It felt as if I had entered water, a muffled sensation.

Shaking my head and blinking a few times, I saw the man looking down at me.

The hand that had covered my mouth was now wrapped around my waist.

“Are you alright?”

Alright? Alright? You suddenly kidnap someone and ask if they’re alright?

As I frowned in disbelief and let out a hollow laugh, he nodded slightly as if understanding.

“I understand this is a confusing situation.”

He slowly lowered me to the ground, acting as if it were no big deal, like a minor accident of bumping shoulders on the street.

His manner was polite, as if he had brought an honored guest.

As soon as my feet touched the ground, I turned my back on the man and ran in the opposite direction.

If a stranger knows my name, they must be connected to Ivy. It’s definitely not with good intentions.

I intended to run with the widest strides possible.

However, I couldn’t even take five steps before I had to stop in my tracks.

“What is this…?”

I was clearly wearing slippers, but a hot sensation enveloped my feet and fine particles flowed in through the gaps.

Looking down at my feet, I saw sand covering my slippers like silk, rising up to my insteps.

Sand?

Bewildered by the identity of the sand, so fine its particles were invisible, I quickly lifted my head.

A cold, dry, yet hot wind entered through my teeth.

The unfamiliar sight before me was astonishing, even awe-inspiring. Countless stars twinkled in the pitch-black night sky. It was so clear and beautiful, I felt as if I were in the middle of the universe. The full moon, which had been bright in the clear northern sky, looked especially large and enormous here.

Huge sand dunes stretched endlessly across the unobstructed view. A completely natural landscape without any buildings.

It was a desert.

“This is crazy.”

Is this real? It can’t be.

Unable to believe it, I covered my face with both hands and took a deep breath in and out. Then I looked up again, but no matter how many times I checked, it was still a desert.

A wind that was both cool and hot came swirling around my body like a whirlwind.

“Are you done sightseeing?”

The man’s calm voice, as if he had already anticipated my statue-like behavior, sent chills down my spine.

I slowly turned around.

“If you keep going, you’ll freeze to death. The desert nights are too cold to endure in those clothes.”

Behind the speaking man, I could see lush green trees.

Walls the color of sand were built in layers to a tremendous height.

It was a city so enormous that it was difficult to gauge with the eyes.

Just then, a huge iron gate opened in the middle of the city wall, and men on horseback emerged.

One of the men who rode straight towards us quickly dismounted and knelt before the man.

“You’ve arrived, Your Grace.”

Duke? I looked up at the man.

“Let’s go back.”

A duke who knows my name, and a desert…

The man reached out his hand to me.

“This way…”

I pretended to grab his hand but quickly snatched away the cloth covering his face.

Having come this far, he seemed to have no intention of hiding his identity anymore and made no move to stop me.

His veil came off more easily than I expected.

Dark blue hair and black skin that had been rolled up and hidden were fully revealed.

Neat eyebrows and distinct, masculine features.

Golden eyes like captured sunlight.

Damn it! I had a feeling, but it really is Dante Ian, the third male lead.

Hillstain had said it last time. Ivy had ordered him to bring me.

In the meantime, Ivy must have made another move. Now she’s using Dante to bring me.

“You were smiling so sweetly next to Prince Edan, I thought you were docile, but I guess not.”

Dante’s tone cooled slightly, seemingly displeased by my pale face upon seeing him.

With a slight nod from Dante, his subordinate handed him the reins of the horse he had brought.

“Shall we go?”

Dante reached out his hand once again.

“Please let me go back.”

“I refuse.”

“I…!”

“Whatever you say, the answer is no.”

Cutting me off sharply, Dante grabbed me, slung me over his shoulder, and sat astride the horse.

The sand that had clung to my feet scattered and swirled below.

“Let go of me!”

“Your courage to try to endure the desert is admirable, but it’ll soon be time for monsters to appear.”

I stopped flailing my hands and feet.

Come to think of it, Dante was at war with monsters in the desert. Just like Edan fighting monsters in the north.

Unlike the north, where hordes of monsters poured in every day, the desert wasn’t quite like that.

However, monsters consistently tried to cross the border into the city, so it was a place that always needed protection.

Extremely valuable gems were mined in the southern desert cities, making it one of the important geographical areas that contributed to the empire’s finances.

“Please be still.”

Dante headed straight for the city walls.

This is not the time to be wasting like this.

The black book in the library and the book Maxium was supposed to bring from the archive flashed through my mind.

I need to uncover Ivy’s secret as soon as possible!

Having been captured and brought this far, I realized there was no way out. It was a matter of moments before I was locked in a room.

After passing through the complex, maze-like building where only the quiet moonlight settled, the door closed with a thud.

Looking around, I saw a very large bed, which appeared to be a guest room.

Compared to what Hillstain did to me when we first met, I should be grateful for this situation.

Looking out the large, open window with no glass, I could only heave a sigh that seemed to sink into the ground.

Though I wasn’t behind bars, there was no visible escape route.

I just shook off the sand stuck to my shoes and lay down on the bed.

They say desert nights are freezing cold, but the temperature here was just right.

The translucent lace curtains billowed against the bed posts like waves in the gentle breeze.

“Dante Ian…”

The third male lead. Duke of the southern desert. The kindest man in the original work.

And also the one least obsessed with Ivy’s healing power.

He used his ability as frequently as Edan, but he tried to endure with potions as much as possible.

Moreover, perhaps due to his excellent physical abilities, he tended to rely on his body rather than his ability whenever possible.

Of course, when monsters appeared that were too much to handle otherwise, he had no choice but to use his ability.

Considering physical abilities alone, without special powers, he might even be stronger than Edan.

−Ivy, I’m fine, so don’t push yourself.

In the original work, unlike Killian or Hillstain, Dante was the most concerned about Ivy’s condition and took care of her.

Ivy also said she liked Dante because he was kind.

Blinking a few times, his attitude, different from Hillstain’s, flashed through my mind.

He was kind indeed. Even though he did kidnap me.

A corner of my mouth lifted in a sneer.

“You like the nice guy type!”

I decided never to trust nice guys again.

I was deceived by Jenald, so I’m absolutely refusing kind men.

Look at today! He pretended to be kind but ended up kidnapping me! Damn it!

Closing my eyes to the unfamiliar air and wind, I clenched my lips tightly.

“Ugh…”

It’s hot. So hot. Too hot.

When I opened my eyes again, my whole body was drenched in sweat.

The temperature had seemed just right at night, but as soon as the sun rose, it changed drastically.

The scorching sunlight beat down from all directions, creating heat haze.

I sat leaning against the headboard, my body limp like rubber, still wearing the long-sleeved dress I had on in the north.

The windowsill, with not a breath of wind coming through, was so hot that the shade under the bed seemed cooler.

A hazy heat shimmer rippled over the desert sand dunes, with just a few white clouds floating in the sky.

Just as I felt my breath catch due to the dry, parched air that seemed to have no humidity at all:

“Hello.”

There was a knock at the door, and then women in elaborate attire entered.

The pretty women with tanned skin wore thin cloth covering only their chests and short, fluttering skirts.

Seeing several of them in the same outfit, they looked like maids, but they all wore elaborate gold accessories on their arms and legs.

The women who entered carrying water jugs with handles on both sides, like amphoras, were startled when they saw me, then exchanged glances with each other.

“Wh-what are you doing?”

“Young lady, if you stay like this, you could die of heatstroke.”

True, it is hot enough for heatstroke. But I’m not so overcome by the heat that I’d show my naked body to women I’ve never met before!

“Kyaa! W-wait a moment!”

Before I could resist, my clothes were mercilessly stripped off by the women’s hands.

“Oh my, I’ve never seen such white skin before.”

“It’s so beautiful.”

Receiving the women’s burdensome gazes as if they were looking at a strange creature, I was practically dragged into a large room opposite the bed.

“Huh.”

There was a bathtub so large it could be mistaken for a swimming pool.

White steam rose from the surface of the clear water that filled it.

“Please, get in.”

A gentle-looking woman with black hair tied in two braids gently pushed me towards the tub.

“Wait a moment. You just said I could get heatstroke, and now you’re putting me in hot water…”

Oh? It’s not hot water.

As I reluctantly put my foot into the water, my eyes widened at the pleasantly cool temperature.