Lea couldn’t forget Terran’s gaze of desire towards her at every moment.

He sometimes seemed like a child craving love, and other times like a beast hungry with lust.

“Pauline, I have something I want to ask you.”

Lea asked Pauline, who was brushing her hair before bed.

“What is it, my lady?”

“Um, what if a man is sexually incapable?”

“Who?”

Pauline’s expression reflected in the mirror was a sight to behold. Lea hadn’t expected such an intense reaction.

“No, it’s from a novel. I was reading… and got curious.”

“Oh! I thought it was something else.”

“Even if he’s sexually dysfunctional, is it medically logical for him to kiss women, hold hands, and be obsessive?”

“What? Well…”

Pauline rolled her eyes distractedly as she pondered. She’d need to know such a man to give an accurate answer.

“But you know, even if the body is like that, I don’t think mental desires would disappear completely.”

“Is that so?”

“You should ask Dr. Wilson when he comes.”

“I guess I should.”

After all, emotional love is important too. It’s a woman’s psychology to not want to hold hands or kiss a man she doesn’t have feelings for.

But she’d heard that men can enjoy a night with a woman even without love. Is it because of the different physical structure?

‘Terran’s gaze.’

His gaze when looking at her during the photo shoot was that of a perfectly normal man.

‘Wait a minute…’

Suddenly, Lea’s face hardened.

Had she ever seen such a gaze from Allen during their long relationship?

He would say “I love you” as casually as a greeting. But he had never once shown a desperate desire like Terran when looking at her.

He would always smile and say nice things like “You’re beautiful,” “You’re kind,” “There’s only you.”

‘But it was different at the funeral.’

When she met Allen as Grace, not Lea, he had a look she had never seen before. His eyes sparkled, unable to hide his strong attraction.

‘Why didn’t I realize it?’

If she had known how to read a man’s expression when she was Lea Hamilton, she wouldn’t have been deceived by Allen. She suddenly felt angry.

‘Lea, you were so naive.’

It was frustrating that because of trash like Allen, she had come to a point where she couldn’t accept Terran’s love.

In truth, while she wasn’t confident about loving him, she was willing to marry him. After all, it’s a world where it’s difficult for a woman to live without a husband.

But she was afraid of falling truly in love with Terran. She would change into someone she wasn’t and lose her way again. Forgetting her goals.

‘Ah! I don’t know either.’

Even though it was her own mind, she was confused about what was right and what she should do.

Among these conflicting emotions, the biggest contradiction was that she didn’t dislike Terran’s bold advances.

‘Am I being hypocritical? I don’t want to fall in love, but I also don’t want him to drift away.’

She didn’t know how she had become a woman with such a petty mindset.

* * *

Lea had spent several days meticulously creating an advertisement.

First, she needed to take it to the newspaper office to see if it could be published as is, but for now, she was quite satisfied with how it turned out.

“Chainer, when we go outside, you can’t wander off on your own.”

Pauline was almost hypnotizing Chainer as she helped her put on her coat.

“Okay, I’ll just hold elder sister’s hand.”

“That’s right. If you let go of my hand, we might never see each other again.”

It was almost at the level of a threat. But Lea understood Pauline’s concern. There was also Rapha’s advice… Chainer’s face turned pale at the thought.

“That’s enough, let’s go. Pauline.”

“Yes, my lady.”

The three of them were planning to go to the largest newspaper company in the Rubeck Empire. But why did it feel so nerve-wracking, as if they were soldiers heading to the battlefield?

“Chainer, the outside is very dangerous. If you stay close to us, I’ll buy you a delicious cake.”

“Really? Grace, you’re the best!”

Lea comforted Chainer and carefully placed the photos and advertisement flyers in a large envelope.

The three of them took a carriage to the city center. Although she felt uneasy about not telling Terran about going out, it was true that things had become awkward between them after their argument.

‘I told James anyway.’

Lea tried not to worry about Terran just for today. Going to the newspaper office was stressful enough.

Finally, the carriage stopped in front of the Revon Newspaper Company. As expected of the best newspaper company in Rubeck, the building itself was different.

She had heard that their newspaper was distributed not only in Rubeck but in all countries across the continent.

“Pauline, stay in the lobby with Chainer. I’ll go meet the advertising manager and come back.”

“Can you go alone? They might find it strange for a woman to come alone without a maid.”

At Pauline’s words, Lea finally looked around. There were quite a few women among those visiting the newspaper company.

But there was no woman who came alone like her. Most were accompanied by men and maids.

“It’s fine.”

It might be okay if Chainer behaved, but if she said something strange in an unfamiliar place, the newspaper people might find it suspicious.

Lea gathered her courage with a self-pep talk and headed towards the newspaper company. However, the interior of the newspaper company was much more complex and bustling than she had imagined.

Above all, she could hardly breathe properly due to the cigarette smoke emitted by the employees.

Lea was able to meet the advertising manager after asking around.

With a thin body and hair neatly slicked back with pomade, the eyes visible through thick glasses looked very stern.

“I came to place an advertisement.”

It was an opportunity gained after waiting for at least an hour. Lea showed the manager the advertisement and photos she had made.

“Hamilton Trading Company?”

Fortunately, the manager examined the photos and advertisement very carefully.

“The advertising cost varies depending on the duration and size of the advertisement.”

“I know.”

“If you include photos, the cost won’t be cheap.”

“Yes.”

“Are you the owner of Hamilton Trading Company?”

“What? No, I’m not.”

Only then did the manager adjust his glasses and look Grace up and down.

“To fill out an advertisement application, either the company owner needs to come directly, or you need to come with your guardian, miss.”

“I’m sorry, but I’ve already discussed this with the company owner, and I’m an adult. Why do I need to come with a guardian?”

Lea couldn’t readily accept the manager’s words. The manager then launched into a lengthy explanation.

He said that not just anyone could place an advertisement in the newspaper, and that the advertisement needed to be from a verified and credible source.

However, to Lea’s ears, it sounded like a statement full of prejudice that only a man’s word could be trusted.

In the end, it meant that an advertisement requested by a woman couldn’t be trusted.

“That’s the law of this country. Haven’t you been to a bank? Even there, a woman can’t open an account alone.”

Lea was so dumbfounded by this nonsensical logic that she couldn’t even get angry.

However, thinking back, even her father always took male employees with him when meeting bank managers or business partners while running the trading company.

Of course, there were quite a few female employees in the company too. There were female employees skilled in accounting, but whenever they went out for external business, they always went with male employees.

Still, Lea pleaded with the manager several times to place the advertisement. But the response was very stubborn.

‘Should I come with Grandfather Rapha?’

She briefly considered this, but there was no one in Revon who didn’t know the name ‘Rapha’.

Moreover, the newspaper people would certainly know about Rapha, who used to be involved in violence and smuggling.

Everyone except her and Pauline knew this fact. Even if they had known, they hadn’t even doubted it because of Chainer.

‘It needs to be someone whose mere existence carries influence.’

Lea turned back, then returned to the manager and said,

“I am Grace Bizac. I’m engaged to Duke Terran Courtois. Is that still not enough?”

“Do you have proof?”

“Pardon?”

“Come with your fiancé.”

‘I was too naive about the ways of the world.’

That’s why Terran had confidently said such things. He must have known this situation would occur.

Lea left the newspaper office with only disappointment.

‘What a dog-eat-dog world.’

* * *

It had been a wasted trip. Even after returning to the duke’s residence, Lea couldn’t shake off her frustration. It was unfair that women weren’t recognized as independent individuals.

In Galdensia, the emperor was even a woman. Yet, society still revolved entirely around men.

The Rubeck Empire was the same. She wondered if she had to wait for the times to change, feeling utterly frustrated.

‘It’s not the Middle Ages anymore, it’s the 19th century. So why?’

No, this wasn’t the time to blame the world.

Her father used to say, almost naggingly, that the times, social structure, time… such flimsy excuses only proved incompetence.

‘There’s no one else who can help except Terran.’

But now, swallowing her pride and asking for help wounded her self-esteem. Especially after making such a big fuss.

‘Is there a way to get Terran’s help justly without trampling on my pride?’

Lea fell into deep contemplation. Originally, it was right for the desperate person to cling on.

But for some reason, she didn’t want to show a pitiful appearance to Terran of all people.

‘If I were a man, I could at least challenge him to a duel.’

The chivalrous spirit of granting the winner’s request after a fair sword duel.

Lea pondered what she was good at.

She didn’t know how to handle swords or guns, and while she could sew a bit, it would be ridiculous to challenge Terran to a duel with that. Even a passing cow would laugh.

Then suddenly, an idea flashed in her mind. With that, she might be able to win against Terran in a competition.

Lea hurriedly left her room and headed to his office.

“Terran, are you busy?”

Lea’s voice naturally became sweet. Terran looked up from his documents and smiled, raising one corner of his mouth. It was as if he was thinking, ‘So, you’ve come.’

“It seems my guess was right?”

“Well, unfortunately, you’re correct.”

Lea tried her best to appear confident. She hated the idea of acting pitiful and subservient.

“Then make your request. Of course, you’ll have to move me.”

‘Move you?’

For a moment, she felt rebellious.

“Should I crawl and kiss your feet?”

“I’d prefer lips to feet. You can beg in tears before that if you’d like.”

‘Hmpf! Not a chance.’

In a moment of anger, Lea blurted out without thinking.

“Terran, I challenge you to a duel.”

“You challenge me to what?”

He asked back with a burst of laughter.