I Killed My Husband (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 14
I hope dinner wasn’t too burdensome. Let’s set aside formalities.
Carlos greeted her with a smile.
You said you hoped it wouldn’t be burdensome, yet the food was far too abundant for two people, each dish elegantly plated.
“Oh, yes. Thank you for your thoughtfulness.”
The food on the table was excessive. At least her clothes were comfortable—she wouldn’t have to endure a corset. Mercedes cautiously moved toward the chair opposite the head of the table, at the far end.
“Oh, not there.”
Carlos stopped her.
“Yes?”
“It’s true I want you to be comfortable.”
Carlos stepped closer and extended his arm.
“Allow me the chance to make an impression on you.”
“Impression…?”
“Didn’t I say? I’m taken with you.”
Mercedes alternated her gaze between Carlos’s arm and his eyes.
In his dark pupils, she saw her own reflection.
His eyes revealed nothing, yet his expression as he looked at her was extraordinarily gentle.
“Let me say it again.”
Today, her heart truly felt at ease. She understood his thoughtfulness was extraordinary.
But she could not believe any man who claimed to be taken with her.
Elmond and Richard had both claimed to be taken with her—yet all they did was torment her.
She did not yet know him well. As someone whose spirit had been worn thin by years of abuse, she could only remain wary of Carlos.
“I am not a person worthy of your affection.”
She lowered her eyes and stepped back slightly. Touching someone who was wary was the most difficult thing for her.
Carlos had to lower his arm once again, meant to escort her.
“I dislike seeing you diminish your self-worth by saying such things… but it’s certainly clear I am not yet the one who can do anything for you.”
Yet there was no trace of awkwardness this time either. Instead, he spoke even more cheerfully.
“In any case, I’d like us to have dinner together every day and converse. It would be perfect if your heart gradually came to me.”
“….”
“But to do that, we must talk… and how difficult it is to speak across such a long table, with us seated so far apart—you must know that, don’t you?”
“…Yes. It’s hard to hear clearly.”
Mercedes agreed.
Sometimes, when she dined with Richard, she had actually preferred that his voice didn’t carry well.
“Exactly. So, I’d like to ask—would you consider sitting beside me? I’d gladly yield the head seat to you, but as Emperor, I have no choice.”
Carlos gestured to his own chair and the one beside it. Mercedes was slightly startled.
“Wouldn’t eating like this violate propriety?”
“I don’t want propriety from you. More accurately, I don’t wish to impose formalities between us.”
What on earth is this man?
Everyone expected her to become the “perfect Crown Princess.” The scrutiny and pressure were endless.
Yet the comfortable clothes he prepared for her—what were they for?
Moreover, Carlos himself wore a casual shirt and trousers, not his uniform. He looked utterly free. If this weren’t the imperial palace, someone might have pointed at them and asked if they were travelers.
In Shaym, she had once envied Carlos’s freedom.
But she had never considered his lifestyle—she had never experienced it.
So it was strange.
Everything Carlos had done for Mercedes today had shaken her heart. She hadn’t even realized she desired such things. How did Carlos know?
His thoughtfulness—so unfamiliar, yet precise, as if he had pondered her deeply—
It was, in a way, frightening.
“In any case, I wish to grow closer to you. Won’t you help me? This isn’t an order or a demand—it’s a request.”
“….”
Carlos moved naturally, pulling out her chair as he spoke.
“If you dislike it, I’m willing to wait until you grant me permission to share dinner. Don’t feel burdened.”
Mercedes walked over and sat down with a peculiar feeling.
She knew exactly when to sit, and pushed the chair in with such familiarity—it was as if he had done this countless times.
Perhaps he was a flirt?
Had he brought many women to him, claiming to be taken with them, then subjected them to such experiences before discarding them?
‘Then there was no need to tell me to live on through revenge.’
Wouldn’t it have been enough to simply seduce her? He’s the Emperor, after all. And…
‘He’s incredibly handsome.’
Men had always terrified and repulsed her—there was no room for trust. But even she knew that no one’s face shone brighter than the Emperor’s.
The more she thought, the more questions filled Mercedes.
And so, she couldn’t take her eyes off Carlos. An instinct compelled her to observe this man who seemed to possess everything suspiciously well.
“Oh. Seeing you look at me, it seems I’ve piqued your curiosity.”
“N-no? Ah, I’m sorry.”
Mercedes instantly turned her head away in fluster.
It was a mistake her former self would never have made.
She had long grown accustomed to lowering her gaze and closing her heart—why had she kept staring at him?
“Apologize? I find it pleasing. Mercedes.”
Carlos smiled warmly. The way he said “I” instead of “I, the Emperor” seemed humble and familiar.
Mercedes, seated in her place, watched as he cut his meat and replied softly.
“If His Imperial Majesty requests it, how could I refuse? I will dine with you.”
“So it’s a reluctant permission, tinged with coercion. Haha. Well, I’ll accept it as it is.”
He lifted his utensils cheerfully. Mercedes followed suit.
The sheer variety of dishes left even Mercedes, who adhered strictly to dining etiquette, momentarily uncertain where to begin.
In that brief pause, Carlos spoke.
“If it’s too overwhelming, I’ll reduce the number of dishes going forward.”
“Yes?”
“Today’s meal was prepared a bit too extravagantly. I ordered all these because you seemed too thin.”
“—How did His Majesty know?”
Without thinking, Mercedes impulsively asked, as Carlos continued their conversation so naturally.
Today, he seemed to read every thought in her mind.
She had spent her life suppressing emotion, remaining expressionless—no one had ever discerned her intentions.
“What?”
“That you’re reading all my thoughts.”
“Hmm. Mercedes, you don’t realize how transparent you are. When I follow your gaze, your thoughts become visible.”
“M-me? I’ve always been told I have no emotions…”
“That person who said that was terribly insensitive.”
Richard’s insensitivity.
‘He never had any sensitivity to begin with.’
Mercedes unknowingly sneered inwardly at her ex-husband—and then startled herself. It felt as if a little space had opened in her heart.
“I hope the food suits your taste.”
“Thank you for your thoughtfulness.”
Her surprise at Carlos’s act of cutting a thick steak and serving it to her herself was brief—Mercedes tasted food for the first time in a very long while.
Perhaps because she wasn’t facing death.
It was tender and savory. The meat melted softly on her tongue—an unfamiliar sensation.
‘So this is what taste is.’
She began eating more actively, more eagerly. The food perfectly suited her palate.
Spicy, sweet, bitter, yet mysteriously captivating. Fresh vegetables and perfectly roasted ones added delightful depth. The fruits were crisp and refreshingly tart.
She hadn’t entirely forgotten etiquette.
But perhaps because of her comfortable attire and the long-unfelt taste—
Mercedes ate with a speed far greater than usual, while still observing proper form. Every dish dissolved on her tongue, filling her heart with warmth.
Just as she felt her stomach full, a ganache cake, a strawberry fondue, and warm tea were placed before her—the final dessert.
‘…Oh. I’ve lost my mind. Truly.’
Seeing the dessert, she came back to her senses. Her stomach was already full. Only then did she realize how wildly she had eaten, like someone possessed.
Her face burned crimson.
“You eat well. It’s pleasing to see.”
Even then, Carlos spoke to her in his gentle voice.
That made it even more shameful. She had eaten like someone who hadn’t eaten in days, with someone right beside her, and hadn’t even noticed.
“I… the Empire’s cuisine is so delicious that I… forgot propriety. I apologize.”
Mercedes slowly offered her excuse, feeling utterly humiliated.
“What nonsense. Your dining etiquette was perfect. Is it a habit?”
Carlos asked, puzzled. Indeed, even as she devoured the food like a madwoman, she had used each utensil correctly, and not a single morsel had fallen.
“…It is, yes. But eating too quickly, devouring food so near His Majesty—”
“Because it was delicious and you lost yourself in it. The chef will be delighted. And so will I.”
It was a skill to interpret her negative tone so brightly.
“Oh. I was worried I’d feel ill, so from now on, please talk with me while you eat slowly.”
“Yes, I apologize.”
“And.”
Carlos slightly furrowed his brow and smiled, as if something displeased him.
“Please stop saying ‘I’m sorry.’”
“Huh?”
“I’ve heard ‘I’m sorry’ from you more than anything else.”
“Oh, I apologize—”
“See? It’s a habit.”
“…Yes, it is.”
She had lived a life of constant apologies—it was only natural.
This man seemed to observe her relentlessly. Was this what affection felt like?
“Your Majesty.”
Actually, to seek revenge against Count Cromwell, she ought to fulfill all his demands.
She deserved punishment for ignoring his escort, simply because it was uncomfortable.
The Emperor could have someone’s head cut off for even the slightest offense.
Yet it was strange.
He hadn’t done so. Perhaps his nature was kind—but he was also a war hero. Killing one person wouldn’t mean much to him.
“Why did you call me, Mercedes?”
His black eyes, meeting hers in response to her call, were unnervingly clear. In their dark depths, she saw herself reflected.
And so, without thinking, she asked.
“Hmm. Mercedes.”
“I heard you prepared these clothes for me. Is there a reason?”
It was a small thing—but for her, it required great courage. She had never dared to ask anything before.
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
_____
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MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (12)
If he continued to invest care like this, perhaps someday she would come to love him.
“…Time is the issue.”
But time was the problem. The time granted to him.
What was it? Was he terminally ill?
[Being Emperor is such a nuisance—urgent matters cannot be postponed.
I’m sorry to make you dine alone tonight.I’ll return soon. Will you wait for me?]
That’s sweet of him asked her to wait him 😄
I wonder what will the reaction of ML if he knows that they disrespect her 😬
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Blairwoods
I think it’s too fast to judge the ML but for now he looks quite good