Ruth, who had been ruminating on the meaning of that word, understood it a second later and was horrified.
Blair, who had dropped that bombshell on Ruth, oblivious to her reaction, thought it was time for Mikhail to contact her and left the gallery.
—
That night, Herdin, who had returned to the mansion after hunting magical monsters, found Ruth in his office.
It was time for him to finish his day, but he was still there, so it seemed he had something to say to her.
Herdin, as Ruth approached with a serious expression, asked him with his usual indifference:
—Haven't you gone home?
-Excellence.
Is what the lady said true?
-The fact that?
—That you two were married by contract.
Herdin's movements while drying his hair with a towel stopped.
His gaze became sharp in an instant.
—…Did she tell you that?
—My God, is it true?!
You don't tell me something so important!
That thing about marriage by contract, when the agreed period ends...
Herdin didn't even hear Ruth's complaints.
—Hey, where are you going without finishing talking!
Herdin, ignoring Ruth's words, left the office.
In the process, the towel fell off, but he didn't even care.
His steps headed towards Blair's bedroom.
Herdin burst into the bedroom without knocking.
What he saw was Blair taking off her bathrobe and putting on her nightgown.
Seeing the skin showing through the still untied robe, Herdin stopped.
—Ah… ugh!
Rina, who was attending to her, upon seeing Herdin's sudden appearance, tried to scream, but upon realizing that it was Blair's husband, she closed her mouth.
There was no problem with the husband seeing his wife's naked body.
Solo rushed to tie Blair's robe.
The victim herself, although she had been startled by his appearance, did not seem very surprised by the fact that she had been seen naked.
—Rina, you can leave.
Rina bowed to the two and silently left.
Only Blair and Herdin were left in the room.
Herdin, who was going to rebuke her immediately, saw Blair looking up at him with her clear eyes, and closed his mouth.
Because he remembered seeing tears in those eyes on one occasion.
After suppressing emotions so altered that not even he himself could understand, Herdin opened his mouth again in a lower voice:
—…I heard you told Ruth about our contract.
—Ah… I thought Knight Ruth knew.
And I thought it was okay if I knew.
It wasn't something he couldn't say.
As she said, Ruth was her trusted man, and even if it cost her her life, she would not go around telling things that could be her weak point.
Herdin, who was swallowing emotions that he himself didn't know how to define, saw Blair's lips.
Then he thought he understood the reason for his anger.
It infuriated him that she spoke so calmly about the end of this contract with those lips.
As indicated in the contract.>Like that time he heard those words.
Because he suddenly felt that the woman in front of him, who was so close that he could hug her just by stretching out his arm, was terribly far away.
…Because it seemed like it was going to disappear like that.
That couldn't be.
That would be breaching the contract.
None of the conditions of the contract he had proposed had yet been met.
He couldn't even take in the warmth of this woman as he pleased, which had come as a small reward for that contract.
Anger would therefore be the name of this uncontrollable emotion that now shook him.
His gaze, which was looking at her from above, was twisted.
—Does this contract seem like a game to you?
At his icy tone, Blair's eyes trembled slightly.
But Herdin did not stop.
No, that's why he couldn't stop.
Because I didn't want to hear from those lips again that spoke of the end of this contract.
—It seems that he has forgotten, but this is a scam that deceives none other than the Emperor.
It's not a child's game.
—…
—Don't mention the contract again in front of anyone else.
His icy voice stopped.
Soon after, Blair's eyes, which were trembling slightly, calmed down.
After a moment of hesitation, she nodded with her ever-calm face.
—I'll be careful from now on.
He seemed to have accepted her words.
Surely that was the answer he wanted.
And yet, Herdin felt as if an unsatisfied thirst welled up again.
My throat was dry and I felt empty.
But he had no justification for remaining angry in front of the woman who nodded at his words.
—…Rest.
Herdin suppressed his emotions and left the bedroom.
A sigh escaped between his lips as he roughly ran his hand through his hair.
He felt terribly upset by those emotions that lately were overflowing as if he were crazy.
—
—We have arrived.
Blair's rental car stopped in front of the art museum.
The meeting place with Mikhail today was this private museum.
The last time, since the theater was a public place for secret dates, they met secretly, but this time, since it was a museum, they decided to just meet.
If someone recognized them, they could tell that it was someone who would help her with an auction.
Still, not wanting to attract unnecessary attention, Blair double-checked the veiled hat she was wearing and opened the car door.
At that same instant, a large hand extended towards her.
Blair looked up following that hand with surprised eyes.
In front of her was Mikhail.
Blair put her hand on his casually and asked:
—How did you know it was me?
—People who usually come here are eager to show off their status.
Unless they want to make their family's seal bigger, it is not common for them to come by rental car.
—But it won't be just one or two people who come by rental car.
—Well, let's say it's thanks to the power of magic.
Mikhail, with a smile on his face, cheekily took it as a joke and guided Blair into the museum.
An art auction is held once a season in this private museum.
Today was the day of the welcome spring auction.
Among the works that would be auctioned today, there was a painting that Ivan's servant was going to buy.
Blair had come to get ahead of that painting and to get a few more pieces to fill the void of the ducal mansion.
-Here.
As we went down to the basement following Mikhail, a large theater-like room unfolded.
But unlike a theater, the lighting was bright.
…To be continued