CH 49

“Betrayer.”

“…….”

“Liar.”

“I didn’t lie…… I’m sorry.”

Leonis had been greedy for the past two days and drove Celia crazy, but he said nothing shameless, such as whether she enjoyed it.

He thought he would do the same thing if he could go back in time, no matter how loud Celia said it or how hard she pinched his arms. He had to drain her energy in order to keep Celia from doing anything dangerous on her own at the Imperial Ball.

‘Of course……I can’t say I didn’t enjoy it.’

It was fascinating just thinking about Celia, who was trembling in his arms and had light peach skin. He even believed he was fortunate to have been born.

He had to finish it in two days because there was an imperial ball coming up, but after he finished everything at the ball, he planned to do it every day so he could spend more time with her.

“Because of the curse…… I couldn’t help it.”

It was an absolute lie. Celia’s swollen cheeks shrank a little as she heard those words. Even though he knew it was a cowardly method, Leonis had no choice but to put a curse on his lips.

There’s nothing he can do to stop Celia other than this.

Celia wouldn’t listen no matter how much he said that he was worried about her. Because if it’s not her, he’ll have to take her risk.

However, he couldn’t lock Celia up in the ducal mansion. How could anyone use that method on a loved one? 

“If that’s the case……”

Celia looked at Leonis suspiciously. After the monster incident, she never felt any traces of madness from Leonis, which was suspicious.

However, in the original story, it is revealed that Leonis had sex with Lily every night, and sometimes during the day, but this did not completely eliminate the madness.

‘Am I weaker than Lily? Or probably not…… Did something happen to Leonis’ curse?’

“What’s the matter?”

Leonis, who bowed his head toward Celia, studied her expression intently. He appeared to be concerned about Celia’s dazed expression.

“Nothing. I wonder if it’s because I’m not strong enough……”

When Celia said it, Leonis was visibly embarrassed. He had no idea that his act of simply trying to tie up Celia would cause such a misunderstanding.

“No. That’s….. It’s my emotional problem……”

“Emotions?”

In fact, he had no trouble coming up with words to explain, as he had gone insane as a result of his emotions.

“Yeah. Madness also appears depending on my anxiety or hatred. I usually press it down, but when I meet the imperial family or the aristocrats….”

As a result, the most hesitant being he wished to meet was Emperor Orkan. They may also feel uneasy in the presence of Leonis.

“Then you should be careful at the ball tonight.”

“I will.”

“Perhaps……”

Celia with smeared cheeks, looked at him with a serious expression. Leonis’ gaze was fixed on her face, noticing the determined emotion in her eyes as she looked up at him.

“If you ran into aristocrats… I… Then, If-if that’s the case… There will be a lounge dedicated to the Duke of Cardian.….”

Leonis’s face turned red as he realized what the words meant. Leonis was a virgin before having sex with Celia, though he always made her feel too much and made Celia lose her mind. He still couldn’t believe it.

“All right. I…I’ll do everything for you.”

Leonis agreed and kissed Celia on the cheek.

✦ ✦ ✦

“Bianca.”

A beautiful blonde lady took a gentle step down the stairs. She had the same beauty as Celia, with beautiful purple eyes and pure white skin.

‘Of course, she is not better than Celia.’

Her natural beauty and aristocratic aura were incomparable. The current Bianca Rizalus was a half-noble, born to a commoner father and a noble mother.

Fabian was irritated by this fact.

After his engagement with Celia fell through, his father, the Marquis of Persil, struggled to find him a wife who was comparable to Celia.

It wasn’t easy though, because Celia was the best of the best. The title of his ex-fiancée, the Duchess of Cardian, was also an issue.

Given the Duke of Cardian’s influence, the ladies would be wary of putting themselves in a position where they might be despised by the Duchess. 

So, after much deliberation, the Marquis of Yersil chose Bianca.

Even though her bloodline was somewhat inferior, she was a woman of outstanding beauty with a large dowry. Furthermore, because there was no successor to the family, all the wealth of her parents was supposed to flow into the Marquis of Yersil.

The Rizalus family came from a family that had achieved considerable success in their business, if not quite equal to the Duke of Cardian’s.

They were initially concerned about the Marquis of Yersil, but they agreed that finding a better groom than Fabian would be difficult. It was because the young lady of the viscount’s half-noble blood was to become the marchioness.

“Fabian, you must not treat Viscount Rizalus with disrespect. They may appear to be prey that has already been put in our mouths, but they are in the business of making money.”

He had no intention of being rude to his new fiancée, of course. Fabian was a man who could be as polite as he needed to be.

Fabian’s politeness was elicited by her beauty.

‘Her status may be annoying, but…… I’d rather have this one since women withdraw when a woman who is superior to them becomes a rival……’

He couldn’t find a fiance with a higher status than Celia, so he thought it was appropriate. He also didn’t want to be weighed down by their authority while serving the duke’s princess.

It would be worth the effort if he could marry a princess and become a duke, but unfortunately, there was no princess with such conditions in the current empire.

“……Please take good care of my daughter at the ballroom today.”

With a worried expression, Viscount Rizalus said to Fabian. When he learned that the Duchess of Cardian would be attending the ball tonight, he expressed his displeasure.

“Of course.”

Fabian felt the intricacy of his position while speaking with the viscount. He was the marquis’s heir and is now the count. However, it was only one of his own who would rise to become a master.

‘I think you need to be polite before the wedding takes place, but you don’t need to be vigilant in advance.’

The Marquis of Montague was a tricky person in comparison to Viscount Rizalus. Despite the fact that he had allowed Fabian to be Celia’s fiancée, he always kept a close eye on him. As if he was bothered by something.

‘At least I don’t have to read the countenance of Marquis Montague anymore.’

Fabian reached out an arm to Bianca. In front of the viscount’s mansion, Marquis Persil’s carriage was being prepared. Bianca took Fabian’s hand and climbed into the carriage with him, and Fabian soon followed.

Tak.

The sound of the carriage door closing made Fabien wrinkle his brow. When the carriage door was opened or closed, the aristocrat’s servant should not make a sound, according to the custom.

They appeared to be in a hurry because they were delayed.

Fabian examined Bianca’s complexion, but she seemed unconcerned. As he gazed at her beautiful face, Fabian pondered.

‘How is Celia at a time like this…… ?’

He was really curious to see Celia’s face appearing at the imperial ball.

✦ ✦ ✦

Celia’s face was flushed as she tried to stand up with shaky legs. Leonis seemed embarrassed when she looked at him with a resentful expression.

“That’s why dancing is…”

“I will carry you.”

‘If you do that, we will be able to show our dance, but we will be gossiped about. I also won’t be able to dance with anyone other than Leonis because I’ll have to dance closely with the person.’

‘Wasn’t that what he wanted?’

She couldn’t even walk properly on her own. It wasn’t a backache, but she couldn’t move her legs and couldn’t think of anything to say.

‘So, what’s the best way for me to make friends with Princess Amelia? Leonis had talked to Michael at the banquet and assumed the princess would approach, but it’s difficult beyond that.’

‘Sneak out of the palace…I didn’t mean to look for her.’

No, actually, I didn’t even give it a second thought. It’s enough to get lost and wander around if you’re in the position of the Duchess.

As other nobles may not be aware, becoming a member of the imperial family was similar.

Even the imperial family does not arbitrarily punish other imperial family members. They have a problem with prestige.

The imperial family should treat the other imperial family members with respect, but the nobles are treated differently.

In that light, she wondered if the nobles’ hatred for the Duke of Cardian, despite the fact that he was a member of the royal family, stemmed from the imperial family’s implicit propagation of such a rumor.

“That’s why I wonder if I’ll be able to bow properly in front of His Majesty.”

“It will be fine. The emperor will be generous with the woman I love, no matter what she does wrong.”

Of course, that generosity would only last until Celia’s first child was born. He did the same thing with Leonis’s mother.

“Shall we go now?”

Leonis approached Celia and asked, hugging her waist. Celia gave Leonis a pouty look and a nod of her head.

He was embarrassed, but he had no choice but to attend the Imperial Ball…. He only hoped her legs would be able to withstand the conditions in the imperial palace.

Leonis hugged Celia tightly after she allowed him. The maids hurriedly opened the door as they retreated.

Leonis walked through them while Celia’s expression remained unchanged despite the fact that she would be quite heavy in a jewel-encrusted gown. Anyone who had seen it would have assumed Celia was as light as a feather.

‘You are truly the male lead!’

While Celia exclaimed inwardly, Leonis went down the stairs and crossed the entrance hall. A magnificent carriage of the Duke of Cardian was waiting in front of the front door.

The carriage door had been left open. Before entering the carriage, the duke and duchess walked past the servant, who was bowing.

Celia was seated in the carriage’s upper seat, and Leonis sat next to her. The servant quietly shut the carriage door and dashed behind the carriage.

Behind the carriage, as with most noble families’ carriages, there was a seat for the servants. A seat had already been taken by one of the duke’s attendants. The servant took a seat among the other servants and looked at the driver’s seat.

Next to the driver’s seat, another servant awaited. Through the small window between the driver’s and passenger’s seats, he could see the seat.

The attendant looked at the driver when the duke gave a light nod. The driver noticed and started the carriage. The servant shut the small window in response to the duke’s glance.