At that moment, a gust of wind rushed in through the open window, shaking the chandelier.
Then, beneath the swaying chandelier, Hersis’s golden eyes flickered like flames.
“How dare you…”
Anger flowed through his voice.
“How dare you mention my son?”
Even though the chandelier stopped moving, the fiery gaze in his eyes remained unchanged.
He raised the sword.
“Wait.”
“…”
“I will kill you in the cruelest way possible.”
Ishar thought Hersis would lose his composure and rush forward.
However, Hersis remained calmer than ever, moving his body deliberately and thoughtfully.
There was no playful swinging of the sword, no mischievous lifting. It was a sight one couldn’t find.
He approached silently, attacked swiftly, and retreated without clinging to pride.
He didn’t succumb to the Duke’s provocation, nor did he try to showcase his flashy skills.
It was the most normal yet abnormal appearance Hersis had shown since Ishar had known him. Stripped of emotion and mischief, Hersis simply did not look like Hersis at all.
However, even so, Duke Montaner was powerful.
“Like this, like this… Hers, how long do I have to wait? Are you planning to kill me today?”
Even if the opponent stayed still, he did not boldly attack first.
The Duke never moved recklessly unless the situation he desired was created.
However, he wasn’t just passively waiting.
The Duke systematically manipulated the situation.
Like a cat cornering a mouse, the Duke slowly pushed Hersis towards the edge of the hall, all while Hersis remained unaware.
“…!”
Hersis felt something behind him and hesitated. The Duke knew that the situation he desired had been created.
Swish.
The Duke’s fiercely swung sword swept over Hersis’s lowered head like a boomerang.
However, instead of Hersis, the head of the goddess statue shattered.
Hersis quickly moved aside, but the Duke’s boomerang persistently followed. After the goddess statue, the head of a male statue flew off, and the torso of a virgin statue was split.
White gypsum particles flew like snow from the shattered statues.
Exiting the chaos of the statues, the tense standoff resumed.
Swish!
The two moved, exchanging sword blows, and before they knew it, they were back to their initial positions in front of the stage.
Both of them realized this, and without waiting for someone to say “go,” they took a few steps back. Then, they slowly turned counterclockwise again.
The stern gaze and upright posture were as formidable as if they were just about to start the duel, given the disheveled attire and sweaty hair.
“For a warning, it’s quite dull, Hers.”
The Duke shifted his steps and teased.
“Do you not love your child much? Or is it that your body doesn’t follow your will?”
“Both,” Hersis said in a solemn tone. “It’s neither of them.”
As the golden iris in the middle of his eyes momentarily expanded, he boldly stepped into the circle the two had created.
The Duke swiftly blocked a sudden attack from Hersis, but the unexpected force pushed him back a few steps. Hersis retreated for a moment, then closed the distance again, bringing down his sword. This time, the tingling sensation extended not just from his hand but through his elbow to the collarbone. Due to this, he almost lost his grip on the sword.
“Not because there’s no will.”
Retreating briefly, Hersis closed the distance for the third time, striking down with the sword, and the Duke blocked it again. This time, the tingling sensation continued from the wrist to the elbow and shoulder, almost causing him to drop the sword.
“It’s certainly not because I don’t love my child.”
As Hersis stepped forward for the third time, the Duke involuntarily stepped back in surprise.
And then he realized he was the only one who had stepped back.
Hersis remained in the same position.
He smiled and said, “For your dignity.”
Hersis twirled the sword around his wrist like handling a prop.
“At least you have to die after fighting, right?”
“…”
“I think of you that much.”
The sword, twirling around his wrist, suddenly stopped rotating. The tip of the sword in his hand swayed due to the inertia.
Hersis stepped forward.
The Duke stepped back as if fleeing.
However, when he took a step back, Hersis took two steps forward. He was so fast that the Duke wondered who he had dueled with so far.
With a swift motion, Hersis closed the distance with ease.
As if springing up while jumping a stone on water, Hersis effortlessly narrowed the gap. When he raised his foot for the third time, the Duke, unknowingly surprised, stepped back again.
And then he realized he was the only one who had stepped back.
Hersis remained in the same position.
He said with a grin, “For your dignity.”
Twirling the sword around his wrist like handling a prop, Hersis continued, “You have to die after fighting, right?”
“…”
“I think of you that much.”
He lightly touched the opponent’s sword with his extended arm. Due to the sweat on his hands, the Duke almost lost the sword.
“You probably thought you knew everything about me.”
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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