The Villainess Proposed a Contractual Marriage

Five o'clock in the afternoon.

The time had come for Harte to cross over from the temple to the Duke's residence.

Elphisia canceled all orders she'd given to Glen and advised him to rest. Puzzled by this unexpected suggestion, Glen hesitated, trying to read Elphisia's expression, but her thoughts remained inscrutable.

After Glen withdrew, Elphisia paced restlessly in her office, waiting for Harte. She needed him right now. She longed to see the one person who could genuinely smile warmly at her, sinful as she was.

When the clock hand finally reached the precise hour, word came from the mansion's main gate. Normally, she would have gone to greet him herself, but current circumstances made that impractical. If she rushed out of her office now, her tumultuous state of mind would be apparent to all.

Someone had died. At the hands of Elphisia's subordinate.

Rumors spread like wildfire. This was scandal material for the woman at the empire's pinnacle. An irresistible piece of gossip to sink one's teeth into.

In truth, she wasn't afraid of rumors spreading and her reputation plummeting. Her reputation had always been rock bottom, and paradoxically, that had earned her the reverence of many.

But it would be troublesome if Harte heard the rumors.

The temple and the Duke's residence - he only frequented these two closed-off places. Perhaps it might be possible to keep it hidden from him forever. If she controlled the information and he stayed within the Duke's residence as usual, somehow...

When her thoughts reached this point, Elphisia realized it was hopeless. Fearing his look of disgust, she could only think of solutions in the wrong direction. It seemed she had forgotten how to walk the right path after a lifetime as a villainess.

Just as Elphisia was fretting, a polite knock sounded at the door. It was a clean tone, like his demeanor. After seeking permission, the man gently opened the door and entered.

"Did you have a good day today as well, Elphisia?"

"Harte..."

Far from having a good day, she was trembling with fear. Worried that the warmth in those violet eyes might turn cold.

"You... you haven't heard anything, have you? You haven't, right? Right?"

"E-Elphisia? What's wrong?"

"Harte..."

Elphisia could hardly believe herself.

Face to face with Harte, her heart raced more than necessary. Hoping he hadn't caught even a whisper of the rumors...

'I... I...'

She never expected to fall this deeply in love.

She had been confident in controlling the relationship's dynamics. Believing that the faithful Harte would never leave her...

That's how she had judged it, and let her guard down.

A life where men were unnecessary.

If she had to marry, she chose someone as obedient and diligent as Harte. That was all.

Yes, that should have been all, and yet...

"You... do you like me?"

"Of course."

"... How much?"

"I like you most in the world, Elphisia."

Why was it?

She had grown far too fond of him, who unhesitatingly uttered childish expressions. As if her heart was bound by an unbreakable chain.

"What's the matter? You're saying things you don't usually say."

"... I wanted to confirm."

"Is that really all?"

"What more should there be?"

Elphisia retorted somewhat aggressively, her nerves on edge. Yet Harte's smile remained bright and cheerful.

"I asked because I was worried. If you want to confirm, I'll let you confirm as much as you like. I'll like you even more, Elphisia, to the point where confirmation becomes unnecessary."

"..."

Thump.

Elphisia collapsed, almost falling. Fortunately, there was a sofa behind her, making it look as if she had simply thrown herself onto something comfortably soft. So Harte sat down beside her without much suspicion.

Afterwards, in the office enveloped in silence, Harte was the first to break the ice.

"Elphisia. I thought something might be off, but you really don't look well. Are you sick?"

"Why, planning to use divine power if I am?"

"If that's what Elphisia wants."

"..."

Elphisia refrained from carelessly moving her lips.

She had long observed how taboo Harte considered the use of divine power. Therefore, confirming love this way was wrong. For a moment, Elphisia felt self-loathing as she was about to nod.

While Elphisia fidgeted restlessly, Harte's mind also raced.

'Why is Elphisia acting like this?'

Her consciousness seemed severely shaken, as if she had seen something unspeakable. But he didn't want to press her. If it was a serious matter, he hoped Elphisia would tell him herself someday.

So, at a loss for options, Harte simply hugged Elphisia tightly. It was an embrace meant to convey unconditional trust in her. But his action backfired, unsettling her further instead of comforting her.

"Ha..."

Elphisia sobbed, her body trembling.

Harte was confused by the sensation of his chest growing damp. The person who had always been strong and proud was now shedding tears. When she finally looked up, her eyes were rimmed red like blooming crimson plum blossoms.

Faced with the scene of scarlet petals falling mournfully and melting away, Harte struggled with his emotions.

"Elphisia..."

Was Harte's mere existence not enough to stop her sobs? For the first time in a long while, a sense of powerlessness washed over him.

It was right then that Elphisia whispered.

"... Harte."

"Yes, I'm here."

Elphisia spoke to Harte, who gently affirmed his presence.

"Hold me. Tighter."

"Like this?"

"Even harder."

"But I'm afraid I'll break you. You're so delicate, Elphisia..."

"... Just do it. Quickly."

"Mmm..."

Finally, Harte embraced Elphisia tightly, wondering if this was really alright. Meanwhile, in Harte's arms, Elphisia lamented to herself.

'Delicate... huh, Harte really knows nothing about me.'

Though she might not match the desperately honed martial skills of someone like Glen, she was far stronger than most knights. Of course, compared to Harte, who wouldn't seem ordinary? But he clearly saw her as some common village housewife.

'... Well, I suppose it's because he knows nothing that he can like me so innocently.'

If you observed my true self, you would surely despise me.

Because you're the type to trust those you care for until the very end. And because you're holding a traitor who habitually betrays that trust.

This is troublesome.

Harte must not become suspicious.

So I'll have to use it. That gentle nature of yours.

"Harte. Can you grant me a request?"

"I'll do my best for whatever you ask."

"... I see."

The deliberation was over. All that remained was to wag her deceitful tongue.

'I am a noble.'

There's a sentence that nobles rightfully uphold as a virtue.

Even if everything they possess blazes brilliantly for but a moment, like fireworks, or sheds its petals in a single season, like a cherry tree.

If you're a noble, you must act as if everything in your grasp is as eternal as the flowing sea.

Therefore, she tells herself that this love, this lover named Harte, will surely last forever.

Soon after, Elphisia made her wish, hoping that his world would remain a pristine white canvas forever.

"Stay by my side only."

"I will."

Harte answered without hesitation.

"When your duties at the temple are over, come straight here without taking any other paths."

"But I already do that."

"... Filter out the rumors from the marketplace."

"I've never paid attention to worldly stories since long ago."

"Mm... Well done."

"If I've done well, may I ask for a gift?"

Suddenly, Harte, who had always lacked material desires, made an unfamiliar request. Elphisia murmured with a dazed expression, feeling confused.

"What gift... do you want?"

Harte, who always preferred giving to receiving, smiled warmly.

"Don't cry, Elphisia."

Hearing that wish, hardly deserving to be called a gift, Elphisia buried her face completely in Harte's embrace.

'... Ah.'

The thought suddenly struck her.

Anyone fallen into the deep mire of evil would inevitably love you... wouldn't they?

In the end, they would be completely captivated by your light, as bright and peaceful as your divine power.

Forgetting they were a rusty, wretched cog, unfit to mesh with you...

---

---

Nobles revered eternity.

The glory of their house. The wealth they'd amassed. The power to look down on the world. They lived for tomorrow, praying for all of it to last forever.

While knowing better than anyone that nothing was truly eternal.

Having watched it all along, they simply chose to ignore it.

"Hoo... Hoo..."

The sound of someone blowing warm breath into their hands. The fleeting warmth that disappeared in the biting wind denied eternity.

Today was a day when snow fell gently from the sky.

December.

The end of the year when the capital's lights shone brightly.

The year-end that severed eternity had arrived.

"Phew... it's cold."

Tina grumbled as she walked down the street.

Her passionate red hair fluttered in the wind. Her somewhat inhuman blue eyes caught attention.

Her striking appearance, resembling the hated father, had become a hot topic even among the nobles.

"I feel like I used to roll around in the snow back then..."

When she lived as a wild child, avoiding people, nothing else mattered. Living like that, like a beast, the softly piled snow had felt like a bed, and she liked it.

As she reminisced about those unforgettable old memories, she became distracted and bumped shoulders with a passerby.

"Oops, I'm sorry! Are you hur... huh?"

Tina was startled. Belatedly realizing that she was the one who had been pushed back.

Tina, being a half-dragon, might have been technically pushed by someone before, but she had never experienced being overpowered.

Until she collided with the man just now.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

He apologized readily.

The man had strikingly clean white hair. And his neat white uniform spoke of his status.

Above all, Tina stared for a long time at eyes that seemed detached from the world's negativity.

Afterwards, they briefly maintained appearances and went their separate ways. For a while, Tina had to struggle with curiosity, recalling the image of that intriguing adult.

'Who could that person be?'

Although it was their first encounter, she found herself wanting to have a conversation with him someday.

Now it was the year-end.

The year-end that put a period to eternity.