Her fingers bent exactly four times.

In four months, this novel will face a tragedy.

And Liz knows the entire process leading to the tragedy.

‘What will happen is bound to happen.’

It was a very sad statement, but thinking differently, it would be easier to cope since she knows what will happen.

Instead of filling the long nights with love with Hershis, Liz spent time planning.

Unable to put it into words, she wrote, erased, and changed it in her mind repeatedly. It wasn’t easy to make everything fit perfectly without being noticed.

However, the plan she had overcome the dullness of her mind and the disadvantages of the situation, now faced the challenge of not having a reliable ally.

Damn. She might have to plan from the beginning again.

“Ugh…”

Due to a sudden headache, Liz touched her forehead with her hand. Could it be due to an overload on her mind?

It wasn’t just her head. Her physical condition wasn’t great either.

After feeling cold for a few days, today, she even felt a sense of floating. She had almost left her meal untouched because she had no appetite.

“Did my taste change again like back then?”

The rough scar on her forehead, felt by her fingertips, reminded Liz of the day of the accident.

On that day, she had no appetite. Just like someone determined to starve to death, she didn’t want to eat anything.

The only food that came to mind was the Rice Cake of the Painting. It was a food that could never be made in this world.

Today, that food felt so desperate.

“If you take one bite, there won’t be any wishes left.”

Liz mumbled without realizing.

“What’s so special that you want to eat it?”

“Huh!”

Liz was startled by the sudden voice.

“What… What is it? Suddenly appearing like that. You scared me!”

“It’s not like I suddenly appeared. Didn’t you hear the sound of someone coming in?”

Hershis gently wrapped her arms around Liz’s shoulders.

“So? What do you want to eat?”

“It’s nothing.”

Liz didn’t want to explain in detail. She couldn’t say, couldn’t tell, and even if she said, it was certain that it wouldn’t be understood.

“By the way, you came earlier than I thought. You’ve been consistently late.”

“That’s how it turned out.”

Hershis gave a light answer, but Liz knew he was quite pushing himself.

While Liz was drawing a plan, losing sleep to prevent the tragedy, he worked in the study.

Originally, he couldn’t sleep well at night, but still, he used to take breaks. Now, he poured all his time and energy into working without a moment’s rest.
It was to fix the inefficient practices that had been continued since the time when Duke Montaner ruled.

“Let’s just overlook most things. It’s hard to change everything one by one.”

“For the convenience later.”

Hershis responded with a smirk to Liz’s concerns.

His laughter seemed unusually bright today, and Liz couldn’t take her eyes off it.

“What happened to the maid?”

“Still…”

Liz answered with an uncertain voice.

“Wouldn’t it be better to have Lady Morcen instead? It seems like you can trust her.”

“No. Mira Bell is pregnant.”

As she spoke, she remembered.

‘Missed Mira Bell. By now, her belly must be quite round.’

She couldn’t remember how her belly looked the last time she saw it. She was so preoccupied that she couldn’t have a proper conversation.

“I plan to invite the Marquess Morcen soon.”

“Mira Bell?”

“The Marquess and his wife.”

A satisfied smile appeared on Liz’s face at the unfamiliar title of Marquess Morcen instead of the names Mira Bell and Jonathan.

Overwhelmed by emotion, Liz shivered her shoulders.

Hershis suddenly stopped and asked, “Cold?”

“No.”

“Are you sure it’s not?”

He touched her forehead.

“You have a fever.”

“Ah…”

Liz realized that it wasn’t trembling from emotion.

“We should call a doctor.”

Hershis removed his hand from Liz’s shoulder. Liz grabbed him again as he tried to head to where a thermometer was hanging.

“Why are you going there? We went there yesterday. They said there was no problem.”

“Today might be different.”

Liz didn’t want to share the time with her husband, which was less than a few hours a day, with a doctor and a pharmacist.

Seeing Hershis stubbornly turning away, Liz grabbed him again, this time not with her hands but with her lips.

Liz, lifting her heels, pressed her lips against his.

“Except for a slightly higher body temperature, everything is fine.”

She said and pressed her lips against his again.

“It’s because the weather is getting warmer. It’s summer now.”

Liz saw worry fading from Hershis’s eyes.

But on the contrary, the gloss on his lips deepened.

“Then make sure to get a check-up tomorrow. This is an order as an emperor.”

The command as an emperor felt like a growl. Just as I was about to realize that I had touched it incorrectly, my lips were swallowed up, and as soon as my feet left the ground, I felt them completely off the ground.

Liz noticed where her body was heading.

‘Ah… No.’

I wanted to say it, but since Hershis didn’t let go of his lips, I couldn’t say anything.

Even after my back touched the soft mat, my lips were stuck to his for a long time. His hand, which had been pushing me away, was now holding the back of my neck, but as soon as my lips escaped his domination, I could finally speak.

“No. We… decided to use contraception. Don’t you remember?”

“I haven’t forgotten.”
Hershis’s eyes curved with a playful glint.

“As long as we prevent a child from being conceived, that’s all we need to do. Right?”

“…….”