It was clear that there had been no problem at all just moments ago.
That was, until a rotten branch fell from above my head, and Raymond appeared, saving me.
He stood before Dante, who was visibly on high alert, and asked.
“What were you planning to do to my wife?”
Dante, his nephew and the current heir of the Growen family, was someone Raymond was obligated to protect—yet in truth, a ticking time bomb whose actions no one could predict.
But Dante had always found such treatment unpleasant and suffocating.
Instead of answering, Dante straightened his back, crouched low, and bared his fangs even more aggressively.
[Haaak-!]“Still as impolite as ever. I told your nanny to teach you manners over three years ago, it seems.”
[…Wooong.]
At the mention of Meidi, Dante visibly shrank back.
Yet his triangular eyes continued to glare defiantly.
Raymond let out a short sigh, as if utterly exasperated by the sharpness of that gaze.
Meanwhile, Yerpi, who had been silently observing all this, felt nothing but flustered.
‘They’re this hostile toward each other? It’s worse than I imagined.’
All she had known was that Raymond was indifferent toward Dante—not that they’d snarl at each other like this.
More importantly, Raymond’s warning toward Dante had felt unnervingly severe.
She could only think of one thing: she had to intervene somehow.
Yerpi quickly stepped between them, trying to defuse the situation.
“Wait a moment, Your Grace. You’ve misunderstood.”
“Misunderstood? What exactly have I misunderstood?”
Raymond kicked aside the rotten branch, its connecting point completely decayed.
Indeed, if that heavy, rot-laden branch had struck her directly, a serious accident would have occurred.
She was grateful to Raymond for preventing that.
But this entire incident wasn’t Dante’s fault.
Yerpi shook her head, correcting the misunderstanding.
“It wasn’t Dante’s fault. The branch breaking was merely an accident. And it was me who called him here.”
Raymond’s brow furrowed as he began to survey the surroundings.
Yerpi’s fragrance still lingered in the clearing, sweet and distinct.
And there, the footprints of numerous spirit beasts—large and small—that had surrounded her just moments before.
Before Raymond could fully grasp the situation, Yerpi suddenly realized why he had appeared here so abruptly.
‘He was drawn here by my scent.’
One who was more powerfully attracted to fragrant spices than to spirit beasts—
That was none other than her husband.
Eventually, Raymond turned to Yerpi with a complex expression.
“…Do you know what kind of child he is?”
“He’s recognized as Your Grace’s son. Yes, I know that.”
She was also well aware that he was the biological grandson of the late Grand Duke, and that had his appearance been normal, he would have been immediately designated as heir.
Facing her calm response, Raymond’s gaze grew even more complicated.
Then, after a brief moment of silent composure, his next action was to question Dante’s motives.
“I won’t ask how you came to know that. But I don’t understand why, from your position, you would seek out Dante. Did he do something harmful to you personally?”
“No!”
Startled by how one misunderstanding was breeding another, Yerpi quickly shook her head.
“I don’t know why you’d think that, but it’s truly not the case. In fact, I came to apologize because I was the one who made a mistake toward Dante.”
Yerpi wanted to explain further, but Raymond didn’t seem inclined to believe her.
“In that case, it makes even less sense.”
Raymond shifted his gaze back to Dante. With Dante’s snarling right before his eyes, he continued his interrogation.
“Isn’t it natural to recall all the trouble you’ve caused in the past? Surely you don’t think my suspicion is unwarranted?”
[Wooong-!]Dante responded with a sharply edged growl, as if refusing to acknowledge the worth of an actual reply.
When communication broke down, their positions could only remain one-sided.
Yet in such a situation, why did Dante remain so stubbornly silent?
Yerpi’s anxious gaze turned toward the young dragon.
She wanted to urge him to speak up, to say it wasn’t true. But Dante chose instead to flee the scene.
[Woooonng—Hak!]Baring his fangs at Raymond, Dante immediately turned and leapt over the bushes.
“Dante, wait!”
Yerpi called out in haste, but the small figure had already vanished completely from her sight.
Left behind were only a bruised peach rolling at her feet, a basket, and Raymond.
How had everything gone so wrong?
Staring at the bruised peach, she was overwhelmed with regret.
But she still had one more matter to resolve.
Raymond’s sigh, standing behind her, reached her ears.
“We should have a talk, briefly.”
At his words, Yerpi slowly nodded.
The two walked away from the garden clearing toward Raymond’s study.
The study was an extremely private space—
perhaps second only to a bedroom.
She had expected at most to be led to a reception room, so Raymond’s choice surprised her.
She never imagined she’d quietly sit on a sofa and drink tea personally brewed by a Grand Duke.
“I’ll do it.”
“Just sit quietly.”
Yerpi, awkwardly perched on the sofa, reached for the teapot, but Raymond snatched it away even from that.
Soon, fragrant tea filled the cups.
The soft, brown-tinted aroma blended with the distinct scent of paper that permeated the study, gently calming her anxious mind.
Raymond sat across from Yerpi and raised his cup first.
“Drink.”
“I’ll enjoy it.”
She carefully lifted her cup and took a sip. Warmth spread throughout her body.
After a few sips, Yerpi finally found the mental space to look around his study.
An elegant library, a velvet sofa atop a green carpet, and a massive table carved from a single ancient tree—each suited Raymond well, reflecting both his wildness and quiet composure.
Just as she began to relax slightly, Raymond set down his empty cup and opened the conversation.
“Now then, let’s continue our earlier discussion. What do you want from me?”
“What?”
Before she could even set her cup down, Yerpi instinctively echoed his question.
“You already know I have a son. Wanting to meet Dante seems like you’re willing to accept that. So surely, you must have some expectation in return?”
Yerpi’s eyes slowly settled as she reflected on his words.
She had finally realized why Raymond thought this way.
‘He assumes I’m pretending to accept Dante only because I’m expecting something in return.’
But his judgment was entirely wrong—from the beginning to now—about Dante.
“Your Grace, I know that Dante is the biological grandson of the late Grand Duke of Growen.”
At her firm continuation, one of Raymond’s eyebrows lifted slightly.
With arms crossed, as if urging her to go on, Yerpi confessed her true feelings.
“But even if Dante were Your Grace’s biological son, I wouldn’t have demanded anything in return for accepting him. I was simply drawn to him. To that poor, lonely child who looked so isolated.”
To her, there was not a single reason to hate Dante.
On the contrary, she wanted to get closer to him, to cherish him, even a little.
Because Dante’s eyes, armored with fierceness, looked unbearably lonely.
But if there was one thing she did wish from Raymond, it would be this alone.
“Your Grace, please treat Dante with kindness. What happened earlier was due to my choice, not his fault.”
Yerpi’s eyes, as she spoke of Dante, were clear and sincere.
It was almost suspicious—how could a new bride speak like this?
Yet the sincerity beyond suspicion made it impossible to deny her words.
Caught off guard by Yerpi’s unexpected attitude, Raymond’s gaze became profoundly complex.
“But that child…”
He began to speak, then abruptly stopped and changed the direction of the conversation.
“Dante is wary of strangers. Extremely so. How do you expect to grow close to someone like that?”
Raymond’s question seemed reasonable—
at least if one judged solely by the child’s outward appearance.
But Yerpi wanted to understand Dante’s inner self.
“Through conversation. Silence breeds misunderstanding, and severed relationships eventually lead to ruin.”
At her answer, Raymond momentarily lost his words.
“Does he even seem to you like someone capable of holding a conversation?”
“Master Dante is able to speak. In human language, even.”
“…What?”
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
