The Price of Breaching the Contract - Chapter 28

The next morning, Yulania woke up to a noisy commotion in the hallway.

“He hasn’t woken up yet. Is something wrong?”

“No, no, Duke! He must have been tired yesterday.”

It seemed Santia had come. Vanessa’s hushed protests could be faintly heard. She sat up and looked out the window to see the sun quite high in the sky.

She smoothed down her tousled hair with her hands and pulled the bell cord.

A small bell rang, and Vanessa, who had been standing in front of the door, immediately opened it and came in.

“Princess, are you awake?”

Yulania gave Vanessa a polite smile and asked Santia, who was peeking out from behind her,

“Yes, what’s going on?”

“I was wondering if we could have breakfast together, but you didn’t wake up until almost noon.”

Yulania’s eyes widened at the unexpected suggestion. It was welcome news. It seemed the conversation they had last night had meant something. She smiled, feeling proud of her husband for respecting her words.

“Let’s have lunch instead, though it’s early.”

Having slept soundly, her mind, which had been hazy all night, was now clear. The blue sky outside seemed to be cheering on their relationship.

“Alright. Come down when you’re ready.”

“Yes.”

Santia turned away, and Vanessa wheeled in a trolley with a silver tray, towels, and lotion. She chattered as she helped Yulania with her morning preparations with practiced hands.

“Oh, Princess, you must have been very surprised yesterday, but I’m glad you seem to have slept well.”

“Does it show?”

“Your skin is so radiant. And you seem to be in a good mood.”

Yulania smiled faintly at her words.

“The Duke came looking for you from this morning and kept urging me on. He was worried you were sick. You two are impossible.”

Whatever had happened between them, they still appeared to be a perfectly loving couple to others. Yulania smiled, thinking it was a relief. If even Vanessa, who was closest to her, saw it that way, there was nothing to worry about.

Dressed in a simple indoor dress, she put on jewelry for the first time in a while. The jewelry box had arrived with the luggage that came with Vanessa. The sensation of the earrings swaying from her earlobes as she walked tickled her heart.

Lunch for the Duke and Duchess was prepared on the restaurant terrace with a clear view of the snowy scenery.

Santia had arrived first and was sitting down. As Yulania approached, he greeted her with a much lighter expression than yesterday.

As they ate, she thought of the face she hadn’t seen since yesterday and asked,

“What happened to Vihan?”

“External wall duty. I’d like to send him to the Demon Realm if I could, but the situation isn’t good.”

“Don’t punish him too harshly. He’s a good guard.”

She had forgotten in the rush, but she remembered Santia coldly dismissing him yesterday. It had happened in an instant when he tried to save Angela, who was being friendly with her. Yulania wanted to keep Vihan as her guard.

“I’ll be here for the time being anyway. We need to organize a large-scale expedition.”

“Really?”

She was relieved, but she held back, feeling like it was an inappropriate time. She didn’t realize that she was momentarily happy to be with Santia.

Whether she did or not, Santia added in a bothersome tone,

“In the meantime, please, I beg you, just stay inside the castle.”

“Yes.”

Yulania obediently agreed. He must have reached his limit of worry after what happened yesterday.

“I sent a report to His Majesty the King by messenger pigeon this morning. There’s a high probability that someone from the royal family will come.”

“How long will we have to leave once the expedition is formed?”

“Well. Honestly, the situation is so urgent that I can’t even guarantee that this place is safe. It’s hard to say for sure.”

“I hope we get through it safely.”

“It’s my responsibility. Of course, we will be safe.”

The two continued their meal leisurely, talking. They were heavy issues that needed to be resolved realistically, but the words that passed between them were calm.

Then Santia asked a subtle question with an unclear subject.

“How have you been feeling lately?”

“You don’t have to be so cautious. I heard it from Joel. It’s been up and down, but it’s not a bad feeling.”

“Ah.”

Yulania immediately understood the meaning and answered.

“I’m just confused because I don’t know what my father wants.”

“The part I don’t understand the most is emotional suppression. Why do you need that?”

No one knew Santia’s exact origins. Not even he himself.

He had simply appeared suddenly from the Demon Realm, and no one knew where his powerful strength came from. And the King had employed him and used him effectively, but he never let his guard down. Santia could understand that he was secretly preventing him from having children because he feared his power.

But Yulania had been a composed and calm person since he first met her. He couldn’t even guess what the King was secretly giving his daughter medicine to prevent.

“Since I was young, my father has always told me that I must never become emotionally agitated, that as a member of the royal family, being swayed by emotions would ruin things.”

“That’s what everyone says. There’s definitely something about you.”

The answer was like a fleeting cloud, only visible from afar. There might be a clue in her childhood memories. Yulania decided to think about it whenever she had free time.

“I’ll let you know if I remember anything. By the way, is the winter banquet canceled?”

“Ah, that’s right. This year, I’ll have to send out requests for support instead of invitations.”

“That’s a shame.”

“Hmm, how about postponing it to spring? Of course, that’s only possible if things are resolved.”

“I’d like that. Then I should send out notices about the spring banquet.”

“Do that.”

Yulania had her own expertise in the social circles of the North, though it was insignificant compared to the capital’s social circles, which the royal family participated in. In fact, it was closer to something new that she had created after marrying Santia, so it was a gathering centered around her.

She had enjoyed interacting with the Northern nobles, who had a different charm from the central nobles. The idea of a banquet in the blooming spring made her excited.

She finished her meal with a fluttering heart, wondering what to write to the Northern nobles she hadn’t seen in a long time.

Yulania never let go of the sacred stone she had received from Momin. It wasn’t her imagination that it had seemed to brighten slightly last time.

‘Does it brighten when touched by human hands?’

In a few days, the sacred stone was emitting a pale yellow light that anyone could recognize. Moreover, after carrying it around for days, she had become attached to a mere stone. Now she would feel sad if she didn’t bring it with her.

Whether it was a coincidence or a real power of luck.

‘What would he think?’

She knew she would be treated like a fool if she brought up superstitions, but she somehow wanted to tell Santia about it.

If the sacred stone that the people of the territory liked and believed in even emitted light, they would like it even more. It might even be helpful to the territory.

‘I’ll show it to him when it gets a little brighter.’

The great secret about the sacred stone was temporarily hidden in Yulania’s small head.

After that, no special events occurred while Santia stayed in the castle. They often heard news that the demons were coming down closer to the wall than usual, but there was no threat to the residential area.

Yulania had fully recovered her health and was immersed in her tapestry work, and Santia was busy communicating with other territories in the North, even though he didn’t go on an expedition. But even in the midst of that, he had a meal with her once a day.

The clear skies gradually disappeared, and it snowed much more often.

And around the time when large snowflakes began to fall, news arrived that a royal investigation team led by Prince Yurban had been dispatched.

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