ONE NIGHT STAND WITH HOT DUKE-Chapter 80: Medical soldier

The following day, the castle felt as though it were holding its breath.

The air, once filled with the footsteps of servants and the light clink of metal, had turned rigid as if everyone were walking on thin glass. Demian appeared more often now in the corridors, near the door to Valerie’s chambers, at the dining table his presence like a shadow that never truly withdrew. Too close. Too watchful.

Valerie felt it clearly.

Every movement was observed, every small decision seeming to require unspoken approval. Even her silence felt wrong. She woke with an exhausted body and a tangled mind, the remnants of the previous night still etched into her awareness not as a memory she wished to keep, but as a bitter confirmation of how fragile her claim over herself truly was.

She said nothing.

Not to Sera. Not to Lira. Not to anyone.

Yet inside her chest, something hardened not courage, but vigilance. A cold awareness that she had to endure, at least until she found a way to breathe again without feeling strangled.

Amid that tension, Jester’s arrival felt like a sudden, unannounced storm.

Valerie learned of it from a servant, and her chest immediately tightened. Jester her brother. Her blood kin. The man who should have stood beside her, yet throughout their lives had more often turned away.

They met in a small sitting room near the inner garden. Daylight poured in through the tall windows, illuminating Jester’s face thinner, harsher, yet this time his eyes were not entirely cold.

"I won’t be long," Jester said to open the conversation, as if afraid of losing the chance.

Valerie sat upright, her hands folded neatly in her lap. "You rarely come just to exchange pleasantries. Say what you came to say."

Jester exhaled. "I came because I want to do something... useful." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Valerie lifted an eyebrow slightly. "Interesting. Since when have you cared about things like that?"

The remark wasn’t gentle, but it was honest. Jester accepted it, his jaw tightening briefly before he continued.

"Father is getting weaker," he said. "If he dies, the title of Count will fall to you. You know that."

Valerie met his gaze steadily. "Precisely why you don’t need to worry about your future. You’ll be fine."

"That’s not what I mean." Jester shook his head. "I don’t want to wait for an inheritance. I want to join the imperial forces."

Silence fell between them.

"As a medical corpsman," Jester added quickly, as if afraid Valerie might interrupt. "I’ve studied. I can be useful on the rear lines. I only need one thing support."

Valerie leaned back, her gaze sharpening. "And you think I can give you that?"

"I know you have influence," Jester said more quietly. "Speak to the Duke. That’s all I’m asking."

The title hung in the air, heavy and uncomfortable.

Valerie felt a dull throb at her temples. In her mind, everything tangled together pressure, restrained anger, invisible exhaustion. She wanted to laugh or perhaps cry at how cruel the irony was. Everyone wanted something from her, while she herself barely had space to want anything at all.

"I’ll talk about it later," she said at last, her voice flat. "Not now."

Jester looked at her, uncertain. "Val—"

"That’s enough," Valerie cut in, straightening her shoulders. "I’ll consider it. Now go."

There was something in her tone that made Jester fall silent. He weighed other words, then chose to nod once.

"Alright," he said. "I’ll wait."

After Jester left, Valerie remained seated where she was.

Her hands trembled faintly.

She looked out the window, at the garden that appeared so peaceful, and for a moment just a moment she asked herself, how much longer could she endure a life that kept demanding her strength, while little by little, the space for herself continued to shrink?

As Valerie escorted Jester toward the front courtyard of the castle, the afternoon air felt cold despite the sun still hanging low in the sky.

Their steps came to a halt.

Near the outer gate stood Ivanka Kosler graceful to the point that it could not possibly be a coincidence. Her dark gown fell flawlessly, her chin lifted, her gaze sharp as she took in the sight of who was walking beside Valerie.

A slow smile curved Ivanka’s lips.Not a friendly one.But the kind already prepared to wound.

"Oh," she said lightly, as if only just noticing them. "You’re seeing a guest off, Valerie?"

Valerie felt her body tense. Jester, at her side, caught the change immediately. He did not move, but his eyes hardened, alert.

"Ivanka," Valerie replied briefly, keeping her tone neutral.

Ivanka turned her gaze to Jester, assessing him from head to toe without bothering to hide her disdain.

"So this is..." she said slowly, "...your brother?"

She gave a small chuckle. "Interesting."

Jester nodded politely neither bowing nor smiling."Jester," he said shortly. "And you are?"

Ivanka did not answer the introduction. Instead, she looked back at Valerie, her gaze now sharper.

"I hear a lot about your family," she said casually, as though discussing the weather. "A family that... always knows how to survive."

Valerie knew exactly where this was going.

"If you mean surviving through hard work—" Valerie began.

Ivanka cut her off with a soft laugh.

"Oh, don’t pretend to be naïve," she said. "We both know your family wouldn’t be where it is now without the Duke."

The word Duke was spoken with deliberate emphasis.

Jester glanced slightly toward Valerie. His look asked: Is this how you’re always treated?

Ivanka stepped half a pace closer.

"You know," she continued, "in certain circles, people call your family very patient extortionists."

Valerie felt her blood stir.

"They come little by little," Ivanka went on, her voice gentle yet piercing, "asking for protection, then shelter, then a name, and then—"

Her eyes swept Valerie from head to toe.

"—eventually, a body."

Jester moved at once.

"That’s enough," he said. One word flat, but dangerous.

Ivanka turned to him, one brow lifting.

"Oh?""Did that offend you?"

"No," Jester replied. "I’m simply issuing a warning."

Valerie clenched the hem of her skirt. Her chest rose and fell, but she did not step back.

"Whatever you think of my family," Valerie said, her voice trembling slightly but clear, "you have no right to demean it."

Ivanka’s smile widened.

"Right or not," she said, "it doesn’t change reality."

She leaned in just a little closer, her voice lowering.

"You use the Duke. Everyone knows it." "You and your family only know how to cling to power."

Jester let out a short laugh. Not an amused one.

"Funny," he said. "Because from where I stand, my sister doesn’t look like someone who’s benefiting."

Ivanka narrowed her eyes.

"Ah," she said coolly. "So you’re going to play the victim too?"