“I’m not that incapable. To be by your side, I need to be the most capable. Did I only ever show you my weak side?”
“Back then was easier, actually.”
Lu turned her head away and mumbled. Indeed, things were easier back then. She hadn’t anticipated that it would become this complicated.
“You did listen to me, except when I told you to leave.”
“Ah, so you prefer that tone? Shall we change it then?”
His tone shifted instantly. Holding her hand tighter, he whispered into her ear.
“I’m actually more comfortable with this tone too, Lu. Do you know how worried I was when we met again? I thought, ‘As an emperor, I should be polite, but what if she hates my lack of manners?'”
He chuckled and pulled away, making a kissing sound against her blushing ear. Ah, if he weren’t the emperor, she would’ve drawn a clear line right away.
“Done.”
In the span of their conversation, Hayden had also finished his magical ritual. He tapped the bracelet he had filled earlier.
“You should keep wearing this for now. And continue wearing the earrings I gave you before. They’ll help. By the way, since your left hand is weak, should I come by every day to assist you, Lu?”
Lu blinked hard.
“Go back to your original tone.”
He grinned.
“You said this was easier, didn’t you?”
“That was when I didn’t know who you were, and I was a nobody. Anyway, I was wrong. Stop using that tone.”
Hmm. Hayden looked up from inspecting her left hand.
“Please.”
She was already embarrassed, and if the Emperor used honorifics with her, it would create an uproar. When Lu had first arrived, Hayden speaking informally had helped her adjust.
“I can’t deny your request, but to be honest, I prefer you speaking informally to me.”
“I won’t.”
“Whenever you say that, I want to prove you wrong. Call me as you wish.”
“I refuse.”
Lu Rustica Gennes had been through so much, she didn’t have any expectations, so she didn’t get hurt. She was also quite reserved. One of his goals had been to break down her walls, but first and foremost, he needed to catch the scum who made them.
To solve the original problem, he had to eliminate the cause. The cause was the despicable Carlos Arthur Ingram, who had fled to Kalleta and erected barriers to hide. He was the common enemy of Lu and Hayden.
“…Your Majesty.”
“Yes, Miss Gennes.”
She spoke cautiously, and he replied lightly, using various titles.
“You’re incredibly stubborn and strong-willed.”
“Do you think you’re not?”
“I’m not that stubborn.”
He made a face as if he’d just heard the most absurd thing.
“Are you joking?”
“I’m serious.”
“What are you talking about? I learned that stubbornness from you.”
“Did I teach you to be so wasteful?”
Hayden answered while clasping and unclasping Lu’s left finger.
“People are usually most influenced by those they meet during their sensitive adolescence.”
Leaning back in his chair, he looked at Lu.
“I learned a lot.”
“I don’t think so…”
Lu looked at him skeptically.
“Why?”
“If you’d learned from me, you wouldn’t be so recklessly careless.”
She spoke sincerely.
“I did learn that I couldn’t live like you. If you live so rigidly, you can’t even breathe properly. Keep moving your hands. Make a fist. Open it. Repeat.”
Although his hands lacked strength, he heeded her nagging and clasped then unclasped Lu’s hand.
“…Am I really that reckless and careless?”
“Yes.”
With a firm answer, Hayden glanced at Lu.
“…Do you dislike such a man?”
Even as she looked at him with her eyes narrowed, Lu responded firmly.
“Yes.”
“Strange. Usually, people are attracted to a man who is moderately bad and moderately crazy in love.”
My God. Lu looked at the ceiling.
“I don’t have such a taste in men. Please think rationally, Your Highness.”
Now even Lu began to speak like Simon Caineberg, the noisy and nagging hundred courtiers. However, Hayden disregarded her words and continued his line of questioning.
“Do you love with your head?”
Lu was at a loss for words. What on earth was he saying?
“That’s my line. When I first saw you, I thought you were the prettiest person in the world. What more do you need, Your Highness?”
He spoke so calmly, with such a rational face, but the words were far from rational. Oh, her heart was fluttering uncontrollably just from his words. Lu scolded herself and acted like she didn’t notice.
“I really don’t know what you’re thinking, Your Highness.”
“That’s the point. Where can you find someone as transparent as me? Rustica Gennes, when you even slightly smile, I wag my tail like a dog.”
My God. Lu was speechless.
“People usually never forget someone who extends a helping hand when they’ve hit rock bottom.”
That was true.
“Thrown into battle, I thought the world was peaceful since I was far from the royal disputes. Either get beaten up or get killed by a monster. But then there was someone who smiled without uttering a curse. How could one not fall for that?”
Ah, it was getting clearer. To the blonde boy, wearing a helmet too large for him, armor that didn’t fit, clutching a mismatched sword, Lu smiled and asked. The boy was covered in wounds.
‘Do you want some of my bread? I have some left today.’
She, too, had rolled around the battlefield, her hair disheveled and her clothes filthy, but she offered him clean bread with freshly washed hands and separately acquired milk.
Lu tapped the back of the greedily eating boy soldier, and looked around to see if anyone was watching. She made another promise for tomorrow. Yes, she had.
“I thought you were an angel. I had been praying every night for my dead mother to take me, too. I thought you were an angel she sent.”
Just as her heart was about to ache for him, Hayden changed his expression.
“Of course, I knew you weren’t. An angel wouldn’t feed me and then rigorously train me in swordsmanship. Remember that?”
Every time Hayden spoke, Lu’s forgotten memories resurfaced. She shook her head as shamelessly as possible.
“Not at all.”
It seemed like she had coldly answered the boy soldier, who was resisting the training, that if he didn’t like it, he could get devoured by a monster. She didn’t remember. Let’s say she didn’t.
“Quite a convenient memory you have. Well, fine. Even if you don’t remember, it ends when I catch you.”
“You’ve already repaid me more than enough.”
At Lu’s hesitant words, Hayden raised his head.
“What I’ve done for Your Highness, it’s as if you’ve already repaid me with what you’ve done for me this time.”
“No, it’s not enough.”
He clenched and unclenched his fist several times.
“You saved me when I was at rock bottom.”
He described the brief consideration as ‘saving.’
“So, in the same way, I will stand by your side when you are at your weakest.”
The difference was that even at rock bottom, Rustica Gennes shined brilliantly. Therefore, it wasn’t about pulling her up to stand by his side; rather, he willingly stood by hers.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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