By Zephyria I had a strange dream.
It was a dream about marrying Ivan and spending our first night together. My chaste husband, who was so neat he was almost cold, whispered vulgar words to me, to me… It was a dream of doing such things. To lose half my mind and cry pathetically like that, begging for more, surely I wouldn’t do such a thing, even in a dream. Why on earth did I have such an absurd dream?
I was so taken aback I almost laughed. No, not because it was funny, but because it tickled. I thought maybe a strand of hair had gotten stuck and raised my hand to scratch my side. Instead of my side, I felt a slender finger, warm to the touch. A chilling sensation, as if all the blood in my body rushed to my toes, washed over me.
I slowly turned my head, which had been immobile, to the right.
“Did you sleep well?”
“⋯I, I, I, Ivan?”
“You must still be sleepy…”
The hand that had been caressing my ribs slid without hesitation to my lower back. He pulled me in, and I followed willingly, burying my nose deep into his broad chest. Neither of us was wearing anything. Why did my body feel so stiff? As if I had done strenuous exercise after a long, long time… like, say, the splits.
…It wasn’t a dream?
It wasn’t a dream? Really? Was it really me, crying like a bitch and turning Ivan’s back into a mess? Was it really me who begged for more, for kisses, for a deeper embrace…? Really, me?
I froze, unable to breathe. Ivan, who held me, patted my lower back with a leisurely hand. Each time he did, I flinched, knowing all too well how sharply that hand could strike my skin.
As my senses, which had been absent for quite some time, gradually returned, all the pathetic things I had done flashed before my eyes. Suddenly, I wondered about the temperature of the Saras River. It would still be cold at this time of year, wouldn’t it? Lost in such a fleeting thought, Ivan, who had been gazing at my face, lifted the corners of his mouth.
“⋯Hoo.”
“⋯.”
This bastard even laughs with a “hoo.”
Ivan pushed my shoulder, and I yielded to the gentle pressure. He rose silently, covering only his lower body with the bedsheet. Bruises, formed from tight grips, marked his pale, slender body in various places—shoulders, waist, forearms. Ivan followed my gaze as it slowly traced the bruises on my shoulders, waist, and forearms, and he chuckled again, like a male protagonist in a play.
And the first thing he said was this.
“Shall we go take a look around the merchant guild now?”
“⋯Pardon?”
“Since I’ve become a member of the Eldos Merchant Guild now.”
“Ah, ah! Yes. Yes, we should… We should. Yes.”
I scrambled to sit up. I had never been told I lacked stamina, but as soon as I sat on the bed, a dull ache shot from my tailbone to the back of my neck, and my body stiffened again. The feeling of something wet seeping from beneath the sheet I was sitting on, fuck, this, could it be…?
I can’t get up.
It wasn’t just that my naked body was fully exposed to Ivan’s view. Ashamed of my body, still bearing the marks of last night, I pulled the bedsheet up. Trying to cover myself up to my chest as I sat slumped, I ended up snatching Ivan’s blanket too, but I didn’t have the presence of mind to care.
Then.
My shoulder twitched again.
The hand reaching towards me froze. Ivan’s cool gaze first met my face, then slid down my body, barely covered by the hastily pulled-up sheet, to my knees, which were tensely and demurely folded. My gaze followed his, slowly drifting down, down, until it hit the bed.
“⋯Why are you so surprised.”
“Ah, ah, ah, no. I, I’m not surprised.”
“Shall I wash you?”
“No! I, I’ll do it myself.”
“Well, alright.”
Ivan seemed like a person who knew no shame. He sat on the bed, completely naked, without a change in his expression. The voice that fell upon my head was as gentle as ever.
“Then I’ll go wash up first. While I’m gone…”
“⋯Hic.”
His outstretched hand finally reached me and pressed down on my head, stroking it like a dog. My heart felt like it would burst. Afraid I might make a strange sound, I clamped my mouth shut and blocked my throat with my tongue. Ivan, who had been staring at my face for a long time, whispered softly.
“Try to calm down. I don’t intend to devour you first thing in the morning.”
“⋯Hiccup.”
“This isn’t easy…”
That’s what I wanted to say. I felt like crying.
The Eldos Merchant Guild was a reasonably large guild for one that had risen through the Single Ascent Title. This was fortunate, as its base happened to be in the capital.
Centuries ago, during the Shiaren Great Reform, merchant guilds run by noble families that had served as financial backers for various princes and princesses were all purged. Consequently, among those leading the merchant guilds in the capital, there were no great nobles. At that time, besides Eldos, four other guilds had survived by picking up various odd jobs and expanding their product lines. MacPerran, Lakewood, Crowell, and Blackmore.
Eldos lagged slightly behind MacPerran and was only slightly ahead of the other three. With the rise of many small and medium-sized guilds, supported by Wizards, the current era was a daily war. Therefore, the succession title I had obtained through Ivan was a truly significant achievement.
So, today, the atmosphere at the Eldos Merchant Guild should have been vibrant.
Not like this, with everyone looking like gnomes who had just been doused in dog piss.
The Eldos Merchant Guild’s base consisted of the main building, where administrative and paperwork tasks were handled, and five warehouse buildings. The warehouse buildings were temporary structures with doors facing east, west, north, and south, designed to allow the free passage of people and carts at any time. The main building, a four-story stone structure, stood behind these warehouses. The workers’ gazes were intense from the moment I passed through the warehouses.
There wasn’t an Eldos employee who didn’t know I was going to marry a man.
While some workers looked at the man standing beside me with curious eyes, a few spat on the ground. Most, however, hid inside the warehouses without even greeting us.
I was stunned by their unfamiliar behavior, as they usually rushed out to greet me warmly when I was alone. Ivan didn’t pay attention to each of them, but I, feeling pricked, glanced around. I could hear their grumbling.
I thought the esteemed person would have five eyes, but that’s not the case. Is that person Eric’s wife? She’s not exactly pretty. If it were me, I couldn’t marry a man, even for the sake of the guild. Is this a real marriage? It’s just a transaction, a deal. They’ll live with their lovers. But who is she to come all the way here?
Pretending not to hear anything, I led Ivan to the main building. I had told those closer to me that I was truly marrying Ivan… that we would be each other’s only lovers, so I thought they would be more trusting.
But that was not the case at all.
“From the left, these are Kevin, Sophia, Paul, Adam, Scott, and Timothy. Kevin and Sophia handle accounting and administration, and the other four friends assist with guild management.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Ivan Bikoff, Sienna’s husband and assistant sub-manager of the guild.”
“Yeees…”
“Heeey…”
“Uh, nice to meet you.”
“⋯.”
These were my long-time friends before they were my colleagues. They, who had run through alleyways together since they were eight or nine-year-old snot-nosed kids, counting coins and playing hide-and-seek, knew better than anyone that my name wasn’t Sienna. The ones who swallowed their awkward expressions from the first greeting either mumbled their words or remained silent.
If only they could have been a little, just a little more polite. As each of them shook Ivan’s hand in turn, they all looked at me, not Ivan. Their attitude, where politeness was nowhere to be found, made my face burn hotter, and I bit my tongue.
My friends, with their reluctant faces, even unashamedly wiped their hands on their pants immediately after shaking Ivan’s hand. Ivan, observing each of my friends’ faces carefully, maintained his usual cool and neat expression. It felt unfair that I seemed to be the only one anxious in this situation, when suddenly…
Ivan broke eye contact with all of them with a cheerful demeanor.
“Then, I would like my wife to assist me with my work assignments now.”
“⋯Pardon?”
“May I review the ledgers from the past six months with these six people?”
“Ah, yes!”
My body reacted before my mind did to Ivan’s words. I had Ivan, who had been standing straight, sit in my chair and took out several recent ledgers from the bookshelf.
As Paul, who stood there with a sour expression, helped me organize the recent ledgers, the remaining men just stood there blankly.
Please, please just look at us once. I looked at my friends with such a plea, but they didn’t budge. Why were they being so territorial? They all knew very well why I was marrying Ivan, so why?
My anxiety reached its peak when Ivan, who was examining the ledgers, spoke.
“The income details are clear, but there are too many unclear points in the expenditure details. Mr. Kevin, do you remember how many workers received bonuses and how much each received in February?”
“Yes? That… Because Eric, no, Sienna told me to give it.”
“From now on, it would be good to record the names of those who received bonuses. Also, the inventory turnover rate for wool and velvet is currently very low. Velvet, in particular, is a product that requires special care in storage, so there must be more than one point to consider. Mr. Adam, what are your thoughts on this matter?”
“Well, it’s not selling because the trend has passed, what can I do?”
“⋯.”
“⋯I! I will pay more attention.”
“Aren’t you serving as the deputy manager? You must oversee all operations. It’s best to trust the person in charge and delegate such matters.”
“I know. I know, but…”
Ivan’s upright gaze made my whole body shrink. I felt embarrassed, ashamed, awkward, just like I wanted to die. Was there a way I could have handled this better? But my mind was blank, and I could only lower my head, unable to say anything.
I glanced sideways at my friends. All of them had faces contorted as if they had eaten frogs.
This is wrong. Fuck, we’ve all made a terrible first impression.