A Contract Marriage with My Child’s Father - Chapter 27
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 27
“Your tongue is blue. Don’t tell me you took poison?”
“What? Oh, no. Ah!”
Startled, I quickly covered my mouth with my hand.
‘Right, I had forgotten…!’
I was so worried about Jayden that I completely forgot.
That my tongue wasn’t just blue, but completely blue-green!
I was dying of embarrassment. I had no idea I was showing such a sight.
“Move your hand.”
“N-no…!”
But Cain only removed my hand with quite serious eyes.
Sigh. I reluctantly kept my mouth tightly shut.
Sob. I want to cry. What am I doing at this age?
“Open your mouth. Let me check.”
“Mmph mmph mmph. (It’s nothing serious.)”
I answered with my lips pressed together like a child facing a dentist.
I absolutely had to protect the inside of my mouth.
“I have no idea what you’re saying.”
“Mmph mmph mmph mmph! (I said it’s nothing serious!)”
The Duke of the Dragon who can supposedly hear ants crawling, why can’t he understand me at times like this!
I wanted to cry, but Cain only asked back seriously as before.
“Is your tongue paralyzed?”
As if!
A large hand wrapped around my jaw. As if trying to examine closely, Cain slightly lifted my chin.
Soon he pressed my lips with his fingers, trying to part them slightly.
“You can’t open your mouth.”
No. No. That’s not it!
It’s not that I can’t open it, I won’t open it…!
I looked at Cain with teary eyes. Please understand what my eyes are saying.
But it was hopeless.
“Does it hurt so much you’re crying?”
He brought his face closer as if trying to check my condition.
Close enough that our breaths could touch.
His handsome face filled my entire vision.
Normally I might have thought it was a feast for the eyes. If only my tongue wasn’t blue right now.
“It smells sweet.”
He asked as if detecting the candy’s fragrance. Truly befitting dragon blood with superior senses. Embarrassing, but surely he’s figured it out now?
But his misunderstanding only went in an absurd direction.
“Don’t tell me.”
Yes! That’s right. It’s candy…!
“Did you eat Stevian grass?”
No! That’s not it!
Stevian grass was a poisonous plant ranked 5th among those favored by assassins.
Certainly… it has similar effects, but…!
It gives off a slight sweet smell and when eaten, blocks blood circulation completely, turning the tongue deep blue. But that’s clearly different from my condition.
At this point I wondered if he was teasing me on purpose, but Cain’s eyes were more serious than ever.
“Don’t tell me you wanted the Sweet Death for yourself?”
Cain looked at me with disbelief at his own words. His eyes were full of bewilderment.
But the one who was truly dumbfounded was me. What exactly does he take me for!
At this rate, the misunderstanding would deepen endlessly.
Finally, I had no choice but to part my lips and quickly shout.
“C-candy!”
The strength in his hand that was trying to force my mouth open momentarily relaxed.
This is my chance.
I quickly pushed him away and created distance.
Cain still seemed unable to understand the situation, slightly furrowing his brow.
Finally free, I covered my mouth with my hand and hurriedly explained.
“It’s, it’s just candy.”
A very, very ordinary one at that.
“Candy?”
“Yes.”
“Do they sell candy made from Stevian grass in this world?”
That damn Stevian grass!
“No, no! It’s not like that.”
I hurriedly rummaged through my pocket. Fortunately, there were two candies left.
“I ate this. Candy that changes your tongue color.”
When I took out the candy and held it out to him, Cain unconsciously accepted it.
Seeing the two cute little candies in his large hand made me want to cry for no reason. To think I went through this ordeal because of those.
Sigh. How embarrassing. What is this in the middle of a serious conversation?
Still, I was relieved the misunderstanding was cleared up.
“A-anyway, I’ll be going now!”
More urgently than ever, I opened the study door and fled.
I thought I heard Cain’s voice behind me, laughing in disbelief, but it had to be my imagination.
Ugh. I don’t know anymore.
Please just let me not run into anyone else like this. I’m dying of embarrassment.
* * *
…Making that wish meaningless, I immediately ran into Conrad.
“Lady Viola? Where are you going in such a hurry?”
“What? Ahaha. No! I forgot something.”
I awkwardly pretended to smile while covering my mouth. Fortunately, Conrad didn’t seem to find it too strange.
Let me escape quickly.
“Well then, I’ll be going…”
“Ah, before that. I’ve obtained the Gamjong grass you mentioned. I left it in the apothecary, so please check it.”
“Already? Thank you!”
“Hmm?”
When I greeted him still covering my mouth with my hand, Conrad made a thoughtful sound. As if he’d caught something suspicious.
“What’s wrong, Lady Viola? Is there some problem…”
Conrad tried to approach me with worried eyes, but I couldn’t go through the same ordeal as before.
“Ahaha! A problem? No way! There’s no way that could be! Then I’ll really go check it out!”
After throwing out a greeting, I headed straight to the apothecary.
Phew. No one’s here, right?
Only after confirming no one was inside did I feel a little relieved.
Only then did I notice the poisonous plant on the table. Just as Conrad had said.
‘He said it would take two days. Really fast.’
Is this the prestige of the Ashern Duchy? I was momentarily moved by the taste of power.
Suddenly, my face was reflected in the glass window.
When I stuck out my tongue slightly, a plump piece of crimson flesh revealed itself.
Finally, the staining on my tongue was gone. It was worth drinking all that water on purpose.
Sigh. But what’s the point of it disappearing now? I already showed Cain my pathetic state.
‘…That was really troublesome earlier.’
I never expected him to have such an absurd misunderstanding. Much less that he would try to check my condition directly.
Suddenly, I recalled Cain’s touch as he caressed my lips.
Fingers that were slightly rough with calluses.
With that strange sensation, he parted my lips without hesitation. His large hands were clearly those of a man different from me.
Ugh. Thank goodness I kept my mouth tightly shut then. I almost did something truly shameful.
‘There’s no cure for shame.’
Vowing never to eat that candy again, I sat down.
Either way, I had work to do.
‘This is my first time using this poisonous herb…’
When dealing with medicine, handling poison naturally follows.
It all depends on how you use it. What acts as medicine for someone can act as poison for another.
Even highly toxic poisonous herbs can become medicine depending on how they’re mixed.
And this Sweet Death was exactly that kind of case.
A very dangerous poison that would put an ordinary person in a near-death state within 30 minutes if consumed.
However, for Jayden who has Tamuthar disease, this would actually serve as a cure.
I immediately got to work, trimming the pile of herbs and extracting their juices.
‘Let me stay sharp.’
When doing this kind of work, I must always be mindful of safety protocols.
There are quite a few people in this world who die from unconsciously licking their hands.
‘Mix this with pointed leaf grass…’
Hmm.
I was concentrating like that for a while, being extremely cautious.
Knock knock.
There was a sound of knocking on the door.
I stood up from my seat, taking off my dirty gloves.
But before I could even answer to come in, the door burst open.
It was Celia Dorn.
‘Ugh. I have a bad feeling about this.’
This was our first meeting since we clashed last time.
Seeing her extremely triumphant face, I had an intuition that she definitely hadn’t come for something pleasant.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————