Chapter 34

Every time Lexion’s hand brushed against her bare skin, Adelina’s entire body tensed up.

As he breathed, hot air seeped into her cleavage.

‘Why did my hair have to get caught on the top button!’

No, if it had been caught on the third button, just spreading his hand would have allowed him to grab the rounded part in one go. The top button was better.

Adelina was not in her right mind at the moment.

Lexion’s hand, which had been diligently trying to untangle her hair, slowed down. His face was tense as he slightly lifted his upper body.

+++

‘It seems it won’t work. I’ll have to cut it.’

Lexion stared intently at the stubbornly tangled hair.

It was frustrating for him, who was not used to giving up on anything.

But he couldn’t just occupy the space above Adelina indefinitely. He also needed to check with Stephan to see if the people they rescued had boarded the ship safely.

Feeling uneasy, Lexion slightly lifted his upper body.

“Let’s kiss.”

Adelina’s urgent voice was heard.

Her face was bright red as she tapped her hand lightly.

“If my wife wants it, anytime.”

One corner of Lexion’s mouth lifted high.

“Not a wife yet. And only on the lips.”

“Of course. I’m a husband who listens well to his wife.”

Lexion glanced at the clock on the table and quickly captured Adelina’s lips. There wasn’t much time. To fully savor her breath, there wouldn’t be a second to spare.

After about ten minutes, Lexion reluctantly let go of Adelina’s lips.

“We’ll have to cut the hair.”

“Yes.”

“There’s no scissors, so I’ll use a dagger. Just lie still. It’s safer that way.”

Lexion rolled up his pants and took a dagger from his calf.

“I’ll be right back. Don’t fall asleep, wait for me.”

In less than a second, he cut Adelina’s hair and left the tent.

After Lexion left the tent, Adelina sat up and removed the hair from the button thread.

‘Ridiculous! Am I really your wife? “Don’t fall asleep, wait for me?!”’

She approached the tent door, checked the lock carefully, and moved a table with effort to block the entrance. Then she climbed onto the bed and pulled the blanket over her head. Her heart was still pounding, and it seemed she would need to count a thousand sheep to fall asleep.

+++

The day after returning from the hunting ground, Lexion and Stephan, following Emperor Grain’s orders, entered the palace early in the morning.

Feeling stifled being alone in the Marquis’s residence with no trustworthy people, Adelina led the maids to Emerald Street.

‘Here it is! The place I glimpsed last time!’

Adelina stopped in front of a store she had marked while passing by with Lexion for tea. This place had an unusually large number of mirrors. The mirrors displayed by the window were studded with jewels, making them even more eye-catching.

“Here. Which is the most expensive and splendid mirror?”

As soon as Adelina entered the store, she asked the owner, full of hope that she might obtain a new mirror frame.

“Oh my, isn’t it the young lady of the Marquis? Please, come this way. I will show you the most expensive and luxurious one.”

The store owner, seeing Adelina’s silver hair, immediately bowed and guided her to the VVIP room. As he said, the room was filled with large, ornate mirrors that seemed fit for an Empress.

‘Oh… what is this?’

As Adelina toured the mirrors along the wall, she stopped in front of one.

Narrowing her eyes slightly to focus, she peered intently into the mirror.

Through the mirror, she could see Duke Austin and the dragon knights holding a meeting with a map.

“Haha. Young lady, you have an excellent eye for mirrors. This mirror is inlaid with rubies and sapphires around the frame…”

The store owner enthusiastically explained beside her, but Adelina was fixated on the map in the mirror.

‘Certainly. It’s the map of the fallen kingdom that recently rebelled.’

There were X marks all over the map. As Adelina, driven by curiosity, moved a step closer, the map in the mirror vanished.

“Send this to the Florin Marquis’s residence.”

Without consulting Stephan, Adelina impulsively purchased the mirror out of regret. Well, she also liked that it was studded with jewels all around.

+++

That morning, Emperor Grain summoned Lexion and Stephan and ordered them to suppress the rebels.

“Once you return, I will permit the marriage between you and Lady Adelina. The Imperial Family will directly oversee your wedding.”

Hearing Emperor Grain’s command, Lexion inwardly sneered at him for a long time.

‘He must be trying to win over Adelina.’

Feeling his lips curl into a crooked smile, he deliberately smiled more brightly. Like a groom excited by the word ‘wedding.’

“I will return as quickly as possible. Please prepare for the wedding immediately.”

Lexion and Stephan knelt before the Emperor, placing their right hands on their left chests and bowing their heads.

They had already anticipated that the Emperor, dissatisfied with the results of yesterday’s maiden inspection, would issue this order. They hadn’t expected Stephan would accompany him, but gaining permission for the marriage by going together wasn’t a bad condition.

After completing the meeting with the dragon knights regarding the suppression of the rebels, the two headed to the Marquis’s residence.

+++

Adelina ate a lonely dinner with only one maid serving her.

“I want to be alone. Everyone, leave.”

As soon as the meal ended, she drove everyone out of the room, checked that the door was securely closed, and confidently stood in front of the newly purchased mirror.

Having already bathed, brushed her hair beautifully, and received a skin massage, her face was glowing. Though she felt her body twisting at the thought of what she would say next, she straightened her back and looked into the mirror. To rid herself of embarrassment, she placed her fist near her mouth and cleared her throat softly twice.

“Ahem. Ahem. Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?”

She wanted to try it once. Since God had given her such a pretty face, she felt she had to ask this question at least once.

“Not you.”

Hearing the unfamiliar male voice from behind, her irritation flared up.

+++

“You’re not the most handsome man either, Duke!”

Adelina spoke curtly to Lexion, who had suddenly appeared and raised her annoyance.

“Really? Is there another man besides me?”

Lexion, as if he truly believed he was the most handsome man in the world, wrapped his arm around Adelina’s shoulders and brought his face close to hers.

‘This rascal! This sly Duke! This cunning trickster!’

Adelina pinched Lexion’s hand on her shoulder with her fingers and removed it.

“Sir Jaeyon. He’s truly handsome.”

She snapped back at Lexion, stepping away from him.

“Jaeyon? Ha!”

“Ha! My lady, you have no eye for men!”

Both Stephan and Lexion, who had secretly hoped to hear their names, were taken aback by the mention of Jaeyon and let out several loud ‘Ha!’ sounds.

+++

“Publish the article immediately. So the Emperor can’t take back his words!”

Hearing the news from Lexion about Emperor Grain, Adelina sprang up from her seat and paced the room anxiously.

“I’ve already done it. It will be in tomorrow morning’s paper.”

Lexion approached Adelina and held her hands. Somehow, they seemed to tremble slightly, and her lips appeared a bit pale.

‘Is she afraid of being alone?’

Possibly. Being left alone in a place with no one to trust must be frightening. Just as he had felt at thirteen.

“No! It has to come out tonight! Tell them to release it as an extra edition. By tomorrow morning, the Emperor will have full control over the newspapers.”

Afraid, indeed.

Lexion chuckled as he watched Adelina push him towards the door as if commanding him.

“I’ll go right away.”

“Tell the newspaper that publishes the extra edition today that I’ll share our love story with them. Rated 19 and over.”

At the door, Adelina clung to Lexion’s arm and whispered in his ear. Her chest pressed against his arm, but she seemed unaware. Only Lexion’s ears turned slightly red.

“Hahaha. I’m looking forward to that story too.”

Lexion left the room with Stephan and visited every newspaper office in the capital.

Late that evening, at an ambiguous time that could hardly be called night, an extra edition was published.

The people of Emerald Street, where the dazzling lights never dimmed, already held this extra edition.

People opened the extra edition of the newspaper in cafes or on the streets.

“It seems that imposter is really going to marry Duke Lexion.”

“That impostor is going to be of higher status than us! We don’t even know where she’s from!”

“Wait and see. They say you don’t know whose arm you’re holding until you reach the wedding hall.”

Isabelle’s close aides held onto the extra edition late into the night, swallowing their anger.

+++

“You said I’m such a perfect man, right? Shall I prove it tonight? Rated 19+?”

The next night, after finishing an interview with the newspaper that published the extra edition, Lexion visited Adelina’s bedroom.

“Get lost! You lecherous devil!”

Awoken by Lexion’s entrance, Adelina glared at him, her irritation flaring.

Somehow knowing the secret code for the light stone, Lexion closed the curtains on the terrace without the room owner’s permission and turned on two light stones.

Adelina, who had never before spoken about such a scandalous 19+ topic with newspaper reporters, had exhausted all her energy during the day.

‘Today was the hardest day ever…’

Even after returning to the Marquis’s residence, her face burned, and she couldn’t sleep until she had just dozed off. She really wanted to sprinkle salt on Lexion’s face if she had any.

“Haha. Your mind must be full of lecherous devils too. Didn’t you say it was rated 19+ in three volumes?”

Lexion tapped Adelina’s forehead with his finger.

“It’s four volumes.”

Adelina scrunched her face and swatted Lexion’s hand away.

Lexion rounded his lips into an ‘O’ shape and casually perched on the edge of the bed.

“I see. Make sure you buy the magazine when it comes out. I’ll read it thoroughly and do exactly as it says.”

‘This guy. How dare you sit on the bed so casually!’

Adelina pulled the blanket up to her neck, her eyes full of suspicion.

“Touch well. Observe well. So you can tell people if they ask.”

Lexion lifted Adelina’s upper body along with the blanket, then slowly unbuttoned his black shirt from the top.

“I don’t have to… touch…”

Having removed his shirt, Lexion placed Adelina’s fingertips on his cheek and slowly guided them downward.

‘I… I’ll just look! Just look!’

Adelina, whose ears had turned red, alternated her gaze between her hand and Lexion’s face.

When Lexion tilted his head to the left, the tendons in his neck bulged. As her fingertips passed over them, Adelina’s face turned red.

‘I’m not ready to touch yet!’

As Lexion gently lowered Adelina’s hands further, her mind felt like it was about to explode from the heat. Her fingertips lingered on his chest before touching Lexion’s firm abs.

“No, you have to feel it. People already think we’ve spent the night together. Multiple times. Passionately.”