My Secretly Hot Husband

Chapter 6

As soon as he saw Letitia, the Monster Lord leaped up, a weapon already in his hand. She stifled a scream from escaping her mouth before she realized what it really was—it was a book. Letitia finally came to her senses and started to take in her surroundings—she was in a study.

Fierce flames crackled in the fireplace, warming the room, and the Monster Lord had been sitting next to it reading a book. Letitia found the idea of a monster reading a bit absurd, but that did nothing to diminish her fear.

What do I do now? A dull, heavy sound came from somewhere behind her as she stood frozen. The door to the study had closed on its own, resounding like the lid of a coffin. Only the sound of the firewood crackling broke the silence.

At last, the Monster Lord made the first move. He strode to his desk and placed the book on top of it, then he turned his face, which was still covered by a black mask, toward a shuddering Letitia. After staring at her for a moment, the Monster Lord abruptly gestured.

It seemed he wanted her to follow him. Although the very idea frightened her, she didn’t dare question him. The Monster Lord took a lit lamp with him and stepped out of the room as Letitia followed behind him, trembling all the while. Where were they going?

The shadow holding the lamp strode through the dark corridor and headed downstairs, skillfully managing to avoid crossing paths with anyone in the household as the two of them exited the building. It felt like he was leading her away from others. Her panic grew and grew.

She could almost hear the hags: “Our lord likes to hunt his own prey.”

It was crucial that she keep her wits about her in a time like this. She knew that a person could even survive a tiger attack as long as they managed to do that.

I’ll hide my hands inconspicuously, then strike with my fingers and stab him right in the eyes... Letitia had been practicing the assault in her mind when the Monster Lord suddenly came to a stop. She followed suit.

A cold gust swept by, making her skirt flutter. They stood before a passage leading to the castle’s outer yard. When the Monster Lord pointed to the area beyond without a word, Letitia spotted horses and carriages, as well as several horsemen, on standby in case an emergency presented itself at night.

What is he implying? Baffled, Letitia stared at him. As she proceeded to blink in confusion, the Monster Lord pointed again in the same direction. A frosty voice emerged from behind the mask.

“Make your escape quickly!”

What? Letitia could not believe what she was hearing. Did he just tell me to escape? Her thoughts became a jumbled mess for a moment at those unexpected words. As she continued to simply stand there, the Monster Lord urged her once more.

“What are you doing? Get away from here! Your attempt to escape was admirable, but you can’t get out of here on your own. You need adults to help you. Don’t worry. Unlike me, they are kind and they’ll ensure you make it safely back to your house if you tell them that you’re frightened and want to leave.”

She hadn’t misheard; he had the wrong idea. He thought that Letitia had accidentally set foot in the study while trying to flee. However, she was puzzled. Why isn’t he angry? Why is he trying to help me instead? Taken back, she continued to stand there, which prompted him to say, “What is it? Don’t tell me you’re too scared to walk there alone.”

“N-no, that’s not it. I...”

“Fine. I’ll stand here with my lamp and provide you with light until you reach the horsemen.”

“Actually—”

“There’s no need to refuse. I’m doing this for my benefit. The faster you get out of here, the faster I can get back to my study.”

The Monster Lord gruffly raised his lamp high in the air. He looked just about ready to shove her toward the passage.

I wish he’d take a moment to listen to me first. Letitia plucked up her courage and declared without room for ambiguity, “I don’t have any plans to escape!” Her voice was timid but still loud.

This time, it was the Monster Lord who was taken aback. “What?” he asked, turning his masked face toward Letitia. He seemed bewildered.

Suddenly, the whispers coming from the other side of the passage died—it appeared the horsemen had sensed their presence.

Oh! The Monster Lord quickly covered his lamp and hid in the darkness.

“You don’t have to pretend or lie,” he said curtly, then turned on his heel. It seemed he was done with the situation.

“Wait!” Letitia cried and quickly chased after him. Although she was afraid of him, she had no other choice, seeing as she didn’t know the way back.

“I’m not lying. I was just lost after wandering about on my own. I have no intention of running away from this place.”

Her words made the Monster Lord stop in his tracks.

“I don’t get it,” he said and looked at Letitia in astonishment. “Have you not heard the rumors about me?”

“I have.”

“Then you must be aware… I’m a monster. I look very frightening, and horrific. Yet you’re telling me that you aren’t going to flee?”

“That’s right.”

“What if I tell you that even I scream upon seeing my reflection in the mirror? That even I haven’t gotten used to my own face?”

“That doesn’t change my mind.”

“Don’t lie to me. You are the daughter of a count, and you’re from the capital. Your hands shook with fear as soon as you saw me. In fact, you’re still trembling in terror.”

“I won’t deny that,” Letitia said firmly. “But that’s irrelevant. I meant it when I said I’m not going to escape.”

“Why’s that?”

“I can’t let myself be thrown out. Any outcome will be better than having to go back to that house. So...” Letitia pinned him with an intense stare as she said, “Please let me be your bride!”

She had squeezed out every last bit of her courage to make that request. However, he refused her without hesitation, not even taking time to deliberate.

“I can’t let you do that,” he said.

At his words, Letitia felt as though she’d fallen into the depths of despair. Though she had expected as much from him, hearing her suspicions confirmed did nothing to diminish her distress. To her, his words felt the same as a death sentence.

“I see,” Letitia said sadly. “I understand, but please don’t tell me to go. I’d rather be a sacrifice than forced to leave.”

“What?” Once again, the Monster Lord seemed taken aback. “What did you just say?”

“I said I’d rather be a sacrifice.” Letitia didn’t care what happened anymore—she woefully let the words pour out of her like a torrent. “That’s the situation I’m in, isn’t it? I’m destined to be either a bride or a sacrifice.”

“You can’t be either!”

“How come?” she asked.

“For one thing, I prefer eating chicken and bread pudding. For another, it’s impossible to make you my bride,” he said, sounding rather solemn, “because I’m also not yet of age.”

Oh, I see. Wait, what? Once again, Letitia doubted her ears. Perhaps she had misheard. She momentarily forgot about her fear and asked, “How old are you?”

“I’m fifteen.”

She was stunned. But he spoke with such eloquence! He couldn’t possibly be just fifteen. In fact, the redhead was so bewildered that—for a brief moment—she couldn’t calculate their age difference. One, two, three...

“What are you doing?” the Monster Lord asked.

“Nothing,” she replied, hiding her hands behind her back even though he had already seen her counting with her fingers.

“Three years is a lot,” he said. “That’s three rounds of spring, summer, fall, and winter.”

“Th-that’s true,” Letitia replied ambiguously, then blinked.

It doesn’t make sense. Despite the terror that still filled her, she wouldn’t be satisfied until the question in her mind was answered, so finally, she mustered up the courage and asked, “Why on earth did you ask me to come if you can’t marry anyone because you’re still not old enough?”

“Ask my father,” the Monster Lord answered sullenly. “He was always worried about continuing the line. All the heads of our family had the same concern. They believed having an heir was necessary to protect this castle since it’s in the devil-infested north.”

“Heirs are important indeed.”

“However, is it so important that I must resort to trickery to get married? I don’t think so. There’s no need for an heir if I manage to conquer the devils in my lifetime. Don’t you agree?” he asked spiritedly.

Letitia felt compelled to reply in the affirmative. “I-I see your point.”

“But our two families are already interlocked, so I contacted your family in order to avoid the curse. We can have a sham marriage and then divorce when the time is right. It’d be absurd if we seriously married, though turning you into a sacrifice is even more absurd. That isn’t something we do in our castle!”

“Then what about what the cook said about me being a bag of bones that she needs to fatten up?”

“That’s a cook’s duty!” the Monster Lord said, seeming flabbergasted. “Yes, it’s true Cassaro may look intimidating. In fact, I’m sure they all are in your eyes, but that’s only because they’re not professional servants. My father rescued them from devils. I realize they’re not friendly and courteous like the staff employed by a count would be, but they aren’t bad people. They’re always eager to be kind to anyone who’s new to the castle.”

Letitia didn’t respond. She had been struck speechless. He was right. The meal had just been a meal. There had been no ulterior motive with the bath or the light clothing. Her fear had caused her to be suspicious.

Despite now knowing better, she could still hear doubts from a corner of her mind, as though her cousins’ voices were still in her head.

“Is that really the case? I doubt it. Who would be nice to someone like you?”

“Everyone has a hidden agenda. You’re falling for it like a fool, aren’t you?”

Letitia squeezed her eyes shut knowing she needed to know the truth, even if it killed her. In a feeble voice, she asked, “Then what about the Sacrifice Room?”

“The Sacrifice Room?”

“The room that’s padlocked. I found a scary room in this castle just like one my cousins told me about. Everyone at the castle was too flustered to answer me when I asked about it, so I peeked in and saw the housekeeper scolding the servants as they were hard at work preparing something. It was an altar for sacrifices...”

This time the Monster Lord failed to respond, allowing the silence to permeate between them. Then he started to answer but hesitated. “That’s...”

Letitia had been reading people’s faces closely from an early age, so she was roughly able to guess what someone was feeling. Right now, the Monster Lord was at a loss as to what to do—she had caught him floundering for the first time. So, as she expected, that was no ordinary room.

I must have hit the mark this time. Letitia had dealt a critical blow, but that was no reason to celebrate—in fact, she felt only despair.