Chapter 9
“Huh?”
“What exactly is this clause?”
Edward’s beautiful eyes narrowed in annoyance.
He was still smiling…
But now it looked like a slightly sulky smile.
‘He’s ridiculously handsome even when he’s frowning.’
But instead of feeling flustered by his looks…
Lucy only wanted to get out of his grasp.
To everyone else, his face was one worthy of admiration and worship.
But Lucy knew what he was really like.
To her, Edward’s beauty was nothing more than a ticking time bomb.
Edward could feel her shrinking away in his arms…
Yet stubbornly refusing to back down.
He looked down at her as if to say,
“Well, this is interesting.”
He had assumed that since she had fallen for him…
A simple smile would be enough to make her tear up this troublesome contract herself.
‘I never expected her to bring me something like this.’
He thought she would simply follow him around if he treated her kindly and fed her well.
Instead…
She had brought a contract.
‘She’s smarter than I thought.’
Even after falling for him, she was still thinking rationally.
He had to give her credit for that.
Edward knew perfectly well that although she owed him her life…
If she left, he would be the one at a disadvantage.
Even if he locked her up by force…
It would only hurt him if she refused to purify him.
That was why he had planned to persuade her gently instead of forcing her.
‘I didn’t expect that to fail.’
Normally…
Things didn’t go this way.
Whenever he smiled like this…
People would happily do exactly what he wanted.
But this little mouse…
Her large, round eyes darted around nervously.
Anyone could tell she was uncomfortable.
‘Uncomfortable?’
‘She’s nervous?’
‘Even though someone as handsome as me is putting an arm around her?’
‘Even though she likes me?’
He didn’t like that at all.
If someone you liked treated you this warmly…
Shouldn’t you be happy?
The funny thing was…
The one actually enjoying the contact was Edward.
Yet somehow…
He convinced himself he was the one doing her a favor.
After all, he had dealt with countless people who threw themselves at him just for the chance to be held by him.
Regardless of gender.
Even while feeling slightly offended…
The refreshing sensation from where their shoulders touched continued calming the dark energy inside him.
‘Just touching her is enough to do this.’
‘Then what would proper purification feel like?’
‘And yet she wants to hold hands only once a week?’
There was no way that kind of purification would satisfy him.
Without realizing it…
Edward looked down at Lucy like a predator watching its prey.
Feeling an even colder chill, Lucy carefully asked,
“…Which part don’t you like?”
“Are you joking?”
“No.”
“I’m serious.”
As far as Lucy knew…
Edward was an incredibly powerful Dragon Incarnation.
‘There’s no way the only Dragon Incarnation in the story would be weak.’
She wasn’t wrong.
What Lucy didn’t know was that the berserk episode he’d almost suffered this time…
Would have destroyed the world if it had happened to any other Dragon Incarnation.
Anyway…
‘Once a week should be enough.’
“…I thought it would be better to keep physical contact to a minimum…”
“Better?”
Lucy nodded sincerely.
‘Sure, this is one of those fantasy romance worlds where purification requires physical intimacy…’
But Lucy had absolutely no intention of ever sharing Edward’s bed.
Not now.
Not ever.
Not even if the sky split in half.
Or if the male lead somehow became incapable of having children.
Edward already hated his purification sessions with Sepina.
Why would things be any different with her?
‘Besides… in dark romance novels like this…’
Women who slept with the male lead instead of the heroine…
At best…
Only existed so he could realize,
“The woman I truly want isn’t her.”
Then they’d quietly disappear.
Even Sepina had died a cruel death in the end.
She had murdered the real mate and stolen her place.
Naturally, she had paid the price.
Lucy had no intention of following the same path.
‘I refuse to die as some obstacle that only strengthens the love between the hero and heroine.’
If she’d at least been reincarnated as a rich villainess…
She would’ve had money.
Instead…
She was just a penniless escapee who had barely made it out alive.
Besides…
With Edward’s current condition…
No amount of ordinary purification would—
“Ahem!”
‘No need to reveal how much I know just yet.’
Lucy cleared her throat and changed her approach.
“Well…”
“I picked up a few things while living at the temple.”
“Such as?”
“I heard that you always endured your purification sessions with Lady Sepina against your will.”
“I see.”
“I figured you probably don’t like what purification requires.”
“So I thought limiting both the number of sessions and physical contact would…”
“‘Endured it,’ huh.”
Edward spoke with the same smile on his face.
“So the temple knew all along.”
“And still forced me.”
His crimson eyes were ice-cold despite their fiery color.
Lucy shivered.
At the same time…
She silently offered her condolences to the temple.
‘Not that I’m sorry.’
‘Good luck.’
As far as she was concerned…
A temple that kidnapped children and treated them like disposable tools deserved whatever happened to it.
“And you cooperated with them anyway?”
Lucy immediately protested.
“That’s not fair!”
“I was just a test subject they forced into it!”
“If you know I hated it…”
“Doesn’t that mean you were fairly close to the temple?”
“I didn’t hear it from them.”
“I felt your emotions myself!”
“…What?”
She wasn’t making it up.
Whenever Sepina purified Edward…
Lucy’s own body reacted too.
‘Well… only my hands reacted.’
Whenever they became unbearably hot…
She sometimes felt a sharp sensation, like being pricked by needles.
It wasn’t affection.
It felt more like disgust and anger.
‘I’m sure those feelings came from the duke.’
Remembering that overwhelming killing intent made the back of her neck damp with sweat.
“You felt it?”
After hearing his question…
She suddenly felt even colder.
Then…
A horrifying realization struck her.
‘Wait…’
‘I just admitted I felt what he was feeling during purification.’
Even if she hadn’t meant it that way…
‘Doesn’t that sound like I secretly watched his private moments?’
Wow.
She’d be upset too.
Cold sweat ran down her back.
Her confidence instantly vanished.
“W-Well…”
Edward continued looking at her with amused eyes.
His eyes were cold.
Only his lips were smiling.
“How much did you feel?”
“…”
“Did you feel everything?”
Slowly…
Edward’s fingers brushed along Lucy’s arm.
As if testing how much she had truly experienced.
“Hic!”
A frightened hiccup escaped her.
Feeling her life was in danger…
Lucy squeezed her eyes shut and shouted,
“N-Not that much!”
“Really?”
“Haha…”
“Of course not.”
“I only realized that Your Grace is… very skilled…”
After all…
How skilled would someone have to be for her hands to become that hot?
The chains extracting her holy power had been directly attached to her hands.
Naturally…
That was where she most clearly sensed the purification taking place between Edward and Sepina.
If those sensations had spread through her whole body…
‘Ugh…’
Lucy turned pale and shook her head.
“Hah.”
A low, refreshing laugh escaped Edward’s lips.
Lucy looked up in surprise.
“Haha… Hahaha!”
What?
The Dragon Incarnation…
Was laughing.
Not his usual charming smile.
Not his sarcastic one.
He laughed like an ordinary young man genuinely enjoying himself.
‘What’s happening now?’
Anyone else would’ve been captivated by that sight.
But Lucy only felt like she’d accidentally pressed the button on a bomb.
‘This is terrifying!’
After he finally stopped laughing…
Edward tilted his head.
“You’re even more shameless than I thought.”
Those words instantly made her feel wronged.
“No, that’s not what I meant…”
“And yet…”
“You wrote such a restrained contract?”
“I told you!”
“Why not simply increase both the number of sessions and the amount of contact?”
“…”
“I might even agree.”
Edward was completely serious.
With Sepina…
Holding hands had always been the limit.
Even then…
All he could think about was biting the back of her hand instead of kissing it.
But now…
She had called him skilled?
‘Does she know what she’s talking about… or not?’
Her innocent misunderstanding almost made him laugh again.
It even made him want to show her what real skill looked like.
‘With this woman…’
He didn’t think kissing the back of her hand would bother him.
Maybe…
Even her cheek would be fine.
Looking at the faint imprint of his family crest still marked on her face…
He suddenly wanted to bite it.
‘Since she seems to have fallen for me…’
Surely she wouldn’t mind that much.
But…
Lucy interpreted his words very differently.
‘Is this a trap question?’
Because of her firm belief that Edward would never willingly increase physical contact with anyone except the heroine…
She became suspicious.
‘Is he testing me?’
At this point…
There was no point hiding what she knew.
Lucy changed her mind and laughed awkwardly.
“Haha…”
“I know you’re only saying that.”
“Why?”
“Because increasing the number of purification sessions won’t help.”
“It won’t?”
“That’s right.”
“Because…”
Rustle.
Just then…
Tepe and Gorgo returned with food.
As skilled knights, they approached without making a sound.
Lucy didn’t notice them.
She confidently finished her sentence.
“Because you’re still an incomplete Dragon Incarnation.”
Shing!
“Ah!”
In the next instant…
A sword flashed toward Lucy.
