‘Why on earth did I ask what kind of line he wanted to cross?’
I’m not even that bold of a person, but I impulsively provoked Isidor. Perhaps I wanted to touch his desire, which was clearly visible.
“…!”
As soon as our lips were closely locked together, I held my breath and closed my eyes tightly. His hot lips moved along my lips as if overlapping with them. His sleek nose brushed against my face and was clumsily pressed down.
‘I’m dizzy…’
My mind turned hazy at the provocative sensations coming from our touching lips. Tension also rose, to the point that my neck felt like it was burning. The hand that was caressing the back of my neck slowly scanned my ear, and then suddenly scratched my earlobe.
I gasped and he soon bit my lower lip, lightly. He pulled my lip slightly with his teeth, then carefully explored the opening between my parted lips.
The tip of his tongue slid delicately over my teeth, and my heart, which was already beating fast, plummeted to the point of hurting and then sprang back up. Isidor’s unique scent, which left a cool sensation, dug into my nose, and an outrageous heat rose from our clumsily touching tongues.
Immediately, a provocative sound rang through the quiet room. His touch as he slowly caressed my cheeks was gentle as if he was nourishing something precious.
I stiffened only for a moment, and responded to his kiss by pushing my body forward a little, attracted by the softly entangling movement. A faint moan came out of my mouth unconsciously because I was feeling hot.
Suddenly, he pulled my neck closer with his large hand and began to turn his head, fiercely thirsting for my lips.
“Hng!”
My mind turned blank as he changed abruptly and fiercely pushed in. The kiss, which stirred my mouth roughly as if swallowing it whole, made me breathless as if I had run the marathon.
It was like someone was squeezing my brain as they pleased. My chest throbbed steeply, and every time the heat spread through my lower abdomen, my body kept losing its strength. It also felt like my limbs were numb and tingling at the strange sensation. I felt like I was going to roll down to the distant floor, so I grabbed his firm arm like I was holding on to a lifeline.
But he jumped at me as if his leash had disappeared even as I slightly slipped down. Then, a pile of books fell down as the desk that was placed in the middle of the room rattled, and I pushed him aside and took a step back.
Isidor, who was pushed aside surprisingly easily, let out a slow breath and scanned his shiny lips with his tongue. He was exuding a lewd and raw atmosphere that made the throats of whoever looked at him tighten. The area around his sleek eyes was reddened, and his broad shoulders went up and down with each breath.
Slightly frowning, he pushed his desk fiercely to the side. The heavy-looking wooden desk was pushed to the wall as if it was nothing, and there was nothing between him and me anymore.
“I like you so much…”
“…”
“That I think I’m going out of my mind.”
Hearing his voice filled with a breathtaking yearning, my wet lips curled up. The turquoise eyes that looked like the sea of a holiday destination were now wavering like the deep-night sea.
I expected him to pull me roughly again, but he suddenly reached out his hand and swept my tousled head behind my ear very carefully.
“I like you.”
He was kind, then became fierce in an instant, confessing sweetly with a gaze as if he was going to devour me. I couldn’t figure Isidor out at all.
But strangely, his duality gave me a strange sense of belonging, and at the same time made him seem more attractive. He had a lot of secrets, but it’s also true that he was overly honest with me from time to time.
“I like you.”
Heat spread across my cheeks at the confession that tickled my ears, which he said several times. As I dropped my head slightly, he lifted my chin and gently caressed the area around my eyes.
“Tell me you like me too.”
He said in a soft voice, as if he were begging me. My throat was hoarse, but I was able to barely open my mouth and whisper faintly.
He slightly bent his eyes as he heard it with difficulty, wrapped my face with both his hands, and kissed me repeatedly. The light kisses that came down gently like a light rain continued. His lips touched everywhere, including my cheeks, the area around my eyes, my forehead, and even my eyebrows.
“Shall we date?”
The moment our eyes met, he suddenly asked. I nodded without hesitation. Looking into his eyes with deep affection.
He hugged me with surprised eyes, even though he was the one who suggested it.
***
That evening. A carriage loaded with tons of luggage arrived at the Seymour family. The Visconti servants were visiting with dresses, jewelry, and shoes for Princess Deborah to wear on the day of the title ceremony.
“The dress is really amazing. It’s not frivolous, but it’s not very ordinary either.”
“He’s carefully taking care of everything, from the headdress to the anklet…”
Even the Princess’ servants, who had very good judgement, admired Isidor’s discernment and meticulousness. Furthermore, the news that Duke Visconti had sent a gift went straight into Duke Seymour’s ears.
“This fox-like bastard has finally gone crazy!”
Duke Seymour became unruly and relentlessly tore apart the letter Isidor had sent him.
“I told him clearly back then!”
The servants tried to calm him down, as Duke Seymour was about to attack Visconti right away, and the twins in the meeting room looked bewildered.
The partner that Duke Visconti was going to take to the title ceremony, the most talked about topic these days, was none other than Deborah.
‘There still haven’t been any particular talks yet, so I thought he would take a young lady recommended by his family.’
Wasn’t it too much of an official event?
All the members of the imperial family would be present, and it was open to the public, so taking her there meant that she was someone special to Isidor. And it was also a way to confirm it was a serious relationship for those who had divided opinions on what kind of relationship they had.
“He’s making this kind of proposal, right before the ceremony? Not unless he is out of his mind!”
The excuse that he didn’t have much time didn’t work on Duke Seymour.
“What should we do with him?”
Belreck said drearily. The fact that Deborah had received the dress Isidor sent to her meant that both parties had already reached an agreement, so the situation was not good.
“Well, if he doesn’t understand what we tell him, we can threaten to tie him up by his limbs and hang him upside down.”
Rosad, whose specialty was abduction, imprisonment, torture, and intimidation, spoke in a casual tone.
“P-Prince Rosad. If we really did that, we might have to go to war with the Visconti family.”
One of the vassals, who knew that Seymour’s immediate family lacked basic common sense, was alarmed and implored.
“It was a joke.”
Rosad pouted.
“… A joke?”
Duke Seymour rubbed his chin with regret before getting up from his seat with a stiff face.
“Bring all the carriages and horses we have at once.”
His eyes twinkled like those of a viper.
“On the day of the ceremony, I intend to intervene in every street the Visconti carriage will cross. The youngest duke? I will give him a strong kick-off as someone who has been a duke for 20 years.”
“At least he won’t be able to set foot in this mansion.”
“Please, everyone, calm down!”
***
‘It would have been a little troublesome without the movement magic.’
Isidor was interrupted by various men of the Seymour family even on the day of the ceremony. From false rumors to disruption of his activities as a duke. In the end, he was able to reach the Seymour mansion by using movement magic to move outside and get on a carriage he had set up elsewhere.
‘How did he get here?’
When he appeared in front of the townhouse to escort the princess, Duke Seymour had a shocked look on his face, and Isidor greeted him politely.
“Your Grace. Have you been well?”
“Thanks to you… I’ve been well. I see the Duke of Visconti is getting more and more good-looking.”
“You overpraise me.”
Since Isidor had been promoted to the same status as him, Duke Seymour had no choice but to grind his teeth and speak in a respectful tone. The fact that he had to address him in an even more polite way at official events was a trap.
While they were facing each other awkwardly, Deborah appeared while being attended to by the servants.
Duke Seymour swallowed his bitterness as he saw his daughter, who looked exceptionally graceful and beautiful today. He hated to admit it, but the Visconti bastard seemed to have been firmly determined to make his daughter shine the most today.
‘He said he didn’t have much time.’
Even the Duke, who was not interested in jewelry, could see at a glance that the necklace she was wearing was not an ordinary item.
“You’re even prettier today. I’ll see you later, Deborah.”
The Duke spoke affectionately, holding his daughter’s hand. The heads of the high-ranking noble families participated in this event as representatives, so they were going to see each other again soon anyway.
‘You, I’m keeping an eye on you.’
With that in mind, Duke Seymour glared at Isidor. He felt a stinging gaze, but Isidor smiled and escorted the Princess to the carriage as politely as possible.
Soon after, the carriage with the splendid gold seal of the Visconti family departed for Horun Castle, where the ceremony was being held. The area around the castle was already crowded with people coming to watch the event. The majority of the people had flocked there to see the most beautiful duke in the empire from afar.
In front of the Imperial Square, chairs were lined up on the highest raised platform, around a chair that had an elaborate sculpture in the shape of a blue dragon hanging from it.
The deep blue chairs were where the empress and the members of the imperial family sat, and the purple chairs were where the heads of the high-ranking families and their companions sat.
And the remaining seats were filled by honored guests who had been invited directly by the emperor.
The owners of the seats began to appear one by one, and, when the Visconti carriage appeared after a while, all the gazes of the people in the square were fixated on it.
