A Blend of Romance and Fantasy - Chapter 82

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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82.
“The more the merrier, as they say. And I’ll make sure you both get along! Neither of you will seize the other’s territory!! Right?”
I jabbed Leonard Blake in the ribs with my elbow—*thwack!*—then mouthed urgently at him.
Agree with me already!
But he seemed lost in thought even before I struck him.
And what finally spilled from his lips was shocking nonsense.
“Two daughters and two sons would be ideal.”
“…Pardon?”
“Each with their own territory… No, wait. Four sons and two daughters would be better. Managing territories is such a headache anyway—let the sons handle the estates while the daughters enjoy life. And if they ever want more territory, we can simply divide it further.”
“What kind of ridiculous thing are you saying? And who’s supposed to bear six children—me or you?”
How am I supposed to give birth to six children? Have you lost your mind?
Besides, was it really you who sent the contraceptive tea this morning?
His expression was far too earnest to be an act, his mouth hanging open as he continued muttering his absurd fantasies.
“Let us search carefully. Since this world blends fantasy and romance novels, there may be extraordinary magic here too. I shall attempt to bear children as well.”
No, Leonard Blake. What on earth are you thinking?
Then a soft laugh echoed through the air.
“So you do possess a human side after all. How surprising. Perhaps the rumors of your being in love weren’t mere gossip.”
It was Prince Chris. Yet his laughter held no warmth.
“But enough of such pleasantries. Won’t you hear what I have to say? It concerns you as well.”
“…Very well. Speak.”
Leonard Blake nodded, and Prince Chris continued.
“My first condition is this: when you become Emperor, make me a Grand Duke and transform part of Redford into a Grand Duchy. I shall govern it, and when the time comes, I will pass it to your children.”
“…So you wish to continue enjoying power and prestige?”
“I wish to continue governing the land where I was born and raised. Though I suppose thinking of it that way is understandable—Redford is the wealthiest of all territories.”
“And after building such influence, you don’t plan to catch me off guard and strike from behind?”
“…Second condition.”
Prince Chris spoke without answering.
“The ‘time’ I mentioned is when I marry someone from another nation and leave Blake.”
“…”
“Wouldn’t it be better if I left, like Benjamin did? That way, there would be no seeds of discord.”
Leonard Blake’s mouth closed.
“And finally, the third condition.”
Before speaking the final one, Prince Chris allowed a moment of silence.
His expression remained utterly unchanged, yet… I couldn’t shake the feeling that he was trembling.
“When you become Emperor, I know you will kill many. Among our family and those who served us, countless will be unable to escape death.”
“…”
“At that time, spare just one person. Let them live with all their limbs intact… allow them to spend their remaining years in peace. That is my final condition.”
Beneath the flames of the chandelier, his expression had hardened like steel.
His face bore the look of one who had steeled himself for something, as if death itself held no terror—and without thinking, a question escaped my lips.
“Who is ‘that’ person?”
“….”
At my question, he drew in a deep breath. The sound of cold air filling his lungs seemed unusually loud.
“When the time comes, you will understand.”
* * *
Prince Chris left with those words, and I immediately called out to Leonard Blake the moment he was gone.
“Leonard Blake, what do we do now?”
“…First.”
By then, he had already turned his gaze from the closed door to me.
“Are you feeling alright?”
“Feeling alright? What do you mean? Why would my body….”
Ah.
I belatedly grasped his meaning and my face flushed crimson.
“That, that’s not important right now.”
“It is important to me. I’m truly sorry I couldn’t be with you this morning.”
His gaze, softened with tenderness, felt impossibly strange and unbearable.
I let out a silent scream in my heart and mumbled timidly.
“It’s…fine.”
“You don’t look fine at all. Show me your face.”
As I turned my head away in embarrassment, my chin was gently caught.
I hesitated before following his tender touch and meeting Leonard Blake’s eyes.
His eyes were also slightly flushed with embarrassment, but a languid smile played at the corners of his lips.
When my fists clenched involuntarily at the sight of a smile so fulfilling that even the observer’s heart felt complete, his face suddenly drew closer.
And my lower lip was gently sucked. It wasn’t the fierce kiss of yesterday, but the warmth was unmistakably present.
As I gasped for breath and my chest heaved, our lips parted—but only for an instant. With his hand on the back of my head and my waist, he tenderly delved into my mouth once more.
The memory of yesterday surfaced. Beneath the brilliantly luminous moonlight that night, I clung desperately, pleaded, and he willingly gave me what I desired.
Setting aside all our duties and purposes. Just as in this very moment.
“…Charlotte.”
I couldn’t resist hearing my name exhaled so hazily from his lips. Without thinking, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed myself more firmly against his solid chest, my lips meeting his with fervent passion.
…Again and again.
I came to my senses only when the sound of porcelain shattered against the floor.
Somehow I found myself with my back against the wall, breathing heavily. I had stumbled backward and struck the nearby table, shattering the porcelain.
Through my blurred vision, I saw the fragments of porcelain and my crimson hair cascading over my shoulders.
“Leonard…Blake….”
“….”
I felt his hot breath against my nape. I tapped his back as a signal to pull away, but he merely kissed me several times below my ear, refusing to budge.
When his lips touched my sensitized skin, a soft moan escaped me. I barely gathered my wits and struck his back more forcefully.
“Leonard Blake, what if someone comes in? It’s broad daylight. This, this isn’t the time for this.”
My desperate voice seemed to reach him, and he slowly lifted his head. His face was flushed with excitement, his eyes gleaming, and my lipstick marked his lips.
Wanting to cut off the atmosphere before the heat could ignite once more, I quickly slipped away from between him and the wall, retreating to the sofa.
As I fanned myself and tidied my disheveled hair and wrinkled dress, Leonard Blake sat across from me on the sofa.
He rubbed his lips and spoke with deliberate composure.
“You said you’d have many children.”
“That was merely to evade the situation. You know that.”
“I was sincere. I’m not the type to act without thinking.”
The moment I saw the crimson stain smudged across his thumb, my face flushed an identical shade—yet a peculiar question followed in its wake.
“Then it wasn’t you who sent the contraceptive?”
“…?”
Leonard Blake’s expression transformed gradually.
His brow furrowed slightly in confusion at first, then his face hardened rapidly, and his gaze grew terrifyingly sharp.
“I never sent anything like that.”
“….”
“The Empress, perhaps…. But why?”
Leonard Blake’s murmuring gaze turned toward me.
“So you drank it?”
“Of course… I drank it thinking you had given it to me.”
Because we were destined to part ways anyway.
Though I couldn’t voice it aloud, he seemed to understand the meaning from my trembling lips.
Leonard Blake said nothing. After a brief silence, he smiled faintly.
“That’s right. I momentarily forgot my position.”
“….”
“I apologize. I should have been the one to prepare for this. Yesterday, I was far too impulsive.”
Leonard Blake continued speaking after that, but from the moment I saw his faint smile, nothing reached my ears.
‘Impulsive? Then are you regretting what happened yesterday?’
He had told me this yesterday.
-Don’t regret it.
Yet I, right now, harbored no regrets whatsoever.
Though I had regretted most of my decisions since arriving in the Blake Empire, yesterday was not among them.
But you’re the one who reached out first—and now you’re the one regretting it?
I seized the collar of the man who continued speaking. And I cried out suddenly to Leonard Blake, whose eyes had widened in shock.
“But regardless of our circumstances, I love you. Don’t you feel the same?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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