“Did you really think I would let it go after what you did to me?”

A cold smile appeared on Lucius’s lips, so frigid one could feel the chill. This was the first time he had ever shown such a twisted smile.

He had always maintained either a languid gaze or a fake smile like he was wearing a mask. She never imagined he could reveal his emotions like this.

“I, I did consider that what I did might have trampled on your pride.”

“Then why did you do it? Just to vent your anger?”

“Ugh.”

She couldn’t refute him because he wasn’t wrong. What she did to him the night before leaving was indeed pouring out all her accumulated frustrations.

“Stop this nonsense now and return to your place. Unless you want to drive me even crazier.”

“I, I can’t do that.”

“Why not?”

Lucius raised the corner of his mouth with an expression that seemed to challenge her to continue. Finding his look oddly captivating, Chloe averted her gaze.

“Because I’m no longer Chloe of the Nate Empire. I now live as Anne of the Epha Empire. This is where I belong.”

“Who says so? Who accepted you as a citizen of the Epha Empire? How can you say that when you clearly know relations between the Nate Empire and the Epha Empire have been severed?”

As Chloe persisted, Lucius’s face subtly contorted. His angry appearance felt strange to her. This too was something he had never shown her before.

“Aren’t you the one who shouldn’t be here? If people found out, wouldn’t it cause diplomatic problems?”

“You don’t need to worry about that. Just focus on coming back to the Nate Empire with me.”

“I, I told you I can’t!”

“Why? Could those rumors be true?”

“What rumors?”

Chloe’s gaze returned to Lucius.

“That you ran away with some Epha Empire dog.”

“A-are you talking about Gil?”

“Hearing another man’s name from your lips is quite unpleasant.”

His behavior, looking almost jealous, was completely unfamiliar to her.

There’s no way he would be jealous of Gil.

A man who had been so indifferent when she was by his side couldn’t suddenly develop feelings just because she ran far away. His jealousy toward Gil made no sense.

Perhaps his pride was hurt by rumors that she had run away with another man.

“There’s nothing between Gil and me.”

“Nothing between you, yet he helped you escape? You expect me to believe that?”

His eyes narrowed, and then Lucius smirked.

“Then let me offer you a condition. If you obediently follow my words, I’ll forget about punishing that guy named Gil.”

“What are you talking abou—”

“Argh!”

Before she could finish speaking, Gil’s groan echoed through the air. Hurriedly turning toward the sound, she saw Gil being forcibly made to kneel, his arms twisted behind his back by knights who had captured him.

It seemed he had been caught by the knights on his way to the village.

“This is the Epha Empire. You can’t touch Gil like that, so let him go!”

“That’s for me to decide. Now make your choice. Either come back to the Nate Empire obediently and save this guy’s life, or resist and watch him breathe his last.”

Despite her urgent cry, no threat seemed to work on Lucius.

“You wouldn’t really kill Gil, would you?”

“You have two options.”

Instead of answering Chloe’s question, he simply stated his terms. His tone was resolute, suggesting he wouldn’t listen to anything else.

“You’re a coward!”

“A coward? That’s rich coming from someone who ran away from her position. Especially after what you did to me the night before you fled.”

Lucius drew the sword from his waist and placed it under Chloe’s chin. Her head tilted up involuntarily, and her eyes met his.

“Where did all that boldness go from that night? I haven’t been able to forget what happened.”

As the memory of what she had done that night resurfaced, Chloe’s face instantly grew hot. That night when alcohol revealed her true feelings.

She wanted to turn her head away to avoid his gaze, but with her chin held in place, she couldn’t. Her eyes trembled anxiously, finding nowhere to escape.

“Why are you doing this to me? What do you want that made you chase me all the way to the Epha Empire?”

“Hmm? What do you think?”

“You’re not usually this petty.”

“Did I ever claim my heart was as wide as the ocean?”

“N-no, but you never showed any interest in me. So why are you acting like this?”

“Interest? Ah, is it because I didn’t greet my fiancée whom I haven’t seen in a while? Do you need my attention?”

“That’s not what I meant. We’re not close enough for warm greetings, so please just leave.”

Lucius withdrew his sword and stepped forward, closing the distance between them. Chloe looked up at him with fierce eyes.

Then his hand wrapped around her waist. Before she could resist, he lowered his lips to hers.

What on earth!

They weren’t close enough to kiss like this. Him initiating such physical contact was also a first.

Even during their engagement, they hadn’t shared even a light kiss, yet now he suddenly appeared and greeted her with a kiss. Though it might be a casual greeting for him, for Chloe it was her very first kiss.

Being caught completely off guard, her heart raced in confusion.

“Mmph!”

When she struggled, their lips quickly separated. She wiped her lips vigorously with the back of her hand and shouted:

“What are you doing! Are you a pervert? Have you lost your mind?”

“Now that’s more like you.”

Only after seeing Chloe’s intensely agitated reaction did Lucius smile with satisfaction. The problem was that his smile sent chills down her spine.

“Come back to your place, Chloe.”

He called her by her name for the first time here, a name he had never used before. He had never called her by name when she had wished for it.

Her former fiancé, whom she met after a long time, remained arrogant and self-centered.