Chapter 9
Count Larcel flew into a rage and tore our marriage contract to pieces.
But the names engraved on our fingers remained.
“It’s useless, Count. You should know that already, seeing as you’ve gone through it yourself. The marks won’t disappear until the same two people sign a dissolution agreement enchanted with the same magic.”
The Duke of Blois spoke with obvious amusement.
Come to think of it, the Countess’s signature was engraved on Count Larcel’s own left ring finger.
“Lewayne has caught His Majesty’s attention!” Count Larcel shouted. “She was supposed to become the Emperor’s mistress! If His Majesty learns about this, he won’t let you get away with it!”
“I see.”
The Duke calmly asked,
“Did you actually ask the Emperor whether he intends to let me off, Count?”
“W-Well… I don’t need to ask! It’s obvious—”
“Since when is anything about love and marriage obvious?” the Duke interrupted. “I certainly didn’t expect to marry Miss Lewayne so suddenly. Why don’t you ask the Emperor first before you start threatening me?”
“Y-You…!”
“The Emperor and you are not the same person.”
“It’s rather irritating how you keep speaking as though you were His Majesty himself.”
The warning was clear.
Objecting to his daughter’s marriage as her father was one thing.
Invoking the Emperor’s authority on his behalf was overstepping his bounds.
Turning away from Count Larcel, the Duke extended his hand toward me with an easy smile.
“Shall we go home, my wife?”
In that single form of address, I understood that he had accepted every condition I’d proposed before.
I smiled back.
Moments later, the Duke’s fully armed knights cleared a path.
Faced with overwhelming force, Count Larcel could do nothing except collapse in defeat and watch helplessly as the Duke and I left his estate together.
That night, carrying the bundle of gold jewelry Lewayne had carefully packed away, I boarded the Duke’s carriage.
Among the gathered servants, I spotted Nigel standing rigidly, staring toward the carriage.
Before leaving the mansion, I’d already asked the Duke if we could take one more person with us.
The rest was up to him.
Please… have the courage.
As the carriage began moving, I caught sight of Count Larcel standing outside the window, utterly at a loss.
“Is it really alright for me to leave like this?”
The Duke rested his chin on one hand and looked at me lazily.
“When you came to Blois in Linier Larcel’s place, did you think everything would turn out alright?”
“Not exactly…”
“I imagine you intended to leave the aftermath to me.”
He wasn’t wrong.
I smiled awkwardly.
Seeing my reaction, he let out a quiet snort.
“As my wife requested, I’ll take care of everything.”
“So don’t concern yourself.”
“More importantly…”
“You should do something about that face.”
I touched my still-swollen cheek.
Apparently curious, he watched me closely.
Conscious of his gaze, I gently cupped my cheek before removing my hand.
“…That was simple.”
He folded his arms and quietly inspected my completely healed face.
“So it wasn’t some trick involving perfume after all.”
There it was again.
The perfume.
I tensed, expecting him to start teasing me again, but he merely muttered to himself before falling silent.
With his eyes closed, he looked remarkably peaceful.
This feels nice.
Dimitri felt strangely comforted by Lewayne’s lingering scent drifting beneath his nose.
He had watched her heal her own face with his own eyes.
Now that he’d confirmed he hadn’t been deceived by some perfume, the sweet fragrance surrounding him no longer felt unpleasant.
It doesn’t seem Count Larcel knows about her ability.
Apparently she’d never revealed her powers carelessly.
Otherwise, Count Larcel would never have tried to sell such a daughter as nothing more than the Emperor’s mistress.
A smile spread across Dimitri’s lips.
He looked as though he were dreaming a wonderful dream.
Could she really break the curse?
He opened his eyes slightly and looked at Lewayne, who was quietly gazing out the carriage window.
His smile deepened.
If she could truly lift the curse…
That would be wonderful.
But even if she couldn’t…
Things still wouldn’t be worse than before.
After all, she was here now.
Divorce after three years?
What an ambitious woman.
She might have thrown herself into his arms of her own accord…
But leaving would not be so easy.
Resting his chin against the window frame, he hummed softly.
Lewayne turned toward him.
The moment their eyes met and she saw the deep smile on his face, she awkwardly looked back out the window.
How adorable.
She acted clever, yet she was surprisingly innocent.
She had willingly walked into the tiger’s den.
His pupils widened dramatically.
They were the eyes of a feline predator focusing on its prey.
After arriving in Blois, Dimitri parted ways with Lewayne and headed straight for his office.
Walking leisurely behind his desk, he picked up a crystal goblet displayed on the bookshelf.
The moment Hael saw him do so, his face stiffened with tension.
He knew exactly what that goblet was used for.
“Hael.”
“I have a simple errand for you.”
Without a trace of emotion, Dimitri pulled a small knife from his pocket.
Then, without hesitation, he drew the blade across his own palm.
A long stream of crimson blood poured from the wound.
As though it were routine, he collected the blood in the crystal goblet.
When it had filled partway with the warm red liquid, he slid it across the desk toward Hael.
“As you know…”
“As long as this blood remains inside your body, you’ll be able to control my demon for a short time.”
In other words—
Drink it.
Hael squeezed his eyes shut as though forced to swallow bitter medicine.
The metallic smell of blood turned his stomach, but refusing wasn’t an option.
“Yes, sir.”
“What would you have me do?”
Dimitri thought for a moment.
Then, as though struck by inspiration, he smiled.
“Destroy his wrist.”
“…Whose?”
“My father-in-law’s.”
He remembered Lewayne’s swollen cheek.
Someone had dared to lay hands on the woman he’d already decided belonged to him.
“While you’re at it…”
“Make sure he stays bedridden for quite some time.”
That way, Count Larcel wouldn’t be able to join forces with the Emperor and scheme to take Lewayne back.
When humans were injured, everything else became secondary to recovering their health.
“Assign one of our healers.”
“Keep him unconscious as much as possible.”
If word spread that a father lay gravely ill, even the Emperor couldn’t openly pressure his daughter without damaging his own reputation.
If they dragged things out long enough…
That old lecher would surely lose interest in one woman and turn his attention elsewhere.
Hael accepted the order.
As he swallowed Dimitri’s blood, a serpent-shaped demon named Shedim emerged from Dimitri’s shadow, writhing silently before slipping into Hael’s own shadow.
As soon as we arrived in Blois, I reunited Linier and Nigel.
Watching the two of them joyfully embrace after seeing each other again, I handed them the bundle of gold jewelry I’d carefully brought with me.
It was the last kindness I could offer Linier, who had become my accomplice.
“Go somewhere far away, Linier.”
“Make sure Father never finds you.”
“If it weren’t for you…” Linier whispered. “I never could have imagined any of this. Thank you, Lewayne.”
Before boarding the hired carriage the butler had arranged, she hesitated for a moment.
Then she tightly grasped my hand.
“I think I misunderstood you all this time.”
“I wish we’d talked sooner.”
“I’ll never forget you.”
“If there’s ever anything I can do for you, contact me.”
“I’ll write.”
I didn’t know what Linier had thought of Lewayne before.
But I doubted she’d actually misunderstood her.
The real Lewayne had treated Linier as though she didn’t even exist.
I simply smiled awkwardly and watched them leave.
More than anything…
I hoped Linier would never again be so easily deceived by the people she met.
I guess everything’s finally settled.
The immediate crisis had passed.
I felt relieved…
Yet strangely empty.
Until now I’d been too busy adapting, planning, and surviving to think about what this new life actually meant.
Since the Duke hadn’t given me any further instructions, I headed back toward the room in the annex I’d previously been assigned.
As I walked, lost in thought…
A new life…
What should I do now?
Strangely enough, whenever I thought about my future…
My previous life kept coming back to me.
One memory after another surfaced.
The painful ones.
The dreams I’d wanted to achieve.
The things I’d longed to have.
The hobbies I’d loved…
But could never enjoy again.
Then I realized something.
There really wasn’t much left unfinished in my old life.
Maybe the only regret…
…is that I can’t eat tteokbokki anymore.
After my mother died, even the cats I’d cherished were gone.
There hadn’t been much left in Seo Eunsoo’s life.
I wasn’t hungry.
Yet an odd emptiness lingered inside me.
Instead of returning to my room, I wandered slowly through the moonlit garden.
If I went inside now…
I felt like I’d only suffocate.
Walking beneath the moonlight among the trees and flowers gradually eased the anxiety of being in an unfamiliar world.
Wrapping my arms around myself, I gently patted my shoulders as though comforting someone else.
You worked hard living your previous life.
It wasn’t very happy…
But you never gave up.
You did well.
I encouraged the person I used to be.
Then—
You woke up in a strange world.
You were frightened and confused.
But you’ve handled everything remarkably well.
You could have surrendered to the fate written in the novel.
Instead, you stayed calm and made the best choices you could.
Maybe there were better answers.
But these were the best I could manage.
You did well.
I praised the person I was now.
And finally—
The future is uncertain.
It’s scary.
But I’ll be alright.
There’s no need to worry about years ahead.
Not even months.
Just focus on the next few days.
One step at a time.
People are the same wherever they live.
There’s no reason to be afraid.
I cheered on the person I would become.
After comforting myself like that, I felt much lighter.
My chest tightened with emotion, but at the same time, courage welled up inside me.
No matter what happened…
There was nothing to fear.
Because I would always have myself.
Letting out a light sigh, I retraced my steps toward my room.
Then—
I caught the faintest sound of someone’s presence nearby.
