CH 82

And after bathing, Calix, dressed in a light shirt, headed for his wife’s room.

‘Since it’s the first night.’

He thought to himself to justify his action.

Regardless of the circumstances, they were legally married. Having their first night was both a right and an obligation. Although many factors played a role in a marriage between nobles, the main purpose of the marriage was to ensure the succession of the family line.

Therefore, if a person did not spend their wedding night with their spouse after officially welcoming him or her, this was a clear insult to the other party.

It meant that they didn’t think highly of the other person. This was not much different from not wanting a successor from their spouse. Of course, the family status would also drop to the ground if this news were to spread.

The status of the spouse whom their partner did not respect was no different from a fallen leaf rolling around here and there, and in some cases, servants openly disregarded them.

But of course, unless they were crazy or had a death wish, none of this residence’s servants would dare to do such an arrogant thing to his wife.

‘I’m not going to let a woman bearing Benvito’s name be the subject of rumors.’

There was no other reason. He just didn’t want her reputation to be tainted by his own actions.

Calix rationalized his out-of-character behavior with a rather appropriate reason.

“Your Excellency, you are here.”

The Grand Duchess’s attendants and knights, who were waiting outside the room, bowed politely when they saw him coming. Then, the intelligent-looking woman who stood at the front was also a familiar figure to Calix.

“You came.”

“It is your Excellency’s order, so of course, I must obey.”

Margo replied with a light bow.

Count Romaine, who led the Third Karma, remained on the border outlying the duchy, with the exception of one or two months a year.

He was able to do so mainly because of his wife, Margo Romaine, who was a woman of great abilities. She led the Count’s family on behalf of her husband with her outstanding skills.

It was a month ago that he sent a letter to Margo to request her presence in the castle.

As soon as she received the message, she sorted out the important affairs of the house. Then, after entrusting the rest of the work to her trusted assistants, she came to the castle.

“I will make sure to compensate you for your loyalty.” 

“No, it’s an honor to serve Her Highness.”

She might be a bit of a stiff person, but she handled her work with utmost care and diligence. She was recommended by Ryzen, and Calix gladly agreed, as he too was aware of Margo Romaine’s skills.

“Is Asella inside?”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

It seemed that she had chosen to stay in his bedroom rather than in her new room. After all, it was their first night together, so a familiar space would be better. Calix lightly nodded in approval of his wife’s choice.

Margo turned to look at the maid and nodded lightly, and the maid beside her quickly opened the door.

“I hope you have a peaceful evening.”

With a polite greeting, the door closed behind him. For some reason, as Calix stepped inside, he felt as if his heart was beating a little faster.

The empty space was silent except for the sound of his footsteps. It was so quiet that not even the smallest sign of a human presence could be felt.

‘She must’ve gone to sleep.’

It was late in the evening after all. She must have been tired and exhausted from the long trip. She might have stayed up waiting but then couldn’t resist the temptation to sleep, and he was okay with that, it wasn’t that he couldn’t understand how she must have felt.

His wide steps led him to the bedroom in no time at all.

‘Where is she?’

Calix’s eyes narrowed at the unexpected view.

The empty bed slowly came into view. As the breeze blew through the slightly open window, the embroidered canopy of the pillar bed swayed.

“Asella?”

His low voice echoed softly through the room, but there was no answer.

For a moment, an uncomfortable thought flashed through Calix’s mind: the refusal of the wedding night.

Looking back, she was a woman who had also evaded kissing him at their wedding. She might’ve not displayed her dislike of him but it was obvious that she didn’t like him either.

Calix’s feelings sobered as he recalled the way she barely accepted the kiss because she couldn’t endure the situation.

Her red eyes were deeply hazy with a darker shade than usual.

‘So she hid…’

Just as he was twisting his lips in a terrible feeling of displeasure that he couldn’t explain, he noticed a small light leaking through a crack in the closed door on the right side of the bedroom.

Haa, he sighed in relief.

‘There you are.’

Right. Calix cleared out the assumption he had earlier about his wife.

His wife might be a bit timid, but she was in no way a thoughtless woman. She even went all the way to bring her cherished younger sister with her to this place and had no reason to do anything irresponsible before or after.

‘…’

He could faintly hear the sound of rustling water through the closed door.

Unconsciously, his feet moved in the direction of the sound. With a click, he turned the doorknob and the door opened smoothly, revealing a short passageway.

On both sides of the brightly lit passageway were bathrobes, pajamas, and toiletries. Beyond that, a translucent glass door leading to the bathroom came into view.

Calix walked inward like a man possessed by something.

The glass door was fogged with steam due to the temperature difference between the hot air of the bathroom and the cooler passageway. Inside, a white figure appeared to be moving. The sound of running water pierced his ears vividly, it was no longer the faint rustling he had heard earlier.

He unconsciously reached for the glass door and stopped, suddenly realizing what he was doing.

‘…!’

He turned his back immediately. His body was hot, even though the weather was not exactly warm. As soon as he slipped out of the passageway to escape and closed the door that led to his bedroom, he raised a large hand and cupped one side of his face.

“…Crazy.”

His whole face was burning as if his body was on fire. Even in the midst of it, the thought of a blurry silhouette from the other side of the translucent glass door made his mind dizzy. A hot sigh leaked from his mouth and dissipated into the air.

“I’ve gone crazy.”

Roughly brushing his hair back, he could feel the dampness of his barely-dried hair between his fingers. He finally realized how hurriedly he had come to see her.

No wonder he was somewhat thirsty.

It was an inevitable choice that Calix reached for the wine bottle on the table.