Chapter 8
“More importantly, there’s something urgent we need to discuss.”
Damon shifted the topic as if unwilling to waste his precious time on useless chatter.
“I’ll take you to my office.”
Valentin’s eyes flashed sharply as he watched Damon, who offered to guide him to the office.
What is this uncomfortable feeling?
Having lived a life constantly surrounded by enemies, Valentin could instinctively distinguish between friendliness and hostility. Right now, what Damon was showing was unmistakably hostility.
Just mentioning Clarissa’s name made him perceive me as an enemy? So, despite acting indifferent, he doesn’t like other men showing interest in Clarissa?
If that’s the case, he isn’t entirely indifferent toward her. But then why is he so cold toward her?
Valentin narrowed his eyes.
Damon was the precious heir of the Lochen family, revered as the reincarnation of a god but ultimately exterminated.
The Lochen family had long held a vast estate in the imperial capital and used their supernatural abilities to support the empire’s prosperity.
Their powers varied: they could summon or stop rain, save lives, or even take them.
Damon’s father, Count Lochen, possessed many such abilities.
A remarkable knight as well, Count Lochen demonstrated the greatness of his powers by leading wars against foreign tribes, ensuring bountiful harvests, and healing the emperor’s illness.
Whether called blessings from spirits or curses from demons, the Lochen powers were ultimately feared.
The emperor, recognizing that Lochen’s powers were unlike the empire’s magic or the paladins’ holy power, sought control and order.
Under pressure from the emperor and the temple, Count Lochen eventually decided to seal his powers in a magical tome.
The price was catastrophic.
The Lochen family was expelled from the capital and forced to settle in the frozen northern mountains once inhabited by foreigners.
The peasants, saved from famine by Count Lochen’s aid, revolted first.
“No to the Lochen relocation!”
“Let’s unite and defend the Lochen family!”
“Move the emperor’s palace to the north if you must!”
Even the nobility wavered under the complaints, frightening the emperor.
At that moment, a knight stepped forward to calm the emperor and organize the chaos: Duke Rackton.
He visited Count Lochen in the north and blamed the emperor.
“How could a man of honor like you be given such barren land? There must be some mistake. I will personally meet the emperor and convey the nobility of the Lochen family.”
Duke Rackton swore oaths of knighthood in front of Count Lochen and the local people, slowly gaining their trust.
Half a year later, he drove Count Lochen into a trap and murdered him, framing him for treason.
From the start, Rackton had planned to get close to Count Lochen to gather information, frequently visiting the estate.
Even with the powers sealed, Count Lochen remained formidable.
Rackton waited for the right moment, then led an army to strike the Lochen domain.
“Burn everything of Lochen that collaborated with foreigners and endangered the empire!”
The northern lands painstakingly developed by the Lochen family were trampled, and the nearly completed White Count Castle was reduced to ashes.
Amid the chaos, Count Lochen sacrificed his life to save his son, Damon.
It was a brutal survival—so terrible that death would have been preferable.
“You must survive. Only the living can declare injustice.”
Adopted by Baron Craig, young Damon screamed in defiance:
“Who will believe injustice? I will kill Duke Rackton, the emperor, and all the priests. I will do it, no matter what!”
Originally, Damon could control the weather with his abilities.
Had his powers not been sealed in the magical tome, he could have summoned storms to destroy the imperial palace and Rackton’s lands, striking the emperor and Rackton with lightning.
From then on, Damon was obsessed with finding the lost magical tome.
Even if he found it and killed everyone, he couldn’t restore the Lochen family’s honor.
While contemplating revenge and restoring his family’s honor, Damon studied magic under Baron Craig.
He accumulated power, concealed his identity, and became Duke Rackton’s hunting dog.
That’s when he met Clarissa, newly of age.
Clarissa, the butler’s daughter, helped with the estate, and her gaze lingered on Damon for longer and longer.
Annoyingly persistent, Damon ignored her for the most part, occasionally using her as needed.
Then one day, she suddenly approached him:
“I love you, Baron. Please marry me.”
“I have no interest in you.”
Damon showed annoyance as he lifted his teacup.
“It doesn’t matter. I love you. I’ll do anything for you, Baron. I’ll be your hands and feet.”
“And if I want nothing from you?”
Initially, Clarissa had been useful in gauging Rackton’s tastes, but now that trust had been established, she was no longer needed.
“Princess Aileen keeps pestering you to marry her. If you use me, you can get rid of her.”
Damon set down the empty teacup and straightened up.
“You and Aileen are equally tiresome. So go home.”
“I’d rather die! I’m serious. Viscount Frederick told me to become his mistress. I’d rather die than be defiled by him.”
Frederick, Rackton’s eldest son, wants Clarissa? Then she would eventually be harassed and become his mistress. There was no avoiding that fate.
However, imagining Frederick—so like Rackton—trampling Clarissa with glee made her sick.
“If you take me in, I’ll help you with what you want.”
“That…?”
Damon, pausing as he slipped his arm into his coat, turned to her.
“You want to destroy Duke Rackton. You want revenge.”
“My loyalty to the duke is well known.”
“But it looks to me like you hate him. If you love, you see. You know what the person desires.”
“…”
“I’ll help you. Use me. I’ve been assisting the duke’s household since I was a child. I’ll be useful.”
Damon let out a cold chuckle.
She was already unnecessary, but he couldn’t leave her knowing his plans.
He had two options: kill her to silence her, or make her forever an ally. He chose the latter—no matter how thirsty for revenge, he would not kill an innocent girl.
Damon could not commit unjust murder, even with his cold-blooded nature.
“If you ask nothing of me emotionally, I’ll consider it.”
Clarissa bowed tearfully.
“I’ll live as if dead. I want nothing from a baron who doesn’t love me. I’ll be like a shadow. When someone you truly love appears, I will disappear.”
She crawled on her knees and kissed the back of his hand. Damon did not pull away.
For Damon, who had fought alone, harboring hatred, having even one loyal companion was invaluable. And yet, he could not resist this trivial kiss on his hand.
The news of their marriage delighted Duke Rackton, whose cherished daughter Aileen had a crush on Damon.
“Clarissa has long assisted my household, and you are my loyal vassal. I cannot ignore your wedding.”
He oversaw their wedding, which took place in the spring garden of his mansion.
My goodness! A wedding in the enemy’s yard.
After reviewing the guild’s accounts, Damon went to the wedding and, upon seeing Clarissa in her dress, regretted marrying her.
This will be an unhappy marriage for you, so why are you so happy?
Seeing the dazzlingly beautiful Clarissa shedding tears of joy irritated Damon.
After marrying, Damon kept Clarissa at a distance. It was a nominal marriage, but convenient.
It reassured Rackton and reduced bothersome women clinging to him.
Meanwhile, Aileen and the Crown Prince’s engagement approached. Divorce now? If word got out, Aileen would not go quietly to the ceremony.
He refused to add extra trouble.
After traveling to the secret trade office in the forest and remote villages, I collapsed into sleep like a fainted person.
When I woke, the sun was already low in the sky.
My back hurts from sleeping so long. Why is divorcing so exhausting?
Nearly everything was ready. All that remained was the completion of the magic sword.
“Miranda, tell the chef to prepare the banquet.”
“Yes, milady.”
I sent Miranda to the kitchen and soaked in warm fragrant water, enjoying a leisurely bath.
Middleton’s mild four-season climate meant wildflowers bloomed everywhere.
Some healed illnesses and cleared skin, and I had begun drying and mixing them as bath ingredients and cosmetics.
My already smooth skin gleamed like polished marble.
“Um… milady, have you heard the rumor?”
Ann, attending me, spoke gloomily and watched my reaction.
“What rumor? Why are you acting so cautious?”
“Well… it’s nothing, except that the master has a mistress.”
Damon has a mistress?
Even soaking in warm water, my body trembled. After all the suffering preparing for divorce, why hasn’t my anger subsided?
“It’s fine, Ann. I can have a mistress too.”
“Eh? Milady, you?”
“It’s not surprising for married noblewomen to have a mistress. It’s nothing, so don’t worry about it.”
Clarissa had rare beauty—blonde hair and purple eyes—but her status as the butler’s daughter kept her in modest dress. After marriage, Damon’s indifference withered her spirit.
Once I divorce, I’ll indulge in every luxury and enjoy life. Just wait and see.
