Chapter 56

Frida instinctively hugged Daniel's neck. Despite having been embraced a few times before, the feeling of her body floating in the air was no longer as unfamiliar or frightening as it used to be.

“Da, Daniel?”

Daniel, who had lifted her up, strode up the stairs. Muriel, who had lost her words, stood there blankly, her figure quickly shrinking and then disappearing behind a pillar. The servants who occasionally passed by them stepped back awkwardly and bowed. With nowhere to look, Frida hugged Daniel's neck tighter and bowed her head deeply.

“Daniel, stop this and put me down. I can walk.”

“You look tired.”

Daniel's forehead lightly touched and then pulled away from above Frida's eyebrows.

“You have a fever too.”

Despite the low and calm voice that seemed to penetrate her ears, the breath that touched her forehead was quite warm. Glancing up, she noticed his Adam's apple, which seemed to be holding back anger, prominently protruding. Though she was a bit tired, did she really look that bad? Frida pouted and asked in return.

“Really? Do I look very sick?”

By the time Daniel had climbed to the third floor, he stopped walking in the corridor. He looked down at Frida, whose white eyelashes were weakly drooping. As he watched her pale face, which appeared and disappeared with the swaying shade, it felt like he was in a dream.

“Daniel, here. Here.”

The voice calling her seemed to float lazily in the air like a gentle spring breeze, tickling her ears. The sound of her name, which seemed to come from the window, felt very unfamiliar, and she couldn't immediately respond. It didn't feel like her own. Under the clear sky, Frida's eyes were dazzled. It was hard to distinguish between the light and herself. As she watched this scene, she felt as if she was crossing the ambiguous boundary between reality and illusion. Even though she could see with her eyes, hear with her ears, and even hold her in her arms, why did this woman feel like an intangible dream? She felt uneasy, fearing that if she reached out, she would only grasp a mirage that would scatter and disappear. If it really was a mirage? If she faced her own powerless self, unable to do anything, in the face of an empty hand, just like three years ago when she threw herself to save Dominic, and everything stopped and her vision darkened. Just as the darkness that enveloped him was about to swallow everything.

“Daniel?”

The warmth of his hand cupping her cheek woke him up. Daniel quickly blinked to accept the light flooding in. In that light, he saw Frida. She was touching his face as if sharing her own life force, and quietly watching him. I'm here. Right in front of you. It seemed like she was saying that. His eyes gradually focused. Her transparent, violet eyes anxiously examined him. Daniel's lips twitched slightly.

“Do you even realize how much you're overworking yourself?”

As he spoke, Frida's hand, which had been on his cheek, fell away, seemingly reassured. Looking around, she blushed shyly.

“What if people see us doing this? They'll gossip about the duke and duchess. Put me down quickly.”

“Does that mean it's fine when no one is watching?”

“Daniel, that's not what I meant.”

Though he wanted to admire her flustered appearance for longer, they had arrived at the door, and there was no longer any reason to hold her. Daniel carefully set Frida down in the corridor.

“If you don't like this, take better care of yourself. I am your husband...”

He didn't completely let her go. With his arm around her slender waist, Daniel held her close and looked down at her intently.

“I want you to be healthy, Frida.”

Frida, who had been wriggling her small shoulders to be let go, slowly turned her eyes to the side.

“It's not that I don't like it...”

Her pale, soft face, dotted with fine down, bloomed red like a fully opened rose.

“I'm just embarrassed.”

The world went dark again, but this time, everything around Frida was blurry. Daniel's vision was filled with her face, as white as a snowy field. Her face looked up at him, shyly smiling, and then blushed again. Suddenly, it fell to the ground. Lifting his hand, Daniel supported her small, delicate chin, pushing himself back into her gaze. Closer. A little closer. Until the part of himself that hadn't yet been contained in her overflowed. He touched her tender lips, which would leave a mark if bitten lightly, and entered her. Though he hadn't learned how to kiss a woman, he instinctively knew what to find inside. Running his fingers through her hair, which was slightly crispy from the spring sun, and wrapping his hand around her neck, he felt the fine tremor of her slender neck easily in his hand. As the heat of her body and the rapid pulse under her skin were imprinted on his skin, he realized she was in his reality. At that moment, a deep, overwhelming joy welled up inside Daniel.

***

In a completely dark space where not a single ray of light entered, the only sound Matilda could hear was her own faint breathing.

“Matilda.”

When she suddenly heard her name, she was even more startled. Matilda, who was terrified, twisted her hands tied behind her back and pushed herself away with her arms. Her broken leg hurt, but she wanted to get as far away from the voice as possible.

“It's no use struggling. You'll only make it harder on yourself.”

The voice was definitely familiar, yet completely unfamiliar. Could the owner of that cold, eerie voice really be Dominic? The same person who made people laugh with his witty remarks and sometimes made her heart race. The unfamiliar Dominic and the situation she was in were both unbelievable, and she shook her head.

“I, I don't know. I really don't know! I, I don't even know who the Empress is. It's true. Sob. Why are you doing this to me, Dominic!”

She was suddenly dragged here and had no idea how much time had passed or why she was in this situation, trembling with fear. When Dominic appeared, his question was, “When did you start colluding with the Empress?” The Empress? The Emperor's mother? For Matilda, who was born in a rural area and had lived as a maid for generations, she was only a figure she had heard about.

“What do you mean by colluding? How could I know such a high-ranking person? Sob, sob. I really... don't know anything.”

Her blindfold was always wet from crying. At first, she was only scared, but now she felt heartbroken. How could Dominic do this to her? They had spent so much time together.

“Please believe me, Dominic. I really don't know her. We've all been like family. Sob, why would I collude with anyone? Sob, sob.”

He lifted Matilda, who was crying, by her arm.

“Aah!”

The pain from her injured leg, which was dragged along the floor, was unbearable.

“Matilda.”

Dominic's voice, calling her, was even colder for some reason.

“I don't like seeing you in pain. But there's something you're misunderstanding.”

Dominic came close to her face. His breath touched the blindfold above her eyes.

“I only consider my father and Daniel as family. You... are nothing.”

Despite the inhumanly cold voice, his breath felt warm.

“Let's get this over with. Please.”

Even that was cold. *** The kiss that started in front of the room continued into the bedroom and even when they lay on the bed. Daniel never let her go, pressing his lips to hers. When Frida felt she couldn't breathe, his lips would briefly pull away and move to her neck, shoulders, and the space between her unbuttoned collar and collarbone. Only then did she realize how much dust had accumulated on her body from visiting the fields and the mercenary quarters. Frida pushed Daniel's firm shoulders and called out to him.

“D, Daniel.”

“Yes.”

As he answered, his lips nipped at her soft skin. He was a man who did such embarrassing things without any hesitation. Frida tapped his shoulder a little harder.

“I, I want to wash. Let's do it after we wash. I'm dirty.”

He chuckled, a pleasant sound coming from above her chest. When he lifted his head to meet her eyes, a soft smile played on his lips.

“What do you want to do after washing?”

“Huh?”

His mischievous, playful smile added to the effect.

“After washing every inch of you, what do you want to do with me?”

When he said "every inch," his eyes seemed to turn slightly red.

“Well...”

There was only one thing to do, right? Frida, who was already blushing, blinked rapidly and stammered.

“A, a wife's duty?”

Daniel's lips curled up widely at her words. Although it was worth admiring his smile, she needed to get out of this embarrassing situation first.

“H, the Harkbone family's nanny said that before performing a wife's duty, one must clean oneself.”

As soon as she said that, Daniel's lips twitched, and then he suddenly laughed.

“Hahaha.”

His deep, resonant laugh was very pleasant to hear. However, unlike her, he seemed very skilled at this, which was a bit annoying.

“D, don't laugh. Unlike you, I lack knowledge in this area. The only thing I know is what the nanny said.”

With a pout, she turned her head, and his lips landed on her cheek. His still-smiling lips pressed and tickled her cheek.

“Tell me what else the nanny said. I need to know at least a little to avoid disappointing you.”

“What...”

Frida, who didn't understand what Daniel meant, stared at him blankly.

“Unfortunately, there's no one around me who can give advice on a normal marital relationship, so I know almost nothing. Before performing the duty, one must clean oneself. What comes next?”

What? Is he teasing me? This sounds like he's saying he's no different from me. How old is he this year? He was twenty-five when they got married, so now he's twenty-eight, almost thirty. Considering the three-year gap, that's understandable. But did he really live without a woman before that? The nanny said that the duke would know what to do, and she should just follow when the time came. As if reading her thoughts, Daniel smiled and gently stroked her furrowed brow with his thumb.

“I said it before. I have no intention of having a mistress.”

That means... really, truly, he has never had a woman by his side?

“But if it's a duty, don't worry. Today isn't that day.”

His fingers, which had passed over her eyes, moved her disheveled hair behind her ear.

“We'll do that duty when you're fully prepared.”

“P, prepared? What kind of preparation...”

Her mouth opened in surprise, and her voice, which sounded embarrassingly naive even to her, came out.

“I mean when you're ready to fully accept me.”

“When will that be?”

The sooner, the better. Daniel, who chuckled, gently caressed Frida's swollen lips with his fingertips.

“I don't know. Let's try kissing a hundred times and see.”