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~Chapter : 12~
. Conditions of Marriage
“Someone… good.”
“Learning is a good thing. You’re truly a good person.”
Ellis brushed it off casually. A faint, unreadable smile lingered on Karan’s lips.
“All done. I hope it suits your taste.”
Ellis took a sip of the tea Karan had prepared. It was indeed very good.
“That person must be proud.”
“Who do you mean?”
“The one who suggested Your Highness learn tea. If they knew you could brew such fine tea, they’d be delighted.”
“Do you like it?”
Ellis blinked, as if wondering why he was asking her that.
Then she assumed he was simply asking about the tea and smiled.
“It’s delicious. Just to my taste. The fragrance is lovely, and the subtle flavor too.”
Karan smiled back. Ellis found herself staring blankly for a moment.
His sharp features, always so stern, softened, and he looked completely different.
The fresh smile reminded her of a green apple, and her heart reacted.
“Is something on my face?”
“No, Your Highness. It’s just that you’re so…”
“Yes?”
“… handsome.”
Ellis quickly confessed her thought, afraid he might take offense.
Karan simply parted his lips but gave no reaction.
In Bedroka, complimenting someone’s looks was part of social etiquette, not taboo.
But perhaps that wasn’t the case in Tetris. His lips stiffened.
“I’m sorry if I offended you.”
“It’s not that… You mean you find my face pleasing?”
If it was just a matter of yes or no, then of course—
“Yes.”
Karan broke into a wide smile.
A faint smile had made him seem like a green apple; now, it was like a ripe red apple.
There was a richness, almost sensual, that made Ellis’s heart pound for a different reason.
“I’m glad you find it so.”
Glad? What exactly was glad about it?
Every time they spoke, she was left with new questions.
But asking was difficult. Though Ellis felt a closeness thanks to her memories before returning, to Karan she was still a stranger.
I’ll just wait until we’re closer to ask him.
She fiddled with her teacup.
Karan prepared his own cup and sat opposite her. They drank in silence for a while.
Only after emptying her cup did Ellis bring up the main topic.
“Have you thought about it?”
Though vague, Karan knew exactly what she meant.
Today, the two would make a marriage contract.
“Yes. But before that, do you have conditions of your own?”
“I’ll match everything to you.”
Suspicion deepened in Karan’s eyes.
This was a contract that would decide their lives.
He knew Ellis needed his help, but there was no reason to hand him the knife’s handle completely.
If I got greedy, how would she handle it?
Suppressing the boiling desire within, he responded with dignity.
“I have no intention of making an unfair contract. Since you proposed, you should state your terms first.”
“I’m not in a position to demand anything. As I said, I’m not a good match for Your Highness.”
“Don’t say that. I chose to marry you. I won’t let that choice be belittled.”
Each of his words carried kindness toward her.
Ellis realized once more what a good man he was.
Is that why he saved me before I died? But then, why did he come to the underground prison?
It never crossed her mind that he came for her.
“Please, speak.”
He urged.
The tea had long gone cold. Realizing they’d get nowhere by insisting the other go first, Ellis spoke up.
“My only wish is this: let me remain your first wife.”
In Tetris, polygamy was common.
But only the first wife held rights and authority as a wife.
Ellis’s ultimate goal was to put Karan on the throne.
Only then could she completely crush Chase.
And only then would the marriage not be a loss for Karan.
For that, she needed power.
She hadn’t been greedy for the first wife’s seat, but since he asked… she wanted it.
“So, by saying first, you assume there will be a second?”
Perhaps that was too greedy.
Karan looked displeased.
“But polygamy is common in Tetris, isn’t it?”
His hand froze on the teacup.
The warmth surrounding him suddenly turned cold.
“You are gravely mistaken.”
Ellis inhaled sharply. She’d made a serious blunder. How to fix it? She racked her brain.
“Let’s make this clear. I will have only one wife. I suppose that needs to go in the contract.”
“What? Only one? Then… are you saying you won’t marry me?”
Startled, Ellis knocked her cup. Had Karan not steadied it, it would’ve shattered.
He placed the cup back before her and looked straight into her eyes.
“Tetris may be barbaric, but we do not treat honor like trash.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I keep my promises. My wife will be only one person—and that person is Ellis Wharton.”
Her eyes widened.
Does he mean he won’t take any other wives but me?
Even hearing it, she couldn’t believe it. Marriage brought power—why would he refuse that?
While Ellis tried to process it, Karan fetched pen and paper.
He wrote the first clause: his only wife would be Ellis.
“Your Highness, there’s no need to go so far…”
She tried to stop him belatedly.
“No. This is necessary.”
Ellis was left confused. Was polygamy shameful here?
“Any other conditions?”
“No, none…”
He had yielded too much.
“So you ask nothing of me.”
She had already burdened him by fleeing into his land.
She believed she could bring him enough benefit to balance rumors, but right now, this marriage was disadvantageous to him.
So demanding more felt shameless.
“I have one more: the marriage will last until I declare otherwise.”
“What? Not three years?”
“That’s right. The duration will be decided by me.”
Her face fell.
Three years was long, but barely enough for her to repay him and lay the groundwork for revenge.
Too short…
Hearing her mutter, Karan chuckled.
She was gravely mistaken.
This marriage would never end. Not until he died.
He had no intention of letting her go.
But there was no need for her to know that.
He tapped the pen against the table, licking his lower lip.
“Is that difficult for you?”
“…No. I’ll accept.”
“There’s one more condition.”
“I thought you said you had none. Seems you thought long and hard.”
“I’ve spent my life thinking about it.”
He wasn’t just talking about the contract. He meant their new beginning.
Ellis let out a small laugh.
His serious consideration pleased her.
“Tell me.”
“To be faithful as husband and wife. What we have is no different from a true marriage. After all, marriage is just a contract—whether under a priest or not.”
“And by marital life, you mean… specifically what?”
“Everything you imagine. All that comes with it.”
He smiled after speaking, and the smile was suggestive enough to dry her lips.
He cherished her, but he had no intention of just holding her like a treasure.
He planned to fully engrave her sweet breath, her scent, her warmth into himself.
“So? Will you accept my condition?”
Ellis nodded.
Karan then drafted two contracts, including these terms.
“Now, it just needs signing. Do you have anything prepared?”
Normally, family seals were used.
But as a baron’s second daughter, Ellis had none.
She pressed her lips to the paper, leaving a print across both copies.
“Will this do?”
She handed him one.
Karan, staring at her half-print, suddenly leaned forward.
She recoiled, but he held her head and drew her in.
“Signatures must be made together. I don’t have mine prepared, so… let me borrow yours.”
Quickly spoken, his lips pressed firmly against hers.
Pulling back, he held the contracts side by side.
Looking at her, he pressed his lips directly over her mark.
As their imprints overlapped, Ellis touched her lips in daze.
Ah… tonight won’t end easily either.
She realized it instantly.
“You sleep so much these days, my lady.”
Unable to wait for Ellis to wake, Regina pulled the curtains and opened the window wide.
Sunlight flooded in, and Ellis forced her eyes open. Her body felt heavy, as if after hard labor.
Last night had gone exactly as she feared.
“Because we’re married now.”
He had whispered into her ear, holding her hands down as she resisted, and Ellis crumbled helplessly.
Karan was overwhelming in every way. When he pressed down on her, it felt like being trapped in a cavern.
After such a night, it was no wonder her body was sore all over.
I should have written into the contract: marital relations limited to once a week.
It was too late now.
“Regina, draw me a bath.”
“A half-bath? Good idea, my lady. I’ll add herbs.”
She bustled off, quickly preparing the tub.
At the bathroom door, Ellis stopped her.
“I’ll do it myself.”
“I can help, my lady.”
“No, I need to think.”
With last night’s contract, Karan had been relentless.
She was sure her body was covered in marks, and so she pushed Regina away.
“I really want to help… then shall I at least bring you some refreshing tea?”
Ellis shook her head—then paused.
There was something important she had to check. She had even written a note to herself, but had forgotten thanks to Karan.
“Regina, did you get today’s Alleycat Times?”
