Estelle had once witnessed that man holding a secret conversation with Helios.
\[Brother Roman, we are here to learn about the deaths of her ex-husbands.]
\[Do you really believe she killed her former husbands with those frail arms? She's just an ordinary woman, nothing special.]
Roman, who underestimated Estelle, let out a sly laugh.
\[No, no. With that face and figure, who knows? You'd best be careful too, Brother Helios. You never know what might happen.]
\[Brother Roman.]
For the moment, he had changed into the livery of a household servant, but his face revealed that he was one of Helios's close aides.
Why he had infiltrated as a merchant and was now disguised in a servant's garb, hiding himself, was a mystery.
But one thing was certain.
Sniff, sniff.
"Go away, go away! I've got things to do!"
"Who are you, mister? First time seeing you!"
Whoa, whoa!
Durén tilted his head as he looked up at Roman, who was waving his hands about roughly.
"You little bastard, no bigger than a rat! Can't even understand words, just like your lowborn mother who sold her filthy body!"
He had to be driven out.
When Estelle rushed toward Durén, the boy sensed her presence, turned his head, and gave her a bright grin.
"Mom!"
Estelle reached out, trying to pull the welcoming Durén into her arms.
But Durén tapped her with his finger and said:
"Mom, Mom. Pick me up."
At those words, Estelle obediently lifted him, though his weight made it a bit of a struggle.
Thanks to that, Durén's eye level came almost up to that of the man.
"Doo-doo…."
Before Estelle could take a step back—
Durén clenched his tiny fist.
And then—
"I'm not a rat runt!"
Durén's fist slammed into the priest's face.
Thud!
The punch landed squarely on Roman's face, hard enough that he staggered backward.
"Ughk!"
"It only looked small 'cause it was far away! Like a star!"
Huff!
Durén puffed out a breath through his nose and shouted proudly:
"Doo-doo's big, right?!"
"Y-you…!"
It didn't seem like Durén had intended to actually hurt him.
Rather, he seemed to think he had successfully made his point, his little shoulders lifting in smug pride.
Watching him, Roman clutched his nose, his face flushing red.
"You little rat bastard!"
The pain was like his nose had been flattened.
Enraged, Roman forgot he was dealing with a child and a woman, raising his fist as if to strike at once.
Estelle pulled Durén tightly into her arms.
With both hands bound, Estelle's mind went blank—she had no way to defend herself.
At that moment—
"Shut… your mouth."
A shadow fell over Roman's head.
"...!"
A voice worn thin with exhaustion.
A face so gaunt the cheeks looked hollowed.
Long black hair tumbled down to her calves, streaked here and there with strands of white.
"You… you're a priest, aren't you?"
The woman's crimson eyes gleamed with menace as she suddenly cut in.
With one long, slender hand, she casually lifted Roman by the collar and hurled him.
Crunch!
"Ghhk!"
He struck the wall so hard that cracks spread across it, and Roman slumped, unmoving.
"Priest—die."
Her hollow crimson eyes, overflowing with undisguised hatred, shifted toward Estelle.
Gulp.
Estelle swallowed dryly.
She feared he might crumple in her grasp like a ball of paper at any moment.
"Is this… a dream?"
But the woman soon tore her gaze away from Estelle.
"There couldn't possibly be a pretty woman in this fortress…"
Muttering faintly, she brushed past Estelle.
Only after hearing the sound of the door close behind her did Estelle finally release her breath and relax her taut body.
"Mom?"
Durén looked up at Estelle with worried eyes. Softening her tense expression, Estelle set him back down.
Only then did the wreckage around them come into clear view.
She knew the woman who had just displayed power no human could possess.
Glessia Wonterren.
"Seems like Durén's aunt was making quite a ruckus."
"Auntie?"
She was Lennox's older sister.
She must've shared the Mandrake potion with me. She's… brimming with strength.
There was no other way to explain what had just happened.
"Estelle! I heard a loud noise, are you—"
Lennox, who had been running toward them belatedly, stopped short.
"…Was that your doing?"
"No!"
"I thought it was the effect of the Mandrake potion… but it seems not."
There was much that needed explaining.
The unconscious Roman was dragged straight to the underground dungeon.They said once he woke, he would be interrogated about his true purpose for infiltrating the fortress.
He must have been planning to roam the stronghold in disguise as a servant.
Estelle had her suspicions.
It might be because of me.
Since there was no direct evidence that she wielded demonic energy, perhaps he had come seeking proof.
Helios… if that man still hasn't given up on me, then it's a plausible theory.
Looking back, her marriage to Helios had been doomed from the very first step.
[The marriage with Viscount Ingram was canceled. To suggest breaking the engagement at the last moment… what a coward.]
Like Estelle's other husbands, Viscount Ingram was a man of wealth and advanced age.
Even though the plan had fallen apart, Count Bellonsa showed no regret as he reproached the viscount.
That was because Ingram had made another proposal.
[Instead, he arranged a marriage with his former wife's nephew, Baron Kreutzen. A greenhorn, but one with sharp business sense—he amassed immense wealth at a very young age.]
[How old is he?]
[About two years older than you. At that age, with such wealth, he's bound to be swollen with pride, thinking no one is greater than himself.]
[…I think he's far too young.]
[There's an order to arriving in this world, but no order to leaving it, is there?]
[Lately, more and more people suspect me of being involved in my husbands' deaths. Wouldn't it be wiser to stay cautious now, before the truth of everything that's happened so far is exposed?]
[…]
[Besides, he's young—so I couldn't even claim he died of old age.]
Estelle desperately listed every reason that came to mind, opposing the marriage with all her strength.
She no longer wanted to kill anyone.
[I expected you might say that, so I looked into it. Baron Kreutzen suffers from a chronic illness. He's the perfect match.]
He was a man with conditions far too suitable.
That was when she should have begun to suspect.
[What's more, he has no other relatives. His entire fortune will be inherited by you. A grand opportunity.]
[But…]
[Estelle. This will be the last time. Truly.]
Count Bellonsa placed heavy emphasis on the word last.
On the surface, it sounded as if the count were coaxing her, yet in truth, Estelle always had only two choices:
To kill her husband.
Or not kill him, and spend the night as his wife.
Through her previous marriage, she had become a wealthy heiress—but all that wealth was tied up in Bellonsa's grasp.
Without marrying again, it was impossible for her to achieve financial independence from the Bellonsa family.
In the end, Estelle nodded.
And on her wedding day, she saw her husband's face for the very first time.
Looking at Helios—far more handsome and composed than she had imagined—Estelle felt a single fragile hope stir within her.
"Maybe… I can actually reason with this man?"
Estelle had planned to secretly make three proposals to Helios, hidden from the family.
First, tonight—they would only pretend to consummate the marriage.
Second, once she was formally recognized as his wife, she would help him launder his wealth.
Third, once the laundering was complete, they would part ways cleanly with a divorce.
Throughout the process, she intended to ensure he was well compensated.
She no longer wished to kill anyone.
But at the same time, she had no desire to truly become the wife of the man she had just met that day—this was the best path forward.
Yet no matter how long she waited, Helios never came to the bridal chamber, and anxiety began to gnaw at her.
Estelle finally went to look for him.
Then she stopped in her tracks when she found him in a secluded place, speaking with someone.
[Brother Roman. We've come to investigate the deaths of her former husbands.]
So Helios was a priest.
If the truth that she could wield demonic energy were ever exposed to him, Estelle would surely be branded a witch.
And then—without any chance to explain herself—she would be led to the executioner's block.
Whirling around, Estelle bolted down the corridor blindly—only to run straight into Matthias.
[Ma–Matthias! We have to cancel this marriage immediately!]
[Are you insane? All of a sudden—]
[This husband is someone sent from the temple!]
[What?]
If Estelle were branded a witch, Bellonsa—who had so aggressively arranged the marriage—would also be cornered.
With the fire now licking at his own heels, Matthias squeezed every drop of wit from his meager brain.
[Run to the officiant right now and confess that the man's… thing is small.]
[I haven't even seen it yet. How would I know?]
[How should I know that either?!]
[…]
[But it's enough grounds for breaking the engagement, so just insist on it! Father and I will handle the rest somehow.]
Estelle did exactly as Matthias said, rushing straight to the officiant.
[It's small.]
Since Estelle had never actually seen him, it was a claim Helios could have easily refuted.
Yet he quietly accepted the annulment.
Perhaps… it really was small.
But to Estelle, everything about him reeked of suspicion.
After the annulment, it was revealed that he hadn't been suffering from any chronic illness at all.
He had falsified information in order to marry her.
The fact that she hadn't cut ties cleanly back then felt like a string that had trailed after her ever since, like a tail she couldn't shake.
And so, Estelle made a firm decision.
"Let's consummate the marriage."
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