Picked Up a Beast, Turns Out He's an Emperor (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 10
The gazes of passersby at the open-air dessert café were drawn to the man and woman seated at a corner table.
More precisely, their eyes were fixed on the young man who sat with his long legs elegantly crossed, his broad rectangular shoulders and inverted triangular torso held perfectly upright with not a single hair out of place.
As if indifferent to others’ stares, his eyes—sharp and noble like rubies—remained fixed on the woman before him.
“Do you like it?”
Arabella, who had just experienced the remarkable sensation of an entire wild strawberry dissolving in her mouth within a chocolate gelato, nodded in response to the Emperor’s question.
So this was how rich and sweet chocolate could be. She took one of the round chocolate truffles from the three-tiered tray, popped it into her mouth, and beamed with happiness.
Her plump pink cheeks, the fullest part of her body, bulged adorably around the chocolate. Seeing Arabella so relaxed, the Emperor’s lips curled upward at both corners.
Though he normally detested sweets and never ate chocolate, watching her chew so earnestly somehow stirred his salivary glands. The Emperor picked up a milk-filled chocolate ball she’d just eaten from and brought it to his own mouth.
As expected, sweetness was simply not to his taste. He furrowed his brow slightly and forced the chocolate down his throat.
“You’ll be able to eat dessert like this every day once we return to the palace. It’ll help you gain some weight.”
Maxwell was bewildered—and even embarrassed—by the undignified words slipping from his lips against his will. His tone kept sounding like that of a scheming bachelor sweet-talking a village maiden into joining him in the capital with promises of daily treats.
And worse, he’d even added that unnecessary remark about how her weight gain had anything to do with him.
‘She needs to gain at least twenty pounds more to bear my weight…’
Remembering the softness of her body as he mulled over why she needed to gain weight, the Emperor gulped down his hot Earl Grey tea in one go.
“Gah…!”
Scalded on the roof of his mouth and throat by the hot tea, the Emperor let out a pained groan, prompting Arabella to startle and offer her handkerchief.
“Are you all right?”
“F-fine. Just choked a bit.”
Flustered, the Emperor stuffed a bite of Arabella’s chocolate mousse cake into his mouth and chewed noisily as he answered.
‘Of course I’m concerned about her health—it’s tied to my curse. That’s all.’
He told himself this, rationalizing his actions.
At the opposite corner of the café, two massive men who looked entirely out of place squeezed their bulky frames onto small chairs, keeping watch over the Emperor and Arabella.
They brought dainty rose-patterned teacups—so small a thick finger couldn’t even fit through the handle—to their lips.
“This is a first. His Majesty taking an unusually long break for no reason… and more than that, enjoying dessert with a noblewoman at an open-air café just like any ordinary young couple. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it.”
“He’s gone incognito before to monitor regional lords, but this—hiding his identity simply to enjoy personal time—is truly unprecedented.”
Sir Jacob and Sir Peter, who had served Maxwell since his days as Crown Prince, were witnessing a rare sight they’d never seen before.
Though the Emperor insisted this was an “incognito inspection” to better understand conditions outside the capital, instead of his usual entourage of knights in plainclothes… he had come down to the village alone with Lady Arabella.
Dressed as an utterly ordinary provincial noble.
Their current scene closely resembled courting—where young couples get to know each other before becoming officially involved.
Moreover, with no chaperone accompanying the young lady during her meeting with a man, it looked less like courting and more like a date between established lovers.
“His Majesty’s eyes are smiling.”
Commander Jacob murmured softly, and Deputy Commander Peter subtly turned his head halfway to examine the Emperor’s expression without being obvious.
“His lips may smile often, but his eyes never have… yet now, his eyes are genuinely happy.”
Others claimed Emperor Maxwell had been born without emotion—said the gods withheld it so his flawless intellect and reason wouldn’t be clouded by sentiment in service of the empire.
But as the late Crown Prince’s closest friend and Maxwell’s personal guards, these two loyal knights knew better: Maxwell hadn’t been born without emotion—he’d had to erase it to survive.
From birth, he became the target of relentless palace intrigue for the throne and constant assassination attempts. Before ever learning love or trust from people, he was taught hatred and betrayal.
The two knights remembered how young Crown Prince Maxwell had once looked up to his uncle Gustav as a father and Duchess Caroline Lecain as a mother.
He’d even taken the masked face of Empress Dowager Natali—his grandfather’s wife, though unrelated by blood—as genuine kindness, calling her “grandmother.”
Sycophants once swarmed the young prince, invoking the names of his late father and kidnapped mother merely to win his favor.
To him, emotions—those that clouded his rational judgment—had been his greatest threat to existence.
When every plate on the table had been emptied, the Emperor slowly opened his reluctant mouth, feeling oddly unsatisfied.
“Shall we head back to the barracks?”
He’d been ready to indulge her if she asked to explore the village, but Arabella nodded without hesitation.
His mood inexplicably dampened, the Emperor began to rise—when Arabella hesitantly spoke.
“But… Your Majesty,”
“What is it? Don’t hesitate. We still have plenty of time. We don’t need to return right away.”
Holding onto a sliver of hope, the Emperor hastily cast his lure, his eyes radiating reassurance that she should feel free to visit other places.
But, as always, she defied his expectations.
“Your Majesty… there’s chocolate on your lips.”
Blushing slightly in embarrassment, Arabella’s reply made the Emperor’s lips twitch. He dismissed the feeling not as disappointment, but as shame—at the indignity of the Emperor himself wandering about with chocolate smudged carelessly on his mouth.
He picked up a napkin and wiped his mouth haphazardly before setting it down. Arabella spoke again.
“Oh… it’s still there.”
“Where? Here?”
“No, just below. Or… a little to the side…”
Her round eyes lingered anxiously on his lips. Though her gaze held no hint of flirtation, he felt heat rising to his mouth and swallowed hard.
His eyes glinted momentarily, narrowing slightly.
Setting the napkin down on the table, the Emperor said gruffly,
“We can’t afford to waste any more time. Hmph… no choice. You’ll have to help me.”
The Emperor, who’d just insisted they had plenty of time, now reversed himself and urged haste.
Meeting Arabella’s bewildered gaze, he spoke in as dry a tone as possible.
“We must return to the barracks at once, so I’ll need you to wipe my lips for me.”
Arabella’s eyes widened in shock, but she quickly replied in a cautious yet steady voice.
“How could I possibly lay hands on Your Majesty’s person? Moreover, such a gesture between unmarried young men and women is inappropriate—it would bring no good to Your Majesty.”
She was right. Imperial custom tolerated affectionate gestures only between spouses or betrothed couples; for unmarried, unannounced pairs, such behavior was strictly forbidden.
He’d noticed before—Arabella could be surprisingly resolute. The Emperor gazed at her, momentarily thoughtful.
“Very well. Since I can’t see where the chocolate is, I’ll just have to go as I am. Let people whisper and point fingers about my lack of decorum—it’s my own carelessness, and I’ll accept the consequence. Hah…”
He deliberately avoided meeting Arabella’s eyes as he let out a long sigh.
“Mark my words—gossips who recognize me as Emperor will feast on this for ages. Don’t worry, though. Even if they mock me behind my back, none would dare do so to my face. Now, let’s go.”
Lowering the ever-proud chin he usually held high, the Emperor slowly rose—
“If you’ll permit me… I’ll wipe it for you.”
At Arabella’s words, the lips on his lowered face quivered briefly before settling.
She couldn’t let His Majesty become public gossip. Arabella clenched her fists, flared her nostrils, and made up her mind.
With an expression bordering on solemn, she raised her handkerchief. As she reached her arm across the table, the Emperor leaned forward, thrusting his long neck out slightly—and even puckered his enchanting red lips as if he’d been waiting.
Arabella brought the handkerchief to his face, carefully wiping the corner of his lower left lip while he kept his eyes closed, entrusting himself to her. Though she wasn’t afraid, her heart pounded wildly, and she gripped her trembling hand tighter.
Just as Arabella finished cleaning his lips and moved to withdraw the handkerchief—suddenly, something hot and wet slid slowly, deliberately across her fingertips. She gasped, frozen, and dropped the handkerchief.
It had unmistakably come from inside the Emperor’s mouth. Her wide, round brown eyes darted helplessly before she quickly lowered her gaze in flustered confusion.
The Emperor opened his eyes, revealing crimson irises, and spoke with perfect nonchalance.
“Oh dear—I had my eyes closed and mistook your fingers for the handkerchief. I just wanted to taste the chocolate on it before it was wasted.”
His crimson eyes, glazed with satisfaction, pinned her fleeing brown ones. His tongue—redder than his irises—slowly traced his lips, as if demonstrating exactly how he’d licked her fingers.
The scalding sensation still vividly lingered on her fingertips, making her heart hammer so loudly she feared the Emperor might hear. She clenched her fists on her lap until her knuckles turned white.
Arabella wasn’t the only one who’d dropped her handkerchief.
The café server bringing the Emperor’s chocolate box, the young women peeking through the glass at his handsome face, and even his knights seated across the room—all stood with jaws agape, unable to close their mouths.
****
“I’m so happy to finally see the ‘Mountain of the Lake’ I’ve only heard about in stories.”
On their way back to the mountain where the barracks had been prepared, Arabella gathered her courage to speak.
The Emperor, who had shortened his stride to match hers, playfully raised an eyebrow.
“So you didn’t know the southern peak of the Healing Ice Mountains is called the ‘Mountain of the Lake’?”
“It’s a name given by hikers. The trees are so tall and densely packed that from the neighboring summit, their lush canopies resemble a lake. Seeing it with my own eyes… it truly is beautiful.”
Arabella began chattering animatedly like a little bird, her usual shyness and reserve nowhere to be found.
With a bright, energetic expression, she named every tree and plant they passed, even explaining which animals lived among them.
“Our mountain is so rocky that wild animals struggle to build dens, but this place is perfect for them. A single birch tree can shelter families of owls, squirrels, foxes, badgers—you’d find five or six species living together. It’s a truly generous forest for hiding from hunters.”
The damp, mossy, unremarkable forest transformed under Arabella’s words into a vibrant, living tapestry of color and life.
Not only the Emperor, but his guards behind them—who had quietly begun listening—now looked up to take in the forest around them for the first time.
Strangely enough, they began noticing the mystical plants and animals Arabella described. At that moment, the forest seemed more beautiful than the bustling village in Count Laurell’s famed southern estate.
“I never knew this eucalyptus tree—where we rested from the sun during battles—had a name.”
After Arabella entered the tent prepared for her, one of the soldiers seated by the campfire spoke up. The others nodded, glancing around at the forest.
“Suddenly, I feel like picking up a paintbrush I haven’t touched in years—just to paint this mountain. Ha, ha.”
“Commander, Deputy Commander—His Majesty awaits you inside the tent.”
Counselor Kael relayed the message to Sir Jacob and Sir Peter, who had been chatting with the soldiers.
As the two knights entered the tent with Kael, the Emperor turned to greet them—wearing silver-mesh plated armor.
To his wide-eyed knights, he spoke in a chilling tone.
“Tonight, I’ll set fire to the forest on the opposite bank of the river. Burn the lower woods to split the mountain in two and cut off the rat vermin’s escape.”
“Rat… vermin, Your Majesty?”
“Didn’t you see them in the village earlier? They were disguised, but clearly soldiers from the Northwest Continental Alliance. I knew Count Laurell was strengthening his army with the Alliance—but now he’s clearly importing new weapons. The blades hanging in the village’s mill and butcher shop weren’t from our Empire.”
The Emperor slid his longsword back into its scabbard and concluded,
“We’ll strike his castle simultaneously while his forces are distracted by the fire.”
The three men in the tent stared at the Emperor, speechless. Each was a renowned knight celebrated across the continent—yet none could compare to the Emperor, whose mind was as sharp as his animal-like instincts.
“But… won’t half the forest turn to ash?”
Deputy Commander Peter asked hesitantly. The Emperor turned his gaze to him.
Gone was the playful ruby gleam he’d shown in the village. Now, cold, merciless crimson eyes sent a shiver down their spines.
His emotionless, low voice dragged the air in the tent down toward the floor.
“So? Is that a problem?”
At his brief question, the three knights bowed their heads and readied themselves to obey his command.
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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I’m not yet convinced this is a curse. There are a lot of questionable events. Why would a black panther kidnap a princess?
I’ve been wondering just how he intends to keep her alive and unharmed enough to even attempt lifting the curse. I don’t believe these classes will be enough if she only had four days.
Is she not concerned because the emperor told her she wasn’t going to become the empress regardless? He explicitly stated she only needed to break his curse & that she wouldn’t become the empress as she wasn’t qualified (I don’t recall his precise wording).