CH 51

Chapter 8. The Upcoming Shadow (2)

Together with the sound of clapping, my cheeks burned

“I must be crazy.”

I rejected and pushed out Dillian, but was I actually that greedy?

“Miss Ria?”

“Hmhm, there’s a bug. It must have fallen off.”

Bullshit. There can be no bugs in any weather other than winter.

“It must have been a very terrifying bug.”

“Of course. It was terrifying.”

Dillian knew it was a diversion, but pretended not to know.

‘It means that he is very considerate.’

The more I looked at him, the better he became.

There are only two shortcomings.

That he is the evil that will destroy the empire.

And,

‘He lost his memories because I smashed his head.’

This made me caught by the ankle.

To be honest, living with Dillian wasn’t that bad.

Who cares if he’s the bad guy. He’s nice to me though.

I have nothing to do with it unless the sharp sword is aimed at my neck.

‘Since he already swore in Sinaize’s name, I won’t die.’

First of all, safety is important, so it would not be a bad idea to get engaged temporarily.

‘Yes, there must be a reason why I met Dillian.’

And I am the only one who can suppress Dillian’s curse.

So let’s prevent Dillian from being swallowed by the curse and from being killed by Aina.

And, I’m going to break that damn curse as well.

It was said to be a very old curse, but isn’t it possible for me, who even has the power to purify the forest?

“All right. Let’s get engaged.”

When I came up with a positive answer after much deliberation, Dillian blinked as if he didn’t know that I would allow it at once .

“Really?”

“Of course, it’s a contract engagement. Write a contract and make sure it is documented.”

No wonder. Dillian said he knew it would be like that, and wiped his face.

It seems that he was skeptical and at the same time, had high hopes.

“I can’t help it. Let’s do that first.”

While replied in a voice full of regret, Dillian immediately filled out the document, afraid I might change my mind.

The conditions were simple.

[Dillian Sinaize protects Ria Delice from the Great Temple.

Ria Delice periodically calms the curse of Dillian Sinaize.

The two act as temporary spouses.

The contract could be terminated by mutual agreement.]

Dillian smiled as he perfectly printed the document and fingerprint it. His smile is as hot and bright as the midsummer sun.

At an innocent smile that was not mixed with any impurities, heat raised.

‘It’s just a contract, is it that good?’

I lowered my face in fear of revealing my unsightly face.

I desperately hoped that my hair would cover my reddish ears.

“Let’s get the ring right now.”

“Ring is uncomfortable…. It’s not even a real engagement, so why don’t we skip it?”

There was a high probability that Dillian would not wear the ring that was given to him.

‘It’s better than to be left unattended in a drawer.’

But Dillian’s thoughts were different.

“We need the rings. For a proof. If it’s uncomfortable for you, you can take time and adjust it slowly.”

He finally insisted on the ring. It was me who took a step back at the expression that said I could not back down this time.

“What style of engagement do you like? Should we do it with just us alone, or will we open it up so grandly for everyone in the Empire to know?”

“Let’s skip it. It’s a contract engagement, so there’s no need to make a fuss.”

But I can’t back down from this one.

I’m sorry for the excited Dillian, but I didn’t even think about the engagement ceremony in the first place.

You never know what will happen to a person.

If we do it grandly and break up later, it would be a mess.

Not me, but Dillian.

I was a person who had nothing to lose, but Dillian was a person who had so much to lose.

“Then let’s make the wedding bigger than anyone else.”

“Why do you think we are going to have a wedding?”

“I think a fake relationship has a very high chance of becoming a real relationship.”

It was a gaze that made something impossible look possible.

If I refuse even this, he will do the engagement ceremony arbitrarily, so I nodded.

“Yes, it is.”

No way, are we really going to get married?

***

Tuk, grapes that fell from Nathan’s mouth rolled down the carpet.

“What, what, engagement?!”

“Yeah. That’s what happened.”

As expected, Nathan jumped at the news of my engagement.

I picked up the grapes it spilled and talked about the situation.

Nathan raised its eyebrows with a chewed expression throughout the story.

I expected it to explode like a volcano sooner or later, but Nathan calmly nodded its head unexpectedly.

“Yeah, that’s the most effective way.”

“Is it? Anyway, there’s bondage. Then if in the end I can’t leave sir Dillian’s side, It wouldn’t be bad to live by helping each other.”

“Did he say that?”

“Yeah.”

“Just like a swindler.”

Nathan mumbled lowly and furrowed its eyebrows.

‘It didn’t sound like a scam.’

I don’t think Dillian made this with pure intentions. It is sure to be full of personal selfishness.

But, as Nathan said, being with Dillian is the most effective way.

‘It’s not a scam after all.’

Nathan, who looked at Dillian’s bad mouth with a shaky expression on its face, immediately shook its head.

“Phew, all right. Let’s go like this for now.”

Nathan, who had been muttering to itself as if lamenting, immediately lifted its hardened face and praised me.

“Good job. No matter what kind of personality he has, he’s nice to you, so he’ll be fine.”

Nathan spread its wings and stroked my hair.

“But are the Great Temple really going to take me?”

“Sure they are, they must have heard through Harris that you had purified Teevee’s forest. And since the Darkness has appeared, even if they fail to take you, they will come to see you at least once.”

The Darkness, the sense of facing it came back.

Visceral disgust and contempt, and a primal warning not to get too close.

“Nathan, why is the Darkness after me?”

“By nature, dark things are bound to covet the light.”

Couldn’t stand Nathan’s words, I gave a fake laugh.

“Am I the light?”

Laughing with my teeth showing, I hugged the cushion that was nearby.

“It’s nonsense.”

“It does make sense.”

Nathan ran around and spoke, but I let its words slip into one ear.

Because everything Nathan’s say was the right thing.

“I wanted to live a quiet life, but what is this?”

I thought the only thing looking for me was the temple, but I never imagined that there would be even a disgusting monster chasing me too.

I felt like I met a tiger while trying to avoid a fox.

“Don’t be too anxious. If it were you, you would definitely be able to get rid of it.”

“I don’t want to meet….”

But things don’t go my way.

I had a strong intuition that we would meet again soon.

***

A week has passed.

If it is long, it is long, if it is short, it is short. During that time, I solidified my position as a madam-to-be.

“Madam. Good morning.”

“Madam. Where would you like to eat?”

“Madam. In the dressing room….”

“Madam.”

The problem is that it was too stiff.

‘We’re only getting engaged, why is everyone calling me Madam?’

Everyone called me madam.

Only the Haren sisters, who became my direct maid, call my name here.

‘Am I Voldemort*?’

*Voldemort is the fictional arch-villain of the Harry Potter series.

Even if I begged them to call me with my name, it was a fleeting moment. When they come to their senses, they are back to calling me madam.

‘Dillian must have used his hand.’

I could be sure. When I was with Dillian, and they called me madam, he would smile strangely with satisfaction.

I don’t know how many times it was, I counted to seven and gave up.

“Ria, the weather is quite like spring today.”

“That’s right. The sun is warm.”

After winter, spring came in March.

“Shall we go for a walk after a long time?”

“Great.”

I jumped up at Nathan’s suggestion. I opened the closet, put on my shawl, took Nathan in my arms, and headed outside.

The destination was a garden, to be exact a glass greenhouse.

On the way to the garden, I ran into some servants, but they quietly disappeared with greetings.

I hugged Nathan for no reason as they secretly took a hint from me.

‘Are they dissatisfied with the sudden rise of a commoner to a preliminary duchess?’

A sigh came out of my duchy’s life, which is becoming more and more uncomfortable with each passing day .

I felt like I was causing damage to those around me.

Passing through the barren garden, the glass greenhouse door was opened, and a scorching heat came in.

“It’s a mess.”

I didn’t expect anything from the beginning, but it was nonetheless.

“Ria, I have never seen such a poor greenhouse in my life.”

“So do I. It’s like a warehouse, not a greenhouse.”

I sighed deeply at the weeds that had been left unattended for a very long time and were on the verge of shriveling, and the manure, shovels, and broken flower pots scattered here and there.

“Really, he’s a man who has no interest in flowers.”

An empty greenhouse in a prestigious duke mansion. Although it is possible to plant flowers for ornamental purposes, Dillian was a terribly indifferent man.

“It made me very full to have such a nice greenhouse and leave it unattended.”

I straightened my skirt and sat down and pulled out the weeds.

It was an occupational disease. It was a sight I couldn’t just look at for myself, who had been growing plants for the past year.

That was the time when weeds were gradually piling up.

Squeak-

The door opened with a loud noise from the old hinges.

“So you were here. I have been looking for you for a while.”