Prologue
“Done!”
Clap!
Lucy clapped her hands and proudly looked over the completed magic circle.
She had drawn it with a protractor and ruler, checking every angle to make sure there wasn’t a single mistake. Looking at it now, it was flawless.
‘It does look a little scary, though.’
The crimson magic circle looked as if it had been painted in blood—more like a demon summoning ritual than anything else—but she was confident in its effects.
Soon, the holy crystal placed at its center began to hum, signaling that everything was ready.
Now there was only one thing left to do…
“Alright. Go lie down in the circle, Duke.”
She pointed at the devastatingly handsome man standing beside her.
“The duke?”
“…”
“There are several dukes in this empire.”
Even though it’s just the two of us here?
Instead of saying that aloud, Lucy simply rolled her eyes.
“Yes, Your Grace Edward Le Tesseron—the Empire’s one and only incarnation of the Golden Dragon, slayer of monsters, savior of the continent…”
“You forgot the face. That’s your favorite part.”
“…The incredibly handsome Duke Edward Le Tesseron.”
Only then did the reptilian crimson eyes, which contrasted sharply with his fierce features, soften into a gentle smile.
Lucy smiled back.
Then she pointed firmly at the magic circle as if warning him not to fool around.
“Now, would you please step inside?”
He tilted his head.
“Into that?”
Even with his enormous frame, the gesture somehow looked adorable. Perhaps it was because his face was so absurdly handsome—it came across as charming rather than ridiculous.
If any other man did that, I’d want to smack him.
The platinum-haired duke looked most lovable…
…when he acted like he didn’t know anything!
She almost fell for the act again.
Shaking away the distracting thought, Lucy answered,
“Yes. It would be perfect if you lay right on top of the holy crystal.”
Edward continued staring at her with innocent eyes.
Then he stated the obvious.
“That looks exactly like a human sacrifice ritual.”
Honestly… it really did.
Lucy felt a twinge of guilt.
“C-Come on, it’s nothing like that!”
“Then is it really…”
Puffing out her chest confidently, Lucy declared,
“Yes! It’s a magic circle that will make you a complete dragon incarnation!”
“…”
“If you lie here, your incomplete dragon blood will become genuine dragon blood!”
The moment the words left her mouth, she realized she sounded like a shady salesman.
“And then?”
“You’ll receive proper purification! Your berserk episodes will stop! And then…”
“And I’ll find my true mate?”
Lucy narrowed her eyes.
There he goes again with that ‘mate’ nonsense.
“Yes. Of course!”
Even after hearing her firm answer, Edward merely shrugged.
“What if it fails?”
“It won’t.”
“But I’d be heartbroken.”
“Were you even listening to me?”
“I’m more delicate than I look, Lucy. I’ve never experienced defeat before, so I’m weak when it comes to failure.”
“That’s technically true… but it also sounded incredibly arrogant.”
“What can I do? It’s the truth.”
Blinking his long eyelashes, the duke leaned his head toward Lucy’s shoulder—
“Then maybe we don’t have to do the ritual… or look for my mate…”
“Stop saying such pathetic things!”
—only to have his face shoved away by Lucy’s palm before he could finish.
“Hah.”
Hidden behind her hand, the crooked smile on his lips vanished as though he had never acted pitiful in the first place.
Instead, he smiled with shameless innocence.
“Alright. I understand.”
“Good. Then now, seriously…”
“But I’m scared to go in alone.”
“…”
“What if this magic circle is a scam? What if it activates some kind of curse the moment I lie down?”
Lucy sighed deeply.
“Fine! Fine, alright!”
Well… if it was for something this important, she could do at least that much.
Grabbing Edward’s hand, Lucy stepped boldly into the magic circle together with him.
“Alright, now…!”
The instant she shouted—
Thud.
She collapsed to her knees.
“Gah!”
…What is this?
An overwhelming wave of heat surged through her body.
“W-Wait…”
Poison…?
No…
It didn’t feel like poison.
Her breathing became ragged.
Every inch of her body tingled.
Her thoughts grew hazy.
This magic circle wasn’t supposed to have an effect like this!
Did it fail?
Lucy instinctively turned toward Edward.
If she felt this unbearably hot…
How could the duke—the monster who could lose control at any moment—possibly be alright?
“Haa…”
Just as she feared.
Edward’s crimson eyes glowed even brighter than usual.
There was something… unhinged about them.
He slowly tilted his head again.
This wasn’t the cute little head tilt from before.
It was slow.
Predatory.
Like a leopard studying its prey.
“Something’s strange, Lucy.”
“D-Duke…”
“I don’t feel anything.”
A chill ran down her spine.
His gaze remained unnervingly clear as he looked at her.
“Ah… well, not nothing.”
“…”
“My body’s hot.”
The words made goosebumps erupt all over Lucy’s skin.
“D-Duke… I…”
She wanted to warn him that something had gone terribly wrong.
But the words dissolved into broken gasps.
Her legs instinctively pressed together.
The inside of her throat burned.
I have to… get him away…
They needed to get out before the magic circle affected them any further.
“Maybe it’s because you told me to lie down, but I didn’t.”
As he spoke, Edward pulled Lucy into his arms.
Even that simple contact made her body weaken.
What… is happening…?
When he laid her down with him atop the magic circle, the heat intensified even further.
Panting, Lucy clutched desperately at the front of his clothes.
“Nothing’s changed.”
“Hng…”
“You worked so hard preparing all this…”
His voice was filled with mock disappointment.
“…I’m hurt, Lucy.”
I’m the one who worked hard! Why are you the one who’s hurt?!
She couldn’t even protest.
Her mind already felt drowned in overwhelming sensation.
“You said you’d help me find my true mate.”
Whispering those words, Edward smiled.
“I suppose there’s no helping it.”
His breath carried a strangely sweet warmth.
“As always…”
“…You’ll just have to purify me yourself.”
“Th-That’s…”
“But this time…”
His hand gently brushed her cheek before naturally slipping beneath the hem of her skirt.
“…I think I’ll need a proper purification.”
“…”
“I’ve accumulated quite a lot of corruption this time.”
Blink.
His eyes curved into a smile as his long eyelashes fluttered seductively.
The rustling sound of clothing being removed echoed clearly in the silence.
Completely flustered, Lucy stared at the lips drawing closer to hers.
H-How…
How did things end up like this?!
Chapter 1
“Duke Edward Le Tesseron has returned!”
A commotion erupted.
At the urgent shout, the temple soldiers quickly cleared a path.
Soon, someone’s sigh broke the silence.
“His return was far too soon.”
“…His condition must be getting worse.”
Whispers filled with concern spread through the crowd.
“This is troubling.”
“The Guardian Dragon who remained behind to protect us…”
Those words naturally brought a piece of history to everyone’s mind.
Thousands of years ago—
As humanity’s population grew beyond measure, the balance of the world collapsed. Monsters began to appear, and miasma spread across the entire continent.
Unable to endure the corrupted world any longer, the dragons decided to return to their homeland, the Demon Realm.
But as the monsters grew stronger and more rampant, humanity desperately pleaded with the departing dragons.
“Please, great dragons!”
“Have mercy on us!”
In the end, a handful of dragons took pity on mankind.
They remained on the continent, mingled their blood with humans, and established noble houses.
Since then, every few generations, those bloodlines would produce a Dragon Incarnation.
Beings whose strength and magical power were so overwhelming that they seemed to be dragons reborn.
They hunted monsters and cleansed the continent of its corruption.
But…
“The intervals between his berserk episodes keep getting shorter.”
A bitter murmur drifted through the temple.
With each passing generation, the Dragon Incarnations became fewer in number.
Now, Edward was the only one left.
And the reason his attacks had become so frequent was…
“Isn’t it because he still hasn’t found a mate to purify him?”
“Even temporary purification must be reaching its limit.”
“…That’s probably why his temper keeps getting worse.”
It was because he had no true mate.
A Dragon Incarnation was destined to have only one lifelong partner—someone whose spiritual wavelength perfectly matched their own.
The instinct inherited from dragons to return to the Demon Realm, combined with the continent’s miasma, constantly polluted their bodies and drove them toward madness.
Their human mate existed to purify them and anchor them to this world.
Without that destined partner, every Dragon Incarnation lived under the constant threat of losing control.
Although those blessed with holy power could perform temporary purifications, there was a limit to what they could accomplish.
“If he found his mate, he’d probably be much less irritable.”
“I wonder when the Duke will…”
Clank!
The heavy sound of armor instantly silenced everyone.
…
Clank. Clank.
A towering figure stepped into the temple, radiating an overwhelming killing intent.
“He’s terrifying as ever.”
“No matter how many times I see him… he hardly seems human.”
The soldiers watched him with equal parts fear and admiration.
His entire body, even his face, was concealed beneath heavy armor.
Only the blazing crimson eyes visible through the visor remained unmistakably alive.
“Your Grace!”
A woman hurried forward to greet him.
“…Lady Sepina is here.”
“Then everything should be alright.”
The black-haired woman called Sepina gently took the Duke’s hand and guided him deeper into the temple.
“Let me purify you. This way…”
Only in front of her did the Duke lower his imposing presence and quietly follow.
Watching the scene, the soldiers resumed whispering.
“Maybe the rumors are true—that Lady Sepina is his destined mate.”
“That would certainly be good news. She is the Saintess, after all.”
“But she doesn’t bear the Holy Mark.”
“Perhaps she’s simply keeping it hidden…”
As conversations buzzed throughout the temple…
Deep beneath it—
Inside the underground prison.
“Arghhh!”
A small, filthy-looking young woman bound in chains clutched her head in despair.
“Why did I have to end up inside this novel?!”
