Even without being told the exact situation, one could understand what was happening just by looking.

It was not surprising that the lecherous old man, who would even back down to the Emperor when it came to women troubles, was up to his usual antics.

Moreover, since he had a hold on Aden’s weaknesses, Aden would have normally tolerated this level of rudeness.

When Aden heard that the man was in the reception room, he had imagined a situation of about that extent.

However, the sight that surpassed his expectations was so ridiculous that Aden found himself smiling.

Nevertheless, while not particularly surprised, Aden’s eyes had grown cold.

Amidst all this, what fueled his anger was the look in Ludmila’s eyes.

What filled those red eyes was a clear terror.

Even in a difficult situation, she feared and worried more about Aden than the old man who was acting like a drunken scoundrel, and that made Aden’s anger surge.

When Aden realized the true nature of that anger, he even felt a sense of futility.

“What is this…”

“If you’ve gone senile, just wait for the day to die buried among your young concubines. To think you’d enter the castle and behave this way. Your vitality is impressive.”

“D-Duke…!”

“Did you think lending me a few measly coins made you something special?”

Aden looked down at Kurto, who was groaning while being held by the shoulders, and straightened his waist.

The flustered servants were watching for an opportunity to save their master. Aden’s lips curved into a slanted sneer at their devotion, bound by money.

“Are you in your right mind!? You know what will happen to you if I call in the debts, don’t you!?”

“Talking about money in this situation. Do you think your neck will come back to life with money even if it’s broken?”

“What?”

“The world has really gotten better. In the past, a mongrel who couldn’t even set foot in the castle now tries to rival its master just because he’s got some money in his hands…”

Trailing off his words, Aden rolled his eyes and fixed his gaze on Ludmila.

Even in this situation, her worried and anxious eyes, biting her lips, were enough to sour his mood.

“Aargh!”

As more force was applied to his jaw, Kurto screamed, unable to endure the pain.

Aden stared at Kurto, the corners of his mouth twisted.

Silently observing the face that had turned pale with pain, the drunkenness completely gone, Aden released his hand.

The slaves of money rushed to support Kurto, who had fallen to the floor after backing away.

Aden rubbed his hands with a handkerchief and clicked his tongue.

“Take the senile old man and get out. If you don’t disappear within exactly 3 minutes, I’ll consider it a rebellion and confiscate your lives and property.”

“Are you in your right mind, Duke!”

“Didn’t you hear me? 3 minutes. 3 minutes.”

Aden emphasized again, dryly raising the corners of his mouth.

His chilling eyes and resolute voice made it clear that it was no joke.

In fact, he expressed his intention by drawing the long sword he had at his waist and gripping it in his hand. Kurto bit his lip hard.

Glancing around, he turned his body with the order to leave.

Following him as he left the room with support, the other soldiers also left the reception room in an instant.

Aden, who had been following them with his eyes, shifted his gaze to look at Ludmila as soon as the last soldier disappeared.

Seeing her flinching and shrugging her shoulders, Aden took a step forward from where he had been standing firmly rooted.

“Ah…”

“Leave us for a moment, Beressa.”

“…Aden?”

Beressa, who had been letting out a sigh of relief, widened her eyes at Aden’s cold command.

Having watched him for a long time, Beressa was surprised to read the emotion on Aden’s face as anger, but she clearly understood what she had to do.

Glancing at Ludmila, Beressa bit her lip.

She was sorry, but there was nothing she could do for her. If it were anyone else, she could have acted as a shield, but not with Aden.

At the command of the man who was her only exception, Beressa quietly turned around.

Aden ignored the quick-witted Beressa who left without further question.

His eyes were solely fixed on Ludmila.

Anger surged within him. Accepting the truth of the emotions he had been turning away from until now, the conclusion he reached was so futile that it made him sigh.

It was not Ludmila’s fault.

It was just the way she had lived and the environment surrounding her that made her this way.

The one he should be directing his anger at was not Ludmila, but the ones who made her like this, such as that damn husband of hers.

So his reason screamed at him to endure it, but he just couldn’t.

Even if he had to play the villain, he no longer wanted to see Ludmila living while being mindful and holding her breath.

The sight of her holding her arm with one hand as if pressed down by something, lowering her gaze, made his stiff lips twist.

“Aden, I’m sor-”

“I preferred it when you took your husband’s side.”

“…What?”

Ludmila’s surprised red eyes glistened as she raised her head.

“I didn’t mind when you pressed a handkerchief to my cheek that was drenched with tea at the cafe.”

“Aden…?”

“Where did the Ludmila Perez go who boldly offered me a negotiation card and begged me to take her away? I don’t see the naïve woman who used to look at me and insist on her thoughts and attitude.”

Ludmila’s red lips parted as if to speak, and a hot breath burst out.

“Answer me.”

The golden eyes glared at the prey’s lips more fiercely than ever before.

“Who are you?”

The red sunset that had painted the room had long since disappeared.

The reception room, without a single lamp or candle lit, was buried in darkness. And there, Ludmila swallowed nervously under the gaze of the golden eyes watching her.

“That’s…”

“I told you before. To sell me out. But it seems you don’t even listen to my words, getting crushed by that old man again today and causing this situation.”

“I’m sorry about that. I just…”

“Just didn’t want to cause me trouble?”

“…That’s right.”

“Ha-.”

A clear sneer burst out at the answer that flowed in a small voice.

In an instant, as the humiliation washed over her, Ludmila bit her lip while gripping her hands tighter, and Aden’s eyes, which had been looking out the window, returned to her.

“Let’s be honest, Ludmila. It’s not that you don’t want to cause me trouble, but you’re afraid of the damage you’ll suffer as a result, right?”

“……”

“That’s why you’re being mindful of me. You’re afraid I might send you back to the capital at any moment if things go wrong. That I might let your husband come and drag you away by your pretty hair. That’s why you’re watching my mood, isn’t it?”

A hot breath slowly escaped from Ludmila’s mouth. It wasn’t wrong.

The things that came out of his mouth were the very thoughts she had tried so hard not to reveal, hiding them tightly inside.

The first time she realized it was when Beressa took the notebook.

At that moment, Ludmila painfully realized that the hand she held was miserably poor.

Buried in the desire to live and the longing to escape from Kedilen, she thought she had offered Aden a fair negotiation card.

Certainly, that judgment had not been wrong.

It was a card of equal value, solving each other’s problems. But the problem was their positions.

Negotiating with conditions of equal value was only possible when their positions were equal.

Within the scope of the law, system, and bureaucracy, Ludmila was in an equal position with Aden, but not here.

He was the king and ruler of the Send Plateau.

In a superior position, Aden could trample on her as much as he wanted.

And the card that was supposed to protect her was pathetically meaningless in front of him.

So she thought of various methods, but her options were always limited in scope, as usual.

That’s why Ludmila tried to prove herself. That she was this useful.

That she would never cause him any trouble, so he shouldn’t worry. She tried to prove herself in that way to survive.

It was her own way that had allowed her to protect herself and survive in the imperial palace and the Erdi estate.

Humbling herself and catching the other person’s eye. It had definitely been effective. That’s why Ludmila couldn’t understand why Aden was angry.

For her, this was the right way.

“What am I to you? A cancerous mass of the empire, as others see me? Or a wildling who has lost his beastly nature?”

“That’s…”

“Do you think a declining family has no honor either? Do I look like one of those creatures who don’t keep their word, throwing away everything including their liver and gall bladder, struggling to live?”

However, with the question thrown at her next, Ludmila could understand the nature of the anger Aden was expressing.

It was humiliation.

“When you first offered me the negotiation, you were so noble and dignified that it was hard to believe you were a person facing death. That’s why I accepted that proposal. But who is the person in front of me now?”

“……”

“Bowing your head and being mindful just to survive. That desperation is so sublime that I can barely resist applauding you. Thanks to that, the honor I tried to protect has been thrown to the ground.”

Aden raised his hand and grabbed Ludmila’s chin, lifting it up.

In the darkness, there were chilling eyes that growled and pupils that contained raw beastly nature.

“If you keep acting like that, tell me. I’ll respect that way until the frozen ground melts. If that’s Ludmila Perez’s way of survival, I’ll gladly follow it.”

“I…”

“But if there’s still the woman who came to me that night and made absurd demands with confidence, throw away that trashy way of survival. Don’t make others throw away their honor and pride like trash just for you to live.”

Aden removed his hand that had gripped her chin and immediately turned around.

Bang!

With the rough sound of the door closing, Ludmila’s body slowly crumbled down.

The harsh noise Aden left behind seemed to still linger in the room. The reception room where complete darkness had fallen after sunset.

“Haa…”

The hot breath that flowed from Ludmila’s mouth quietly dispersed in the cool air.