The Duke Only Needs My Child (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 12
The next day, Blair came to Herdin’s office upon hearing his summons.
In the office, Herdin and an unfamiliar middle-aged man were waiting. It wasn’t difficult to guess who the man was.
As soon as he saw Blair, the man bowed his head respectfully.
“My name is Marcel, a hypnotist. It is an honor to meet you, Your Imperial Highness. Or rather, I should now address you as Duchess.”
As he spoke, his eyes flickered between Blair’s hand and her face.
It was customary for men to kiss the back of a royal or high-ranking noblewoman’s hand as a gesture of respect and courtesy.
Having lived twenty years as an imperial princess, this was perfectly familiar and natural to her.
Blair, noticing his intention, extended her hand toward him.
But at that moment, Herdin, who had been leaning against his desk, stood up and walked between them.
“I have another appointment, so let’s begin right away.”
Blocked by Herdin, the hypnotist awkwardly lowered his outstretched hand and immediately began preparing for the hypnosis.
Seated in a rocking chair on one side of the office, Blair looked at Herdin with anxious eyes.
He remained standing firmly in place, apparently intending to observe the hypnosis.
“Herdin, if you’re busy, it’s fine for you to leave and attend to your duties.”
“I’ve heard that those who awaken memories too difficult to recall often suffer greatly. As your husband, it’s only right that I stay by your side.”
Hearing this, the hypnotist thought the Duke must care deeply for his wife—but Blair understood.
Despite his words of concern, his cold blue eyes told a different story.
‘How could I ever trust you?’
Blair closed her eyes as if to erase that icy voice from her mind, then slowly opened them again.
“I’m ready. Let’s begin, Marcel.”
The lamp that had been lighting the dim room went out, and the pendulum in the hypnotist’s hand began to swing.
Blair’s eyes slowly blinked in rhythm with the pendulum’s movement, then gently closed.
Only the hypnotist’s soft voice echoed through the quiet room.
“You are returning to the day of the fire at the Empress’s palace ten years ago. You must have been about ten years old then. Is that right?”
“…Yes, that’s right.”
Blair’s voice, as she answered, sounded drowsy, as if speaking a beat slower than usual.
Herdin watched her from the window, arms crossed.
“What are you doing now?”
“I’m… going to the Empress’s palace. Without Mother knowing. She always disliked me going there.”
“Then you’d better hurry. It should be about time to arrive. Have you arrived yet?”
“Yes… Her Majesty the Empress is welcoming me.”
“What do you do there next?”
“We drink warm cocoa and talk. Sometimes the maids and I play card games together.”
“And then what?”
“I think I fell asleep.”
“Slowly open your eyes. What do you see?”
At the hypnotist’s question, the faint smile that had lingered on Blair’s face vanished.
“…It’s dark.”
“So it must be a very dark night. Can you see anything around you?”
“No. Only… my dress.”
“Your dress? Where are you?”
“…I think I’m inside a wardrobe.”
At Blair’s words, Herdin’s eyes sharpened.
At the time of the incident, Blair had been found collapsed in the corridor of the Empress’s palace, rescued by knights who had come to save the Empress.
Inside the Empress’s chamber, Esmeralda and her maid were found dead, hanging by their necks.
No one knew exactly what had happened there that day.
The maids staying at the palace that night had drunk tea laced with sleeping medicine and thus slept through the fire that consumed the palace.
Blair was the sole survivor of that tragedy.
Her memory began only when she woke up inside the wardrobe of the Empress’s palace—that was all she recalled.
She had no memory of how she got from the wardrobe out into the corridor until her rescue. Thus, the real search for her memories was only just beginning.
The hypnotist, sensing the shift, adjusted his posture.
“What are you doing there?”
“I don’t know. I just woke up inside the wardrobe…”
“How about stepping outside now?”
At the hypnotist’s suggestion, Blair gasped sharply, looking terrified.
“…I can’t go out.”
“Why not? Is the door locked? Or is there another problem?”
“I don’t—I don’t know. I can’t go out. If I do… I shouldn’t.”
Herdin’s brow furrowed slightly as he watched Blair. Beyond the wardrobe she couldn’t see, the truth of that day surely lay hidden.
“Hmm… then how about just peeking through the crack in the door? To see what’s happening outside?”
“I don’t want to… I don’t want to look. It’s scary…”
Blair whimpered and shook her head as if she had truly become the ten-year-old child from that day.
“No matter what you see or what happens, nothing will harm you. Now, take a deep breath.”
“Fire… fire… smoke is coming in.”
Blair began coughing and gasping as if she were actually inhaling smoke.
“Now, let’s step out of the wardrobe. Open the door.”
“The door… the door won’t open.”
Blair panted in a frightened voice. The hypnotist tried to calm her.
“You can open that door. It will open if you truly wish it.”
Blair had been found in the corridor that day. Whether someone had helped her or she’d escaped on her own remained unknown—but the wardrobe door must have opened somehow.
Her inability to leave the wardrobe now was likely a barrier erected by her own subconscious.
Yet Blair still couldn’t open the door.
“Ugh… I hate this. I hate this… Help me. Please, help me. I can’t breathe…”
Tears finally spilled as she writhed, her already pale face now completely drained of color.
Only then did Herdin understand why Blair had tried to send him away before beginning the hypnosis.
“…Enough.”
But the hypnotist, as if not hearing him, continued pressing Blair.
“You must open the door. You have to come out through that door!”
“Ugh… ugh… hah… hah…”
Blair’s breathing grew increasingly labored, as if she might truly suffocate. Her frail body trembled violently like a leaf in the wind. At this rate, she really might die.
Seeing this, Herdin’s heart sank.
If this were acting, she’d have to be a master performer—not merely a dull duchess.
Herdin straightened from his lean against the window and commanded the hypnotist.
“…Wake her up.”
“We’re almost there! We must break through this wall to awaken the memories buried in her subconscious!”
Immersed in the hypnosis, the hypnotist ignored Herdin’s order and kept pushing Blair.
“Go on, open the door. You must open it and come out, or you won’t survive. Hurry—”
Herdin seized the hypnotist by the collar and yanked him up.
“I said stop and wake her up!”
Meeting Herdin’s murderous glare, the hypnotist finally realized he’d crossed a line and froze in terror.
“M-My apologies, Your Grace.”
Herdin released him with a shove and approached Blair.
“Wake up, Blair.”
He lifted her into his arms as she continued gasping for breath.
At his touch, Blair’s eyes snapped open, tears streaming down her cheeks as she’d been sobbing in distress.
“Hah… huu…”
Even after waking from the trance, she still couldn’t breathe properly, as if trapped in the flames. Her eyes, though open, held no focus.
Herdin gently stroked her trembling back, whispering softly.
“Breathe. Slowly.”
Following the rhythm of his soothing hand, Blair’s breathing gradually steadied. Her vacant eyes slowly regained their light with each blink.
When at last her tear-filled violet eyes clearly reflected his image, Herdin let out a quiet sigh.
Leaving the terrified hypnotist behind, Herdin carried Blair to her bedroom.
After seating her on the bed, Herdin looked at her once more—checking whether his reflection had returned to her eyes.
Satisfied, he rose to leave.
“Herdin.”
A faint voice urgently stopped him just as he turned.
“In that memory just now… I faintly heard a voice. Someone was speaking outside the wardrobe. I couldn’t make out what they were saying—the voice was too quiet—but…”
Herdin paused, momentarily bewildered that she’d bring this up right after regaining consciousness. Then he let out a dry chuckle.
She was talking about the memory she’d just seen under hypnosis.
The very same memory she’d tried so desperately to flee—so much so that she’d chosen death inside that wardrobe.
“Maybe next time, under hypnosis… I’ll be able to leave the wardrobe. The voice I heard today was one I’d never heard before.”
Her quiet, hopeful tone suddenly ignited his anger.
Just moments ago, she’d been sobbing as if dying, gasping for air—and now, with tears still glistening in her reddened eyes, she was already talking about this?
“Is that really what matters right now?”
Though he kept his voice carefully controlled, the coldness in his eyes was unmistakable.
Then what did matter?
Blair blinked, confused by his sudden anger.
“The whole point of summoning the hypnotist was to recover my memories.”
As she pondered why he was upset, Blair quickly guessed the reason.
He was angry because she’d failed to endure it—because she’d woken up just as they’d finally neared the truth of that day.
“I’ll try to hold on a little longer next time. Don’t worry—the contract won’t be affected.”
Though she spoke calmly, her small hand resting on the blanket still trembled visibly—even to his eyes.
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
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MANGA DISCUSSION
2 Comments
Chapter Comments (952)
Asiel is your son you worthless worm
I think for this sentence, did we mesn the late Empress Esmeralda?:
Though born a commoner, her talent had earned her the late Empress Katrina’s recognition—and even a noble title.
everyone is hating herdin but give him a break,he does not know it
Inline Comments (5601)
Yet the name slipping from her lips still grated on him—likely because he found
You already suspected it prior to the marriage so why are you so irritated plus you do not love or even like her maybe her appearance currently but not her do you
And perhaps also because that name happened to belong to a Delmarque ancestor.
Oh wow, so her child was named after on of his ancestors name and now he is assuming that a man named asile is his wife’s lover
Contract. Contract. Contract.
Why are you irritated?? Weren’t you the one who accepted it plus she is just cooperating with you for the sake of asiel
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VKotaku28
Don’t confuse her you jerk!! Blair, take it one step at a time
debban23
herdin come on,let her go your hust using snd hurtung her