Received the Obsession of a Chaste Dark Lord - Chapter 51

Leoprick was dressed lightly.

As if he could go to bed at any moment.

While I was staring at him with wide eyes, unable to do anything, Betty quietly closed the door.

“I think you should change your clothes in the dressing room, Your Highness.”

And she approached and whispered quietly.

Brought to my senses by her voice, I threw a question at Leoprick before answering Betty.

“What brings you here, Your Highness?”

“Yesterday’s conversation isn’t over yet, is it?”

He answered as if it were obvious.

Yesterday’s conversation, he said.

What he talked about yesterday was only about sharing a room.

Surely he doesn’t mean to do it right now?

I felt my body freeze in place.

He didn’t seem like the type to push things so suddenly and forcefully.

I was about to say something more to him, but thought I should send Betty out first.

“…I’ll go change my clothes first, Your Highness.”

“Yes. I’ll be waiting, Amelia.”

Leaving Leoprick’s gentle smile behind, I went into the dressing room with Betty.

After entering the room and firmly closing the door leading to the bedroom, I finally fully revealed my flustered state.

“Why on earth is His Highness here at this hour?”

When I asked Betty, she also shook her head with a noticeably bewildered face.

“I haven’t heard anything either, Your Highness.”

“So all my maids kept their mouths shut?”

“If the Crown Prince ordered them to keep quiet.”

Betty looked as dumbfounded as my expression.

Usually in this case, wouldn’t they at least give a hint to Betty?

Whoever cleaned my room tonight, it seemed like something that needed to be addressed.

I sighed deeply and pressed my forehead.

“Let’s change clothes first. We’ll find out the details tomorrow.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“When you go down to the dormitory, find out who was the last person to clean the room. If everyone is asleep and there’s no one to ask, don’t bother and get some rest yourself.”

“Most of the maids go to bed late, so it should be fine. But as you said, if no one is awake, I’ll ask first thing in the morning.”

At my words, Betty lightly nodded and brought me a change of clothes.

There’s a lot I want to talk about, but considering the person waiting outside, it’s hard to have a long conversation.

I quickly changed clothes and briefly washed myself with water provided in one corner of the dressing room.

“If the conversation seems like it will take long, shall I bring some tea?”

“No. He’ll probably leave soon. You should go rest too, Betty.”

I shook my head at Betty’s words and opened the door leading to the bedroom again.

I wished what I saw earlier was a dream, but it didn’t seem to be the case.

I slightly opened the door and peeked outside.

Leoprick was still there, leisurely drinking tea.

…I wonder how he’ll try to impose his will this time.

I recalled how he had flustered me yesterday by revealing his true feelings.

They say there’s no stronger weapon than honesty.

With a small sigh, I gestured to Betty.

“Good work, Betty. Go and rest.”

“Yes, Your Highness. Call me if you need anything.”

With that, Betty left and I went to sit across from Leoprick.

“If you had sent someone, you wouldn’t have kept me waiting long.”

If he had only mentioned coming to my room tonight when we met earlier.

Then I probably would have wrapped up work appropriately and returned.

No matter what, he is the Crown Prince of a nation, and it’s not polite to keep someone waiting for long.

But he just smiled at my slightly unpleasant remark.

“I didn’t wait long. I haven’t been here for very long, and I know it’s rude to be in someone’s room without the owner present.”

“No, it’s not that it’s rude…”

“I just didn’t want to disturb you, so I told them not to notify you.”

“If it was urgent, you could have told me tomorrow. I guess you wanted to quickly resolve what you talked about yesterday.”

Even at his gentle and soft words, I couldn’t hide my displeasure.

It’s a bit weird to be in someone’s room without them there, but I was more uncomfortable that he came to talk about yesterday’s matter.

If he wants to get closer to me by sharing a room, of course there are also accompanying political advantages…

But did he really have to come in the middle of the night to talk about it?

Couldn’t he have talked about it during the day when we were eating?

Acting like nothing happened during the day, and now coming.

“When you do this, it makes me think all the gifts you sent me during the day were for this moment, Your Highness.”

So I deliberately acted mean.

In a slightly sharp tone, I said things I normally wouldn’t.

Of course, it’s true that he acted in a way to make me think that way, but normally I wouldn’t have said it out of concern it might hurt him.

But this time, he really went too far.

Choosing such a sudden shared room as a way to get closer.

It would have been better if he had sent gifts like today, had meals together, and spent time together.

If he had touched my heart little by little that way, perhaps I could have considered opening the door to my heart once.

Then my mood wouldn’t have been this bad.

But this makes me think everything that happened during the day was just a prelude to the night.

With a small sigh, I looked at him.

“If you want, we can share a room, but I believe you remember that there was no heir clause in the contract we signed on our wedding day.”

I tried to speak in a calm tone and brought up the notarized contract.

Sharing a room means that.

But he clearly didn’t agree to step aside when someone else came along for him in the future.

In that situation, what’s the point of sharing a room to get closer, as he suggests?

Moreover, if it’s sharing a room just for the heart without any promises about the future.

I couldn’t hide my growing displeasure.

“Wait, just a moment, Amelia.”

He, who had been listening to me silently, opened his mouth with a somewhat dumbfounded face.

“An heir? Why is an heir relevant to sharing a room?”

“What?”

This time it was Leoprick who made a dumbfounded face at my words.

An heir.

He muttered with a somewhat dumbfounded face.

“Where in my words did you get that idea? I didn’t say anything other than suggesting we share a room.”

“…Isn’t that the same thing? Sharing a room usually means sleeping together.”

Among nobles, when a married couple is said to share a room, it’s commonly understood to mean sleeping together and doing what married couples do.

Couples in political marriages only combine rooms when necessary.

Among them, some occasionally share a room, not out of necessity, but simply because they have a good relationship.

So, there was enough room for me to interpret his suggestion to share a room in that sense.

But it seems Leoprick had a slightly different idea.

“Yes. It usually literally means sleeping together too.”

Judging by the way he’s looking at me like I’m strange.

“Then you really meant literally sharing a room…”

“As you said, between a couple who even drafted a contract on their wedding night, how could I do that without any discussion with you?”

Leoprick firmly retorted.

“Suggesting we share a room wasn’t meant to recklessly share a room and sleep together like other couples.”

At those words, I came to my senses a little.

So, I had been mistaken all this time?

He didn’t have such thoughts, but I had misunderstood?

“I meant it literally, Amelia.”

“Then those words…”

“We each do our own work and live our own daily lives, then go to our own rooms to sleep, so we don’t have time to spend together. We don’t even have time to share the events of the day.”

“…”

“I suggested sharing a room in the sense of at least spending time together.”

Leoprick explained in a soft tone.

He really didn’t mean to go that far, and it was purely literal.

“No matter how much ill intent you think I have towards you, I won’t do anything that would make you uncomfortable or displeased, Amelia.”

He concluded his words really plainly and firmly.

Ah. Truly.

I feel like hiding in a mouse hole if there was one.

“I, I see. Since you talked about being like other couples since the honeymoon, I just thought…”

“Still, I wouldn’t do such a thing without getting your consent.”

I can’t do that to someone I want to look good to.

A hint of playfulness was evident in his voice.

Then it was all just my misunderstanding.

But then what was that dangerous and precarious atmosphere yesterday?

I buried my face in my hands to hide my suddenly flushed face upon the realization.

I thought I heard a small laugh from across from me.

We decided to combine rooms as soon as possible.

There was one more room between my room and his, and we decided to make that room our marital bedroom.

And we also decided to bring in the largest bed possible.

“It’s probably old and will need a lot of work. If there’s anything else you want to change besides the bed, please let me know. I’ll tell Arnold to prepare it.”

We decided to leave the room decoration to Betty and his assistant Arnold.

Both of us were too busy to even pay attention to decorating the room.

“Betty knows my tastes well, so it should be fine. I’ll let you know if I need anything. Is there anything you particularly want, Your Highness?”

“Arnold already knows my preferences too. They’ll take care of what’s needed on their end.”

“Then let’s proceed that way. Until the room is fully set up, we’ll alternate staying in your room one day and my room the next.”

“I have no objections. That’s a good idea.”

Once I realized it wasn’t going in the direction I thought, it was easy to discuss what came next.

I smoothly found a compromise with him and he listened to my words without much comment, contrary to my expectations.

I thought he would tease me about my misunderstanding.

Inwardly grateful, I briefly summarized what we had discussed.

“Then once the room arrangement is finished, we’ll each move our belongings. It’s best not to say anything else to the palace staff.”

It would be best to simply explain to the public that the room renovation took longer than expected, delaying our shared room.

I told Leoprick that and leaned back on the sofa with a much more relaxed face.

“Is there anything you’d like to add?”

And I asked him.

If there was anything more he wanted regarding this matter.

He said there wasn’t.

“Just you agreeing to share a room is enough. I don’t wish for anything else.”

“Then let’s proceed like this. Please let me know if there’s anything you want.”

I spoke in a business-like tone as if handing over work.

In my hand was a paper where I had meticulously written down what he and I had agreed upon.

Seeing me like that, Leoprick laughed softly.