The painting showed a strikingly handsome man and beautiful woman sitting side by side at a glance. And on the woman’s lap was a boy who looked about three or four years old.

Although Blair already knew who they were, Luth, unaware of this fact, quickly explained:

“It’s the former Duke and Duchess. And this child is the current Lord.”

The three family members in the painting were smiling happily, blissfully unaware of the future misfortunes. Knowing the tragedy that would befall them made the family portrait before her eyes all the more poignant.

But there was another reason why Blair couldn’t take her eyes off the painting.

Blair gazed longingly at the baby Herdin in the portrait.

The soft black hair with a slight curl, the milky plump cheeks, the clear big eyes, even the shape of his mouth when smiling.

Aside from the eye color inherited from his mother, Asiel was born as the spitting image of his father, Herdin.

‘Asiel…’

How her heart ached each time she barely managed to recall the child from her increasingly fading memories.

‘I’m glad you took after your father.’

So that I can at least picture you like this.

As Blair was lost in her longing,

Luth, who mistakenly guessed the reason she couldn’t take her eyes off the portrait, tactlessly interjected:

“The former Duchess was such a beauty, wasn’t she? And the former Duke, well, that goes without saying. He looks exactly like the current Lord.”

“…”

“Even though the atmosphere is completely different from now, it’s amazing how the Lord’s face from back then still remains a bit, don’t you think?”

Luth’s expression as he talked about the former Duke and Duchess and Herdin was unmistakably joyful.

To show such emotion even in front of her, whom he found uncomfortable.

Blair realized that this emotion stemmed not from simple loyalty, but from a deep trust and love between human beings. She found his pure heart endearing and smiled.

“You truly served the former Duke and Duchess sincerely.”

Only then did Luth snap back to his senses and hurriedly clarified:

“Well, they were my benefactors after all.”

“You find me uncomfortable, don’t you?”

At Blair’s sudden direct question, Luth choked and coughed.

‘Could it be, she heard me sigh earlier…?’

He looked to see if Blair was upset, but she was looking at him with clear eyes, showing no signs of displeasure. That made him feel even more uneasy.

After briefly considering whether to speak honestly or tell an obvious lie, Luth scratched his cheek and answered:

“Well… it’s not your fault, madam.”

It’s just that I dislike your background.

Blair immediately understood what was left unsaid after his words.

Blair understood him.

Lina dislikes Herdin too. Only because she likes Blair more.

Luth is the same. Only because he likes Herdin more than her.

Of course, she knows it’s not right to avoid someone because of their background.

‘But at least he’s different from the others who badmouth me behind my back.’

Most people dislike her not out of loyalty to Herdin, but simply because they dislike her.

However, Luth’s feelings were purely out of loyalty. A clean emotion that would disappear once things were settled between Herdin and her.

Not that she had any intention of coddling him though.

“I know.”

Blair said calmly, with even a faint smile on her face.

“But don’t be so guarded. I’ll leave cleanly without causing any harm to Delmark.”

“Leave?”

As Luth asked with a bewildered expression, Blair also asked back with round eyes:

“Ah. He didn’t tell you?”

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about…”

“That we have a contract marriage.”

“A contract… marriage?”

Looking at Luth, who seemed to be hearing this for the first time, Blair nodded.

As Luth pondered the meaning of those words, he belatedly understood and was shocked.

‘Hmm, that lounge from earlier did seem a bit bleak, so it might be good to hang a few more paintings.’

Blair, who had just dropped a bombshell on Luth, failed to notice his reaction and left the gallery, thinking it was time to meet Mikhail, who should be contacting her soon.

* * *

That evening, when Herdin returned to the mansion after finishing the monster subjugation, he found Luth in the office.

Normally, it would have been past his time to go home, but the fact that he was still here meant he probably had something to say.

‘Or there was some problem with Blair.’

Herdin casually asked Luth, who was approaching with a serious expression:

“Didn’t you go home?”

“My Lord. Is what the madam said true?”

“What?”

“That you two have a contract marriage.”

Herdin’s hand, which had been roughly drying his hair with a towel, paused. His gaze instantly sharpened.

“…She told you about that?”

“Good heavens, it’s true? You didn’t tell me such important information! This contract marriage, when the agreed-upon term ends…”

Luth’s nagging didn’t even register in Herdin’s ears.

“No, where are you going in the middle of talking?”

Herdin ignored Luth’s words and stormed out of the office. The towel fell in the process, but he paid no mind to that either.

His footsteps were headed towards Blair’s bedroom.

What Herdin saw when he barged into the bedroom without knocking was Blair changing from her bath robe into a bed gown.

Herdin hesitated for a moment at the glimpse of bare skin visible through the still-untied bed gown.

“Eek… oh.”

Lina, who was attending to Blair, was startled by Herdin’s sudden intrusion and was about to scream, but realizing he was Blair’s husband, she closed her mouth.

There was no problem with a husband seeing his wife’s naked body after all.

She did, however, hurriedly tie Blair’s gown for her.

The actual person whose body was exposed seemed surprised by his appearance, but not particularly shocked by the fact that her body had been seen.

“Lina, you may go now.”

Lina bowed respectfully to both of them and quietly withdrew. Only Blair and Herdin were left in the room.

Herdin, who was about to immediately confront Blair, closed his mouth upon seeing her looking up at him with clear eyes. The memory of tears in those eyes some time ago came to mind.

Suppressing his inexplicably agitated emotions to a degree he himself couldn’t understand, Herdin opened his mouth again in a lowered voice:

“…I heard you told Luth about our contract.”

“Ah… I thought Lord Luth already knew. And I thought it would be alright if he did know.”

It wasn’t something that shouldn’t be said.

As she said, Luth was his confidant, and he wasn’t the type to divulge information that could be a weakness to outsiders even at the cost of his life.

As Herdin was swallowing emotions he himself couldn’t define, his eyes fell on Blair’s lips.

Now he seemed to understand the reason for this anger.

He was angry that those lips had so casually mentioned the end of this contract.

‘We will divorce. As per the contract.’

Just like when he had heard those words before.

Suddenly, the woman before his eyes, the woman within arm’s reach, felt so distant.

…As if she might disappear like this.

That couldn’t happen. That would be breaking the contract.

None of the conditions he had set in the contract had been fulfilled yet. He couldn’t even properly claim the warmth of this woman that had come as a small compensation for that contract.

The anger at this must be the name of this uncontrollable emotion that was gripping him now.

Finally concluding the name of his emotion, he cupped Blair’s cheek and met her gaze. His gaze looking down at her was distorted.

“Do you think this contract is a joke?”

Blair’s eyes trembled slightly at his cold tone. But Herdin didn’t stop.

No, because of that, he couldn’t stop.

He never wanted to see those lips mention the end of this contract again.

“You seem to have forgotten, but this is a fraud deceiving even the Emperor. It’s not children playing house.”

“…”

“Never mention the contract in front of others again.”

His voice, which had been falling coldly, stopped. At last, Blair’s trembling eyes stilled.

She, who had seemed to waver for a moment, soon nodded with her usual calm face, as always.

“I’ll be careful from now on.”

She seemed to have understood his words.

Surely, this should have been the answer he wanted.

Yet Herdin felt as if an unquenched thirst was rising again. His throat felt parched and empty.

But there was no more reason to be angry in front of the woman who was agreeing with his words.

“…Rest.”

Herdin suppressed his emotions and left the bedroom. A sigh escaped between his lips as he roughly ran his hand through his hair.

He found the emotions raging like a madman recently to be extremely unpleasant.

* * *

“We’ve arrived.”

The hired carriage Blair was riding in stopped in front of the art gallery.

Today’s meeting place with Mikhail was here, a private art gallery.

Last time at the theater, which was a public rendezvous spot, they met secretly, but this time, since it was an art gallery, they decided to meet openly. If anyone recognized them, they could just say she was someone helping with the auction.

Still, wanting to avoid drawing unnecessary attention, Blair double-checked the veiled hat she was wearing before opening the carriage door.

At the same time, a large hand was extended before her.