10 - How to Survive as the Wife of a Monster Duke
How to Survive as a Monster Duke's Wife
10. The bright room was instantly dyed with darkness.
The windows outside were covered with several layers of curtains, already appearing close to blackout.
In the lightless darkness, Illyin froze.
She had foreseen it, but now that it was upon her, she didn't know what to do.
Did His Grace the Duke come in? There wasn't a sound.
"Are you very nervous?"
Illyin flinched.
The voice was closer than she thought.
"Yes."
She answered honestly.
It would be strange not to be nervous on a night like this.
"If you don't want to, you can leave now."
She seemed to have heard similar words when she wrote the oath earlier.
Illyin was silent at his words.
When she thought about it, didn't Den say the same thing?
That Winter Territory wasn't a place to stay for long.
"...Perhaps,"
Illyin opened her mouth slightly.
"Does the Red Deloz hate the Sunfolk?"
Otherwise, there was no way every Red Deloz she met would say such a thing.
Except for the knight named Aegis who came to deliver the message for a moment, didn't both the head of Deloz and his knight commander say the same thing?
Duke Biften was silent for a moment.
A strange silence flowed.
Illyin blinked.
Was he embarrassed?
"Why do you think so?"
"It seems like everyone in the Red Deloz says that."
Was it a moment of hesitation? Since she couldn't see his face, it was just a guess.
But this silence was short.
"There's no reason for Deloz to hate you."
The Duke added after saying that.
"I will take action if you wish."
Take action? Illyin found the businesslike words chilling coming from the Duke's mouth.
Even if this man spoke politely to her and didn't handle her arbitrarily, even if he seemed softer and nicer than she thought, he was still a man who had no qualms about wielding a sword and killing people.
"It's okay."
Illyin rubbed the back of her hand, which had goosebumps.
"You are now the mistress of Biften."
The Duke, who had been silent for a while, said.
Illyin unknowingly turned to the direction where the voice was coming from.
Then she was startled and lowered her gaze.
The darkness was deep, so fortunately, nothing was visible.
"The Red Deloz will be under you."
Of course, it was natural to become closer to her husband's Red Deloz than the Blue Nose or the other two families.
Illyin nodded briefly.
"Your duty is to become my bride, Illyin."
Her name being called from the mouth of a stranger came with a strange resonance.
Illyin turned her head slightly in that direction.
"If you only fulfill your duties as a couple, the rest is up to you. Now that you've become the Duchess, the subordinates must naturally serve you without inconvenience. If that's not the case,"
The voice came closer.
"Get rid of them."
The hand that wrapped around her shoulder was so gentle that it felt like an illusion.
It was a careful and delicate touch, as if handling a fragile glasswork.
"Otherwise, the dignity of the mistress will collapse."
With one hand around her shoulder, the other touched her Exposed neckline.
Warmth rose above her neck.
"...As a mistress, is there anything I shouldn't do?"
It was natural to ask since it was a very different place from the Empire.
Now that the story of dignity had come up.
"No."
The hand that had been around her shoulder went up to her high-twisted hair.
"You can even bring in a knight from Deloz to use if you want."
At least in Deloz, it meant that even force was allowed.
Tok, as the pin that twisted up her hair came out, her silver hair, which had been rolled up, was released and covered her Exposed neckline.
At that moment, a soft bed touched her back.
The bed touching her back was still cold.
Illyin felt a strange tickling sensation as she felt the touch that messed up her loosened hair.
"Don't you regret it?"
Even in the darkness, she knew.
She could feel the weighted bed moving.
He was asking, trapping Illyin in his arms.
Illyin quietly closed her eyes for a moment.
Her trembling heart was bigger than regret.
This moment of spending her first night with a stranger in Winter Territory felt like a dream.
She felt like she would open her eyes and wake up again in her room in Arlen Fief.
The sunlight there was dazzling but damp.
She didn't want to stand among the always sharp people anymore.
She didn't need sunlight or summer.
This dream was better.
So she didn't regret it.
"Yes."
She felt his hand stroking her hair back.
The breath that came close was hot, unlike the name Winter Duke.
Illyin closed her eyes tightly.
While gently soothing her, the Duke whispered.
"Are you scared?"
It would be a lie if she wasn't scared in many ways.
Even the vague pictures of the first night that she had imagined at least once were blurred in her memory.
Since she couldn't open her eyes, she reacted sensitively to every place his hands touched and every place his breath touched.
Would it hurt?
Wouldn't she lose her mind at some point and open her eyes?
Then would she suffocate there?
"Are you afraid to make eye contact?"
Illyin wanted to be brave.
But she couldn't help but tremble.
"A little,"
Illyin whispered in a shallow voice.
Something soft touched her wet eyes.
"Then, cover your eyes."
It was a pitch-black and dark night where she couldn't even tell where the window was.
The Nose's Divine Relic was laid under Illyin.
Duke Biften thought her trembling was due to the cold, so he gently picked her up and laid the Nose's Divine Relic under her back.
His arms were wide enough to hold her in one arm.
He slowly entered Illyin, whose trembling had subsided somewhat.
Since she wouldn't be able to see anything even if she opened her eyes anyway, the soft cloth that covered her eyes gave her a sense of security and at the same time aroused a strange feeling.
The senses that had become several times more sensitive shook Illyin's head over and over again.
At a time that was neither night nor dawn, Illyin and he were very close for a long time.
"Shh..."
Whenever her hands tensed, the Duke gently soothed her.
That sweet and low voice was as familiar as a voice she had heard somewhere.
Illyin suddenly thought of the knight commander with the cold gaze and erased it from her mind.
"Are you okay?"
Was he speaking softly, or was it because he was whispering so close?
The breath that touched her ear was thicker than the voice.
Her cheeks and Exposed neckline were burning hot.
Illyin nodded slightly.
The Duke constantly kissed her as she struggled with her first time.
He endlessly coaxed and soothed her so that she wouldn't have a hard time.
His feeling of lingering elsewhere was more stimulating than the feeling of him entering.
He didn't rush Illyin, who was slowly following.
The two's night was long, but short.
What Illyin saw when she opened her eyes was bright lighting.
Of course, Duke Biften was not next to her.
Illyin touched the seat next to her where he might have been.
Did he leave early? The seat was cool.
"..."
At this rate, she felt like her first night had been stolen.
Illyin recalled last night and blushed.
"Are you awake?"
The Blue Nose Maids happened to open the door and come in.
They bowed deeply, carrying indoor gowns on a wide silver tray.
"We will help you change your clothes."
"Ah, thank you."
Illyin greeted them and then discovered the Red Deloz Maids waiting outside the door behind the Maids.
Ah, so now the Red Deloz Maids are next to me too.
Well, it's natural since she's married to the head of Deloz.
Illyin unknowingly craned her neck to try to see them.
"Ah...!"
Then, she screamed without realizing it at the throbbing pain that started from her waist and went through her head.
The surprised Blue Nose Maids grabbed her.
"Are you okay?"
It wasn't just her waist.
The places where she had unknowingly tensed last night were all screaming silently.
Her entire waist, from the inside of her thighs, was sore.
"A little,"
It's uncomfortable... Illyin raised her hand to the Maids.
Illyin's face turned red as she was about to say she was okay.
It was full of traces of being loved all over.
Anyone could see that she was a newlywed who had spent her first night yesterday.
Even the Nose Maids seemed a little surprised when her body, which had been covered by the blanket, was revealed.
Illyin just wanted to say that she would change her clothes alone.
But the throbbing pain in her waist suppressed her embarrassment.
"I'll bring you some medicine. You'll feel a little more comfortable if you take it."
The Blue Nose Maid who had finished changing her clothes bowed deeply.
As soon as the Maids left, Illyin pulled up her long sleeves to hide the red marks.
"...Oh my god."
Illyin didn't dare to look in the mirror.
Instead, she fastened her clothes more carefully.
"Madam, I've brought the medicine."
The Maids came back quickly.
It was as if they had prepared it.
"It's a decoction of an herb called Nenede."
The cup they brought contained a thick, dark greenish liquid that was difficult to swallow.
It looked like she really didn't want to eat it.
"You have to drink it."
The Maids had understanding faces, but they still pushed the cup to her mouth.
A bitter scent rose sharply.
...Well, they said that bitter medicine is more effective.
Illyin closed her eyes and drank the cup.
Aegis, the adjutant of Den, the commander of the Red Deloz Knights, and in fact, the adjutant of Duke Biften, ran to the Knights' Hall with bad news from the main building.
Unfortunately, there were so many people in the main building that it was cumbersome.
As it was the day of the wedding of the head of Biften, there were people who came to the mansion to pay their respects and were chattering in groups of three or five.
It was the marriage custom of Biften, but this time the atmosphere was lukewarm.
That was because the bride was sick and forbidden from approaching, and the groom, Duke Biften, was someone who couldn't even make eye contact with, so the guests were just making noise on the first floor of the mansion, which was allowed to them.
Aegis, who had rushed down from the 7th floor of the mansion, skillfully pushed through the people and headed to the Knights' Hall.
Since he wasn't in the mansion, he was in the Knights' Hall.
Due to the crime of having a superior who was elusive and had two identities, Aegis had to run busily between the main building and the Knights' Hall.
"Commander, urgent!"
Since this was outside the Knights' Hall, the title for Aden was Commander.
"Come in."
He was here after all.
Aegis quickly opened the door.
"What's going on?"
"This is an urgent message from the 6th floor of the main building."
There was only one person among the people on the 6th floor of the main building who was worth worrying about right now.
His bride, who would soon be going up to the 7th floor.
"The Madam's condition is not good."
She was definitely fine until last night.
"She also has a fever,"
"What about the doctor?"
There was no way the head of the Red Deloz, who used swords, wouldn't have a doctor.
But Aegis's expression wasn't very good.
"He's still seeing the injured on the walls. There's so much snow right now that it will take time to contact him."
"Then who's taking care of her now?"
"Den."
Aegis added an explanation.
"He's the doctor's disciple."
Disciple? Aden frowned.
It was unfortunate that the doctor was away.
It was he himself who had sent the doctor to take care of the injured on the walls.
There was no one to blame.
"Let's go see her first."
He got up.
Aegis paused for a moment.
"Aegis?"
"Ah, yes."
Aegis, who had quickly stepped away from the door, followed him out of the room.
