A Contract Marriage with My Child’s Father Chapter 6

Chapter 6

“That’s exactly what you just said! I deduced it…!”

After forcing the words out through my trembling body, I gulped in a lungful of air.

Haah.

For a moment, I truly thought I was going to die.

It’s… better now, right?

I cautiously studied Kain’s expression. The sharp, suffocating pressure from earlier had noticeably eased.

Thank goodness. I almost passed out.

I had known he would be furious. I had deliberately touched on something sensitive. I had even prepared an explanation in advance.

But facing his anger in person had completely overwhelmed me. My mind had gone blank.

So this is what dragon blood feels like.

Now I understood why the original novel described him as an object of fear.

Still, I couldn’t relax.

“Explain.”

His low voice felt like a final chance.

I chose my words carefully.

“I realized Young Master Jaden’s condition several days ago.”

The day I remembered the original plot.

The moment my memories returned, I became certain Jaden suffered from Tamutar Disease.

There had been an early episode where Melody assisted in his treatment.

That was when Jaden began to cherish her like a real sister.

It had been one of the more heartwarming arcs.

But my claim of deduction wasn’t entirely false.

Even before recalling my past life, I had found something suspicious.

“As stated on my résumé, I ran an apothecary in a southern rural village. I frequently dealt with herb gatherers. Recently, I heard that someone of high status was purchasing large quantities of Sharp-Leaf Herb at inflated prices. That struck me as unusual.”

Sharp-Leaf Herb grew only in select southern regions. It was rare—but widely considered useless, aside from mild hemostatic properties.

But that’s only common knowledge.

“Though not widely known, Sharp-Leaf Herb is the only herb capable of suppressing draconic energy.”

I had read that in an old manuscript in the marquis estate’s library.

Ancient medical texts were often dismissed as outdated nonsense. Most people never bothered opening them.

But since I had no formal teacher, I read everything I could find.

Sometimes I had been mocked for wasting my time.

Who knew it would matter like this?

“So naturally, I thought of House Ashellen. From there, I concluded that someone had developed Tamutar Disease.”

An extremely rare illness that afflicted only dragon-blooded individuals.

A disease that occurred when a child’s body could not withstand the violent surge of dragon power within.

In other words—it appeared only in youth.

“And since Your Grace is fully grown, and Young Master Noah is already attending the academy, it was reasonable to infer that Young Master Jaden was the one affected.”

That was the end of my prepared reasoning.

Would he believe me?

Even if he didn’t, I had nothing better to offer.

I searched his face.

The oppressive aura had faded, but he remained silent, frowning slightly.

Please… don’t just stare at me.

“You’re claiming you deduced all of this from so little information?”

I nodded firmly.

“Yes. If you still doubt me, you’re free to investigate me.”

“If you are a spy, I’ll at least commend your audacity.”

“I’m not! If I were a spy, I wouldn’t walk straight into your estate and confess everything. I’m not nearly brave enough to deceive the Duke of Ashellen…”

A faint scoff escaped him.

But the atmosphere didn’t grow colder.

“Your Grace,” I continued, steadying myself, “you may doubt me as much as you wish. If I prove useless, you may dismiss me immediately. I only ask for one opportunity.”

“Can you truly help treat Jaden?”

“Yes. I can. No—more than that, I want to.”

I hadn’t sought him out solely for Melody and myself.

Jaden might be older than Melody, but he was still only six years old.

In the novel, he had suffered quietly for years.

I couldn’t ignore that.

“In return, my request is simple. Please protect the saint candidate—and me—from other factions.”

“From the Temple.”

“Yes.”

He understood immediately.

But he paused.

“…I still fail to understand. Why go this far to protect a saint candidate?”

“She’s very young. She suffers from selective mutism. I don’t know how she might be exploited. And the seat of the saint has been vacant for over twenty years…”

I clenched my fists.

A saint bore the mark of God—visible only when a certain holy relic was brought near.

For now, I referred to Melody merely as a candidate.

“At least until she can protect herself, I want to protect her.”

That was the truth.

The genre of the original novel was childcare.

So Melody had endured everything alone, desperately trying to survive.

It was entertaining when I read it.

But now—

She wasn’t a character.

She was real.

She smiled brightly when given macarons.

She snored softly when she fell asleep.

Just an ordinary child.

Yes, she possessed overwhelming holy power.

Yes, her fate was extraordinary.

But to me—

She was simply my daughter.

Once I understood that, the original plot stopped mattering.

Children shouldn’t suffer for the sake of a story.

They barely have enough time to laugh and play as it is.

Adults should carry the painful burdens.

“So please.”

I met his crimson eyes directly.

“Enter into a contract with me.”

* * *

Kain studied the woman in silence.

Viola.

At first, it had been simple curiosity.

But the more he listened to her, the more peculiar she became.

Transparent—yet impossible to fully grasp.

Bold to the point of recklessness, yet not devoid of fear.

And what she sought was neither wealth nor influence.

Only protection.

For a young saint candidate.

And for herself.

A saint candidate…

The younger child from the plaza?

He remembered yesterday clearly.

Ordinary priests would not have sensed it.

But dragon blood could.

The child had radiated unmistakable holy power.

If that was true—

She might genuinely be the saint.

Protecting such a child would inevitably place him at odds with the Temple.

Not that House Ashellen was ever aligned with them.

Most noble families maintained close ties with the Temple.

Ashellen did not.

Did she know that as well?

Almost certainly.

She was perceptive enough to deduce Jaden’s illness from fragments of information.

There was little reason to refuse.

Finally, Kain spoke.

“Very well.”

His crimson eyes did not leave hers.

“We will proceed with the contract.”