The soft morning sunlight slowly spread across the room like an unfolding fan, tickling the faces of the soundly sleeping couple.
Yuriella smiled contentedly at the warmth she felt behind her back with her eyes closed. It was the warmth that had protected her throughout the night.
A warm and safe feeling she had never experienced in her past life where she only protected others. Feeling fulfilled as if she had become an extremely precious existence, Yuriella lingered for a long time even after waking up.
“Get up. It’s morning.”
The voice of the man who had stayed up all night protecting her was slightly hoarse and cracked.
Yuriella slowly opened her eyes, gently turned her body while still nestled in his arms, and lifted her gaze upward.
“Are you not angry anymore now?”
Beneath the silver eyelashes, the blue eyes she loved were smiling.
It was a blue color she couldn’t take her eyes off from the moment she first saw it. But Yuriella thought that at this very moment, she would probably never forget those eyes gazing only at her.
A blue that existed nowhere else in the world. A blue only she knew.
“I was never angry. I was worried. My wife is dangerous like a flame and elusive like the wind, not letting herself be caught.”
Frost stroked Yuriella’s strawberry blonde hair that was tousled on the bed, lowered his head, and kissed her forehead and the tip of her nose.
Cute wrinkles formed on the bridge of Yuriella’s freckled nose.
“It tickles.”
Frost chuckled with his lips still pressed and brushed her hair to one side. He wanted to hear her laughter a little more.
“I never regretted not being able to meet the spirit of my holy sword. But now I feel so frustrated I could cry.”
Frost caressed the flushed cheek of his wife, who had a puzzled expression.
“Do you know there’s an ability to stop time among the powers of the Sword of Ice?”
“Your Grace can also stop time?”
Frost shook his head.
“It is said that only the first owner of the holy sword Iello had the ability to stop time. Since the Ice Dragon has only appeared to the first owner, I’ve merely speculated that perhaps that power can only be used when the Ice Dragon is present.”
Frost told Yuriella that the power possessed by the holy sword Iello was ‘immutability’, rejecting aging, decay, and spoilage.
The wielder of the Ice Sword can freely manipulate ice and water, prevent decay and spoilage of the target with the sword’s innate coldness, and freeze an entire area.
As proven by the sword’s previous owners, they maintain a youthful appearance even in old age.
When the swordsmanship reaches the ultimate level, one can cut the flow of time and isolate the desired target in never-melting ice, sealed for eternity.
“It would be nice if I had the ability to stop time.”
Frost’s eyes were filled with longing as he gazed intently at Yuriella.
“If only that were possible. I could have this moment with you, have you, forever.”
Your small smile quietly looking at me.
The warmth of you entirely in my arms.
The trembling of the air shaken by your sweet laughter.
The sound of the wind gently hitting the window and the chirping of birds.
If this moment could become eternity. I would gladly drown in time and die.
“I should urge the Ice Dragon to search a little harder.”
“I heard from Popo. The reason the Ice Dragon doesn’t appear to its owner is because it doesn’t want to get its heart broken. Iello’s weakness is its fragile heart.”
“Yet it’s also a diligent fellow who never forgets to dutifully choose a new owner even while hiding away.”
Seeing the blue flames in his eyes gently curve, Yuriella swallowed a sigh.
If only she had the ability, she would want to stop this moment, this image, and keep it secretly without anyone knowing.
Because a relationship with separation as collateral felt like sand slipping through her fingers, leaving her feeling empty even while holding him tightly like this.
“You said the owner of the holy sword Iello doesn’t age. So Your Grace will continue to look just like this from now on?”
Yuriella’s eyes widened at the sudden realization.
“Come to think of it, you’ve had this face for several years! It’s because aging stopped for you, right?”
Yuriella’s brow furrowed as she meticulously examined Frost’s face.
He always walked around with such a grim expression, but he definitely had a more youthful face than his age.
“When I become a grandma, Your Grace will still be young and handsome like now, right?”
Even if we are to part soon. That’s one thing, this is another.
Yuriella’s lips twisted into a pout.
“Why did the Goddess only give the power of eternal youth to Iello among the holy swords? When they’re the same holy swords, this is blatant discrimination! We’re given the same mission to protect the world and go through the same hardships, so why does only Iello’s owner get to maintain their youth and beauty?”
“Well, that’s…”
Frost, flustered by the sudden change in mood, racked his brain for a topic that would make his wife laugh again.
“Sword masters also don’t age much once they reach the pinnacle-”
“In this body?”
Far from laughing, Yuriella’s lips protruded even more pointedly.
It was cute in its own way, making his heart flutter. But from experience, Frost had learned that now was absolutely not the time to laugh or try to kiss her.
“Since you lack in physical strength, as the owner of a holy sword, you might be able to do it to some extent if you raise your mastery? Think about it. You have two holy swords-”
“What’s the use of having two? One was taken by the Emperor. And the other only has a hilt.”
Yuriella abruptly sat up.
“As I thought, there’s no choice but to go to the East! I will definitely find the Bowstring of the Wind and become the proper owner of the holy sword Aeri! Then when Your Grace boasts eternal youth at 70, I can at least maintain the appearance of a middle-aged bakery lady, right?”
Seeing Yuriella crossing her arms and even deliberately snorting fiercely, Frost had no choice but to raise his hands in surrender.
Why did she suddenly bring up the issue of eternal youth out of nowhere?
She was slyly trying to change the topic to push through her intention of going to the East.
“Do you really have to go?”
“Please allow me to do what I have to do and can do.”
Meeting the clear and transparent red eyes looking straight at him, Frost let out a soft groan.
Although the color was different from the clear emerald eyes of Solas Moretti that he fell for at first sight, the same spirit shone sharply in those eyes.
“Alright. Let’s do that.”
He knew from the beginning it was a battle destined for defeat.
He knew the request for permission didn’t really require permission.
It was just the final courtesy of one who wished to stand in the position of a vassal.
“Go ahead first. I’ll take care of urgent matters and follow after you.”
“You too, Your Grace?”
Frost held his puzzled wife tightly, embracing her without any gaps.
“I, who knows the geography of the Eastern region well, will be more useful as a guide than Aeri who only slept for five hundred years.”
“A guide?”
“Don’t you remember? I told you the place I went to when I ran away at sixteen was the East.”
“So?”
Yuriella tilted her head, wondering what the connection was between the Duke’s runaway and the issue of finding Nicon.
“Since he is a subordinate you trust, he wouldn’t have forgotten his mission just because Aeri suddenly disappeared. He probably went missing while searching for the Bowstring of the Wind. If he can’t even receive contact from Aeri, there’s an area I suspect.”
“Where is that?”
“Mare Viola. It’s a plain with vast lavender fields. I almost died there, swept up by a strange whirlwind.”
“But the wind is constantly moving.”
Will the whirlwind Your Grace encountered at sixteen still be there?
Brushing aside the hair that fell on Yuriella’s forehead, Frost lowered his lips with a light touch.
“It wasn’t a naturally occurring wind. In the plain where there wasn’t a single breeze, it suddenly appeared. When I followed the strangely glowing yellow mass at the top, light pulsated from a stone as if it were a heartbeat.”
“I’ll have to ask Aeri. If he has seen such a stone.”
As Yuriella hurriedly got up, Frost’s strong arm swiftly wrapped around her waist and pulled her into his embrace.
“One more thing.”
On Frost’s tense face, where the playfulness had disappeared, there was an undisguisable worry and concern.
“After escaping the whirlwind back then, the village I stopped by was completely empty. The houses and livestock were still there, but the people had vanished into thin air.”
“Could it be… black magic?”
“In the East, they absolutely denied it. They jumped up and down, saying how dare we slander them when black magic had been eradicated long ago.”
“It’s absurd, considering the Dukes of Piguera, the lords of the East, have produced black magicians for generations.”
“The Pigueras may just be the tip of the iceberg.”
“We must go to Mare Viola right away.”
Frost buried his head on the shoulder of Yuriella, who looked ready to rush out at any moment, and spoke as if pleading.
“Promise me, Yuriella. That no matter what happens, you will prioritize your safety above all else.”
Yuriella couldn’t give him the answer he wanted.
“My top priority is always you, Frost Ielheim.”
“Yuriella.”
“So I’ll be extra, extra careful until Your Grace comes to the East. Because I’m Your Grace’s only healer. Your life and the future of the North are in my hands.”
Frost gazed quietly at the jewel-like red eyes looking up at him and let out a hollow laugh.
Why did this stingy woman, who called herself his healer even on the brink of death, look so beautiful?
There was never a moment when Yuriella didn’t look beautiful, but at this very moment, she was so beautiful it made him feel momentarily dazed.
Even without the power of the Ice Sword, he felt he could keep this moment forever.
Frost’s lips fell slowly on Yuriella’s forehead like large snowflakes.
As his lips descended along her straight nose bridge, Yuriella quietly closed her eyes.
[Hurry up. Let’s go quickly!]Aeri urged, knocking on the terrace door.
Swallowing his regret, Frost saw Yuriella off and headed to the Imperial Palace.
In the Leone Hall, nobles who shared his intentions had gathered.
Frost denounced the Emperor, stating that the detention of Duke Yovel was an illegal and procedurally disregarding act. He also issued a statement demanding the Emperor’s abdication in accordance with the procedures set by imperial law if Duke Yovel was not promptly released.
Although the person who issued the statement was Frost Ielheim, the Empire’s only Grand Duke, everyone knew that the person the Grand Duke supported was Lewis Della Ponti, the Emperor’s half-brother.
The eyes and ears of the Empire inevitably turned to the Imperial Palace.
A single word from the Emperor could be the starting point of a civil war.
Even if it didn’t lead to a civil war, it was evident that a storm of blood would sweep through the Empire.
However, using a cold as an excuse, the Emperor canceled all his schedules and ignored the requests of his close aides who begged for an audience, refusing to leave his bedchamber.
Even Empress Dowager Sophia and Duke Piguera, who visited several times a day out of worry, had to be turned away without setting foot in the Imperial Palace.
“How can we coordinate if you don’t tell us what you’re thinking!”
Duke Piguera grumbled to Empress Dowager Sophia, who was gazing at the Emperor’s bedchamber with a bitter face.
“Frankly, do battles, whether political or military, happen bare-handed? Are all those on the Emperor’s side his puppets? The further the distance, the more we need to grease the wheels for things to run smoothly!”
As he spoke, the blue veins on Duke Piguera’s forehead bulged out more prominently, perhaps from his rising anger.
“If he issues an order for full military mobilization, will the soldiers just grab weapons and rush out on their own? To feed them, clothe them, and put the right weapons in their hands, we need to gather military funds! For that, the Emperor, who is the center, needs to discuss with us! Discuss!”
The Empress Dowager, who had been glaring at the Duke with disdain, shook her head and clicked her tongue.
“Stop barking, elder brother.”
“Wh-what… did you say?”
Duke Piguera’s face flushed red with humiliation.
“Even if my son thinks with his feet, his thoughts will be superior to those coming from your head, so don’t worry and go back now.”
The Empress Dowager glanced at the Duke as if he were an insect and turned on her heel.
It was an excellent strategy to create tension between the North and South by collapsing all the iron mines that supported the North and swiftly detaining Duke Yovel as the mastermind.
The Empress Dowager’s steps, heading towards the carriage, abruptly stopped.
A flicker of unease passed through her eyes as she looked back at the Imperial Palace.
‘But why do I feel so anxious?’
Ever since hearing from the newly planted attendant in the Imperial Palace that her son spent all day playing with a black cat that ate rotten food, a stabbing pain had persisted in her chest.
Before the Empress Dowager’s carriage even reached the Swan Palace, her anxiety became reality.
“Immediately release Duke Yovel and fully reinvestigate the collapse of the Northern iron mines.”
The Emperor’s unexpected order was issued.
It was a decision made while wearing a noble uniform covered in cat hair, waving a toy with peacock feathers at a shabby cat.
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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