Become The Duke's Wife Or Die

"What happened?"  Lyra whispered to the maid, followed by Gena and Ella, who walked with short, fast steps.  "Why do you say Lord Kleo is furious now?  Does this all have anything to do with me?"  They turned to corners, passing through various rooms bustling with things.

The maid who called out to Lyra looked both doubtful and regretful.  Her steps looked dispirited, her face pale and helpless.  "I don't have any idea, My Lady.  But I suggest that you don't make a single mistake when you meet His Grace later.  This is all for your good.  We love you, My Lady."

Why did Lyra look like was on trial?  'Argh, this kind of situation again!' she cursed inwardly.  'Why am I often punished when I do not know my mistakes?  Now is it wrong if I want to go and run away from Wereal?'

She was just looking for an excuse for the behavior she did.  Many humans do that.  Some extreme cases are even worse.

Ella and Gena were like two aunties who didn't want to let her go, watching her sadly and empathy as she entered the hall, where Duke Kleo was.

"They haven't had lunch yet," whispered Gena, clutching her sore chest, as soon as the door closed, leaving a fairly loud thud.  Before her eyes remained several guards including the maid who had called out to them, who looked down as if they had just got a threat.

"We'll just wait here," Ella commented after she failed to get any meaningful information from the maid earlier.  "We'll find out what's going on."

The afternoon wind was hot and dry, typical of summer.  The clear sky with a few curled clouds drifted like a flock of sheep, tangling with the swaying green tips of the trees.  It was a very beautiful sight and perfect to enjoy while riding, one thing Lyra should have achieved that day for having obeyed Duke Kleo's wishes.

But right now she has stuck in Wereal again amid an unpleasant atmosphere, seeing the stiff and dark face of Duke Kleo and the sweet, bright, friendly, and handsome face of Marquess Helmut.  Two very opposite sides, like heaven and hell.

"Why did you summon me, My Lord?"  Lyra asked politely, forgetting the agreement she had made with Duke Kleo regarding affectionate calling in place of formal calls.  Her clear blue eyes looked like those of a frightened deer.

"Sit down, Lyra!"  Marquess Helmut greeted cheerfully, stood up to approach Lyra, and held out his hand.  "A pretty girl like you shouldn't be standing while we're sitting."

'Oh Lord Helmut, why do you look so charming and alluring?' thought Lyra, instantly forgetting her fear of Duke Kleo, as if finding her savior prince.  Her hand reached out to greet Marquess Helmut, her lips curled into the most sincere smile.

Duke Kleo's heart broke seeing that.  His eyes widened and then shot to another corner, refusing to look any further.  ' She smiled at him.  But she never did that to me.  How come she never did that to me?  Have they ever slept together?  Does he look greater and more attractive than me?'

Suddenly he misses his mother, wants to hug her, and lets go of all the worries that have been choking him, at the same time lamenting about his tumultuous love and dark past that still haunts him to this day.  His hands squeezed against each other as if to drain the blood that wasn't visible.

"Thank you, My Lord.  You're so nice," Lyra said after sitting on the chair closest to Marquess Helmut, ignoring Duke Kleo unintentionally.  "Why did you come to Wereal?"

"To meet you of course.  I heard a rumor that you got into a bit of trouble." Marquess Helmut's head titled, observed Lyra's beauty, then reached out to brush her hair.

From time to time he glanced at his cousin, a slight smirk emerged on his lips.  'I know you like her, Kleo,' he thought.  'I can see how jealous you are because of my arrival and perhaps because of Baron Jason's arrival a few days ago.  I wonder to what extent you will try to feign disinterest in front of me.'

"O-oh," Lyra stuttered, suddenly tense and stiff, glancing quickly at Duke Kleo while lowering Marquess Helmut's fingers that were on her face.  "Thank you, My Lord, that you have come and want to help me."  Now she turned to the duke, then said, "Why did you summon me, My Lord?"

Not immediately responding, Duke Kleo stared at her for a long time with vicious eyes and a very dark expression, something he had not done for a long time.  The darkness crawled from his body, snaking and creeping as if ready to devour the entire area of ​​Wereal, killing everyone in it including himself.

"Do you know him?"  he asked, nodding at Marquess Helmut.  Even the cold, fierce movement of his eyes gave the signal that she shouldn't be sitting next to his cousin, while the space beside him needed someone to fill.  That one small mistake burned his chest as if his abdomen acid had increased drastically, ready to explode his heart.

"Y-yes, My Lord," Lyra nodded again nervously.  The few weeks living in Wereal had given her some insight into Duke Kleo's mood.  And this time she knew danger was threatening her.  Was it because of Marquess Helmut?  "I know him, all the girls on the continent do.  He is one of the most handsome nobles, even the most handsome in Eastlandor."

Duke Kleo snorted, suddenly combing Marquess Helmut's appearance, failing to refute that statement.  His cousin's good looks even bewitched him when he was a child, making him think that Marquess Helmut was one of the children of the fairies nobility, a fairy tale often told by his beautiful and kind mother.  Now he knows that good looks are just a mask to cover things that are rotten and terrible.

Marquess Helmut suddenly chortled, after seeing a long silence.  Both of his hands cupped Lyra's as he forced skillfully so that she looked completely at him.  "I asked Cousin Kleo to release you, but you know he doesn't forgive people easily, right?"

Even Lyra's beauty ensnared Marquess Helmut's heart, making him flutter, soaring a mist that almost blocked all his senses.  If he didn't come to his awareness quickly then maybe he would have forgotten his motive of going to Wereal.  There was no time to have fun with the girls while a throne should be his.

"That's why I offered to buy you," Marquess Helmut added, once again smiling very sweetly.  "I have some wealth as well as several thousand gold coins.  It should be enough to make up for twenty slaves, but I will do this just for you, the girl I should be writing to."

"But… but isn't this an exaggeration, My Lord?"  Lyra didn't even realize she was being used.  Her stupid side is indeed hard to get rid of forever, that's why she was easily betrayed in the past.  "I'm just an ordinary girl, and you can get any girl you want.  Your popularity is even wider than the ocean."

"You are exaggerating, My Dear," laughed Marquess Helmut.  "I have been attracted to you for a long time, attracted to your beauty and your principles of life.  You don't want to get married do you?  So I can make it happen.  You will become one of my mistresses, a very special mistress that even you would be surprised by it."

"Mistress?"  Lyra's eyes widened, completely forgetting Duke Kleo's presence, ignoring the lonely and hurt expression on his face.  "But that means…" Then she saw Marquess Helmut wink, which she took as a lucrative agreement that he couldn't tell her at the moment.

She bared her teeth as she smiled, almost laughing out loud.  Her hand squeezed Marquess Helmut's fingers, placing high hopes on him.

"So do you want to come with me?"  asked Marquess Helmut, raising his honey-colored eyebrows.  "Would you like to be my mistress?"

***