Chapter 12
‘…No matter how desperate I am, I can’t let people say I married a crazy man. I’ll pretend this never happened.’
As soon as she thought that, it felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on her. Even though she waved her hand and acted calm on the outside, panic swept over her.
Thankfully, Curtis asked again, confused by her reaction.
People in power often assume there’s a good reason behind everything. But sometimes, people just want to mess with others.
Of course, Chloe couldn’t say, “I just want you to suffer a bit,” so she played the family card. It was a rushed move, but one she had been thinking about anyway, so she handled it well.
It worked. Curtis Shan Berg seemed convinced.
‘Well, he won’t actually slam his head to the ground…’
A bit disappointing, but at least she could get more money out of this. That was enough.
Plus, she could ensure her siblings’ safety. That alone made this worthwhile.
Then it happened.
“Alright. I understand what you’re saying,” Curtis said.
He walked to an empty spot in his office. That alone made Chloe nervous. Then, he bit off his glove and looked at her seriously.
…No way.
“I’ll do as you ask.”
“…What?”
“But,”
He took off both gloves and tossed them onto the sofa with a loud slap. The sound of the high-quality leather hitting the couch felt oddly loud.
“From now on, you’ll pay the price for making me obey.”
His emotionless violet eyes sent chills down her spine. But it was too late to stop anything.
Curtis dropped to one knee on the floor.
He had never kneeled in front of anyone—not since pledging loyalty at the king’s coronation.
One knee down, the other raised, he placed his bare hand on the floor. It felt strange. Even though he’d worked in this office for over a year, he’d never sat on the floor here before.
‘…This floor is dirty. I should scold the cleaning staff tomorrow morning.’
He kept getting random thoughts. Then he looked up at his aide and asked,
“How long should I stay like this?”
“…Excuse me?”
She seemed caught off guard. He chuckled.
‘If Noel saw this, he’d probably say he should’ve just given his sister to me instead.’
Curtis asked again seriously,
“How long is the inspection? For the punishment.”
“…You’re really doing this?”
“Did you think I was joking?”
Resting his elbow on his raised knee, he looked up at her. Chloe’s pink eyes were shaking in shock. She clearly hadn’t expected him to actually kneel.
‘Is she soft-hearted? Or did she think I’d back out?’
“It’s a contract. I want to pay the price properly.”
“….”
“When I punish my subordinates, I don’t give endless punishments. So at least tell me how long.”
Chloe hesitated and looked around.
“…Uh…”
Curtis glanced at the clock on the wall. It was 2 a.m.
“Too bad, I can’t go past 4 hours.”
The guards change shifts at 6 a.m., and as his aide, Chloe understood. But instead of giving a time, she sighed deeply.
“…Why are you taking this so seriously?”
She rubbed her dry eyes. She looked uncomfortable that he was taking it so far.
And who could blame her? Most people don’t know how different talk and action are. Seeing a grand duke actually kneel in front of her—it must be scary and confusing.
If a third person were watching, they’d probably think:
“Are they just sleep-deprived and acting weird? How did this even happen?”
But no one else was there. Just the two of them.
So Curtis urged her again.
“Chloe Amboise. Do you need more time to think? This chance won’t come again.”
His slightly mocking tone made Chloe frown. But then she wiped her face roughly and answered.
“No.”
“Then—”
“Get up, Your Grace.”
Curtis raised an eyebrow, but Chloe lowered her hand and said with a sigh:
“That’s enough.”
“Lieutenant Amboise.”
When he called her again, questioning if she was serious, Chloe looked at him and sighed again.
“I don’t want to die.”
“You think I’ll hurt you after this?”
It was a casual question—he was only following her request. Why stop now?
But Chloe looked away, avoiding his eyes.
“…Maybe a little?”
A vein twitched on Curtis’s forehead.
“Hearing that makes me want to kneel even more.”
“What?”
Chloe looked alarmed as Curtis stood up and walked toward her. This time, she was sitting on the sofa, looking up at him. He looked down at her from above.
Strangely, the natural angle didn’t feel that pleasant.
“I don’t know what you think of me, but I liked what you said.”
“…What?”
“Most people would panic in a situation like this. But you quickly thought through your options. Impressive.”
Chloe frowned slightly, and Curtis chuckled, pulling something from his coat.
“Don’t take it the wrong way. I don’t want you to be the only one sacrificing in this deal.”
“What do you mean?”
“My mother always told me not to take others’ sacrifices for granted.”
Queen Mildred always told her son never to accept sacrifice as something normal. Not because of virtue, but because—
“Those sacrifices will always come with a cost later.”
“What are you—”
Curtis kneeled again and opened the ring box he had taken from his coat.
“Chloe Amboise. I’m proposing again.”
“…Ha…”
Chloe covered her face and sighed, looking completely baffled.
Curtis watched her with amusement.
He had always imagined what it might be like to propose. There were all kinds of dreams—romantic, dramatic, political…
But none of them involved a woman reacting like this—grabbing her forehead like she had a headache.
“I’m a royal. Might as well make use of this kneeling.”
Make use of it? Like it was a tool? Chloe was speechless.
Curtis, still kneeling, held out the ring with a shameless grin.
“You may not be the owner of my soul, but will you be its temporary keeper?”
“…What am I, picking up a stray dog?”
“You don’t like it?”
Chloe rubbed her forehead again. But the answer was clear.
“…Damn it. Fine.”
“Damn it”? Not the usual reply to a proposal.
Curtis laughed and took out the ring—a purple gem called Flame of Divinity. It shone even under the dawn light.
“My mother’s life changed with this ring. I promise yours won’t turn out badly.”
“My mom said anyone who promises to change your life is probably a scammer.”
“She gave good advice.”
“Are you scamming me?”
“Have you ever seen a scammer warn their victim first?”
They joked more easily now—maybe because it was a proposal.
Surprisingly, the ring fit perfectly.
Curtis watched her expression as he slid it onto her finger. Chloe looked at the ring like it was something disgusting.
And somehow, that made him happy.
“Great. We’re engaged now.”
“…Yes.”
“And now, we’ve got work to do.”
Chloe groaned. Just when she thought she might finally get some sleep—nope. Another all-nighter.
“Isn’t it illegal to dump work on your fiancée right after proposing?”
“Lieutenant, did you know?”
“What?”
“Now that we’re engaged, I don’t have to pay you overtime anymore.”
“…Can I cancel the engagement?”
Of course not.
****
“Extra! Extra!”
“Curtis Shan Berg is getting married!”
The whole kingdom was in shock.
The Grand Duke had announced his engagement during an official event with the Glintland delegation.
