‘At least…… to a safe place…… to the general store…….’

Dagger said he was coming at midnight. I’ll go to the general store and do first aid, and then…….

‘How did I…… get here?’

The old sign for the general store came into view in front of Nicole.

Parchment and shoe prints that wouldn’t even be visible if you didn’t look closely. Nicole crouched under the creaking sign.

‘Mother, Father……. Jay…….’

Slip. Nicole sank to the floor, gripping the wall by the front door. The gas lamp on the porch lit up.

Nicole looked at her palm. Her hands were bloody from pressing on her wound.

She remembered being tortured in her last life. The memory was so diluted that the pain was unfamiliar.

“No, I don’t want to die.”

Nicole thought.

‘Stay awake.’

Just then, Nicole felt someone call out to her.

“Noona.”

Jay?

Nicole looked up.

‘Why is Jay here, when he should be at the Knights Templar at Grace’s behest?’

Nicole thought, feeling her consciousness slipping away. A large, cold hand touched her cheek. Nicole grasped it.

It felt eerily familiar.

“Please help me, don’t leave me alone.”

Tears streamed from Nicole’s eyes.

The vision of Dagger that flashed before her eyes became Jay, and Jay became…….

The man she’d been thinking about and picturing all this time.

She remembered.

<If things had gone as planned, you would have become my wife. This is revenge against the bastards of the Grand Duke Valentine’s family.>

Hot breath. The rustle of clothes. A body pressed against hers.

This is a memory of her past life. The loud, colorful party, the night she was insulted by Gaston and nearly forced to commit.

Hiiing.

Fireworks exploded overhead.

<I’ll end this quickly if you shut the fuck up. Raul’s going to dump you anyway for me putting you through this.>

A dirty voice in her ear. A disgusting breath. It came back to her vividly.

And then, puk. The sound of something dull hitting something else.

Raul had hit Gaston from behind. Gaston tumbled to the ground on top of Nicole. It was so heavy that Nicole felt her breath stop.

Raul kicked Gaston right in the face.

<Dead……. He’s dead…….>

Nicole stuttered. She was too stunned.

<He’s not dead, so get up on your own two feet.>

<…….>

<Stand up, Nicole.>

Raul said. Nicole managed to get to her feet.

<Nothing happened to me.>

<…….>

<You don’t have to dispose of me, nothing happened to me…….>

Nicole was in pain and anguish. She hated this man.

But she hated the fact that she had to rely on him. She hated herself for breaking down, trembling and weak, over something like this.

<Walk slowly.>

Raul said, commandingly.

<No one will know about this, and Gaston will pay dearly.>

Nicole nodded and followed him. When she stopped walking, Raul scooped her up in his arms.

<Ah!>

Nicole squirmed in his wide arms, but she was too weak and tired, so she decided to keep quiet for now.

***

Raul laid Nicole down on the bed in his room and called for the maid.

<She can’t seem to fall asleep, so give her the medicine the doctor prescribed>.

Nicole hated the headache medicine the doctor used to make.

If she made them, they would be much better. They always made her terribly drowsy, especially with all the sleep-inducing stuff in them.

<Get some sleep.>

<Your Highness, I’m…….>

<I know it’s not your fault. You should get some sleep. You’ll feel better when you’re rested.>

<…….>

<And I’m not disposing of you. Being a Grand Duchess is not the appropriate position for that.>

Nicole seemed reassured by those words…….

She took the medicine and slowly closed her eyes. She could feel the tear stains in the corners of her eyes. Her body continued to shake. Nicole felt her heavy eyelids and fell half asleep.

***

This happened sometimes. She’s clearly sleeping with her eyes closed, but she’s still conscious and hearing the sounds around her.

She’d been like this since she was a kid when she was under a lot of stress. She wanted to push her counter.

Nicole opened her eyes in such an incomplete state.

She heard a voice in her ear.

<Having her around isn’t helping.>

It was Bastard’s voice.

<Perhaps we should send her somewhere safe and far away, a temple or a cottage in the countryside.>

<I looked away for a moment, and that’s what Gaston, that bastard, almost did to her. Where would I send a woman like her?>

A voice that sounded like a snort. Nicole managed to open her eyes and look up.

‘Why do you look at me like that?’

Raul stroked her forehead, his eyes tender and loving.

Maybe it was just my imagination.

His face was dark with his back to the light.

The light in Nicole’s room was off, and only a dim glow from the light in Raul’s bedroom.

And Bastard stood in the doorway between the two rooms.

<She’s mentally unstable, she would be a weakness. Besides, how long will you continue to protect the bloodline of YvesChapel, I fear you’ll lose your temper>.

<She’s your master, your mistress.>

Raul said.

In the Empire, both wives and husbands were referred to as masters.

Usually, in a noble family, the wife ruled the house and the husband worked outside, so the outer master and the inner master, so a harmonious couple might call each other master.

<She is my wife, I swore and prayed to God that she would be, and her life is mine, and I am somewhat bound to her fate, so that’s the way it should be in this life.>

Nicole, half asleep, gasped in surprise.

But somehow, when she woke up, she’d forgotten his words.

‘It’s all because of Raul, that man, that I almost went through that horrible thing with Gaston!’

Over time, Nicole began to distort her memory.

She didn’t know if it was because she was depressed after Jay’s death.

‘Raul hates me after what happened. He treats me like I don’t exist anymore. Let him do whatever he wants, because I hate him too.’

Why did she think that then?

Nicole questioned herself, feeling her body grow wounded and cold.

‘He cared about me, and he didn’t throw me away when I was useless. Why did I forget all that?’

The ungrateful Nicole could only hate him.

‘You protected me.’

It was definitely not a dream.

Nicole lifted her head.

Her whole body was cold and her teeth clattered together, thankfully less painful, but she was paralyzed, unable to move.

Tap. A bright light came on in front of her.

Raul was looking down at her.

“That was a good move. I sent you out, you messed up, and you’ve already been exposed.”

“…….”

“I told you, if you fail the mission, there’s no next time.”

This wasn’t a dream either.

She was almost stabbed to death. This was Nicole’s reality. Tears streamed from Nicole’s eyes.

‘If I die at your hands, I have nothing to say.’

She was a fool. Raul had been right. She didn’t deserve to beg him for mercy twice.

“What shall we do?”

Raul said. His face was unmoved as he watched a person die in front of him. In a way, he even looked pleased.

“Shall I finally make you comfortable?”

She couldn’t tell if he meant to release her or kill her.

But if this was the Raul Nicole knew, it had to be the latter. And she still owed him her life……..

‘If he’s going to take it, he can take it.’

Nicole thought. Her whole body trembled and her body temperature dropped. But she felt hot inside at the same time. Her heart felt like it was slowing down, and she was slowly becoming dazed.

The pain was so intense that she couldn’t feel her limbs. She thought she might be bleeding out.

“Are you…….”

Nicole managed to say.

She didn’t know what Raul had thought of her in her past life.

Still, he was…….

He was the one who called her master. He was the only one who recognized her as his wife.

But she knew nothing then, and now it was too late.

“My life is yours.”

Raul paused. Shadows fell across his face, and Nicole couldn’t read his expression. She couldn’t look him in the eye, for what might be the last time in her life.

Tears welled up in Nicole’s eyes. An unspeakable, overwhelming sadness rose up inside her.

“It’s been a long time, and I didn’t realize it. I’ll never hate you again. If I survive this time……. If I get another chance…….”

“…….”

“This time, I will…… surely…… sacrifice myself perfectly for you, my master…….”

Nicole mumbled and slowly closed her eyes.

***

Raul stared down at Nicole. He was now in a dark alley, in front of a teahouse.

‘This woman must die.’

That was the first thought that came to Raul’s mind.

There were many reasons for this: she had most likely been compromised by the Marquis of Saratheve. It was Saratheve, not someone else. She was now useless as a secret agent.

There was also a personal reason. This woman, Karen, kept causing him minor distractions. She was a variable that made him emotional.

Just as he was about to make a decision, she spoke.

“My master.”

She opened her mouth and spoke. It was a bizarre experience as if a corpse was singing.

“This time, I will…… surely…… sacrifice myself perfectly for you, my master……..”

Bitter pain flowed from within her eyes. A strange emotion that seemed to be compressed dozens of times.

In the midst of it all, she was looking at him. Raul felt the uncomfortable stiffness in his chest grows even stronger.

‘Who are you?’

His confusion deepened.

Then, with the last of her strength, her hand dropped from his collar.

He looked at her and sucked in a breath. He checked her stomach and, thankfully, the knife hadn’t gone deep, so the wound wasn’t fatal.

But if she was bleeding on the cold floor like this…… maybe…….

Raul scooped Nicole up into his arms.

Nicole took slow breaths in his arms. Raul picked her up and began to walk briskly.