His father was attacked by a rebel spy and met a disgraceful end at a young age.
Because of that, the duty to reclaim his title thereafter naturally fell to the eldest son, Leon. He entered the military academy earlier than others. After his appointment, he traveled through numerous battlefields and rebel hideouts, earning the title of war hero and vampire at the same time.
Now, it was his next duty to marry the daughter of the family who would help him regain his title.
He was raised with military-style education from birth. They didn't ask if he didn't want to do it, anyway, and it was no longer unusual now that he did it silently.
He was called Camden's vampire because of the notoriety that the places he passed were going to be bloody, though in fact, the nickname Camden's loyal military dog might be more appropriate.
Can I call that woman the Grand Duchy's gentle sheep?
Leon stared at the Grand Lady, who was looking out the window on the deck.
Compared to the Grand Lady, the eldest son of the Winston family was of a lower rank. Nevertheless, the reason why the Grand Duke took this marriage seriously was because the civil war was not over yet.
It was a world where soldiers were on the road to success.
Among the many young officers, Leon was the most promising. The Grand Duke was just starting to rise, and he was using one of his daughters to buy this high-risk but high-return stock at a bargain price.
So, Rosalind Aldrich was the Grand Duke's scapegoat.
He spoke to the woman with a dull face again.
"Do you like this place?"
"…Yes."
According to his intuition, who had been interrogating spies for many years, that was a lie.
"I'm glad. It was a mistake to leave the restaurant reservations with mother. I was a little bit regretful."
At his words, a smirk spread across the Grand Lady's face.
"Mrs. Winston has a good eye."
"Thank you. I will pass it to my mother."
After a meaningless smile, the Grand Lady smiled slowly along with him.
The waiter brought the meal as soon as the woman opened her mouth firmly as if she had something to say. After that, every now and then, talking about cooking a word or two, was all they had in the conversation.
Emptying the plate quickly didn't make it any faster to escape from here. Nevertheless, his body wanted to get out of this place quickly, so he finished the meal in an instant.
The Grand Princess also put down the fork and knife, even though the plate wasn't even half empty.
"Sorry. If you're in the military, you'll get used to the speed of men's meals."
Apologizing for the menu, he moved to the cafe on the same floor later. Since he couldn't starve his guest, he was thinking of offering a cake.
"No. In fact, it was too much for me to eat."
The Grand Lady, like a lady, declined the dessert and ordered tea. While she was waiting for the tea, her eyes kept getting closer to his face as he stared out the window.
Leon, who became embarrassed, finally could not bear it and asked.
"Do you have anything to say?"
The Grand Lady looked like she had been caught. She did the obvious, and it wasn't even funny. Then, what was so funny, as he said to himself, he smiled softly and opened her mouth.
"You're not as scary as the rumors are."
Leon suppressed a ridicule.
Stupid woman. Did you know that I could wield a whip at you?
No matter how vicious the rumors were, they wouldn't be wrong. It was just that he couldn't show his true face to the Grand Princess.
"The Captain is really generous and kind."
What kind of woman saw all of his true qualities and called him generous and kind…?
Sally Bristol.
He didn't think she was stupid. Rather, she looked like a fox pretending to be stupid.
The gap between her mouth, which uttered she admired him, and her eyes, which said she despised him, were worth seeing. He wanted to take off her mask and drive her to a dead end until she fully revealed her true feelings.
Then, would he know if the fox was a wicked female or a cunning trickster…?
For example…
Leon took a deep breath as the cruel impulse suddenly simmered.
Rolling Sally's black maid's suit skirt and spread her slender calves. Shoving his pistol into the cramped, damp spot that would reveal itself if he ripped open the middle of the pure white bloomer.
As the cold muzzle stirs the soft flesh, she would out a moan closer to pain than pleasure. Pulling the pistol from her twitching flesh, the woman's lewd water would run down through the moist muzzle and wet his hands.
I can't stand it.
Leon crossed his legs, which had already been crossed to one side, more tightly. Why did the front of his trousers become so tight just by imagining that poor woman…?
Was it because of her eyes?
"It was a good time."
It was already close to midnight when he dropped off the Grand Lady at the villa.
"I had a good time, too."
Leon's bright smile made the Grand Lady widen her eyes in surprise. She thought he would tell lies like her, although he expressed it as if he really enjoyed it.
It looked unbelievable.
Indeed, it was a pretty good time. The last two hours on the cruise ship were so much fun that his pants were tight and uncomfortable.
"Well, see you next time."
As he was about to let the Grand Lady into the villa and get into the car, the butler quickly walked out of the entrance.
"Captain Winston, the Grand Duke asks if you are not busy, how about paying off the debt you owe today?"
It was for having refused to drink alcohol in the evening.
"Oh, dear…"
Leon pretended to be flustered and rubbed his forehead with his index finger, which was wearing black gloves, before answering.
"I already promised the Grand Lady that she won't be able to smell alcohol today… If you tell him that I don't want to be a man who already lost his wife's trust, then His Grace would be very understanding. Tell him that I will pay back the debt with interest."
Then, he got into the car, leaving the Grand Duchy and the butler staring at him strangely. Overtime work without results was prohibited.
In fact, there was a pile of things that had to be done urgently in the front of his pants.
In short, it was a very difficult day.
━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━
Sally sighed as she lay on her bed and thought back on the day.
Creak.
The creaks of the old bed echoed in the empty room. The maid's room in the attic of the annex was spacious enough to accommodate four people. After Ethel left, she was the only one left in the annex, so she was enjoying the luxury of being alone.
"Oh, what kind of wind is really blowing today?"
So, even the complaints in her head can come out of her mouth.
There had never been a day she had been more weary with Winston than she was today. Although he was a very fickle human being, she thought she was going to become a ghost due to a heart attack because he flashed here and there like a ghost today.
Did that wild beast-like intuition get triggered…?
"Have you ever been to Abbington Beach as a child?"
Her long sigh crossed the still room.
…Those damn eyes.
Spies should be plain-looking.
Because when people tried to make a montage in their head, it had to be so uncharacteristic that it would be difficult to describe in detail. In fact, she thought she just had a typical look. It was because her usual dark brown hair was a simple impression that was difficult to catch at a glance
Except for these turquoise eyes.
Even if she honed her other skills as a spy, her natural appearance could not be helped. In addition, disguises were also limited.
A day like this might come because of her unique eyes, she warned before being placed in this mansion. However, she didn't listen.
"The leaders must set an example."
James 'Little Jimmy' Blanchard Jr. The young leader of the Blanchard Revolutionary Army and her fiancé.
Sally never complained, no matter how hard he entrusted his fiancée with any grueling operations.
She never wished for a life that was sitting quietly in the house, raising children, rummaging through a catalog of kitchenware, and preparing a course meal just in time for her husband to arrive. Rather than being loved as a woman by her fiancé, she wanted to be recognized as an equal comrade like her father to her mother.
So, it wasn't because she was a coward that she rejected the Winston infiltration operation. It was because she feared that the operation would be ruined by her physical features that Captain Winston might remember.
Look at this now. I'm right, wasn't I?
It might be better to put someone else in here and then withdraw quickly. After all, one small crack could lead to collapse. Today's negligence did not mean that Winston had completely cut off the buds of suspicion.
I'm going to have to call Jimmy…
Regardless, the torture room was empty, so there wouldn't be much work tomorrow.
Shall we go to the post office tomorrow? I'll also use the phone…
Sally stared across the room into the chest of drawers. Inside a rolled-up sock contained a large sum of money unintentionally extorted from Winston today.
Shall I send them some money?
She was sending it to headquarters along with last week's weekly pay as military funds. Unlike the weekly wage, it was money that no one knew about, so she could spend it in a gulp. Still, her conscience did not allow it. Besides, she had nowhere else to use it, anyway.
Well… A cup of cafe au lait and a piece of cake at Madame Benoa's cafe would be fine?
"You know what's better than a piece of cake?"
She knew. It would be one thing.