Beher climbed into the carriage. The restraining cuffs that used to bind her wrists were long gone. She was puzzled when she saw Ben treating the slave so generously.

Actually, she planned to escape when there was a gap. But….

“Let’s go up. My Lady.”

The man named Ben treated her like an aristocratic young lady. It was awkward. Is this empire generous to its slaves? No, it’s not.

The way the slave trader treated her made it seem absolutely impossible.

‘Otherwise…does he know who I am?’

Beher was the Imperial Princess of the Vitan Empire. She was the only legitimate heir to the throne. She was the one who got out of it where everyone dreamed of.

Even though she was an imperial Princess, her daily life was crueler than the life of a slave.

‘Oh well—now let’s wait and see how it’ll turn out.’

Beher looked at the scenery beyond the carriage. In the hustle and bustle, she saw things she hadn’t noticed and more. After a bumpy ride, they came upon a road made of limestone.

She had heard that the Horn Empire was very active in trade. Perhaps that was why. The place was crowded with people until late at night.

“First, I have a few things to say before you see His Highness.”

Ben, who rode in the carriage with her, opened his mouth.

Speaking of which…. the high man really was the Grand Duke.

‘I didn’t mishear it.’

Is it okay to expose his identity so easily? Beher was suspicious of them because it seemed like they trusted her too much.

Reading Beher’s eyes, Ben let out a small sigh.

“I know what you’re thinking. But I didn’t put you here to make you do chores. You also need to know more about His Highness anyway. I’ll be brief since we don’t have much time.”

Beher gave a small nod. She had a hunch that something big was going to happen.

“First of all, the Grand Duke’s name is Lucai Rike. He is the heir to the family name of the Imperial House of Rike. He is a Knight Commander of the Empire.”

As soon as she heard the Grand Duke’s name, Beher found something strange. How could he have inherited the imperial family’s surname and not be a Prince? She continued to listen to Ben.

“He’s not a legitimate member of the imperial family, but he’s a very important person to His Majesty. He’s like His Majesty’s nephew. I hope you will consider this. His Highness’s parents. His parents, the Grand Duke and his wife, died early in an accident and he became Grand Duke at the age of 15.”

That was a very young age to earn the title Grand Duke.

Beher frowned at the thought of what he had to go through at that young age.

There was a rumor that the most brutal knight in the Horn Empire was Lucai.

Beher closed her eyes for a moment. She didn’t want to think about anything brutal.

Soon they arrived at the Grand Duke’s residence and Beher got off the carriage. She walked through the garden as Ben guided her.

The garden, which she thought would be gloomy, had more flowers than she expected. It didn’t suit the dark atmosphere of the Grand Duke at all.

Beher trudged through there. Somehow, it felt similar to the garden where she secretly went out when she was young.

“The Grand Duke will come shortly.”

Ben told her. Then the door closed coldly. Beher was placed in the parlor.

Luxurious sofa, wallpaper, and floor. There were many works of art hanging on the walls. Beher sat down on the sofa. She thought they were going to lock her up in a dungeon and take advantage of her recklessly, but it seemed like it was her illusion.

No matter how long she waited, no one was hostile to her. Even the servants in the parlor did not give her the cold shoulder.

‘What does this mean?’

Beher had no idea whether they knew who she was or not.

She thought even if they treated her coldly, she would have accepted it without choice. But there was no hint of that. Beher leaned quietly against the back of the sofa.

After a long wait, the door opened. And there he was. Grand Duke Lucai. He was dressed in a comfortable shirt, and his black hair was damp; perhaps he just bathed.

The dark atmosphere seemed to have subsided.

Beher slowly stood up from her seat. Then she straightened her back and made eye contact with him. His red eyes were scary but she had a feeling he wouldn’t hurt her.

“I’m here to see His Highness the Grand Duke.”

He was the Grand Duke of the Horn Empire and she had to bow to him.

“Did Ben explain everything to you?”

He said in a low voice. Apparently his voice was nice to hear, and Beher wanted to hear it again.

“I’ve at least heard that you have the title of Knight Commander.”

“…… Yes, that’s right.”

He answered indifferently and sat down on the sofa with a wine bottle and a glass. He looked somewhat tired.

“Are you going to have a drink?”

“I’m fine.”

It wasn’t that Beher couldn’t drink, it was that she couldn’t predict what would be in it. Beher looked at the glass carefully and looked at Lucai.

Having easily removed the cork, he poured the red wine into the glass. The wine looked like blood, even though the color of the grapes ripening was clear, and it made her stomach churn.

She wasn’t used to blood, even though she had been through wars in succession. Beher recalled her past for a moment and waited for him to speak.

His throat moved flexibly like a wave. He swallowed the wine in one gulp and finally focused his red eyes on Beher.

“I didn’t get a good look at you earlier. But you’re quite beautiful.”

Beher thought he checked her face and that was why he bought her, but he didn’t.

“Why did you become a slave?”

Lucai crossed his legs arrogantly and leaned against the back of the couch. Seemingly very curious to hear the question, Behet pondered for a moment and then answered.

“Originally, I wasn’t a slave. I…I escaped from another country. I was abducted that way.”

Beher said with an honesty that was unlike herself. She wondered if she should also tell him the things she enjoyed in the empire, but she refrained from saying anything since it was still a sensitive area.

It was painful to hold a noble status in her hands. Beher didn’t want to remember the past anymore. Lucai stared at Beher when she said that she was not originally a slave.

Beher could barely contain her nervous expression as she held his gaze, wondering if he knew what she was thinking about.

“It seems you were no ordinary noblewoman.”

“….”

Did he know something and said that? Beher grabbed her dress tightly. And her hands felt damp.

“…What makes you think that?” (Beher)

Beher was really curious. It looked like something that needed to be taken care of, if he knew about her. His gaze turned to Beher’s body.

Her head, chest, shoulders, and every inch of her body. There was no part of her that was not exposed to his gaze. She felt like a rat tied to a snake, unable to escape.

“It’s easy. A normal slave would have a bent back, no matter how much he stretched. But your hair is like silk. Hair that’s frizzy like that is just a pile of vines if someone doesn’t take care of it.”

“….”

“And finally, you’re making eye contact with me easily. If you’re not a noble person, you would avoid my eyes.”

“…You just realized that I’m a noble?”

Lucai casually poured a generous amount of wine into his glass again.

“If I hadn’t been so observant, I doubt I would have been able to attain the status of Grand Duke. Furthermore, I doubt I would have even had the authority to command the armies of the Empire.”

Perhaps she underestimated him. Apparently, he was not an ordinary snake, but a deadly poisonous one.

She had a plan to escape later… Beher began to worry that she was doing something wrong.

Lucai, who had been watching Beher closely, slowly tilted his wine glass, keeping his gaze on her.

She felt as if she became the wine itself. Beher gulped down her saliva.

“No way… you’re not going to run away, are you?”

“…!”

He saw through her thoughts. She had to be careful in front of him. She thought she hid her expression well, but… it didn’t work on this man.

“I’m sorry, but you’ll never leave my hands. Don’t be under the illusion that I paid a lot of money to buy you for nothing. Because I never let go what’s in my hands.”

Seeing him threatening her in an inaudible voice, Beher stopped planning to run away for a while.

Finally…she escaped from her father, she didn’t want to die easily now.

“…First of all, I won’t run away.”

“You’re not going to run away first? Haha! You declare that you’re going to escape properly, huh? Well, that’s up to you, but you never know, you might end up rolling like the slave trader’s head.”

Beher was sure he wouldn’t kill her. Because…

“Your Highness is not going to kill me.”

Lucai wrinkled his brow. He thought it was ridiculous that the woman spoke so boldly.

“What makes you think that? Any aristocrat in other empires would have heard of my rumors.”

It was obvious. Beher was well aware of his cruelty. But…

“If Your Highness had planned to kill me, he would have cut off my head long ago. But you’re not holding a sword even after seeing my boldness. Furthermore, you were disarmed since entering this room. It means that Your Highness has no intention of killing me.”

Was that too much? Should she not put herself out there? Beher belatedly regretted it.

Lucai’s red eyes were glowing in surprise. He swept his hair with one hand and began to laugh loudly.

“Hahahaha! You say some pretty funny things, don’t you?”

And he stood up, slowly approaching Beher. A dark shadow fell on her face.