Chapter 06
“Why me?”
Su was proud of being a gambler. Lose and run away? Never.
A gamble without paying the price isn’t really gambling. Well, unless the stakes were your entire fortune or life—that would be different.
“Just so you know, I don’t work for free.”
“You lost the game, didn’t you?”
“I said I’d work if I lost. When did I say I’d work for free?”
Su said this coolly, pointing out the flaw in his argument, and the duke let out a small laugh.
“Hah, I see. So you will work.”
“Since I lost, I guess I have to. You said you needed a trickster—so I guess you have something to cheat at?”
The idea of one of the noblest men in the country committing fraud sparked a bit of curiosity in her.
“Yes, there is. A very important job, one that comes directly under me.”
“What role should I play?”
“A wife.”
Su blinked. Did he really say that?
“I need a wife.”
“What?”
“The target of the scam is the king. Can you do it?”
“…Duke, are you feeling well?”
Su didn’t specify, but she meant his head. The duke frowned slightly, understanding her implication.
“Perfectly fine. You don’t get a choice in the matter.”
Su bit her lip. He was right. She had played the game with him, she lost, and now she had to pay the price.
‘But seriously, is this guy insane?’
Who scams someone with marriage? She wasn’t even an illegal resident needing Willethan citizenship.
Su tried to calm herself and focus on negotiating her payment. After all, if she had to do it, she might as well get compensated properly.
“How much will you pay me?”
The duke raised an eyebrow, a little surprised by her calm, businesslike tone.
“How much do you want?”
“One hundred thousand gold.”
Su’s firm demand made the duke frown slightly.
“…Are you insane?”
“It’s hard to find someone better at scams than me in this whole country.”
Her confidence wasn’t just bravado—she knew it was almost impossible to beat her at this. The duke chuckled, leaning back, his black hair drifting elegantly.
“Eighty thousand gold. Costs while staying in my castle are not included.”
“Deal.”
And just like that, they agreed to the marriage contract.
The duke was slightly annoyed as Su grilled him on contract length and compensation if the scam went wrong. In status and reputation, no one should be able to question him like this.
But it was somewhat interesting—no one had demanded things from him so confidently before.
Most nobles would have flushed with anger at her audacity, but the duke, raised to always be respected, found her attitude refreshing.
“Are you listening to me?”
“Of course I am.”
“So what about bonuses…”
“I don’t see why I should give you any.”
“Duke, don’t you have a conscience? The target is the king! One mistake and you could lose your head, but if it succeeds, bonuses are expected!”
“Isn’t eighty thousand gold enough?”
“Of course not! And scams usually come with hazard pay.”
Su rattled off all the “expected” bonuses: hazard pay, special bonus, scam support expenses. With her base pay of eighty thousand gold, it totaled over one hundred thousand.
“Hazard pay? You mean for my safety?”
“Yes!”
“You won’t get hurt.”
“Huh? How can you be sure of that?”
The duke frowned tiredly and took the contract she had hastily written, ready to correct it.
“Do you know who’s in front of you?”
“The Duke of Miramonte.”
“The Sword of Willethan. Remember this title.”
Su pouted.
“What does your skill with a sword have to do with my safety?”
Her stubbornness made the duke leave the hazard pay section alone. It wasn’t persuasion—it was annoyance.
“The special bonus is given if I think you did well. I’m not that greedy.”
“Scam support expenses are removed. Costs at my castle were already excluded.”
“That’s not the same thing!”
“Fine, fine, remove it!”
Su grumbled but kept her cool. She didn’t even realize she was being rude to the duke.
After all, she had grown up in the backstreets of Ardel, where survival mattered more than social etiquette. Respect for a distant king? Forget it. Respect for the duke? Only if necessary.
“Sign here. I’ll sign too.”
The duke drew a small rabbit in the signature line, while Su signed as the trickster. Both papers were folded and tucked away—the stolen golden handle included.
Su had agreed to act as a fake wife but felt awkward now that the contract was signed. The duke snapped his fingers.
“Why?”
“Disobedience isn’t allowed.”
Su grumbled in her head and got up.
The guest room was large, but she noticed the duke’s eyebrows rise as she walked slowly. She quickened her pace.
The duke grabbed her arm and pulled her close. Su blinked, startled, and the heavy guest room door burst open behind them.
From outside, it looked like a romantic scene. Two noblewomen gasped and turned red as they watched.
Su buried her face into the duke’s chest, embarrassed, leaving her reddened ears visible.
“Rude. You were just in the middle of something good.”
The duke smiled in a dangerously charming way, his slightly messy hair and clothes adding to the allure.
Su and the duke weren’t exposing anything, but to the noblewomen, it looked scandalous. They hurriedly left, stammering.
Once they were gone, Su and the duke quickly separated, like a snail retracting its eye.
‘Ah, this is creepier than I expected.’
She even regretted not asking for hazard pay!
