Edited

20. I’ll get you out of here.

8:40.

I looked at the clock on the tower outside the window.

I had 20 minutes left until my appointment with Marquis Caeon.

I’ll just pass the time in the hall and go up naturally when the time comes.

My legs hurt all day from walking in high heels. My ankles, feet, and calves ached.

I leaned against the wall.

The corset wasn’t too tight, but the dress was still uncomfortable.

As I was taking a deep breath, a large hand suddenly appeared.

I looked up and saw Deon.

“Haha. You’re not going to ask me to dance, are you?”

I smiled nervously, afraid of what Viter might say.

“That’s right.”

“Quickly ask someone else to dance.”

I whispered with a smile.

I hope Deon’s extended hand won’t catch anyone’s attention.

My wish was in vain as he didn’t withdraw his hand, making my intention look pale.

“Take my hand.”

“Why me?”

“I feel like you might run away if I let go of your hand. Isn’t this the only way to keep the lady tied up in the hall?”

Well, that’s right.

I leaned against the wall and saw the young ladies looking at me with passionate eyes, waiting eagerly to see me dance with the Duke.

Even the musicians and the kitchen servants carrying the food looked interested.

It’s better to be the Duke’s first dance partner than to be the subject of rumors for refusing to dance with him on his birthday.

Reluctantly, I took Deon’s hand, and he naturally put his hand on my waist.

The hand I placed on his shoulder felt awkward.

“Aren’t you worried about the rumors? If you take my hand now, it will only fuel the rumor.”

“What does it matter?”

I spun around the hall, leaning on his hand. My gaze swept around the hall along with my body.

Everyone who was quietly dancing or holding a wine glass was looking at me and Deon with interest.

“You didn’t think I would use every power at my disposal for this?”

“But this is different! I don’t want to be the subject of gossip.”

“You didn’t care about my reputation before, wandering around without a care. Why now? The young lady who demanded to be a mistress of the house is now being swayed by a small rumor. What happened to that confidence?”

The climax of the performance picked up speed.

Although I had learned to dance, my feet kept getting tangled as I stumbled on the rhythm.

Deon pulled me closer to him like a product as I stumbled.

Due to our significant height difference, I clung to him in the cold.

“Even if you were a real duchess, you’d be wrapped up in all sorts of trivial rumors. Could you handle being swayed by such rumors?”

He brushed his hand softly against my neck.

“And… it’s not a lie.”

Deon, who was slowly stroking my neck and hair, whispered.

“Your body is no different than being mine.”

His hand that was stroking my head was familiar. It was the hand that gripped my neck every night. But today, he looked different.

Slowly, his hand moved down. Past my cheek and towards the throbbing collarbone.

I was afraid he could hear my pounding heart. I held back my trembling breath and carefully chose my words.

“… My body is mine. Without me, the Duke cannot live, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

He chuckled softly at my firm answer.

The music ended.

He let go of my waist and lowered his head.

Everyone was greeting their dance partners.

I lifted one corner of my dress in the chill and greeted him.

“Leonie.”

Deon called me as I tried to leave the hall.

And he took my hand again.

His hot lips touched my hand.

Is this also part of the ritual?

I looked at him in confusion, but he just raised the corners of his mouth and smiled as if nothing had happened.

“From now on, you only have to bow your head in front of me. Like this, only when we greet each other after the dance is over.”

***

I swung the door wide open.

I saw the Marquis Caeon with his legs crossed. He gracefully put down his coffee cup.

“You’re late.”

“Something came up suddenly. I’m sorry I’m late.”

He stood up and brought a chair to the other side of the table.

I sat down, caught my breath, and began speaking. I had run up the stairs, so I was out of breath.

“Were you not in the hall?”

He shrugged his shoulders.

“Can’t you see? I was waiting here quietly. I’ve been waiting for the Young Lady all this time.”

He replied like that and then looked crestfallen.

You didn’t see me.

I had forgotten about the Duke for a moment.

Of course, as the Young Lady who was asked to dance by the Duke for the first dance, all eyes were supposed to be on me. I almost raised suspicions.

The coffee in the teacup had gone cold.

“So, did you find information about the medicine?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Tell me.”

“Just a moment. But if we find it, what are you going to do with the medicine? What about the pharmacist?”

He lifted the teacup silently.

“No way…”

As the silence continued, anxiety rushed over me.

“No way, are you trying to kill…?”

When I spoke, he raised his head.

“Well, what can I do? I won’t harm you. Do I look like that kind of person?”

When I stared at him without answering, he shrugged his shoulders.

“You really see me as that kind of person, Young Lady? They used to say that I looked like someone who couldn’t even handle a sword. Should I be happy about this…?”

He let out a low laugh.

“Even if I become cruel, I’ll probably end up living like the Duke, who’s spent his whole life on the battlefield. I’ve never killed anyone with my own hands. I can guarantee that.”

He smiled bitterly. His dazzling hair fluttered.

“We’ll bring them to our side. We have the only weakness in our hands, so what can the Duke do? He’ll have to side with us. We’ll have the upper hand. Peacefully.”

“So, the purpose of finding the medicine is…”

“If I want to join hands with the Duke. I’ll do it if it’s advantageous for me.”

That’s all there is to it. He added.

“And what have you found out so far?”

With a sly grin, he stroked his voice and replied.

Now it was time to create a perfect lie.

“I went into the Duke’s study and read a book about ancient vampire legends. If the Duke really had vampire blood, he wouldn’t keep a book that contradicts his claim.”

“What did it say?”

“That the medicine… there’s no special way to make it. You just have to grind it and drink it raw.”

“….and?”

“The herbs… have to be discarded after about three years.”

I frantically recalled plausible facts using blood as a metaphor.

“Did you find the manufacturer?”

“I don’t know who the manufacturer is… I couldn’t find it.”

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t come up with a suitable metaphor. Calling the manufacturer the teeth of the Duke was out of the question.

“Hmm.”

The Marquis exhaled a long breath before speaking again.

“Again?”

“Again, sir?”

“It’s disappointing. If that’s all we can harvest, we might as well try catching a passing bird and asking it questions. I bet it would chirp more than what we got.”

“There are no birds in the north.”

“I know. It was just a thought. The information we gathered in two days is nothing to write home about. I can’t even recruit a maid who can’t read at this point. What am I going to do… We won’t be able to board the ship like this. The Duke’s banquet is coming up soon, and if I want to grant the Princess’s wishes, I have to take risks. We need better information, don’t we?”

He tapped the table with his finger.

If he released me now, I would never be able to escape. I had to play along to some extent.

“I have no choice. I’ll take advantage of the lax security and sneak into the office.”

“You’ll go in?”

“I’ll try to…steal some medicine.

Finally, he reacted to my words.

“Oh, impressive? But even if you manage to get some, don’t expect me to help you get out of jail.”

“I’m not asking for that. I’ll be as careful as possible so that I don’t get caught.”

“But how can we trust the Princess? She could lie and give us fake herbs.”

“That’s…”

I couldn’t speak. He answered me.

“Bring the Duke’s seal in your hand.”

I nodded.

Entering the Duke’s office was a piece of cake.

The problem was that there were too many eyes watching, so I had to sneak in secretly.

There was nowhere in this place that I couldn’t enter, except for the warehouse.

“Don’t even think about giving me fake medicine. I’ll have a wizard analyze the ingredients.”

“Don’t worry.”

It’s just a trick, so you can mix my blood and nutritional supplements in a bottle.

He chuckled as if he was satisfied.

“But why are you so desperate about this? You could just reject my proposal. I’m suddenly becoming curious about what Young Lady was trying to steal that day.”

He gave me a fierce look.

“So what does young Lady want if you succeed?”

I hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“When the job is done, please take me out with you.”

“Why don’t you just write a recommendation letter and find a new job? Who begs to keep the Young lady here like she’s being held captive?”

I felt embarrassed and tried to speak calmly.

“If the medicine disappears, they will surely know that there was a leak inside. Then I will also be in trouble. How can I stay here? Please take me out secretly. Hide me if necessary.”

“It won’t be difficult.”

“And also some gold coins, just enough to buy a small mansion in the capital.”

I added a condition to avoid suspicion.

If I ask for just that much gold, it will look like I am simply after money, right?

“I promise. I will definitely send you out of here.”

He smiled.