* * *

Jerome turned back to me and extended his hand.

His platinum hair shimmered under the moonlight.

As I took his hand and tried to stand, my body wobbled.

I was about to say that killing everyone here would cause major problems, but Jerome whispered in a low voice.

“Jeanne, don’t speak. Just nod or shake your head.”

“…”

“Did those men try to violate you?”

I was forced into silence, unsure of why.

Jerome’s usual playful gaze had turned deadly serious—so cold it sent a chill through me.

I couldn’t bring myself to answer, and as Jerome watched me, his expression hardened.

His fingers grazed my bruised lips, and the pain that had wracked my body began to fade as a cool blue light enveloped me.

“It’s okay. I know it’s hard, but I need you to tell me. Not to humiliate you—I want to share your pain because we’re married.”

Despite his calm tone, I could feel his hand trembling on my shoulder.

It wasn’t from the cold; Jerome was clearly terrified of something.

Whether it was fear of the tragedy I might have endured or of losing control of himself, I couldn’t be sure.

I gazed up at Jerome and spoke.

“I saw a lot of Sacre girls in the carriage earlier. Someone with immense wealth and power is behind this. We need to find out who he is and kill these men later.”

“That’s not an answer to my question.”

“Do you think I’m the kind of person who’d let that happen to me? I’d rather die than let something like that happen.”

Well… there had been a certain… adult kiss, but that was only because I had to get a bow.

And since I had been the one to lead it, it didn’t really count as assault.

But still, my conscience stung a bit as I avoided his gaze.

Jerome’s trembling voice broke the silence.

“Darling? You can’t look away from me like that.”

“…”

“Darling?”

He shook my shoulders, and I brushed him off irritably.

Derek, watching this play out, let out a sarcastic laugh and spat out a familiar name.

“Quite impressive, aren’t you? After Carlisle, now it’s another man…”

“Wait a minute!”

Derek, that insane bastard!

He was clearly determined to take me down with him on his trip to hell.

Jerome, who already looked like something out of a horror movie, slowly turned his head.

His soulless eyes made him even more terrifying.

“Carlisle…?”

“It—it was him! He’s the one who slapped me!”

I quickly pointed to Derek.

As the situation descended into an all-out exposé, a few of the more quick-witted mercenaries bolted in fear.

Jerome didn’t bother to chase after them.

He stared at me, sweat trickling down my face, and let out a deep sigh.

“Well, this is also part of the weight I must bear for having such a curious young wife.”

“…”

“But you’ll have to explain everything later. Unless you want to spend day and night buttoning my shirt for me…”

A sudden, fundamental question arose in my mind.

Why does Jeanne always have such bad luck with men?

Jerome, having finished speaking, clamped my ears tightly with his large hands.

Thanks to his size, all sound was completely blocked out.

Curious about what he was doing, I glanced up at him.

Jerome said something in a blank expression.

When I turned my head back to Derek, he was sitting on the ground in shock, drooling, his eyes vacant.

“No, no! Don’t come any closer! You can’t make eye contact, whatever you do, don’t—!”

Derek staggered to his feet and ran madly toward the dark forest, his face twisted in panic, like someone fleeing a chainsaw-wielding killer.

His sudden change left me frozen in disbelief.

‘What on earth did he see that terrified him so much?’

Jerome, having finished whatever he was doing, released my ears.

Gripping my chin, he turned my face to look at him, his touch gentle as he checked the scar on my lips again.

Absorbed in that tender touch, I asked the question without thinking.

“What did Derek see?”

“Who knows?”

“….”

“Wouldn’t it be better not to know?”

It was only after hearing Jerome’s answer that I began to guess.

Derek was probably seeing his worst nightmare, just as I once had.

Imagining Derek trapped in this monster-filled forest, never to escape, sent a chill down my spine.

“A-a monster! That’s definitely a monster!”

Watching Derek lose his mind so suddenly, the mercenaries screamed.

Jerome muttered, “It’s already been 30 seconds,” as he walked toward the fleeing mercenaries.

He wasn’t fazed by the cries of “monster.”

The air was filled with harsh curses and gut-wrenching screams.

For the first time, I felt grateful that Jerome wasn’t my enemy.

Time passed.

Jerome returned, covered in blood, having ignored my suggestion to keep someone alive for questioning.

Wiping the blood off his sword with some grass, he gestured for me to come closer.

“Jeanne, come here.”

I limped over at his command.

My knee, scraped when I fell earlier, throbbed painfully.

Jerome approached me with a strange expression as I stopped walking, unable to bear the pain.

‘Is he getting annoyed? He probably is by now, right?’

That thought crossed my mind the moment I saw Jerome’s face.

I’d been thinking the same ever since that incident with the heretic.

I wasn’t much help in battles, constantly dragged everyone into danger, and was too stubborn to admit defeat.

Even if Jerome found me a nuisance, it was always me, not him, who needed help in the end.

It was just a personal hunch, but I always felt guilty when others didn’t recognize my worth.

I didn’t want to burden Jerome unnecessarily.

Afraid he might change his mind and leave me behind in this forest, I broke the silence.

“But how did you even find this place?”

“…”

“What about those rumors about you dealing with the heretics in the eastern estate? Why didn’t you say anything when you came to the blessing ceremony?”

Before I realized it, I was asking question after question.

But before I could feel self-conscious about it, Jerome crouched down on one knee and lifted the hem of my clothes.

Startled, I instinctively recoiled, but Jerome only examined my injured knee with a calm expression.

“Why didn’t you say you were hurt?”

His tone was hard to decipher—was he angry, or just indifferent?

Whatever the case, he seemed to think the injury was serious.

His unexpected question caught me off guard, and I blurted out the truth.

“I thought you’d find it annoying.”

“…”

“And, well, it doesn’t hurt that much.”

I quickly added a lie after revealing my true feelings.

The moment I did, I realized it was a mistake, but Jerome’s surprised expression made my heart skip a beat.

‘Why did I lie just now? There was no reason to.’

I clamped my mouth shut, words tangling in my mind.

Why was he even asking this, and why was it making me so uncomfortable?

The quiet patter of rain began to wet my skin, the sound filling the silence.

After what felt like an eternity, Jerome took off his robe.

“You’re good at giving to others, but you don’t seem to know how to lean on anyone.”

Jerome draped his robe over me.

Sitting there, wrapped in his robe like a hooded cloak, I thought deeply.

I had never considered this before until Jerome pointed it out.

‘Now that I think about it, I was like that when I was a kid too.’

I remembered going to school with a fever, carrying my bag like nothing was wrong, until my teacher nearly fainted.

Or the time I fell off the jungle gym, broke my shoulder, and didn’t say a word, only to get scolded by my father later.

I thought nothing of it back then, but Jerome’s persistence made me reconsider.

After giving it some thought, I shook my head.

“No, I just don’t like to complain.”

“Why not?”

“Well, if you keep hearing someone complain, no matter how patient you are, it gets exhausting… And if I ask for help and get ignored, that’d be even worse. It would hurt.”

I rambled, then realized Jerome was watching me with a suppressed smile.

Without offering an explanation for his expression, Jerome pulled out a gold coin and began drawing a magic circle around me.

It felt like I was being sealed away like a demon.

I stared at him blankly before asking.

“…What’s with that smug look?”

“It’s the look of someone who’s figured you out completely.”

“…”

“Soon, I’ll know even the color of the underwear you’re wearing today.”

He finished the magic circle with those chilling words, and suddenly I felt my body lift into the air.

The strange light emitted from the coin-drawn magic circle looked like some sort of teleportation spell.

Groaning, Jerome stood up and smiled.

“By the way, today I’m wearing black underwear.”

“I didn’t ask.”

Annoyed at learning something I didn’t want to know, I was briefly distracted before an urgent thought hit me.

Just before we were teleported, I yelled out.

“Jerome, the guild assembly at the academy is in a few days! You have to be there!”

Jerome, about to toss a coin into the air, froze.

The shimmering veil of light distorted his figure more and more.

I wobbled, trying to keep my balance, and shouted again.

“Got it? You need to—”

Before I could finish, the ground beneath me vanished into a black void.

The sound of boiling water rang in my ears as my body plunged downward.

When I opened my eyes, I was in a completely different place.

‘Wait. Hold on.’

I looked around in a daze, then jumped to my feet.

Jerome’s teleportation spell must have malfunctioned.

Surveying the unfamiliar surroundings, I clenched my fists in frustration.

“Where the hell am I?”

* * *