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#4.
The Seduction Game and the Toxic Clause
“How much did I even drink? My stomach feels like it has holes… urgh.”
My insides churned, and my head felt like it was about to split open.
I pulled the blanket over my head to block the morning sunlight, but it was useless.
Along with the nausea, Nicolai’s words from last night resurfaced.
“If you don’t want to end up in the Ice Tower prison for insulting the Emperor, then drink.”
“That’s a very strange way of making threats.”
“I’m being generous.”
“And the other option?”
“There isn’t one. Just these two.”
“Why do you even want to drink with me?”
“You don’t need to know why. Just choose—wine or prison.”
And with his guards already reaching for their sword hilts, I had no choice but to accept the champagne glass Nicolai offered me.
Was it because it was top-quality champagne?
Or because I had possessed the body of Elizabeth, who was fond of drinking?
Either way, the champagne had tasted astonishingly good.
“I remember spinning around, then collapsing. I think I even threw up…”
I sniffed at myself.
Thankfully, there wasn’t the stench of vomit clinging to my body.
“Did someone clean me up? Oh no, how do I even thank them?”
“You could start by saying thank you.”
That low, deep voice I had gotten far too used to overnight made me snap my head to the side.
Nicolai was propped up on the wide bed, sitting up.
“Your Majesty?!”
The silk blanket slid down.
His bare torso was revealed.
Broad, hard pecs like leather armor, sharply defined abs carved as if by a blade—his body was striking.
It was a rare sight, but instead of admiring it, every hair on my body stood on end.
“Why are you here, Your Majesty?”
“Is it strange for the Emperor to be in the Imperial Palace?”
I widened my eyes and looked around.
A bed so large it was practically a stage, a crystal chandelier, and masterpieces covering the ceiling.
It was a splendor several levels above even the famed Amster mansion.
There was no mistaking it—this was the Imperial Palace, and I was in the Emperor’s bedroom.
Ah, another cliché? The heroine wakes up in an unfamiliar bed next to a half-naked man!
My trembling hands lifted the blanket.
Thankfully, I wasn’t naked, but it wasn’t exactly reassuring either.
I was wearing a negligee as thin as insect wings.
I had seen similar things in Elizabeth’s dressing room, but I had avoided them for being too revealing!
Don’t tell me he changed my clothes himself? No, that’s impossible. There are plenty of maids here…
But the memory I thought was erased came back—the image of large, calloused hands.
A man’s careful, almost reverent touch brushing against me.
A cascade of black hair, green eyes through blurred vision.
Flushed cheeks, lips pressed tightly shut in nervous restraint.
“Ah…”
While I despaired, Nicolai bared a set of perfect white teeth in a grin.
“There’s no need to be embarrassed. We’ve already seen everything there is to see.”
“Since when did we become that kind of relationship?”
“From last night until this morning.”
“!”
“Do you know how difficult it is to dress a woman? Still, thanks to me, you slept well, didn’t you?”
Nicolai looked genuinely amused.
Had his eyes been lecherous or predatory, I would’ve been horrified. But his gaze sparkled with pure enjoyment, like a boy’s.
It was no less burdensome, but it was a far cry from the decadent, dangerous impression he first gave.
Why is he acting like this with me?
I was confused.
He had said with his own mouth that he hadn’t been seduced by me.
So why was he treating me like this?
Was it because he was some flirt who couldn’t resist women?
No, that wasn’t it.
My memory was nearly complete now—Nicolai had taken care of me when I was completely drunk, but he hadn’t done anything beyond that.
I’m the one who kept drinking, I’m the one who passed out. I wanted to live with dignity, with self-control… but instead, I stayed out all night and woke up in bed with a stranger!
I hung my head in shame. Elizabeth’s reputation for scandalous behavior was alive and well through me.
Nicolai spoke casually.
“Don’t beat yourself up. I’m the one who offered you the drinks. Though I didn’t expect you to pass out after just three glasses.”
“…”
“I’ve ordered a carriage. Go back to the Amster mansion.”
“Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty.”
“Next time, be more careful.”
That word—next time—clutched my heart and then released it.
I wanted to ask what he meant by careful, but my lips stuck together.
Suddenly, I became acutely aware that I was sitting on a bed alone with Nicolai.
Unconsciously, my fingers touched my lips.
Last night, I kissed this man for the first time.
My cheeks burned.
A stranger’s kiss still lingered on my lips like a brand, his heat and breath etched there.
But Nicolai hadn’t gotten aroused, even when I kissed him.
He hadn’t taken advantage of me in my drunken stupor.
Instead, he said next time he would be more careful.
The more I spoke to him, the more cracks appeared in his image as a Casanova tyrant.
Maybe he’s a better person than in the original story. If he’s not a tyrant, maybe Claudia won’t start a revolution. Maybe… maybe I don’t have to seduce him at all to avoid the guillotine ending.
That small flicker of hope had just begun to grow when Nicolai’s lips twisted.
“Hurry up and move into the palace. I’ll prepare quarters for you in the harem.”
“What?”
“Why pretend not to know? You’re the one who suggested the game.”
“Game? What game?”
“Don’t play dumb. I won’t forgive it.”
He frowned and leaned closer.
Facing a face that beautiful felt almost unfair—my heart beat wildly.
I had thought my memory had returned, but maybe not. I had no idea what he was talking about.
“For insulting the Emperor, I’ll add fraud to your crimes and wipe out not just your family, but your entire clan.”
The murderous aura pierced me.
He was serious. And he had the power to make it reality.
No doubt about it—he’s a tyrant through and through!
This wasn’t the time for pride.
Before Nicolai unleashed his villainy, I clasped my hands desperately.
“Why would I dare deceive Your Majesty? I just blacked out from drinking, that’s all!”
“…”
“Please tell me what this game is. Yes?”
He gave me a suspicious look, then spoke with arrogance, as if granting me a favor.
“It’s a game where the one who seduces the other first wins.”
“You’re saying I proposed such a ridiculous game?”
“With great confidence, yes.”
“That’s impossible!”
“I agreed, on the condition that you enter the palace.”
“You should’ve refused!”
“Why would I? I’ve found myself an amusing toy.”
A toy? Was he really going to toy with my life for fun?
I bristled, but Nicolai’s voice dropped.
“You vomited on the Emperor’s thigh and even had the Emperor bathe you. Did you think it would be free?”
A black aura oozed from him.
If I defied him, I’d probably be executed on the spot.
Claudia hadn’t even appeared in the story yet.
I came here to seduce him, and now I’ve just ended up screwed.
Swallowing back tears of regret, I accepted the sheet of paper Nicolai held out.
The moment I touched it, I knew it wasn’t just an ordinary document.
It was a contract—and its contents were horrifying.
-
Nicolai Rob Yevrey and Elizabeth Amster shall live together until victory is decided, attempting to seduce one another.
-
There are no restrictions on methods of seduction, except that violence, drugs, or any acts against universal law are strictly forbidden.
-
Physical contact is not restricted.
-
The first to capture the other’s heart wins. The winner may demand anything from the loser.
-
The loser must obey the winner unconditionally and has no right to refuse.
Nicolai smiled. It was no longer the innocent grin of a boy.
Nicolai watched Elizabeth’s reaction with delight.
Her face just went pale, then white. Sometimes she’s absurdly shameless, other times she quivers like a frightened hamster. But no matter what, she’s unbearably captivating.
He needed to know whether her sweet fragrance was temporary or not.
Why did she smell like cherry blossoms and sweet berries? What was the source of it?
That was why he had cared for her personally.
To his surprise, Elizabeth’s scent had continuously, powerfully dispelled the stench of death flowers.
Every corner of the palace she had stayed in overnight had been scrubbed clean of that foul smell.
Something no perfume, incense, or censer had ever managed.
A mysterious, incomprehensible woman.
Nicolai drank in everything about her.
I want her badly enough to use a childish excuse like this game. At least until the fragrance fades, I must have her.
And beyond that, she was worth keeping.
Her expressions and reactions were fresh, endlessly amusing.
Had he already become drunk on her scent?
“This contract is void! It was signed while I was mentally impaired and under duress!”
Elizabeth exploded.
Nicolai waved the contract.
Her tiny red handprint fluttered mockingly.
“You’re already denying it before the ink’s even dried?”
“Do you have any proof I suggested this so-called seduction game?”
“You yourself said it was do-or-die. That the palace would be safer than the Amster mansion.”
“…”
“You approached me first, didn’t you? Since we’re on the subject, why did you want to seduce me?”
“…”
“Was it because you wanted to be Empress, like the rumors say? Starting as a consort is more than enough—why reject that?”
Elizabeth’s black eyes wavered.
Her lips opened and closed like a little bird’s beak, but no excuse came.
Her true motives didn’t matter much to Nicolai.
She was useful, intriguing. That was all.
And perhaps more, though with men and women, nothing could be guaranteed.
“The contract only says we live together. There’s no clause about becoming Empress.”
“If you’d rather be a maid, I won’t stop you. You’d just be doing chores among the noble-born attendants, but that’s no concern of mine.”
“I heard Your Majesty already has dozens of consorts.”
“I don’t even know the exact number. If you’re curious, enter the palace and count them for me.”
Her lovely face twisted in distaste.
Nicolai realized he was teasing her more than necessary.
He didn’t know why he kept wanting to.
Though he had no experience with women or romance, he was Emperor.
Long before ascending the throne, he had trained himself in restraint and endurance.
He dulled his senses to survive.
He cut off his emotions.
Until at some point, all human feelings—joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure—had become foreign.
He hadn’t minded.
The only thing that troubled him was that the cursed wolf would someday have to be passed on to Crown Prince Franz.
I’ve been raising Pinch as my son for six years already. Hard to believe the little boy who once fit in Laila’s arms is already ten years old.
Nicolai had many secrets.
One was that Crown Prince Franz was not his biological son.
Some doubted the bloodline when they saw Franz’s radiant golden hair.
Those who voiced suspicion were eliminated.
Franz was someone Nicolai would protect with his life.
Because of Laila, the woman who shone like the stars—because of the promise he had made to her.
This woman might be able to help me and Franz. She could be our first and last hope.
He had no intention of letting Elizabeth go.
Since the Emperor had decided, escape was impossible.
“If you truly dislike it, you may annul the contract.”
“Really?”
Elizabeth’s face lit up in relief.
But rage bubbled in Nicolai.
So she doesn’t even remember, after crying so hard, begging not to die, saying she didn’t want the guillotine…
Last night, Elizabeth had wept hot tears in Nicolai’s arms.
He hadn’t known how to comfort her.
All he could do was hold her as she sobbed like a lost child.
At first, he thought she feared punishment for insulting the Emperor.
But that wasn’t it.
She was utterly convinced she was going to die soon—and that terror had haunted her for a long time.
What is she so afraid of? What sorrow weighs on her, when she has beauty and wealth that never runs out?
Even those who had everything sometimes needed a drink to weep.
Everyone carried inexplicable, unexplainable sorrow.
And Nicolai didn’t presume to define Elizabeth’s heart.
No matter her station, he believed he shouldn’t.
“Check the annulment clause carefully.”
He flipped over the contract.
On the back, in tiny writing, more conditions were spelled out.
Elizabeth’s black eyes widened like ripe grapes.
“If I annul unilaterally… all my property will be confiscated, and my family will be sold into slavery?!”
“You must have checked before stamping your hand. Not that it matters if you didn’t.”
“You conniving man!”
“Watch your tongue, wife. Your husband is the Emperor.”
