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chapter 73
His wife suddenly asked a strange question—one so confusing that Yuhan wasn’t sure what to make of it.
“What would you do,” she asked, “if you ever came to love someone else?”
Lying with his back to her, Yuhan turned toward Sereret. His wife was watching him with eyes glistening with moisture, her expression filled with quiet sadness.
“What do you mean by that?”
Neither her question nor her expression made sense to him. Finally, Yuhan sat up, and Sereret followed suit, facing him.
She gazed into his gray eyes for a moment before answering softly.
“I meant exactly what I said. I was just wondering… if Your Grace ever fell in love with another person, what would happen to me?”
It had been a question thrown on impulse, born from the melancholy that struck her as she stared at his back. She hadn’t truly expected an answer—didn’t even want one. So she shook her head slightly.
“It’s a meaningless question. Please don’t mind it.”
“What about you, then?”
Yuhan caught her wrist just as she was about to lie down again.
Their eyes met. The air between them was tense, but Sereret’s voice remained calm.
“I would quietly disappear from Your Grace’s life.”
At that answer, Yuhan’s hand tightened around her arm. The way she spoke so indifferently stabbed him straight in the chest, and his eyes trembled.
“No… that’s not what I meant. I asked—what if you were the one to fall in love with someone else? What would happen to me then?”
“…Love?”
Sereret gave a faint, weary laugh. Could her heart, torn to shreds by the man before her, ever heal enough to love again?
“I’ve already loved someone so much that my heart was rubbed raw. I don’t think I could ever love anyone again. So your question… is meaningless.”
She looked straight at the man she had once loved to the point of madness as she said it.
Yuhan’s grip on her arm loosened. His heart thudded loudly in his chest.
A man she loved until her heart was raw? Not some fleeting infatuation—but a deep, consuming love?
He was more than a little shocked that his wife had ever had such a person.
She had loved someone that deeply—and yet here she was, forced into a marriage with a man she despised. Every day must be a living hell for her.
Yuhan let out a short, bitter laugh.
“Yes. You’re right. They’re all meaningless questions.”
Love—what a useless, trivial thing.
He reached out, cupping the back of her head and drawing her close. As his lips brushed her forehead, he thought, If I am your hell, then you will live in that hell forever.
✶ ✶ ✶
“They call Mr. Townsend the Hound of Hell, and it really seems to fit—he found it faster than I expected.”
Sereret smiled as she entered the study, spreading a map out before Yuhan.
That morning, Mr. Townsend—whom they had entrusted with Sophia’s case—had visited the ducal residence. He’d tracked down the maker of the contraceptive medicine and handed over both a map and the apothecary’s ledger.
Inside that ledger, Sereret had found the name Anita—Lydia’s maid. But the medicine Anita had purchased wasn’t a contraceptive or a poison; it was heart medicine.
Lydia’s name wasn’t recorded anywhere, yet Anita’s frequent visits to the same apothecary made it clear there was some kind of connection.
“Once he bites, Townsend never lets go,” Yuhan said with a faint laugh, leaning back in his chair. His gaze drifted from the map to Sereret’s face.
Her blue eyes shimmered like jewels. Who had she once looked at with those beautiful eyes? The thought twisted his insides with envy, and he sat up straighter.
“The apothecary is run by a Held tribesman named Nunuki. I plan to visit tomorrow—please come with me.”
“What’s this? You’re actually asking me to go along? I thought you’d already have gone alone.”
Yuhan was genuinely surprised. Knowing her, she would have been there already.
“You told me not to do dangerous things, remember? The shop’s out on the outskirts of the capital.”
Her lips pouted slightly as she said it.
That, too, was surprising enough to make Yuhan stare in disbelief.
“Are you really Sereret Frecktuster?”
“Are you mocking me? Forget it—don’t come then.”
She shot him a glare, though in truth, danger wasn’t why she’d asked him to join her. She had her own plan.
If they went together, word of it would surely reach Lydia’s ears. And when it did, Lydia might react—and that was exactly what Sereret was hoping for.
Her sulky tone made Yuhan smile faintly. He rose, folding up the map, and approached her.
“I’ll go. Don’t even think about going alone.”
“After breakfast tomorrow, then.”
Instead of replying, Yuhan kissed her on the cheek. Her eyes went wide in surprise. Her expression screamed, What’s gotten into you?—and he couldn’t help but laugh softly.
“When someone does something praiseworthy, they deserve a reward.”
“This is supposed to be a reward?” she asked, pointing at her cheek where his lips had just been. Her indignant look only made her seem more irresistibly cute.
“Too small a reward, perhaps.”
He murmured, then leaned in and brushed her lips with his own before pulling away. His eyes gleamed mischievously as he studied her face.
Sereret let out an incredulous laugh.
“Very stingy, I’d say. Shouldn’t I be getting at least a gold bar? From what I know, in Aeyrun it’s tradition to reward good deeds with treasure.”
“Is that so?”
“It is now.”
She said it with a playful tilt of her chin, snatched the map from his hand, and turned to leave the study. A small, satisfied smile played on her lips as she went.
✶ ✶ ✶
The next morning, Sereret was still wearing that playful smirk as she looked at Yuhan.
He had just pressed a gold button into her hand.
“What’s this?”
“You said praise should come in gold. Take it—it’s your favorite, isn’t it?”
Standing by the carriage, Yuhan extended his hand to help her in.
Sereret took it and climbed aboard, staring at him across the seat as she held up the button.
“Are you expecting me to refuse it?”
“No. You gave it to me, so I’ll keep it. But… it is real gold, right?”
“You don’t trust me?”
He chuckled softly.
Sereret slipped the button into her small bag with a shrug. As if Yuhan Frecktuster would ever give me something fake.
“I’ll trust you, then.”
Yuhan exhaled a long sigh, half-laughing, half-exasperated. She’s going to drive me insane.
He covered his face with his hand. What he wanted now wasn’t to visit an apothecary—it was to take her straight to bed. His mind was filled with thoughts decidedly unbecoming of a gentleman.
And in those thoughts, neither of them were acting like proper nobility.
“When we get to the apothecary, please just stay still, Your Grace. I’ll handle everything.”
As she chattered on, Yuhan simply watched her, keeping his gentlemanly composure with great effort.
After a long ride, the carriage stopped before Nunuki’s apothecary. Sereret swallowed hard and stepped inside.
“Welcome!”
Nunuki’s smile brightened when he saw them enter. Even at a glance, it was clear they were nobles, so he bowed deeper than usual.
“Please, have a seat. I can’t believe such distinguished guests have come to my humble shop.”
They sat where he indicated. Nunuki stood respectfully before them.
“Would you like some tea?”
“No need. Sit down,” Sereret said, gesturing to the sofa across from them.
He obeyed, sitting nervously and glancing between the two.
“This is Duke Frecktuster,” Sereret said, introducing Yuhan.
Yuhan gave her a quiet look. There had been no need to reveal his identity, but since she had told him to stay quiet, he said nothing.
“Ah, yes. Of course.”
Nunuki stiffened, sneaking glances at Yuhan. So that’s the Duke Lydia was so fond of…
He remembered how, as a child, Lydia had begged him to make her a potion that would make the Duke love only her. When he told her such a thing didn’t exist, she had cried inconsolably.
“I heard your skill in potion-making is quite exceptional,” Sereret said.
Nunuki’s eyes flicked toward her. So this woman… is the Duchess who took Lydia’s place. His expression twisted slightly.
“Can you make something like… a love potion?” Sereret asked in a soft voice.
At that, Yuhan’s brow twitched. Love potions were, in truth, aphrodisiacs—used in bed. He didn’t bother hiding his incredulous look as he turned to her.
“Yes, I have a few bottles,” Nunuki said quickly.
“Then I’ll take one.”
Sereret replied with a shy expression, glancing at Yuhan with an almost bashful smile.
She’s trying to drive me mad, he thought, letting out a deep sigh.
Nunuki handed her a small vial.
“Mix it into wine, and it should work quite well. A single spoonful will suffice.”
He explained with a reluctant expression.
Sereret pretended to listen attentively, though her mind was elsewhere—hoping that word of this purchase would reach Lydia.
“If it works well, I’ll be sure to return,” she said.
“Of course.”
Nunuki forced a smile. If it’s for her sake, I hope you never do.
Sereret passed the vial to Yuhan, then turned her gaze sharply back to Nunuki. After a short pause, she spoke again.
“I’ll need another kind of medicine. Can you prepare it?”
“Tell me what you need. If it’s within my skill, I can make it.”
“The poison Sophia drank before she died. That’s what I need.”
Sereret smiled—coldly, deliberately—as she met Nunuki’s eyes.
