Please Grant Me a Glorious Regret [Novel] Chapter 11

Dimion said nothing.

He simply stared at Arte with an unreadable expression.

His expressionless face possessed a power that intimidated people.

Merely looking at someone in silence was enough to make them shrink back under his gaze.

Compounded by the lingering image of him nonchalantly blowing off Benjamin's wrist, it felt as though he were whispering, How dare you.

Just as her bold resolve began to falter, the image of the blood soaking the floor and the two severed fingers flashed through her mind, along with her wailing parents and a furious Peter.

Even feeling terrified was a luxury.

Arte didn't have room for that.

The courage born of desperation raised her threshold for fear to its absolute limit.

Indifferent to the chill in his gaze, Arte stepped even closer to him.

They were close enough that the slightest movement would bring their bodies together.

There was virtually no space between them, so close that even the servant holding the door open widened his eyes in surprise.

Closing the distance, Dimion's scent tickled the tip of Arte's nose.

It was a crisp, heavy fragrance that evoked images of a winter forest.

As if even the warmth of this place, known as the Land of the Sun, couldn't thaw him, his winter remained complete and cold.

The chill emanating even from his scent froze Arte once more.

But it was only for a split second.

Clenching her fists tightly, Arte calmly parted her lips.

"I want to propose a contract."

It was a whisper meant only for Dimion's ears.

Having conveyed her intent, Arte waited quietly for his response.

Despite the secret proposal, Dimion remained silent.

He merely stared at Arte with the exact same expression as before.

Had it not been for the breeze coming through the open door, one might have suspected time itself had stopped, so completely still was he.

Arte tightly clasped her hands to hide their trembling.

At a distance where not only breaths but heartbeats could be heard, she didn't want Dimion to catch onto the fear and tension she was feeling right now.

"…"

Just as her tightly clenched hands turned white and a dizzying wave of panic hit her, worrying that the thudding of her heart might finally leak out, Dimion gave a subtle tilt of his head, signaling for them to step outside.

Mesmerized for a brief moment by his infuriatingly graceful gesture, Arte swallowed hard and stepped past the doors of the estate.

She had to keep her wits about her.

If she was to turn the plan in her head into reality, she had no choice.

The place Arte brought Dimion was before a massive, sprawling tree in the deepest part of the garden behind the mansion.

Looking at the grand zelkova tree, Arte took a deep breath and slowly turned around.

Standing backed against the crimson sky, Dimion looked somewhat unfamiliar.

His hair fluttered in the brisk wind, and the lingering red glow of the setting sun clung to him, yet even that looked striking.

He was a man who appeared flawless even in moments that might make anyone else look disheveled.

It felt as though nothing in the world could flaw him.

He was just that formidable an adversary.

Arte steeled herself once more and fixed her intense eyes on Dimion.

"What is it you want?"

Defying her expectations, Dimion spoke first.

Carried on the wind, his voice felt even deeper today.

"I need to hear first what it is you want from me that makes you propose a contract."

His tone was far from friendly.

Though she had anticipated it, facing it in reality made her swallow nervously.

Striving to maintain her composure as much as possible, Arte parted her lips carefully.

Regardless of how Dimion reacted, she had to persuade him according to her plan.

"What I want is Peter's acquittal and enough money to clear our family's debt to the Baron's house."

It wasn't something he could understand immediately.

Sure enough, as soon as she finished her sentence, Dimion's brow furrowed slightly.

"A few hours ago, Baron Pitt stormed into our estate with police officers alongside the son whose wrist you blew off."

It was a pointed remark.

She wanted to emphasize that her plea concerning the aftermath hadn't been meaningless, and that Dimion bore at least some responsibility for the disaster that had unfolded.

"The young Baron fired a gun at Peter. It seems he intended to blow off his wrist in retaliation, but Peter dodged, so instead of his wrist, two fingers…"

Arte couldn't bring herself to finish.

It was a scene she had no desire to relive.

Since she had conveyed enough of the situation, she didn't bother elaborating on what had happened to his fingers.

"In self-defense, Peter shot one of the officers. He hit him in the shoulder, but because a soldier shot a police officer, he was hauled off to the military police."

"…"

"It was indisputably self-defense. Any decent officer would have dragged away the young Baron instead of Peter. But every single one of them was bribed by Baron Pitt, so reasoning with them was impossible. It will be the exact same with the military police. They certainly won't release him and will drag it all the way to a trial."

The more she spoke, the tighter her chest felt.

Remembering Benjamin's sneering face made it agonizingly worse.

"We need prestige powerful enough to overcome Baron Pitt's money. And since paying off the debt is the top priority to break this suffocating cycle, I also need a substantial sum of money."

Having finished her explanation, Arte looked at Dimion.

She had tried her best to speak calmly, but she couldn't hide her flushed expression from the swelling anger inside.

"You clearly said you wanted to propose a contract."

Dimion, who had been listening quietly, took a step toward Arte.

It was just a single step, yet a sudden sense of overwhelming pressure made Arte flinch.

"A contract is only struck when there is a fair exchange of give and take. What you are asking of me is quite substantial, My Lady. Yet it doesn't seem like you are in a position to offer an equivalent price in return."

His quiet voice struck right at the heart of the matter.

"What is it? If I lend my prestige to save your brother and even pay off the debt you owe to that vermin, then what do I receive?"

A faint, mocking sneer tinged his words.

It felt as though he was already certain that whatever Arte offered, it would fall short of satisfying him.

It was tantamount to trampling on her pride, but Arte didn't waver.

Sadly, her predicament was just that precarious.

When even being terrified was a luxury, pride wasn't even something worth discussing.

Arte, who had lowered her gaze slightly, looked up and met Dimion's eyes with a look that felt almost solemn.

"I will serve as Lady Darton's substitute."

At the mention of Phelia's name, the composure that had masked Dimion's face cracked for the first time.

Astonished that she would bring up that name again, he froze over with a fierce coldness, just as he had when he saved her from Benjamin.

"Are you truly this slow to learn? I'm certain I warned you multiple times never to bring up that name casually."

"It only proves how desperate I am."

Arte didn't back down and shot right back.

Truthfully, she was terrified.

Contrary to his words, she had learned the lesson all too well, which made her even more afraid.

Every time she brought up Phelia to Dimion, things went disastrously wrong.

She might escape the immediate moment, but she had to battle the chaotic aftermath that followed.

Pretending to be uncertain was pointless, so the answer was already set.

If Arte's proposal were accepted, this contract would undoubtedly erode her in some way.

"I heard you are in a difficult spot because of your family's elders. That they keep sending women who resemble Lady Darton into your bedroom. Use me. Treat me as the woman by your side, and it will help put an end to the nuisances bothering you."

The icy cold emanating from Dimion grew deeper and deeper.

It was a temperature utterly alien to an hour when the whole world was ablaze in the glow of the sunset.

"The woman by my side?"

Letting out a dry chuckle, Dimion stepped even closer to Arte.

"I know my place, Duke. I'm not speaking of pretending to be lovers or a fake engagement. Just keep me by your side. Keep me near and use me like a doll whenever you need to. I will willingly be your doll."

"Do I look that naive to you? Do I strike you as the kind of man who would take those words at face value and keep you attached to my side?"

"I…"

"Do you think you are the first woman to try this?"

Disillusionment and contempt.

An emotion beyond simple anger filled his eyes.

"Out of all those women, was there ever even a single one who managed to remind me of Lady Darton?"