CLMCB CH 05

Chapter 5 — A Fake Romance Contract

“Were you really serious?”
“Is there such a thing as a fake kind of serious?”

Herace grinned and lightly tapped me on the head.

It was clear now—Herace had suggested a relationship because he wanted to be in one. He wanted to experience the good parts of being in love.

If that’s what he wanted, I could give him that—if he agreed to my plan.

“You seem to want a romantic relationship. I can do that—but only under one condition.”

“What’s the condition? Tell me.”

“Since we’re doing this, why not make our romance feel like a story? With a beginning, middle, climax, and romantic ending.”

“If I want romance, what do you want, girlfriend?”

“I want to change my reputation.”

My plan was this: Nobles were obsessed with romance novels lately, so I’d use that trend to my advantage.

“A love story between a villainess and a villain.”

Just the title alone sounded like a bestseller. If I could make people interested in us, I could slowly change my image.

People are weird like that—they’ll hate a good person for one mistake, but praise a bad person for doing something kind just once. I planned to play on that psychology.

By making our romance look like something straight out of a novel, I’d draw attention and show people that I’m not as bad as they think. Honestly, the “villainess” rumors were nonsense anyway. It was just a matter of time.

“Up until now, I’ve only dated Whisler, but I can still act like a proper girlfriend. I know the basics.”

“…”

“I can give you the emotional support you want from a relationship. And I can help you look like the perfect boyfriend, too.”

I felt pretty confident that Herace’s reputation was based on false rumors. I also trusted the original novel’s content. And honestly, anyone who disliked Whisler couldn’t be all bad.

At the masquerade, Herace had recognized me immediately, which showed he was observant—a great trait in a partner. Plus, he’d clearly snuck into the party, so he could keep secrets. That was promising.

“Looks like my girlfriend has some misunderstandings.”

Herace looked at me, eyes curving into crescents as he smiled.

“You’re enough for me.”

“I’m enough?”

“Yeah.” He smiled sweetly. “You’re my first love.”

For a second, I was completely dazed—his voice was so sweet it felt like it melted in my ears.

Before I could say anything, Herace raised his hand.

“It’s not a big deal—I was just saying we think alike. Looks like we’re on the same page.”

In his hand was a book titled The Rise of Lucifer: The Top-Ranked Duke’s Rebellion. Turns out, that whole first love line had been a quote from a romance novel.

“Romance novels are trendy, so borrowing lines from them isn’t a bad idea. But… you forgot everything we talked about that day, didn’t you?”

“I only forgot the last part.”

“I thought so. Actually, we already agreed that this would be a fake relationship.”

Herace chuckled.

“We’re just going over the details now.”

Ah. That explained why he seemed so relaxed today.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes. Also, I’m sorry for being such a bother that day.”

“It’s fine. Just don’t call me ‘Duke’ anymore. Call me Herace.”

“But—”

“That’s the condition for me accepting your apology.”

“…Then I have no choice.”

“Anything else you need?”

I kept asking questions to better understand my “contract partner.”

“Herace, is emotional connection what you’re looking for from this relationship?”

“Well, it’s not not that. But mostly, it just sounds fun.”

He stroked his chin and took the book from my arms, then casually ran a hand along the bookshelf.

“You’re also cute. If you weren’t, I wouldn’t even consider this.”

I paused for a second but brushed off the compliment. He seemed like the smooth, flirty type who gave compliments easily.

“I have a question too.”

Herace took the book I had been reaching for. I glanced at him as if daring him to say more, and he grinned.

“You haven’t broken up with Whisler yet, have you?”

“I plan to, very soon.”

Whisler’s nastiness had gone beyond what I could tolerate. I wanted nothing more to do with him.

“You haven’t sent the letter yet, right?”

He even figured that out? I was beginning to trust him more and more.

“How about not sending it?”

“The longer I wait, the more likely I’ll get dumped first—and that’ll make me look like the loser.”

Herace shook his finger.

“Nope. If you don’t bring it up, Whisler will stay quiet for a while.”

“So you think there’s some benefit to delaying the breakup?”

“Definitely.”

He reached over and tapped my head lightly. The way he did it was playful and more natural now.

“Let’s cheat on him. That’ll be our revenge.”

“That’s not really my goal. That kind of scandal would ruin my image.”

“Image? What image? Right now there are already rumors that you’re cheating with multiple people. The worst thing you fear has already happened.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I know Whisler better than anyone. I’ve got money, I’ve got a title—I’m a duke. If things get messy, I can fix it. And my parents owe me a favor. I may have just come back from studying abroad, but I hold the real power in our family now. Trust me—things won’t go that bad.”

“…Hmm.”

“So let’s make him regret ever breaking up with you. Revenge will be way more fun this way.”

Herace smiled like he was glowing again, just like the night of the masquerade.

Maybe that’s why I started to feel like I could do this if I was with him.

“We should probably set a time limit, but I like the idea of revenge. You’re not wrong, and… even cheating back doesn’t sound too bad. But I’ll think of other ideas too.”

“Ooh.” Herace looked surprised and let out a little sound of admiration. I was also surprised at how firm I sounded—but not unpleasantly so.

Cheating back was even recommended in one of those revenge books. And I’d already prepared a few scenarios for this meeting.

“As we discussed, I’ll send you a scenario soon—based on the typical structure of romance novels.”

“I said using romance novels for ideas was fine. I didn’t say I’d follow a script.”

“Why not follow it? Scenarios help create tension and allow us to look our best, even in unexpected moments. It’s the most efficient, logical way to show off the perfect love story.”

Herace crossed his arms and leaned in, like he was about to reveal something big.

“…That sounds boring.”

Boring. That one word hit hard. I had to remember—I couldn’t ignore the preferences of my partner in this contract.

“Well, since we’re on the same page otherwise, I’ll still send one. Just please consider my idea carefully.”

“Of course. I’m getting a letter from Philena. Why would I refuse?”

I had planned to cancel the whole thing if he rejected the idea, but luckily he gave a reasonable answer. Turns out, even though he was stubborn, he wasn’t totally inflexible.

Smiling, I reached out my hand without hesitation.

“Looking forward to working with you.”

“No, no—I’m the lucky one, girlfriend.”

Herace shook my hand firmly. His solid handshake had a professional feel to it—and it was satisfying.

Thus, our contract romance began.

That night, I had a strange dream.

I don’t usually dream, so it was strange. I guess my meeting with Herace had made me more nervous, anxious, and exhausted than I realized.

In the dream, I had just transmigrated and was only 15 years old. I was much more tired and numb back then.

The summer sun was hot.

I had been looking for Whisler for what felt like forever. I finally gave up and sat down on a hill.

“It’s hot.”

Sunlight is good for you in small doses, but you shouldn’t sit out in heat for too long. Sunlight doesn’t build up like savings.

“I’ll just tell Mother I tried really hard to find him.”

I had only been looking so seriously because I didn’t want anyone blaming me. Even if this wasn’t our first meeting, there was still a big status gap between us.

But we were destined to meet again and again, anyway. No need to try so hard now.

“Time to go.”

I stood and brushed off my skirt. That’s when I heard it—a growl.

Then a shadow leapt into the air from the bushes.

A wolf.

There shouldn’t be wolves in the Gray estate. But there it was, sharp claws out, coming straight at me.

“No!”

Someone grabbed me and rolled us both to the ground. Dizzy, I opened my eyes. I was lying flat, and next to me, a boy was slumped over.

The boy let out a groan and swayed.

“Why were you out here alone? Are you okay, Philena?”

It was Whisler—the person who once made my heart flutter.

The moment I remembered that, my vision darkened… and a thin beam of light brought me back.

I woke up.

“…What was that?”

I scratched my cheek and blinked.

The way Whisler spoke in that dream… sounded exactly like Herace.

Had my memories been rewritten after meeting Herace again?

It was a strange but surprisingly logical thought.