OCDRF 03

Chapter 3

The Push and Pull of Love, or a Transaction

The Grand Duke came to visit while the Count and Countess were away on business.

Even though I had been preparing myself for this moment, I grew nervous as the meeting drew near.

I felt like a cow being forcibly dragged to a slaughterhouse.

Looking at Betty’s chestnut-brown eyes, which sparkled with anticipation, I gave her a warning.

“I told you before, but I have no intention of getting together with the Grand Duke anymore.”

“Finally, you’ve realized that you can’t just keep pulling him toward you, Young Lady.”

“It’s not a matter of playing hard to get.”

Betty’s attitude had changed overnight, and she completely ignored what I said.

Apparently, the sun had finally begun to shine on her young lady’s unrequited love.

Unfortunately, what had begun to loom over my future wasn’t sunshine, but dark clouds.

How was I supposed to clear up this suffocating situation?

“You used to say you were against marrying His Grace the Grand Duke.”

“That’s because His Grace was cold toward you, Young Lady!”

Her reaction was rather excessive considering that I had received only a single letter from the Grand Duke.

The problem was that Betty wasn’t the only one getting ahead of herself.

Even the Count had shown some subtle expectations after seeing the Grand Duke’s letter.

I remembered the conversation I had with the Count when he came to my room last night.

“As you know, the engagement has a clause stating that it will be dissolved if a wedding isn’t held within five years. Ahem.”

“I’m not saying that I’m expecting anything, of course. Still, there’s no harm in bringing it up with His Grace the Grand Duke. So, my dear, do your best.”

I could only look troubled at the Count’s ridiculous daydream.

The Grand Duke was a bastard who had killed his fiancée because he couldn’t even wait those five years.

I would rather die single.

Even the Countess had clasped my hand and looked close to tears.

“I’m so glad. Truly, I’m so glad. You liked him so much.”

The Grand Duke had treated Liviat like a stone on the side of the road, so apparently even a single letter from him was enough to get everyone talking.

I couldn’t even count how many gazes followed me as I walked down the corridor.

There’s no way for me to clear up this misunderstanding.

If I could have, I would have exposed the Grand Duke’s true nature to everyone.

Standing alone in front of the drawing room, I pressed a hand over my rapidly beating heart.

At first, I had to behave similarly to the original Liviat.

So that the Grand Duke wouldn’t become suspicious of me.

Can I really do this?

No.

For the sake of securing enough money to escape and ensuring a safe future, I absolutely had to do it.

The moment I opened the drawing room door, a low voice wrapped around my ears.

“It’s been a while, Young Lady.”

The man who had been standing by the window slowly turned around and stared at me.

The moment those cold, subdued blue eyes landed on me, every thought that had occupied my mind until just a moment ago vanished.

He’s ridiculously handsome.

Sunlight spilled over his neatly slicked-back black hair.

His dark eyes, slightly raised at the corners, were so beautiful they looked as though they had been painted with a brush.

I usually didn’t care much about people’s appearances, but his overwhelming looks were enough to make me lose my composure for a moment.

Swallowing nervously, I slowly walked toward him.

A short while later.

I sat on the sofa opposite the Grand Duke and stole glances at him as he drank his tea.

When he lowered his head, shadows fell across the bridge of his straight, perfectly shaped nose.

How can someone look so decadent and yet so beautiful?

His eyelashes were even longer than mine.

Just as I had planned, I began by complimenting the Grand Duke on his remarkable appearance.

“The structure of Your Grace’s facial features is remarkably close to the golden ratio.”

“What?”

“The dopamine receptors in my brain are currently celebrating because they’ve reached saturation.”

Silence stretched on.

I decided to interpret that silence as a positive sign.

At least he wasn’t immediately drawing his sword and threatening me.

I almost added that his appearance stimulated the vagus nerve and induced a relaxation response, but barely managed to stop myself.

If I say any more, he might actually kill me.

Cold sweat trickled down my back as the Grand Duke’s expression hardened even more than before.

But I couldn’t give up here.

I had to make use of the expressions I had learned from reading Liviat’s letters.

“Standing before Your Grace’s radiance, I feel as though all my defenses simply evaporate. The sharp tension melts away, making it easier to breathe. Surely, it would not be an exaggeration to call it salvation.”

I felt rather proud of myself.

That sounded much more like the original Liviat.

Perhaps I actually have a talent for aristocratic speech.

The Grand Duke remained frozen in place for a moment, as though time itself had stopped.

Then his face twisted into a deep frown.

“What kind of insane nonsense is that?”

At the time, I didn’t know.

I didn’t know that the Grand Duke had never once read the exaggerated praise Liviat had written in her letters.

After all, she always agonized over her words before sending him nothing more than a simple letter asking how he was doing.

That look… That’s the look someone gives when they see a dangerous lunatic they want nothing to do with.

I had a vague feeling that I had said something wrong, but I couldn’t figure out what.

Since things had already gone this far, I was about to offer him my next compliment.

But his blue eyes slowly swept over my tense face.

They were the eyes of someone wary of and suspicious of something unfamiliar.

Then, without warning, the Grand Duke leaned forward and reached toward me.

His cold fingers touched my forehead, sending a shiver down my spine.

Startled, I recoiled a beat too late.

“……What are you—”

“You don’t have a fever.”

He wiped the hand that had touched me with a handkerchief before asking indifferently,

“Why aren’t you clinging to me and chattering annoyingly as usual?”

“Uh, well…”

My voice trembled pathetically as the words left my mouth.

My mind went completely blank, and the Grand Duke’s face filled my vision.

Almost as though I had fallen in love with him.

But no matter how I thought about it, there was no way I could have developed feelings for the Grand Duke in that brief moment.

He sneered at me as I silently opened and closed my mouth.

“I thought something was wrong with your mind when you sent me that strange letter. But that damn reaction of yours is exactly the same.”

“What’s wrong with my reaction?”

“You turn red all over whenever I so much as touch you.”

My dazed face was reflected faintly in the teacup.

Only then did I realize that the body of the Liviat I had possessed was affecting my emotions.

This isn’t normal.

I wanted to get to the point quickly and escape this strange sensation.

Growing impatient, I opened my mouth.

“I have something to say to Your Grace.”

The Grand Duke raised one eyebrow and waved his hand irritably.

He already seemed annoyed before I had even gotten to the main point.

“If it’s thanks for saving you, forget it. Hearing you thank me will probably only ruin my mood.”

“Oh. I really am grateful for that. And actually, I—”

“You’re not going to say something ridiculous about another soul possessing your body and try to test me, are you?”

………………He’s a genius?

At times like this, the emotionless expression I had learned while working as a doctor came in handy.

I desperately erased my startled expression and calmly asked,

“What made you think that?”

“You once claimed that you were someone else who had possessed this body, simply to attract my attention.”

“……That must have startled you quite a bit.”

“Yes. At the time, I told you that if you said one more word of nonsense, I would burn everything to the ground. Do you remember?”

I answered with nothing more than a silent, bright smile.

Plan A is canceled.

At least until I could submit my request to break off the engagement, it seemed wiser not to say anything that would arouse unnecessary suspicion.

How could I hide my possession while bringing up the matter of breaking off the engagement?

Then I suddenly remembered something people often said.

When someone nearly dies, their values can change dramatically.

“Actually, I had a near-death experience, and it changed my outlook on life a little.”

“Oh, really?”

The Grand Duke had been sipping his tea without bothering to hide his boredom, but at my next words, his brow furrowed.

“I’m trying to let go of my obsessive fixation on Your Grace.”

“……Are you actually insane? Or are you sick somewhere?”

“Of course, the human heart isn’t something that can be sorted out so easily.”

Now came the main point.

I slowly spread all ten fingers in front of the Grand Duke.

“One hundred gold.”

“If I receive one hundred gold as compensation for breaking off the engagement, I think I’ll be able to let go of my feelings. In other words, financial therapy.”

As a doctor, I was someone who sincerely believed in the effectiveness of financial therapy.

You need money to do anything in life.

Besides, after investigating, I had discovered that this country actually had a system of compensation for broken engagements.

I had decided not to reveal the fact that I had possessed Liviat’s body, but that didn’t mean I could give up my escape fund as well.

From what I could tell, one hundred gold was an enormous sum—well over two hundred million in value.

I needed that much money to leave this country safely.

I waited anxiously for his answer.

At the same time, the corner of the Grand Duke’s mouth twisted, and my breath caught in my throat.

His blue eyes darkened beneath his thick eyelashes.

Then, a heavy killing intent began to radiate from him.

My entire body tensed as though I had been thrown directly in front of a wild beast.

It felt as if the very air around me had turned sharp enough to sting.