As the carriage stopped, the servants rushed out of the mansion.

They anxiously paced about, not knowing what to do, as they watched Cedric get out of the badly damaged carriage.

“Your Grace! What on earth happened?”

The aide hurriedly approached Cedric and spoke.

“Your Grace, I’ll escort you right away. We must call for the doctor immediately…!”

“Don’t make a fuss.”

As Cedric firmly spoke to his aide, Adrian approached my side.

“Lady Bi, I’ll escort you inside.”

Just as Adrian naturally extended his hand to me as I was getting out of the carriage.

Cedric, who had somehow returned to my front, brushed aside Adrian’s hand and swiftly lifted me into his arms.

“Uh… huh?”

A single syllable escaped my lips.

I looked at Cedric with wide eyes, but he was merely giving indifferent orders to his aide.

“Have the doctor come to the Dark Mansion.”

At this, all the servants, including the aide, exchanged glances with puzzled expressions.

“To the… Dark Mansion?”

“Yes. I need to check on the Duchess’s condition right away.”

With those final words, Cedric began walking straight towards the Dark Mansion while carrying me in his arms.

The servants slowly dropped their jaws as they watched us moving further away.

Having to watch this scene from over Cedric’s shoulder, I felt like I could die of embarrassment.

“This isn’t necessary, Cedric.”

“It is. You must have been very startled.”

Cedric continued walking silently.

“I was startled, but there’s really no need to be carried…”

As I glanced at Adrian walking beside us, he hurriedly approached Cedric.

“Your Grace. You must be very tired as well. Please allow me to escort Lady Bi to her chamber.”

Cedric’s steps came to an abrupt halt.

He stared at Adrian for a long while with an unreadable expression.

Finally, Cedric’s lips parted slowly.

“Stop with the useless talk and just lend me an arm.”

To this, Adrian blinked slowly and asked back.

“Pardon? What do you mean…”

“It doesn’t seem like the Duchess will embrace me on her own now. I’m telling you to help Rebecca embrace me.”

“…”

“That’s the only thing you can do right now.”

Watching Cedric speak emphatically as if issuing a warning, Adrian seemed inwardly flustered.

‘Why is he speaking so sternly, making the atmosphere so tense…’

Lest the atmosphere become even more awkward, I hurriedly wrapped my arms around Cedric’s neck.

“Is this what you wanted?”

At this, Cedric looked down at me in his arms and raised the corners of his lips freely.

“Now that’s more like it.”

“…”

“It’s been a while. Since you’ve wrapped your arms around my neck like this.”

“Ah… you don’t like it, do you?”

As I tried to unwrap my arms again, Cedric spoke hastily, unlike his usual self.

“I don’t dislike it, Rebecca.”

“What?”

“I don’t dislike it anymore.”

“…”

“So I’d appreciate it if you could stay like this, at least until we reach the lobby.”

Cedric spoke while gazing at me intently, as if making a difficult request.

‘How can I ask to be put down when he’s talking like that?’

I nodded my head, pretending to feign indifference.

“Well… if it makes you feel better, I guess I can do that for you.”

Somehow, I felt heat rising to my face.

At this, Cedric let out a small laugh.

“Yes, thank you for allowing it.”

And he began to walk again.

As I had no choice but to remain quietly in Cedric’s arms, my gaze fell upon Adrian walking behind us.

For some reason, he had his gaze lowered.

“Is Adrian alright?”

At my question directed over Cedric’s shoulder, Adrian hurriedly raised his head.

It seemed he had been lost in thought for a moment.

“Ah… I’m fine, Lady Bi.”

“How can you be fine? You were the one who blocked those monsters with your body in the driver’s compartment earlier.”

Adrian shook his head while forcing a smile.

“I’m really alright. I’m not injured anywhere.”

“Well, that’s a relief, but are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure, Lady Bi.”

It was then, as I was silently watching Adrian nod his head.

“He must be fine. Adrian’s magic is quite outstanding even in the demon realm.”

Cedric interjected abruptly, slightly furrowing one eyebrow as he spoke.

He had an expression of something not being to his liking.

“So you don’t need to worry about him.”

“But still…”

“If you really need something to worry about, worry about your husband – me.”

“Why should I worry about you?”

“Why, you ask? Well, obviously…”

“Weren’t you supposed to have even more extraordinary magical powers than Adrian?”

Cedric, who had been acting thoroughly displeased until just now.

But now, for some reason, he slightly raised the corners of his mouth.

“Well, I suppose I am quite extraordinary.”

With those words, Cedric entered the Dark Mansion through the door that Adrian had opened.

Finally reaching the lobby, I lightly tapped Cedric’s shoulder.

“We’re at the lobby now. Please put me down.”

At this, Cedric hesitated for a moment before finally setting me down.

“Thank you, Cedric. From here, I can go up with Adrian.”

“…”

“You should hurry back and rest too. You must be even more tired than I am.”

At my words, Adrian approached from the side as if he had been waiting.

Immediately, Cedric’s gaze sharpened as it turned towards Adrian.

“I will take good care of Lady Bi, so please don’t worry, Your Grace.”

“When there are proper maids, why should a butler…”

Right at that moment.

Cedric suddenly stopped speaking, and his brows gradually furrowed.

Adrian also seemed to sense something amiss, blinking his eyes.

They remained frozen like that for a while.

The two men’s gazes simultaneously turned towards the reception room in the lobby.

‘Why are they… acting like this?’

I also turned my gaze in the same direction as them.

My face reflexively scrunched up.

‘Ah, that unpleasant frame. I tried not to look at it, but I ended up seeing it again today.’

It was that frame that filled one wall of the lobby.

Inside the frame was a scene of a pitch-black forest.

It was densely packed with nothing but trees, and the overall saturation was excessively low.

In a word, it was a dark and gloomy painting.

Standing in front of that painting made one feel as if they were left alone in a forest enveloped by pitch darkness.

And now, the two men were staring at that unpleasant painting.

How long did that strange silence continue?

Cedric furrowed his brows as he let out a long sigh.

“It seems that madman is coming.”

Adrian nodded at his words.

“Yes, it appears he has noticed what happened in the forest earlier.”

Frustrated by their cryptic conversation, I quickly opened my mouth.

“Who exactly is coming? Are you talking about that painting?”

Cedric slowly nodded in response.

“Vincent will be here soon.”

Vincent? Who’s that?

Seeing me still confused, Adrian gave an awkward smile.

“Lady Bi. Actually, that’s a painting of the demon realm forest, and it’s also a passage to that place.”

Hearing those words, I recalled what Adrian had said before.

‘The demon realm forest is very dark. If you happen to come across this flower when you’re lost, you’d be considered quite lucky.’

Ah, so that’s why the forest in the painting was so dark.

As I nodded my head, lost in thought, Adrian slightly bit his lower lip before speaking again.

“And now… the owner of this place is coming.”

“The owner of this place?”

Adrian nodded with an obviously tense expression.

“The ‘real owner’ of this place, the Dark Mansion.”

Soon after, a small light began to bloom at the very top of the painting, in the deepest part of the demon realm forest.

That small light slowly began to move towards the bottom of the frame.

It looked as if someone was walking along a path holding a lantern.

As if to prove my thoughts correct, the surrounding trees swayed vividly with each movement of the light.

As the light drew closer, the sound of forest wind and nocturnal animal cries could even be heard intermittently.

As my lips slowly parted at the unbelievable sight before my eyes.

Finally, someone began to slowly walk out of the painting, pushing through the undergrowth.

.

.

.

“I was just having a good time…”

An unfamiliar voice eerily echoed through the reception room.

“Who’s the bastard that made me concerned at this very moment?”

Golden eyes slowly revealed themselves from the darkness.

The man had half of his forehead covered with silver hair, and his sharp eyes were filled with killing intent.

There was a large scar on the right corner of his mouth, and several scars were visible on his tanned abs through the unfastened nightgown.

As I unconsciously swallowed dry saliva at the man’s impression, which felt like a blood-hungry hyena.

“You come all this way on your own and spout nonsense, Vincent.”

Cedric coldly rebuked the man.

At this, the man’s face, which until just now looked ready to tear apart that ‘bastard’, slowly began to soften.

“Well, well, if it isn’t my cousin Cedric. What a coincidence to meet you as soon as I arrive.”

Vincent chuckled as he tied the sash of his nightgown.

“Cedric, seeing your foul mouth hasn’t changed makes me even happier. It makes me feel like you haven’t been too tainted by the human realm yet.”

“…Hah.”

“That’s why I keep telling you, instead of suffering to hide your true nature among these cute humans, why don’t you come back to the demon realm?”

Cedric frowned as if tired of Vincent, but Vincent just chuckled again.

“Lord Vincent, it’s been a while.”

“Oh, even Adrian? Is it my birthday today?”

Despite being filled with killing intent just moments ago, he was now constantly laughing.

As Vincent’s gaze finally fell on me, Adrian approached my side and whispered.

“This is Lord Vincent, the head of the Norman family, the Grand Ducal family of the demon realm. It’s the family of the twin brother who returned to the demon realm in ancient times.”

Although it didn’t appear in the original work, it seemed the two families had maintained contact even after the twin brother’s family returned to the demon realm.

Vincent, who had been observing me with cool golden eyes, slowly opened his mouth.

“Ah. I see.”

“…”

“You’re the notoriously eccentric Duchess of Twins, aren’t you?”

As expected, it seemed Vincent was meeting me for the first time as well.

Since Cedric had kept everything related to the demon realm a secret from her, he probably never introduced them to each other.

‘That’s all well and good. But what? Eccentric?’

As I glared at him with sharp eyes, Vincent chuckled and continued speaking.

“I’ve often heard about your personality even in the demon realm. If even my relative was surprised enough to stick out his tongue, that says it all, doesn’t it?”

“Did Cedric say such things?”

“No, not him.”

“Then who…?”

“The Demon King.”

Vincent wrinkled his nose and smiled.

“That old geezer is my relative too, you know.”

After staring at me for a while with a chuckling expression.

“…Hey, by the way.”

Vincent scratched one eyebrow and cautiously approached me.

A rough and wild impression.

Although there were some similarities in appearance to Cedric, the feeling was completely different.

There was a sense of intimidation from his broad shoulders and stature.

His gaze swept over me sharply once again.

His lips, which had come close, slowly parted.

“Haven’t we met somewhere before, you and I?”