Please Let Marriage Be Your Payment!,
Chapter 56 —
It had been a long time since Ireanea had such a good night’s sleep.
She usually didn’t have much trouble sleeping, but this time was different—sleeping in the arms of her warm, strong lover made her feel completely at ease.
It was as if a broken part of her daily life had finally been fixed.
“Feels nice…”
“You’re awake?”
Leonard’s voice was low, slightly rough, almost like a whisper. Yet it was enough to drive away the last traces of drowsiness and make Ireanea open her eyes wide.
Right in front of her were his bright orange eyes. She blinked quickly in surprise.
“Ah…”
“Ah?”
Leonard lifted the hand that had been patting her back and gently touched her forehead, as if checking her condition.
That caring touch made her relax. Ireanea let out a sigh of relief and almost closed her eyes again.
But Leonard wasn’t about to let her go back to sleep.
“You should get up now, wife. The moon is already high.”
“The moon? Not the sun?”
Her half-asleep reply made Leonard chuckle softly.
“Look outside. See for yourself if it’s the sun or the moon.”
Sure enough, when she glanced out the window, the night was dark and the moon hung high in the sky. Ireanea couldn’t help but laugh.
“Wow, it’s been a while since I woke up when everyone else is already asleep.”
“Has that happened before?”
Nodding, she snuggled deeper into his chest like a spoiled child.
“Back when I went to Parodia by ship. I got really seasick, so I took sleeping medicine and ended up sleeping a lot. By the time we arrived, I was used to being awake at night instead of during the day.”
Leonard’s hand brushed her cheek gently, teasing her skin, and then his lips touched her forehead. The ticklish kiss made Ireanea giggle and shake her head.
But Leonard’s face kept moving closer. She pushed him away lightly and sat up with a short yawn.
“Haaam…”
She stretched her arms upward. Leonard, who had been lending his arm as a pillow, pulled it back and propped his chin on his hand, watching her in a half-reclined position.
His gaze didn’t leave her body for even a moment.
Even though she was completely exposed under that intense stare, Ireanea didn’t bother to pull the blanket back over herself. This only deepened Leonard’s gaze.
“Finished warming up?” he asked.
“Huh? …What?”
Realizing what he meant by “warming up,” Ireanea gave him a sharp look.
“Didn’t we agree last night that it was the last time, beast?”
“Yes, last night. And I made sure you slept well, didn’t I?”
He pulled her back into his arms and onto his body.
“Now it’s time to start a new round.”
Leonard leaned in for a kiss, but her hand blocked his lips. His face twisted with frustration.
“What’s this?”
“Sorry, Ray, but I have something to do tonight.”
“So you’re going to leave your husband all alone after only four days of marriage?”
To be fair, spending four straight nights together was already enough to make it awkward facing the family.
But Ireanea didn’t care about social customs. If she had the chance, she could happily spend four months like this. She kissed his fingertips with a teasing smile.
“Alone? No, you’re coming with me. You won’t just let your wife wander out alone this late, will you?”
“I was planning on locking you up, actually.”
She laughed at his joking tone.
“Save that for later. I really do have to meet someone tonight.”
Like soothing a sulky child, she kissed his cheek before getting out of bed.
Leonard looked dissatisfied but didn’t stop her. Instead, he followed her into the dressing room and helped her get dressed.
“Who are you meeting so late at night?”
“It’s not a scheduled meeting. Selen said I could drop by anytime.”
“Selen?”
“My reliable business partner.”
Since it was a late-night visit, Ireanea didn’t wear anything formal. Instead, she put on comfortable trousers and a hooded robe. It was unusual for a noblewoman, but Leonard didn’t seem surprised. If she had gone all the way to Parodia or Illume in full dress, that would’ve been stranger.
“Even with permission, isn’t it too casual to show up this late without warning? You must be pretty close personally.”
“Mm… yeah, I guess so.”
She pulled the hood up over Leonard’s golden hair so no one else would notice him and smiled.
“Don’t worry. You’ll be close with Selen too.”
Leonard didn’t understand what she meant until later—when he realized that the rundown house where he first met Ireanea was actually the headquarters of the information guild.
“Nice to meet you, Marquis. My name is Selen. I run this guild thanks to your wife’s support.”
The woman in a glamorous dress gave an awkward curtsy.
Leonard didn’t care about her manners—what shocked him was that Ireanea’s “business partner” was none other than the master of the infamous information guild, Shadow of the Moon.
‘She’s even sponsoring this?’
Parodia’s royal mage was one thing, but Shadow of the Moon? He had heard about them from Bin: how they destroyed the assassin guild that ruled the capital’s underworld and became the new rulers of the back alleys.
Their success came from two main things:
- They took down the biggest money source of the Silent Swamp, the arena, and turned its fighters into allies.
- They had access to a huge, mysterious source of funds.
‘And that source was the Blair Marquis all along.’
When Ireanea first mentioned the guild, he had wondered how she convinced the master to join her. Now he realized—it was the other way around.
Leonard looked at her with new admiration, while Ireanea herself gave Selen a puzzled look.
“Why are you in a dress? You hate uncomfortable clothes.”
“Well, since we’ll be seeing each other often, I thought it might cause misunderstandings if Marquis thinks I’m a man.”
“Hmm?”
“If we meet late at night, I don’t want him to mistake it for a secret affair.”
Selen winked cheekily.
Leonard stared at her and then said, “Even if you’re a woman, meeting my wife alone at night could still look like a secret affair.”
“Eh?”
Selen blinked, pulled out a hand mirror, and studied her reflection.
“Damn this handsome face… a dress can’t even hide it.”
Her dramatic tone made Ireanea and Leonard look at her with cold stares.
Oblivious, Selen shook her head as if blaming fate, then tried to reassure Leonard.
“I get why you’re worried. But don’t worry—I already have a lover. Someone as graceful as a deer.”
“…You misunderstand. I’m not worried about you. I’m worried about my wife. She already doesn’t sleep enough. Why meet her secretly at night?”
He understood it wasn’t something they could openly do in the daytime. Still, why insist on dragging her out at night when there were other ways to pass information?
“If you need something done, send your people. If it’s unavoidable, then call me instead. Don’t make my already busy wife come to dangerous places at night.”
“Dangerous? Ha! Marquis, you must not know—we control the whole back alley now. And my elites are guarding your wife day and night. There’s no danger.”
“Elites? You mean those so-called guards who even mercenaries can beat up?” Leonard asked, clearly unimpressed.
Selen laughed loudly, waving her hands.
“Haha! You’re underestimating us. Do you think the three commanders of the Iron-Blooded Mercenary Corps, survivors of Roem’s Crow Hill, are just ordinary mercenaries?”
“Roem’s Crow Hill?”
Ireanea, who had been listening happily, tilted her head curiously. Roem was a region in the Duke of Baldwin’s eastern lands. Was there really a hill called Crow Hill there? She felt like she’d heard of it before.
While she struggled to remember, Leonard gently rubbed her furrowed brow and slipped a piece of chocolate into her mouth.
“If the opponent is stronger than the guards, then of course they can’t protect their charge. That’s what it sounds like to me.”
His tender touch made Ireanea so happy that she didn’t even notice he was avoiding giving her an explanation.
“Oh, come on. Our people wouldn’t dare defy the Marquis’s guests. Anyway, fine. Since Marquis is worried about his wife…”
Selen nodded and asked Ireanea,
“From now on, should I report things directly to him instead?”
Her tone was casual, but it carried a deeper concern—would it really be safe to share sensitive information with him?
Ireanea knew why she was cautious. Much of the guild’s information was dangerous.
“It’s fine. He can know everything.”
Yes, she meant it. She had no secrets from Leonard—except one: her past life.
‘Will I ever be able to tell him about that someday?’
…Probably not.
Not because she thought he wouldn’t believe her, but because her past self felt too pitiful and small to ever confess.
That’s going to drive me nuts. She knows his secrets, including those from his past life. If this is an equal partnership, she really needs to get over that.