them, two sheets of paper placed side by side caught Lizette’s eye.

“I drafted it based on what we discussed, but if there’s anything more you need, please feel free to say so.”

Killian said as he offered Lizette a chair. She sat down and slowly read through the document with her eyes.

<This contract shall remain valid for one year after the wedding ceremony, and thereafter the authority to extend or terminate the contract shall belong to Killian Cedric.>

One year. A span of time that might feel long to her, and short to Killian.

At the clause stating that the authority to terminate it belonged to Killian, Lizette once again realized how good Killian’s memory was. It seemed he had not forgotten her passing remark that she would grant him a clean divorce whenever he wanted.

<This contract does not include a physical relationship for the purpose of producing an heir.>

Because Killian had clearly drawn the line first regarding the part she had been somewhat worried about, Lizette felt far more at ease. She could truly feel that this marriage would not become another form of restraint for her.

<The existence and contents of this contract, and all related matters, shall be kept confidential and shall not be disclosed to outsiders even after the termination of the contract.>

Lizette’s eyes continued to follow the words on the document.

<During the contract period, the parties to the contract shall act together as husband and wife at official events and external engagements, and shall not maintain affairs, romantic relationships, or the like with others.>

At this part, Lizette’s gaze lingered for quite a while. For someone like her, who had never even once been in love, the words as husband and wife felt almost like something floating in the air. But the condition that followed gave Lizette a sense of relief. At the very least, it did not seem this relationship would be regarded as some lighthearted game.

<If the terms of the above contract are violated, compensation shall be provided after consultation between the parties.>

The final clause was simple. A relationship that could, if necessary, be brought to an end without unnecessary complication. Perhaps this was the true nature of this contract.

“It’s simpler than I expected.”

Looking at the neatly written words, Lizette suddenly voiced what she was thinking. Killian, who was seated across from her, nodded.

“There wasn’t much to make complicated. You do not want very much, Miss, and neither do I.”

At his words, want, Lizette, who had been about to sign the contract, paused with the tip of the pen resting on the paper. As he had said, Lizette did not want very much from Killian. But if someone asked whether that meant she wanted nothing, that was not true at all.

If she gained freedom through Killian, Lizette wanted to decide the life that came after with her own hands. She also wanted to decide the direction she would go according to her own will. Until now, things like what she wanted to do or what she was capable of doing had been things she could not even allow herself to think about, but that would no longer be the case.

‘While I’m by his side, I’ll find what I truly want to do.’

With that light resolve, Lizette set her hand in motion again. And she added one wish.

‘At the end of this marriage, I hope too many emotions will not have pooled up, and that it will simply end plainly, without leaving wounds.’

Erasing that brief train of thought, Lizette wrote her name in clear, careful handwriting on the signature line. Once Lizette finished signing and set the pen down, Killian, following her lead, also left his name on the paper.

Killian Cedric

Lizette Trianne.

Quietly gazing at the names written side by side on the paper, Lizette slowly raised her head. The face of Killian that entered her sight was calm, nothing more.

At Killian’s undisturbed manner, Lizette keenly realized to the bone that he and she were different kinds of people. Unlike herself, who was pretending at composure, he was truly composed.

Killian Cedric was an adult. Someone who was not swayed by emotion, who was at ease, and who did not waver in anything. Someone who, even in a moment like this, remained calm and clear in his manner.

“Maybe because this is my first time with something like a contract, but I feel strange.”

Seeing Lizette, who was visibly shaken, Killian held back his words. There was no need to forcefully add anything to someone who already seemed burdened by complicated thoughts. Killian decided to pretend not to notice Lizette’s agitation.

“It is a contract that began simply, but it may gradually become complicated. Still, there is no need to worry already about things that have not even happened.”

It was obvious he was looking after Lizette’s feelings, but his words sounded especially businesslike and stiff. Somehow, Lizette felt as though she alone was reacting like a child. No, in truth, that was exactly how it was.

‘Pull yourself together. You must not hope for more of His Grace’s kindness.’

From the beginning, she had known that emotions were meant to be excluded from a contract marriage. Even knowing that perfectly well, it had been she who made this proposal to him. And yet now that the situation was actually before her, Lizette felt herself becoming disappointed all the same, and that only made her feel painfully immature.

“Miss, don’t think too deeply about it.”

As though he had sensed her heart, Killian added,

“I know that all the choices being made right now may feel somewhat easy. Even so, I hope you will not forget that if in the end we fulfill each other’s needs, that alone is enough.”

“……I will.”

Lizette fashioned a voice that sounded composed. But she could do nothing about the slight tremor in it. She hoped that Killian, who seemed like a skilled adult unlike herself, would not notice her trembling.

But Killian had already noticed the change in Lizette. Up until before they wrote the contract, she had been chattering without pause, and then all at once she had gone quiet. Even if he wanted to ignore it, there was no way not to notice.

‘She must be thinking a great deal.’

Many thoughts briefly lingered in Killian’s red eyes, then vanished. He could more or less guess at the inner confusion Lizette must be feeling, but he did not try to stir it up.

Killian could not fully understand what emotion it was that had made her sink into herself like this. Perhaps it was a complexity even she had not yet put into order. It was not an emotion he could gather into his arms. So Killian chose instead to change the subject.

“Now, I suppose we should speak of something that can no longer be put off.”

“Pardon?”

“It seems there could be no more suitable moment than now, when we have just left each other’s names on the contract……”

The words he failed to properly complete scattered into the air. This was something that would never have happened with the usual Killian. Lizette was overlooking it, but for Killian as well, all of this was an experience he had never had before.

He was trying to carry out something he had never once thought of doing. Somehow, it felt as though his mouth had gone dry in a way that did not suit him. The moment he met Lizette’s eyes, full of questions, that sensation became even clearer.

“Would you allow it, that from now on, only I may call you by your name?”

At Killian’s sudden words, Lizette’s eyes, which had only just barely settled, trembled greatly.

In the Luan Empire, for a man and woman who were not family to call each other by name signified a relationship of lovers or husband and wife. Even though Lizette knew his words were no more than a formality, her heart still pounded. It was the first time she had ever felt such a pounding.

“……Yes.”

It was only one short answer spoken aloud, yet even that was difficult. At last, Lizette managed to open her mouth and give permission. In that moment, Killian’s low voice called her by a name she had never expected.

“Lizzie.”

It was only a single word. At the sound of her name spoken once, her heart seemed to drop with a thud all the way to her toes, only to come thundering back to life the next instant. Lizette felt his voice echo helplessly inside her.