Chapter 5
“What?”
Just as the words began to sound faintly romantic, the Duke immediately followed up with something far more businesslike—clearly getting to the real point.
“I guarantee your safety.”
Of course…
The Duke simply wanted to keep the person he was negotiating with intact until the deal was sealed.
For a brief moment, I wondered—was this the start of a textbook contract marriage romance? Did he fall for me a little?
‘I wasn’t thinking anything like that!’
Seriously!
I shoved away the embarrassing thought before anyone could notice, pretending not to feel my cheeks heating up as I looked back at the Duke.
Apparently, he misread my delayed response as hesitation.
So he immediately added another offer.
“I’m not saying you have to stay at the ducal estate.”
“Then…?”
“If rumors bother you, I can provide you with a townhouse under a different name.”
‘Ah! Right. If word got out that an unmarried man and woman were living under the same roof, the social circles would explode.’
Did he think I was worried about gossip?
Within moments, the Duke had his people present me with a list of prime townhouses in the capital.
“Choose the one you prefer.”
Staring in confusion, I looked down at the list—each townhouse was worth as much as a small estate.
“What is even happening…”
I gazed around the room, dazed. Even the furniture decorations oozed luxury.
“Moving into a personal townhouse owned by the Duke…”
According to the servant who had brought me here, this residence was originally prepared for the successive heads of House Ivernoum.
It was registered under an alias to avoid attention and used as a private retreat away from the noisy social world.
‘Can he really offer such a private place to someone he barely knows?’
The thought crossed my mind for a second—
‘Well, whatever. If all goes well, we’ll end up married anyway.’
As my tired body was lured by the tempting bed, that brazen voice in my head beat out all doubts.
Flop.
Savoring the plush softness of the sheets, I collapsed face down and recharged for a while.
“Whew.”
Only after I finally felt a little safe did a long sigh escape my lips.
“Thank goodness…”
Honestly, I expected to be the one begging during the initial negotiations.
I’d braced myself for a struggle, assuming the Duke didn’t even know about the sedative’s existence.
“Things actually went better than planned, didn’t they?”
Surprisingly, the Duke’s attitude had been quite open-minded.
‘He seems to believe in the sedative’s effects. And the marriage… I was ready for a flat-out rejection, but instead he said he’d consider it and even gave me a place to stay.’
Could I dare hope for a positive answer?
Letting go of some tension, I buried my face into a cushion, luxurious as expected of the Duke’s house. My voice came out muffled.
“I’m really glad.”
‘If the Duke had turned me down, I would’ve been completely stuck.’
I nearly muttered my true feelings aloud, but managed to swallow them back down just in time.
There weren’t many people who could block the engagement to the Marquis, arranged by my family. And among the powerful few who could, even fewer would agree to my proposal.
If I went to the wrong person just because they had status, they might try to control me as a husband instead of as a fake family.
‘But the Duke of Ivernoum… didn’t seem like that kind of man.’
Even though we had just met properly for the first time, he had given me an unexpected sense of comfort by the end of our conversation.
‘He didn’t take advantage of my desperate need to find a marriage partner… He even got angry on my behalf.’
For some reason, my stomach felt ticklish, and I fidgeted with my hands.
I kept replaying our conversation in my head when suddenly a thought occurred to me.
“Now that I think about it… the Duke must think I ran away from home because I hate marriage.”
That was only the trigger for my sudden actions.
The real reason I gritted my teeth against my fake family had been building up for a long time.
‘Well, who would even care to hear my drawn-out sob story anyway…’
With a small, bitter smile, I swept back my fallen hair.
Fine. If looking like a naïve girl who ran away from marriage would keep people from being suspicious, that image might actually help me.
“Even if I come across as a spoiled young lady who ran away because she hated marriage… I hope he doesn’t question my offer too much.”
Meanwhile, back at the Duke’s office…
The Duke’s long-time aide looked on in confusion as his master stared blankly at his hand.
Normally, the Duke would walk in and immediately pressure him with a look to hand over documents without wasting a second.
But now he seemed deep in thought, his gaze drifting.
‘Well, things were already odd the moment His Grace let that young lady in without an appointment.’
Under normal circumstances, even if she was the daughter of a count, His Grace would have had her turned away at the door.
Yet today, not only had he allowed her inside, he met with her personally right away.
No other uninvited visitor had ever received such treatment.
The aide clearly remembered the moment he reported the name of the visiting young lady—“Evely Sinclaire”—and saw his master’s hand, flipping through papers, suddenly freeze.
‘I never thought I’d be reporting anything about the Lady of House Sinclaire…’
Evely Sinclaire.
The only daughter of Count Sinclaire. The aide remembered her clearly.
‘She was the first young lady the Duke ever showed interest in.’
With soft, sun-kissed hair and rose-pink eyes.
Back then, the aide had to search the entire capital based on those vague descriptors, remembering the Duke’s words to the letter.
He recalled how the household had buzzed with excitement the moment the Duke had, for the first time, mentioned a woman.
‘But her hair and eyes were all the clues we had! How were we supposed to find her quickly?’
Fortunately, the search didn’t take long. Though the Duke and his people had just returned from the border and missed some social news, the young lady was already well-known in the capital.
Evely Sinclaire—Count Sinclaire’s precious jewel.
She had few public appearances, but her ethereal beauty had earned her a reputation nonetheless.
Her family, worried about her being too attractive, rarely let her attend parties and kept her hidden at home.
‘Although, once the Duke found out she was the cherished daughter of House Sinclaire—who viewed Ivernoum as a rival—he never brought her up again…’
Still, since it was the only time the Duke had ever expressed interest in a woman, it remained burned into memory.
That’s why, when the guard reported her name, the aide didn’t turn her away immediately but chose to inform the Duke—just in case.
Who would’ve guessed that such a small report would lead to something this big?
‘To think I’d hear the word “marriage” come out of His Grace’s mouth…!’
Shaken by the memory, the aide pulled himself together and, as a competent servant, quickly got to the point.
“My lord. Shall we proceed as usual with the one who leaked Ivernoum’s secret?”
The secret of Ivernoum—
The surge of magic power during the full moon and the resulting overload.
It was supposed to be a well-guarded secret concerning the head of the house—but that was only partially true.
While the magic overload was real, only a select few knew the full truth.
“No. The witch hunt ends here.”
“Yes, sir. Then should we dispose of the bait earlier than planned?”
“Do it.”
The rumor about the full moon being Ivernoum’s weakness was bait.
Those with poor magical control who wandered into Sinclaire territory had likely babbled under the influence of the increased magic—but that wouldn’t affect someone like the Duke.
Even when his immense magical power surged during the full moon, his body recovered before his mind could even crack under the strain.
‘Honestly, showing up during the full moon is just suicide.’
In this state of heightened aggression, the Duke was a dangerous creature no one should ever want to meet.
Still, thanks to the fool who ran his mouth, they could eliminate all the buzzing pests at once.
Even a traitor could serve a purpose.
‘To use even garbage so effectively… That’s our Duke!’
A being on a different level from mere mortals.
Brimming with pride in his master, the aide respectfully handed over a document.
“Here is the compiled background report on House Sinclaire, as requested.”
“Mm.”
The Duke, still distracted, flipped through the pages slower than usual.
Worried he might offend his master, the loyal aide cautiously offered a suggestion.
“My lord. Should we interrogate the Lady of House Sinclaire?”
“What?”
At the Duke’s sudden sharp gaze, the aide felt like lightning had struck down his spine.
Drenched in cold sweat, he barely managed to stammer through his loyal concern.
“I-It’s just that… isn’t it suspicious? She’s the direct daughter of a family that treats House Ivernoum like a sworn enemy.”
“She said she came because she wanted to leave her family.”
“Even that. It could be staged—maybe they trained her to infiltrate the Ducal House under false pretenses.”
“…”
The Duke had already considered all those possibilities.
“Even the sedative—if she’s skilled enough to make something that effective at will…”
If she could create such a powerful medicine, it was only logical she could also produce poison with the opposite effect.
Even as he easily followed his aide’s train of thought, the Duke whispered something he hadn’t shared aloud.
‘No. Those are all minor things.’
Compared to her.
Only the successive heads of House Ivernoum knew the true secret of the family.
Not even his personal aide knew.
As he recalled that truth, the Duke’s gaze darkened.
