The wound was not visible.

The leg bitten by a dog. The deep remaining scar. She was clearly limping yesterday, not fully healed.

I thought there was no way she could run away like that with such a leg.

“Stand up.”

In front of his eyes, now coated with reason, Riana’s heart raced.

She put down her spoon and slowly rose from her seat.

The calf, hidden by the long skirt, was once again fully exposed by Sched.

“What happened?”

Sched slowly raised his eyelids and met Riana’s eyes.

“…I used holy water.”

Riana uttered an excuse in a trembling voice.

A lie she had prepared as an excuse every time she used her ability.

“Holy water?”

Riana nodded at Sched’s questioning.

Holy water was a healing potion made by priests infusing their sacred power, curing most wounds without leaving scars.

In battlefields where priests were hard to deploy or in emergencies, holy water became a life-saving elixir.

Holy water could explain her abnormal regeneration.

Then Sched’s eyes narrowed thinly.

“How did you, a mere maid, obtain holy water?”

Holy water was as precious as it was effective.

Usually, a priest’s sacred power could barely fill a small holy water bottle of about 50mL per day. There weren’t even a hundred people officially ordained as priests in the Empire.

Therefore, the temple strictly managed and sold holy water. Even nobles used it sparingly unless during wartime.

It wasn’t something a mere maid should possess.

“…”

Riana kept her mouth shut in front of his interrogation.

“I asked. How did you obtain the holy water?”

Sched grabbed her forearm, which was sitting on the chair, and roughly pulled her up.

But as if her lips were glued, Riana remained consistently silent.

Sched’s jaw muscles clenched threateningly.

Holy water may be precious, but it’s not completely unobtainable.

Secretly diverted holy water often appeared on the black market at high prices. Very rarely, a priest with abundant sacred power might show mercy to a pitiful person.

Perhaps she stole holy water from Baron Godwin’s household, which worked at the Grand Temple.

But Riana made no excuses.

As if it wasn’t worth telling him.

Or as if she didn’t want to tell him anything.

His blood boiled at those tightly sealed lips.

“You have an obligation to answer my questions, Riana Serpens.”

Bang!

“Ugh!”

Sched pushed her against the wall.

Rough veins bulged over the large hand gripping her wrist.

“Would you come to your senses if I burned down a city instead of a port?”

It had always been like this.

Louise Ideana had never properly told him anything from the beginning.

She always remained silent, his questions were always ignored, and he couldn’t get an explanation for anything.

She made decisions alone, putting up a solid wall as if not allowing even a single step into her world.

Sched couldn’t know what he did right or wrong, or what she wanted.

He could only accept the decisions made by the high-and-mighty lady as if they were fate.

Nothing had changed.

He had risen to a high position, and that woman had been thrown into the mud, yet she still held him in her grasp.

Her affection, her betrayal, her death, and their meeting.

“Damn it, clearly recognize your position.”

As Sched applied more force, her small, clenched palm turned white.

Riana struggled to free her wrist.

As her reddened eyes looked up stubbornly with sealed lips, Sched roughly released his hand.

He knew.

Even if he pressured her like this, she wouldn’t give any answer.

She would keep her mouth shut even with those bright red eyes.

That made him angrier.

Clearly, he was now her master, but it felt like she was making all the decisions.

“Fine, keep your mouth shut till the end.”

Like a beast growling, a low voice flowed through Sched’s teeth.

“It’s not like you can escape anyway.”

Sched ordered Riana Serpens to be assigned as his personal maid.

From early morning until night, Riana had to stay by Sched’s side, taking care of all the miscellaneous tasks he ordered.

Even her sleeping place was arranged in a corner of his room.

He was a man who definitely kept his warnings.

Every step Riana took felt like walking on a thorny path.

Even when she closed her eyes to sleep hidden under a blanket, she felt like she was being watched.

And so, she was gradually getting closer to Ideana.

And then.

“Ah, finally seeing your face like this.”

On the way to Ideana. A guest who entered Sched’s quarters smiled brightly upon seeing Riana standing next to Sched.

Riana quietly bowed her head upon seeing the guest’s face.

‘Eclas Bitel.’

She knew that man with ruby-red eyes.

Eclas Bitel was a man who stood out at first glance. He was also famous for his handsome and sophisticated appearance, like a symbol of wealth.

The earrings glittering beautifully at his ears caught one’s attention immediately.

The coat decorated with delicate embroidery, the vest tailored from high-quality fabric, the cufflinks set with sparkling rubies, and the brown shoes made of premium cowhide all showed the careful touch of a craftsman.

The clothes he wore and the accessories he adorned soon spread like a fashion trend in high society.

Even the mandarin-neck style vest that Baron Godwin bought was an imitation of what Eclas Bitel had worn once.

He was a shrewd merchant who led trends and also sold them.

But to Riana, Eclas was defined by just one thing.

The son of the Bitel trading company’s head, who accepted the deal when she sold Sched.

The person who willingly sent Sched, a slave, to the Lester territory.

Perhaps due to that past connection, Eclas seemed to be quite close to Sched.

‘He probably won’t recognize me…’

Riana thought with her eyes lowered.

Their meeting 8 years ago was limited to exchanging a few words when trading Sched.

The time they faced each other wasn’t long either. The time it took to make the deal was probably less than an hour.

Much time had passed since then, and the naive young lady Louise had become the shabby maid Riana.

So there was no way Eclas would recognize her.

But it couldn’t hurt to be careful.

“Greetings, Viscount Eclas Bitel.”

Riana greeted the guest with proper etiquette like any other maid.

But then.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Riana Serpens.”

When Eclas clearly called her name, Riana looked at him in surprise.

It’s uncommon for a noble to memorize the name of another household’s maid.

Sched’s eyes alternated between the two.

“She’s quite famous, you see.”

Eclas added, noticing Sched’s somewhat cold gaze.

“Famous?”

“Well, the Duke has a woman he keeps by his side now. Everyone’s been talking about it.”

“Nonsense.”

Sched coldly cut off Eclas, who was speaking with good humor.

Despite the rather chilly response, Eclas’s expression didn’t change as he headed for the chair in front of Sched.

When he gestured to ask if he could sit, Sched nodded briefly and spoke.

“You may leave, Riana.”

It was the only time he would separate Riana.

As soon as Sched finished speaking, Riana bowed her head and left the tent.

Though she was clearly obediently following orders, Sched was bothered by her footsteps that seemed faster than usual.

Even though the knights outside would surely keep strict watch, it felt as if she had been waiting for this moment to be apart from him, even if briefly.

“Even if it’s nonsense, it’s best to be careful of rumors.”

Eclas said casually, watching Riana disappear outside the tent.

“It will surely reach the ears of Grand Priestess Giselle as well.”

Eclas shifted his gaze from Riana and fiddled with the coin in his hand.

“Our Grand Priestess is a woman with strong pride.”

The youngest graduate of the monastery, the youngest priestess, the youngest grand priestess.

She who has swept all the youngest titles so far, possessor of strong sacred power and an elite among elites.

Mentioned as a candidate for the next Pope, she wouldn’t take kindly to her fiancé keeping a maid by his side.

The noble Grand Priestess wouldn’t tolerate such a flaw in her fiancé.

“Are you worried I might have my engagement broken off?”

“That’s unlikely, but it’s best to build a good business relationship with your fiancée if possible. She’s an excellent partner that’s hard for anyone to obtain, isn’t she?”

“…”

At Eclas’s advice, Sched rested his chin on his hand as if bored.

Eclas sighed lightly.

There was no use talking further as he wouldn’t listen anyway.

Instead of continuing with unnecessary nagging, he brought up the main reason for his visit.

“And, the medicine you requested has departed for Castle Paradel. It should arrive around the time we do.”

“That’s fast.”

“That’s why many customers prefer the Bitel Trading Company.”

Eclas smiled with a seemingly flattering light, recalling Sched’s unusual request.

“I’d like you to prepare a sedative.”

The reason Lupus had been historically treated as slaves for a long time was not just because their eye color was considered ominous.

The reason the derogatory term ‘beast’ was attached to Lupus was due to their heat cycle.

During the cycle that came at regular intervals, when the heat arrived, Lupus easily became excited and felt impulsive desires.

However, Sched had never caused any problems due to his heat cycle even once until now.

No, he had never once sought out a woman or shown lust.

Yet Sched Lester, who had never once sought a sedative until now, had started asking for one.