TLDOWN 46

Chapter 46……………….

It’ll Hurt a Little

“You don’t mean….”

The duke realized the moment he saw Lea’s half-clouded eyes. She was in the same state as that night.

“…Duke… sir….”

Her voice was half-mixed with moans, her eyes feverishly burning.

And more than anything.

As his gaze swept over Lea’s figure in the bath, the man’s brow twitched.

A woman’s body, revealed shamelessly through water. They say that a subtle exposure torments the heart more than being completely bare—wasn’t that so?

Her wet chemise clung to her white skin, and it scraped against his nerves.

Does she even realize the state she’s in right now?

She only looked up at the duke with desperate, yearning eyes, as though pleading for something.

“…Haa….”

Akkia let out a deep sigh, brushing back his hair, as if suppressing something. He had a feeling he knew exactly what she wanted from him.

Did she take the drug again? I told her never to take part in clinical trials again….

Biting down on his lip, Akkia approached the bathtub with firm resolve. Leaning down toward her desperate call, he answered.

“Lea.”

His voice sank low as he called her. At that, Lea smiled up at him, as though believing she was about to get what she wanted.

“…Duke.”

Her gaze was pure, almost innocent, though their situation was anything but.

Their bodies overlapped with the bathtub between them. Lea’s drenched figure soaked through Akkia’s shirt.

“…Lea.”

Holding her in his arms, Akkia whispered quietly in her ear.

“It’ll hurt a little.”

And before Lea could react to those words—

Smack.

A sudden blow landed at the nape of her neck, and her eyes fluttered closed.

❀ ❀ ❀

The next morning. Lea woke to the sound of birdsong.

“…Feels nice….”

She burrowed deeper into the blanket, bathed in warm sunlight streaming through the window. It had been so long since she’d felt this refreshed. How long had it been since she’d had such a peaceful morning?

Maybe I should sleep in a little more….

She closed her eyes again, wanting to savor the feeling longer.

But then—

An icy chill ran down her spine. Lea’s eyes snapped open, and she cautiously looked around.

“This is….”

Though she’d only been in the townhouse for a few days, she knew immediately: the bed she was lying in was not hers.

With a jolt, she sat up and scanned the room frantically.

“What, what is this…?!”

No matter how she looked, this wasn’t her room. In a rush of panic, she retraced her memories.

“Last night, I had another fever… I went to the bath to cool down….”

As fragments of memory resurfaced, her face stiffened. At that moment, the door clicked open. The duke entered, toweling his damp hair.

“You’re awake?”

“…Duke…?”

Why was he coming from there?

And what? “You’re awake?”

That was exactly the kind of gentle phrase a man would say after spending the night with a woman.

Lea faltered, flustered by his casual tone.

“Duke, why are you here…?”

“Because this is my room.”

Her blood ran cold.

What? The duke’s room? Then why am I here….

Her eyes darted rapidly, trying to grasp the situation. But then Akkia’s next words froze her completely.

“And your clothes—I hung them over there. Take them when you leave.”

“…What? Clothes? What do you mean… oh?”

Following his gaze, she spotted her chemise from the night before.

No way.

Rigidly, she looked down at herself. She was wearing only a large shirt—clearly not her own.

And the moment she saw it, memories from last night flashed through her mind: her overheated body sinking into the cold water, her voice desperately calling for the duke.

Damn it.

And finally—her voice, crying out for him. Perfectly clear.

Lowering her head in disbelief, Lea muttered softly, trembling.

“Duke… did we…?”

Akkia tilted his head as he watched her.

“Who knows.”

Then, with a faintly amused curl of his lips, he added:

“I did have to use a bit of strength last night.”

Words that anyone would take the wrong way.

I’m ruined.

Lea’s face turned crimson, even redder than the night before, convinced he was affirming it. She wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear.

“I—I… ah….”

Her lips only formed meaningless sounds; no real words came out. Finally, she bolted from the room and collapsed to the floor outside.

“This is crazy. Crazy!”

Clutching her head, she groaned.

The side effect didn’t end that one time?!

It was the worst. To suffer it twice.

But even worse was—

“…It could happen again….”

There was no guarantee it wouldn’t strike again soon.

“Haa….”

She felt despair.

How many more times would this happen? Could it… last forever?

No. Absolutely not.

Horrified at the thought, Lea sprang to her feet. She wasn’t some animal in heat. She couldn’t just let this continue endlessly.

I can’t just sit around thinking like this.

Quickly, she grabbed paper and scribbled down every symptom she remembered from the side effects before she forgot. As she carefully recorded each detail, she thought hard.

Professor Rams had to know more. He already knew that the venom of the Priapos Spider could be used as an aphrodisiac.

“…I need to see the professor again.”

Resolving herself, Lea stood up.

❀ ❀ ❀

Emperor Illei was working through documents in his office when a knock sounded. After a couple of taps, Marquis Rodrigo entered.

“What is it?”

The emperor set down his fountain pen.

The marquis approached after a proper bow.

“It’s about the duke of Heidern’s apothecary, the one you asked me to look into.”

“Ah. Did you find something?”

At the mention of Heidern, the emperor’s interest lit up.

“Her name is Lea. She came from Tren, passed the apothecary exam at the youngest age ever, and her first post was under the duke of Heidern.”

Such a commoner’s name. The emperor stroked his chin, unimpressed.

“But there’s something peculiar. Recently, the apothecary met Professor Rams alone.”

“Professor Rams?”

The emperor’s eyes gleamed with intrigue. Rams was a renowned figure even he knew of.

“It seems the duke ordered her to meet him separately.”

The emperor’s gaze sharpened.

“Highly likely. Do you have her portrait or records?”

“Yes, here.”

Feeling uneasy, Illei took the report.

He skimmed past details of her birth, her life as an orphan, and then his eyes landed on her portrait.

A pale face with defined features, flowing red hair, and striking green eyes like fresh leaves. The emperor’s gaze chilled.

This woman….

He had seen her before.

That day, when he’d inspected the city because of rumors of rampant human trafficking. In a back alley, just before she was taken, he had been the one to rescue her.

So she was in the palace….

When he’d seen her in the palace, he had assumed she was just another court maid. He’d even felt oddly glad.

A bitter smile touched his lips as he set the report down.

“What is Professor Rams’s specialty?”

Suddenly curious, Illei asked.

“He studies rare herbs, but most of his research is on poisonous plants.”

“Not herbs—poisons?”

There was no way the duke’s apothecary met him simply for academic curiosity. It had to be deeply tied to the duke.

But what? Why would Akkia’s apothecary need a poison expert…?

The emperor’s nerves tightened.

Akkia wasn’t frail from birth.

Back when his mother, the late empress, lived, Akkia had been healthy. Only after her death had he begun to ail, until he was too sick to inherit the throne and left the palace.

This doesn’t feel right.

Something critical was being overlooked. Drumming his fingers against the desk, Illei looked at the marquis.

“Marquis. Where is Rams now?”

His expression turned cold as ice.