Chapter 15
"Pardon?"
At Croa's question, Julian groaned softly and leaned back against the hard chair.
"I've lived for only one goal so far. To be honest, I'm getting a little tired now. I feel like I want to lean on even a small hope. Rebecca, it's not that I completely trust that woman. But when I think about it, there's no reason not to trust her. We can use her just like she's using us. At least while we maintain a marital relationship with her, no other innocent woman will have to sacrifice herself."
"......"
Still, Croa didn't seem pleased and kept his mouth shut, saying nothing.
Julian leisurely crossed his legs.
"I don't know what you're so worried about. You seem to have forgotten, but I am Duke Johannes. Young, handsome, and rich. Even the Emperor can't do anything in front of me. Do you think that being played by her for a few years will have fatal consequences for me? I can just think of it as a short, fleeting amusement. And..."
Julian stared intently at Croa.
"You won't just stand by while I'm being deceived, will you? I trust that you, Croa, will find a way to break the curse while I'm being played by her. Isn't that right?"
A gaze filled with infinite trust relentlessly stared at Croa's face.
Croa suddenly recalled the moment when Julian first reached out to him.
He hadn't even shed a tear at his mother's funeral.
Yet, Julian shed large teardrops when the nanny was buried in the ground.
The boy, roughly wiping away his tears, reached out his hand to Croa.
'Now, you're the only one on my side. Croa Chenister.'
Until then, Croa had assisted the young Julian solely out of a sense of responsibility as a family duty.
But after taking that small, firm hand he offered, Croa swore to devote his loyalty to Julian wholeheartedly.
He vowed to make him as happy as possible, even if his life was short.
Croa chose his words to answer, but in the end, he couldn't say anything and only managed to nod.
Knock, knock-
A knock was heard, and Rebecca opened the door and entered.
"Oh, you were already here. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."
"No, I haven't been waiting long."
Julian greeted her and looked at Rebecca's attire.
He found her lack of extravagant adornment somewhat unfamiliar.
However, she was more vibrant than usual. Julian stared at Rebecca in a daze for a moment.
Rebecca, who had briefly greeted Julian, stopped as if rooted to the spot.
It was because she had spotted Croa, who was narrowing his eyes and scrutinizing her.
Reddish-brown hair, fresh green eyes, and the round glasses he always wore.
He looked young, but he was the Croa that Rebecca knew.
A stuffy feeling came over her, and Rebecca stared intently at Croa, forgetting that Julian was in front of her.
Croa, who had been trying to suppress her by glaring at her blatant gaze, was rather taken aback.
Julian sensed Rebecca's unusual gaze and asked her.
"Do you two know each other? Croa, you didn't happen to leak the Duke's secrets to Rebecca, did you?"
At Julian's words, Croa jumped up.
"No! I swear to heaven, I've never seen that lady before today!"
Rebecca realized her mistake and averted her gaze from Croa.
It was forbidden to be swayed by emotions on such an important day.
Rebecca composed herself and wore a subtle smile.
"Of course not. Duke, I've never met him before either. I was just looking because he had cookie crumbs on his mouth."
At Rebecca's words, Croa's face turned bright red.
Croa dusted off his mouth with his hand and secretly glared at Rebecca.
She was truly a woman he didn't like.
Only then did Julian straighten his furrowed brow and smile.
"Croa, I told you to stop eating so much. Well, now that Rebecca's here, Croa, you can go out."
"Pardon?"
"I said you could come along, but I didn't say I'd let you join the contract."
"But Duke!"
"That's an order. We have an important contract to make now, so go out for a while."
Julian's eyes widened as Croa protested. His eyes were about to turn golden.
In the end, Croa was kicked out as if being chased away.
It was no use raising children, and tears welled up in his eyes from the injustice.
'We! Duke! You only used the expression "we" for me!'
* * *
Julian slammed the door shut.
He could hear Croa grumbling outside, but he didn't care and sat down.
Croa had been so eager to find fault with Rebecca ever since they arrived.
Julian continued to regret bringing him along.
If he had kept Croa in this room, he would have nitpicked at everything while he was talking to Rebecca.
Just thinking about it made him feel tired. It was easier to kick him out.
Julian looked around the simple but neat reception room and said.
"I didn't know there was a place like this. Was it said to be owned by the Devonshire Earl?"
"Yes. I made it, but it's Zeppelin's property."
Rebecca smiled bitterly before quickly brightening her face.
"But I'm planning to take it back soon."
"That's a good idea, but how?"
Rebecca smiled brightly. And she took out a piece of paper.
"Let's talk about such trivial matters later. First, here's a rough draft of the contract."
Julian silently picked up the contract.
The handwriting looked just like Rebecca's, which made him laugh for a moment. Elegant, but somehow rigid.
<1 Duke Julian Johannes actively assists in the divorce of Rebecca Devonshire.
2 Duke Julian Johannes must make a minimum investment in Rebecca Devonshire's plan to destroy the Devonshire Earl family.
3 One can freely date without the other's consent as long as it is not discovered by others.
4 The contract period is until Earl Zeppelin Devonshire dies, and if Duke Johannes has complied with all of the above, Rebecca Devonshire must break the curse of the Johannes family.>
It was short, but Julian spent quite a long time examining the contract.
Rebecca, who had been waiting for him to scan the contract, tried hard not to show any signs of impatience.
"I have one question."
"Yes, please ask."
"It's one thing to get divorced, but why are you trying to destroy the Earl family? And why kill Zeppelin?"
"I'd just like to say that it's a personal grudge... I'll tell you when the time comes."
Rebecca subtly avoided Julian's eyes.
After all, Julian and she were in a relationship out of necessity.
They just had to give and take what they wanted from each other, so there was no need to be so intimate as to tell each other intimate stories.
Rebecca sipped her tea silently, as if telling him not to ask any more questions.
Julian rested his chin on one hand and stared intently at Rebecca.
'She doesn't seem to have any other ulterior motives...'
Julian was young, but he had a more accurate eye for people than anyone else.
He had seen all sorts of schemers and con artists trying to get in touch with the Johannes family since he was a child.
'Look, Julian. That person just avoided eye contact, right? That means they're hiding something.'
His mother would sit the young Julian on her lap and analyze the people who had private meetings with his father one by one, teaching him how to see people.
Even after the Duchess's death, Julian was educated mainly in the art of social skills.
Thanks to this, even though he became Duke at the young age of fifteen, he had never been conned, but rather had conned others.
Julian's silence, lost in thought, grew longer.
Rebecca cleared her throat softly and continued.
"But it won't harm you, Duke. You can think of it as an investment. I'll do all the work, so you don't have to do anything."
"You're telling me not to do anything?"
"Yes. You won't have to get your hands dirty. Just provide me with the fence of the Duchess and financial support. Of course, I don't intend to receive it for free. I'll repay you several times whatever you lend me. Would the entire fortune of the Devonshire Earl be enough?"
It was an absurd statement, but somehow Julian had the feeling that Rebecca would pull it off.
There was no basis for it. He just felt it with his instinctive intuition.
Julian let out a hollow laugh at his own unfounded belief.
'Am I crazy? Or is that woman using some kind of strange magic?'
Besides, there were many people who had asked him to do something for them, but no one had ever told him not to do anything.
That alone was enough to pique his interest.
"Well, fine. As you said, I have nothing to lose. By the way, I want you to fix one thing."
"Yes? What...?"
"This item number 3 here. The part that says 'without the other's consent' is a bit of a concern. Anyway, now that we're married, shouldn't we get consent if we're going to meet someone else?"
Rebecca's eyes widened.
Rebecca had put a lot of thought into that clause for Julian's sake.
Rebecca was remarried, but Julian was getting married for the first time.
Besides, according to what she heard from Croa, he had never even dated in his previous life for fear of having an heir.
But now it was different. Rebecca knew how to break the curse, so it was okay for him to start a love affair with young ladies of his age.
And as far as Rebecca knew, men hated being tied down.
Even Zeppelin would frown at the slightest sign of Rebecca being jealous or nagging.
Rebecca pondered Julian's intentions and came to a conclusion.
'Is he being considerate of me...?'
Rebecca had never properly told him the reason for her divorce.
So Julian seemed to be guessing that Zeppelin's affair was the reason for the divorce.
It was common for women to harbor revenge for their husband's infidelity.
Julian must have been thinking about Rebecca's situation and trying to be considerate.
Rebecca jumped to a conclusion about Julian's intentions and smiled brightly.
"You don't have to worry about me. But if you're uncomfortable, I'll change that clause. You're more warm-hearted than I thought, Duke."
Julian made a sullen expression at the sudden compliment.
Even if it was a formal marriage, he had no intention of meeting other women while he was maintaining a marital relationship with Rebecca.
The moment he saw that clause, he was reminded of his father and asked her to fix it.
Julian wiped his embarrassed mouth.
He had heard reputations such as cold-blooded, ice sculpture, and fierce beast, but he had never heard the word warm-hearted.
It seemed that he was experiencing more and more new things after meeting Rebecca.
