The Duchess and the Devil - Chapter 62.2

A faint noise rang in my ears, driving me crazy. Judith didn’t know what to say, because she didn’t quite understand what it meant.

A suspicious smile appeared on the Emperor’s face. His laugh seemed strange.

– I have a slightly special taste. Come in.

A door in the corner of the room, which Judith didn’t even know existed, opened and someone entered. Common clothes that could be found in the Imperial Palace. A simple servant.

But after the words about strange preferences, everything around the Duchess trembled. The instinct of self-preservation blinked a red light. Thoughts swarmed randomly in my head, not giving me a chance to concentrate on anything.

“I get excited when I see others doing this,” Judith’s now worried face distorted even more.

She never could have imagined that the Emperor, known for his pure attitude towards women, would turn out like this. Now it became clear why Killard called the other guy here. An eerie feeling came over her. The Duchess took a few deep breaths to calm herself.

“It seems to me that you just had a misunderstanding.”

– Misunderstanding?

Killard grimaced as if he was laughing at her words. Then he squeezed Judith’s chin tightly, saying:

– Misunderstanding? I wanted to see his wife with someone else. After this, he beautifully falls ill, dies and loses his memory. Convenient, isn’t it?

The Emperor seemed unable to contain his anger, thinking that the couple had simply deceived him.

Now Judith understood: Derrick acted as a pimp to protect his own power and place near the Emperor. And it’s clear why Killard is reacting this way to the new Duke now.

Her lips trembled. Judith swallowed, extremely scared. But it was worth staying vigilant, no matter what.

“I really didn’t know that, Your Majesty,” Judith, like a parrot, said the same thing, insisting on her innocence.

“And it’s true that my husband lost his memory, and also died and was resurrected.” Your Majesty, no one tried to deceive you. And all the misunderstanding is just a big misunderstanding, so we can simply forget about it like a bad dream. So…

“Didn’t you hear what I said?”

His hand tightened its grip on Judith’s chin. From such a grip, the Duchess involuntarily moaned.

“You won’t be able to get out of here today.”

Judith’s face turned pale. Killard grabbed the girl by the head, and her silver hair was tangled in a real mess. Rising, the Emperor dragged her to a bed in the corner of the basement. A stunned male assistant stood nearby.

Judith tried her best to break free from the Emperor’s grip and run away, but he again forcefully grabbed her chin and took the glass from the table.

– Let me go! No! Let me go! – the Duchess tried to shout.

A stream of purple liquid went straight into her mouth. Judith, feeling that the air was blocked, began to cough. Although half of the tincture was spat out, the rest reached its destination.

Her lips tightly closed, she looked around in fear, not understanding what kind of drink it was.

Suddenly something pierced my ankle. The touch – burning and heavy – turned out to be a bondage.

“Like I said, I need to do something about the Duke.” But if the truth comes out, I will lose all trust and my own honor. And you… What should we do?

Only at that moment did Judith understand that there was no way to convince the Emperor. She looked him straight in the eyes. He was still smiling. His already bright appearance stood out even more in the darkness of the basement.

– Play with me. And then we’ll see what we can do.