IDEFYEM - Chapter 92
Black Man, I'll Do Everything For You Except Marriage!
The man seemed momentarily confused as to how he interpreted the agitation in Enrica's eyes.
Then he opened his mouth and said something surprising.
"Don't be nervous. Nothing will happen tonight."
Are you saying you won't hit me?
Enrica, who was guessing the meaning of the man's words, was surprised to realize the connection between the current situation and those words.
Today is the first night. If it's something that could happen in the middle of the night....
She started to get even more nervous at those words and flinched.
I was used to men's lies. Outside of the dukedom, the Duke would introduce me as her beloved, sickly daughter, and he would introduce himself as a father who cared so much for his daughter.
"Really. This is a marriage driven solely by my greed, so I know that we need time to get to know each other."
He was touching his lips with an embarrassed expression and slowly reassured Enrica.
The Grand Duke had a voice as charming and serious as his appearance.
"Do you mind if I sit next to you? I'd like to talk."
Although the man was probably the one who didn't need to be nervous in their relationship, strangely enough, the man who told Enrica not to be nervous actually watched her.
I could feel the poison going down my esophagus and getting hotter inside my body.
'Even if something happens, it's okay because there isn't much time left anyway.'
Thinking like that, Enrica moved aside and offered the seat next to her on the bed.
The man smiled slightly and sat down on the edge of the bed.
I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing that the final path turned out to be different than I thought. The Grand Duke was strange in a completely different way than I expected. He was acting strange.
In the passing silence, he kept looking at Enrica.
"Is there anything you want to ask me?"
Enrica did not enjoy talking to others.
To avoid being beaten by the Duke, I had to choose my every word carefully.
On days when I made a mistake and received corporal punishment, I spent the whole day regretting what I said and went to sleep.
"Even trivial questions are okay. I would be happy if you asked."
The Grand Duke, who was looking at Enrica, who was unable to open her mouth with her lips pursed, spoke lowly.
Enrica continued to think and eventually impulsively asked.
"Why did you marry me?"
If it's the last time anyway, it's okay to ask questions you're really curious about.
"The Grand Duke's family is such a great family that they don't need the help of the Duke of Wintersoar. I know you paid a lot to marry me."
Enrica also knew what the world was like. This was clearly a marriage that was a loss for him.
Instead of answering, the man smiled slightly and then spoke.
"I wanted to make you happy."
In response to the unexpected answer, Enrica leaned in slightly and asked.
"Who?"
"You, Ma'am."
The shameless answer he gave without even putting a single drop of saliva in his mouth felt absurd.
"... It's a lie."
"I am not good at lying."
I simply thought he was a man who was used to making women happy.
In any case, it was true that my guard had relaxed a little without my knowledge.
"Cough, cough..."
Enrica coughed. The pain in my neck was gradually getting stronger.
"Are you okay?"
The man immediately stood up and supported My upper body. He checked to see if the window was closed with worried eyes and then handed me a soft handkerchief that he had taken from his arms.
I never thought that such a large man could have the delicate side of carrying a handkerchief.
"Your Highness...."
He waited for Enrica to speak without prompting.
"Maybe you're completely different from the rumors."
"What rumors did you hear?"
These were all difficult things to say in front of the parties involved. The Grand Duke spoke leisurely as if he knew everything.
"It's okay, so tell me."
"It is said that you killed your other brothers in the battle for succession and became the Grand Duke...."
"Unfortunately it is true. Also?"
"... They said that you like seeing human blood and that you are violent. The reason you married me is because you need a toy to abuse to your heart's content..."
I, who was repeating what I had heard from Marta, suddenly stopped.
The sound of the Grand Duke's laughter pierced my ears. When I came to my senses, she regretted what I had just done.
"S-sorry...."
"It may be an undeniable fact that I have a violent side."
The Grand Duke shrugged his shoulders and said.
"But you will never have to face that side of me in your life."
"That... Why?"
"Because I owe you my life."
I thought I was hearing a strange joke. I couldn't figure out his true feelings.
Rafael waited for Enrica's silence for a long time.
Then, suddenly, he asked a question like someone who couldn't control his impulses.
"Do you really not know me?"
Enrica looked back at her memories with a confused expression. But if I had met the Grand Duke before, there was no way I wouldn't have remembered him.
"I don't know...."
I muttered in an uncertain voice. All I could tell was that his feelings right now were sincere.
Those eyes couldn't be hidden. Even if this is a misunderstanding, even if he mistakes me for someone else. At least he was sincere now.
"Then. Don't you hate me?"
"Even if I saw you for the first time today, I don't think I would have any reason to dislike you."
"You didn't say a word during the entire wedding. Before that, you had never even come to see me, your fiancee..."
It definitely shouldn't have been. There's no way you don't hate me.
I thought so and quickly opened my mouth.
It wasn't that I suddenly regretted taking poison myself. It wasn't a decision that could be shaken by something like this.
But if the man really didn't have the intention to harm me, if he wasn't a crazy killer like Martha said...
I feel so sorry for him as he will soon have to face the corpse of his bride who died on the first night.
"I did it because I was nervous."
"Yes?"
"I was so nervous I couldn't see your eyes."
I narrowed my eyebrows as if I had heard something nonsense.
"I'm sorry if my shortcomings hurt you. But I..."
But when he looked up, his ears were truly as red as autumn leaves.
"You... Are beautiful."
Raphael raised his hand and touched his red ear as if trying to hide it.
I heard what I wanted to hear the most on the day I wanted to hear it the most. And to the most unexpected person.
I heart throbbed as I experienced this for the first time.
It was then. Suddenly, there was thunder and lightning outside the window.
Enrica, who was already very nervous, crouched in surprise.
No matter how much it hurt, I was used to always holding back screaming and crying, so this time I endured it without making a loud noise.
As I lowered my head, I immediately heard the loud sound of rain. As the poison flowed through my body, my breathing became increasingly difficult.
"..."
And when I looked up again, I was surprised once again. Before I knew it, Raphael was getting closer, with a distance of about a span between us.
"It's raining, so I think it's cold."
The man, embarrassed by the gaze he met, stuttered. I, who was wearing a thin slip, seemed to be concerned.
Raphael pulled a bunch of blankets and covered my legs with them.
Tears suddenly flowed from my eyes as I watched that scene. Raphael's eyes widened from tears as sudden as the rain shower outside the window.
"As expected, aren't you feeling well?"
"No. Your Highness. It's not like that."
"Call me Raphael."
It was an offer that I would normally have rejected. But the thought that my life was coming to an end encouraged me
"Raphael."
Besides, this man... He did not criticize or scold me for my tears.
He didn't yell that he didn't want to see it or seemed disappointed.
That fact comforted me and distressed me at the same time.
Raphael might also change over time. But maybe...
"Why am I so stupid until the end? "
"It's the last time."
"Why do I feel this way now?"
Enrica spoke in a faint voice as if she couldn't hear Rafael's words.
"I should have lived longer."
My eyes, slowly losing their shine, shook uneasily.
"I should have waited a little longer...."
Finally, I raised my head and made eye contact with Raphael.
Suddenly, my head fell down.
The man asked, reflexively extending his arm and supporting my upper body.
“Enrica?”
But My answer never came back.
The glass bottle I was holding tightly in my hand fell and rolled across the floor.
Raphael recognized its identity at a glance.
***
Rafael called Enrica's name several times in the room he was left alone in.
He couldn't accept the strangely cooling body in his arms.
"..."
A few seconds later he jumped up, holding Enrica's body.
He ran out of the room barefoot, opened the door, and ran down the hallway.
How did he meet her again?
He tightened the hand holding Enrica. He was determined not to let go.
At that moment, someone grabbed Raphael's arm.
"What did you do to the Lady!"
The person who stopped Raphael was a red-haired woman wearing a maid's uniform.
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