Chapter 31
Rayten, who had been silently staring at Gaia, let out a short, amused snort.
“Do you even have family?”
Demons were far more selfish than anyone could imagine.
It was easy to see that just by looking at Gaia.
They had no compassion or mercy. Anyone who underestimated them, even briefly, would pay the price with their life.
“Oh my, that hurts a little. I may seem like this, but I actually have quite a delicate sense of feeling, you know.”
“What is the power of that demon?”
Ignoring Gaia’s idle chatter, he got straight to the point.
Gaia, pretending it was a joke, wrinkled her nose and smiled, but he replied indifferently.
“Greed.”
The thought of Geist seemed unpleasant to her, as her face darkened with displeasure.
“A human wrapped up in greed hands everything over to that guy. He gives them what they want, so they ask for all the gold, treasures, power, and love in the world.”
“And the price?”
Gaia lifted her white leg slightly so her red shoe was visible and snorted.
“Well… it varies. A bit of this and that.”
As a demon of greed, Geist often made contracts far harsher than normal demons.
“Starting with the life of the contractor and their family, parts of the body of the person they love most… you name it. There’s a lot.”
“Not too different from you, then.”
At Rayten’s comment, Gaia slammed her hand on the table, showing her annoyance.
“Don’t compare me to him! I still have a sense of ethics. I don’t touch anything outside the contract terms. But that guy… he’s completely different.”
“Does it matter? They’re all demons anyway.”
“It does. Even after a contract, Geist demands everything the moment he wants it. And the contract itself must have been enormous. Ordinary things won’t satisfy him.”
“I wonder who the human that made a contract with such a demon is.”
It seemed like a cruel demon, judging by how Gaia spoke as if it were tiresome. Why on earth would someone make a contract with such a being?
“Well, whatever the purpose, if someone makes a contract with a demon, their doom is inevitable. Either they suffer enough to almost die, lose something precious, or they meet death themselves.”
Knowing the predetermined end of life was terribly dull.
That was why he hoped Selena wouldn’t get involved in his life.
She approached to break the curse, but only to that extent.
He didn’t want her to get entangled in his dirty, complicated, and lonely life, risking a miserable fate.
…Does he care about Selena?
He recalled the question Elisha had once asked.
He felt both anger and relief when he faced her after she came all the way here to bring him back to the Bennett Dukedom.
When he saw the scarf around her white neck, he had wanted to cut off the hand that had once tried to strangle her.
Yet, she had persistently insisted they return together to the end.
“There’s no need to be curious. I think she’ll reveal herself soon. Geist is openly showing off his power; he must want me to notice.”
Lost in thought, Rayten silently nodded.
“You’re thinking about something else even though I asked you to tell me?”
“Like you said, if there’s a contract with a demon, there must be a purpose. And seeing him acting freely in my territory, I think he wants me to notice.”
Rayten neatly summarized the situation and stood up.
The sharp rose scent of Gaia made his head spin.
Or maybe it was the unbearable thoughts of Selena that made his head ache.
Either way, it wasn’t a good sign.
He was starting to feel a young, faint emotion that shouldn’t exist in a life where nothing precious should take root.
“Your Grace!”
While exploring the halls of the Zains Dukedom with Jjakjjak-i, I spotted the light brown hair in the distance and raised my hand.
‘You’ve been nowhere to be seen since morning!’
Avoiding me, he had been impossible to find, even after wandering the halls several times early in the morning.
Seeing me waving both hands enthusiastically, Rayten froze awkwardly.
This was my chance. I clutched my dress and ran toward him.
When I stopped right in front of him, his blue eyes turned toward me.
‘Yes, that’s it. This feels good.’
Whenever Rayten looked at me kindly, my heart settled calmly.
“Did you not sleep well?”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Here.”
I tiptoed and lightly tapped under his eyes.
There was no way he could hide the dark circles shadowing his pale, almost white face.
He grabbed my hand as I reached for his eyes and pulled it down, saying,
“I had too much work to sleep.”
“Is your work really so overwhelming that you can’t return to the ducal residence?”
“Yes. That much.”
‘Is it because of the problems in the northern territory?’
Not knowing what exactly had happened, I slumped my shoulders sadly.
Even if I wanted to know, it was obvious he wouldn’t tell me.
Though he wasn’t as cold as last time, I still felt a distance growing between us.
A silent request: don’t come here any further.
I had no intention of complying. Even a small opening would make me happy.
A wave of disappointment started washing over me.
“Is it really so busy that you can’t even talk to me?”
“…If I say yes, will you cry?”
“You know me too well. I was just thinking how frustrated I am. I’ve been upset since morning.”
Even with my whining, Rayten didn’t offer any reply.
If I wanted to collapse out of frustration, I couldn’t let that happen!
“I’m upset, but I’m okay! Then, shall we have lunch together instead?”
“I have prior engagement for lunch today. I’m sorry, but can you eat alone?”
He touched the back of his head with a troubled expression.
“Oh, a prior engagement is fine. I just suggested it abruptly, no big deal.”
I had hoped to leave the mansion and see a little of the northern city today, but that was disappointing.
Though my energy dropped, a short walk might help.
Less than 24 hours in this mansion, yet my body felt strangely heavy.
I needed a light walk to clear my mind.
Even after refusing, I smiled lightly at him to show I was really okay.
He sighed softly, apparently lost in thought, and asked,
“If you ever feel lonely, I can send Oliver…”
“No. Really, I’m fine. I’m not lonely.”
Embarrassed by my refusal, he stiffened his face. I waved my hand gently.
“Then I’ll go for a walk!”
I turned and left.
I wanted to see if Rayten’s gaze followed me, but I didn’t look back.
Once I moved a little away, Jjakjjak-i flew beside me and muttered,
[As you said, he does seem to care about you.]
“Well, I wonder if I’m just making Rayten’s life harder as time goes by.”
[He was just staring blankly at you earlier too.]
“Really?”
And yet he gave such a nonchalant answer? I pouted and grumbled.
“I’m still a guest here, but no one even gave me a tour of the mansion.”
The Zains Dukedom I glanced through today had very few servants.
It was so few I wondered how the mansion ran smoothly.
Even the knights were nowhere to be seen.
‘In the original, Rayten was supposed to be a master swordsman.’
For a house with such a skilled head, having no knights made no sense.
So seeing the Zains Dukedom in person felt unnatural, like Rayten himself: impossible to read.
Passing through the entrance hall, the northern-style garden was shrouded in mist.
‘…Is this haunted? Or a demon?’
Unlike the colorful gardens of other luxurious city mansions, this one was stark.
Not multicolored flowers, but white and black plants. My jaw dropped.
“…Getting these colorless flowers must have been hard.”
[Personality shows. What kind of garden is this, scary?]
Jjakjjak-i flapped its wings and perched on my head. Scratching me with sharp claws, it chirped.
[Don’t go in.]
I obeyed, keeping a step back to survey the garden.
Even in the morning, the northern sky was dark.
This wasn’t a garden I wanted to enter.
‘Skip the garden.’
There must be other places to explore in the mansion.
I passed the garden and walked a bit to the right. In front of the mansion’s main gate, I saw the carriage area where visitors arrived.
A person jumped off a white horse with a golden saddle.
The faint golden aura confirmed my guess.
“Selena Bennett, Grand Duchess?”
A woman with silver hair tied high in a single braid called my name.
