“Why do you ask?”
“You can use the private bathroom for couples for an additional fee.”
“No, we don’t need that.”
“Right.”
Both acceptance and refusal came at once. Cordelia turned her head sharply to glare at Leonard.
“Lo- I mean, honey. We don’t need such a big bathroom, do we?”
“I need it.”
“What about my opinion…? Right, when did you ever ask for my opinion? Do as you please.”
“Shall I prepare the bathroom as well?”
Leonard nodded slightly. The staff member then beamed a smile and led them to the last available room.
Given its location on a busy merchant route, the inn was decent enough.
“Here’s the key to the bathroom. Enjoy your time.”
After bowing, he left the room. Cordelia looked around the room and then sneakily glanced at Leonard.
She had followed him, not wanting to sleep in the carriage, but would he really concede the bed to her?
‘Worst comes to worst, I’ll just sleep on the sofa. Better than being cramped in a carriage.’
Expecting less to avoid disappointment, Cordelia put her luggage down near a corner and hovered around the sofa. Leonard, unbuttoning his shirt, then asked.
“Why are you standing there?”
“Huh? Oh, just… I thought I had to sleep here…”
“Why? Sleep in the bed.”
“Really? Is that okay?”
“Yes. I’ll take a bath first.”
“Okay, okay!”
Cordelia’s face brightened. No one else might recognize her as a woman, but at least her master acknowledged (sort of) that she was one.
She quickly grabbed her bag and jumped onto the bed, fearful he might change his mind.
Then she started undressing. As it was a trip without a maid, she had packed clothes she could manage alone, so she easily got down to her chemise.
While she was taking off her stockings, steam poured into the room with a bang. Without turning around, she asked.
“Are you done with your bath?”
“Yeah.”
“Then I’ll go n- Eek!”
“What’s wrong? A mouse?”
“Why are you, you lying there?”
Leonard lay down beside Cordelia so naturally that she shrieked and jumped up, to which he looked at her as if she were being absurd.
“Why not? Where else should I sleep?”
“There! On the sofa!”
“How can someone sleep there?”
He seemed to take her words as a joke and nonchalantly replied. After fluffing the pillow, he crawled under the blankets and closed his eyes.
Cordelia, unable to decide what to do, just rolled her eyes, her mind in turmoil.
‘What does this mean? Sleep in the bed, or don’t? Did he mean to sleep together?’
“What about me?”
“Sleep in the bed or not. Up to you.”
Despite having a husband’s body, he was a completely different man inside. The idea of sharing a bed with him was unnerving.
Hesitating, Cordelia tiptoed to the bathroom. She showered quickly but found the man still occupying the bed upon her return.
She walked over and sat on the sofa. The candlelight flickered, dimly illuminating the dark room. She tried lying on the sofa but realized there were neither pillows nor blankets.
After about five or ten minutes of lying down, her back ached and the chill from the wooden walls made her shiver.
Unable to endure it any longer, she got up and went back to the bed.
“Master.”
“What.”
“Are you really going to sleep there?”
“Really. So don’t talk to me.”
“Really, really?”
“…….”
No response this time. Leonard had already closed his eyes, apparently asleep. There was no gentlemanly consideration of offering the bed to Cordelia.
Her options were limited: either ignore it and sleep beside him or stick to the sofa.
Cordelia glared at the sofa and then turned to Leonard.
“Master, if you ever try to touch me…”
“One more nonsense and I’ll throw you out.”
Leonard, with his eyes closed, said this with a slight annoyance in his voice, giving Cordelia the impression that this was his final warning.
‘After all, he’s legally and physically (?) my husband.’
It was a suitable sentence to rationalize the situation. By law and, in a way, physically, he was her husband.
Embarrassment came second. She had already sat on the hard carriage seat all day, and it was just too hard to sleep bare on that sofa.
Cordelia quietly slid into the bed. The touch of the soft fabric against her back was enough to relieve her fatigue.
She forced her drooping eyelids open, thinking,
‘Stay alert, Cordelia. He might not treat you as a woman, but the Master is still a man! Just to be safe, I’ll sleep after he does.’
And then she closed her eyes for a moment.
Someone shook her body violently.
“The sun’s up. Wake up.”
“Huh?”
“It’s morning, get up.”
She was about to ask what he meant, rubbing her eyes and struggling to get up. The sun was shining through the window.
My goodness. She had fallen asleep immediately despite being so tense.
Looking around, Leonard had already fully dressed.
“It’s morning? Already? I just closed my eyes!”
“Stop babbling. Belucci and Baron are waiting downstairs. Hurry up and get dressed.”
Leonard spoke brusquely and left the room first. Cordelia just blinked her eyes and then got out of bed.
It was unbelievable, but it really was morning.
The Villainous Demon Lord Laid an Egg for Her (Female-Dominated)
Several months after transmigrating into a book, Yu Wu found herself facing the demon lord Li You, who could no longer conceal his dragon horns. With one hand on her aching waist and the other gripping a sharp sword, she stared at him.
The demon lord’s eyes were red with fury:
“This is all your doing! Today, I won’t rest until I kill you!”
Yu Wu rubbed her temples. Putting aside the taboo against bloodshed during pregnancy, wasn’t it this very man who willingly walked into her trap that day?!
Warnings:
- Male pregnancy.
- Height ratios are set to mirror typical male-female height proportions.
- Characters include a foot-loving demon lord and an eldest daughter from an immortal family’s concubine lineage.
