A knock came at the door.

"Lord Von Mabraec would like to see you in his office, Madam," a soft spoken servant announced.

The quill in Marie's hand paused, and she looked up from her desk.

A shy mouse-eared servant girl was standing at the entrance, trembling and clutching her tail.

Marie chewed her lip.

"Did he say why?" Marie asked after a short delay.

"No Madam. He requests your presence as soon as possible."

The silver-haired woman closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.

Lately, she had been trying to avoid her husband as much as possible. Technically, as a noblewoman, her daytime responsibilities were completely separate from Hector's, and it was not necessary for her to see him during the day even if they worked in the same mansion. In the culture of their kingdom, it was a wife's traditional responsibility to accompany her husband in the bedroom, but such dutiful companionship was not required nor expected in daytime hours.

There was an uncomfortable feeling in her gut, almost like her stomach was churning. Her hand shook the slightest amount, but she stabilized her arm before it could show. The mere mention of her bewitched husband reminded her of his twisted nighttime acts of sadism. It was difficult to ignore the instinctual fear that welled up inside her.

Marie exhaled and slowly stood up.

This was just like battling a dragon.

She couldn't let herself be overwhelmed or paralyzed by terror.

She could not keep running away from Hector forever. Sooner or later, she would need to confront him about visiting the capital. She needed his cooperation, and she couldn't allow him to suspect her secret actions behind his back. Even if it was difficult, she needed to hold herself together until she found a way to break her husband's enchantment.

Marie intended to save her husband, no matter the price.

+ + +

A short while later, Marie knocked and pushed open the door to the Duke's office.

It was extremely large and embellished, almost five times the size of her own personal office. There was a conference table in an adjacent room, a lounge, large floor-length windows with an impressive view of the estate, as well as a small kitchen for his maids. In fact, the entire suite was about as large as a fine bourgeoise apartment in the regional capital.

Her husband was talking to his prime minister.

"As I was saying, Miles, hyperinflation of grain stock prices in the Kingdom of Lagtidna is an indicator of geopolitical instability. We should not sell our grain reserves on the international market just because we can turn a handsome profit. If anything, we should invest in iron and magic ore, with the anticipation that war will break out in the neighboring countries at any moment."

"But Lord Hector..." The advisor protested. "A 500% profit... the proceeds from selling our surplus grain would resolve all of our financial woes. I don't know where else you expect to make up on the budget deficit. You already raised taxes twice this year, and the commoners are clamoring about tyranny."

"National security is not something to gamble on, Miles. The grain reserves are not something I am willing to sell, especially to a foreign nation. It has not been that many years since the fall of the Demon Empire, and the world is unstable. There will probably be many malicious actors looking to fill the power vacuum, violently if need be. We must maintain a well-trained standing army to respond to any threats."

Hector was arguing with his advisor on geopolitics, which was a typical occurrence in their household.

Marie quietly closed the door behind her, absorbing but not commenting on the conversation.

She quietly waited on the side.

Although she hadn't heard the entirety of the conversation, she was inclined to think that Hector was right. Both of them had graduated at the top of their class at the Royal Academy, and there were many years when they took the first two slots on the class ranking. After all, Hector was perfect at everything — perfect swordsmanship, perfect grades, perfect looks, and perfect personality.

Of course, book smarts was different from practical experience, but Marie was confident that their textbook theory was sound.

Rising grain prices was a classic sign of famine or political instability.

"...If you insist, My Lord..." The advisor seemed discontent. "Your wish is my command."

"You are dismissed, Miles." Hector said, shrugging him off.

He walked over to a lounge table and picked up a cup of tea, but he paused when he noticed that Marie was in the room.

"Ah, Marie. My wife. You've come." Hector said.

A creepy smile appeared on his face.

Marie shivered.

Her husband never used to smile at her in that way.

"Yes? Did you need something?" Marie said.

The black-haired man lifted the teacup to his lips and took a sip.

"Nothing. I just wanted to see you."

"..."

Marie didn't know what to say."

"Did you see the letter from Baron Alcastus?" Hector asked, suddenly switching back into his serious professional mode.

The silver-haired woman shook her head.

She furrowed her brow, a little bit disoriented by Hector's strange behavior. In some ways, he was just like the husband she had always known, yet in other ways he was totally different. It was like he was a fusion of two personalities, one nostalgic and one alien. His competency at work was unaffected, and he seemed intelligent and capable as always.

Hector *almost* seemed normal during the daytime, which made it especially hard for Marie to convince anyone that her husband was enchanted or bewitched. Nobody would even believe her... unless they saw what happened in the night... but even then, most people would just consider that some kind of kinky bedroom romance.

Hector looked normal, but he definitely wasn't. Marie was absolutely positive about it.

"Come take a look. Tell me your thoughts."

Marie walked over to Hector's desk.

She was about to pick up the envelope, but suddenly he pulled the letter out of her reach.

Hector smiled sweetly.

"Sit in my lap first," he demanded with a sudden grin.

Marie froze.

There it was...

...that twisted... part of her bewitched husband appeared again...

It only seemed to surface when nobody was around to witness it.

"That's perverse and indecent, Hector," Marie whispered back furiously. "It's broad daylight."

"There's nothing wrong with it being daylight."

"Just give me the letter! I'm trying to get work done!"

"You can do work while sitting in my lap, dear."

"You've gone mad, Hector!"

"Oh? I don't think I'm asking you to do anything that bad though. There are plenty of worse things. I could ask you to undress in my office, for instance. Would you like to do that instead?"

"Hector!"

The dark-haired hero smiled and stroked Marie's neck tenderly.

"I think a leash would look really good on you," he murmured.

Marie recoiled and struggled away, breathing erratically.

However, Hector snatched her arm before she could escape very far.

"Hector... you've changed."

"Hm? Perhaps... but I don't mind this. I love how this choker has improved our relationship. You're mine forever now." 

He reeled her into his lap, and wrapped his arms around Marie's midsection.

The silver-haired duchess squirmed in her husband's arms, but Hector was substantially stronger than her. It was impossible to overpower him, and she was trapped inside a prison created by his body.

Hector brought the envelope in front of Marie.

"Should we read it together?" He asked.

"Hector..."

"Doesn't the name Baron Richmond Alcastus sound familiar? If my memory serves me correctly, he was one of our classmates at the Royal Academy, and he asked you to the Winter Ball in your second year. He was one of your main love interests, correct?"

"I... picked you in the end... not him..."

"Tsk... but you see, how do you think I felt? You had seven or eight love interests during high school, and all of them wanted to marry you. I'm sure you must have been very happy to have such an impressive reverse harem, but I certainly did not enjoy the time when the two of you kissed on the clocktower underneath the moonlight."

"That was all in the past... Hector... forget about it..."

The black-haired man fondled Marie's breasts casually, and the woman whimpered softly.

"How would you feel if I killed him?" He whispered slyly into her ears.

 

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