I Tamed the Black Duke as a Terminally-Ill Saint (3 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 11
“I’ll go get some water. Oh dear, there isn’t even a proper nightgown!”
Amy bustled off and disappeared into the bathroom.
It was the kind of moment that made me want to seek out a god I didn’t even believe in.
Undoubtedly, Hades looked just as stunned as I was.
“What are you doing here…?”
“Your Highness!”
I quickly cut him off.
“I’m cold.”
Only then did Hades seem to grasp my current situation.
And that the seemingly empty hallway likely had many ears listening.
“It’s late.”
He cleared his throat and pulled me in.
The door behind us slammed shut with a loud bang.
I swallowed hard.
Hades’s bedroom was much like him—bare and stark, furnished with only what was strictly necessary.
Various swords scattered around seemed to reflect his life precisely.
I tried hard not to show my nervousness as I spoke.
“I guess I acted too convincingly. The new maid assumed I’d naturally spend the night with Your Highness.”
Hades snorted.
“If you acted that well, you’d have come up with a way not to come here at all.”
He had a point, yet I couldn’t fathom why my luck was so rotten.
“Anyway, I’m glad you came. I have something to discuss.”
“What is it?”
What more could he possibly need to talk about with me now?
He pointed toward a table and chairs that, while simple, were unmistakably crafted from the finest wood.
“Sit.”
It seemed this conversation would take a while.
I quickly sat down and looked up at Hades.
“What’s the matter?”
“Your sword.”
Hades replied tersely.
“Are you really going to use it just for peeling fruit?”
I shrank back like a child caught playing a mischievous prank.
Of all things, he had to catch me in that moment!
I’d completely forgotten about it amid everything that followed, but of course—being Leodel’s greatest antagonist—he remembered every detail.
“…I’ll use a proper kitchen knife from now on.”
Hades looked utterly exasperated.
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“I meant, have you ever considered learning swordsmanship?”
“…!”
My eyes widened involuntarily.
Hades Crohittner was asking me—whether I wanted to learn swordsmanship.
Could the heavens have collapsed or something?
“Of course I’d love to learn! But…”
I swallowed again.
Leodel was a game I knew all too well.
Which meant I also knew exactly the limitations Angelica faced.
“I’m the Saintess. Once someone becomes the Saintess, they can’t learn swordsmanship.”
That was Leodel’s ironclad rule.
A character couldn’t hold two classes, and once a class was chosen, it couldn’t be changed.
“So what?”
“I can’t learn swordsmanship.”
“Who decided that?”
I nearly doubted my ears.
What had Hades heard in my words?
Or perhaps he was unaware of the perfectly ordinary fact in Leodel that skills were strictly limited by one’s class?
“I don’t understand why you can’t learn swordsmanship—it’s not like holy magic, something you’re born with.”
“Does that mean… I can learn? I can wield a sword without relying on the Holy Sword’s power?”
Hades stared straight at me.
“Are you feeling unwell, Saintess? Or does that place called Casey brainwash its Saintesses like this?”
My mouth went dry.
He was right.
No matter that this was within a game—this world was real.
Whether Saintess, farmer, or archer, anyone ought to be able to swing a sword.
And with proper training, they could wield it well too.
“I suppose I was mistaken.”
I hastily backtracked on my own words.
“When can I start learning?”
“Speak with Tobias first. You’ll be able to begin fairly soon.”
Tobias?
I tilted my head, puzzled.
It was a name I’d never heard before.
“Who’s that?”
“Vice-Captain of the Knights. These days, he’s free except when demons invade, so he’ll teach you well.”
“Vice-Captain of the Knights?”
My voice rose in alarm.
“But Sir William despises me! Surely Sir Tobias must…”
Hades chuckled softly.
“You needn’t worry about Tobias. He’s trustworthy.”
“You seemed to trust Sir William deeply as well.”
“He’s different.”
Hades fell briefly into thought.
“Tobias would never harm someone frail like you.”
Frail, indeed.
It wasn’t inaccurate, so I didn’t bother arguing.
“And Sir William would harm the weak?”
“Hmm.”
One of Hades’s eyebrows arched upward.
“From what I’ve seen, he hardly considers you weak.”
Should I… take that as a compliment?
Hades stood up from his chair.
“That’s all I needed to say. I should sleep now.”
I blinked.
Right—it was nighttime, so sleep made sense.
If we didn’t rest well tonight, we’d both suffer tomorrow.
But still…
“Um…”
I opened my mouth, my voice tense.
“Where should I sleep?”
Hades stared at me.
“Obviously, in the bed. Do you have a habit of sleeping on the floor?”
“But then Your Highness will…”
“Of course I’ll sleep in the bed too.”
“In… in the bed?”
My words stumbled out involuntarily.
Well, it wasn’t as if I hadn’t anticipated this somewhat—but still!
This wasn’t right.
I was only pretending to be Hades’s consort, not actually his consort.
Hades let out a soft laugh.
“Don’t worry—I won’t touch you.”
“But still, the bed is a bit…”
“Why?”
He genuinely seemed curious.
“Considering you were just sitting on my lap earlier, sharing a bed shouldn’t be a big deal.”
My face flushed hot.
He was right.
But back then, it was just an act for others to see—now, we were alone!
I glanced around the room.
I’d have slept on a sofa if there’d been one.
Unfortunately, Hades Crohittner’s room was as stark as he was, offering no proper place to sleep except the bed.
I admitted it.
I had to share a bed with this man—huge, cold, and the one who’d blackmailed me into playing his consort against my will.
Reluctantly, I rose and approached the bed.
Pulling back the thick curtains revealed a massive bed.
At least I didn’t have to press up against him.
Hades watched with an incredulous look as I awkwardly climbed onto the bed.
“You’re going to sleep in that?”
“…I’m cold.”
Hades clearly wasn’t pleased that I’d lain down in my coat.
It wasn’t a lie.
His room wasn’t heated, making it far colder than mine.
But the real reason I couldn’t take off my coat was different.
‘There’s no way I’m sleeping in that dreadful nightgown!’
The nightgown Amy had picked was, of all things, the sheerest and most translucent fabric imaginable.
Thankfully, she’d given me a thick coat—if I’d had to wear only the nightgown, I wouldn’t have dared leave the room.
“Hmm.”
At my claim of being cold, Hades fell into brief thought.
“…!”
My mouth dropped open in shock.
Hades had lain down beside me and pulled me against his chest from behind.
“Your Highness…?”
He was in a dressing gown, so his broad chest pressed directly against my back.
‘Warmer than I expected.’
I’d assumed his body temperature would be lower than others’, given his ice-based skills—but it was actually quite warm.
Maybe that was why.
My face burned, and my breath grew short.
The spacious room suddenly felt suffocating.
“Stay still.”
Hades scolded me.
“Stop squirming.”
“…Please let go.”
“You said you were cold.”
“I’m not cold!”
“You’ve been shivering since earlier.”
He gave me no room to argue.
“I can’t light a fire, so just endure it.”
I didn’t ask why he couldn’t light a fire.
It probably had something to do with his skills.
But one thing was clear—I couldn’t possibly fall asleep like this.
I could feel his every breath, and his firm chest and arms grew tenser each time I moved even slightly.
I tried forcing his arm off me, but he didn’t budge.
“Saintess.”
One small blessing was that Hades always called me “Saintess” when we were alone.
If he’d used “Angelica” right now, I surely wouldn’t have been able to bear it.
“Yes?”
“Will you please stop?”
“If Your Highness lets go of me first.”
I heard a sigh.
“Fine. If you’d rather catch a serious illness from shivering, go ahead.”
His arm slowly slid away from me.
That night, Hades never touched me again.
Yet for some reason,
the heat in my flushed face refused to fade.
“…And that’s how I got the job as a maid!”
I hadn’t realized it, but Amy was quite the chatterbox.
I smiled and responded warmly to her words.
“I’m glad. Thanks to that, I got to meet you, Amy.”
“Right? I’m lucky to have met you too, Saintess!”
Amy beamed brightly.
“All done! How is it?”
I looked into the hand mirror Amy handed me.
My hair, which she’d diligently styled for an hour, truly was beautiful.
As she pinned a butterfly-shaped jeweled hairpin into my hair, Amy prattled on.
“With such lovely hair, you really must take good care of it. I’ll have to pester the butler for camellia oil—they don’t keep any in stock since there’s no mistress of the house.”
“They haven’t had one for a long time, I suppose?”
“Oh, Her Late Grace the Grand Duchess passed away from childbed fever shortly after giving birth to His Grace the Grand Duke. I’ve only heard the stories myself.”
“I see.”
I fell into brief thought.
Now that I thought about it, the game had never mentioned the current or previous Grand Duchess at all.
That was a relief.
It meant there was no tragic lady murdered by her corrupted son or husband.
“We’ll need to import camellia oil from the south, so it’ll take a while. Until then, I’m afraid you’ll have to make do with another oil…”
Amy’s voice suddenly cut off.
Puzzled, I looked up—her gaze was fixed outside the window.
“Amy?”
Since I was seated, I couldn’t see the window, so I called out to her.
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
Amy laughed lightly.
“It’s just some demons. Don’t they ever get bored?”
I immediately stood up and looked out the window.
‘Wha—what is this?’
My blood ran cold.
If they’d been ordinary demons—or even the elite demon soldiers Hades had easily defeated before—I’d have sat back down and happily chatted with Amy.
But these weren’t…
just demons.
Male lead first thought she played hard to get, only to realize she
really disliked him
Short intro:
What she can’t stand the most is the streets full of effeminate men, especially that so-called top beauty whom she avoids at all costs.
Shen Yaoxing looks at Jiang Mingyue, who keeps approaching her with coy shyness.
Shen Yaoxing: Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up!
She fears nothing in heaven or earth, except for him getting close to her.
*
At first he thought she was just using the trick of feigning indifference to attract his attention. Later, he learned that she truly despised him.
This dealt a heavy blow to Jiang Mingyue, and he vowed to make her, like everyone else, fall at his feet in worship!
***
Synopsis:
Before transmigrating, Shen Yaoxing only wanted to find a reliable man to spend her life with. Who knew that after transmigrating, she would become a reliable woman herself…
A forced misandrist, highly skilled, and reliable female lead
vs.
An initially aloof and arrogant, later morbid, obsessed male lead
_____
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