Damien stood still. I pulled away from his ear and looked at him, "It just seems as though everything lines up very well, and I'm sure with the appearance of a Saintess, you may have a better chance of acquiring the throne from him."

He leaned back into the chair, sighing, "No, I don't want the throne. I just want to get back at him."

I blinked, then smiled, "Then we'll get along quite nicely. I don't want a seat next to a king either."

Not only will I finally achieve the peace that I've been looking for, but Fantasia will also achieve her goal of revenge. She tried her hardest to love and respect a man who couldn't give her the barest of minimums. Now, she'll be rid of him and into the arms of someone willing to reciprocate.

Damien reached into his pocket and pulled out the bulky golden choker that the High Priest gave to me. Shocked, I grabbed it while he was still holding it, resting my hands on top of his.

"I thought I had this on me," I breathed.

"While you were trying to save your maid, you dropped it in the carriage," Damien began, hiding his face again. "I picked it up and realized what it was. That's why I had a growing suspicion that you were the new Saintess."

Damien anxiously wiggled himself out of my grip, still holding onto the necklace, "I'd like to put this on you if you don't mind."

Oh, what a charmer!

I turned my back to him immediately, scooching a little closer to him. I even moved my hair out of the way to help him out. The cold metal brushed on the nape of my neck before being secured, but it didn't bother me because of how warm Damien was.

As he finished securing it, the same light appeared on the white diamond. The glow was softer and easier to deal with this time.

"Can you hear me?" A woman's voice rang in my head.

I jumped in surprise, startling Damien in the process, "Hello?"

"What's wrong?" Damien asked, his hands on my shoulders.

"So you can hear me, good," the voice said. "Sleep, my child. We have much to discuss."

"I hear a voice in my head telling me to sleep," I told him.

"So you're being summoned by Goddess Diana," he said. "We can't keep her waiting. I'll escort you back to your room."

Damien unfastened the necklace and placed it back into his pocket. He helped me up, and we made our way out into the hallway. Nobody was around, but I didn't want to risk talking about anything or anyone eavesdropping.

It was a silent walk to my room. Donna was in the room next to mine. I want to check up on her, but I can't have the goddess wait on me for a long time.

Once we arrived at my door, Damien took my hand and placed the necklace in it. I opened the door, and he turned to walk away. I grabbed the end of his sleeve.

Damien turned to me, "Yes, my liege?"

"Thank you. I've been saying it all night, but I genuinely mean it," I told him.

"Don't mention it," he said.

He still tried to walk away but I absolutely couldn't just leave him without something in return. I'm not a service to men anymore, so I can't just open my legs for compensation. Instead, I'll do something a bit more mild.

Before Damien could get any further, I pulled onto his sleeve again, standing on my tippy toes and cupping his left cheek so I could kiss his right. I swear, it was like kissing a tomato with the way he turned red.

I pulled away from him, "This is just a preview of what's to come. I hope you're ready, your grace."

I turned and ran inside my room before he could do anything, leaving the flustered Duke behind to contemplate.

—

Damien stood in the hallway for a bit, cupping the cheek that Fantasia kissed. He was still red.

A light chuckle was heard in the halls, "Congratulations, your grace. You're one step closer to your goal."

It was Bryant appearing from the shadows. More so, walking upstairs to greet the Duke. He kept a Cheshire smile on his face as he bowed.

"Lovely night we're having, your grace," Bryant said.

"And why are you smiling like that?" Damien asked, covering half his face with one hand.

"Because something good happened, and I can't wait to see how it all turns out."

"Please enlighten me. What could have possibly made my head butler smile from ear to ear?"

"A butler can't have their secrets?"

"You dare keep secrets from your master?"

"You don't share a lot of your secrets, though, your grace. I have the right not to share some of mine."

"How impudent."

Damien started walking back to his room, Bryant following after him. It was yet another silent walk until they reached his office. Once inside, Damien sat at his desk and looked over papers of confidential information. Bryant stood in front of him, waiting patiently to speak.

“Did you find anything?” Damien asked him.

“It’s as you thought, your grace. The king is definitely aiming for war with the Proscotti Kingdom. The issue is, we still don’t know why,” Bryant reported.

Damien leaned forward and laid his chin on his hands, “The Kingdom of Proscotti is the home of our liege, and she’s here under the guise of peace. Obviously, my brother doesn’t want that.”

“The only thing we know for sure is that he wants to acquire more power to even start the war in the first place. Which is why he’s pressuring you to go to more battles at the borders.”

Bryant puts a finger to his chin, “But then it becomes a double-edged sword. Each time you win a battle, you gain more favor with the commoners, another fact he hates.”

Damien sighed, “All this hassle just because he thinks I’ll overthrow him.”

Bryant didn’t show it, but he knew how stressed out Damien was about the whole ordeal. Having a paranoid brother who took in several extra wives just so another kingdom wouldn’t accumulate extra power over them, dethroning his original wife and giving authority to one of the founding Duke’s daughters. Now that the wife is being barraged with rumors created by said daughter, her life is in danger.

Not only that, his brother sends the Duke out on missions just so he's out of his sight. This way, he has no time to think of marriage prospects — hoping that his youngest brother drops dead so he can have the upper hand and give another supporter his house.

It's not a good spot to be in. Bryant doesn't envy the Duke at all.

"Keep searching. We're bound to have something turn up," Damien said.

"Yes, your grace," Bryant bowed.

Bryant walked over to the balcony in Damien's office and went on it. He disappeared in a blink of an eye.

Damien was left alone with his thoughts. The kiss came back to his memory almost instantly. His cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"I hope she doesn't do that to just anyone," he murmured.

Just the thought of Fantasia randomly kissing another guy's cheek made Damien flinch. He rubbed his temple, cheeks still flushed.

"Maybe I should pick up the pace a little," he whispered. "Just so no one else takes advantage of her."

—

My room was a sight to behold. Even better than the concubine palace that I was cooped up in. The walls were ivory white, and the large bed was covered in silver sheets and pillows, fluffy and comfortable. Next to the room was a bath, which was ready for me to dive in. I thought a maid was going to come in and help me out, but I guess Damien made sure nobody could see the bruises on my back.

If I see a mirror in that bathroom, I might just lose it. However, I'll simply turn it around. This isn't my palace, after all.

As I entered the bathroom, the first thing I noticed was no mirrors. He's pretty thorough. I wonder exactly how much he knows about me.

The water was steaming as if the bath was just running. Interesting.

I lay in the bath, thinking about everything. It's been a long evening. It may be a long night, too, if the goddess has so much to talk about. I sunk deeper into the bath near chin level. It would be nice to just fall asleep here.

A little while had passed and a knock came at the bathroom door. That's strange. Who could it be, and why were they inside my room in the first place?

"I'm not an intruder," Damien's voice called out.

"Damien?" I asked.

"I thought you needed some help getting ready for bed."

I blinked. The Duke himself, coming to a lady's room at this time of night, helping her get ready for bed? Not to mention, said lady is in the bathtub?

Is he dense?

I smirked, "Do you want to come in and give me a scrub, your grace?"