His consciousness sank into a dark sea where no footing could be found.
Having caught the scent of blood, the evil god Ater raged as if he would tear his way out through Kalian's right arm, whispering temptations into his ear.
Didn't he want to taste more blood? Ater promised to satisfy his thirst if he simply tore apart and destroyed everything in sight.
For a brief moment, Kalian wavered.
He managed to return to the mansion while suppressing the strange discomfort inside him, but he couldn't bring himself to enter his bedroom.
Could I really endure this overwhelming thirst?
As if reading his thoughts, Ater chuckled and spoke in a filthy, seductive voice.
[Fine. This time, I'll help you. Tonight, I'll make sure you can have any woman you want, as much as you desire. Hmm?]
It was utter madness.
Kalian frowned deeply and ignored Ater's words.
Instead, he headed straight toward the glass greenhouse.
He believed it was only a minor side effect. If he wore the restraint that suppressed his surging demonic energy and endured just one night, everything would return to normal.
Who could have expected Evelyn to be there?
Despite the surprise he felt, his steps toward her never hesitated.
[There's a woman who burns with desire every time she sees you. Why are you still keeping your chastity? Go to her. Tear those fluttering scraps of cloth apart and climb onto that delicate body. Do it!]
Shut up.
Grinding his teeth, he stopped in front of Evelyn and forced himself to appear calm.
Why is she hiding here like a frightened rabbit?
He was in such a dangerous state that even the slightest stimulation could make him lose control. He had to send her away immediately.
But the moment he heard her awkward excuse—that she had gotten lost while taking a walk—his vision blurred.
His throat suddenly felt dry.
When she unconsciously moistened her lower lip with her red tongue, a wicked heat surged inside him.
The malicious Ater seized the opportunity.
[Imagine it. How beautiful would she look with your cock in that tiny mouth? That red tongue wrapping around it... the maddening pressure... those tearful, pleasure-filled eyes... those muffled moans... Then twist her breast just a little, and she'll cry out for you in the prettiest voice in the world.]
His breathing became ragged.
He almost wished he could tear out his own eardrums so he wouldn't have to hear another word.
His fist clenched so tightly that the bones protruded beneath his skin.
After letting out a strained groan that scraped at his throat, he removed his cloak and draped it over Evelyn's exposed skin.
If nothing else, it was an attempt to steady himself.
Even then, Ater smacked his lips like a beast about to feast.
[You'll go mad because the expression she makes while drowning in pleasure will be too beautiful. You'll become so intoxicated with satisfaction that you'll think spending the rest of your life joined together like that would be enough... and you'll ravage her like a beast. What do you think?]
His head throbbed with disgust.
Yet at the same time, he felt deep self-loathing as his lower body reacted against his will.
It was revolting.
Driving that filthy voice out of his mind was his top priority, but sheer determination alone wasn't enough.
'I told you before. Excessive healing will only harm your body.'
Suppressing his beast-like instincts, he desperately tried to send away the woman who kept pleading that she wanted to help him.
But she stood her ground as firmly as a stake driven into the earth.
She didn't move an inch.
'If I can help Your Grace... I can endure any pain.'
Then, at last—
The moment he met those desperate green eyes that looked almost devout—
[See? She says she can take it. Go on. Pour all that monstrous desire into her body. Lose yourself in pleasure until your eyes roll back. Do it!]
The thread holding together his crumbling self-control finally snapped.
With sweat making his hands slippery, Kalian gripped her narrow shoulders tightly.
'Very well... then endure it.'
His mouth had gone completely dry.
The brief clarity he'd regained upon seeing her vanished once again beneath the blazing heat consuming his mind.
The voice provoking him so obscenely had become impossible to distinguish from his own thoughts.
Only the woman's flushed face remained, covering the crimson haze in his vision as though erasing the evil whispers.
Before he knew it, the evil god's voice had disappeared.
In its place remained nothing but beast-like groans and the wet sound of friction.
"Ha..."
Letting out a heavy breath, Kalian loosened the top buttons of his tightly fastened shirt and turned his chair toward the window.
As the leather creaked beneath his large frame, a calm voice drifted into the room.
Evelyn had finished her meditation and was chatting with the maids who had approached her.
What are they talking about so earnestly?
At first, he had looked over merely out of curiosity.
But before long, his eyes were unconsciously following her constantly moving lips... and the crimson tongue that occasionally slipped between them.
His life had always been dull and monotonous.
He couldn't understand what it was about her that stirred his interest so deeply.
Yet before he could tear his gaze away, another image surfaced in his mind—
Her slender body.
Her pale skin glowing in the darkness.
Her sweet voice rising every time he touched her.
Her scent.
The faint sweat and cool body heat he had felt where their skin had met.
Like a drowning man sinking deeper the harder he struggled to escape, he felt himself being pulled under.
"..."
His gaze slowly dropped.
His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the tight bulge pressing against the thigh of his trousers.
She wasn't exposing so much as a patch of skin.
She was simply chatting casually with the maids.
And yet he was aroused.
I've truly lost my mind.
A strange wave of self-disgust washed over him.
He could swear he had never desired a woman like this before.
Still...
If this overwhelming lust came from his body's instinctive craving for the healing power only she could provide...
Perhaps that would explain these feelings.
If it was because she could breathe miraculous vitality into his tainted body...
If it was because she alone could melt the frozen heart inside him...
Kalian let out a quiet breath.
That's right. This is merely an instinctive reaction to suppress my rampaging power. It isn't because I've fallen for her.
After all, there were knights who spent fortunes just to monopolize healers whose mana affinity matched their own.
Perhaps his reaction wasn't so unusual after all.
Having skillfully suppressed his emotions once again, Kalian turned back toward his desk and lowered his eyes to the documents.
Right now, he needed to focus on the matters before him.
About ten minutes later...
Kalian still appeared to be lost in thought.
Resting his chin on one hand, he stared blankly at the documents before him.
His eyes weren't focused.
In fact, the papers remained open to the very first page.
What's bothering him? Surely he isn't suddenly worried about going to the temple...
Benjamin, who had been watching him with concern, glanced toward a corner of the office.
A sword sheath leaned against the wall, still stained with thick, dried blood.
Yesterday, it had rained heavily.
If that much blood had remained despite the downpour, it could only mean the battle had been severe.
As I thought... something happened on the way back.
The Empress constantly sent assassins after the Grand Duke.
She had even gone so far as to push scantily clad women into his bedroom in hopes of manipulating him.
No doubt she intended to place a princess from a foreign kingdom—someone she could easily control—as his future consort, thereby extending her influence into Johansen as well.
She was a woman whose greed knew no bounds, willing to sacrifice even family and friends to get what she wanted.
If even Benjamin, merely an aide, found it exhausting, how much worse must it be for the Grand Duke himself?
Unable to help empathizing with him, Benjamin let out a weary sigh.
"It seems assassins really did come after you, just as expected. You said you'd make sure they wouldn't dare follow you again for a while. Did you deal with them?"
Kalian gave a small nod.
"The journey was rather dull, so I thought I'd exchange a few blows with them for amusement. Unfortunately, they were disappointingly weak."
"Then why not wipe them out completely while you have the chance?"
"What a dreadful thing to suggest."
"I'm only saying it because they're making life difficult for someone who's already overwhelmed with state affairs. Don't they ever get tired of it?"
Kalian chuckled softly.
"I've also sent Her Majesty another source of entertainment so she won't become too bored. That should satisfy her."
He lightly tapped the newspaper lying on his desk.
Shock! Rumors Confirmed—The Guardian of Cardian Secretly Engaged! Who Is the Mysterious Fiancée?!
The Crown Prince's Endless Debauchery—How Far Will the Lust-Crazed Madman Go?
The newspaper displayed two articles side by side—one praising the Grand Duke's respectable engagement, the other fiercely criticizing the Crown Prince's scandalous behavior.
It was the Grand Duke's thoughtful way of repaying the Empress for her "kindness" in constantly sending assassins to keep him alert.
By quietly leaking news of his engagement, he had reopened public discussion of the Crown Prince's disgraceful conduct just as it had begun to fade from attention.
Benjamin could already picture the Empress flying into a rage.
The eye not hidden behind his eyepatch narrowed slightly.
"Will this really be all right? People are already saying that, instead of letting a syphilis-spreading Crown Prince inherit the throne, perhaps the Grand Duke should become the next emperor..."
