Chapter 27

From noon until it turned into night, the two of them were intertwined, becoming one. Cain’s bedroom had no clock, so they couldn’t tell how much time had passed.

“Um…”

“Are you awake?”

When Lariana regained consciousness, she was in Cain’s arms. The sensation of their naked bodies touching made her feel embarrassed and she wanted to escape, but he had wrapped his legs around her. Helplessly trapped within his embrace, it took her a while before she could open her mouth.

“Let go. I want to drink water.”

“Are you thirsty?”

Her voice didn’t come out easily, perhaps because she had spent hours clinging to him and pleading. As Lariana tried to sit up, Cain stopped her and shook his head.

Just as the bell rang, Butler Hanson entered the room. Lariana was startled and pulled the blanket up to her head.

“Please bring the meal. Something simple to eat.”

“Understood.”

Before the sound of the bedroom door opening and closing could be heard, Cain entered the blanket and kissed Lariana’s tender cheek.

“Cain! Hanson hasn’t left yet.”

Cain kissed her nonchalantly as if it was nothing. Lariana accepted it with a slightly awkward expression.

Not only her lips, but throughout the previous night, there was no place on her body untouched by his lips. The pleasure he gave never became familiar. It was always like the first time.

When the knocking sound came again, Lariana pushed Cain away. She reluctantly put on a red nightgown, pretending to be disinterested.

Hanson brought a tray table and Cain approached the bed with it. It contained mushroom soup, freshly baked white bread with steam still rising, thick bacon, and warm milk.

Fresh and high-quality food like this was rare. As soon as she saw the food, Lariana felt the long-forgotten hunger rush back.

Cain held the cup of water and fed her directly. What he fed her was not just water.

Doesn’t she have hands here? Why was he doing that? It was her impression of his overly excessive actions.

The spoonful of soup was brought to her lips, but Lariana kept her mouth tightly closed and just stared at it. Cain asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I can eat it myself. I want to eat it myself.”

Her hand, however, which received the spoon from Cain, trembled. Seeing her like that, a smile appeared on his lips.

“I guess there’s no choice. I can only feed you.”

For three days straight, the two of them did not leave the bedroom. When they became hungry, they ate their meals in the bedroom, and they bathed together. During the full moon, the two of them became one.

Cain carried her throughout, and her feet didn’t touch the ground for even a moment.

“Cain, does your mother know about your illness?”

“She doesn’t know.”

“That’s a relief. At least your mother will know that you love me.”

Lariana sighed and spoke softly.

“I truly love you.”

“But you don’t love me every moment.”

Lying on Cain’s arm, Lariana spoke while sinking her nails on his arm. She looked beyond the window. The moon that had risen seemed slightly smaller than yesterday. It would continue to wax tomorrow, just like their happiness.

She had a sense that the end was approaching. Perhaps by tomorrow, Cain would start to hate her.

“After tonight, you will forget about me again, won’t you?”

“Lariana… Just hold on a little longer until I regain my senses.”

“I’ll wait. So please try to remember me a little faster. Can you do that?”

Cain nodded and kissed Lariana’s lips. Lariana responded by pulling him closer fervently.

Satisfied, Cain’s lips drew a smile.

“Of course.”

? ? ?

When his madness struck, Cain transformed. Not remembering the time without madness instantly, the moments spent with Lariana were naturally erased from his mind.

In the early dawn, when he saw Lariana lying next to him completely naked, he almost let out a scream. Escaping from the bedroom as if running away, Cain locked himself in his study, trying to remember what had happened the previous night, but he couldn’t recall anything.

After that, Cain, engrossed in catching up on his backlog of work, was criticized by Hayden for his three-day absence.

“Do you have any idea how difficult it was for me in your absence, my lord?”

“I was absent for three days?”

One of his eyebrows twitched. Seeing that the documents he had piled up were still untouched, it seemed that Hayden was right about him being absent.

“Do you have no memories again? My lord, it seems to me that your condition is more than just an illness.”

“If it’s not an illness, then what is it?”

“Perhaps it’s a curse or some kind of sorcery.”

“Nonsense.” Cain replied in a voice devoid of any emotion.

“It’s an illness. It’s just a sickness, an abnormal affection for that woman.”

When Cain’s madness manifested, he called his feelings towards Lariana a sickness.

“Oh, dear. What a situation we’re in.”

Hayden’s attitude was somewhat insolent for an aide, but as a loyal vassal of the Delacroix ducal family from the moment Cain took his first steps, he was allowed to talk to him that way. Moreover, he was the only one who knew about Cain’s madness besides Lariana.

From the first meeting of the duke and duchess to all the events and accidents that had happened until now, Hayden knew about this love affair better than the individuals involved. In Hayden’s eyes, it was definitely not an illness. Cain denied it, but it was clearly sorcery or a curse.

Originally, madness was still referred to as a witch’s curse. It was very similar to when a witch went mad from a curse or sorcery!

However, in this era, the higher the nobility, the less they believed in sorcery or curses. In fact, they placed more trust in doctors than sorcerers.

Despite Hayden not being the victim of madness, it seemed that he, who served a mad lord, was also going crazy. He didn’t know which side to align himself with.

“Just why did you marry her?”

“If I don’t get married, it will be troublesome. It doesn’t matter who I marry anyway.”

Cain retorted sharply without taking his eyes off the documents. Continuing with Lariana’s story made his stomach churn and his chest tighten. If she were to appear in front of him again, he would probably have the urge to kill her once more.

What troubled Cain the most was his deep affection for Lariana. In Martessen, killing a noble meant death penalty. Even if it was between nobles, the punishment was the same. He didn’t cling to life, but he didn’t want to die because of the person he hated.

“Damn it.”

The image of Lariana, tear-stained and desperately calling his name, haunted his mind. It felt like memories of the past three days were pressing on him.

Unable to concentrate on the documents any longer, Cain stood up from his chair and approached the window.

“You damn woman.”

A rough curse escaped his mouth.

Well, even beyond the large window, Lariana was there. It seemed like she had been looking at his study all this time, looking up like a pet dog waiting for its owner as she held a basket full of lilies.

The glaring sun made his eyes ache. Was there some kind of pearl dust sprinkled in his eyes? Her blonde hair shimmered. Lariana, dressed in a sky-blue ribbon and a flowing white chemise, seemed to absorb all the light in the world.

What was so good about her, despite being constantly oppressed?

For some reason, his cheeks burned, and his ears turned red. He slammed the curtain shut. He couldn’t bear to see the woman who disgusted him.

It wasn’t only him who pulled the curtain. Marcella, who was looking out at the garden from the annex, did the same.

Marcella couldn’t grasp her son’s true intentions. She didn’t know whether he loved Lariana or not.

To respond appropriately, she had to understand Cain’s intentions, but she couldn’t seem to figure it out at all.

“What on earth has come in here?”

Marcella moved to the vanity, clutching her robe. The bedroom in the annex still didn’t feel comfortable and felt awkward.

She angrily swept away the vanity. The vase filled with lilacs, jewelry, and cosmetics on the vanity crashed onto the floor, making a rough shattering sound. Even though she did this, her mood didn’t improve in the slightest.

“Madam, it’s Nellua.”

“Come in.”

Her lady-in-waiting Nellua rushed into the bedroom. Nellua was not surprised when she saw the scene inside the room. However, she approached Marcella in a more hurried manner than usual.

“What’s the matter?”

Marcella combed her hair back and asked.

“Viscount Leshian had been assassinated by his mistress.”

“What did you say?”

Marcella doubted her own ears at the sudden news.

Viscount Leshian had been in charge of the ducal family’s finances since the death of the previous Duke. In order to protect Cain’s position as the successor, it was inevitable that the help of the family’s relatives was needed. There were several instances where the power of Delacroix was handed over to the relatives without the permission of her young stepson. Viscount Leshian’s involvement in the finances was no different.

“Duke Kaidel secretly investigated… and it seems that Duke Delacroix may have been involved,” the maid reported.

The ivory comb in Marcella’s hand fell to the floor with a thud. The image of her son who had ordered her to wait for his ruling not long ago quickly flashed through her mind. Was it because of Lariana? Was it a message to not torment her daughter-in-law, or to not interfere in household affairs anymore?

She couldn’t readily grasp the meaning behind the message her son had sent.

? ? ?

Lariana could endure just a few days with Cain.

Before their separation due to his madness, Lariana and Cain made one promise. Until he regained his senses and come to find her, she would avoid crossing paths with him as much as possible, as her life was in danger.

Cain had said that when the moon waned, he feels an urge to kill her.

‘To feel an urge to kill his wife…’

The three days they had spent together were so sweet and unbelievable, yet she couldn’t deny it. The mad Cain was definitely not in his right mind.

However, when he was not mad, Cain was affectionate and sweet, and just the mere thought of him made her melt.

“…Lari. Have you really listened to my story all this time?”

“Huh?”

“Did you hear everything I’ve told you?”

Marina, who was having tea time together with Lariana, glanced at her with a meaningful look. She picked up her teacup and took a sip, appearing nonchalant.

The maids had retreated to the drawing room, leaving only Marina and the two of them. Marina glanced around and whispered.

“I heard that Viscount Leshian has passed away.” Read ahead here.