The clock showed four in the afternoon.

Professor Siern had been very careful when he mentioned that they might sometimes have to “work late.”

But Adelia only wanted to stay in the research lab for every last second she could.

“Yes, understood!”

“Good. You can call it a day.”

Call it a day…!

Adelia’s heart gave another painful throb, and her shoulders trembled.

Am I going to become an incredible working adult at this rate?

When she had attended the academy, everyone had expected great things from her, yet she had never been able to easily imagine any future for herself.

She had never dreamed that she would be able to come to a research laboratory like this.

She had hated imagining herself barely scraping by on a meager weekly wage just enough to survive.

Besides, back then she had been a timid student who knew nothing but studying.

That was why the prospect of entering society itself had been frightening.

But not anymore! Ah, I’m so happy! It feels like I’ve been reborn!

However, her excitement melted away like snow the moment she took off her lab coat.

Now she had to return not as “Researcher Adelia,” but as “the Duchess Adelia”…

No, no. This is my job too, so I have to work hard at it.

Still, it was true that pretending to be a duchess simply didn’t inspire her anywhere near as much enthusiasm as working in the research lab.

If I had refused Senior’s proposal back then…

—How about this? Instead of continuing to support you in my father’s place, why don’t we make a contract?

—A contract…?

It’s not a contract requiring me to become a magician, is it?

—Yes. A contract called “The Perfect Fake Marriage Between Roarston Ipsel and Adelia Whitten.”

—A fake marriage…?

—If you marry me, Junior, you won’t have to worry about anything until you graduate from the research lab. Money? A house? Rare books? Just name it.

—Ah, no…

—In exchange, you’ll act as my wife until you graduate from the research lab. Of course, when it’s just the two of us, you don’t have to do anything that an ordinary married couple would. We only need to make it look that way.

No.

Adelia shook her head and muttered inwardly.

There was no way she could have refused that offer.

It had been bewildering, but even if she could go back a month, Adelia knew she would never have been able to reject Roarston’s proposal.

Entering a research lab was that precious a dream to her. Even more so because she had once been forced to give up on it.

After leaving the research lab, Adelia headed toward home.

Just then, the door of the largest four-wheeled carriage standing by the roadside suddenly swung open, and Roarston appeared.

“Where are you going?”

“Ah, huh? Ah, Sen—”

Adelia swallowed the word Senior and turned bright red before speaking.

“H-Honey. Wh-What are you doing here…?”

“I came to pick you up, of course. Come on, get in.”

Why is he speaking so politely?!

His gentle tone made her head spin in an entirely different way from before.

Oh, right! We’re outside.

She suddenly remembered that they had agreed to use formal speech in public, where other people could see them, so they could pretend to be a couple who adored one another.

But reminding herself of that fact didn’t help much.

Even if he was only her fake husband…

The most handsome man in the kingdom, a man who looked like a perfectly sculpted work of art, was calling her darling and speaking politely to her.

Even if she weren’t pretending to be his fake wife, it was enough to make her cheeks flush.

“Th-Then, excuse me.”

Adelia somehow managed to climb into the carriage after giving an extremely awkward little greeting.

Immediately afterward, she made eye contact with Rudolf, sitting across from Roarston, and sucked in a breath.

Th-This man is kind of scary.

Because of his perpetually expressionless face and stern gaze, Adelia always felt strangely intimidated whenever she stood before him.

That was when Roarston spoke.

“How was it?”

“Wh-What?”

“The research lab. How was it? Was it all right?”

“Ah! The research lab! Yes, it was great! No, it was absolutely wonderful! Senior, did you know they’ve already finished developing the 18-H.Mgf microscope? I’d only heard about it while I was at the academy, so I had no idea they’d developed it this quickly! I heard that once they introduce it to the research lab, we’ll be able to observe and study microorganisms that we couldn’t even detect before! Isn’t that amazing?!”

Roarston smiled politely and nodded repeatedly.

I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, but if you like it, then I like it too.

That was probably what his smile meant.

However, to Adelia’s excited eyes, Roarston’s smile only encouraged her further.

Normally, whenever Adelia started talking like this, even her academy teachers would eventually develop the dead-eyed expression of a mackerel that had been dead for three days…

Senior…! He’s listening so attentively to everything I’m saying…!

“And Professor Siern is much kinder and more considerate than I’d heard. He explained all the precautions to me in such detail, and even on my first day, he let me observe some new microorganisms! And on top of that…”

Roarston’s eyes narrowed.

Professor Siern.

He was undoubtedly Adelia’s supervising professor.

Roarston had heard a few rumors about the man himself…

But seeing Adelia’s eyes sparkle as she described that cold-blooded man as kind and considerate left him feeling strangely displeased.

“Ahem.”

At his quiet clearing of his throat, Adelia’s shoulders flinched.

She began nervously twisting her gloved hands together before speaking.

“S-Sorry. I was talking too much, wasn’t I?”

Roarston’s eyes widened.

“No. That’s not why.”

“Oh! Then are you coming down with a cold…?”

Looking at the genuinely worried expression on her face, Roarston didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

I was only going to tease her by saying, “Even if I’m only your fake husband, are you really going to excitedly brag to your husband about how kind another man was?” How did things end up like this?

“I don’t have a cold.”

“Then did something go down the wrong way?”

At that moment, Roarston lightly flicked Adelia on her round forehead.

“Ow!”

Startled by the sudden attack, Adelia widened her eyes as though she had suffered some outrageous injustice.

Roarston said,

“If I were your real husband, you wouldn’t have gotten off with just a cough.”

“Uh… Wh-What? Wh-What do you mean…?”

“You were talking so excitedly about another man. That’s a breach of contract.”

There was no such clause!

“Th-That…”

“You were going to say that there was no such clause in the contract, weren’t you? I’ll add it today.”

“Isn’t that a little unfair? I was only saying those things because I admire Professor Siern!”

Adelia protested timidly, but Roarston merely turned down the corners of his mouth and shrugged.

At that, Adelia puffed out her cheeks in a pout.

Roarston barely managed to suppress his laughter and covered his mouth with the back of his hand. His face suddenly reddened, and the corners of his lips instinctively began to curl upward.

She’s really cute.

What is she, a squirrel with its cheeks stuffed full of pumpkin seeds?

The thought suddenly crossed Roarston’s mind, and he chuckled softly as he carefully patted Adelia on the head.

“Even if I’m only your fake husband, I do get a little jealous when you tell me how kind and considerate another man is right in front of me.”

“Y-You do? Jealous…? Jealous?”

“Of course. While we’re married, you should say that I’m the kindest and most considerate man in the world. You’re my wife, after all.”

And I’ll make sure I live up to it, Roarston thought.

Adelia still looked dazed, as though she had no idea what was going on.

But soon, the tips of her ears turned bright red, suggesting that she had finally understood what Roarston meant.

“Your ears are bright red.”

At Roarston’s remark, Adelia pressed her lips tightly together and stopped breathing altogether.

If I tease her any more, she’s going to faint.

Just as Roarston decided that was enough,

Rudolf, sitting across from them, suddenly interrupted the silence.

“I’ve heard of Professor Siern Vitter. Apparently, he’s famous for refusing to let his students graduate.”

Adelia, who had been wilting away moments ago, seemed to regain a little vitality at the mention of her professor, and her eyes began to sparkle again.

“You know him too, Mr. Rudolf?”

“Please, just call me by my name, Your Grace. I’m a servant of House Ipsel.”

“Ah, that’s right… Wait, more importantly! Yes. I heard Professor Siern is incredibly strict when reviewing papers.”

The very next moment, Roarston and Rudolf both flinched at a sight they could scarcely believe even though they were seeing it with their own eyes.

A faint blush had appeared on Adelia’s cheeks.

“I’m already looking forward to seeing just how strict his reviews will be! He’ll point out every single one of my shortcomings, won’t he? Isn’t it practically a dream come true to receive that kind of guidance?”

The moment she finished speaking, Rudolf gave Roarston a look that clearly asked,

Do you regret this marriage?

“Shut up, Rudolf.”

At Roarston’s words, Adelia jumped in surprise, while Rudolf merely shrugged.

“I don’t know what I did to deserve that.”

Evenings at the Ipsel ducal residence were much busier than mornings.

Neither Adelia nor Roarston was particularly fond of late-night entertainment, so the servants had to work even harder to ensure their two masters could enjoy a peaceful evening.

“You need to straighten your back, Your Grace.”

Lilliot gently pressed a soft sponge against Adelia’s back as she spoke.

Adelia slightly straightened her hunched posture and cleared her throat.