Received the Obsession of a Chaste Dark Lord (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 8

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Amelia. We are going on our honeymoon.

I am aware, Your Highness.

It is a journey for us to know each other better.

That is true, but still, to change our destination so abruptly—when we arrive in Waince, naturally……

Then naturally, I have told no noble house that I am going to Waince. I have said nothing to the Lord of Waince either.

……You have not?

Yes. Only the Imperial Knights and Your Majesty know that I am going to Waince.

The words that never crossed my mind—words I could never have expected from him—spilled out suddenly.

Of course, this trip is indeed our honeymoon, but why is that so significant?

He is the Crown Prince, a man who must carve out every moment to attend to state affairs.

Is it not natural, then, that our journey must differ from that of ordinary couples?

As I stared at him with a puzzled expression, Leopric let out a small cough and spoke with solemn eyes.

“And the reason I changed our destination to Waince is simply because I thought you would like it.”

“……What?”

He finished his sentence with an unnaturally serious expression.

And then, once more, slowly—as if to confirm that what I had just heard was indeed true—he continued.

“This is a honeymoon, Amelia. I truly wished to travel alone with just the two of us.”

“……”

My breath caught.

It was his face—too serious—that silenced me.

No, more precisely, I could not find the words to respond to the gaze fixed upon me.

In his eyes, fixed steadily on me, something unfamiliar and deeply heavy lingered.

An emotion too delicate to voice aloud, too tentative for him to offer yet—somehow, it rendered me motionless.

Suddenly, I recalled how unusually tender he had been last night.

The man who had said he desired no clauses in the contract, who had pleaded—not begged, but pleaded—for permission to remain by my side.

“I……”

What should I say?

I was unfamiliar with such things. I could not believe he had changed our destination for my sake?

Or should I simply reply with the conventional social nicety, thank him lightly, and end the conversation?

The silence stretched as I struggled to find words.

Then Leopric smiled faintly and spoke as if to reassure me.

“I did not intend to say this, but since you seem so oblivious, I thought I should speak. I am not the man obsessed only with duty.”

“What do you mean……?”

“I am not the kind of man who pretends to be too busy to spend time with the woman he holds dear.”

He answered with a playful tone, then smiled again, his eyes crinkling.

Those eyes, brimming with warmth, made me feel my rigid shoulders slowly loosen.

Yet, the phrase “the woman I hold dear” lingered.

He had never once said he held me in such regard.

I dismissed it as merely a joke meant to ease the mood and shook my head.

“Thank you, Your Highness. This is not a short journey. We cannot devote all this time solely to getting to know each other.”

“The Emperor and Empress have both given their consent. Since we began differently from others, they urged us to grow closer, even if only a little.”

You know well enough how close the Emperor and Empress are, do you not?

He told me it was the Emperor and Empress’s command.

He emphasized repeatedly that they wished us to become a true couple—loving and respectful—as ordinary couples should be.

I knew, of course, that the Emperor and Empress were exceptional, and that “ordinary” to everyone else was the calm, colorless demeanor I myself had proposed.

A sigh escaped me.

A harmonious marriage may strengthen imperial authority, but it is not an indispensable requirement.

Strong, loyal in-laws and a secure heir were certainly necessary—but did they guarantee eternal imperial power?

No. They were merely part of the process of strengthening imperial authority.

In fact, powerful in-laws and heirs often became obstacles to imperial authority.

Trending

Then, logically, he ought to be preparing to discard me at any moment.

Why am I even entertaining such absurd thoughts?

“Even if the Emperor and Empress commanded it, people who have known each other only briefly cannot suddenly develop such deep affection.”

I sighed, convinced this entire thing was his ridiculous jest.

“You may try to follow their command, Your Highness, but please do not demand too much of me.”

Had the Leopric of this time always been this childish?

Recalling the Leopric of my past life, I remembered only a man who carefully maintained a proper distance from me, showing me more courtesy than even strangers.

Thus, the Leopric who now insisted we grow closer under the Emperor and Empress’s orders felt like a stranger to me.

Leopric’s expression across from me seemed slightly distorted, but I turned my gaze away toward the window.

Our purpose matters—not this childish nonsense.

[This is the timeline separator]

The carriage, sinking into silence, traveled for a long time before arriving at a small village.

Judging the dusk too deep to continue traveling, Leopric ordered us to spend the night there.

A few knights scattered to find lodging.

Yet even then, I had not spoken a single word to him.

“……”

“……”

The silence had lasted for hours.

Now, adding a few more minutes would not make it any more awkward.

But for some reason, Leopric had been glancing at me subtly all this while.

I pretended to ignore him, continuing to flip the pages of the book in my hands.

Just as I feared he might open his mouth again and say something absurd—

“Your Highness, I have found lodging.”

The Imperial Knight, sent to secure lodging, returned at perfect timing.

A long sigh escaped Leopric as the knight gently tapped on the carriage door.

Hearing it, I bit my lip to suppress a smile.

When I opened the carriage window, I saw Sir Deon bowing his head beside us.

“Sir Deon, is the lodging far from here?”

“No, not at all. You may walk there easily.”

“Really? Then we may walk, then?”

If it is close enough to walk, then we may as well step out of the carriage.

The long carriage journey had been tiring, and the invisible tension with Leopric throughout had left me needing a breath of cool air.

As I moved to rise, Leopric suddenly seized the carriage door.

“I shall accompany you.”

“Yes. That’s fine.”

His face bore a solemn expression as he declared his intent—and his eyes widened at my casual reply.

“I am pleased you have granted me this permission.”

“……What?”

“That you allow me to stand beside you.”

Leopric smiled brightly, as if reviving a withered flower, as he looked at me.

Did he truly think I would refuse?

Or, more accurately, was offering to walk with me such a momentous thing?

I looked at his radiant smile for a moment, then turned my gaze away.

“Let us go. It would be better to reach our lodging before sunset.”

But Leopric paid no heed to my demeanor; he stepped out of the carriage first.

Sir Deon, waiting by the door, immediately extended his hand to me.

“Your Highness Vi, take my hand.”

“Oh……”

I reached out instinctively to grasp it and stepped down.

My legs wobbled slightly from the long carriage ride.

ads

“Vi, I shall escort you.”

Not Sir Deon—it was Leopric who wrapped his arm around my waist and drew me into his embrace.

It happened in an instant.

The way he held me.

The way something was pressed into my hand.

I neither discarded the small note now in my palm nor questioned Sir Deon about it.

I simply held it quietly, clenching my fist just enough to hide it.

[This is the timeline separator]

Upon arriving at the lodging, the first thing I did was unfold the note.

Throughout the journey, Leopric had kept glancing at me as if wanting to hold my hand.

But since I already held something in my palm that I could not let him see, I naturally avoided his gaze.

I maintained a slight distance from him until we reached the lodging.

For some reason, I felt I must.

When I thought of Sir Deon, who had given me this note as if nothing had happened, I felt strongly that this secret belonged only to me.

I also recalled how fiercely loyal he had always been to the Imperial family.

Would a man like him do something so absurd without reason?

Fortunately, when I announced I would go upstairs, Leopric silently let me go.

He then left the room, saying he would join me shortly.

I sat down at once and first examined the note Sir Deon had given me.

[Meet me at the stables tonight at 9 p.m.]

……Had Sir Deon lost his mind?

That was my first thought upon reading it.

The content sounded like something from a secret tryst between lovers—I instantly thought Sir Deon must be slightly unhinged.

Sending such a note to his sovereign’s wife. Had he gone mad?

Or perhaps he had mistakenly given me a letter meant for Leopric?

But no matter how I thought about it, Sir Deon was merely the perfect example of a disciplined knight.

I scrutinized the note again.

The content was heart-wrenching, meant to stir the breast of a lady.

The handwriting was clearly hurried.

And above those hastily scrawled characters, I recognized a familiar habit……

“……Clearly insane.”

Yes. Clearly insane.

Not Sir Deon—but Lloyd Alois.

The man who, on the very pretext of our honeymoon, had sent me such a ridiculous note.

And who had even reached out to the knight escorting me and Leopric.

Then and now, he has never shown me the slightest consideration.

Knowing Leopric would be beside me under the guise of a honeymoon, he still chose to ignore both of us.

He did not care that I might worry about the knight beside me being bribed.

Thinking of Lloyd, who moves only for his own benefit, sent a chill through me.

I quickly tossed the note into the fireplace, fearing someone might see.

The note fluttered helplessly, caught fire with a crackling sound, and vanished without a trace.

I suppose I must warn Leopric to be wary of Sir Deon.

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