Just a few days ago. Rodelia paced around her room, unable to hide her nervous expression.

With each step she took, her anxiety increased and weighed down on her body. She couldn’t think straight after hearing that Kane was coming to Luvenia.

What calmed her down was Cerdian’s proposal, which was absurd, perhaps even outrageous.

“There is a way to prevent the emperor from taking you.”

Rodelia’s gaze turned to Cerdian who was sitting on the sofa. There was a little anticipation in her sad blue eyes.

“What is it?”

Even though Cerdian had told her he would not let her go, an uneasy feeling remained inside her. But was there really a way to not go back?

Rodelia felt a strange feeling—whether it was joy or nervousness—she waited for his answer. Her hand trembled as it hovered in the air.

 “All you have to do is register a marriage with a citizen of Luvenia.”

“Register a m-marriage……?”

Cerdian kept his gaze on Rodelia’s trembling hand. He carefully grabbed her hand and said quietly.

“I’m not really asking you to get married. In the current situation, we’re only going to slightly alter some documents to deceive the emperor.”

“Ah…”

“Of course, it will take about 10 days to be approved, but you see, though I may look like this, I am still a grand duke.”

Cerdian gestured lightly and said mischievously. Perhaps it was an act to relieve her tension.

Thanks to that, Rodelia’s stiff shoulders relaxed. But her expression remained pensive.

“Are you not willing?”

“No, I was just a little surprised. But secondly, I don’t know anyone… Is there anyone who would agree to register for marriage with me?”

Of course, Cerdian had a proper method. This was why he brought it up.

However, it did not mean that she wanted to remain in Luvenia and cause harm to others. Certainly, it would be nice if there was such a person, but…

As Rodelia laughed bitterly, he casually tossed out words again.

“Aren’t I here?”

“What?”

“Why are you looking far away? With such a wonderful man in front of you.”

Rodelia tried to organize what was running through her head again and again to make sense of what he was saying. As she only blinked her eyes, Cerdian glided off the sofa and walked slowly.

Mesmerized at the red sunset reflected on his hair, Rodelia stared blankly at Cerdian in front of her.

As usual, Cerdian looked at her as if he were being entangled in it and opened his seductive lips.

His movement as he got down on one knee and taking out a small box from his chest seemed like an illusion. It wasn’t until she saw the ring in the box that she realized he was telling the truth.

What he suggested was obviously absurd. For the sake of Cerdian’s future and those who followed him, it was only right for her to avoid it.

Worries began to grow and stir in her head.  When Rodelia, who was lost in thought, hesitated, Cerdian raised his head and spoke as if trying to reassure her.

“You need to live a little selfishly.”

“…..Can I?”

Rodelia stared blankly at Cerdian’s hand before opening her mouth. In fact, she wanted to reach out and hold his hand right away. She didn’t want to turn down that sweet offer.

The unhealed wounds still deep in her heart erected a wall against his goodwill and put a veil over his sincerity.

But she didn’t want to do that anymore.  Cerdian was the man who reached out to her after she had fallen to the ground. She will no longer suspect him and retreat from thinking that he had arbitrary intentions behind his kindness.

“I’ll do it for you, your companion.”

Having finally made up her mind, Rodelia’s slender hand moved towards Cerdian. A strange smile that she had never seen before appeared on Cerdian’s lips.

 *

“So, are you saying that you and Cerdian Aizen are married?”

Kane continued to sweep his disheveled hair as if it were ridiculous.

“You want me to believe that? Didn’t you say nothing happened?”

And after that, he poured out such vulgar words and expressed his anger to the extent that her ears hurt.

As a matter of fact, she could simply just ignore him. However, since she couldn’t cut off the emperor’s words on her own, she had to endure this level of pain.

She guessed she should respond with something appropriate and send him back quickly.

She was actually quite surprised that she could remain listening to Kane and pretend it was nothing. Rodelia looked at Kane who had finally finished his sentence and coldly shot back at him.

“Didn’t you ask what our relationship is? I have only answered with facts. It’s because it’s still before the first night.” [R]

 “What…?” [K]

“What…?” [C]

Responses surprisingly came back simultaneously.

A sign of bewilderment spread across two faces. Cerdian was the first to erase that sign. When he glanced at Rodelia, she quickly lowered her wavering gaze in embarrassment.

Rodelia Florence, could even think of using Cerdian now.

Cerdian’s mouth twisted slightly as if he had discovered something interesting. If that’s the case, he had to make the most out of this opportunity.

Just in time, Kane evaded everything and asked, seemingly in denial.

“Is this all a sham? Since I said I was coming, you must have resorted to a trick to avoid being taken back to Thebes. Is that it?”

“Well… The papers should have reached Thebes by now.” [C]

It was a question directed towards Rodelia, but the answer came from the wrong person. The annoying voice rang in Kane’s ears again.

“What?” [K]

“If you’d waited a little longer, you wouldn’t have walked for nothing. But tell me, why were you in such a hurry that you forgot the emperor’s dignity and came running like this?” [C]

It was blatant sarcasm that was not fitting to say to the emperor. He added, raising a languid smile on his lips.

“As Your Majesty knows, the marriage registration process is quite complicated. Because there are so many fake marriages, approval is not just given and sometimes takes a fortnight at the earliest to several months at the latest.” [C]

 “That… !” [K]

“And it seems you must have misunderstood, so let me tell you, unfortunately, Your Majesty sent an official letter only a week ago. Since we sent the official notice sooner, I hope you drop any unnecessary misunderstandings.” [C]

It was a lie, of course.

Cerdian acted like someone who didn’t want to hear a single word of Kane’s rebuttal. However, Kane did not back down easily either.

“Liar! Isn’t that something that can be manipulated? You are a grand duke.”

“Ah, I’m not the kind of person who abuses power like that. Unlike someone.”

[T/N: sounded like a slap on Kane’s face]

Cerdian was a more brazen man than she thought. Rodelia turned her head to look at him, but Cerdian didn’t react.

Rodelia’s eyebrows narrowed deeply as he casually spread lies.

“That…!” [K]

In the meantime, Kane opened his mouth as if to protest. Sensing that going further would lead to a big fight, she quickly stopped him. Shocked by her words, Kane’s face twisted with a sense of helplessness.

“Ah, did you say it would be okay as long as we haven’t shared a bed? But just in time, today is our first night. So, can you please stop interfering and go back?” [R]

 *

“You’ve become quite brazen.” [C]

After sending Kane away, it was Cerdian’s playful voice that halted Rodelia’s quick steps as she strode through the corridors, unable to let go of the tension.

If it was like this, there was no point in deliberately speeding up.

“Thanks to someone.” [R]

Rodelia, barely swallowed back the words, ‘Couldn’t you have just ignored it?’ and chewed on her lips instead. Her eyes, which had nowhere to look, stayed on the floor, and faint heat still remained on her cheeks.

“I see.” [C]

“Looks like we got over the first hurdle, right?” [R]

To move past the embarrassing situation, Rodelia quickly turned her nerves elsewhere.

“But the Emperor will not give up. He will try to take you with another excuse.” 

Before she knew it, Cerdian had stopped in front of Rodelia and casually fixed her messy hair. Perhaps annoyed, she bit her lip and frowned her brows.

“Maybe….”

Rodelia calmly accepted his touch and suddenly realized that she was not uncomfortable with this situation. Now, even these little touches have become natural.

It shouldn’t be like this.

She knew very well because she had been through it once. The fact that this kind of emotion will one day gnaw at her and make her weak.

She decided to fully accept Cerdian’s feelings but in fact, it was impossible to change everything in an instant. Rodelia grabbed Cerdian’s large hand and lowered it down.

“I am prepared for that. But he won’t be able to leave his seat for too long, so he’ll be going back to Thebes soon.” [R]

“It was rare to see him stunned, I wonder what kind of cards he will be bringing back next time. Anyway, he’ll just end up failing and go back.” [C]

Cerdian looked a bit taken aback but answered with a smile again. His smile caught her eye.

‘Was he always like this?’

She inadvertently realized that she liked Cerdian’s sly side. She may have fallen for him because of the unique comfort that made her feel at ease no matter how serious things were.

Therefore, when she was with Cerdian, it felt like being in another world. She anticipated that many things will happen in the future, but even so, she can be comfortable as long as she is with him….

Rodelia was surprised by that fact and replied.

“I see. Kane is pretty persistent, so I can’t quite tell what he’s going to do.” [R]

And as she was about to admire his handsome face, Cerdian’s expression suddenly darkened.

“Is there something wrong?” [R]