WARDV 16

CHAPTER 16

‘That petty bastard…!’

He had been the one trying to drag her away by force, and yet he had the audacity to pin the blame on Idris. The sheer absurdity of it left her speechless.

But even under threat, Idris remained perfectly calm.

“If that’s what you want to do, go ahead.”

“Even if it adds more infamy to your already notorious name, are you really okay with that?”

“Like you said, what’s one more rumor on top of countless others? Nothing to lose, is there?”

“…”

“If a duke himself starts blabbering to the press about a scandal, wouldn’t that only make it more fun and dramatic?”

At Idris’s sarcastic jab, Peidan visibly ground his teeth.

He was right—if Peidan told the reporters something damning about Idris, it would only confirm today’s scandal all the more publicly.

Leaving the fuming Peidan behind, they returned to the hotel room. Erin soon followed after, having come back with Idris.

“Weren’t you heading back to the estate?” she asked Idris.

“I saw the Farnese family’s carriage parked near the hotel on my way out.”

“Ah…”

“So I came back—and then saw your maid exiting the hotel. But anyway…”

Just as he began to explain, his large hand gently wrapped around her wrist.

“Are you okay?”

“…Huh? Oh.”

His golden eyes scanned her face and wrist with concern. And the moment she sensed his emotion, she became aware of a faint pain in her wrist.

‘I don’t want to look weak.’

She didn’t want to lean on someone again, only to be betrayed. Not again.

Reflexively, she pulled her hand back and forced a smile.

“It’s nothing serious.”

Idris looked at her for a moment but didn’t press further.

Instead, he surprised her with a completely unexpected offer.

“How about staying at my place for a while?”

“…What?”

“You said the duke trespassed, right? Doesn’t matter which hotel you go to—no one’s going to be able to stop him.”

He wasn’t wrong.

Still, accepting his offer felt like a big step.

Sure, she wanted to finalize the divorce with Peidan as soon as possible. The more chaotic the scandal became, the better for her.

‘But Idris has nothing to gain from this.’

Well, apart from the hit to his reputation for being in a relationship with a married woman…

“That would be imposing on you, Your Grace.”

“I don’t mind.”

A mischievous smile played on his lips.

“If we’re going to start a scandal, we might as well make it a good one, don’t you think?”

Ah.

That’s when she remembered—she had almost forgotten.

Her “partner” was not someone to take lightly.

And so now…

She was at the Duke’s residence.

More precisely, she was alone in a massive bathroom in the detached guest wing.

His Grace had generously given her the entire annex.

Thanks to that, she was able to relax and unwind properly.

Curled up in the warm bathwater, she reflected once again on her decision.

‘Idris was right. No hotel would’ve kept Peidan away. That’s why I followed him here, but still…’

The scandal growing bigger was one thing, but had she made a mistake by following a man into his house—alone?

Then again, Idris stood to gain something from using her, so he probably wouldn’t pull anything foolish.

And in the past few days of knowing him, though he was hard to read, he didn’t seem like a bad person.

‘But even a year isn’t enough to truly know someone. Even family who’ve lived together forever can betray you.’

Ugh…

As she tangled herself in impossible thoughts, a bell rang faintly from the estate’s center.

It was the 10 o’clock chime.

“…What’s the point in overthinking? I’m already here.”

She shook her head and brushed off her doubts, ending the bath and returning to her room.

“Oh! You’re back already, milady. Was everything comfortable?”

Erin greeted her with a bright smile, having nearly finished unpacking.

“Yeah, thanks to you I had some quiet time to think. But I told you, you didn’t need to unpack everything tonight.”

“I won’t sleep well unless I finish it.”

Erin chuckled sheepishly, placing the last of the bags down before walking over.

Rustle, rustle…

She began brushing Leticia’s hair. The quiet, soothing moment made her momentarily forget the worries that had plagued her.

Until Erin asked the question that shattered that peace.

“Milady… how did you and His Grace start dating?”

The brush froze. Leticia stiffened.

“You didn’t have any connection with him before.”

“Ah, well…”

“It’s not like he suddenly showed up and asked you out a few days ago… right?”

Guilty flinch #2.

‘That’s literally what happened.’

Thinking she might as well tell Erin the truth now, Leticia opened her mouth—

“I’m just so happy to see you finally found someone right for you.”

Leticia fell silent.

Erin was genuinely happy—as if this were her own love story.

And suddenly, she felt guilty.

‘She must have suffered quietly too, while I clung to Peidan and couldn’t let go.’

Seeing how joyful Erin was, Leticia couldn’t bring herself to speak.

“I’m glad you’re happy,” she said instead.

As Erin’s eyes sparkled, Leticia was about to fabricate some romantic story when—

Knock, knock.

A knock on the door saved her.

And the one who knocked was…

“Leticia. May I come in for a moment?”

‘Idris?’

Erin’s eyes widened, and her cheeks flushed bright red.

Her thoughts were written all over her face.

“I—I’ll go take a bath now!”

“Wait, Erin—!”

But before she could stop her, Erin had already darted out the door.

Idris stepped inside through the open door.

“It’s an unused room, so it’s not fully stocked. Was everything okay?”

He had just bathed—wearing only a loosely tied robe that revealed glimpses of his muscular body.

‘Why is he wearing that at this hour—’

…Right. This was his house.

Leticia tried to cool her burning cheeks and responded as calmly as she could.

“No complaints, thanks to you. So, what brings you here?”

“Nothing much. I just wanted to give you something.”

Something?

She looked at him curiously. Idris stepped forward and held something out.

A small, round tin case.

“What’s this?”

“Ointment. It works well on bruises.”

She suddenly remembered the bruise on her wrist from where Peidan had grabbed her.

“You came all the way here just to give me this?”

At her question, Idris’s eyes darkened slightly. He stepped closer and asked in a low, teasing voice:

“Why? Were you expecting something else?”

It was phrased like a question, but his eyes suggested he already knew exactly what was on her mind.

‘…He’s teasing me again, isn’t he?’

The embarrassment of having her thoughts read.

The frustration of always being one step behind this man.

Unable to reply, she just glared at him—but Idris only chuckled, scooped out a bit of ointment, and gently applied it to her wrist.

His hand was warmer than hers, and the touch left a soft heat on her skin.

Startled, she flinched and looked up—but Idris calmly said:

“You wouldn’t have applied it yourself, would you?”