Talia turned to him with a stiff expression.
“What do you mean by that?”
“It means we will have to spend time together from now on.”
He answered calmly.
“There will be times during the tour when I'll have to ride, but as much as possible, I intend to travel with you in the carriage.”
She swallowed dryly.
“Then... what about the lodgings?”
“We will share those as well.”
Her heart sank.
She could not tell whether it was fear, or that old feeling that had tormented her for so many years.
Twisting the jade ornament wrapped around her wrist, Talia spoke anxiously.
“Do we really have to?”
Varkas said nothing.
Talia immediately launched into an attack.
“It isn't like you didn't know what people would say when you married me. Everyone already knows the truth behind our marriage. If we pretend to be some affectionate couple, won't that just look even more ridiculous?”
“We don't need to look affectionate.”
Varkas let out a long breath.
“It will be enough if we merely appear capable of maintaining a marital relationship.”
Talia blinked in confusion, then suddenly her eyes widened in shock.
A marital relationship.
Was he talking about what she thought he was?
She stared blankly at his ascetic face, which showed not the slightest trace of worldly desire, while he continued as if nothing was strange.
“No matter how we came to this point, we are husband and wife. Your Highness is aware of the obligations that follow marriage among the nobility. Merely appearing to be a normal couple will benefit both your position and mine.”
Talia's face turned scarlet.
Apparently, a marital relationship was exactly what she thought it meant.
Foolish words slipped through her trembling lips.
“So what you're saying is... we have to look like we share a bed?”
A faint wrinkle formed around his eyes.
It was an odd expression, somewhere between a smile and a frown.
“If you insist on putting it bluntly.”
Talia bit her lip hard and slowly looked him over.
Beneath the glossy silk, his strong body was clearly outlined.
Broad shoulders, a chest perfectly formed with refined muscles, a narrow waist, and long, sturdy legs like those of a horse...
Suddenly finding herself short of breath, she hastily lowered her eyes.
Through the thin folds of her skirt, her own frail legs were faintly visible.
Her stomach twisted painfully.
Even her mother had frowned at the scars with visible disgust.
Even the nanny who had raised her from infancy had never managed to hide her misery whenever she bathed her.
Cold sweat broke out merely at the thought of exposing something so ugly to him.
Clutching her skirts, she snapped sharply.
“I don't want to. Just let people gossip all they want. That's what people do. They have mouths for a reason. Why should I put on some ridiculous play just because I'm worried about what inferiors think—”
“Talia.”
A large hand covered her stiff one.
Startled, Talia looked up.
Grasping her cold hand firmly, Varkas spoke resolutely.
“I'm not asking you to put on an act.”
“......”
“We simply need to let others see that we spend time together.”
It sounded less like an order and more like a request.
And that realization strangled the words of refusal gathering in her throat.