The knight raised his head in the direction the arrow had flown from.

Above the tall trees, men in dark blue hoods began to appear one by one.

They were the elite soldiers of the Duke’s family, the Dawn Knights.

“Damaging the Imperial edict, do you wish to lose your head this instant?”

As the knight shouted at them, a middle-aged man in hunting attire appeared from between the trees.

“It seems you are the one damaging the Imperial edict. Perhaps it is you who should lose your head first.”

It was Matian’s father, Grand Duke Duncan Wiegratz. He was aiming a crossbow at the knights.

“I come bearing the order of His Imperial Majesty. Pay your respects.”

“Well. I thought you were voluntarily making yourself prey by entering my hunting grounds without permission.”

“Grand Duke Wiegratz!”

“Moreover, I had no choice as you were threatening my precious guests, haha.”

At the Grand Duke’s words, the knights lowered their swords that had been pointed at Bolton. The Grand Duke also casually tossed his crossbow to the ground.

Then, a loaded crossbow flew haphazardly towards the horses the knights had ridden on.

The agitated horses reared up on their front legs and scattered in all directions.

“Oh dear, looks like you’ll have to walk back. It’s quite a long way.”

“Do you think His Majesty will let such disrespect slide!”

“I believe he will. In the current wartime situation, who else but the Wiegratz family can be relied upon?”

As the Grand Duke snapped his fingers, monster corpses fell from the trees with thuds.

“You should be grateful to have your lives spared. I broke into a cold sweat leaving my eldest son behind. If he had come, everyone here would have been written off as accidental deaths. By those monsters there.”

The Grand Duke pointed his chin at the monster corpses, then grinned at Rukna.

“It’s been a while, Priestess Rukna. My son strictly instructed us not to burden the priestess, so we’ve been keeping quiet. You must be famished, let’s go have a meal now.”

Rukna returned to the mansion with the Grand Duke.

Before entering through the front door, she felt a piercing gaze and raised her head.

Orien poked his head out from the 2nd floor window to check on her, but as soon as their eyes met, he hurriedly went back into the room.

His eyes looked swollen, but maybe she saw wrong.

As Rukna stood there in a daze, the Dawn Knight Carlyle gestured for her to enter the mansion while opening the front door.

Inside, Matian was standing with his arms crossed in the 1st floor lobby, smiling brightly at her. She wasn’t sure what was going on, but he was armed.

The black armor resembling dragon scales suited his black hair very well.

“I was worried your walk took so long, Rukna.”

Matian greeted her in a relaxed manner.

It was a smile without a single sharp edge, but Rukna thought, ‘He seems displeased about something again.’

“Sorry, I ran into some people while walking.”

“I see.”

Matian noticed Perta being carried by servants while unconscious, and Bolton trailing behind Rukna.

Then he muttered in a soft voice with thorny words, “Looks like a single letter made him rush over, breaking his body.”

“But Matian, why are you wearing armor?”

“It seems there will be a fight. But Father said he would handle it personally.”

At those words, Rukna asked if it was about the dark magician who appeared in the territory.

Matian just smiled without giving a clear answer.

While suspecting his vague attitude, wondering ‘He wasn’t thinking of fighting the knights bearing the Imperial order, was he?’, Matian carefully pulled her in by the waist and thoroughly examined her condition.

Fortunately, she didn’t seem to be injured anywhere.

“Are you…”

Honey was dripping from his sky-blue eyes as he asked.

“Huh? Yeah?”

“Are you okay? Not hurt anywhere?”

What is he asking about now, really! Rukna was flustered as she recalled the night she spent with him.

She tried to push against his chest, but the man’s firm chest didn’t budge at all. The metal armor that her hands touched felt particularly cold.

“I, I’m fine, okay?”

“That’s a relief.”

That’s a relief. Matian lowered his head and buried his forehead in her shoulder.

Then he whispered, “You don’t need my help today?”

“You, seriously!”

With her face flushed red, she slapped his hands that had come up to her waist. Even though the touch was quite stinging, Matian showed no signs of pain.

He lightly bit her shoulder exposed above the dress.

Like a beast marking his territory.

Bolton’s face flushed red as he watched the scene.

“Hey, Matian, do you not see me here? I’m feeling really left out right now.”

Did muscle loss occur in the meantime, making him shrink in size? Bolton looked down at his body to check his muscle condition.

“You must be exhausted from coming all the way here, Bolton.”

Matian acknowledged him while tightly embracing Rukna.

“Since when did you worry about my hunger after blocking my entry?”

“Yes, you’ve worked hard. There should be a meal prepared in the dining room. Go recover your energy.”

“See that, see that. He doesn’t even answer difficult questions. Don’t you agree, Blockhead?”

Bolton called out to Rukna. But Rukna, trapped in Matian’s arms, couldn’t give any response.

The armor pressed against her body was cold, but heat reflexively rose beneath her skin.

‘Why are you doing this, really. I don’t even understand my own body.’

Rukna felt the strength leave her body and bit her lip tightly.

“Hey, Blockhead? Are you hurt somewhere?”

Just as Bolton reached out to grab Rukna’s wrist, Matian’s eyes flashed and he slapped Bolton’s hand away. Then he raised Rukna’s hand and kissed the back of it and her arm.

Rukna lowered her head to hide her reddened face.

Even the nape of her neck visible between her hair strands was nicely flushed.

Although nothing had happened, it was quite a stimulating sight.

Flustered, Bolton shouted “You, you, seriously!” and moved to the dining room like someone in urgent need of the restroom.

Even after Bolton left, Matian didn’t let go of Rukna. The servants exchanged glances and quietly stepped aside.

Matian lifted Rukna’s chin. Her flushed face, moist eyes, and dewy lips were visible.

Ah, it was truly fortunate that this face wasn’t shown to anyone else. He immediately and carefully captured her lips.

“Mmm, Matian, mmph.”

Rukna’s voice was completely devoured by Matian.

A slick mass of flesh claiming that she was his and could no longer escape ravaged the inside of her mouth.

He greedily swallowed even the small breaths she let out.

Even when she pulled her head back, his hand cradled the back of her head, blocking her escape.

The act continued until Rukna tapped his back. He reluctantly parted his lips and looked down at her.

As if annoyed that she had thought of running away from him, he lightly bit her plump, swollen lips.

He thought he hadn’t used much force, but a small bead of blood welled up.

He licked the wound like a puppy while gazing at her closed eyes. The long eyelashes were trembling.

“I will definitely protect you, Rukna.”

He recited in a low voice. Huh? Rukna tried to open her eyes slightly, but had to close them again as his lips descended on her eyelids.

“Go eat first.”

After kissing her round forehead one last time, Matian sent her to the dining room.

The Hero’s Room.

Matian stood with his hands clasped behind his back in front of the fireplace.

He admired the portraits of his ancestors hung side by side above it. The faces, so alike it was eerie, were like looking into a mirror.

In his childhood, he had hated this room to the point of causing a ruckus, claiming he would tear up all those portraits with a stick.

Even now, looking at these portraits made Matian feel like a demon himself.

So he secretly visited this room whenever he committed acts that went against norms and conscience.

Recently, he had stopped by before spending the night with an addicted Rukna.

And now, he had a slightly different matter to take care of.

Matian brought his fingers to his lips and whistled shrilly.

Immediately, the Dawn Knights in blue hoods appeared and knelt at his feet.

“Bring her now.”

As soon as the order was given, the Dawn Knights brought in a maid. Her mouth was gagged.

“Is that her?”

Matian picked up the holy sword hanging on the wall while wearing black gloves.

The holy sword prattled on about something, and he frowned with one eye as if annoyed.

“Yes. She is the Imperial spy who disclosed the young lady’s existence to the Emperor.”

“The Duke’s household must have lowered its threshold enough for bugs to crawl in. Thanks to that, we end up receiving such an Imperial order.”

“My apologies.”

Matian knelt on one knee and stared at the maid.

The maid, alternating her gaze between the portraits and Matian, shouted “Demon!” at him, but when the blade of the sword came under her chin, she pleaded, “Please spare me, Hero.”

Of course, with the gag in her mouth, all the pronunciation was muffled.

Matian smiled brightly and gestured. Then the knights guarding the surroundings closed the wide open door.

With a creepy sound of hinges, the door closed and as the light from outside faded, shadows fell even on Matian’s beautiful smile.

A short scream leaked out from inside the room. But no one heard it.

Matian did not attend the meal. It was said he had left the mansion with the knights, mentioning some business to take care of.

Perta regained consciousness thanks to the Duke’s family doctor, but felt nauseous and had his meal resolved with gruel in the bedroom.

And Bolton didn’t make eye contact with Rukna throughout the meal, emptying his plate.

His neck remained bright red the entire mealtime as if he had drunk daytime alcohol.

After finishing her meal, Rukna was invited to the Duchess’s tea time.

The location was a drawing room on the 2nd floor of the rear building that the Duchess frequently used. A beautiful marble fountain garden could be seen from the terrace.

The table setting and scenery were perfect, but the interior decor was unique.

From the inner drawing room to the terrace, mirrors were hung wherever the eyes could see.

“I wanted to talk to you much earlier, but I’m only now arranging this meeting.”

The Duchess smiled as she personally poured tea into Rukna’s cup. That kind smile greatly resembled Matian’s.

“The weather is really nice, isn’t it?”

“Haha, yes.”

“And there are so many mirrors.”

“Yes. Yes? Ah…”

“It was to teach Matian.”