What I Gained by Giving My Body - Chapter 1.23

“Shh. If it gets noisy, won’t maids like you just get kicked out? I’ll give you enough money that you won’t feel slighted even if your belly swells up in a few months.”

Caitlyn glared at the Baron with eyes that were bone-dry. Anger and disgust swept through her entire body. Just being touched by a man like him made her want to vomit.

The Baron, having managed to suppress her, stripped off her thick coat. In the room where there was no heating at all and a chill circulated, goosebumps broke out all over her skin as her bare flesh was exposed to the air.

“……Haha!”

Baron Barrel let out a laugh.

“I see you were a w***e after all. I thought you were a maid because you were wearing such a worn-out coat…… Whoever your customer is, don’t worry, I’ll pay you even more handsomely.”

Her mind went blank. The evening dress she was wearing was one of those Leslie had lent her; though it was a style that revealed her b*****s and emphasized the curves of her body, it was originally a dress for a Count’s daughter, so no matter how conservatively one looked at it, it was hard to call it a w***e’s clothes.

But to the eyes of Baron Barrel, who firmly believed she was a w***e, it seemed it looked like nothing but a piece of slutty clothing.

“Who did you come for? Everyone here has to listen to me anyway. Tell your customer that I’m sorry for getting a taste of you first.”

Baron Barrel chuckled as he grabbed her struggling legs.

‘News from the capital hardly reaches the North, so I have no idea who she is.’

Even in that situation, the Baron thought of several candidates, but naturally, Archduke Akbar was not included. There was no one in the North who didn’t know the fact that the Archduke, who had entered his thirties this fall, was incredibly celibate, keeping neither a spouse nor a mistress.

If someone were to tell him that he had a mistress, the Baron would have laughed loudly in their face. That Archduke Akbar despised humans themselves so much that he wouldn’t even dream of mixing skin with someone.

In fact, there were quite a few women in the North who had tried to enter his bed. Maids, w****s, daughters and wives of Northern nobles. But none of them had succeeded. There were rumors that he was attracted to his own gender or that he was sexually impotent, but the Baron thought that wasn’t the case either. Archduke Akbar simply loathes humans to the extreme. Funnily enough, even though he himself is human.

The Baron licked his lips as he hiked up her skirt. It was easy to raise since it had a slight slit. Like a w***e, she wasn’t even wearing a petticoat, so her white, smooth legs came into view.

Slap! The Baron, who barely avoided those legs hitting him with all their might, struck the w***e across the cheek.

“I told you to stay still.”

The Baron muttered as he stroked her legs. Now the w***e just lay there, as still as a dead mouse. He smirked to himself. She must be quite angry now, but once she got a taste of his skill, her mind would change. Maybe she’d even be so impressed that she’d beg him to take her to the North as his official mistress.

Of course, he had no intention of doing that. He already had three bed partners in the North alone. this woman would be a delicacy to be enjoyed whenever he came to the capital. It was as he was fumbling with his trousers and undoing his belt.

Thud.

Two stumped hands, severed at the wrists, fell to the floor, splattering blood. Still in the very position of holding the belt. The severed wrists weren’t the end of it. A burning pain suddenly assaulted the Baron’s face, and his vision went pitch black.

“Aaa, aaaagh! Aaaaaaaagh!”

The Baron screamed. He couldn’t even tell who had attacked him because he couldn’t see. As he writhed his body to somehow escape from the unknown attacker, a voice devoid of any emotion reached his ears.

“Get out. Before I cut off something else.”

The moment he realized the owner of that voice, the Baron’s mind went blank. None other than Archduke Akbar. Archduke Akbar, the only person in this building he had to obey, had personally cut off his wrists and blinded him.

‘I—I have to get out now!’

If he dawdled even a little bit, Archduke Akbar might cut off his legs this time. He barely managed to remember the direction of the door and bolted out. He stumbled over the threshold on the way, but fortunately, no one pursued him. After the Baron had fled in a hurry, only silence flowed in the room.

“…….”

Caitlyn stared blankly up at Archduke Akbar. She felt like she should say something, but not a single thing came to mind. She should express her gratitude, but the Archduke’s gaze as he looked down at her was so chilling. Finally, the Archduke spoke in a manner that was as cold as his gaze.

“I came because there was a commotion…… and I see quite a sight.”

His sarcastic voice pierced her ears, and Archduke Akbar bent his knees, forcing her to meet his gaze.

“What were you trying to get out of the Baron with this paltry little body of yours, Cathy?”