Episode 14

Luckily, the place he took me to was a normal place.

“studio?”

A peculiar scent wafted from the old photo studio through the door.

“Even if it’s a fake family, we should take pictures. Let’s hang them in the living room and put them in the bedroom.”

“Instead of using separate rooms, if we put up a picture of a loving couple, the servants won’t get suspicious.”

“We communicate well.”

Among the servants of the Duke’s residence, very few knew that we were a married couple.

At best, there are only aides Ollie and Anna.

“But why here of all places?”

“The photographer who runs this store is the one who took my family photos and those of my parents.”

Ezekiel gave a warning.

“That was the first time I took a picture of my late parents and myself. It’s been over ten years already.”

I thought it must have been a pretty close-knit family.

That’s understandable, since I’ve never taken a family photo while living in a small town.

“If you meet Youngjimin regularly and go around like a married couple, rumors will spread that you are on good terms.”

“So, you came all the way here without calling a photographer?”

“It looks commonplace, doesn’t it?”

In fact, the photographer was touched by the fact that the Duke and Duchess came to see him in person.

“I can’t tell you how honored I am. I’ll take the best pictures!”

“Please take good care of me.”

We posed for the photo.

When one person sits down, another person stands behind them and places their hand on the back of the chair.

“Madam, please sit down, the dress is heavy.”

Here he comes again, that sweetheart who’s just pretending to be public. I sat down in the chair he wanted. Ezekiel stood beside me, carrying his backpack.

“Oh, your Majesty. It seems a little stiff. How about placing your hands on the backrest?”

He briefly checked the chair I was leaning against and shook his head.

“No. Just take it like this.”

We awkwardly stood apart and took the photo. The flash went off a few times, and thanks to the magic of the flash, I quickly checked the results and had to suppress a laugh.

“What is it!”

It was like that kind of situation.

Two people came to take a picture at the same time, but the photographer said he didn’t have time and took a picture of them together.

“Still, how can you be smiling so brightly? You look great.”

I barely passed the passing score.

“It would be perfect if you cut them out in the middle and put them in their own frames. You’ll have two pretty, independent photos.”

“……This concludes our proof of marriage.”

Ezekiel Betra declared, putting the picture in his most expensive frame without responding to my words.

“We are the perfect couple, without a doubt.”

He brought the picture frames and displayed them all over the duke’s residence as if they were nothing.

I held the small, printed photo and wondered where to put it, then put it in the frame next to my bed.

I greeted them with excitement, tapping on the couple’s photo in a pretty frame.

‘Please take good care of me. My husband for life!’

***

As promised, we each used a separate room.

It was comfortable to have one huge bed all to myself.

He and I saw each other three times a day, at the meal table.

Even Ezekiel said he was busy with business and ate in the office, so I sometimes ate alone.

One day, I just brought the food up to my room and ate it with Anna. It was less burdensome that way.

“Anna. Try this.”

“Madam, you should try this peach pie too.”

“It’s delicious. It’s sweet even though it’s not in season.”

We spent the sunny spring day chatting about such trivial things.

Of course, even in the midst of all this, there were also schedules that had to be completed as a duchess.

According to his aide, Ollie, there is something that always happens in Betra around this time of year.

“There’s a ceremony held at the temple dedicated to the god of Vetra, praying for the protection of the land. It’s the grandest event, attended by the Duke and Duchess.”

“There will be no more kisses between me and Ezekiel?”

“None. The Duke will kiss the gold ring.”

“Is Betra the city of kisses? Why is it so obsessed with kisses?”

Anyway, it was just as the aide said.

Ezekiel, who had gone out to sea on a boat along the great canal that crossed the territory, kissed the gold ring in his hand and recited a prayer.

“I marry you, sea. Be mine forever. Protect the countless people of Vetra, and though you may waver at times, you will never sink.”

I’d been standing by Ezekiel’s side all this time. The people enthusiastically praised me for entering the Betra domain and preventing its annexation.

They acted like beautiful sea goddesses, just as they wished, and blankly watched Ezekiel.

“Long live our proud disciple! Long live the wise Dogaresa!”

Ezekiel dropped the ceremonial gold ring he had kissed deeply into the sea.

The golden ring imbued with protective power was buried deep in the sea, carrying the fate of saving the territory.

I thought as I waved to the crowd of people.

This man is a pillar of support for everyone. He’s so busy and so important that he can’t even pay attention to his wife next to him.

So, it might be difficult to twist the original work and promise eternity to the male protagonist, which is what I was aiming for.

Maybe, after the contract period ends, we’ll get divorced······?

‘No. It’s too early to just guess and give up.’

I shook off my random thoughts again.

Nothing will get better if you suffer alone.

I steeled myself and tried to get closer to him, even going against my natural personality.

Because if a couple’s relationship stays still, it will just run parallel.

Bang bang bang.

From the next day onwards, I started knocking on his office door and whispering.

“Ezekiel, shall we go outside? The weather’s nice, and we’ll meet the people of Yeongji.”

There was no answer from him. I didn’t care and tried a few more times the next day.

“Ezekiel. How about going out to see the trade ships coming in today? Oh, why is Ollie out of his office?”

“Madam, Your Majesty has already gone out to see the merchant ships depart.”

Failure due to disagreement with husband.

“Ezekiel. I want to learn swordsmanship, too. I heard you’re skilled in both swordsmanship and marksmanship. Please teach me!”

“I’m busy. The estate’s ledger is a mess right now.”

I failed because I only heard the voice.

“Ezekiel. Do you want to go out and build a snowman?”

The office door flew open. My husband finally came out.

“It’s almost summer, what kind of snowman is this?”

“Ha! I thought I’d never see you again if I didn’t say something like this. Nice to meet you, honey.”

“…….”

The door closed again. Damn it.

“Ezekiel.”

“Ezekiel!”

“Ezekiel…….”

“Era! That’s it, that’s it!”

One day, with early summer just around the corner, I was exhausted. The sun was scorching… It was so hot. Who left the window open?

I sighed deeply and slid down, my back against the firmly closed door.

The distance between me and him was so close and yet so far.

***

It’s clear that the ending of the contract marriage is a flowery path, but why is it still a thorny path for me?

After some effort, I began to question the cliches of the romance novels I’d seen countless times.

I was barely able to talk to Ezekiel, whom I met at the dinner table.

The table was a bit long, so please forgive my hoarse voice.

“Two months have already passed. Time really flies!”

“okay.”

“If this keeps up, this marriage will soon be over. Are you… going to break up with me?”

“We have to break up. That’s a promise.”

The husband nodded solemnly.

“I will quietly step aside from your presence.”

I was embarrassed.

‘Didn’t the couple in the contract marriage end up falling in love?’

At least I didn’t expect to hear such a firm answer.

Anyway, since it was a relationship that started with a contract, I thought that even if it took some time, we would eventually open up to each other.

But what if I was the only one who actually opened his heart? What if his heart was destined to remain closed forever?

With hands trembling with worry, I emptied the plate of rich meat dishes.

My husband watched me eat quietly and then blurted out.

“We sourced it from the southern ranching areas, known for their high-quality meat.”

“Oh, thank you.”

Look at this. He’s acting so affectionately and confusingly like this again.

And prepare some good meat for me.

‘Cheer up. There’s plenty of time.’

I hoped that at least the awkwardness between him and me would go away.

Still, I believed that we could bridge the gap between us, which was still ten months away.

Even though I didn’t push it through with action like before, I believed it in my heart.

I visited the Vetra Temple several times and prayed quietly for the improvement of my relationship with my husband.

Then one day, I overheard a terrifying story.