---
"Yes…!"
Archduke Richard moved his lips as if to say something, but I pressed them tighter so that he could not utter a single word.
With my own lips.
That was very effective.
Not the slightest sound escaped from between our joined lips without any space.
Then I wrapped my arms tightly around the back of his neck.
'If he suddenly pushes me, it will be a disaster.'
I was afraid he would throw me aside in panic, but fortunately, he froze in place without any significant resistance.
I brought his face closer to mine, trying to hide our faces.
I hoped we looked like a couple noisily showing their affection like the couple on the grass over there.
It seemed that my plan had succeeded, as if the sound of footsteps had stopped approaching.
Soon I heard a tongue click, and the threatening presence vanished.
Judging by the sound of the dress's hem swaying quickly on the grass, the Empress must have left as well.
'Haha, what a relief.'
Finally, my worry that I would be caught eavesdropping on their conversation subsided.
I slowly released my grip on his neck.
“This is…”
As the fear faded, a feeling of embarrassment washed over me.
I carefully moved my lips away to begin explaining, but this time, his arms wrapped around my waist as if he was holding me.
“...!”
I was the one who froze in shock now due to his sudden and bold behavior.
His strong, muscular arms tightly wrapped around my waist, his fresh, warm scent touching the tip of my nose, the softness of his lips on mine, and the warmth of his breath coming out of them.
‘Wait.
E.
Is this... a real kiss?'
Obviously, I did it without hesitation before, perhaps because I knew that I would die by Lawrence's sword.
Suddenly, his reaction stopped my thoughts.
“Oh, dear!”
"I love you!"
ما كسر الصمت المحرج كان صوتًا غريبًا زاده حرجًا.
The man, muttering among the bushes, uttered a burning gasp of love, and at the same moment the Archduke's body jerked away from me like a broken spring.
“What are you doing!”
“Am I?”
"Yes!
You!
This is a serious breach of contract!"
The Archduke wiped his lips with the back of his hand as he caught his breath.
His face was so red that a red glow was visible even in the darkness.
He turned and walked away slowly.
I stared at him blankly, then quickly regained consciousness and followed him.
Instead of returning to the crowded ballroom, he chose to head straight to our carriage.
"Breach of contract!
What are you talking about?"
I jumped in surprise.
In fact, I was fascinated by his presence on the dance floor previously.
But I could never let him find out.
This would have violated the 'no personal feelings' clause in my contract, and all my effort would have been in vain.
“Didn't...didn't you just physically touch me inappropriately?”
He leaned into the carriage, closed the door forcefully, and put his hand on his forehead with a serious face.
I was upset that things were being misrepresented and I explained.
“It was clearly self-defense.”
"What?"
“Lawrence and the Empress were talking secretly nearby!
If anyone found out that I was eavesdropping on their conversation, it would be a big problem, so I pretended that we were lovers.”
“You pretended...?”
The Archduke stared at me blankly, his face still red.
He looked embarrassed.
“Moreover, I had clearly intended to stop this farce after those two were gone… but after that, the Archduke became even more…”
While the Archduke remained silent, unable to answer, I remembered our intimate kiss earlier, and my face turned red.
However, I was the one who suddenly became more assertive!
I felt frustrated, so I opened my eyes to him.
“Wasn't it you, Archduke, who broke the contract?
Even after those two were gone, you would have touched me physically inappropriately—”
“No!”
The Archduke interrupted me angrily.
“I have a sixth sense, a sharp and penetrating sense that I have developed through countless battles, capable of sensing danger.”
“Sixth sense…?”
I frowned at his words, and looked at him with a suspicious expression.
Finally, he swallowed hard and spoke.
“That's right.
My sixth sense was telling me that the danger was not over yet.”
“So, you felt threatened, and to look like a true lover, you tightened your arms around my waist and moved your lips in a slightly intimate way?”
“Sure...”
The sound coming from his dry lips, trembling, was much quieter than the sound I had heard moments before when he had accused me of breach of contract.
"… correct."
"Oh.
So this isn't a breach of contract, is it?"
“….”
I finally felt relieved to sort things out.
The idea of resolving the breach of contract by mutual consent also lifted my spirits. وسرعان ما بدأتُ أتحدّث بحماس.
"Anyway, it was worth it to attend this party.
I knew that something was going on between the Empress and Baron Haydn, and I knew that Lawrence was involved."
“So, what you're saying is...”
The Archduke continued, his face trembling slightly.
A look of regret and disappointment crossed his face.
I nodded in understanding.
“I also regret that I couldn’t hear the end of their conversation, but next time—”
“You did it just to avoid suspicion, without any personal feelings.”
I couldn't help but sigh as I watched the Archduke, focusing on the contract rather than the case he had to solve.
It seemed to me that I was the only one who thought the breach of contract issue had been clearly resolved.
I always felt this way, but the Archduke was very meticulous in managing contracts.
He did not tolerate the slightest hint of suspicion.
'Or maybe...!'
It seemed like he had found evidence to secure an exoneration, so could he be intentionally trying to evade paying me by raising the breach of contract issue?
I narrowed my eyes at him suspiciously.
Then a quick smile appeared on my face, as if I was reassuring him.
“Absolutely.
I guarantee it.
What we just took was an emergency measure to ensure the physical safety of the contracting parties, nothing more and nothing less.”
“You speak so easily.”
His face, with his arms crossed, was now a bit frowning.
He seemed very upset, I smiled brightly and spoke in a friendly voice to calm his anger.
“Please, forget that incident.
Even though it was my first time, I decided to erase it and pretend it never happened.”
“A-The first time...”
His face flushed again, as if he were strangely shocked.
Perhaps because of the intense heat inside the carriage, he opened the window and kept his mouth shut all the way back to the Archduke's house.
***
The next morning, in Archduke Richard's office.
Benedict Richard rubbed his face, which had grown a bit pale throughout the night.
“As I expected.”
Hah.
He didn't sleep for a moment, thinking about Elena Christie's actions last night, and his mind was confused.
But his conclusion was quite clear.
“No personal feelings?!
Come on!”
He was almost fooled by Elena Christie again.
Of course, at first, he believed Elena.
Her excuse was that her actions were not the result of unbridled passion, but rather a hastily contrived ruse to avert an impending crisis.
'Thanks to that, I almost misunderstood her.'
Benedict touched his chest.
Last night, Elena had kissed him passionately, and now she was acting as if this kind of kissing was a normal routine.
He had never experienced such an intimate connection with anyone before, and it seemed as if a simple kiss was nothing special to Elena.
So, he felt a wave of betrayal, as if she had no feelings for him, not even admiration.
Fortunately, after staying up all night, he finally realized it.
“Even though it was my first time, I decided to erase it and pretend it never happened.”
Elena was afraid that she would be misunderstood, and subtly revealed that it was her first time kissing anyone as well.
“It's a relief that I have a sixth sense.”
هزّ رأسه، فخورًا بحدسه الاستثنائي، الذي صقله بعد مئات المعارك.
Having fought the harsh battlefields with grace, he must have been able to read her signals.
Any other man would have thought Elena a whore.
'The way she tried to convince me that this was her first kiss...'
She looked nice.
He remembered Elena's innocent smile and hoarse voice last night, and his lips trembled involuntarily.
Elena Christie was really honest with him.
It was just that she was trying to hide her feelings because of the terms of the contract he had set for her.
Now clearing his mind of the chaos, Benedict finally turned his gaze to his walnut desk to deal with the backlog of work.
“...!”
His hands, which were absentmindedly flipping through the papers in his office, stopped.
Then his eyes widened in shock.