Scandal
Heredin could not take his eyes off the place where Blair should have been as he dismounted and asked the knight in front of him,
“…My wife.”
“Th-that is…”
“Speak.
Don’t make me ask twice.”
“…She has not been seen for about an hour.”
At the news delivered by the knight, the blood in his entire body seemed to turn cold, then boil again.
Heredin slowly closed his eyes, suppressing the rising anger.
The emotion he forced down burned hot in his throat.
“Explain the situation.
What happened.”
The knight quickly explained.
A child from the Selden marquisate had gone missing, and Blair and the other noblewomen had lent the knights of their respective families to help search for the child.
And while Lina briefly stepped away because of stomach pain, Blair had disappeared.
“…Any witnesses.”
“It seems no one saw anything.
Everyone was busy searching for the child.”
After hearing everything, Heredin opened his eyes.
His sharp blue gaze pierced them.
“Since when did the Marquess of Selden become your lord?”
A killing intent seemed to drip from his low voice.
Under that pressure, the knights unconsciously flinched.
It was the instinct of beasts recognizing someone stronger than themselves.
Like fearing death.
Their usually generous lord now reminded them that he was, at his core, the cold and ruthless ruler of the north.
The knights could not even dare to apologize and simply lowered their heads.
Beside them, Lina also trembled under the pressure.
But what frightened her more was the thought that Blair might have been harmed because of her mistake.
In the tense atmosphere where it would not have been strange for someone to die at any moment, a woman’s voice suddenly spoke.
“I came to offer my thanks…
But has the Duchess not returned yet?”
It was Rachel Selden.
She was holding a child in her arms.
The very nephew who had supposedly gone missing.
At her words, Heredin frowned.
“…Hasn’t returned?”
“I saw her enter the forest earlier with one of the knights.”
Heredin’s expression hardened.
A knight.
Could that knight possibly be Asiel?
“Young lady.
Do you remember which family that knight belonged to?”
“I was too distracted to notice the family crest.
I assumed he was naturally a knight of Delmark…
Has something happened to the Duchess?”
Rachel’s words stirred the Delmark knights and Lina as well.
A noblewoman disappearing with a knight during a picnic.
No one knew the truth, but it was the perfect picture for a scandal.
Realizing this, Lina hurriedly stepped in front of Heredin.
“N-no, Your Grace!
It’s a misunderstanding!
My lady would never do something like that!”
Forgetting her fear from moments earlier, she could only think of defending Blair’s innocence.
“She knew I would return soon, so she would never leave without even telling—”
“Shut that mouth.”
Heredin coldly cut off Lina’s defense.
Startled, Lina fell silent.
Strong denial in this situation would only deepen suspicion.
Especially with outsiders present who were not part of Delmark.
The reason he had barely maintained began to cool his mind rapidly.
Lina was right.
Even if she had a passionate lover somewhere, Blair was not the type to reveal it in such a careless way.
And it was not the right time to create a scandal either.
She had not yet uncovered the truth behind the Empress Palace incident.
‘I don’t want to keep living in ignorance just because it’s difficult and frightening anymore.’
Yes, she had definitely said that.
But…
‘Can I trust her?’
That woman?
If she had already achieved the purpose of this contract marriage?
If she no longer had any reason to maintain it?
Regardless of the truth behind the Empress Palace incident, she might create a scandal and leave his side.
The only proof of their contract was a single piece of paper.
Suspicion spread like wildfire.
‘…No. That’s not what matters right now.’
First he needed to bring Blair before him.
Whoever she was with, whatever she was doing—that came first.
Just as Heredin gathered his emotions and turned toward the forest again, Rachel—who had been watching him—smiled gently as if she understood everything.
“She’ll return soon.
The Blair I know is that kind of person.”
“Of course.
Our noble Duchess would never do such a thing.”
Wesley suddenly appeared and chimed in.
“Oh, I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop.
I just happened to hear it while passing by.”
Heredin looked at Wesley with icy eyes.
Wesley faltered for a moment under that gaze but quickly forced a casual smile.
“Perhaps the Duchess simply went for a walk and got lost?”
“Y-yes.
That must be it.”
Not even knowing who Wesley was, Lina desperately agreed with his words.
Wesley patted Lina on the shoulder as if pleased with her support and said to Heredin,
“Since it’s come to this, we’ll send our knights to help search as well.
We should find her quickly before this becomes a bigger issue.”
Heredin stared at Wesley’s self-satisfied expression for a moment before mounting his horse and heading toward the forest.
* * *
Wesley took Heredin’s silence as agreement and deployed the marquisate’s knights to search for Blair.
‘She should be around here somewhere.’
Leisurely looking around as he entered deeper into the forest, Wesley finally found what he was looking for.
Among the overgrown trees stood a dilapidated abandoned house.
It had once been used as a dwelling by forest wardens.
Seeing it, Wesley’s lips curled upward.
Blair, who had been kidnapped under his orders, was probably inside.
Wesley had instructed the kidnapper—disguised as a knight—to bring Blair to this abandoned house.
And when the sound of horses was heard, to stage the situation.
As if the two of them had been having an affair there.
‘I wonder what that proud Duchess looks like now.’
And the expression Heredin would make when he saw his wife like that.
Just imagining it made his body tremble with excitement.
Suppressing the smile that kept rising to his lips, Wesley spoke to Heredin walking ahead.
“I think I heard someone inside that house.
Shall we check?”
Without a word, Heredin dismounted and approached the house first.
Wesley followed behind him, anticipating the reaction that would soon come.
Then suddenly, Heredin’s footsteps stopped the moment he entered.
‘Did he see it?’
Expecting the sight of Blair in disarray and Heredin’s shocked expression, Wesley stepped inside.
But contrary to his expectations, Wesley’s face stiffened the moment he entered.
‘What the hell…?’
There was no one there.
* * *
Thirty minutes earlier.
Blair slowly opened her eyes as if waking from a deep sleep.
The first thing she saw was the crumbling ceiling above her, covered in spider webs.
Sunlight seeped through the cracks and reflected off the webs.
‘Where am I…?’
As she blinked to focus her blurry vision, Blair realized there was a gag in her mouth.
At the same time, her last memory returned.
She had been waiting for Lina.
Then she stepped out of the carriage to head toward the place where the young Marchioness Selden was.
That was when someone covered her mouth from behind.
She had been kidnapped.
Realizing the situation, her heart began pounding wildly.
‘Who?
Why?’
At that moment, footsteps approached behind her and an unfamiliar man’s voice spoke.
“Shouldn’t you be waking up soon?”
Before the man could notice, Blair quickly shut her eyes.
The man strode closer and roughly lifted her chin.
“She really is damn beautiful.”
“….”
“It’s a little boring just staring at you.”
The man’s rough fingers brushed her lips.
The touch, filled with sinister desire, made her skin crawl—but Blair endured it desperately.
From the man’s earlier words and her instincts, she felt that she must not reveal she was awake.
“Hm.
Before she wakes up, I should relieve myself first.”
The man left Blair and walked away.
Soon the sound of water dripping echoed.
Hearing it, Blair slowly opened her eyes.
The man was urinating in a corner of the abandoned house.
Although he wore a knight’s uniform, he didn’t seem to be a real knight.
The family crest on the right arm of the uniform looked convincing at first glance, but on closer inspection it was crudely made.
Blair quickly looked around.
Fortunately, her arms and legs were not tied.
He must have assumed he could easily subdue a single woman on his own.
Nearby, she noticed a fairly large wooden plank.
‘If I hit him in the head with that, would he faint?’
But what if he didn’t faint in one blow?
Then he would catch her.
‘Even if he catches me, he probably won’t kill me.’
If he intended to kill her, he would have done so already.
Unless he was simply waiting for the right moment.
Either way, it meant killing her immediately would cause problems.
That meant it was worth trying.
The sound of water gradually stopped.
Holding her breath, Blair quietly stood up and picked up the wooden plank.
It was quite heavy, but she thought she could swing it with both hands.
She only had one chance.
Blair swallowed hard and raised the plank.
But just as she was about to bring it down on the man’s head—
“Oh?
You were awake?”
The man turned around with a grin.