The Mad Commander is Obsessive (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
Captain Otto of the Iorenti Royal Guard gave Jer a light salute upon his return.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“You’re the one who worked hard. But why are there so few? Where are the rest of the squad?”
Jer’s expression darkened as he scanned the surroundings to grasp the situation.
Among the prisoners they’d barely rescued, many were injured.
As comrades returned alive, those waiting sprang into action to provide emergency treatment.
“Many couldn’t regroup due to the Imperial Soldiers’ search yesterday—they got scattered.”
“So we’ve also suffered heavy losses this time.”
“Yes. The captain said we should head back after wrapping up this rescue operation.”
“We probably should. Everyone’s utterly exhausted. What about the Imperial Soldiers? The captain mentioned they continued marching.”
“Yes. They were expected to leave Mount Tarence sometime tonight.”
“That explains why the captain hurried. We must return to the palace quickly and prepare for their attack.”
Captain Jer gave Otto’s shoulder a light pat.
“But why are there only twenty-nine?”
“The princess will be arriving soon.”
Jer replied calmly, picturing the twenty-nine returnees, including the princess.
“No—we had thirty prisoners on our side, excluding the princess. Yet only twenty-nine have arrived.”
“No, there were twenty-nine of our prisoners.”
“That’s incorrect. From this morning, we’ve confirmed there were thirty prisoners tied to the stockade.”
“No. Even before I was tied to the stockade, I counted only twenty-nine.”
“Then what about that one?”
Jer’s head went numb, as if he’d swallowed a mouthful of icy water.
“Captain Otto!”
At the sudden shout, both Jer and Otto turned their heads simultaneously.
“Something’s wrong with the captain.”
“What is it?”
“No—it’s that prisoner. They’re daring to grab the captain’s arm.”
Hearing his subordinate’s report, Jer strode to the edge of the hill and raised his telescope.
The golden hair fluttering in the moonlight’s shadow was clearly visible.
Even the disloyal prisoner who dared lay hands on royalty.
A deep groan escaped Jer’s throat.
The mysterious prisoner clinging to his captain—
and the numerous silhouettes surrounding them filled Jer’s field of vision through the telescope,
down to the sharp glint of silver embellishments reflecting in the moonlight.
His captain—the Princess of Iorenti—had become the thirtieth prisoner.
Due to the false thirtieth prisoner hidden among them.
The lamplight in the commander-in-chief’s tent glowed faintly.
Aaron’s sigh made the flame flicker violently.
The red-tinged tent felt cozy and warm.
Yet Aaron’s penetrating gaze, cutting through that warmth, was sharper than ever.
“So it was a woman.”
Sunk deep into his chair, exhausted, Aaron held his hand up to the lamplight.
His fingers, which had gripped the prisoner’s arm, were stained with a faint, lamp-like crimson.
Aaron pulled out a pure white handkerchief, wiped his hand clean, and looked at the woman before him.
“No wonder her wrists were slender and her frame small.”
The one who had led elite troops in a ten-day-and-night surprise assault, halting the Imperial Soldiers’ advance—it was this petite woman.
Aaron burst into laughter, utterly bewildered by this unforeseen truth.
“I’ve been thoroughly outwitted.”
The prisoner Aaron had painstakingly captured sat tied to a tent post.
Leaning weakly against the post, the prisoner exhaled a thin breath.
Aaron’s ashen gaze drifted down the fine golden hair, as delicate as a breath.
“You really know how to surprise people in every possible way.”
The series of efforts he’d endured to capture this woman flashed through Aaron’s mind.
Last night, he’d scoured Mount Tarence meticulously, caught the bait, and tied them where they’d be easily seen.
While Counselor Colin impersonated the commander and led the army toward the capital, Aaron had hidden among the prisoners.
Bound like any other captive to the stockade, Aaron endured the sun’s searing rays, repeating to himself without cease:
The black robe and black mask fluttering just out of reach.
The smile drawn behind the black mask, those lake-like blue eyes.
That wretch who’d leapt off a cliff to escape, even after taking his bullet.
Compared to the thirst of letting that enemy slip through his fingers, enduring without a single sip of water was nothing.
And after all that relentless effort, the one he’d finally caught was a woman.
Aaron tilted his head slightly and propped his chin on one hand.
What else could she be hiding?
“Name? Age?”
“…….”
“Affiliation?”
“…….”
“Rank?”
“…….”
The woman glared at Aaron with cold eyes.
Despite the barrage of questions, she kept her lips tightly shut.
The red lamplight shimmered and rippled in her blue eyes.
Aaron stared at her, parched as if his whole body were evaporating.
“Could you perhaps be Iorenti’s saintess? Sent by divine revelation to save your country?”
Even Aaron’s sarcastic remark drew no reaction.
Only her long, dense golden eyelashes fluttered softly, as if alive.
“I see—you have no intention of speaking.”
Aaron tilted the brandy bottle on the table and poured himself a glass.
The amber liquid sparkled seductively in the light.
Holding the full glass lightly, Aaron looked at the woman.
Her hair resembled the brandy in his glass.
“Pity—but I’ll let it pass for now. There’s something more urgent to handle first.”
Keeping his eyes on her, Aaron brought the glass to his lips.
Even as he drank, his deep silver-gray eyes remained fixed on her.
The brandy, infused with golden hues, flowed over Aaron’s lips.
His thirst lessened somewhat, but his curiosity grew even stronger.
That defiant gaze—how would it change once tamed?
“But before that, let me ask you one thing.”
Drip, drip.
Aaron’s voice echoed through the tent along with the sound of liquid filling his empty glass.
“Last night, while secretly watching our army pass by in procession—”
Aaron gently swirled the glass.
His fingertips carried the languid ease of a seasoned captor.
Yet his eyes, fixed on the woman, still held the sharp edge of a hunter who hadn’t finished his chase.
“What were you thinking as you watched us? Did you enjoy seeing us toyed with? Or did you mock us for our foolishness?”
The woman’s lips twitched as if weighing her answer.
The red lips shimmered enticingly where the light touched them.
They parted slightly, as if about to speak, then pressed shut again.
Aaron watched her intently and gave a crooked smile.
“What? Don’t want to answer that either?”
Aaron let the liquor in his glass flow into his mouth.
Then, refilling the empty glass, he held it out toward her.
“How about a drink, then?”
At Aaron’s words, the woman clamped her lips shut again and turned her head away.
Her golden hair rippled with the motion.
Her long eyelashes trembled faintly.
It was a clear gesture of refusal.
“You’ll regret it if you don’t.”
At Aaron’s taunting, the woman closed her eyes completely.
Once again, the blue vanished.
Her silence struck Aaron more powerfully than any words could.
Gripping the bottle tightly, Aaron rose from his chair.
“A prisoner who doesn’t act like one—do you even understand your situation?”
Keeping his gaze locked on her, Aaron stepped forward slowly.
Suddenly sensing a dark presence, the woman opened her eyes and lifted her head.
“Huh.”
She gasped sharply.
Aaron’s shadow had already loomed over her.
Panicked, she tried to recoil, but the post behind her blocked her retreat.
Watching her struggle while bound, Aaron slowly bent down.
He knelt on one knee, bringing himself to her eye level.
When she tried to turn her head away, Aaron grasped her chin and pulled her face toward him.
“Don’t look away. If I can’t see your eyes, that moment keeps flashing in my mind.”
The moment she’d dared mock him and left behind only a smile.
The moment he’d been certain he’d caught her, only for her to slip through his grasp, leaving nothing but a blue afterimage.
“I’ll go mad remembering the instant you leapt off that cliff.”
He couldn’t let her escape again.
He couldn’t let her vanish before his eyes once more.
Fixated on her eyes as if demanding recompense for that memory, Aaron warned her:
“Don’t drive me crazy.”
His deep gray eyes, merging with his chillingly low voice, reached her.
She realized she could no longer ignore him.
“Fine. Let go.”
Though fear flickered in her eyes, she held Aaron’s gaze firmly.
Satisfied, Aaron smiled and released her chin.
“Good girl. How about that drink?”
“I don’t need it.”
“You’ll regret it.”
“I’d regret it more if I drank.”
“If you don’t drink, it might hurt a bit.”
The woman’s eyes widened in alarm.
So that’s why he’d kept her alive so gently—after all this.
“I’d rather die.”
At her words, Aaron let out a soft, amused chuckle.
“Would I?”
Though his eyes curved gently, there was no trace of mirth in his gaze as he looked at her.
His eyes, resembling thick moonlight, trailed down to her neck.
“Killing you wouldn’t be hard…”
Her neck was slender and long, looking as if it might snap with the slightest pressure.
The smooth line of her neck, narrow jaw, trembling red lips, straight nose, and deep-set eyes—
Aaron’s ashen gaze swept back up, and he smiled freshly.
“But could I really do it? After all the trouble I went through to catch you.”
“That’s your problem. I’d rather die than suffer humiliation as a prisoner. Just kill me quickly.”
Aaron brushed off her sharp words lightly and seized her left arm.
Instantly, her eyes grew fiercer.
How dare he lay hands on royalty without permission.
“How dare you. Do you even know who I am?”
At the woman’s forceful tone, Aaron’s smile vanished instantly.
“And who are you?”
Realizing her mistake, the woman clamped her lips shut once more.
The cold aura emanating from his low voice choked her breath.
Under no circumstances could she let her identity slip to the enemy.
She turned her head, fleeing from his icy, paralyzing gaze.
“Who do you think you are to say ‘how dare you’ to your commander?”
Despite Aaron’s question, the woman sank once more into silence.
His low, cutting voice made her breath catch and her head spin.
“If you won’t answer, stay still. We don’t seem to have much time left.”
Aaron gripped her arm firmly and tore off her sleeve.
Peeling away the blood-caked fabric revealed a dark red wound underneath.
“Let go of that.”
Ignoring her resistance, Aaron lifted the liquor bottle.
He slowly poured the brandy—resembling her golden hair—over her wound.
The alcohol pooled in the gash on her forearm before spilling over.
Fresh blood seeped from the reopened wound, washed away by the liquor.
“Agh.”
The woman’s eyes, glaring at Aaron, churned like stormy waves.
The pain of alcohol searing her wound shook her entire body.
Her agony flowed directly through her arm into Aaron’s hand gripping her.
“That’s why it’s hard to stay sane. You’d have been much more comfortable if you’d just taken a drink.”
Aaron’s eyes darkened further as he examined her wound.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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Wow the tension between these two is something else.
Good job Del! Looks like in the end she has won the wager.
If the fate of the crown prince is unknown, why would they send away the only other heir?