Tamed Monster - Chapter 19
Only then did Sylvia manage to collect her thoughts and part her lips.
“I married the Duke for the same reason as you.”
If it had been her old, cold husband, she might have held back. But to this bright, childlike version of him, she could be honest.
“I needed the power and influence the Duke holds. And the Duke needed the treasures I possessed. To gain favor with the imperial family.”
No matter how much Lady Rossa pushed, the marriage couldn’t happen without the Duke’s consent. It was only after the wedding that he began to dislike her.
At first, he was indifferent—not contemptuous—but over time, her fragile and indecisive nature grew on his nerves.
“Ah, so it was an arranged marriage?”
“Yes. Like most nobles…”
“Didn’t you have someone you liked?”
The conversation suddenly veered in an unexpected direction. Sylvia hesitated and looked at the Duke with a puzzled expression.
He stared back with eyes devoid of feeling. Realizing the question held little meaning, Sylvia answered simply.
“Did I have time? Our country fell to the monster invasion, we crossed borders and fled for our lives.”
That treasure meant little. Many retainers died protecting it as they fled. In the end, neglecting their own lives to save it was the right choice. Those who survived now lived comfortably throughout the Kolnas Empire thanks to those treasures.
In a way, Sylvia might be the most unfortunate of them all.
“No time for that? What a pity.”
Her husband’s meaningless muttering sounded oddly cheerful, and Sylvia couldn’t help feeling a bit annoyed.
“I’ve never had anyone I liked. Not then, not now.”
She said it deliberately to upset him. No matter the arranged nature of their marriage and lack of affection, such words spoken openly to a husband would sting. Her husband snorted softly and looked down at her.
“Hmmm. Is that something a wife should say to her husband?”
“I told you. We’re in an arranged marriage.”
“I like you, though. You’re quite cute. Even when you’re flustered, it’s cute.”
His curious eyes sparkled in the moonlight. Sylvia felt overwhelmed.
In their four years together, he had never once shown her warmth, but recently, he had been openly affectionate, though partly in jest.
“…I don’t hate you either, Duke.”
She didn’t really hate the Duke as he was now. The Duke she had once feared and dreaded was someone she couldn’t even dare to have the feeling of hate toward.
Now, Sylvia held a faint affection for him—a pure, innocent child who had lost his wits and forgotten even his filial piety toward his mother.
“Hmm.”
Clenching his palm, stained with blood along the creases, the monster let out a light sigh.
He still didn’t understand why he had killed the doctor he’d met earlier that day. He killed him simply because he wanted to.
Remembering the man’s scent, he had sneaked out late at night, tracked him down in the bustling marketplace, and killed the doctor there. By now, someone among the humans had probably found the discarded corpse in some alley.
“Then why don’t you call me by my name?”
Since the day they first met, Kuinan had hated being called “Duke, Duke” all the time. The woman looked puzzled, as if wondering if she’d heard wrong. Kuinan puffed up his chest muscles, which she had earlier glanced at hesitantly, and said,
“If you don’t like it, don’t.”
“…”
“If you don’t want to get close, that’s fine. Just keep calling me Duke, Wife.”
Sylvia, who had absentmindedly rested her gaze on his chest that he puffed up, suddenly regained her mind when he spoke of her as his wife. Rather than feeling uncomfortable with his overly familiar behavior, her heart raced despite her embarrassment.
“Then… should I call you Lord Lancart?”
“What’s with the formality? Just call me Lancart.”
Thinking about it, he realized she couldn’t truly call him by his real name. When she pronounced the familiar four syllables, Kuinan suddenly replied with a disinterested expression.
“…Alright.”
Sylvia wiped her dry cheek with the back of her hand, feeling warmth there for no reason.
Her body, which had been shivering from the chill, now faced her husband proactively, forgetting the cold altogether. Embarrassed, she cleared her throat and muttered that she should go back inside.
Saying “Let’s go in together” felt strange. It was something only truly harmonious couples would say.
“Okay. I’ll recharge a bit more before coming in.”
Turning her back to her husband, who again seriously gazed at the moonlight, Sylvia stepped inside the room.
