Chapter 49
The muscles beneath her fingertips were firm and tense — a pleasant kind of tension.
“Don’t worry. No one saw me. I came in secretly.”
“Ludice…”
When she tugged at his neck, he leaned in obediently — but then, suddenly, he stopped coming closer.
To keep from falling onto Ludice, Quinlan held himself up, his bare muscles standing out in sharp relief.
Her golden eyes narrowed.
‘Seriously, this man!’
At this point, he could have just given in — why did he always have to be so stubborn?
A spark of competitiveness flared in her.
Fine. Let’s see who wins this one.
With a sweet smile spreading across her face, Ludice whispered,
“Quinlan.”
Her voice came out lower than usual — and at that very moment, Quinlan flinched.
Ludice pulled hard on his neck. Losing his balance, Quinlan fell forward — right on top of her.
Or so she thought.
At the last instant, Quinlan braced himself, refusing to collapse onto her.
Ludice let out a disbelieving laugh.
“…You know, this is really too much.”
She frowned.
“How could you do this? I came all this way to see my husband, and this is how you treat me?”
“I have my pride, don’t I? I can’t just give in so easily to you.”
A faint smile lingered on Quinlan’s lips.
Then, just like that, he straightened up.
“Quinlan?”
When Ludice also rose and tried to close the distance, Quinlan quickly stepped back.
The tension between pursuer and pursued crackled in the air.
And just when there was nowhere left for him to retreat—
“Kyah!”
Eyes tightly shut, Quinlan acted purely on instinct — he grabbed the blanket and wrapped Ludice tightly inside it.
“What do you think you’re doing?!”
Only when he realized that the struggling woman in his arms didn’t feel the least bit soft did he dare open his eyes.
And there he met her blazing amber gaze.
When was the last time she’d looked at him like that — with such fierce emotion?
The woman who had been so quiet and composed was now alive with fire, eyes glittering vividly.
Quinlan found himself transfixed.
“Are you going to untie me or what?”
Ludice bit out the words through clenched teeth, and Quinlan finally blinked, letting out a small “Ah.”
Then, without a word, he lifted her — blanket and all — over his shoulder and started walking.
“Quinlan!”
Ludice struggled furiously to break free, but he didn’t falter, striding straight ahead.
After a few steps, he reached the long couch in the center of the room and set her down.
“Take a rest before you go.”
Without waiting for a response, he turned and shut the door behind him.
“You can’t just leave me like this, Quinlan…!”
Her voice chased after him, but he didn’t look back. He walked out of the room they had shared.
Click.
The door closed. The noises from inside quickly died away.
“Haa…”
Only then did Quinlan finally exhale. He hadn’t even realized he’d been holding his breath.
As his heartbeat slowed, the image from moments ago resurfaced in his mind—
Those burning amber eyes.
That tempting red mouth.
The delicate line of her neck, leading down to—
Smack!
A sharp sound echoed through the empty hallway of the mansion. Then came silence.
“…I’ve lost my mind,” he muttered under his breath — so quietly one could barely hear him.
“I’m mad.”
He lowered his head, muttering again.
Through thin fabric he could still see soft curves, the tumble of crimson hair, those inviting lips whispering temptation—
Smack!
Even louder than before.
A hollow laugh slipped out of Duke Draphania’s mouth after he slapped his own face a second time.
He must truly be out of his mind.
His thoughts were completely filled with Ludice.
Every time he closed his eyes, every movement of hers made his face burn hotter.
“Insane…”
He was bewildered — completely at a loss for what to do.
He didn’t even know how to interpret what had happened —
how to think about the woman who had walked into his bedroom.
“Why now…?”
When he finally spoke again, his voice was rougher, lower than usual.
The next morning, the Duchess of Draphania was not in a good mood.
Ludice usually woke early, starting her day with a bit of exercise to loosen up her body.
Today was no different — her routine was the same as always.
But her mood was unmistakably off.
Every now and then, she’d stare blankly at her papers, frown, or lean back in her chair with a complicated expression while gazing out the window.
Anyone could see she was troubled.
“What’s wrong with her?”
“…”
At Phil’s question, Sera gave an awkward smile.
She could only think of one reason.
It must have something to do with the Duchess’s late-night “walk” — and whatever had happened afterward.
But that wasn’t something one could simply ask about.
When Sera stayed silent with that vague smile, Phil sighed.
If no one would say anything, there was only one possible cause.
It’s got to be the Duke.
And when it came to him, there was nothing Phil could do to help.
In times like this, distracting her with work was best.
“Lady Ludice.”
She turned her head. Her golden eyes, heavy with thought, gleamed faintly.
“What is it?”
“That magician, my lady.”
“Ganelon?”
Her interest immediately sharpened. She straightened her posture and rose from the long couch by the window to the reception table.
The table was already buried under a mountain of documents.
She had asked Dan Gilbert to organize Diahroon’s administrative records —
and he had dumped an enormous pile of reports in front of her, then promptly disappeared.
She had ordered him not to let anyone know she was investigating Count Harper and Baron Boar,
but she hadn’t expected him to vanish completely afterward.
I should’ve just worked him openly instead of being discreet, she thought with a sigh.
Pushing aside a stack of papers, she somehow managed to create a tiny clear space on the desk — a feat that required incredible precision to avoid toppling the pile.
Sera, ever prepared, swiftly placed a teacup in the cleared spot.
Ludice sipped her tea slowly and waited for Phil to continue.
“As you ordered, we’ve arranged accommodations for him in the mansion so he can stay. However…”
“However?”
“Are you truly going to accept him?”
“I intend to. Every territory needs a mage, after all.”
“That’s true, but…”
Phil’s hesitant tone made a fine line appear between Ludice’s brows.
“What’s the problem, then?”
“Is he… really the Master of the Mage Tower?”
“Why?”
“It’s just that he’s…”
Phil let out a deep sigh.
“Hahaha! Is that so? What an interesting story!”
The dark-haired man laughed heartily, pouring more drink for the men sitting with him.
It was only just past midday, yet in the backyard of the knights’ quarters, a lively drinking party was already in full swing.
“So then we—”
Roaring laughter filled the air.
Ludice looked at the scene, utterly dumbfounded.
Unbelievably, the one at the center of the merrymaking — leading the mood, even — was none other than the mage, Ganelon.
“Since when has he been like this?”
“Almost since the moment he arrived, my lady. He’s been doing this every day.”
“Ah.”
“You told us to let him move about freely, remember? Ever since then, he’s been wandering around the estate — and somehow ended up making friends with the knights.”
Ludice pressed her lips together tightly.
Well, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for the mage to get along with the knights.
It was good for a ducal territory like Diahroon to have a mage,
and even better if he got along well with the household staff.
But still—
Contract or no contract, I can’t just let him run around doing whatever he wants.
A faint, almost dangerous smile curved her lips.
Phil, seeing that expression, flinched and instinctively took a step back.
Whenever Ludice smiled like that, it usually meant she was up to something.
“Where’s Quinlan?”
Her voice was calm and melodic again — no trace of the gloom from earlier remained.
“He’s in his office, my lady.”
“I see.”
With one last glance toward the laughing group, Ludice turned and walked away.
