Ruby returned to her room with an absent mind.
As the door behind her clicked shut, her legs finally gave way. She slumped against the wooden panel, her breaths coming shallow and uneven as she crumpled to the floor.
Slowly and tremblingly, Ruby drew her knees to her chest.
"What the hell… just happened?" She whispered, her thoughts a state of chaos.
She forced herself to calm down, before sorting the storm of information piece by piece.
First, the man knew.
She didn't know exactly when, but judging by how calm and articulate he had been in handling her affairs, he must've uncovered her true identity for quite some time.
The man had only stayed silent to see just how far she would go, watching her antics with a mocking gaze and playing her around like a monkey.
Second, the man didn't mind her fake identity.
He needed a wife, and he didn't mind taking in a fraud or anyone else at his disposal, if it meant that they could be useful to him and his plan.
Ruby stiffened at the sudden realization. She had been lucky this time. If it wasn't because the man didn't have a better choice, would her end have been the same?
Third and lastly, his stern warning not to cross the line.
The man must've known what she had been trying to do back then. Her attempt to test his limits, to provoke him, to pry into his personal affairs—he despised it to the bones and made sure that she knew of that clearly.
Ruby's body uncontrollably shuddered as the memory resurfaced. The tight grip around her neck as her feet left the ground, the way the monster had easily lifted her as if she weighed nothing.
Ruby hugged herself tighter, her shoulders shaking nonstop as the numbing fear of a weakling swarmed back to settle deep in her bones.
She hadn't mistaken that bloodthirsty gaze of his. His killing intent was so intense, so real that she couldn't simply pass it off as if it never mattered.
Julien wasn't anything close to innocent.
If he were to know that she wasn't sent here to truly be the replacement bride for the Montclair's daughter, if he were to find out her true purpose—that was to dig into his dirty secrets and use them to drag him to his downfall… Ruby didn't need to be told twice of what would happen.
After all, the sensation of his grip snaking around her neck still lingered like a shadow of trauma clinging to her skin.
Ruby exhaled slowly, her arms tightening protectively around her knees.
From now on, she had to be extra careful. No more impulsive probings, no more reckless risk-taking. She needed to stay in her lane and play the role of a good, obedient bride.
As Ruby sunk deep in her thoughts, a sudden knock to the door pulled her out of her trance.
Her heart plunged straight into her stomach. With erratic heartbeats, she opened her mouth to ask, "Who is it?"
"It's me, Mario." The voice behind the door answered, "The Master has sent me to relay something to you."
A relieved sigh escaped out of her parted lips. Fortunately, it was just the lackey and not the demon king himself.
As she reluctantly opened the door for him, Mario immediately made use of the small opening to shove a thick stack of papers into her arms.
The sudden weight nearly caused her to stumble backward.
"What are these for?" Ruby stared at him with wide eyes, looking like a startled little bunny that couldn't help but arouse one's sympathy.
Mario avoided her gaze and stoically answered, "These are the duties of the Master's soon-to-be wife. From tomorrow onwards, a personal trainer will be assigned to guide you to be the perfect bride. Until then, please look through the compiled report I've prepared for you. It will surely come in handy one day."
With that, Mario turned around and slammed the door shut, not even bothering to wait for her response.
Speechless, Ruby stood frozen as if she had become an ice statue.
Slowly, her gaze dropped to the 5-inches thick paperwork. She flipped through the pages, her mouth twitching incessantly when she realized it would be at least a hundred pages long.
It felt disturbingly familiar—as if she had returned back to her sophomore years where she would burn the midnight oil every single night, burying herself into thick books higher than her head and exerting her brain power to the max.
And still, despite all the effort, she had barely scraped past the bar with her achievement in the field, a humiliating memory she wished to erase from her dark history.
At that time, she at least had her other field talent as a plus point. What about now?
Could she pass the test given by the demon king on her own?
Ruby could only bet on it by burying herself into the pile of paperwork and working herself as if there's no tomorrow.
…
Late into the night.
Ruby's eyes burned as she glanced at the window, where the waning crescent moon hung humorlessly alone in the starless sky.
Earlier on, Mario had just sent her a platter of snacks as if afraid that she would use the excuse of hunger to slack off. Ruby pursed her lips, silently cursing the man for his ruthlessness.
After eight uninterrupted hours, she finally worked through the pile of paperwork.
Ruby had been wrong with her initial calculation. The paperwork were at least twice her expectation. She didn't even know what she's been reading as she skimmed through the last page.
Dragging her aching body to the bed, Ruby finally allowed herself some rest. She let her weight sink onto the soft mattress, her eyes fluttering close when she suddenly caught sight of the silver case sitting by the bedside.
At that moment, all signs of drowsiness instantly dispersed as she recognized the silver case—it was the new e-phone Julien had gifted her as a compensation for confiscating her old one.
Ruby should've been wary of anything that came out from the man, but after hesitating for a while, she finally sat up and stretched out her hand to grab at the phone.
She realized that it was a brand new phone when she turned the phone on. After fumbling with the interface, her fingers unknowingly moved by itself to dial a number she had long remembered by muscle and heart.
It was the number of her parents, a call to her home sweet home.
She waited with bated breath. Once, twice. The phone rang and rang, but no one answered.
Ruby bit her lips. A lock of soft hair gilded past her ear as she lowered her head in disappointment, her eyelids drooping at the sense of loss when the phone suddenly rang.
The light in her eyes lit up, looking visibly startled when she realized who it was.
The string of impeccably perfect numbers… belonged to none other but Madam Montclair.