Chapter 6
Chapter 6
- Even Breathing Accumulates Karma
'Where is this...?'
When Vivian came to her senses, she was lying in a bedroom she had never seen before.
It was an incredibly extravagant bedroom. The room she used in the Duke's residence was spacious and nice enough, but this was incomparably more luxurious.
'Is this finally the afterlife? Did I get rewarded for living a good life?!'
It would be a lie to say she wasn't bewildered.
But looking at the furniture and decorations that screamed, "I'm expensive," she was so excited that she couldn't stay still. All of this is mine!
Vivian was about to step out of bed when the bedroom door burst open, and she was so surprised that she choked.
"Cough, cough!"
"Madam, are you alright? You barely woke up after a week, you mustn't overdo it...!"
"Cough, cough!"
Her head was spinning. She didn't even know who the 'Madam' the maid was calling out to was, and she just pitifully cried inside, begging for some water, saying it was just a choke.
Meanwhile, Aslan, who had noticed the commotion in the bedroom and rushed over, yelled at the flustered servants to bring a doctor immediately.
Thanks to him, the already noisy room only calmed down after the doctor hurriedly arrived.
"Consumption has already progressed considerably. Madam's body has become too weak."
"Can it be cured?"
"I am sorry. I'm afraid Madam will not last longer than a year, no matter what."
The doctor, carefully examining Vivian's condition several times while watching Aslan's reaction, gave the same opinion as the Eleonora Family's personal physician.
"It's not a difficult disease to diagnose, and if it had been discovered early, it would have been better than now. I don't know why the Eleonora Family didn't notice this."
"......"
"To alleviate Madam's pain, I will prescribe medication to slightly alleviate the symptoms of Consumption. However, since there is no fundamental cure for the disease, I will do my best to ensure that she can spend her remaining days comfortably..."
The doctor's voice, which had been calmly continuing, gradually faded.
The mahogany table that Aslan was holding cracked with a loud noise and split in two.
Aslan sighed deeply as if he, not Vivian, had been sentenced to death. He slumped his thick, muscular shoulders and repeatedly rubbed his face as if he didn't know what to do.
He swept back his hair as if suppressing a surge of anger, then continued.
"So, there's no cure?"
"Yes, yes."
"It seems I have disappointed you greatly. I heard you have the best medical skills in the South, but the answer I get is just that."
Aslan naturally sat down at the head of Vivian's bed as if it were his rightful place.
Thanks to his heavily muscled physique, honed to the limit, the bed mattress sank deeply to one side.
All Vivian could see was his tight, inverted triangle back. But she could clearly feel that the doctor and servants standing opposite were sweating profusely.
"......"
Even breathing was cautious. Since no one made a sound, the spacious bedroom was filled with a deathly silence.
'Is a human with the power of Astaroth allowed to do this? This is complete civilian slaughter!'
She felt heavy-hearted, as if she had suddenly become the seed of discord. Just as Vivian, overwhelmed by the silence, was rolling her eyes in embarrassment, it happened.
"Then tell me who can cure it."
"Ma, Madam's illness has no cure..."
"That's not the answer I want."
Black energy began to emanate from Aslan's body. Vivian rubbed her eyes, wondering if it was a hallucination, but nothing changed.
She didn't know why, but considering that he was afflicted with The Curse of Astaroth, it didn't seem like a good sign.
Besides, there were too many people watching here.
'If he turns into the Black Lion in a place like this... he'll kill them all to silence them. I won't be an exception. Maybe he'll kill me first as an example.'
Vivian, fidgeting anxiously with her fingers, couldn't wait any longer and grabbed his arm.
"Grand Duke..."
It was a small, fragile call that seemed like it would break. Nevertheless, Aslan's gaze, which had been glaring at the doctor as if to kill him, quickly turned to Vivian.
His fierce gaze, like the cold Siberian wind in winter, melted like a warm spring breeze in the blink of an eye.
The doctor and all the servants, who witnessed their master's quick change of attitude, were simultaneously shocked, but Vivian, unaware of this, hung her head deeply.
'I called him, but I don't know what to say!'
She could see Aslan's black energy disappearing as if melting into the air. It was fortunate that he had come to his senses, but this time, she was facing a crisis.
In the original story, Aslan hated Vivian to death.
He loathed her more than a bug, and while Vivian was dying of Consumption, he broke off their engagement and immediately got engaged to her half-sister, the original heroine.
Vivian's reputation in society was at its worst, but at this time, there was sympathy for her, and this incident left Vivian with a humiliating memory that was like death.
'She even tried to kill her stepsister, the heroine, knowing she would be disowned by the family.'
She didn't understand why Aslan, who was like that, had laid her down in such a luxurious bedroom.
If he had left her to die in the forest, the process of breaking off the engagement would have been much easier.
'Of course, I'm grateful that he saved me, and I'm really thankful that he washed me so well, dressed me, and even called a doctor...'
Amidst the fear and gratitude alternately asserting themselves, Vivian eventually chose to raise the hand of 'gratitude' and smile brightly.
Instead, she lowered her eyes as if she were lonely, making it clear that she had no intention of challenging Aslan's authority.
"I'm okay. I'm fine."
"You're fine?"
"The pain is already familiar. I know my body best. Cough, cough!"
She wasn't used to expressing two emotions at the same time, so she choked again. Vivian trembled her shoulders and calmed her rough breath.
The room fell into heavy silence again. In particular, Aslan's face was distorted terribly, as if he would cut someone in half.
'Why doesn't he say anything? Was my intention not conveyed well...?'
Meanwhile, Vivian, who had been hanging her head, became anxious at the unexpected silence. The only sound she could hear was the servants' precarious gasps.
'I'm dying of frustration. Is it illegal to make two expressions at the same time in this country?'
She was afraid that the safety of her neck would be in danger.
Unable to bear it any longer, Vivian carefully raised her gaze and immediately froze like a stone.
She had grabbed Aslan's arm to stop his Demon Hand transformation a moment ago, and she was still maintaining the same posture.
It was only natural that he was displeased. There was no way he would be happy to be touched by a woman he hated like a bug.
"Ah."
Just as Vivian was about to take her hand away in surprise, Aslan grabbed her slender wrist this time.
The skin that touched him burned because of the heat he was emitting.
"Why do you keep avoiding my eyes?"
"That's..."
"Look at me straight."
Aslan's gaze deepened as he looked down at Vivian.
Like a beast about to hunt, the emotion in his eyes was a clear possessiveness.
But their confrontation did not last long. It was because she lowered her gaze and stared at her captured wrist.
A weak and slender wrist held in a large, solid hand.
Aslan held her as if he were handling an easily broken glass doll, but to a third party who didn't know the circumstances, it must have looked like he was pressuring Vivian.
Tsk, Aslan clicked his tongue and slowly lowered his hand as if stroking her hand. Then, he forced a smile and continued.
"I think I pushed you too hard. You must have been surprised because you didn't hear the proper circumstances."
Relieved, Vivian nodded diligently. Of course, she didn't express it outwardly, but only in her heart.
"This is the country house I own in the South."
"Yes?"
Vivian involuntarily asked back.
Aslan's territory was located in the northern part of the empire. The forces supporting him were also concentrated there.
In other words, he was a person who had no connection with the South at all.
'The South is rather the Crown Prince's territory, isn't it dangerous?'
Aslan seemed to have noticed Vivian's question, but he didn't seem to want to answer it.
He fiddled with the back of his neck as if he was embarrassed for some reason, then quickly changed the subject.
"It's your first time entering the family as my wife, and I feel sorry for making you stay in such a shabby place right away. As soon as your body recovers, I will move you to the townhouse in the capital."
Vivian blinked blankly.
There was a part of Aslan's remarks that she didn't understand. There was a part that she couldn't understand no matter how much she thought about it!
"Wife, what do you mean..."
"As soon as we arrive in the capital, we will have a ceremony. You will be the most beautiful bride in the world."
Ceremony? What ceremony? Who decided on the ceremony?
Vivian was too busy being shocked to notice what kind of eyes Aslan was looking down at her with.
She didn't even notice his palms, which were aimlessly clenching and unclenching in the air as if he wanted to hug her right away.
"But I want to announce that you have become my wife as soon as possible, so please sign here first."
What Aslan handed over was the Marriage Certificate.
Moreover, her name in the document had already been naturally changed to 'Vivian Eleonora Astaroth'.
'This human?!'
Vivian's brain eventually declared a strike due to the feast of colorful nonsense.
