Chapter 6
“Oh, we’re in luck. What brings the Duke here at this hour?”
“Please, come in, Your Grace. I do hope we aren’t interrupting.”
As the Marquess and Marchioness offered their greetings, Kagan stood in silence, simply observing them. But his cold gaze soon softened, and he slowly spoke.
“I didn’t have any particular plans with my wife.”
Wife. Just the first time he’d called me that in front of others, and already I was so self-conscious, my cheeks burning.
“Well then, you must have missed her enough to come all this way unannounced.”
Despite Jayce’s teasing, Kagan’s stoic expression didn’t waver.
“Jayce.”
And the first name he called wasn’t mine.
“Yes, my esteemed Duke.”
Still uneasy from the chill in his gaze earlier, I looked nervously between the two men.
Kagan raised the hand he’d been clasping behind his back and extended it toward Jayce. In his right hand was a book—a thick volume bound in dark burgundy leather. The title, embossed in elegant gold lettering, was written in the language of the Elcon Empire.
“I heard you’re returning to Rigen today. I didn’t want to miss the chance to give this to you.”
“Wow, you actually got the book!”
Jayce’s face lit up. Seeing this, the corners of Kagan’s mouth relaxed as well, as if the earlier coldness had been a lie.
“Hm. The courier brought it this morning.”
“It’s brand new. Are you sure I can read it first? I’d given up on it because even my mentor in Elcon said it was impossible to find.”
“Take all the time you want. I’m not in a hurry.”
“Thank you. You know I never say no to things like this. Haha.”
Thank goodness—it doesn’t seem to be one of those ‘feuding relatives’ situations. I let out a quiet sigh of relief. I must have been sitting too tensely.
Jayce flipped through a few pages like a child who’d finally gotten a toy he’d begged for. Then he turned to the Marchioness and said meaningfully,
“Truly a man of no shortcomings, wouldn’t you say?”
The Marchioness touched her flushed cheek and averted her gaze.
“Oh, of course. Who would ever think our Duke lacking?”
Now. This was my moment to speak.
“Um, Kagan. Would you like to sit down?”
My voice came out so light it seemed ready to flutter away. Anyone could tell I was either too excited or too nervous. Embarrassed, I cleared my throat softly and straightened my back.
After all, this was my drawing room now. If I didn’t offer, Kagan might just stand there like a post and then leave.
Still, it felt strange to offer a seat to the man who was actually the master of this castle.
“……Yes. Just for a moment.”
As if this hadn’t been planned at all, he hesitated slightly before sitting down.
Kagan sat beside me, eyes downcast, silent. His gaze rested calmly on his teacup, as if studying an unfamiliar object. The way his lips were neatly pressed together today made him look oddly prim.
Did he like it or not?
During the three weeks we lived in the same mansion before the wedding, I’d only managed minimal contact with him. He was very busy, and the mansion was far too vast for chance encounters. The best we could manage was having dinner together and taking a short walk.
He was always taciturn and blunt. Did he even know how to smile? So far, I’d only seen him smile bitterly a few times.
Not that I thought he’d never laughed happily in his life. I understood—he’d lived harshly as a Northska hunter for so long. Or perhaps he was simply skilled at suppressing his emotions, as befits a noble.
“Try it. It’s a blend I like.”
And yet, that same man had showered me with such gentle, sweet kisses last night. He’d held me carefully, caressed me. After I’d fallen into a near-comatose sleep, a complete mess, he’d personally wiped my body down and changed the bedsheets—prepared in advance, it seemed.
“And, um, if it doesn’t suit your taste, there are other teas.”
I was rattling off words, but my soul was trying to escape my body and fly far away. My face was growing so hot I felt I might start steaming.
Oh god, what kind of state did he see me in while I was asleep…
“The aroma is light. It’s good.”
The way his long fingers gently wrapped around the teacup somehow looked suggestive—a clear sign that my mental state was serious.
“I’m glad it suits your taste.”
I was probably smiling naturally enough.
“It helps with fatigue recovery, so you might want to drink it occasionally.”
It was hard to meet his eyes properly.
How could that man look at me so calmly? Could he look at my face and not recall that indecent night, maintaining his composure?
He looked like someone who’d perfectly executed a proper duty and then cleanly brushed it off.
“Speaking of which,” the Marquess of Rigen said, as if breaking the awkward silence, “you two truly look like a painting come to life—the more I see you, the more you suit each other.”
As if she’d been waiting, the Marchioness chimed in again.
“Exactly. Just seeing how affectionate you two are makes me proud. If only the late Duke could have seen this.”
I glanced at Kagan. Our eyes met, and I braced my shame and lifted the corners of my mouth slightly, but he didn’t smile at all. When the topic turned to the late Duke, he only furrowed his brow, as if lost in regret.
He must miss his adoptive father.
I tried to recall the late Duke’s face from his portrait. He’d looked aged but had a fine bearing. His dark hair and broad shoulders resembled Kagan’s so closely that a stranger would believe they were truly father and son.
Adopted at twenty, inheriting the dukedom at twenty-two—just two years. It seemed painfully short to build a father-son bond, but Kagan had clearly respected his adoptive father deeply.
“That reminds me, Jayce, shouldn’t you be getting married soon?”
Taken by surprise by the Marchioness’s attack, Jayce groaned.
“I’m fine as I am, Mother.”
“Fine? Oh, so living like a childish colt even as you age is just fine for you? I’m not surprised.”
It seemed the early nagging of an older bachelor was about to begin. Usually, nobles started being urged to marry around twenty-five, so Jayce still had two years left.
“I heard things were going well with Lord Harthwin’s daughter.”
It was a bit unexpected that even Kagan joined in.
“She’s a fine young lady.”
So he takes an interest in other people’s love lives too.
“Please don’t say such dreadful things, Your Grace.”
Jayce shook his head in disgust.
“I can never be more than friends with her. I watched that kid run around in diapers.”
“Oh my, such unrefined talk again. What do you mean a noble young lady ran around in diapers?”
“Anyway, Mother, you know perfectly well. How could I marry her? We’d torture each other. If I even tried to kiss her, she’d probably punch me in the face.”
“Jayce! I’m starting to find it fascinating just how idiotic you can be.”
“Well, if I absolutely must marry…”
He smiled, ignoring the Marchioness’s wide-eyed stare, then turned his head toward me.
“I think I’d only make up my mind if a young lady like the Duchess of Wayriver appeared.”
Oh dear. I felt cold sweat forming. I knew it was just a friendly joke, but in that moment, Kagan’s eyes flicked toward me, watching my reaction intently.
“Um, but a young lady like me…”
Could a person freeze to death from a cold stare alone? I brushed the back of my chilly neck, as if to say I was merely flustered by Jayce’s mischief.
“…would probably look for a bachelor like the Duke of Wayriver. Most likely.”
“Oh my.”
The Marchioness chuckled softly. Then Jayce burst into loud laughter. I didn’t know what was so funny about putting someone in an awkward spot, but at least he didn’t seem offended by my words.
Kagan’s expression, on the other hand, grew even stiffer.
“Wow, did you hear that, Your Grace? I’ve just been rejected before even meeting her.”
His complexion was also slightly flushed. Was he angry enough to redden? I’d learned that excessive displays of marital affection were considered vulgar, but had I overstepped?
Kagan began glaring at me as if he wanted to burn me to death. He moved his lips as if about to unleash some reproach, then pressed them shut again. My throat went dry.
Those lips… they were just all over my body… No, stop dwelling on it.
“I’ve just been rejected, so please don’t mention marriage for a while, Mother.”
“Oh, poor thing. As a mother, I’m delighted that my son’s foolish dream has been shattered.”
Jayce, the very one who’d escalated the situation, seemed utterly uninterested in us.
“Still, I’ve got plenty of time. If I’m to follow in our esteemed Duke’s footsteps, I’ve got three years left.”
My husband, after glaring at me to his heart’s content, ultimately wouldn’t even meet my eyes.
“Please grow up, Jayce.”
I kept replaying my words, wondering if I’d said something to anger Kagan. But I couldn’t figure it out. By now, I knew I couldn’t just ask every little thing that piqued my curiosity, like a child.
“Oh, right.”
Suddenly, Jayce slapped his knee as if remembering something important. After being hounded about marriage for so long, he looked pale under the eyes.
“I hear Prince Zeke is completely absorbed in fishing. Shouldn’t Father, a true master angler, teach him a thing or two? And you said you wanted to see the Dowager Duchess of Schumann before we return home, Mother.”
Before the Marquess and Marchioness could answer, Jayce stood up, hugging the book.
“Well then, we’ll take our leave now.”
“What are you talking about, you oblivious child?”
The Marchioness, who’d been nibbling away at her raspberry pudding with cream, shot him a glare.
“Does he think we often get the chance to have a leisurely cup of tea with the Duke? It’s just as well—I had something to discuss anyway. I can greet the Duchess of Wayriver another time.”
“There will be plenty of such chances from now on. So get up.”
Like a guard dragging out a prisoner, Jayce grabbed the Marchioness’s arm. She frowned in surprise.
“Would you look at this? You just want to read that ‘demon myth’ book quickly, don’t you?”
“It’s ‘Monster King,’ not demon myth.”
“Same thing.”
“Ahem. Jayce has a point, my dear.”
In the end, the Marquess, caught between them, sided with the idea of going to assist Prince Zeke, and the Marchioness reluctantly rose.
“Then enjoy your private time, you two.”
As Jayce bowed exaggeratedly to me and Kagan, I could clearly see what was on his mind.
