Evelyn Grace Briet.

This vile woman.

Edgar swallowed his curse.

Tennis was a game that valued dignity and honor. With this level of scandal, it was evident that her eligibility for the tournament would be revoked, and perhaps permanently so. The tense atmosphere was palpable; not even a breath could be heard. Everyone anxiously waited to see who would break this silence.

Who would open Pandora’s Box?

Edgar and Irene locked eyes. Onlookers gulped audibly.

Would it be Marquess Lanslotte, or would the princess open the door?

It was at that intense moment, with the air thickening, that the door unexpectedly opened from inside. People’s necks elongated like turtles in an instant.

“We called for you, and you’re late, Princess.”

“……. ”

Walking out of Pandora’s Box was none other than Duke Johann Leopold.

Johann looked down at the peacefully sleeping Olivia with a quiet gaze.

“I’ve secured a new recruit for the Blanshet lady.”

The news delivered by the sparrow attached to Olivia was quite absurd.

Kidnapping.

After the incident involving Duchess Blanshet, he had given permission for intervention in urgent situations regarding the surveillance target. As a result, instead of Room 3016, she ended up lying in his private room bed.

Not satisfied with kidnapping his former wife, the culprit also attempted to ruin the Leopold Hotel opening party. Along with his reputation.

How dare they.

Johann grabbed his tie, loosening it completely, then reached out and pulled a chair.

In the dim light of the dawn, the face of his wife, who was locked in the dim light, was.

Beautiful.

Perhaps, he could marry the woman he first saw because she was beautiful.

Did he target Olivia?

His silently sinking gaze slowly swept over the woman’s face.

For what reason?

Before marriage, he had never looked at his sleeping wife’s face like this. Not even once.

The feeling was strange.

Johann slowly reached out his arm.

How much had she cried with this pretty face? How had she been damaged?

Diane Brook.

Behind the incomprehensible actions, there was that damned woman.

The impact of this fact reverberated through Johann’s emotions again. He clenched his fist, then slowly extended his hand.

In doing so, he gently swept the night-colored hair cascading down.

Olivia wrinkled her nose. Her long eyelashes trembled and began to move slowly.

Olivia dreamed.

It was a dream when she was herself.

Waiting for her mom who had gone out, lying in a warmth-less room.

The sunlight, piercing through the gridded window, was clear, singing, turning red, and then turning black. Yet, her mom did not return.

Tears streamed down her eyes.
It was cold, hungry, and frightening. The moment she thought it was scary, the pitch-black darkness turned into the shape of black gloves and engulfed her.

Olivia screamed out in terror, sitting up abruptly. The field breathed out. Cold sweat ran down her.

“It’s okay.”

A voice echoed in her ears. The vacant intonation was heavy. The pounding heartbeat slowed down.

“It’s okay now, Olivia.”

It wasn’t a hallucination. The voice soothingly calming her was familiar yet unfamiliar.

Olivia turned her head in the direction of the sound.

Her head was spinning. Due to not fully regaining her senses, her vision was blurry.

She raised her hand and rubbed her eyes. Still, the front remained hazy. After blinking a few times, the focus gradually sharpened.

The murky figure that seemed indistinct began to take clear contours.

“!”

Olivia froze in place.

It felt like she had been kidnapped.

Why is this man…

“Could it be, you?”

“No.”

It never felt realistic, but it definitely couldn’t be a dream. All her senses were too keenly perceiving this man.

His scent, body temperature, breath, even his soft voice.

…It’s not a dream.

Above all, when Olivia’s gaze met the ashy gray eyes directed at her, even the desperate hope that it might be a dream flew away.

Olivia Blanshet’s husband.

She’d rather faint again.

“So, why are you here?”

“A good question.”

As Olivia, who had stepped back, got tangled in the headboard, she trembled.

Johann straightened his upper body, which had been bent to tidy up her hair.

“I should be the one asking. What on earth are you doing?”

The azure eyes that had roamed like explorers finally seemed to scrutinize her appearance.

Desperately pulling the blanket up to her chin, Olivia’s face turned bright red with embarrassment.

It was quite an unusual reaction after three years of facing each other.

“A-Are you…?”

Her gaze, glaring fiercely, wasn’t bad.

It was better than the eyes like shattered glass, broken and distorted. However, the gaze, looking at the unfamiliar man with caution, wasn’t pleasant.

“No.”

It meant he hadn’t kidnapped her or undressed her.

Even with his explanation, the woman who used to be his wife looked at him with disbelief.

“Then who?”

Olivia, wary of the man, asked again.

“I’m investigating.”

The man with soft blond hair replied calmly.