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Chapter 9
The Unrelenting Heat of the Body
Mason immediately agreed with Blair’s words.
“I’ll upload the documents by tomorrow so you can review them right away.”
“You’ll probably find many things lacking in me. I hope you’ll teach me a lot going forward.”
Mason was secretly surprised by Blair’s attitude.
He had expected that, as a treasured princess, she would avoid anything complicated or difficult. Yet, contrary to that expectation, she didn’t seem ashamed of her shortcomings and was willing to learn.
Some might see such humility as diminishing her status, but to Mason, it made her seem all the more noble.
“I’m the one who should be asking for your guidance, my lady.”
The Mason Blair knew rarely showed emotions, but for a moment, his gaze seemed to soften.
After Mason finished his greeting and left, Blair returned to her bedroom after bathing. It was still too early to sleep.
She decided to organize her plans for the future.
She had proposed a one-year contract marriage to Herdin, but the fact was that she had conceived Asiel around early summer.
Herdin must not notice Asiel’s existence, so everything needed to be settled by the early stages of her pregnancy at the latest.
“Six months to go.”
Before then, three things had to be resolved.
The first was recovering the memories of the fire incident.
Since Herdin would take the lead on this, she didn’t need to plan anything herself.
The second was preparing for divorce.
In the empire, a divorce required the emperor’s consent. But would Ivan, who had originally orchestrated this marriage targeting Herdin, actually agree to their divorce?
Given Herdin’s lack of flaws, he would never agree voluntarily.
“I have to make it so that the divorce is unavoidable because of my shortcomings, and under public opinion.”
The solution she devised was a scandal.
A scandal involving another man.
But if such a scandal broke out, the man would be punished. So Blair decided to escalate the scale of the scandal.
If there was only one man, the blame would fall on him. But what if there were several men?
Then people would naturally turn their anger toward the debauched princess who had consorted with multiple men despite being married, rather than the men themselves.
That was the outcome Blair wanted.
If, by any chance, Asiel’s existence were revealed, she could claim the child was someone else’s.
“First, I need to bribe several men.”
After a divorce triggered by a scandal, she couldn’t remain in the empire, at least not under this system. If unlucky, she might even be imprisoned by Ivan or Katrina.
However, as long as she remained legally the Duchess of Delmarc, even the royal family couldn’t touch her, so she would need a new identity and residence ready for when the divorce was finalized—somewhere no one knew.
The only place where she could arrange all of this was the guild.
“I’ll have to stop by the guild soon.”
Finally, the third goal: finding the mastermind behind her death in her previous life.
The odds that a random attacker killed her out of personal grudge were low. Someone must have been behind it.
She needed to uncover the mastermind and the reason for her death. This life, she would never leave Asiel alone.
“Let’s start from the closest place first.”
Blair planned to visit the knight order’s training ground the next morning and lay down in bed. Then, memories of last night and the contract came to mind.
She got up from bed and retrieved the contract she had put away in the drawer. The signature line was still empty.
Herdin, having finished his bath, was reviewing documents in his office, smoking a cigar.
Most important documents had already been handled before the wedding, so there was nothing urgent. Still, he chose work over rest, trying to forget the troubling thoughts that had haunted him since morning.
In the quiet study, the only sound was the rustle of papers as he turned the pages.
Knock, knock—
A sudden knock broke the silence.
‘Mason, perhaps.’
Since Ruth had claimed he was overworked with wedding preparations and had left early, he didn’t expect anyone else to linger in the office.
“Come in.”
But the visitor wasn’t Ruth or Mason—it was Blair.
Herdin’s eyes flickered in surprise at the unexpected guest.
Blair held a rolled-up piece of paper in her hand.
She coughed lightly from the lingering smoke in the office, and only after the fit passed did she approach him.
“I remembered yesterday that we didn’t finish the contract, so I came to complete it.”
Herdin regarded the paper before him with a mix of disbelief and annoyance.
Such a simple scrap of paper.
Yet Blair acted as if this paper guaranteed everything.
Naive and persistent.
Herdin picked up a quill, intending to sign quickly and send the naive wife back to her room.
Then Blair grabbed his hand, stopping him.
“Wait, Herdin.”
Her hand was cold, irritatingly so.
“You need to review the contract carefully.”
“Didn’t we do that yesterday?”
“Who’s to say I didn’t change the content entirely in the meantime?”
As if a mouse worrying about a cat.
She seemed to think she held the power to cause him immense damage—despite her fragile-looking wrist.
‘I thought she was a naive princess. She might just survive without getting scammed.’
Herdin looked over the contract again.
“There’s an additional clause,” Blair said, pointing delicately with her thin finger.
“When this contract ends, please write a recommendation letter so Lina can get a good job.”
“You mean the girl you brought from the palace?”
“Yes. She’s sociable and skilled; she’ll do well anywhere.”
Herdin’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Blair.
‘Is she really planning to abandon her only loyal aide?’
Planning a midnight escape with a hidden lover?
Twenty years ago, in the neighboring Kingdom of Derant, a princess fell in love with a knight and fled, refusing the marriage arranged by her father. The knight was executed, and the princess, having lost her lover, starved herself and committed suicide.
Though scandals between high-ranking women and low-ranking men weren’t common, they weren’t unheard of.
Blair might even be the protagonist of such a scandal. Though last night being her first night with a man, perhaps not.
“…Either way, it doesn’t concern me.”
As long as the goal of the contract marriage was achieved, it didn’t matter.
Herdin signed both copies of the contract and returned one to Blair.
“It’s quite late. If your business here is done, you should go and rest.”
A polite dismissal.
But Blair seemed to have more to say.
“You know, there’s a luncheon at the palace tomorrow.”
On the first day of the wedding, the groom’s family dined with the couple; on the second day, it was the bride’s family. It was customary, and Herdin was aware of it.
“I remember.”
“You don’t have to attend any other events, but I hope you’ll join me for engagements involving my brother or the royal family.”
A plea based on her memories from her previous life.
In her past life, he had avoided her and hardly attended royal meals or banquets.
“If you make no mistakes as my husband, even my brother will have no choice but to agree to the divorce when this contract ends.”
Although Herdin Delmarc was a war hero, he was still a subject of the emperor. Without the emperor’s permission, no one dared remove the emperor’s only sister from the duchess’ position.
Thus, the conclusion of this marriage had to be tied entirely to Blair’s fault. Herdin should show no flaws at all.
Besides her impressions of Blair being pretty, small, naive, and persistent, he added one more:
A capable woman.
“That makes sense. I’ll keep that in mind.”
With the business concluded, Blair withdrew, remembering his polite dismissal.
“Then… good night, Herdin.”
Clutching her contract, she quietly left the office.
Herdin chuckled as he looked at the contract his fake wife had left behind.
“Ha.”
He had come to the office to shake off the thoughts that plagued him all day, only for the source of those thoughts to appear of its own accord.
The source was Blair.
All day, his mind had been occupied by his fake wife: her pale, soft skin; her tearful face and voice; her delicate frame paired with a surprisingly ample chest; and… the dizzying pleasure her body elicited.
Yet, unlike him, she seemed to have forgotten the events of last night, showing up at this hour without fear—in pajamas that revealed her figure entirely.
Unaware of the improper desires brewing in his mind.
But at the same time, that innocent face provoked a dirty urge to soil it again.
He was not a crazed beast.
He had thought that holding, kissing, and embracing her all night would satisfy his desire. But he was wrong.
It was like drinking seawater; the more he indulged, the thirstier he became.
It had been like that even last night.
At first, it was curiosity—wondering what expression such a doll-like girl would make in bed.
But once he held her, curiosity vanished, leaving only the desire for pleasure.
After spending the night embracing her messily, he only regained his senses at dawn. Seeing her asleep and still feeling lust shocked him, and he fled the room.
A woman to hate, a daughter of an enemy to despise—he must never forget that.
Yet even as he reminded himself, the heat of his body from last night had not cooled.
“…Am I crazy?”
Herdin sighed painfully and got up, heading back to the bathroom.
