After Linking the Villainess and Male Lead (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 25
“Duke! It’s the butler.”
Before he could say another word, a hurried knock came at the door, followed by the butler’s urgent voice from outside.
Kaern lifted his head and looked alternately between the door and me.
He seemed to be deciding what needed immediate attention.
“Duke! An urgent message has arrived from the Imperial Palace!”
But as if to sweep away his hesitation instantly, the butler pressed Kaern further.
Finally, Kaern tore his eyes away from me and spoke toward the door in a low voice.
“From the Imperial Palace?”
“Yes. They said it must be delivered to you immediately.”
“Come in.”
At Kaern’s command, the butler hurriedly entered the study.
“My apologies.”
“That’s enough. The message.”
“Here it is.”
Kaern took the sealed envelope from the butler and tore it open impatiently.
At a glance, the seal was unmistakably the Emperor’s.
I sat quietly, watching him.
After reading the letter swiftly, he muttered a quiet curse under his breath.
For a moment, I was startled by his rough demeanor—but soon his gaze turned back to me.
He fell silent again for a long while.
Beside him, the butler shifted nervously from foot to foot, clearly anxious.
This matter must have been extremely urgent.
In any case, I’d already said everything I needed to say today.
Though I felt slightly uneasy about not receiving a clear answer due to his bewildering reaction, it seemed best to leave for now.
“Duke…”
“We’ll talk again later.”
Just as I was about to speak, he beat me to it.
“Oh—yes, I understand. Then I’ll take my leave now.”
Relieved, I quickly rose from my seat.
“Helena.”
As I turned toward the door after bowing, Kaern suddenly called my name.
“Yes?”
“I’ll come find you as soon as I’m done. Wait for me. And next time… I’d prefer you call me by my name, not ‘Duke.'”
I had thought the matter had passed naturally, but apparently not.
Kaern had been holding onto the fact that I hadn’t used his name.
Instead of answering, I simply nodded and promptly left the study so he could attend to his duties.
The distance from the second-floor study to the mansion’s entrance was considerable.
I walked through the second-floor corridor, down the stairs, across the first-floor hall, and finally stepped outside.
My mind remained jumbled and dazed the entire time.
“Miss.”
Amy’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts.
“Miss?”
“Huh?”
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
“No, no. Let’s just head home now.”
“Yes, understood.”
I forced an awkward smile, pretending nothing was wrong, and headed toward the carriage.
Just then—
Suddenly, commotion erupted nearby, and several horses appeared in front of the mansion, as if they’d arrived out of nowhere.
One of them was very familiar to me.
‘That’s Kaern’s horse.’
Almost as soon as the thought crossed my mind, its rider burst out from inside.
With fluid grace, he swiftly mounted the horse.
“You’re welcome to stay and admire my garden a bit longer.”
Kaern, holding the reins, spoke to me.
“No, thank you. It’s getting late, and you’re clearly not staying. Are you heading to the Imperial Palace right away?”
“I’ll handle this as quickly as possible and then revisit our earlier matter.”
“Yes. Please take care, Duke.”
Kaern answered with only a look in his eyes before spurring his horse into a furious gallop.
The knights escorting him quickly followed in his wake.
“Ka—!”
I almost summoned the courage to call his name, but stopped myself immediately.
He was already too far away—my voice would never reach him.
I kept my eyes fixed on his retreating figure until he vanished completely.
“Let’s go, Amy.”
“Yes, Miss.”
After one last glance in the direction he’d disappeared, I suppressed my lingering regret and climbed into the carriage to return home.
[This is the timeline separator]As he galloped toward the Imperial Palace, Kaern struggled fiercely to suppress the boiling anger rising within him.
Call off the engagement?
Welcome a new duchess?
How could anyone suggest such a thing?
He never imagined Helena—his fiancée, soon-to-be wife—would entertain such absurd, unthinkable notions.
If only he’d known, he would have married her the moment she came of age.
No—better yet, if they’d married outright from the beginning instead of merely becoming engaged, she’d never have dreamed of escaping him.
He’d refrained solely for Helena’s sake.
He didn’t want to burden her while she was still so young.
Had they married back then, Helena would have immediately become the Lady of House Lavellion and been forced to shoulder countless responsibilities.
Such duties came with the title, regardless of age.
But Kaern hadn’t wanted Helena—same age as Adelia—to endure a heavy life so soon.
He’d hoped she could enjoy a carefree youth, just like Adelia.
He’d even settled the debts left behind by the late Viscount and Viscountess Rosentia, believing that would secure her peace.
Yet Helena had insisted on repaying him, gradually returning the money over several years.
At first, he’d refused to accept it.
After all, once they married, everything in the ducal house would belong to her anyway.
But Helena had been adamant.
Determined to repay every coin, she’d held her ground until he finally relented.
Each time she returned a portion of the debt, she included a letter.
The contents were always simple and nearly identical—expressing gratitude and stating how much longer it would take to settle the remaining amount.
To him, however, those weren’t mere repayment schedules—they were precious tokens of cherished memories.
Thus, those letters were carefully stored in a drawer of his study desk, alongside the money she’d returned.
In a space only Kaern himself could access.
Whenever his desire to keep Helena close grew too strong, he’d read those letters to calm himself.
And now, this was the result.
While he’d been exercising patience for her sake, Helena had been plotting her escape.
‘Haa.’
Kaern drew a deep breath, trying to quell his surging agitation.
‘No.’
He couldn’t possibly let Helena leave him like this.
But right now, he couldn’t speak with her.
Kaern already knew why the Emperor had summoned him.
War.
He’d briefly left the capital recently for the very same reason.
Sensing unusual movements from the neighboring kingdom of Mathios, he’d gone to investigate.
There, he’d confirmed Mathios was preparing to invade the Empire’s southern territories.
He hadn’t expected war to break out this soon, though.
He’d uncharacteristically allowed himself some leisure.
‘Why did I do that?’
Why?
He hadn’t truly believed war wouldn’t come.
The answer was obvious.
He’d simply wanted to stay by Helena’s side a little longer.
After Adelia had left, he couldn’t bear to leave Helena alone to endure her loneliness.
‘Damn it.’
Kaern cursed inwardly, frustration seething.
The timing couldn’t have been worse.
He needed to stay close to prevent Helena from straying—but circumstances made that impossible.
The Empire always needed Kaern, and as Duke of its foremost house, he bore the duty and obligation to answer its call.
‘I must see Helena before I leave.’
No one knew how long this war would last.
Of the countless wars he’d fought, the shortest had lasted less than two months, while the longest dragged on for years.
But this time, he vowed it wouldn’t take that long.
He had to explain the situation and somehow hold onto her.
This gnawing anxiety wouldn’t vanish until he could keep her safely in his arms—but even so, he needed to see her now to temper these emotions, however slightly.
‘Surely Lucas Aiker won’t dare approach her in my absence.’
Fortunately, Lucas Aiker hadn’t dared come near Helena since Kaern’s warning.
But if word got out that he was leaving…
“Neigh!”
Suddenly, Kaern’s horse let out a loud cry and came to an abrupt halt.
Cold Male Lead Became My Clingy Husband (Female-Dominant)
Feng Bai Su transmigrated into a matriarchal novel, becoming the sister of the female protagonist and the Seventh Princess of the Feng Ling Kingdom.
After working herself to death in her previous life, finally reincarnating as a princess, she only wanted to be a lazy fish who could eat, sleep, and play.
Until she met the male protagonist from the book, Wei Jing Mo, and he took a liking to her!
Wei Jing Mo is the top young man in Feng Ling City, talented in both appearance and ability, from a prestigious family, with a cold and otherworldly appearance, a figure like the bright moon in the hearts of noble ladies. It was thought that only the most powerful and talented noble lady in Feng Ling City would be worthy of such a brilliant young man. Who knew that this young gentleman would secretly admire the infamous Seventh Princess?
Short scene 1:
Feng Bai Su looked at the young man crying like a pear blossom in the rain before her, and couldn’t help but doubt her life.
Wasn’t the male lead described as a cold and otherworldly figure in the book?
Then who was this poor little thing crying with swollen red eyes and tear-stained face?
Short scene 2:
Wei Jing Mo stared intently at Feng Bai Su who was about to go out, wanting to say, “Be careful on the road.”
Before he could speak, Feng Bai Su suddenly bent down and bit his cheek.
Her peach blossom eyes were full of disdain: “Tsk! You’re so clingy!”
Wei Jing Mo: “…”
A talented fox spirit female lead with a flirtatious appearance but actually abstinent VS A cold-looking but actually naive and clingy little jealous male lead
If there is a person checking these comments. Can you please add a word/letter count to the bottom. Also sometimes the comments don’t stay within the chapter you read but throughout the whole book, please fix that glitch. Another, per book- hour limited to how many comments can earn cookies – it’s better you write that somewhere or give a notification to the commenter about that. The notification about the 3/3 free reads glitch too, sometimes it says 3/1,1/3,1/1 or not work. The cookies glitch sometimes too, id have 10 but when I try to unlock chapter it keeps saying I have none. Love yalls work!
If there is a person checking these comments. Can you please add a word/letter count to the bottom. Also sometimes the comments don’t stay within the chapter you read but throughout the whole book, please fix that glitch. Another, per book- hour limited to how many comments can earn cookies – it’s better you write that somewhere or give a notification to the commenter about that. The notification about the 3/3 free reads glitch too, sometimes it says 3/1,1/3,1/1 or not work. The cookies glitch sometimes too, id have 10 but when I try to unlock chapter it keeps saying I have none. Love yalls work!
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