My Secretly Hot Husband

Chapter 8

The lord put away The Chronicles of Elderberry Bunny, then produced an enormous box from a desk drawer, which he opened to reveal several sheets of paper. After taking the cleanest and stiffest sheet out of the bunch, he laid it out on the desk, then inked a quill and started to write.

Letitia could not contain her curiosity and asked, “What are you writing?”

“I’m documenting everything I just said. This is what lords do for all important promises.”

Once finished, he set down his pen. He grabbed a tiny pot with a handle, then poured out a bit of whatever was inside. Hot wax spilled onto the paper from the pot. Before the wax could solidify, he stamped the seal of the Lord of Halstead—which was of a dragon with four extended wings. The process was very interesting and looked gratifying to perform.

Letitia unconsciously strained her neck to watch. The name written next to the freshly pressed, impressive seal caught her eye.

Erden. That was the Monster Lord’s name. Erden, Erden... Letitia immediately committed it to memory. Meanwhile, the ink had finished drying. Erden handed the paper to Letitia.

“We’ll break the curse by getting married, then we’ll divorce once you’re able to live on your own. Does that sound good?”

Letitia quickly nodded. It had been enough for her to hear that grand declaration, but the fact that he had put it into writing made it more impressive. Letitia liked reading things. If she had a document like this, she could read it whenever she wanted to. Then she could relive this feeling of relief every time.

“Thank you.” Letitia rolled up the freshly written document and held it in her hand, after which she grasped her dress and gave a formal curtsy. “I thank you for your generosity.”

Erden fidgeted a little. It appeared he felt awkward and bashful about seeing Letitia being so proper and formal. “Anyway, I think it’s time you go to bed.”

This was her cue to go. “Then I shall take my leave.” Letitia immediately stepped out into the corridor. She searched her memory and headed toward her temporary bedchamber.

“You’re going the wrong way!” Erden exclaimed, rushing out of the room. It appeared she had been mistaken. “Are you planning on getting lost again? If you cry because of that, people will undoubtedly think I was the cause, which would be most troublesome.”

He led the way without hesitation. It seemed he knew where Letitia was temporarily staying, so he guided her to the room without difficulty. Letitia had once found the corridors after dark to be frightening. In fact, her legs had almost given out while she walked through this same space on her own just earlier, but it wasn’t very scary to her now. At this moment, even if something popped out from one of the dark corners, she wouldn’t have been frightened because the Monster Lord was stronger.

Letitia watched her steps carefully as she mused. They finally reached the small bedchamber where the maids had taken her earlier. After an extended time out wandering, she’d finally managed to come back. She felt a sense of relief once she saw the bed—like she had returned after a long adventure. Seeing as a lot of things had happened that day, it really had been a grand adventure for a twelve-year-old.

Anyway, I just need to end this interaction like a lady. Letitia grabbed the sides of her dress, bent her knees, and gave him a perfect curtsey. “Thank you for all that you’ve done, my lord.”

However, there was one problem. The bed looked too tall for her to climb onto on her own. The people of the north grew quicker than the rest of the nation and were on the larger side, so their beds were large as well. In addition, blankets had been piled up on top, giving it more height, which further exacerbated her problem.

The maids had been responsible for this, as they assumed Letitia was like a princess, and princesses were said to feel uncomfortable even if a single pea was placed under their bedding. As a result, the maids had gathered every clean blanket available and piled them up, so concerned with making the bed plush that they overlooked the excessive height they’d added.

It’s fine. It’s not a big deal. Letitia calmly assessed the height. I can jump onto it in one go. She placed the document she had received on top of the bed, then laid her hands flat on the bed top as well. She pushed off with her legs and jumped. But it was not meant to be. Her eyes had failed to estimate the bed’s height, and her legs hadn’t been strong enough, leading to a hard landing on the floor.

Stars danced in front of her eyes. She felt the embarrassment before she felt the pain. Letitia immediately sprang to her feet like a roly-poly toy.

“They say it’s easier to fall asleep if you do some exercise before you lie down,” she said.

Erden was silent, and it was clear that he was taken aback. “Oh, I see. The north is barren, so it’s good to keep yourself warmed up.” He pretended he hadn’t seen her crumple to the ground and even made a clumsy attempt of going along with what she said.

She was grateful for that. Letitia gave up on climbing onto the bed. Instead, she went with the second-best thing: climbing onto the desk and then jumping onto the bed. However, as soon as she stepped on the chair, the legs shook and leaned.

“Ah!”

Erden could no longer ignore what was happening. He launched himself at the chair and grabbed it with lightning-fast speed.

“Stop! Stop!” he cried out in a panic. “It looks like your aunt and uncle didn’t even teach you how to jump properly. I’ll have to think of something since it’s not like you can sleep on the ground.”

Erden brought a step stool and compared it to the bed. However, it wasn’t tall enough. “Hold on just a moment.” After leaving the room, he came back quickly holding wooden boards and tools.

Is he going to make me a step stool? Letitia was taken by surprise. She looked at Erden with fresh eyes as he got to work. He was so much different from her first frightening impression of him. As he concentrated on making the step stool, she imagined the hideous face behind the mask and felt very strange.

Monsters were scary, but she felt she should gradually get used to him. But how could she do that? Maybe if I keep talking to him? With that thought, Letitia opened her mouth.

“Erden.”

He jolted in surprise, but this was eclipsed by Letitia’s own shock at this reaction.

Did I do something terribly wrong?

Erden quickly explained, “Sorry. Nobody besides my parents has called me by my name before.”

“Oh, I see. I wanted to ask you a question, but I didn’t know what to call you.”

“You can call me whatever you like. You don’t have to be formal. What is it that you wanted to ask me?” he said.

“Isn’t it uncomfortable to live with that mask on?”

“This isn’t an ordinary mask. It’s infused with magic. I’ve never felt particularly uncomfortable with it on.”

“Oh...”

“Anyway, I’m finished,” Erden said as he places the completed step stool right next to the bed. “Your ‘exercise’ might be a little too helpful in putting you to sleep—your slumber might be permanent if you aren’t careful. Use this from now on.”

“Thank you,” Letitia said politely, then stepped on the stool. It was very stable and she finally made it onto the bed safely.

“Wonderful,” Erden said, satisfied. “That wraps it up. I’ve fulfilled my duties as the lord for today. Now, go to sleep. It’s late.”

“All right.”

Erden turned around and left at once. He tended to make his exits quickly, perhaps because he knew he seemed like a monster to others. Letitia sat without moving for a moment before she remembered something.

“Ah, that’s right.”

She unfolded the document that she had placed on the bed. She hadn’t even read it yet.

The person possessing this document is the Lady of Halstead and my wife. She may stay at Halstead Castle as long as she likes. In addition, she may leave Halstead Castle whenever she likes. No one shall prevent these dekrees from being carried out.

Erden Astar Lohene El Halstead

That was what was written in crooked handwriting on the paper. Letitia read the document over and over again until the candle finally burned out.

“Ah, now I really must go to sleep.”

Letitia settled into bed. She had read the document so intently that she could almost see the letters floating before her on the dark ceiling. She blinked her eyes and thought, He made a spelling mistake.

It should have been “decrees,” not “dekrees.” It appeared he hadn’t completely mastered how to write yet. All in all, he wasn’t anything like her first impression of him. Letitia suddenly wondered what sort of monster he was. In the darkness, she visualized all sorts of shapes the monster behind the mask could take. She was frightened by the prospect, but at the same time, her curiosity was piqued.

What do his eyes look like? What color is his skin? Letitia’s eyes flitted as she imagined the possibilities, and before she knew it, she was asleep.

Meanwhile, Garrick, one of the castle’s guards, spotted the lord while patrolling. He rushed over in surprise.

“Is anything wrong?” he asked.

“N-no,” Erden replied, walking away.

However, Garrick suddenly heard a strange sound coming from the direction of the lord. He doubted his ears. Did he just laugh? His eyes widened in surprise, and he stared as the young lord disappeared into the distance.