‘Even if he’s busy, he should see that I’m right beside him.’
No, he had clearly rejected her just a moment ago.
‘Why……?’
An inexplicable anxiety washed over her.
(This is a time separator.)
Christine entered the secondfloor office with Zimmer. Casually hanging his coat on a chair, he took out the strongest vodka from the display case.
All the while, Zimmer was giving his report with composure.
“The Stone Oswald Viscount has applied to participate in the equestrian competition.”
“Stone, that guy?”
“Yes, his sudden return to compete in the equestrian competition was quite unexpected.”
“Well, he was the winner of the equestrian competition 9 years ago, wasn’t he?”
“Yes, in Oswald County they’re betting on his win.”
“Understood, let’s stop here.”
But Zimmer hesitated, then cautiously spoke.
“So, Commander, are you also going to compete…….”
“Who will be escorting His Majesty?”
“If you only attend the competition, there should be no problem. His Majesty was also disappointed. This opportunity to flatten Stone’s nose would…….”
“Why should I do that?”
When Christine spoke as if it was someone else’s business, Zimmer was at a loss.
“You know how much you were taunted by Adel, right?”
“What?”
His fierce expression caused Zimmer to hold his tongue.
“I only have one life, so I can’t say more, but at this timing, charging in might be a better strategy than jealousy.”
“Enough, go out.”
Christine warned, furrowing his brow.
“I felt sorry for Adel when I saw her earlier. I know your heart is uneasy too, Commander.”
“Zimmer Craiton!”
His angry voice caused Zimmer to close his mouth.
It was not the time to provoke him now.
Zimmer, who had been by his side for a long time, knew this.
“Then, excuse me.”
As Zimmer retreated, Christine gulped down the vodka.
The high proof alcohol scraped his empty stomach like a blade.
“Damn!”
The more he drank, the more his conversation with Mavin lingered in his ears.
Although it was more akin to an interrogation.
(This is a time separator.)
“Did, did you call me, Vice Count?”
The summoned Mavin’s sweating face was extremely tense.
“I heard you’ve been taking care of my fiancée’s health. I thought I would thank you and see you.”
“That’s okay. That’s my job.”
“But Adel looked a bit strange today? She seemed to find it hard just to stand up.”
“That, that’s…… I gave her medicine to recover quickly, but it must have been a bit strong.”
“So, she was like that because of the medicine you gave her?”
Mavin wiped the sweat from his forehead and answered.
“No, that’s not necessarily the case…… medicine can have different effects on different people……”
“Bring me the medicine you used on her right now.”
“It’s all gone, she already took it.”
At that, Christine got up and approached him.
“Sir Mavin, I heard you love gambling? Even to the point of mortgaging the house where you live.”
“That’s all in the past!”
“But guaranteeing a debt in Oswald County is a recent event? Moreover, you’re performing unlicensed surgeries on prostitutes to pay off the debt.”
“How did you……!”
“You’d better choose your words wisely from now on. Otherwise, the palace physician might cut your head off for the crime of treating prostitutes.”
At the same time, Christine’s hand reached for his rapier.
“Save me, Earl!”
Marvin fell to his knees with a thud, clasping his hands together.
“Speak. What mark is on Adel’s back?”
From Adel’s conversation with Stone, it was clear that there was some mark on her back. And that must have been the reason why Adel went to the doctor in Helberly.
“That, that is…….”
“Shall I cut your wrist first?”
“It’s, it’s a tattoo!”
“A tattoo?”
“It was nothing special, just two letters. Miss Adel very much wanted to remove it.”
“Two letters?”
“Yes, it seemed like initials of something.”
Two letters.
Initials of something.
Christine thought of the initials carved on Stone’s handkerchief. He had heard that the scoundrel was obsessed with branding his initials on his belongings.
Could he have branded it on Adel’s back too?
If the mark branded on her body was indeed Stone’s initials then…….
(This is a time separator.)
Christine, who had downed half a bottle of vodka, left his office.
Although he had been drinking, his mind was clear. Or he thought it was clear.
In fact, he was not much of a drinker. He had been pretending to be, enduring with mental strength since he had to command rough men.
Even now, thinking himself sober with no change in his complexion, his expression was slightly relaxed. Enough for those who usually watched him closely to notice.
His steps led him straight to Adel’s bedroom.
Knock, knock.
He knocked, but no answer came.
It was past midnight.
Adel seemed to be asleep.
Usually, Christine would have turned back, but not tonight.
“I’m coming in.”
Murmuring to himself, Christine opened the door. But the bed draped with lace canopy was empty.
Instead, the sound of water came from the bathroom. Maybe the door being slightly ajar made the sound more noticeable.
Christine, as if mesmerized, followed the sound to the bathroom.
(This is a time separator.)
Adel was in the bathtub, her body submerged, eyes closed.
Moonlight poured in through the large window, mystically illuminating her wet white skin.
A beautiful creation made by a god.
If people saw Adel now, they would surely praise her as such.
No, perhaps she was too beautiful that they might even say she had borrowed the power of a demon.
‘Yes, maybe that was the case.’
Although this beauty was not the result of shaking hands with a demon, perhaps a demon fascinated by her beauty had reached out to her.
And as a price for shaking hands with that demon, she was suffering like this.
Stone seemed intent on taking Adel back to Oswald. He would employ any means necessary to do so.
Adel feared something might go wrong with Christine during this process.
He was strong, so she believed he would be fine, but he wasn’t cunning enough to deal with a demon.
‘But I won’t let that happen.’
Splish.
Getting out of the bathtub, Adel wrapped her wet hair in a towel and wiped herself dry. She then put on a shimizu that was transparent enough to show her flesh beneath.
Standing in front of the foggy mirror, whitened by steam, her slender neck and shoulders were fully visible.
Adel turned her body, looking at her back, inhaling deeply.
Between the deep plunges of her shimizu straps, Stone’s initials were still there.
Every time she looked, hoping they had disappeared, she felt as if they were growing larger and clearer.
“……!”
Then Adel realized that someone else was reflected in the mirror besides herself.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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