Whether it was due to the heat or it was natural, their initially clumsy kisses gradually deepened and Mercedes’ outer garments were naturally removed.

The moment Carlos saw the slip she was wearing, his eyes widened.

Her dress wasn’t without exposure either, but this… Carlos ignored the heat rising in his body and made his voice as gentlemanly as possible.

“…Beautiful. Mel.”

“Ca. rlos.”

Mercedes carefully responded to his term of endearment. Pronouncing his nickname for the first time felt unfamiliar yet somehow ticklish.

The pale pink slip that clearly revealed the silhouette of her body and had a low-cut neckline suited her very well. She looked several times more captivating than usual. She was already a mesmerizing person to begin with.

Carlos held onto his sanity that seemed about to snap, rubbed his nose against hers, and asked for permission.

“Can I kiss you again?”

His whisper felt more than just ticklish, as if it was penetrating her body. Mercedes barely managed to nod. Her heart felt like it would burst.

“…Yes.”

As Mercedes nodded, Carlos swiftly lifted her waist, placed her on his lap, and kissed her neck and collarbone. Mercedes unconsciously shrank back and let out a small moan.

It was a strange feeling.

Then they kissed again.

The dark room, Carlos with a light in his eyes that she had never seen before directed at her. A space just for the two of them.

All of this was really strange and… nice. Yes. It wasn’t just that she didn’t dislike it.

His soft lips touching hers. The burning heat. The second kiss was even thicker and more intense than the first one. It was fierce too.

As if he had been waiting and longing for something he wanted for a very long time, Carlos was desperate. Even as he vaguely realized why he was acting this way, he couldn’t stop.

Mercedes clung to him.

She seemed to understand the reason for taking off clothes on the first night. She wanted to share the heat rising in her body with that person.

She instantly realized how this night would unfold. She would never be able to escape from his embrace. No, she wouldn’t.

Carlos, with his nice tanned skin and large build, preciously embraced Mercedes. The pale and slender her willingly melted into his arms.

It was something he didn’t know well. But Carlos instinctively proceeded to the next stage. He lightly lifted her up and headed towards the bed.

Carlos placed Mercedes on the bed, straddled over her, and brushed aside the beautiful hair that had messed up her cheeks.

Now if they cross the line.

For the first time, truly, they would come into contact with each other.

It was different from when they just held hands.

“…Is this okay?”

Without realizing it, Mercedes asked while looking up at Carlos who was on top of her on the bed.

She was also afraid to enter a world she didn’t know like this. Carlos always knew the answer. She asked because it felt good yet scary.

“It’s your choice. If you dislike it, I won’t do it.”

After answering, Carlos shut his mouth and frantically examined her eyes.

He wasn’t smiling leisurely like usual. He couldn’t afford to be at ease. The eyes shining towards him.

For four months, the precious green eyes that shone brighter and brighter… and filled with more and more conviction.

He wanted to swallow those eyes whole leaving nothing behind.

Even Carlos himself didn’t know when such desire had taken root within him.

“My choice…”

Mercedes was trembling while looking at Carlos. As if she was frightened.

But it wasn’t out of fear.

It was just that his eyes staring at her as if they would devour her made her shiver.

And that shiver was so much to her liking.

That’s why her body trembled.

“You’re shaking. If you’re very scared and hate it… anything beyond this-”

Carlos belatedly came to his senses and whispered kindly, suppressing his greed. But his expression was stiffly hardened.

He was going crazy wanting to release the heat trapped in his body that was getting sore.

“I… said I don’t hate it. I’m just. Nervous. So I asked because I wanted to feel reassured. I don’t know these things. If it’s okay. If it’s right for my heart to feel like it will explode like this…”

Mercedes eventually confessed honestly that she was nervous. Carlos thought she was adorable like that.

To think he found her adorable.

It shouldn’t happen.

But he couldn’t stop.

“…That’s right. That would be the right thing.”

Because of the lovely her, the heat surged up even more.

Mercedes, who saw Carlos trying to calm his heart to embrace her with the most refined touch, suddenly put her arms around his neck, wrapped her legs around his body, and hugged him.

It was clumsy but he could feel it.

It was as if she was saying, ‘Don’t think. Just hold me.’

There was no way he could keep his reason in that situation. He urgently held her.

The heat and desire of the two mixed together on the bed.

Indulging in, devouring, and stealing the breath of each other.

The night was long.

* * *

At dawn, Mercedes, exhausted from being tormented by Carlos for a long time, couldn’t resist her drowsiness.

And before falling asleep, she mumbled her last words.

“Stay by my side… Carl. I want to see you tomorrow morning too…”

“…I’ll do that.”

All the things she poured out today. That her heart felt like it would burst, that she wanted him. Could all of those… be seen as a confession? Could he think of it as a token of love?

It was ambiguous. Because the word ‘love’ didn’t flow out from her mouth. It was difficult to gauge whether he could kill her right away. It seemed like he had to postpone it for now.

Actually, it might have been a matter of his own heart. But Carlos easily turned away from his feelings.

And he just stared at the sleeping Mercedes for a long time. Sleep didn’t come. It was a bit, no, very. Insufficient. He wanted to touch her more and more, shower her with kisses.

But at the same time, he realized that there should be no more nights like this.

The night was dangerous.

The emotions he had carefully groomed until now might run wild.

Mercedes nestled in his arms was so small, soft, lovely, and captivating.

‘Damn this curse…’

He thought the condition of love was childish.

If he kept having these moments of contact with her like this, he didn’t know what would happen to him either.

If only she wasn’t such a wonderful person. If she wasn’t so lovely and beautiful, would it have been okay?

“…Mel. Don’t forgive me.”

It was a truly cruel curse.

Still, Carlos believed he could handle it. Because what mattered most to him was ruling the empire well and surviving.

So at dawn, when the sunrise brightened, he left the bed, gazed at the sword hanging on the wall, and caressed the sheath.

“It’ll be fine.”

And late in the morning, close to lunchtime.

When Mel woke up, he could greet her with his usual relaxed smile by her side.

He was okay.

* * *

On the day Count Cromwell entered the palace, coincidentally, a gift arrived from the emperor.

The anger of the count who couldn’t attend the coronation ceremony dissipated in an instant. Because among the luxurious items, there was a letter stamped with the emperor’s seal.

It was a small letter containing gratitude for giving his daughter to him and asking for his continued support in the future. There was no mention of Bruno at all. It was intentional. In case it was revealed that Bruno was a false knight, to have room for denial.

But the count didn’t even notice that. The letter, which also included an apology for not being able to invite him to the coronation, felt more precious than any jewel.

‘I can get anything I want today.’

It was a truly great day. There were so many things to support the count as he entered the palace.

Mercedes’ invitation, a letter and gift stamped with the emperor’s seal, Richard’s illegitimate child, and even the emperor’s knight who would quietly escort by his side!

He entered the palace with a very excited heart.

And when he met the king in the audience room, he behaved very politely as always.

“I heard you disobeyed my order and arbitrarily lifted your confinement. I’m very disappointed.”

The king was very angry. Of course, the news of Mercedes’ coronation as empress had also reached Shaim.

But he never imagined that Mercedes, who had put the Cromwell family on the verge of extinction, would send an invitation to the count.

Count Cromwell looked at the angry king and smiled very brightly.

“Your Majesty. I have something to show you.”

The count, who opened his mouth even before he could rebuke, was infuriating.

He should just listen well and think about properly using the private soldiers he always boasted about in the territory battle, what could he possibly show?

Thanks to Count Cromwell, there were things gained, but after all, he was the main culprit who made him lose his son, so annoyance surged up.

However, the king was so tired that he was even exhausted to get angry at someone recently. It was because as the internal strife of the nobles intensified, it became difficult to push for the Petty Duke. So he just sighed and answered curtly, “Show me.”

“This is an invitation to the empress coronation ceremony sent by my daughter – Mercedes, and this is a personal letter sent to me by the emperor of Room. It treats me as the parent of his wife.”

“…What?”

“So I had no choice. I was invited to my daughter’s em, press, co, ro, na, tion ceremony held in Room, so how could I not attend as a parent? I couldn’t go and was blocked due to the port situation… Please understand it as a parent’s duty.”

Cromwell spoke smoothly without even wetting his lips.

The king was at a loss for words. The emperor of Room, the empress of Room were calling for him… They invited him from the country Shaim was most conscious of. He couldn’t say anything.

Not missing the momentum in front of the perplexed king, the count continued.

“Also, the emperor of Room has secretly, this is truly confidential so please keep it a secret. He sent his knight to me. These days, I’ve been intensively training the private soldiers. As per Your Majesty’s will, I was diligently confining myself and disciplining the morale of the private soldiers!”

At the count’s words, Bruno stepped forward, showed the emperor’s insignia, and knelt down. No matter how one looked at it, it seemed genuine, so the king was flustered.

“…What…”

“Also.”

Cromwell gestured to the nanny he brought. The nanny brought the baby she was holding with a frightened face and showed it to the king. The king was startled as soon as he saw the baby.

The shock was clearly visible on his face.

The baby looked too much like his son, Richard.

“Rejoice. We have found the illegitimate child of the deceased Crown Prince. Someone who has the qualifications to sit on the throne!”

Count Cromwell smiled broadly, making a dramatic voice.

In contrast, the king’s face hardened in an instant.