Received the Obsession of a Chaste Dark Lord (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 14

Mela, what about this? It would suit your hair perfectly.

Leopric lifted a gemstone pin from the display stand with exaggerated gestures and brought it to my hair.

With a deliberately serious expression, he appeared to be deeply contemplating whether it suited me or not.

I smiled awkwardly and gently pulled his arm down.

“It’s fine, Leo. I already have plenty at home.”

“But Mela, that’s not enough. Didn’t I tell you that you need to surround yourself with beautiful things befitting your beauty?”

Leopric shook his head as if the idea were absurd.

Beauties befitting my beauty…

I barely managed to lower my head, struggling to suppress an odd reaction.

“Hmm, but…”

“Oh, do you not like it? Then shall we go somewhere else? I came here specifically because they say they get all sorts of items…”

Let me say it again—Leopric was an exceptional actor.

How could he possibly play the role of a husband dissatisfied with his beloved wife’s lack of suitable adornments without so much as blinking?

I don’t know, but if Leopric became Emperor, the nobles would surely be utterly at his mercy, swayed by the slightest flicker of his expression.

“Are you alright, Mela?”

Again, he turned those melting eyes toward me.

I’d told him several times already—he didn’t need to overact.

Acting.

Yes, acting.

Right now, both of us are performing the roles of “a doting husband who can’t do enough for his wife” and “a luxurious, extravagant lady.”

Because of my personality, it’s hard for me to play such roles—so my “extravagant lady” has become “a lady who refuses favors to obtain even better gifts…”

I let out a small sigh, and Leopric immediately pulled me into an embrace with an apologetic expression.

“I’m sorry, Mela. I got carried away, wanting to give you the very best, and now this is how it ends.”

“There’s no need to apologize, Leo. Your heart is always overflowing.”

“Still, I only ever wish to give you the finest things.”

Too much. Far too much.

Unfamiliar lines, unfamiliar physical contact, unfamiliar gazes.

I’d told him before we started that it was fine to say “I dislike this,” but could I really stop now just because I disliked it?

After all, we began this ridiculous play for the sake of our country.

So how did we end up here?

[This is the timeline separator]

Until this morning, the atmosphere had been calm and peaceful.

Just like at the Marquess’s residence—a quiet, ordinary morning, no different from any other.

The servants’ service was excellent, breakfast was perfectly to my taste, and Leopric treated me with just the right measure of restraint.

Had Sir Deon not arrived holding something in his hand, I might have carried that feeling with me all day.

He silently handed me the object, then whispered something to Leopric.

Shortly after, Betty entered, holding a faint yellow envelope.

“My lady, this is a message from Hailey.”

Betty whispered softly as she handed me the envelope. Without hesitation, I opened it and read its contents.

[Authentication complete. The last known whereabouts of “Isolde’s Tears” is Waince Port.]

“What is this?”

I understood “authentication complete,” but suddenly “Isolde’s Tears,” lost for years?

“My lady, this is the whereabouts of the jewel you were searching for until recently. Don’t you remember?”

“Me? I was looking for this?”

I handed the letter to Betty, who confirmed its contents before quietly slipping it into the fireplace behind her.

Isolde’s Tears was a treasure passed down through generations of the imperial family.

A transparent blue diamond, exquisitely cut into the shape of a tear, so clear it seemed to glow from within.

Known as the favorite jewel of the First Empress of the Reinhardt Dynasty, Isolde’s Tears was regarded as little less than a guardian spirit, ensuring the empire’s peace and prosperity.

After all, whenever the First Empress wore Isolde’s Tears, miracles occurred.

Rain fell upon drought-stricken lands; victory came to battlefields; even in small villages, festivals were blessed with untimely showers of blossoms.

Whether true or not, Isolde’s Tears had always adorned the imperial crown.

Yet, several years ago, it vanished without a trace from the imperial treasury.

There was no sign of forced entry, nor had any guards left their posts—it simply disappeared.

The Emperor issued a strict gag order on the jewel’s whereabouts.

To this day, speculation runs rampant; no one knows whether Isolde’s Tears still resides within the palace.

When I stared at Betty in astonishment, she sighed heavily, exasperated.

“Don’t you remember again? That’s why Hailey went everywhere asking questions. How many times did she scold you?”

“I’m sorry. I forgot.”

I’d been preoccupied with Leopric’s changed demeanor and had forgotten.

Above all else, Isolde’s Tears was the first thing I needed to find.

‘Hailey has already begun investigating…’

The reason for the investigation was clear.

In my past life, I searched for Isolde’s Tears for Lloyd’s sake.

I knew that if it became known the jewel had been lost, the nobles would swarm like hornets.

‘Isolde’s Tears? But everyone knows it’s kept in the imperial treasury.’

‘Yes, everyone believes that. Even the Emperor cannot deceive his people forever.’

That very belief had been the spark that led the anti-Emperor nobles to rally behind Lloyd.

So this time, I must obtain it first.

Isolde’s Tears is a weapon powerful simply by existing.

As memories of the past surfaced, I considered turning this fact to my advantage.

Perhaps I could use it to dismantle the nobles before Lloyd could even build his faction.

The moment I raised my head, determined to act, I met Leopric’s gaze—he had been watching me all along.

“What are you thinking about?”

“…Ah.”

He smiled gently.

I smiled awkwardly, hesitating whether I should tell him this.

Though Isolde’s Tears had last appeared in Waince, I had only brought Betty with me—no one else I could rely on.

Leopric’s help would make things far easier…

But the problem was, I might have to tell him why I was investigating Isolde’s Tears.

I couldn’t possibly confess that I was searching for it for Lloyd’s sake.

As I remained silent, Leopric continued to meet my gaze with his same gentle smile.

Then, with an expression clearly delighted, he asked:

“My lady, do you happen to like jewels?”

[This is the timeline separator]

Neither he nor I mentioned the contents of the letters we had received.

As we rode in the carriage, Leopric briefly outlined the tasks ahead.

From this, I inferred roughly what his letter contained.

He said he needed a ticket to “somewhere in the back alleys.”

If my past memories were correct, he meant an illegal auction house where black-market dealings occurred.

To gain entry, he said, I must play the role of a wealthy, foolish nobleman.

I must appear to lavish money without restraint, as if obsessed with spending.

It was a decent plan.

Yet, as I glanced at his appearance—so utterly unlike the role—I suggested he play the wealthy nobleman who adores spending on his wife.

In return, I offered to play the extravagantly indulgent lady.

And this is where we ended up.

The jewelry shop renowned in Waince for its largest and most dazzling collection.

“If my lady finds nothing she likes, shall we return to the capital?”

“Hmm…”

“Indeed, the finest treasures are all in the capital, aren’t they? I heard exquisite silks arrived recently at Madame LeMang’s boutique—shall we go there?”

He had been excessively committed to his role since the beginning.

As he gently brushed his hand down my back, Leopric turned his gaze once more to the display case.

I remained silent, feigning discomfort with a nervous smile.

“I know it can’t compare to Isolde’s Tears, but I at least hoped to find something similar…”

His disgruntled muttering prompted the shopkeeper, standing beside us, to ask hesitantly:

“H-Have you ever seen Isolde’s Tears, sir?”

“Of course. Any noble of the Empire ought to have seen it at least once.”

“But wasn’t Isolde’s Tears reported stolen several years ago?”

“Who said it was stolen? I saw it with my own eyes in the imperial palace just recently.”

“R-Really?”

“Isn’t it natural for an imperial treasure to remain in the imperial palace?”

What an absurd man.

Leopric replied casually, and the jeweler, with his neatly groomed mustache, twitched his lips slightly.

He looked as if he desperately wanted to say something, and I exchanged a quick glance with Leopric.

“Have you ever seen Isolde’s Tears, Master?”

“How could anyone see a jewel so rare, my lady? How could one possibly see Isolde’s Tears here, far from the capital? Merely hearing of it is fortune enough.”

I asked curiously, and Leopric shook his head with a playful, dismissive look.

What would this man have become if not a statesman?

I suppressed a scoff and forced a smile as I watched him, and he returned it with pure delight before continuing.

“Well, since you don’t know such jewels, I suppose it’s understandable that there’s nothing here worthy of my lady. No, I’d spend an entire country on her and not think it too much.”

“Enough, Leo. People will talk.”

“Who dares speak ill of me for cherishing my lady? Since you mentioned it—my lady, didn’t you say recently that Fernan’s silks were lovely? Perhaps we should buy a workshop in Fernan?”

“Oh, Leo, you’re being excessive.”

This isn’t acting—it’s sincere.

I forced myself to suppress the chills running down my body and lightly nudged his arm.

How is it possible for him to deliver such lines so naturally?

He doesn’t even practice in front of a mirror every day.

While I entertained this absurd thought, the shopkeeper remained mute, fidgeting nervously.

Was he not going to say anything?

I gently tugged on Leopric’s sleeve, intending to lead him toward a more reliable place to obtain the ticket—

“Rather than purchasing an uncertain workshop in distant Fernan, why not buy one more exquisite jewel for my lady tonight?”

The shopkeeper, who had been holding his breath, finally spoke with a solemn expression.

I’ve taken the bait.