Chapter 10

Riorem did not reply.

Chernea stared at the dress as he dried her off and dressed her in her underwear.

If what Riorem wanted was to keep my bedroom slave covered, it served the purpose.

It didn’t reveal any skin at all, even double wrapping around my bare skin.

But that wasn’t Riorem’s main purpose, in Chernea’s opinion.

Perhaps he brought modest clothing to remind me of my diminished status.

If that’s the case, that dress was a poor choice.

It’s modest, yes, but not plain.

The fabric was bleached and snow-white, and the lace was hand-knitted.

Everything looked expensive.

But then I realised why Riorem had chosen that dress.

There’s no way Riorem, who has no taste for expensive, fine things, would have recognised the enormous amount of work that went into this dress.

So when Chernea asks Riorem, ‘Are you sure you want me to wear it?’ it’s not because of the cost of the length.

Chernea glanced back at the man tying the waistband of my petticoat.

Tying the knot seemed familiar to him, perhaps because it was his job to take off and put on my shoes.

‘But… A white lace dress and a big white veil.’

Not like a bride heading down the aisle.

Riorem led Chernea out of the mansion.

He could have shown her the mansion first, but he preferred to wander around the castle.

The idea of showing Chernea the estate had come to him a few days ago.

All that Riorem himself had built, to be precise.

For one thing, he only brought one horse.

It wasn’t as if Chernea, who had never ridden anything other than a carriage in her life, would be able to ride a horse in the first place.

The horse left the manor grounds in a flash.

It seemed to be in good spirits, its gait light despite having two people in the saddle.

Due to its geographical location, Dinamis Castle had very well-paved roads.

For a warhorse on the battlefield, it would have been like walking on clouds.

But Chernea found it difficult to stay in the saddle.

The roughness of the steed’s ride caused her to lose her balance repeatedly.

Her body swayed between the two arms that held the reins.

Eventually, Riorem wrapped one arm around her waist and held her steady.

The horse had a strong forward momentum and was not easy to handle with one rein, but it was better than watching Chernea fall.

Despite her efforts, Chernea was exhausted before they reached the village.

Regardless, Riorem dismounted at the mouth of the village.

He intended to make Chernea walk.

It would be better for him to get a feel for the vastness of the estate.

Of course, it wasn’t easy for him.

As they walked toward the village, Chernea staggered, her slender frame swaying wildly.

Outside the village, the olive trees and vines were in full swing.

They were clearing away the winter’s overgrowth and climbing the ground.

Even as they staggered along, Chernea’s gaze never left the woodland that ran along the mountain’s ridge.

It was to be expected, all humans of that damned bloodline are weak to new things.

And the Kingdom of Arete is different from the Duchy in every way.

It was quite a provocation for a woman who suffered from a morbid sense of freedom.

Riorem lifted the corners of her mouth.

Chernea’s steps grew more and more precarious as they neared the village.

She was exhausted and distracted.

There was also a problem that Riorem hadn’t figured out.

Chernea glanced down at her feet.

The gravel and stones that paved the road were wearing away at the soles.

Especially, the heels, made of a few pieces of leather, were already tattered at the seams.

Normally, a little careful walking would have solved this problem.

After all, she’d spent decades of abusive training to walk gracefully in any situation.

But Chernea’s stamina had been mostly drained last night.

Riorem had been particularly insistent last night.

He sucked on a candle until it was blown out, and Chernea passed out.

That’s why she didn’t wake up when he set her down in the bath.

There was no way she could have walked the hard, uneven path in those uncomfortable shoes.

And then Chernea put her left foot down.

Tuduk.

I heard the thread snap and the precarious seam burst open.

The leather that had formed the heel of the shoe scattered.

At the same time, the soles of her feet slipped and slid as she lost her footing.

Her body swayed wildly, then began to fall backwards.

A strong arm snatched her around the waist.

Chernea struggled to regain her balance, only to be thrown off balance once again by the arm that wrapped around her.

Once again.

Pow.

With a dull thud, Chernea was instantly trapped in Riorem’s arms.

Riorem spoke in a cold voice.

‘Can’t you even walk upright?’

Chernea looked up shakily at the man who had picked her up.

‘Of course, I would walk better if my shoes were still on, or if you had put me to bed last night.’

‘Who cares about shoes…….’

Riorem’s gaze fell to Chernea’s feet.

Then his eyes caught sight of the mangled pieces of leather.

Riorem felt his heart sink.

They were a good buy, but he’d handpicked them.

If they were falling apart like that, it must have been a long time since the stitches had begun to loosen.

‘How long has it been like this?’

‘I’m not sure, but I think the seams were already bursting by the time we saw the vineyard.’

‘Well… No, why didn’t you tell me in the first place? You’re weird, not stupid, aren’t you?’

‘Are you blaming me, Riorem? It’s bad form to blame others for your embarrassment.’

Riorem gritted his teeth.

It’s so cavalier to pretend it was someone else’s fault when you almost tripped yourself.

I’m sorry, but I’m sick and tired of it.

Dark blood or light, all who carried the blood of the Serpantovs were like that.

That might be the perfect personality for a monarch.

But to Riorem.

Only seemed to lack humanity.

It was a free-for-all, and in the end, even the pain he sought was an irritant.

Even pain is a stimulus, and he seeks it out.

That’s why Riorem had rejected Chernea in the past.

When Chernea allowed him to climb into bed, Riorem was out of his mind.

He couldn’t think of anything but wanting to touch her.

I wanted to touch her somehow, and all I was allowed to see were ten rosy-headed toes and soles that were white and smooth, even in the deepest pockmarks.

All I had were protruding peach bones and a shapely ankle.

But Riorem had been one of Chernea’s longest-serving slaves, so there was no way he wouldn’t know.

I had no choice.

A slave in heat might be exciting to me at the moment, but as I got used to the sex and the stimulation wore off.

My master would surely forget himself.

‘But not now.’

‘There’s no point in you getting tired of it now, because I am the master.’

Riorem forced down the anxiety that rose in me.

He scooped Chernea up into his arms.

Then he set her down on the saddle of the horse he had been leading.

Then I tried to give her a simple lesson on how to ride, and to my surprise, she sat steadily in the saddle.

‘Do you know how to ride a horse?’

‘As far as riding goes, yes, I’ve learnt.’

‘Then why were you-‘

Riorem suddenly fell silent.

He suddenly remembered what Chernea had said.

‘If you hadn’t bullied me so much yesterday, I wouldn’t have fallen.’

In the end, Riorem said no more.

The speed of their journey increased, and they soon reached the village.

Upon entering, several of the villagers recognised Riorem and bowed to him.

Their gazes soon turned to the woman on Riorem’s horse.

The woman’s face was obscured by a large veil, but the chin and lips beneath it were quite beautiful.

I could tell from her chin and lips alone that she was quite beautiful.

One, then two, then all eyes were on the woman in the white dress.

But no one spoke to her.

No one dared to ask Riorem who she was.

No one even looked at her.

No wonder.

He had suffered so much to earn this dignity.