As Blair got out of the carriage, a muscular man waiting in front of the villa greeted her politely with proper etiquette.

“We have been waiting for you, my lady.”

Surprised by the unexpected appearance of a companion, Blair reflexively returned the greeting and looked at Mikhail. He smiled softly and explained.

“I thought it was about time to add another person to the scandal. Wouldn’t three together be more stimulating than just two?”

Blair was shocked to realize the implication of Mikhail’s words, but he was right. The bigger the scandal, the better.

After a brief exchange of greetings, the three of them entered the villa together.

The inside of the villa was quiet and clean, with no one around. Though uninhabited, it was furnished with basic necessities, making it suitable for a short stay.

Blair stared blankly at the view of the lush forest visible through the large window in the living room.

The scenery was peaceful, with only the sound of wind rustling through tree branches and occasional birdsong. Listening to those sounds made her feel relaxed as well.

It was a stark contrast to the manor, where one could hear the bustle of people just by stepping out of a room, always swept up in the busy atmosphere and feeling compelled to do something.

‘When Asiel is born, it would be nice to live in a house in the forest like this.’

While Blair wandered near the large window, admiring the view outside, the large man who had briefly disappeared returned with teacups.

“You two must be thirsty. Please have some tea.”

“Thank you.”

After they finished their tea, Mikhail suggested:

“Do you remember when I said I would show you a nice place before?”

Blair recalled their conversation at the art auction and nodded.

“If you’re alright with it, shall we take a short walk? I’ll show you something nice.”

“Something nice?”

“We’ll be going into the forest path. If you’re uncomfortable with that, please feel free to say so.”

Blair obediently followed behind Mikhail. She worried the path might be a bit rough, but fortunately, it was a forest trail perfect for a stroll.

In the quiet forest devoid of people, all that could be heard were the sounds of birds and wind.

Listening to those sounds, smelling the scent of grass, just walking alone was enough to put her mind at ease.

Mikhail matched his pace to Blair’s small steps and casually began to speak.

“This may not be appropriate for me to say, having brought you to such a place first, my lady, but it’s best not to trust unfamiliar men easily. Especially in cases like this, when they ask you to go to secluded places.”

“It’s not that I trust you. I trust the commission fee I promised you and my own status.”

Mikhail burst into laughter at Blair’s cold yet guileless response, which he had thought naive. He found that side of her amusing.

“It seems I worried for nothing.”

Blair looked at Mikhail.

As Herdin had said, she didn’t know much about him, and given the dangerous guild work he did, he might not be as good a person as she thought.

However, she could tell that at the very least, he wasn’t someone who would betray his trust with her. The fact that he gave her such advice in the first place proved that.

Blair carefully brought up the words that had been lingering in her mind since meeting him again.

“I’d like to apologize on behalf of my husband for what he said at the art gallery last time.”

Mikhail looked puzzled at Blair’s sudden apology, but a beat later, he realized what she meant.

“He shouldn’t have spoken like that. He said it without knowing, so please don’t take it to heart.”

“It’s alright. Well, His Excellency’s words weren’t entirely wrong either.”

Mikhail brushed it off lightly, both then and now. At the same time, his footsteps came to a halt.

“Ah, we’ve arrived.”

Blair followed Mikhail’s gaze to look straight ahead.

A faint cluster of light could be seen in the middle of the forest, but it was still too far to make out clearly what it was.

As they slowly approached, the scenery gradually came into view.

In the middle of the forest was a small pond, surrounded by a colony of transparent, sparkling flowers that looked as if they were made of gathered light.

While the sight of a forest pond was commonplace, what made this scene special was precisely those uniquely shaped flowers.

When the wind blew, these flowers, unlike any Blair had ever seen before, moved as if rippling like water. The scene was like countless stars falling to earth and dancing.

“Oh my, this is truly amazing… and beautiful.”

Mikhail glanced at Blair, who couldn’t take her eyes off the scene before her, and explained with a slight smile.

“These flowers are called Glasika. They’re inherently sensitive, so they wither and die quickly if transplanted from where they first took root. I heard that nobles who tried to move them to private greenhouses failed repeatedly.”

“Thank you. For showing me such a beautiful sight.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

Blair sat on a nearby rock and quietly gazed at the scene.

The outside world was wider and more mysterious than she had vaguely dreamed of inside the imperial palace. That realization made her heart flutter.

But why, at this moment, did Herdin’s face come to mind out of habit?

“Shall we head back soon?”

Just as Blair was lost in thought, Mikhail, noticing that the wind blowing through the forest carried a chilly night air, spoke up.

Blair stood up following him. But there was a problem.

“Ah…”

Her heel was chafed, and it stung with every step. Since the shoes weren’t originally made for walking, her heel had been rubbed raw.

Blair tried not to show it, not wanting to be a burden, but Mikhail quickly noticed her limping gait and furrowed his brow.

“I apologize. I failed to consider that your shoes might be uncomfortable.”

“No, it’s my oversight. I can fold the back and wear them, so don’t worry about it.”

“Exposing a wound in a forest like this could lead to infection. May I take a look for a moment?”

Blair sat down on a nearby tree stump.

Mikhail removed Blair’s shoe and examined her foot. Though the abrasion wasn’t deep, there was even blood on the shoe.

‘For it to get this bad, it must have hurt quite a lot.’

He was newly impressed by Blair’s endurance.

In this state, it would be best not to walk further, but given Blair’s personality, she was unlikely to allow herself to be carried or held.

‘Then I guess that method is the only option.’

After considering for a moment while examining Blair’s foot, Mikhail seemed to make up his mind and looked up at her.

“Since you’ve trusted me with this task, I’ll share one of my secrets with you as well.”

“A secret?”

Instead of answering, Mikhail carefully touched Blair’s wound. Then, a faint light emanated from his hand.

‘This is…?’

Blair’s eyes blinked in surprise.

The power he had just used was clearly holy power.

But strangely, the wound didn’t heal immediately and remained. Mikhail furrowed his brow at this.

‘The healing magic… isn’t working?’

Mikhail looked up to check Blair’s condition and met her eyes, which had grown round with surprise at the holy power he possessed.

And below her face, near her collarbone, he could find the cause of this phenomenon.

A faintly glimmering black magic circle near her collarbone.

‘…Black magic?’

He had heard that black magic has properties that resist holy power, so holy power often doesn’t work well on black magic users or those affected by black magic.

‘But black magic is now forbidden, and hardly anyone uses it anymore.’

Why did this woman have a black magic circle?

Mikhail looked at Blair’s expression with disbelieving eyes, but there was no sign of her trying to hide anything on her face.

She seemed unaware of the existence of the black magic circle planted on her.

The black magic circle disappeared before he could examine it properly.

Mikhail used a stronger healing spell to heal Blair’s wound. Fortunately, this time the magic worked.

Blair, who had been watching, cautiously asked:

“Why didn’t you become a priest?”

Holy power is a power bestowed only upon a select few chosen by the gods.

If one’s parents possessed holy power, the chances of inheriting it were slightly higher, but because the probability was still low, it was treated as even more precious.

Therefore, those born with holy power could live honorably and comfortably as priests, even if not accumulating vast wealth.

She was curious why he had chosen a difficult and dangerous life despite this.

To that question, Mikhail gave an ambiguous answer with a smile.

“A power that some desperately long for can become a trace others wish to erase.”

Though he didn’t flatly refuse to answer, Blair could tell from his vague response that he didn’t want to discuss this topic further.

Having finished the treatment, Mikhail put Blair’s shoe back on her foot. His touch was very careful and gentle, as if handling a piece of glass artwork.

“Shall we head back now?”

Blair stood up and took the lead.

Mikhail’s sharp gaze briefly scanned the area near Blair’s collarbone as he matched her pace.

But the black magic circle was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

The lazy afternoon scenery passed by outside the slightly swaying carriage window.

Looking at the late afternoon sunlight that had begun to take on a platinum hue, Herdin naturally thought of Blair.

His wife resembled sunlight in many ways.

First, her visible hair was like that, as was her gentle body temperature, and above all, her ethereal atmosphere that seemed like it would disappear if grasped in one’s hand.

Perhaps that’s why.

Even when he held her in his gaze, even when he held her in his arms, an inexplicable anxiety always lurked at his feet.

Especially after seeing the geography book he had left by her bedside this morning, he couldn’t shake off an even stranger sense of unease.