A Contract Marriage with My Child’s Father - Chapter 7

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 7

“Let’s proceed with the contract.”

As soon as the words fell, Viola’s face brightened considerably.

Gone was the subtly tense and stiff expression from just moments ago, replaced by wide round eyes that looked just like yesterday.

That characteristic squirrel-like face of hers.

“Thank you for giving me this opportunity!”

Soon she smiled brightly, her face flushed with joy.

‘An opportunity.’

Should I call her naive?

The ducal house needed that woman from the beginning. Just being able to make the ointment for dragon’s blood made her useful to me in some way, regardless of her true identity.

Even if she were a spy sent from elsewhere, I would somehow keep her tied to this place. Rather, this kind of proposal was welcome for him too.

Taking out paper from his coat, he quickly began drafting the contract. It wasn’t ordinary paper but a contract scroll imbued with mana.

“Let me confirm once more. What are your desired conditions?”

“Please protect the Candidate for Sainthood and me, her guardian. In exchange, I will treat Young Master Jayden’s Tamutarbyo.”

“So be it. However, there’s one more condition.”

“What kind of…?”

“Wasn’t this originally a job interview? You’ve passed the interview. So you’ll need to not only treat the Tamutarbyo, but also work as Jayden’s dedicated pharmacist throughout the contract period.”

The woman’s eyes widened. Her enlarged pupils were exactly the color of fresh sprouts.

“Oh, is that really okay? I thought you were still suspicious of me… What if I’m actually a spy and use strange medicine?”

So she was aware that she looked suspicious. Her objectivity about herself was remarkable. Cain unconsciously lifted one corner of his mouth.

“My policy is to keep suspicious things close and watch them.”

“If that’s the case… Alright! I’ll agree to the conditions.”

Finally, all the contract terms were organized.

Cain, who had put down his pen, removed the gloves he was wearing.

“Give me your hand.”

As if understanding the meaning, the woman nodded and extended her delicate hand.

Cain grabbed that hand without hesitation and interlaced their fingers, slipping between each finger.

Her white, slender fingers were defensively wrapped around his. Their bare skin was completely touching.

Ahem. Hmm!

Viola coughed awkwardly as if embarrassed for no reason. When had she ever hesitated to grab a strange man’s hand for treatment?

Yet she was being shy at a moment like this. Rather than being completely shameless, did she have her own standards?

As if this situation was hard to endure, she eventually turned her head slightly to avoid his gaze. Finding this subtly displeasing, Cain gently grabbed her chin to make her look at him.

“You need to look properly. Isn’t this the moment you wanted?”

“Aaah. Yes…”

Now her light green eyes properly met his.

As the two people simultaneously grasped the contract while still holding hands, a strange light began to swirl around the scroll.

It meant the contract was properly established. Unlike ordinary contracts, using a scroll gave it binding force.

This was because penalties would occur due to the mana imbued in the scroll if either party violated their conditions.

“So this completes the contract procedure…?”

“As you can see.”

She carefully withdrew her hand.

“Should I bring the Candidate for Sainthood right away? I left her at a friend’s house.”

“Just in case, I’ll provide you with a knight and carriage.”

“Thank you! Then I’ll depart right away!”

Viola bowed her head in greeting and hurriedly gathered her belongings to leave. Then she suddenly stopped as if belatedly remembering something.

“Um… I was debating whether to say this or not.”

She turned around and once again bowed at a right angle like when she first greeted him.

“Th-thank you so much for yesterday…!”

“What?”

A question automatically escaped at her incomprehensible words.

“The person I met yesterday was you, Your Grace, wasn’t it? I actually thought it was strange. For a pharmacist position to open up so perfectly when I needed it most.”

The woman slowly straightened her body and smiled broadly. At the same time, her white hand caught his eye as she casually tucked her flowing hair behind her ear.

“Thanks to the opportunity you gave me, I was able to achieve what I wanted. Thank you once again.”

Cain was bewildered by this entire situation.

‘How on earth did she figure it out?’

That that man was me.

Of course, it wasn’t that he had deliberately tried to hide it. There just hadn’t been any need to reveal it.

The reason Cain used robes and various magical tools when going out wasn’t to hide his identity, but for the sake of other people.

Just not recognizing who he was would make them less fearful.

So he thought there was no way she could figure out his identity.

He had used not only a disguise but also magical tools that prevented people from remembering his face.

Unless she was an exceptional mage, she shouldn’t have been able to escape the influence of the magical tools. But he hadn’t sensed any mana from her.

“How did you know? That it was me.”

But the woman’s answer was absurd.

“Your hands.”

“What?”

“Um, I thought they were wonderful.”

Viola smiled awkwardly and scratched her cheek.

“All I know how to do is handle medicinal herbs… It was my first time seeing such wonderful knight-like hands, so I was fascinated.”

Though I never dreamed you’d be a duke rather than a knight. She added in a bewildered voice.

“Anyway, please take care of me from now on!”

Viola left her final words and fluttered out of the reception room.

Unlike her, who had suddenly disappeared, Cain stood frozen in place.

Only after a long while did he look down at his own hands.

They were just hands full of various ugly scars and thick calluses.

* * *

Though I had left the reception room pretending to be calm, I soon slumped down to the floor.

Whew. I thought I was going to die from nervousness.

‘But the plan succeeded. With this, there shouldn’t be much to worry about going forward.’

It was worth hurrying before ‘that incident’ happened.

So according to the original work, in a few months the Temple would create a new sacred artifact artificially.

A tool that could detect beings with strong holy power.

Actually, while the clergy possessed holy power, they didn’t have the ability to perceive others’ holy power.

So to find the saint, they artificially created that sacred artifact themselves.

‘In the original work, my death was essentially because of that sacred artifact too.’

Because Melody, who had been living peacefully in a quiet countryside, was discovered due to that sacred artifact.

Recalling the original work sent chills down my spine. If I had just stayed still, I would have obviously died the same way.

But now there’s nothing to worry about. Since many parts have changed from the original work.

More than that…

‘To think that knight was Cain himself.’

It was truly an identity I never could have imagined. I didn’t realize it throughout our entire conversation.

‘He must have used magical tools or something.’

Various magical tools exist in this world. Since they’re ridiculously expensive, it’s not a field I know well, but…

‘I was completely fooled.’

Actually, I had been feeling something was off the whole time.

A job posting that appeared at such perfect timing.

An interview that was too easy, as if treating a pre-selected candidate. The interviewer was even the duke himself.

‘It can’t be explained by simply being lucky.’

Moreover, I kept getting a familiar feeling. As if I had met him somewhere before.

But I couldn’t be certain…

The moment I saw Cain’s hands, I finally realized.

The thick veins protruding on the back of his hands. The refreshingly long, slender fingers. Though the shape itself was pretty, the skin was covered with scars and calluses everywhere.

‘They said dragon blood has such superior healing power that scars rarely remain.’

But despite that, having so many scars left…

It meant he had pushed himself beyond that limit.

He had overused his body without even giving wounds time to heal. As if treating it not as a life but as a tool.

‘Well, he was someone who didn’t think much of having monster blood on him.’

I could somewhat understand what kind of path he had walked.

It was at that moment when I was standing blankly in the corridor.

“Are you Miss Viola?”

“Ah, yes!”

Miss Viola. It was a somewhat awkward title since it was the first time I’d heard it after starting to raise Melody. But before I could correct it, the knights approached.

We immediately went to Catherine’s house and brought Melody back.

And so we returned to the ducal mansion.

“Uu…”

Melody seemed a bit scared of the unfamiliar place and shrank back.

“You don’t need to be scared. This is where we’ll be living from now on.”

“Uuu?”

“Come on, you need to greet His Grace.”

Thump thump. My heart was beating.

Though the flow had changed considerably, it was a situation similar to the beginning of the original work. Finally, the female protagonist and the childcare dad were meeting.

Unlike the tragic original work, I liked the peaceful atmosphere.

Melody rolled her eyes around and soon bowed in greeting, but that was all. The child whined and immediately ran to me.

“Mama!”

“I told you it’s okay. Oh my, what a scaredy-cat.”

“Uu. Mama!”

When I teased her lightly, the child seemed to relax as her tense lips started to pout.

But that’s when it happened.

Cain, who had been approaching us, suddenly stopped in his tracks.

“…Mama?”

“Yes? What did you say…”

“The candidate for sainthood… is your daughter?”

“Ah, yes!”

“Not your sister, but your daughter?”

Despite his expressionless face, Cain’s eyes somehow seemed confused.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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