~Chapter 82~
“Refuse…?”
Leonie set his teacup down with a sharp sound. His green eyes pierced into me, as if he were desperate to find a weakness.
“What is your reason?”
He was practical. Since I had refused, instead of trying to highlight the advantages of his offer, he wanted to find my reason for refusal—and then cover it.
I smiled and answered,
“Because I have no reason to accept.”
His left eyebrow rose.
“The Duchess seemed very determined about completing the soul contract. And I even promised you a reward.”
I only smiled again, waiting for him to speak more.
“If it’s money, I can give you as much as you want. From the looks of it, you didn’t grow up wealthy in your family.”
“No.” I shook my head, smiling.
“You must know Maledictus already has more money than it could ever spend.”
Wealth was the least tempting thing of all.
“Hmm.”
Leonie leaned forward.
“Then do you want success as an artist?”
The winner of the contest hadn’t been announced yet. Either he had inside information, or he had investigated me thoroughly to use this as leverage.
He wanted my dream in exchange for completing the soul contract.
“If I wanted to succeed by depending on someone powerful, wouldn’t I have asked my husband already?”
I glared at his cold green eyes.
“If that was what I wanted, I wouldn’t have gone through all the pain of competing in the contest and pouring myself into my art.”
“…What if, by refusing me, the art world turns its back on you?”
This time I laughed out loud.
“As long as I can paint, that’s enough. I’m not afraid of being ignored.”
After all, I already had one audience who would never turn away from my work.
“Your Highness, no reward can change my mind. This proposal is flawed from the start.”
Leonie frowned.
“What flaw?”
“The soul contract itself isn’t really your goal, is it?”
For Leonie, what mattered most was obvious: securing the crown prince’s position.
“By completing the contract, stabilizing Maledictus, and showing you helped absorb more curses—you’d claim your place as crown prince, correct?”
“…”
He did not deny it.
“No one could ignore someone who strengthened the royal family’s power that way.”
Silence filled the room. For the first time, his cold eyes seemed to hold another light.
“…So that’s my true reason.”
He muttered under his breath, so faint I almost missed it.
“Pardon?”
“Nothing. Forget it.”
He raised his head and said,
“I won’t deny it. Maybe I did make this proposal because of that ambition.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“So now you’re saying there’s another reason?”
To my surprise, he nodded easily.
“Yes. Even if that’s how it looks, I can’t deny it. But the real reason is this—”
He pushed his glasses up with a finger, his eyes filled with unease.
“I’m afraid. Afraid of the Duke losing control.”
“…Have you actually seen it happen?”
“Yes. When we were both children.”
Leonie paused, recalling.
“Honestly, it terrified me. That was the first time I felt fear of something humans could not stop.”
Such fear wasn’t strange—people always feared the unknown.
“And I pitied the Duke, suffering and struggling against that rage.”
He lowered his voice.
“It felt like forcing him to endure something no one should.”
The room fell into silence again.
Finally, I broke it.
“Then why did you ignore it all these years?”
Leonie closed his eyes instead of answering.
“You never stopped the royal family from using Maledictus before. And now you pity him?”
“…”
“You enjoyed royal power built on Maledictus’s suffering.”
I leaned forward, sneering.
“So I won’t accept. I’ll do anything for my husband—but nothing for you.”
“Duchess, but to stop his rampages permanently—”
“As long as the royal family doesn’t keep ordering Damien to absorb curses, he won’t rampage again. He’s fine as he is now.”
What he needed was more of my care, more closeness, more attention. Not pressure to rush the contract.
“Therefore, I refuse.”
I stood, pushing my chair back.
But Leonie also rose quickly.
“Duchess. Listen.”
“No. I have nothing more to say.”
“Wait. As long as the Emperor reigns, I cannot stop Damien’s curse absorption. I have no power.”
“…The Emperor?”
I looked at him sharply.
“That is why, until then, the most realistic way is for you to complete the soul contract to suppress the rampage.”
“…Do you mean you want me to help you become Emperor?”
“No.”
This time, his denial was firm and serious.
“Do you think I need your help to defeat Leonard? That would be disgraceful.”
I blinked. He didn’t want us to back his claim directly.
“Listen to the rest. Once I become Emperor, things will change.”
He strode across the room. His tall figure cast a shadow over me.
“If you agree to my proposal, when I am Emperor, I will free the Duke.”
“…Free?”
His words made Damien’s pained face flash in my mind.
“Yes. If you complete the soul contract, I swear, as Emperor I will never order the Duke to absorb more curses.”
It was a shocking promise. Damien could finally be free from his greatest torment.
But it didn’t make sense.
“The royal family’s power comes from that curse absorption. Are you saying you’ll give it up?”
“Not give up—just maintain what we already have.”
He explained calmly.
“The royal family is the only one who can use magic now. We don’t need more. With the power already gathered, the empire can last.”
He continued,
“And the times are changing. Citizens don’t judge rulers by magical power anymore. Power is only one part of it.”
“…So you’ve decided there’s no need to squeeze Maledictus further.”
“Exactly.”
“But why should I trust you? You could betray me after the contract.”
“Then I’ll bind myself with a Benedict Oath.”
“…Benedict Oath?”
I had never heard of it—even from Damien.
“It’s a magical contract between royals. The Duke has royal blood too, so it works on him. If I break it, I lose this mark.”
He rolled up his sleeve. Glowing golden patterns of the royal crest appeared on his arm.
“This is the contract. If broken, the violator loses the mark.”
“Which means…”
“They become an ordinary human—unable to use magic again.”
An enormous penalty for any royal.
“If you doubt me, investigate it. Ask Damien. I’ll answer anything you question.”
If true, it was a binding oath too heavy to ignore.
Damien’s smiling face flashed in my mind.
“…If that oath is real,” I whispered,
“Then maybe I could accep—”
I didn’t finish.
Creak—
Though the door was locked, it opened.
Then—
Bang!
A hidden passage in the ceiling burst open.
“Ruby.”
That familiar voice eased all my tension.
“That’s enough.”
Damien leapt down from the ceiling with no hesitation.
