Stolen Crown Princess (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 3
The moment he heard those words through the attendant, he couldn’t hold back a hollow laugh. It was the first time the Emperor had ever sought him out first. At least, that was the case within the span of his memory.
It must take a year’s absence for him to deign to summon me like this.
The fleeting, idle thought lasted only a moment. Upon arriving at the audience chamber to meet the Emperor, nothing happened that resembled what he had expected.
[It seems the Crown Princess is suffering from sleeplessness.]And what exactly was he supposed to do about it?
He was not a physician. Even if the Crown Princess confided her insomnia to him, there was nothing he could do to cure it.
The longer the meeting with the Emperor dragged on, the more he felt it had been a pointless errand.
Even if it was the Emperor’s command, he should have returned to the Crown Prince’s palace like the true Liurian and rested.
In the end, following the Emperor’s words, he sought out Ibelia in the deep of night—an action entirely unplanned.
“Ha.”
Liurian let out a heavy sigh. The price of his rash choice was too harsh.
Even after returning from the slaughter-filled battlefield where he could not let his guard down for a single moment, he still couldn’t relax. Could there be a punishment more dreadful than this?
Sighs kept escaping him. Because of it, the already heavy air grew even denser.
Then, breaking the silent stillness, the sound of a door opening echoed.
Liurian’s gaze snapped toward the source of the sound.
Through the crack of the opened door, Ibelia appeared. His narrowed eyes pierced her with their stare.
Ibelia tightly gripped the hem of her dress. She had only quickened her steps out of habit, never imagining she’d face Liurian, who had arrived before her.
Her heart pounded fiercely. His gaze upon her was overwhelmingly intense.
Biting her trembling lower lip, she forced her stiffened legs to move. With each step, she felt Liurian’s persistent gaze sweeping over her.
The tension doubled, but she maintained a steady pace, pretending to be calm. She only felt free from his relentless gaze once she sat beside him, her rightful place.
Ibelia took a deep breath, feigning composure. Her chest swelled, and Liurian’s silhouette blurred in her vision.
It was then that an unwelcome voice reached her.
“You look like you haven’t slept all night.”
Ibelia’s shoulders twitched instinctively. Though he had only glanced at her briefly, his accurate recognition of her insomnia was deeply unsettling.
“…It’s not something worth your concern.”
“Your complexion doesn’t seem like something I can just ignore.”
“…”
“Or perhaps you’re doing this on purpose? To make me look like a neglectful husband who can’t even care for his only wife?”
Ibelia bit her lower lip hard. Her eyes, fixed forward, trembled violently, and her hands, neatly folded on her lap, tensed.
His words cut too deeply. Did he really not know why he said such things?
Since their marriage, he had never once been attentive. It would be a lie to say she hadn’t felt hurt each time. But she could swear she had never once blamed him.
She had endured silently, hoping that one day he might look her way. She knew it was a foolish thought, yet she clung to it. Because she loved him so much.
She didn’t even know why she loved him so much, to the point of torment, but her entire heart yearned for him.
There was no need for him to wound her so deliberately. She was already destined to be hurt every moment simply because she loved him.
“Even if you are a neglectful husband, I have always sincerely wished for Your Highness to be the shining Emperor of Valcheope, and that wish remains unchanged.”
So please, don’t misunderstand me, she whispered, her lips moving almost automatically.
“…”
“…”
She expected a mocking laugh, but surprisingly, no reaction came from Liurian.
Should she consider that a relief?
Ibelia gave a bitter smile.
Her heart ached too much. Why could they never take a single step forward together, always circling back to the worst moments?
As her eyes grew moist with overwhelming sorrow, the closed doors of the banquet hall opened once more, revealing the Emperor and Empress.
Ibelia instinctively stood and bowed.
“I greet His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress.”
“Yes, as always, the Crown Princess is here first. Enough with the formalities—let’s sit.”
Gadro’s kind voice poured over her bowed head. Even as everyone took their seats, Liurian remained arrogantly seated with his legs crossed, unmoving.
Gadro’s disapproving gaze openly targeted Liurian, but he didn’t budge. Because of this, Ibelia felt as though she herself had committed some grave error, fidgeting uncomfortably.
Among the four seated, only Eustia wore a bright expression. She couldn’t stop smiling, as if merely facing Liurian filled her with joy.
“Liu, I can finally face you with ease. I haven’t had a single restful night since sending you to the battlefield.”
Despite the far-from-easy atmosphere, Eustia couldn’t hide her emotions. If not for the table between them, she might have grabbed Liurian’s hand.
It wasn’t surprising. To Liurian, Eustia had always been a mother overflowing with love.
The strange one wasn’t Eustia but Liurian. Normally, he would have responded to her words with playful chatter, but he kept his lips tightly sealed, silent.
Ibelia glanced at Liurian while gauging the Emperor and Empress’s reactions. He stared blankly at some point on the table, as if lost in deep thought.
For some reason, he looked utterly exhausted, and Ibelia couldn’t take her eyes off him.
The uneasy silence was broken when Gadro’s voice suddenly turned toward Ibelia.
“I heard the Crown Princess has been suffering from insomnia lately.”
Ibelia looked at Gadro with slight surprise. It was completely unexpected. She quickly added,
“It’s only that my sleep has been slightly reduced.”
“I heard from the palace physician that you’ve been struggling, unable to sleep at all.”
“It’s not something worth worrying about. I’m sorry for causing concern.”
Ibelia forced a smile, trying to brush it off. She knew the words were meant kindly, but they weren’t welcome.
Gadro’s kindness was merely formal, for appearances’ sake. It wasn’t the kind of affection or loyalty that would lead him to roll up his sleeves for her, like for Pailin.
“Your complexion does seem better than before, though. Still, if it’s hard, speak up. I’ll instruct the palace physician to look after the Crown Princess carefully.”
“Thank you, even for just saying so.”
Ibelia curved her eyes politely, maintaining decorum.
Gadro’s gaze shone with some reliability, but Ibelia didn’t trust him.
Of course, after this gathering, Gadro would likely order the palace physician assigned to the Crown Princess’s palace to attend to her, as he said.
But that was merely a perfunctory gesture of minimal concern, likely devoid of any deeper meaning.
She keenly felt her place. How could she suppress this bitterness? She no longer had the energy to react and grieve over every little thing.
Ibelia maintained her outward composure, waiting for the food to be served. Servants bustled about, filling the table with appetizing dishes, and the banquet hall doors closed.
A soft chuckle from someone instantly chilled the atmosphere.
“Amusing.”
Ibelia looked at the seat beside her in disbelief. Liurian, with a twisted smirk, was staring directly at Gadro, his face filling her vision.
“I heard the imperial physicians are among the best in the empire, but it seems without the Emperor’s orders, they’re just a bunch of fools who can’t even treat an illness properly.”
Liurian spoke without a hint of hesitation, his words raw and unpolished.
Gadro’s face stiffened in an instant.
“I’ve told you time and again to be mindful of your words and actions.”
“If they’re not fools, then the Crown Princess’s insomnia must prove how frail she is.”
“Liurian!”
Gadro, unable to hold back, slammed the table. Yet Liurian didn’t yield an inch. Instead, he glared even more fiercely at the Emperor.
“If that’s not the case, I thought I was the only one troubling the Crown Princess. But it seems I was mistaken.”
“…”
“When I, the sole reason for her distress, was absent for a year, her mind and body have only grown weaker than they were a year ago.”
Seeing him sneer, Ibelia parted her lips in shock. She was utterly confused. She couldn’t fathom why he was acting this way.
Just before the Emperor and Empress arrived, he had accused her of trying to make him look like a neglectful husband. So why was he suddenly turning his arrows on them?
“Your Highness, it seems there’s a misunderstanding…”
Fidgeting, Ibelia whispered softly to Liurian. But before she could finish, his gaze locked onto her face.
Ibelia, at a loss for words, met Liurian’s stare fully.
It was a look she had never seen before.
As if consumed by uncontrollable anger, his crimson eyes burned fiercely.
Male lead says he’s pregnant — and it’s female lead’s child
Something seems a bit off about this world.
Wang Zhao thought as she watched a pregnant man walking towards her…
Intro
Female lead finds herself in a world where the men who possess the ability to bear children.
As she navigates this unfamiliar reality, she is caught off guard by the sudden appearance of her boyfriend, who reveals that he is pregnant.
Is this truly her boyfriend?
Why can’t she recall any details about their time together?
She begins to doubt whether the child her boyfriend is carrying is even hers.
Is there a hidden reason behind her amnesia, or could it be a side effect of her sudden arrival in this strange new world?
Just when it seems the protagonist’s life couldn’t become any more entangled, her ex-boyfriend makes an unexpected appearance, raising questions about the protagonist’s past.
__________
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This chapter is the old chapter I think?