---
The reason why I suddenly screamed and jumped out of bed was this.
I just had a really bad nightmare.
I worked hard for weeks and solved the case with great effort, and then for some completely ridiculous reason I did not receive the reward for success, not even a penny...
“……”
I turned my head slightly, and saw Archduke Richard, his buttocks half-raised from the chair, blinking with a startled expression.
Then there was the sight of an old room that smelled somewhat musty.
“This...”
I stopped talking, and the Archduke, who sat upright as if nothing had happened, added a dry explanation.
“It is the Archduke’s palace.
All my other possessions were confiscated, but the Crown Prince showed mercy and ordered the return of the land and palace associated with the title of Archduke.”
“Ha…hahaha…”
I laughed blankly and covered my face with both hands.
This wasn't a nightmare, this was the real nightmare.
“Thanks to you, I have been released and free, so I will sell the Archduke’s lands and the palace, which were returned under the contract, and give you half.”
“……”
I couldn't help but furrow my eyebrows at his offer.
The offer seems great at first glance, but whoever knows the truth knows that it is a ridiculous offer.
Archduke Richard was expelled from the imperial palace upon his birth, and isolated with his wet nurse in an abandoned castle in a barren wasteland.
Then, when he made achievements in the war, the Emperor reluctantly granted him the title of Archduke, and all he did miserably was to rename the land and castle where he originally lived to just 'Archduke's Territory' and 'Archduke's Palace'.
The enormous wealth I stipulated in the contract was that which he himself had made from his investments.
In short, the lands and palace that the Crown Prince returned, feigning mercy, are in fact an empty shell.
It was clear that there would not even be enough money to run the palace.
'The damned bastard Crown Prince!
The Archduke was expelled from the capital completely naked!'
Of course, since he's the villain who made a fortune by crippling the hero in malicious ways, it's only natural that the Crown Prince would want to confiscate all that wealth.
'However, this is too much!'
I gritted my teeth.
Anyway, Archduke Richard handed me some papers.
“Here, here is the property contract...and the divorce document.
Write down your share as well.”
In contrast to my anger, his voice was calm.
He did not appear to be sorry that the enormous fortune he had gained so hard by stealing Lawrence's opportunities had been lost forever.
I looked at the divorce document in my hand and then said
“I'm sorry, but I can't grant you a divorce.”
The moment I finished speaking, the Archduke jumped up.
“What now?
Do you mean you won’t fulfill the contract?”
I shook my head quietly at his astonished voice.
“No, I'm just saying our contract isn't up yet.”
"What …?"
“Our contract was that I would get half the fortune if you were acquitted, Your Excellency.
But you haven’t got the acquittal yet, have you?
So I can’t divorce you until then.”
I did not intend to release him from prison and be left with the empty shell in a losing deal.
He sighed clearly and said.
“Okay.
We will postpone the divorce until the contract is executed.
But I cannot keep a wife on paper only in the Archduke’s palace.”
Ah, so this is how it will turn out.
I put on the most miserable expression possible on my face.
“What a shame!
This is my house, so how can you say such things, my love?”
“H, my love... what?
As I expected, you were aiming for this from the beginning when you signed a contract with me...!”
The face of the Archduke, who was staring at me, turned red angrily.
For some reason, I remembered the look in his eyes of a former agent looking at his pursuer.
I sighed deeply as well.
“Your Highness, we are destined to be together.
Accept it.”
"What?"
He looked at me now with a look of utter bewilderment.
I ignored him and continued.
“I publicly shouted that you love me very much, so if we live apart once you get out of prison, won’t that arouse suspicions?”
Although he was released due to insufficient evidence, he refused to return his property under the strange pretext of postponing the decision on his innocence.
Considering that the Crown Prince had no intention of letting the Archduke live a comfortable life, it seemed that he would be watching us, waiting for an opportunity to attack.
In such a situation, if our contractual marriage were exposed, the trial itself might be invalidated on the pretext that someone not from the family pleaded without qualification, and then I would say goodbye to the reward of success forever, and I might even go to prison.
“So we have to look like a real couple so the real criminal can be caught.”
“……!”
The Archduke, who seemed speechless, only opened his mouth and closed it.
I raised my right eyebrow slightly and said quietly.
“If you don't like married life, you can fabricate evidence now and accuse someone else of guilt.”
"You!
Are you crazy?"
The Archduke's face immediately hardened, he shouted angrily, and stared at me sharply.
I shrugged.
“Didn't you say you hate pretending to be married to me?”
“Ugh...”
The Archduke's reaction was as I expected.
Even after spending a short time with him, I realized that he was so stubborn that I wondered if he was really the mastermind behind this story, and his sense of responsibility was so strong that he would break his will for the sake of his subordinates.
So, he is not the type of person who would sacrifice an innocent person just to survive.
“Also, I would be grateful if you cooperated with me in finding the real criminal.”
“You will search for the criminal yourself?”
I nodded in agreement with his astonished question.
“Until you get an acquittal, your happiness!
This is the most important thing to me.”
The police almost sentenced him to death with ridiculous evidence.
If we leave the investigation to them, he will be deprived of his wealth forever and I will never get my pay.
So the quickest solution was to investigate myself and catch the criminal.
He stared at me blankly, as if he was shocked all over again.
Then he bit his lips and spoke in a low voice.
“Let me make one thing clear, we will only pretend to be married in front of people.
There is no love between us.
We are just contract partners.
Do you understand?”
"Yes?
Ah, well, as you wish."
I've always felt that way, but the Archduke had a habit of making obvious things seem very serious statements.
It was a bad habit.
I nodded absently.
“And also...”
He hesitated a little, then opened his mouth.
“Wouldn't it be better if we tried to like someone else during the contract period?”
“Um...I think that's a little difficult.”
If any unnecessary words leak out, it will be a disaster.
Anyway, what matters to me is not personal feelings but money.
“……”
After hearing my answer, the face of the Archduke who sighed seemed strangely affected.
***
The first place we experienced harmony as a couple was the dinner table.
The head maid, who was said to have been working in the palace for a long time, received us in the ancient dining hall.
“…I am the head maid here, Margaret Perona.
You may call me Lady Perona.
I have served Your Excellency for a long time.”
I narrowed my eyes and looked at Mrs.
Perona, who looked very tense and nervous, and then I asked the Archduke gently.
“It seems that His Excellency has a special relationship with Lady Perona.”
"Yes."
The short and dry answer came immediately.
"Yes, just?
Darling?"
I smiled and deliberately extended the word, then stabbed the Archduke's thigh with my finger under the table so that Perona would not see.
The Archduke shuddered as if he remembered what had happened in the bedroom.
A few hours ago.
“Well, now we have to look like a couple madly in love with each other.”
“And what do you want me to do?”
The Archduke looked at me with complete incomprehension of my request.
I frowned.
“I told you, treat me like a real lover.”
“Well, I ask you, how can that be?”
“Don't tell me...have you never been in a relationship in your life?”
«……»
He lowered his eyes and closed his mouth tightly.
Then a slight blush spread across his clearly chiseled features.
I looked at him in amazement.
'Oh my God...with such a handsome face all this time and not using it?'
No wonder he reacted so strongly to the word 'darling'.
Looks like I have to teach him the basics.
I began to explain to him step by step as if I were teaching a small child.
"Good.
First, when you look at me, look with eyes full of longing.”
“Is this enough?”
Suddenly the Archduke's red eyes caught fire and lit up as if they were burning with determination.
I sighed and continued.
“This is the look before cutting the enemy’s neck.”
“Didn't you ask for longing?”
“This is a longing for death, not for love.”
As expected of a mastermind, his gaze was fierce.
I decided to give up the loving view and move on to the next step.
“Okay, let's do something easier.
Calling me nice is something you can learn quickly.
Call me ‘Elena’ in a soft voice.”
“Elena!”
«…..”
His voice was like he was shouting ‘Private E!
Li!
Na!’ in the army.
I couldn't find anything to say and lowered my eyebrows.
“I'll show you an example.
Follow with me.”
I gathered my energy from my lower abdomen and let out a very soft sound.
“Benedict-♡”
“Stop!”
The Archduke's face immediately reddened as if he couldn't bear to listen any longer.
Thus ended our dreadful marital exercise and we returned to the present.
“Have a bath.”
The Archduke suddenly regained consciousness after my silent rebuke, and cleared his throat.
Then, with difficulty, he managed to let out a gentle sound.
“Lady Perona was also my governess.
She worked at the Imperial Palace before.”
Lady Perona bowed her head deeply upon hearing this.
“Even after he no longer needed a nanny, His Excellency allowed me to stay here as head maid.”
The Archduke took a sip of the prepared soup and nodded calmly to Lady Perona.
“It's been a long time since I've eaten Margaret, but it's still the same.
You've always been a good cook.”
Delicious food?
This is the most beautiful thing I heard today.
I hadn't eaten anything all day and was very hungry, so I quickly shoved the soup into my mouth.
“Aww!”
At that moment, everyone's eyes were on me.