The Duke and Duchess' Divorce Circumstances

“Now, the two of you should kiss in front of everyone to announce that you are a married couple!”

Ray’s mind snapped to the prince’s suggestion.

‘What? What?’

Ray looked at Ramiel, wondering if what she had just heard was right.

Ramiel’s expression was still incredibly calm, but Ray could vividly feel the strength in his arms that were linked.

‘Ramiel is pissed!’

A duet of embarrassment and pissed off quietly enveloped the Ruivan couple.

It was impossible to dare shout ‘No, I don’t like it, why are you doing this!’ to the prince. Even if he acted in a way that seemed light compared to other royals, he was the next emperor, Parveze.

The hierarchy and foundation of the royal family were perfect, so no matter how high-flying and high-spirited the nobles were, they had to follow his orders unconditionally.

That was the ‘imperial power’.

The prince smiled as he watched the two people who were not moving at all.

“Can’t the Ruivan couple hear my voice?”

Ray’s lost consciousness returned to him at the prince’s voice that contained a subtle sense of mockery, but his pale face did not return.

“Oh, oh, how! How dare you! I, I, no, we, huff, in front of His Highness the Crown Prince, huff, that, that, that kind of thing…”

With a pale face and panting for breath, he seemed to have been told to commit treason. The crown princess standing next to the prince continued speaking with a small laugh.

“It seems that Lady Ruivan is very embarrassed. But what can we do when there are audiences?”

The crown princess’ words had some substance.

She also seemed to know well about the rumors that this marriage was not real. However, instead of questioning the truth of the rumors, she wanted everyone to confirm it for themselves.

Whether their marriage was real or fake didn’t really matter to her, but she could make it an issue. So she wanted them to figure it out.

…what a pressure.

The Crown Princess was more powerful than the Crown Prince, and the light grumbling that was done with a smile seemed to hit me hard.

‘If I get caught here, my golden future is over!’

She didn’t know what Ramiel was thinking, but since he had already taken a break once, time had passed a lot. It was a moment when a couple struggling in love needed that much showmanship.

Ray immediately reached out and wrapped his arms around Ramiel’s cheeks, pulling him towards her.

“I’m sorry.”

Ray apologized slightly just before their lips touched, then closed her eyes tightly and placed her lips on Ramiel’s. She thought it would feel cold like hair, but his lips felt warm and soft.

‘Since it’s an official event, all we have to do is kiss, right? Is this okay? I don’t use my tongue… Oh, wait. How long do I have to stay?’

It was Ray Alexis’ first kiss in her life.

Her mother, Eina, who was obsessed with rising in social status, did not let Ray date. She only moved to marry a noble.

She was very careful not to let her daughter meet another man in vain, and when she was about to reach the age of marriage, she only created a place where she could show herself to the nobles. She blocked her from dating, saying that nobles had to marry for political reasons.

In Korea, where she was free from such interference, she was too busy playing to think about dating or have time.

It was the first time she had casually dated friends her age, and the joy of that ‘peer group’ was so great. In addition, everything about Korea was so new that she was busy just getting used to life there.

Love was not a necessity, but a luxury, and since her daily life was so rich and fun that she had no time for luxury, she didn’t think about it even more. In addition, there were many men hanging around Ray, but not a single one caught her interest, which also played a big part.

So for Ray Alexis, who was single since birth, this contact was becoming her first experience in her life.

Thanks to her hobbies, she was good at theory, but she had no practical experience. Ray was seriously troubled about when to part her lips.

Since she said she was in love, she couldn’t do it briefly. She felt like she had to show them that she was attached for a long time, so she kept her lips pressed together as much as possible.

‘W-will now be enough? My lips feel a little numb. How much time has passed? Yes, I think it’s now. The aura emanating from Ramiel is unusual. Could it be that Ramiel, women also… I won’t lose, right?’

Ray’s arms wrapped around Ramiel’s back as he rolled his eyes under his closed eyelids.

At that movement, Ray unconsciously released the hands that were wrapping Ramiel’s cheeks and hugged his shoulders. Ramiel turned his head, his posture becoming slightly more comfortable, and soon their lips parted.

Ray slowly opened her closed eyes. At the same time, she felt her mind coming back. Her face gradually became hot and flushed.

She couldn’t raise her head because she thought the man in front of her was looking down at her with eyes that seemed like he was going to kill her. So she pretended to be embarrassed and buried her face in his arms, repeatedly apologizing in a small voice that only Ramiel could hear.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I couldn’t help it.”

Ramiel was still hugging Ray tightly. Then he patted her on the back.

“Oh my, my goodness. What a loving couple.”

The voice of the crown princess rang dully in his ears.

“Duke, if this wasn’t a public event, would you have done it so intensely? What can I do about it?”

Ramiel responded calmly to the prince’s joke.

“I’m planning to go back quickly after the banquet is over.”

The prince laughed out loud cheerfully.

‘But why do you like it so much? Huh.’

Ray, who was helplessly squirming in Ramiel’s arms, glanced at the garden clock tower beyond the glass window and finally understood the prince and his wife’s laughter.

She had been worrying about when to part her lips for over five minutes.

In other words, she had been kissing, or rather, locking lips with Ramiel for five minutes. Her face heated up again.

‘Future Duchess. I’m sorry! It wasn’t my will.’

When they left home, he had allowed some touching, but not lips. One couldn’t know what happens to people.

Even as the celebratory banquet began and they left the stage, Ray continued to bury his head in Ramiel’s arms.

“Duchess Ruivan is very shy.”

omeone among those watching the scene spoke up. It was a statement that they would accept Ray Alexis as Duchess Ruivan.

“They’ve been doing this for so long, I wonder if their lips will be chapped.”

The people around them burst into laughter at someone’s joke that seemed to have opened up the water.

“Hmm. Aren’t you the ones who just said that the oath ceremony was a fraud?”

“It seems that fraud plays are also fun.”

The people were slowly coming up with answers as they were faced with the choice of whether to befriend Ruivan, who had accepted a woman from a poor family, or to be friendly.

* * *

“Rael, can I take a short break?”

Ray, who had been looking pale since a while ago, whispered in Ramiel’s ear that he would be leaving.

“I’ll catch people, so take a short break.”

She thought Ramiel, who had been dealing with people without resting, would suggest that they take refuge together, but his answer was unexpected.

If the two main characters move together, there was a high chance that everyone else would follow, and it wouldn’t be a proper rest, so he said he would take the lead.

Ray paused for a moment, not expecting Ramiel to show such consideration.

“Thank you. Ugh. I really, really appreciate it.”

Ray, who had been avoiding his gaze since their lips met, made eye contact with him for the first time. A little surprised by the unexpected favor, Ray soon smiled at Ramiel.

“Excuse me for a moment. Please talk.”

Ray lightly touched his arm and quietly left.

Two maids followed right behind.

“Madam, are you okay?”

The hallway leading to the break room was quiet, unlike the noisy banquet hall, perhaps because the banquet was in full swing.

“Whew, whoosh. I think I’ll be okay if I rest a little.”

Now, even empty words about being okay were no longer heard.

Maybe it was because of the tension, but her condition was not good since she arrived at the palace, or to be exact, since she left Ruivan. The alcohol she drank while dealing with people was already fermenting, so her stomach felt heavy and her head felt dizzy.

The two people behind her became lost in thought at her words that she was not feeling well.

“I’ll call a doctor!”

“Should I tell the Duke? Madam, your complexion is…”

The two maids were seeing each other for the first time, but Ray was acting as if she had always been from Ruivan. Perhaps she had thought that she should crawl on her own after seeing Ramiel kissing her long and hard in front of everyone.

“No. You don’t have to call a doctor, and since I already told Rael, you don’t have to tell him…”

“Alex.”

At that moment, someone called Ray affectionately.

Ray and the two maids turned their gazes to the back.

“It’s been a while, Alex. How have you been?”

It was Weber, her former fiancé whom she had thought she would not even glance at. Ray’s brow furrowed involuntarily.

“…It seems like you’ve been doing well.”

He approached her, questioning himself. The two maids behind Ray nodded at the appearance of the nobleman, but their eyes filled with caution could not be erased.

A man who had appeared affectionately calling her name while she was alone. Naturally, it couldn’t look good.

Marin’s web alone could turn the lives of generations around. And if you add in the family dress and accessories Ray was wearing, the amount would be even greater.

So, there might have been someone who would take advantage of the time when the defenses were weak to commit sabotage, steal the goods, and escape to another continent.

So Ray, who knew the two people behind her as maids, Kay and El, did not hide their wariness.

In fact, the two of them were actually ordinary maids on the outside, but they were actually unmanned people who knew how to handle swords. They were the talents Taylor had found to prepare for an emergency.

“I didn’t know we would meet like this here.”

Weber, not paying attention to the maids’ cold aura, closed the gap even further.

“…”

‘You followed me and now you don’t know how to meet me like this?’ Ray was furious inside, but she didn’t want to say a single word to Izawa, so she kept her mouth shut.

She had noticed Weber’s eyes that had been lingering around her since the banquet hall, waiting for an opportunity.

She knew those eyes, so even though she couldn’t look directly at Ramiel, she pretended to be close to him and stuck with him, but since she wasn’t feeling well, she ended up forgetting that fact for a moment.

“Please…”

“I’m sorry. Our lady is not feeling well right now and needs to rest.”

Kay, who realized that he was the second son of the Light Counts and had not yet received a title, blocked his approach.

Since the capital had a strict class system, a maid could not dare to interrupt or interrupt the speech of a noble family member. However, someone who did not show courtesy to the Duchess or keep a private distance needed to be treated accordingly.

The two of them had to prioritize the safety and protection of the madam, and since they were hired for that purpose, they had to complete their mission.

Above all, the timing of the other person approaching them was so suspicious, as if he was just waiting for the madam to leave the duke, and it was hard to understand why he suddenly started speaking informally to them without permission.

“What? Ha! This is unbelievable. Are you interrupting me? How on earth does Ruivan educate his subordinates!”

As Weber raised his voice, the two of them immediately moved closer to Ray and took a defensive stance. It was a gesture that they would immediately strike him down if the man in front of them got excited and ran towards her.

 

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