The wedding feast was rushing towards its end.

Kaius, who had carried the bride from the cabin to the bedroom, willingly let her go. Thanks to that, Ariel was able to do everything she needed to do.

She greeted the guests, gave prepared gifts to relatives, engaged in small talk, and her demeanor was polite yet confident. The qualities she displayed were flawless for the mistress of a ducal house.

Like her, Kaius welcomed the guests, but throughout that time he never lost track of her location. Even in moments of exchanging greetings, amidst the noise of many people, it wasn’t a difficult task for him.

He began to be on high alert like this after Ariel started drinking champagne.

Kaius turned as the bank president approached with a smile to greet him. As they exchanged pleasantries, he felt Ariel’s presence behind his back. It seemed she was waiting for him, lingering without leaving her spot.

When he turned around after finishing the greeting, Ariel was looking at him with flushed cheeks. She slowly approached him and pulled his arm towards a place with relatively fewer guests.

“Kaius, may I go up first? I said I can’t drink much because I’m weak with alcohol, but they kept offering, so I drank a little and now I’m starting to feel dizzy. I’m sorry I can’t fulfill my responsibilities and duties.”

Ariel, fidgeting with her clasped hands, looked up at him cautiously. At her appearance, as if making a shy confession, Kaius’s Adam’s apple bobbed. Even knowing the truth wasn’t like that, his gaze deepened as he looked at her.

“…Kaius?”

“Let’s go up.”

Ariel shook her head slightly at his gesture of extending his hand.

“We can’t both leave. I’ll go with Anna.”

With those words, Ariel began climbing the stairs with Anna, who had been waiting behind. Having personally experienced how seductive this woman could be when drunk, he couldn’t easily take his eyes off her. As Kaius watched her, Rashid blocked his view.

“You’re going to see her soon anyway, so have another drink with me? I brought good liquor as promised.”

“Leave it.”

“I don’t want to. If we don’t drink together now, I’ll take it back. And aren’t you curious about what happened at our falconry training grounds?”

He turned his gaze back to the stairs, but his bride had already disappeared.

“Let’s go to the study.”

Rashid felt only a slight discomfort. That his friend alone had welcomed a beautiful bride. So even if he sent him to the bride a little later, Kaius had to endure it.

Ludvian was on his way back from the demon realm.

Of all days. On Ariel’s wedding day.

He hadn’t known the Emperor would backstab him like this. As a result, the Council of Elders was convened, and a meeting was held to discuss whether to continue the qualification process for becoming the Demon King.

A Demon King candidate infatuated with a human woman.

To quell their fierce opposition, Ludvian wrote a note stating he would not take Ariel as his queen. As they wished. It was humiliating, but there was no reason not to tolerate these old men who would be trembling at his feet in a year anyway.

He had been riding in a carriage for a long time, starting from far north of the Klardeus Empire, where the entrance to the demon realm was located. Ludvian received the report that his plan had failed when he arrived near the Tris territory.

According to plan, Ariel’s true nature should have been revealed today, Kaius von Elbartan’s reputation should have plummeted, and the relationship between the two should have become irreparably damaged.

Then he had planned to visit Ariel tonight to comfort her.

The plan fell apart, leaving only Emperor Hart as a blemish.

Ludvian got back into the carriage. It’s not over yet. What if the Duke sees him with Ariel tonight?

It would probably bring more satisfactory results than the previous plan. Regardless of the truth. As his lips curved into a crooked smile, moonlight shone on Ludvian’s face through the carriage window.

Kaius sat across from Rashid in the second-floor study after a long time. Liquor was poured over ice in transparent glass cups.

“I noticed Miss Rosalyn wasn’t here today?”

“She left. Yesterday. With the Count and Countess of Bienne.”

“I see. Well, you can’t keep a mistress together with the Duchess. Where did you send her? The capital?”

Kaius, who had been silently tilting his glass with indifferent eyes, wordlessly cocked his head to look at Rashid.

“What? Don’t tell me there was nothing between you? Please don’t say such things. I’m about to have a terrible imagination.”

Kaius let out a dry chuckle at Rashid rubbing both his arms.

“A final courtesy to the Countess of Bienne, that woman was nothing more or less than that during her time here. I don’t know what you’re expecting. Even that is over now.”

Even as he uttered the cold words, Kaius’s tone was excessively calm.

“Then what about the princess?”

Rashid’s gaze turned more serious than before as he looked at Kaius.

“What about her?”

“Did you fall for her at first sight as the rumors say? She was certainly beautiful enough to fall for.”

Rashid fell into past thoughts as he watched Kaius take out a cigar. He had certainly acted like he would break off the engagement when he left for Letiana.

“I did fall for her at first sight. In a different sense.”

At those words, Rashid’s head tilted slightly. Kaius, lighting the end of his cigar, told him about Ariel’s healing ability. Rashid was the last. The one who needed to know that secret.

Rashid’s reaction to hearing about Ariel’s healing ability was not much different from others. No, he was more so. At first, he didn’t believe it, and eventually even tried to point a sword at Kaius, saying he would check for himself.

“Put the sword away and tell me about the problem at the falconry training grounds.”

“A falcon of the Kenji bloodline came in. But it’s so fierce that it can’t be trained, and it’s killed quite a few other falcons by attacking them. It just won’t be tamed, so I brought it back, and now I’m debating whether to kill it. It’s such a rare bloodline that it seems a waste. Would you like to try training it?”

Kaius, who had exhaled a long puff of cigar smoke, merely picked up his glass to drink again without giving any answer.

“It might be nice to tame it and give it to your wife as a gift. As you know, the Kenji bloodline is the only carrier pigeon capable of long-distance flight. It might even be able to fly from here to Letiana.”

At Rashid’s words, Kaius remembered what Ariel had said. Didn’t she say she wanted to learn how to use carrier pigeons?

“Bring it over.”

Rashid raised his eyebrows at the unexpected answer. Such a sincere attitude to a casually thrown remark.

“Are you serious?”

Rashid looked at Kaius with an interested gaze as he merely flicked his chin in response.

“Then I’ll bring it on my next visit.”

Kaius, who nodded briefly, stood up from his seat.

“Bring potions too when you come.”

“Why? You have a living potion right next to you.”

“As much as you can get. Don’t worry about money.”

“Of course.”

There was no need to mention that the living potion would be thinking only of escape in a year. It would also violate the contract.

“I’m going to wear this nightgown. I’m not wearing that…”

“Lady Ariel, you have to wear something like this on your wedding night. I’ve looked into everything.”

“I don’t want to… And Anna, I really can’t hold on anymore.”

She was already feeling drowsy from the alcohol, and after taking a warm bath, sleepiness was overwhelming her. Although she knew she should wait for him, she simply couldn’t fight against her drooping eyelids.

“It’s your wedding night, are you just going to sleep? You can’t do that.”

“Yes… I’ll try to stay awake. Anna, you go rest too.”

The lie flowed out very naturally.

“Then I’ll come wake you up tomorrow morning.”

“Okay… Thank you.”

When the door closed and Anna’s footsteps faded away, Ariel turned off all the lights except for the soft bedside lamp.

As she got into the cozy bed, all the worries in the world seemed to disappear. Pulling the blanket up to her chin and folding her hands neatly on her chest, her eyes slowly began to close.

Her eyes, which had been drowsily sinking into deep sleep, suddenly flew open. It was because of a fleeting memory from the past. Ludvian had definitely come to her on her wedding night.

What if Ludvian comes while she’s asleep like this? And what if Kaius sees that? Ariel, feeling a chill run down her spine, sat up abruptly in bed.

Suddenly, the image of Kaius’s cold face flashed through her mind.

Oh no.

Could it be that Kaius had seen Ludvian visiting her in the past? Is that why he was like that? A pathetic sigh escaped her lips. To realize this only now.

The coldness hadn’t been without reason.

Ariel, who had been sitting dazed for a while, got out of bed. She put on a robe to go to Anna’s room and stood in front of the door, but couldn’t bring herself to go out.

If she wasn’t in the bedroom, Kaius might misunderstand, but if she stayed, she might encounter Ludvian.

Feeling at a loss, Ariel began to pace around the room. Slowly looking around the bedroom, she locked all the doors and took out her only weapon, a dagger, hiding it under the pillow.

Even with all these preparations, she couldn’t feel at ease and sat leaning against the headboard. But her alert gaze didn’t last long.

The alcohol overcame her will.

Her slowly blinking eyelids no longer opened. Ariel’s eyes flew open, startled by a sound as if something was touching the window. Only then did she realize she had dozed off and pulled out the dagger. She watched the window intently while holding her breath, but nothing was visible.

Even though I don’t usually drink…

The belated regret couldn’t stop the overwhelming sleepiness. As Ariel shook her head vigorously to ward off sleep, her gaze fixed on one spot.

At that moment, she could only see the door leading to the Duke’s bedroom.

A place where she wouldn’t be misunderstood by him even if she left her bedroom. The safest place compared to anywhere else was just beyond that door.

Let’s just close my eyes for a moment in his bedroom.

Once she made up her mind, Ariel took unhesitating steps.

As she gently opened that door, cool air greeted her. Ariel lay down on the bed and immediately fell into a deep sleep.

Kaius’s gaze, after gently brushing back his fallen hair, turned to the wall clock.

It was almost midnight. Kaius took out a cigar and headed outside. Only after smoking a whole cigar in the cool breeze did he turn his steps back inside.

It didn’t take long for Kaius to climb the stairs, passing by the servants who had flocked to clean up the hall, until he opened the door to his bedroom.

He had planned to prepare for bed and then cross over to her bedroom.

To exercise his rightful privilege.

He stopped in his tracks as he was heading straight for the bathroom. A fragrant scent different from usual and faint, regular breathing stimulated his senses.