The door slammed shut with a loud noise.

Kedilen, who had practically dragged Ludmila into the room, swung his arm.

Slap-!

Struck on the cheek by the roughly swung hand, Ludmila collapsed to the floor without even a groan.

Her disheveled hair covered her reddened cheek as if to protect it.

The beautiful pair of mandarin ducks, the Marquis and Marchioness of Erdi, were nowhere to be seen. There was only a man who treated his wife roughly like a tool and even resorted to violence, and a victim.

“I’ve told you many times. I said never to mention children to Count Edbuck because he’s sensitive about it. But you forgot?”

Kedilen frowned as he took off his thick coat, tearing off the cuff buttons and throwing them on the floor.

As if that wasn’t enough, he loosened his tie and put his hands on his waist.

“I told you to be careful not to make mistakes!”

Ludmila’s shoulders flinched slightly at the harsh burst of his voice. Her eyes slowly raised to meet Kedilen’s.

“Why don’t you listen to me? Is it so hard to be careful about that one thing? I said just memorize people’s faces, names, personalities, and things to be careful about, and greet them warmly. That’s all, but you can’t do it?”

There were 200 people attending the charity event.

It was already difficult to memorize the details of the participants, let alone those who showed up without notice.

It was impossible to memorize all their faces and names.

“……”

Ludmila remained silent. This man wouldn’t accept such excuses.

Those hazel eyes filled with madness wouldn’t forgive her even if she made excuses at times like this.

She just needed to apologize and say she was sorry, and it would be over. But that day was different.

Ludmila, who would have normally bowed her head first and said she was wrong, only stared at Kedilen with unfamiliar eyes.

“Ha-.”

A dry laugh formed on his lips before finally bursting out.

“Alright, Ludmila. I like that look in your eyes. You’re saying you did nothing wrong, right? Ah, well. I guess that body of yours, though only half, has the blood of the noble royal family in it?”

Kedilen’s grinning face was far from displeasure. He picked up the carelessly discarded coat and approached the closet.

Ludmila’s complexion paled as she watched her husband take something out of the open closet with dry eyes.

What he pulled out was a golf club that had been kept for social activities.

“I suppose in the eyes of such a noble lady, someone like me getting angry and irritated doesn’t even matter. Yeah, it’s all my fault. It’s my fault for not educating you about this beforehand. Right, Ludmila?”

As he continued speaking, a heat appeared in his eyes.

It was almost as if there was a glimpse of ecstasy, like someone who could finally see a long-awaited play.

‘I’m going to die…’

Thinking about the increasing intensity of her husband’s violence each time, she felt that this might be the last time.

Frightened, Ludmila staggered to her feet.

“Come here, Ludmila. You need to be educated. I’ll draw out that blood in your body and make you understand me.”

As Ludmila was backing away from those eyes that had already half lost their reason, she opened the closed door.

“Stop right there, Ludmila!”

The sharp sound of something cutting through the air behind her sent a chill down Ludmila’s spine.

She escaped from the room and fled frantically. A sharp high-pitched voice calling her name could be heard from behind. I want to live.

Faithful to the fundamental desire that every living being possesses, Ludmila collided with a servant walking from the opposite direction in the corridor.

“Oh-! M-Marchioness! Are you alright!?”

The servant who had fallen to the floor looked at Ludmila, who had collapsed on the ground, with a pale face.

Slumped on the floor, Ludmila turned her gaze away from the servant’s face looking at her and carefully surveyed her surroundings.

The servants throwing surprised glances at her.

Running down the corridor was far from the usual expression of modesty that followed Ludmila.

Everyone was peering curiously, wondering what was happening, and among them stood Kedilen, staring at her.

The eyes full of ecstasy and vitality were gone, replaced by dry eyes like those of a dead doll.

In the midst of the noisy silence, just as bewilderment began to form in Kedilen’s eyes.

“Kyaaak-!”

A sharp scream rang out, followed by the sound of something breaking, and as Ludmila lifted her head, she could see the chandelier falling towards her.

“What are you thinking so deeply about? Can’t you hear me?”

A voice cracked with displeasure pierced her ears.

Snapping out of her reverie, Ludmila bit her lip as she saw Kedilen looking at her with a frown.

“I’m asking if you’re not done yet.”

“Ah, it’s almost finished.”

“You’re still so slow. Wrap it up.”

The sharply honed question seemed to be directed at Ludmila rather than the designer, but the misunderstanding designer spoke first.

Kedilen, who seemed displeased with the situation, slightly furrowed his brow and tilted his chin before turning and leaving the room.

As the door closed, as dry as his voice, the designer who had been touching Ludmila’s hair let out a stiff sigh.

“A-Always feels like such an ice-cold person… Eep!”

As if the tension had eased, the designer unconsciously continued speaking before quickly covering their mouth with rabbit-like eyes.

“I… I, Marchioness. This is…”

“It’s alright.”

The designer hurriedly rolled their eyes to gauge Ludmila’s reaction and carefully continued speaking with a flustered face, but what they got in return was just a slight smile from Ludmila with the corners of her mouth barely lifted.

“It’s not wrong, is it? Everyone in the marquis’s household knows that the marquis is different inside and outside.”

“Well…”

“More importantly, let’s finish up quickly. I think you might get scolded badly if we’re any later.”

“Yes, yes, I understand.”

At the calm response, the designer let out a long sigh and moved their hands busily.

Ludmila, who had returned to the face of an emotionless doll with her lips drawn into a horizontal line, closed her eyes as she looked at her reflection in the mirror.

It was newly apparent, but he truly was a man with different faces for home and outside.

As she approached the main entrance of the hall where the retirement ceremony celebration was in full swing, Kedilen, who had been mingling and conversing with a group, turned his body to look at Ludmila and smiled kindly.

“You’ve arrived, my dear.”

The man who had been leaning against the door speaking in a cold voice was gone, replaced by Kedilen waiting for his sublime wife. He approached Ludmila and kissed her cheek.

“I was about to come find you myself, I missed you so.”

“I’m sorry for keeping you waiting.”

“Not at all.”

Kedilen briefly shook his head and turned his body to lead her towards the sturdy, elderly man he had been conversing with earlier.

The elderly gentleman, wearing a fedora unsuited for the party, politely removed his hat and smiled brightly.

“This is my first time seeing you in person, Marchioness Erdi. It’s an honor to meet the idol of noble ladies.”

“The honor is mine, to meet the legendary warrior who defended the infamous Northern Front.”

“Haha-. That’s all in the past now.”

“Not at all, General. Your achievements in the Cabalt Civil War and the Battle of Santria are comparable to those of the great General Kuras in the future.”

“Is that so? Well, hearing such words from a young person makes it feel that way again. Haha!”

The laughter was like a flow. Once it burst forth, it rang out from all corners.

Ludmila also raised the corners of her mouth monotonously, putting on an artificial smile to match the flow.

“Well then, please go in. Enjoy yourselves, Marquis Erdi. You too, Marchioness.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Kedilen, maintaining his gentlemanly appearance until the end, bowed slightly before entering.

As usual, it was natural for much attention to be focused on the entrance of the two.

They were, without a doubt, the couple that attracted the most gossip in the Empire.

The clothes they wore became trends, and the interactions between the couple became new ways of expressing affection.

Those who didn’t know the truth beyond the fog envied the beautiful pair, sometimes revered them, and busily approached just to exchange a word.

In an instant, they became the center of the party, greeting the social celebrities.

The two never lost their smiles even once until the end of the party. As if wearing masks.

The long social gathering took a proper break around the time of the general’s retirement speech.

‘It was around this time.’

Just as Ludmila remembered Kedilen pulling her out to the terrace while General Cedric was giving his speech, she raised her head.

“Shall we get some fresh air for a moment, dear?”

Kedilen’s gentle voice, standing beside her, rang out. Indeed, it hadn’t changed.

Ludmila followed Kedilen, who was guiding her with the same timing and words as before.

As they went out to the empty terrace and closed the door, Kedilen turned his head with a grim expression.

“Can’t you do it a bit better?”

Ludmila exhaled briefly at the expression that changed as vividly as if he were alternating between two masks.

Indeed, this too hadn’t changed.

“I told you before. I said to smile more warmly and emphasize that you’re on intimate terms with those people. Didn’t I tell you to memorize the information I paid good money to obtain for that purpose? Don’t tell me you forgot?”

What a man, demanding his wife to do the job of an aide. How consistent.

Ludmila wasn’t particularly surprised by the unchanged behavior even after coming back.

The time between her death and this party was more than a month apart, but for Ludmila herself, it felt like barely half a day had passed between her death and now.

She recalled Kedilen looking at her with dry eyes.

At the same time, she remembered the ecstasy-filled eyes as he approached her holding a golf club.

“Yes, I forgot.”

At that moment, Ludmila’s mouth, which should have been tightly closed, opened.

Ludmila, who had been hiding in the shadow she created with her head deeply bowed, met Kedilen’s eyes for the first time.

“But what are you going to do?”

For the first time, life sparked in her dry eyes.

“Are you going to hit me here?”

She wanted to tear off that smug smile mask.