Chapter 8.2
Sally had clearly entered the Empress’s Palace from the opposite direction of Cedric, but as soon as she was inside, she ran right into him.
“Eek.”
Cedric was looking at Sally with scary eyes.
“Why are you so surprised?”
“I… I wasn’t.”
“You were. And who was that man?”
“W-who?”
Sally knew who he was talking about, but she pretended not to. She had no idea what was wrong with this knight, but she instinctively felt she had to act that way.
“The man who was looking at you as if he was about to cry.”
“Oh… Hugh? He’s a knight I knew a little bit when I was in the Turk Empire.”
“Hugh?”
Cedric circled around Sally.
“What are you doing?”
“Do you even kiss a knight you only ‘knew a little bit’?”
“Anyone who heard you would think I stole his lips. I just kissed him on the cheek as a farewell since he was going back.”
“I didn’t know that’s how women in Quinze-Nouais said goodbye.”
Because Cedric was acting like he was interrogating a cheating wife, Sally answered him without realizing it. But then, she suddenly remembered that she didn’t need to be so flustered.
“Whether I kiss him on the cheek to say goodbye or do something else, what does that have to do with you, Sir Knight?”
“What does it have to do with me?”
“Yes.”
“That… that’s!”
He shut his mouth, as if he had nothing to say.
“If you have nothing more to say, I’ll be going now.”
As Sally was about to turn away, Cedric snatched her wrist.
“What’s wrong?”
“Just, just a moment. I need some time to think.”
Unless Sally was an idiot, she had some idea why he was doing this. She wasn’t oblivious to how he’d been circling her like a puppy lately. But she also hated that confused look in his eyes.
“Am I a person who has to give you time just because you ask for it, Sir Knight? You said you didn’t need a handkerchief or cookies from me, but you seem to need time.”
“Sally, that’s not what I meant. Why do you twist my words like that?”
Cedric, a knight who had spent his whole life only with men, lacked the experience and talent to understand the multiple meanings behind women’s words.
“Did I twist your words? If I did, I apologize. But I don’t know if you have time for this right now. Shouldn’t you go home and reply to the marriage proposal from the Fraser Barony?”
Saying that, Sally twisted her arm out of Cedric’s grasp.
“Sally!”
“What? And I told you not to call me by my name so casually.”
“What am I supposed to reply to that family!”
“Why are you asking me that?”
“I don’t even know that woman’s face.”
“Well, you can get to know her now.”
Sally turned away without any hesitation.
“Then, goodbye.”
***
That night, Sally regretted what had happened during the day. How could she, a mere servant, dare to treat a knight like that just because she had become a noble? She was angry because of what she had heard from Baroness Fraser, and she felt bad for speaking so carelessly to him.
After work, the ladies-in-waiting would invite others to their rooms. And they would enjoy drinking until they felt happy. Since Sally didn’t think she would be able to sleep anyway, she also headed to the room where she was invited.
“Welcome, Sally.”
It was a rule for the ladies-in-waiting to use honorifics with each other in front of their superiors, but in private, they called each other by their names without hesitation. And thankfully, they accepted Sally, who had suddenly become a noble and a close lady-in-waiting to the empress, very well.
After a few drinks, the women started talking about Cedric and Owen. It was very common for ladies-in-waiting to gather and talk about handsome knights. Sally was secretly happy to learn that the ladies-in-waiting, whom she thought were of high status, were similar to maids.
“I think Sir Owen is so wonderful. He doesn’t talk much, but he’s so kind and gentle.”
Sally nodded in complete agreement. Owen was very popular not only with noble ladies but also with the women who had volunteered to be ladies-in-waiting.
But then, a pretty lady-in-waiting named Mary shook her head and spoke.
“I think Sir Cedric is more wonderful than Sir Owen. Isn’t he a bit more masculine? I don’t know for sure, but he must be passionate at night, too.”
“Oh, Mary. You have no filter.”
If there was one difference between ladies-in-waiting and maids, it was that the nobles still concealed their true thoughts a bit more. But this woman named Mary didn’t seem to have any intention of hiding anything.
“What’s wrong with that? I became a lady-in-waiting because of him. Of course, doing this for a few years is good for one’s reputation and is advantageous for finding a great husband, but I don’t care about that. I just volunteered to be here because I wanted to see Sir Duncan more often.”
The other ladies-in-waiting cheered for Mary, but Sally’s face was turning darker by the minute.
Then, a new lady-in-waiting, whose name Sally didn’t know, whispered to Mary, “By the way, I heard a rumor that Sir Cedric is going to marry the second daughter of the Fraser Barony.”
“What? That family has nothing to show for it but their honor.”
At that moment, Sally was thankful for the second daughter of the Fraser family. But then, Mary delivered the final blow to her.
“Hmm, in that case, there’s nothing I can do. I need to go see Sir Cedric quickly. With my body, I’m sure he won’t refuse. Just you wait on the day of the festival.”
The festival was just two days away. Sally nervously sized up Mary. As her confident words suggested, her face and body were quite excellent.
After that, Sally didn’t know how she managed to stay in that place. And she drank a little more than usual. Thinking that she shouldn’t get any drunker, she brushed off her clothes and stood up. It was when she was leaving the main gate to go to her separate palace.
As if by a lie, Cedric was seen crossing the garden, shaking his wet hair. Seeing him, Sally instinctively wanted to run away, but Mary’s voice stopped her. The image of Mary’s large chest as she said, ‘Just you wait on the day of the festival,’ flashed before her eyes.
Sally clenched her fists and, with the help of the alcohol, approached him. Cedric had just finished his swordsmanship practice and had just washed up. The scene from the afternoon wouldn’t leave his mind, and no matter how much he washed with cold water, his anger wouldn’t subside. So he had set out on his way to meet her and talk to her again. But the woman who had been tormenting his heart all day appeared right in front of his eyes.
But the maid who had been avoiding him suddenly started approaching him boldly. Cedric stopped in his tracks with a look of great surprise.
“Sally? I mean, Lady Johanne?”
“Yes.”
The woman with a red face barely managed to answer and stared intently at Cedric’s face.
“Did you… drink? With whom?”
Seeing her disheveled state, the anger he had barely held down surged up again.
“Does it matter who it was with, Sir Knight?”
“Was it, perhaps, with that guy from earlier…?”
Sally blinked her large eyes.
“That guy?”
Cedric unconsciously reached out his hand to Sally’s face, which was glistening in the moonlight.
“Your cheek is hot. I’ll take you to your room.”
He was angry, but he thought he should at least put this woman to bed first. Cedric took the lead and grabbed Sally’s wrist. She then put strength into her hand and pulled away.
“It hurts.”
“Ah, sorry.”
He must have put more strength into it than he realized. Cedric had no idea how to deal with this woman. But then, Sally interlocked her fingers with his. And then, she pulled him with all her might.
“What is this…?”
“Just be still. And follow me this way.”
To Cedric, it was clear that this woman was drunk. He could have easily pulled away from her, but for some reason, the strength drained from his body, and he was dragged along wherever she led him. But this woman kept leading him to a darker place. The hand she was holding kept getting tighter.
And finally, when they turned a corner of a building, the woman, who was barely up to his chest, pushed Cedric against the wall. The moment Cedric’s back hit the wall, Sally thrust her face toward him. But even though the woman stretched her feet and craned her neck, her lips couldn’t possibly reach Cedric’s. So Sally’s lips only brushed past the area around Cedric’s chin.
But Sally didn’t know. How much of a stimulus her clumsy advances and her wandering around, trying to find his lips again, were to Cedric.
Instinctively, Cedric grabbed her waist and pulled her tightly against him. And he lowered his head all the way so that Sally could find his lips easily.
When Sally finally found his lips, she kissed him with a smacking sound and then smiled with satisfaction. Unbelievably, it was Cedric’s first kiss.
Sally, as if she had finished her task, tried to pull away from him with a triumphant look. But this time, Cedric didn’t let her go. He lowered his head and took her lips in one go.
“Mmmph.”
The pungent smell of alcohol spread in Cedric’s mouth, and although this was clearly his first kiss, he instinctively parted Sally’s lips and entered. And after that, their kissing continued, as they lost track of time. In a word, Cedric couldn’t come to his senses. The woman who was so soft in his arms was so good that he pushed her against the wall without thinking.
Sally struggled in his arms, finding it hard to breathe. Cedric then pulled his lips away from hers and slowly began to kiss her along her neckline.
“Hah, hah.”
“Sally… let’s go to my room.”
But Sally felt her scattered consciousness returning at Cedric’s words.
“What?”
She moved away from him, covered her lips with both hands, and quickly ran back into the separate palace. At her sudden actions, Cedric felt like he had become a pervert.
The next day, Cedric, who had been up all night, went to the separate palace where Sally was staying to see her. But Sally, who had sobered up, was busy avoiding Cedric just as she had before, no, even more so than before.
Something in his head felt like it exploded. He took quick steps to chase after the woman who was running away from him.
“Sally, what are you doing now?”
“I’m just walking.”
Her face was bright red as she quickened her pace to avoid Cedric who was walking right next to her. Unable to stand it anymore, he grabbed her arm and stopped her, making her look at him.
“You drag someone along and force yourself on them, and then you pretend you don’t know anything?”
But Sally covered Cedric’s mouth, who was babbling anything.
“Force myself on you? What if someone hears that?”
Cedric grabbed Sally’s hands and pulled them down.
“So, did you also do that with that knight you ‘knew’?”
Cedric was too focused on the woman who was avoiding him to care about their surroundings, but she kept looking around.
“W-what are you talking about?”
He said something he didn’t mean, even though he knew it wasn’t true. She looked so pretty as she scurried away from him that he felt like hiding her somewhere. He thought it was a really strange feeling even to himself.
“I’m asking if you did that to him like you did to me.”
At first, he just asked lightly, but when Sally’s face turned red and she became flustered, Cedric’s mood soured.
“Why… can’t you answer?”
“I don’t know.”
Sally was overcome with embarrassment and was desperate to run away from Cedric. But he relentlessly pressed her.
“Aren’t you going to answer? I’m asking if you did!”
“Of course… I didn’t.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. You’ve already seen me as that kind of woman anyway. That’s why you so easily said we should go to your room…”
“What? You shouldn’t trample on a man’s heart like that.”
“You act like this because you know I like you, don’t you? Aren’t you?”
But Cedric couldn’t answer her anymore. Only her words that she liked him echoed in his ears. He looked at her with a somewhat dazed expression.
While Cedric was out of his mind, she took a few steps back. He was startled and snatched her wrist.
“That’s not it.”
“Then what is it?”
“I like… you too.”
“What?”
Sally heard his words clearly. But for a moment, she doubted her ears.
“Then what about the second daughter of the Fraser Barony?”
“I sent her a letter of refusal this morning.”
Sally’s eyes widened, and she looked up at him. He paused for a moment, finding her expression adorable.
“So, don’t pretend you don’t know after forcing yourself on me like that.”
Sally gained courage from his expression. So, she immediately sent a challenging look his way. Yes, it was true that she had dragged Cedric along yesterday, but it was definitely this man who had lunged at her afterward.
“But it was you, Sir Knight, who desperately pushed me against the wall yesterday.”
“What?”
This time, Sally circled around Cedric. And after she stopped behind him, she whispered in his ear.
“Shall we make a bet tonight? Who can endure it better, you or me?”
With those words, Sally disappeared into the separate palace. The only one left standing there with a red face was Cedric.
***
Adrian had been propping his chin with one hand, looking at me.
“Aren’t you working?”
“Looking at you is the most important task for me.”
“Why would that be?”
“Because Claire Ianster is the muse who gives this emperor inspiration.”
I let out a sigh and propped my chin just like him. The afternoon sun shone lazily over his head. He was so beautiful, sparkling, that I held up my index finger and beckoned to him.
“Adrian, come here.”
He sat in front of me faster than light. I wanted to laugh, but with a serious face, I gently stroked his nose.
“What do you plan to say to shock me today?”
“This all feels like a dream.”
“That’s so overused. Don’t you have anything new?”
At that moment, Adrian’s eyes sparkled slightly.
“Then can I ask you something?”
I nodded to him without much thought. There was nothing left to hide between him and me now.
“Who is Hyuntaek?”
No. Some secrets are necessary even in a relationship.
“I don’t… know?”
When I rolled my eyes, Adrian’s hands cupped my face.
“You said that name again when you woke up this time.”
“I… did?”
I had no choice but to get closer to his face. And I began to kiss every part of his face with care.
“Don’t… do this. Don’t think this will make me just let it go…”
But the emperor couldn’t say anything more. His body, which had already betrayed his reason, was fully embracing me. He kissed me passionately and then whispered in my ear.
“I’ve always had this one thought.”
“What?”
This time, my mind was being filled by his playful hands.
“That maybe you’ve come from a world I don’t know about.”
I was startled but burrowed deeper into his arms to not show it.
“How else could you have saved my life so perfectly?”
He, who had been diligently caressing my exposed neck, suddenly pulled his body away from me.
“Ah, there’s one more thing?”
“It wasn’t over? What now?”
I just rolled my eyes in anxiety.
“Before, when you were in Turk at Duke Henry Kabyl’s mansion.”
“Yes.”
“When you said your thoughts were the same as Duke Kabyl’s, did you mean it?”
I didn’t know I had said that, but I knew very well that you held a grudge.
“Did I really say something like that?”
“I heard it with my own ears. When I said I would kill the Duke of Kabyl.”
I remembered. But this time, I could give a completely correct answer.
“Not at all. Absolutely not. My thoughts are my own. How could that be?”
A satisfied smile appeared on the emperor’s face. But if he was going to be petty like this, I had no choice but to be petty as well.
“Um, Your Majesty.”
“Yes?”
“That thing you mentioned before.”
“What?”
“The homework of figuring out the three mistakes you made to me.”
This time, Adrian’s eyes rolled. But I didn’t allow it.
“When can I know the answer?”
“I love you.”
As expected, Adrian was one step ahead of me. I laughed without even trying. He should be saying he’s sorry for not doing his homework.
The three mistakes he had made were this: He arbitrarily became engaged to Celine. On top of that, he started a dangerous war. And finally, he still didn’t love me. But the third one was a complete misunderstanding on my part, so I decided to forgive him for now.
After that, we held hands and looked into each other’s eyes, talking for a long time. It was a perfectly beautiful afternoon in Quinze-Nouais.
***
The Founding Festival hadn’t changed from five years ago. After a series of grand banquets, a hunting festival and a swordsmanship festival would take place. After that, there would be a joyous festival in the market, and on the last day, our wedding would be held. The only thing that had changed was my heart and his, but everything was so beautiful.
And on the first day of the Founding Festival, Adrian’s firm resolve crumbled.
The first day’s banquet began with the emperor and I’s first dance. I wore a purple dress that matched my eye color with silver-gray accents, the same as Adrian’s hair, and we looked as if we were made for each other. Adrian, on the other hand, wore a blue banquet suit, the color of his eyes, with black decorations, the same as my hair color.
When we began to dance for the first time, I actively clung to him. It was fun and made me happy to see Adrian’s face wrinkle in embarrassment every time I wiggled my hand and reached behind his shoulder to touch the back of his head.
After we sat down, I kept tapping the back of his hand with my finger so that no one else would notice. And when I rubbed it gently, he looked at me in surprise. But I pretended not to know and gave a picture-perfect smile to the minister who had come forward to greet me.
Adrian tilted his head and looked away again. But this time, I gently bothered the inside of his palm with my finger. Then, I could see his neck turn red.
“Your Majesty, are you unwell?”
I asked in a nonchalant voice, but he couldn’t answer, and my teasing didn’t stop. Because his embarrassed face every time I did that was so cute.
“Claire, please stop.”
I gave Adrian, who was pleading, the most innocent smile I could.
“Stop what?”
“Why do you like it so much when I plead with you?”
But he couldn’t look at my smiling face directly and cast his gaze far away with shaky eyes.
“I just have to endure it for one more month.”
“So what are you talking about?”
Even as I spoke, I subtly slipped my finger into his sleeve. He then grabbed my hand tightly, interlocking his fingers with mine so I couldn’t move.
Soon, a few glasses of sweet wine were exchanged, and Adrian finally couldn’t wait until the end of the first banquet. When the atmosphere was just right, Adrian wrapped his arm around my waist.
“Huh? Why?”
“Let’s go.”
“Where?”
He didn’t answer and led me out of the banquet hall. I, pretending to be unwilling, was led by the emperor’s hand. Before the door of the carriage heading to the emperor’s palace was even closed, Adrian couldn’t hold back and lunged at me.
“Aah! Adrian!”
Ignoring my scream, Adrian began to press his lips all over my face with a wet sound.
“The banquet isn’t even over yet.”
When I pushed him away, gasping for breath, Adrian made a look of injustice.
“So you don’t like it?”
I looked at his face, which had instantly become teary, and then I grabbed his lapel tightly and pulled him towards me.
“Of course not.”
At my permission, his eyes changed, taking on a strange light. He then brought his face close to mine, bit my lip slightly, and mumbled.
“Tell me, Claire. What do you want to do with me?”
“I want to brand every inch of your body as mine.”
At my words, Adrian’s eyes widened, and his face turned red, a color that couldn’t be hidden even by the moonlight. And his eyes, like the sea, shook. At his noble and innocent expression, my heart also fluttered.
Adrian didn’t let go of my hand all the way to the bedroom. When we entered the bedroom, he seemed to hesitate for a moment, but when I pulled him gently, he leaned his body towards me. Adrian, who was hugging my body as if he would break it, whispered in my ear.
“I can’t take it anymore. I really can’t hold back now.”
“Don’t hold back, Adrian.”
“But is it okay for me to be this happy? Every time I’ve been a little happy, the hardest things have happened.”
I had a vague idea. The reason he had been hesitating and wanting to wait until the wedding.
“I’m scared.”
“So, are you going to leave me like this? Forever?”
“Ah, no!”
“So, don’t hesitate. Don’t take revenge on me now, give me love. I’ll give you my second time, too.”
I laughed softly in his ear, and after that, I couldn’t think of anything else.
In his mouth, which was swallowing my lips and exploring my body, only a heart-wrenching moan was heard.
When the maids came to the room to prepare my bath, Adrian gave an order that no one was to be let in without his permission. I didn’t even have to see their expressions to know what they were like outside the door.
All the time and effort spent on my dress and makeup for the banquet were useless this night. My clothes were desperately torn in his impatient movements, something one would never have believed from the man who had been so hesitant.
He ripped my clothes and hurriedly swallowed my lips. I stopped Adrian by holding my half-torn clothes together.
“This time… Hah, hah. It’s my turn.”
I slowly approached Adrian. And I began to take off his clothes one by one. His body trembled every time my hand touched him, and I engraved every single one of his expressions in my eyes.
And finally, when he and I were without a single thread on, we first checked each other’s wounds. I made him lie on his stomach on the bed and kissed every single whip mark on his back. And he diligently caressed the surgical scar that ran vertically across my abdomen.
His passionate movements towards me, the continuous calling of my name, and the constant whispering of ‘I love you.’ Only those heart-wrenching things filled the space between us.
Strangely, tears came to my eyes. And I was confident that there would be no more obstacles between us.
Our night, which had begun that way, continued until the rooster crowed and the dogs in the forest barked. Sometimes, I was out of breath with yearning, and at other times, it was so intense that I screamed. All the joy and overflowing happiness filled my entire body.
And Adrian, like a man who had only done this once, poured everything he had into that night. Everything was perfect.
I later found out that a younger sibling for Leo might have come that night.
***
Three years later.
It had been two years since we had a successful wedding and Leonardo’s adorable little sister was born. Leo, now seven years old, was pestering me to let him use a real sword instead of a wooden one.
“No, Leo. You’re only seven.”
“But, Mother. Father said he succeeded in his first hunt when he was seven.”
Leo had grown up in a storm. And he was so handsome that everyone who saw him gasped in admiration.
“Ugh, why did he have to tell you something like that. Anyway, no. I’ll think about it next year.”
“But, Mother!”
Just then, Hestia woke up and stumbled towards me.
“Mommy.”
“Yes. My Hestia.”
Hestia was born with the imperial family’s blue eyes and my black hair. It was another joy to see Adrian’s eyes go blank and lose whenever he looked at his daughter.
When Hestia woke up, Leo, as if he had never pestered me, stood in front of his sister with a dignified look.
“Hestia, now that you’re up, let’s go play in the garden with your brother.”
“Mm, mm.”
Hestia, who was a late talker, couldn’t speak in complete sentences yet, but she clearly had my strong likes and dislikes.
Soon, Hailey appeared. Sally had promised to stay by my side for a long time, but she couldn’t keep that promise and got married and left the palace. Hailey came to fill Sally’s empty spot. Of course, she wasn’t a lady-in-waiting, but the official imperial court physician. She had promised to marry Sir Glenn Doherty, but she kept postponing the wedding date, saying she had a lot of work to do. Glenn would come to me every day and complain about the hardship of a man who loves a progressive woman before leaving.
“How is Sally, I mean, your new sister-in-law?”
“Oh, she’s doing well, but her belly is so big that she can’t even walk well.”
“Cedric must be happy.”
“Yes, it’s unbearable to watch.”
As I chuckled, Hestia tugged at Hailey’s skirt, wanting to go out. The little girl, who had suffered from many fevers since she was a baby, was very fond of her, who had always healed her.
“Hailey, you should start a family now too.”
“Is that an order?”
“What if it is?”
“If it’s Her Majesty’s order, I must obey. But if you’ve been asked by one of the closest people to His Majesty the Emperor, I can’t.”
I laughed out loud at her words. It was true that I had been asked for a favor. I soon put on a dignified voice.
“So, when are you going to obey my order?”
“I’ll do it when our Princess Hestia orders me to get married in a perfect sentence.”
I wondered if I should tell Sir Doherty about this. I felt that if I told him this, he would try to teach Hestia how to speak all day. Hailey, who was watching my contemplating face, bowed to me with a smile.
“Then I will take the two of you to the garden. It’s about the immunity you talked about last time, Your Majesty. It’s true that you need sunlight to build it up.”
After the children followed Hailey and the other ladies-in-waiting to the garden, I looked out the window for a moment and then took out the things I had been making. I had been thinking about what to make for our family of four to commemorate this year’s Founding Festival, and I decided to make one leather item for each of us, with our names engraved on them.
For Hestia, I made a leather bag with a rabbit doll on it, and for Leo, I made a leather belt to hold his wooden sword. And mine was a multi-purpose pouch. Adrian’s leather wallet was also finished, and it looked quite decent for having been made after a long time.
Just as I was about to stamp “Aurelian” on the first gift, Adrian called my name and entered my bedroom.
“Claire. What are you doing?”
“Oh, I’m preparing a gift for our family for the Founding Festival.”
“I haven’t seen you do this in a long time.”
Adrian looked at my stamp with interest. For a moment, I almost said that I, the real Claire, had prepared a large stamp to put on his face. But I told myself that I shouldn’t tell him that, even though I could tell him anything else.
“Adrian, weren’t you busy preparing for the expedition tomorrow?”
When people were around, especially in front of the children, we had promised to use honorifics with each other, but when we were alone, we still spoke to each other casually.
“The preparations are done. I’m not going to war, so there’s not much to be busy with.”
“It’s so amazing that the maritime city already has its shape.”
“That place was started solely so I could see you a little more.”
“You shouldn’t run state affairs so casually, Your Majesty. The ministers won’t be quiet if they find out.”
“Who would dare?”
At my playful words, he came over and lightly kissed my cheek. And Adrian stood me up and pulled me tightly into his arms.
“Cedric won’t be able to come with me this time.”
“I guess not.”
“By the way, how long are you going to keep Owen with you? Do you know that the captain of the Imperial First Knights is older than you?”
“He wants to live by the sword alone, he said.”
“Do you believe that?”
“Then what should I do? Should I just make him meet someone? You know better than anyone that you can’t force a person’s heart.”
“That’s true, but when I come back this time, give him some time off.”
“Okay, I will. I’ll give him a long vacation. Besides, I’m standing right in front of you, and you’re only going to talk about other men?”
“You’re not talking about Cedric and Owen, are you?”
“Why wouldn’t I? I don’t like any other man except Leo.”
Before I could protest, a long, drawn-out kiss began. Adrian, like a ghost, would know when Hestia and Leo were away from me and would come to my room.
“The night is not enough.”
“It’s bright outside…”
But I was already so caught up in the stimulation he was giving me that I couldn’t give a proper answer. He, who I thought was a man who could hold back for so long, didn’t leave me alone for a single day.
“The maids will gossip that the emperor and empress don’t even follow the day for their marital relations.”
“The only person in this empire who can stop me from doing what I want is you.”
He didn’t care even when I scolded him. In the meantime, all my clothes were gone by Adrian’s hands, one by one. I was just busy trying to keep up with his rough breathing. Especially before he left for the expedition, Adrian didn’t want to be away from me all day. He slowly caressed my body and only breathed evenly after he had trapped me in his arms.
“Even if I see you every day and touch you all day long, I’m still thirsty.”
I didn’t dislike his eyes, which were filled with obsession and possessiveness. Instead of answering, I pulled his neck to express my feelings. How could I have been away from this man for so long?
After having such a long love affair in the middle of the day, I left him lying on the bed and went back to my desk. Adrian’s name, which I had stamped earlier on the wallet, was beautifully placed.
“That’s my name.”
Adrian, who was now in a light shirt, came up to me and gently touched my shoulder. As he came closer, I felt a pleasant thrill down my back.
“Yeah. You said you found your memory after seeing the name I had stamped on it as Adrian, right?”
“Yes…”
“Now it’s a wallet with your real name on it. Take it with you when you go on the expedition tomorrow.”
“I just like ‘Adrian’ better…”
“You can’t have that one. Other people might find out about my special nickname for you.”
“Is that so?”
Adrian gently lifted me, sat down in my chair, and put me on his lap.
“Am I bothering your work?”
He asked, kissing my neck for a long time.
“It’s fine, except when I need to use fire.”
I also didn’t want to be away from him and let him have his way. Every time I moved my body to work, he would groan from behind me. Then, when I let out a deep sigh, Adrian sent me a questioning look.
“It’ll take a full month for you to go this time, won’t it?”
“I guess so. It takes time to go and come back…”
“I’m going to miss you…”
He just hugged me tightly without answering. Muttering to himself, “I wonder if she’ll miss me more than I will…”
“Be careful, Adrian. This is hot.”
“Is this yours this time?”
“Yeah.”
I gently pushed him away and started matching the pieces to spell out my name.
CLAIR
When I was looking for the last ‘E,’ Adrian found the last piece and slid it over to me.
“Are you looking for this?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Is that all?”
“Yeah. I just have to stamp it now.”
I fit my name into the mold and put it into the small hearth I had designed. It was small, but it was perfect for stamping a name. I didn’t check what Adrian was doing behind me as I was trying to find the right spot to stamp my name.
My handbag was a bit small, so it was hard to find a spot to stamp my name. I had made countless items for other people, but it had been a really long time since I had made one for myself.
“Claire.”
“Yeah?”
“How can I love you more every day?”
I laughed happily at his sudden confession.
“How am I supposed to know?”
Even as I answered, I was carefully choosing the spot where I would stamp my name. Just then, Adrian turned my face with his right hand and suddenly began a long, drawn-out kiss. Every time that happened, I was swept away by him without any resistance. He pulled his lips away and looked me straight in the eyes.
“Claire.”
“Mm…mm?”
“I love you.”
“…Me too.”
It had been three years since we got married, but I still felt embarrassed by his actions. I could feel my heart pounding just from the tips of his fingers touching my body. He slid his hand that was on my waist to my arm and led it to the handle of the stamp with my name on it.
Without me having time to think about what Adrian was doing, he held my hand in his and made me grab the handle of the stamp. He kissed me again. I was so busy getting lost in his kiss that I only realized my arm was being lifted later. Adrian lifted my arm, then slightly pulled his lips away and, revealing his white inner arm where his sleeve was now rolled up, said, “Here…”
“What…?”
“Stamp… your name here.”
At first, I didn’t understand the meaning of his words.
“What, you… you’re crazy. How hot is this!”
“Stamp your brand on me. I need the certainty that I belong to you.”
“A-aah, no!”
“Relax. It won’t be stamped on beautifully if you mess up.”
The stamp with my name on it was already almost touching his white inner arm. Fearing that I would hurt him, I didn’t dare move my hand that was being held by him. It all happened in an instant. The stamp was already smoking and burning on his white forearm. I tried to pull it away belatedly, but his hand holding mine was surprisingly firm.
“Aaaah, you crazy bastard, no!”
Adrian winced slightly as the hot stamp burned the soft skin on his inner arm, but he soon lowered his head and kissed me again. And at the same time he pulled his lips away, he freed my arm. Only then did I throw the stamp I was holding and get up from my seat.
“Adrian!”
The name ‘CLAIRE’ was clearly stamped on the inside of his arm. It wasn’t a gigantic and grotesque brand like the ones I had seen in novels, but in the end, Adrian’s body was branded with my name.
As soon as I came to my senses, I stood up and swung my fist at him until he said he was sorry. But Adrian just stood there, proudly looking at my name engraved on his arm.
“I’m yours now.”
“You were always mine!”
“I want to brand your body with my name all over, but now that I’ve tried it, it’s too hot, so I’ll have to endure.”
Adrian pulled me back into his arms as I glared at him as if I was looking at a madman.
“Damn Adrian, you’re crazy.”
“Yes, I’m not in my right mind. There’s no man in the world who loves a woman who whipped him countless times.”
“Only your mouth is alive…”
There was a slight unfairness. I only whipped him once, and I wasn’t in my right mind when I did it.
“I’ve thought about it a lot.”
“About what?”
“About when I started loving you.”
Hearing that, I suddenly became curious too.
“You’re not going to say it was from the first moment we met, are you?”
If it was from the beginning, I wouldn’t like it either. The Claire back then wasn’t me.
“I can’t tell a lie like that, no matter how much I want to look good.”
“Then when was it?”
“What about you? Was it from the beginning? You said my face was pretty.”
At his words, I chuckled. And Adrian’s words weren’t wrong. I had fallen in love at first sight with him, who was tied up and hung up.
“Of course, it was from the beginning for me. Your face was so much my type. Then what about our His Majesty the Emperor?”
“I…”
Adrian’s face fell into thought for a moment. And soon he chuckled.
“From the moment you sang the alphabet song.”
“What?”
I remembered that day. It was the first day he, who had been like a wounded wild animal and wouldn’t let anyone near him, grabbed me as I was about to leave after teaching him the letters once. But that early?
“After you sang that song, I couldn’t stop thinking about your face, and it was killing me. Back then, I just thought it was a shocking scene.”
I punched him in the side with a smack, as if his words were teasing me.
“What is it, really.”
But he hugged me back in that state. His arms and breath, which were wrapped around me softly, were so peaceful.
“If I had realized that sooner, would my life have become sweet a little faster?”
No, it wouldn’t have. He was a man who had been hurt so much, was so sad, and was overly in pain. Without that long process, we would have misunderstood each other’s hearts and hated each other, making our lives a living hell.
I looked at his face, which was shining more beautifully than ever. It seemed that Adrian, like a male lead in a destructive novel, wanted to lead this novel to a destructive end until the very end by branding himself, but well, even in such stories, there’s a happy ending for someone.
I put the ice pack that I had a maid bring on his arm and kissed his face carefully. Adrian refused to put any medicine on it, saying he had to re-stamp it after the wound healed.
When the maid left, he pulled me back into his arms. And he looked at me with shining, hot eyes. It was a look that made it impossible not to know what he wanted.
“Again?”
“I won’t be able to see you for a month after this. And this hurts a lot. You have to make it not hurt.”
I once again threw myself into the love he was giving me without any resistance.
And so, we stood in front of the window, looking at the setting sun.
In the garden outside the window, Leonardo and Hestia, the two Quinze-Nouais, were running around excitedly. And on the arm of the man who was hugging me from behind, there was the silver bracelet that Adrian’s mother had left him, and my name, which he had branded on himself.
“Claire Ianster, you are my life. You saved me. I will die without you.”
So don’t disappear again.
He whispered that. He was still a little anxious every time he went on an expedition. But I had no doubt that time would solve this as well.
Claire Ianster.
The unprecedented villainess who fell into this world with a whip in her hand. The woman who branded the arm of the emperor, who is considered the greatest in history during the most powerful period of the Quinze-Nouais Empire. It was a moment where I was incredibly curious about how all these moments would be expressed if someone were to write our story as a novel.
The curtain fell on this story, with no one ever realizing that the obsessive villainess’s only goal was to survive.
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Torryy
It was a really good story. Sure, there were times when it was frustrating but the plot kept things worth the wait.
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Now that the main story is over, I feel I can say a few things that were really sad:
1. The death of Sebastian(CP): It was really sad to see him die. He wasn’t a character that deservesd death. He was a good person who loved a woman. He just became a victim of the circumstances and the cowardice of the previous Emperor & Empress
2. FL’s Father: He was a very cowardly person. He kept covering up for Celine who was downright evil. His guilt was only an excuse. As a parent, he should’ve stopped his child from ruining herself. And his inability to become a shield for her other daughter (FL) was just disappointing.
3. Ogfl’s lost soul: Ogfl seemed like a really good person. Technically, the Count lost both his real daughters, which is very sad. Good thing the possessors never revealed that truth.
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Overall it was a good read.