Beguiling the Enemy’s Patriarch - Chapter 22

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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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Chapter 22
His crimson-violet gaze flickered toward our loosely clasped hands before returning to me. Then the corner of his mouth curved upward in a subtle smile.
Perhaps because five days had passed since we last met, his beauty seemed to shine with particular brilliance today. His lustrous silver hair commanded an unmistakable presence wherever he stood—amid the brutal clash of steel and screams of battle, or here in the peaceful tranquility of the Imperial Palace Garden. The white shirt and blue cravat he wore today only accentuated his refined features more strikingly.
In truth, the greatest obstacle to my seduction was precisely this handsome face. I’d intended to employ feminine wiles, only to find myself falling victim to his natural charm instead. I was careful not to drool as I gazed intently at those perfect features.
With looks capable of bewitching dozens, even hundreds of women in an instant, yet he remained an impenetrable fortress. I still couldn’t fathom where the acceptable boundary lay with this remarkable man.
Perhaps sensing my persistent stare, he tilted his head slightly.
“Why?”
“Just… Your Majesty is so handsome.”
“Your form of address.”
“Ah. Your Majesty, I meant.”
The correction came swiftly. He clearly disliked the familiar form of address I’d used. I mentally added another line to my mental profile of Auredhian Belgot.
‘Dislikes informal familial forms of address.’
I still knew so little about Auredhian Belgot. What he liked, what he disliked. How far his tolerance extended. I pondered this while gently adjusting my grip on his hand, which rested so obediently in mine.
Whether the emotional walls he erected toward a stranger like me or toward Soleia seemed no different to my eyes. After all, he wasn’t even engaged yet, was he? That meant I had a chance too! My confidence surged alongside my elevated spirits.
I would circle around him, seizing every opportunity. I would methodically breach his fortress, finding weak points to exploit. Slowly, carefully. Before I knew it, I was already constructing a siege of Yerenika around him. Like those white handkerchiefs, I would build walls from which there was no escape.
Auredhian watched me scheming with curious eyes.
“You’re plotting something absurd again, aren’t you…”
“I’m not.”
“I see I can’t afford to let my guard down around you.”
No, that’s problematic! If he reinforces his defenses after I’ve made progress, all my efforts will be for nothing. I offered my brightest smile, trying to appear as harmless as possible. Of course, someone with his perceptiveness wasn’t easily fooled.
* * *
After that day, I visited the garden faithfully every three days.
Auredhian seemed to be the type who made every moment count. When I arrived early to wait, he appeared at precisely the appointed time. Then all my accumulated fatigue would dissolve at once. It was amusing that his mere presence could heal me, yet it was undeniably true.
In reality, every three days amounted to merely twice a week. It was insufficient to truly understand him, but I couldn’t afford to cling too desperately—Auredhian was drowning in an insane workload.
From the occasional remarks he made, it was clear he worked without time to sleep. His eyes, which had been relaxed before, grew sharper with each passing day—a change even I could perceive. Yet he wasn’t the type to broadcast his busyness or irritability. With his fundamentally weary demeanor, even the smallest changes in his expression carried significant weight.
“By the way, Princess.”
“Yes? Yes?”
I answered while stealing glances at his face. Auredhian lifted his teacup and took a sip. He didn’t speak immediately, seeming to choose his words carefully.
Today he wore a white shirt with a light navy jacket, its collar and shoulders adorned with intricate gold embroidery that glinted in the sunlight. The cravat was absent, apparently discarded. Yet the buttoned collar seemed to trouble him, so he set down his teacup and unfastened the top button. Then came a low sigh. He glanced at me with a loose smile.
Ah, this man certainly suited this relaxed appearance far better than his sharp, angular look. When we’d met four days ago, he’d seemed exhausted, but today he’d recovered some composure. I watched him with my chin resting in my hands, beaming.
“What is it? Is something wrong?”
“Well. Do you perhaps…”
I was so focused on his perfectly attractive face that I missed a beat of his words.
“…have any intention of writing a letter to Lebovni?”
“-What?”
The moment I understood his meaning, I bolted upright from my seat. The table trembled slightly from the motion. I saw Auredhian’s hand press down lightly to steady it. I paid no mind and exclaimed.
“I can write a letter?!”
“…Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have considered it.”
Auredhian’s brow furrowed slightly. His expression was clearly troubled.
“But your father has threatened to detonate the Glucaman Road unless you provide a handwritten letter from his daughter.”
Good heavens. Father. I pressed at my throbbing temple. Surely this man’s tension these past few days wasn’t because of Lebovni, was it?
Truth be told, I’d completely forgotten about Lebovni during all this time. Belated worry crept up my spine. Nearly three weeks had passed since I was kidnapped to Belgot. I’d been grateful that Tezebia hadn’t been dragged along, but I hadn’t thought about anything else.
Of course, I was terribly ignorant about maternal and paternal affection. It was only natural, having not grown up under my parents’ care. But wasn’t Yerenika different? To the King and Queen of Lebovni, Yerenika was their youngest daughter, raised as precious as gold and jade.
I could vividly picture my father weeping and wailing, demanding his youngest daughter back. As for Mother, given her delicate disposition, she must have fainted at least a dozen more times. And Tezebia—she was absolutely a pregnant woman who needed stability….
“I’m insane. Truly.”
No matter how important my survival was right now, there were things I shouldn’t forget! Belated guilt made my head bow of its own accord. Failing to think of those left behind was clearly my mistake.
The affable kidnapper responsible for this entire disaster continued speaking.
“You must think I’d lock you away in a closet and not give you a single drop of water. I feel somewhat wronged by that assumption, actually.”
Auredhian Belgot leaned his arm against the chair, sitting loosely with an amused smile. That laughter made me tremble with pangs of conscience. In truth, there probably wasn’t a hostage as extravagantly pampered as I was. A hostage who had private audiences with the Empire’s Emperor, no less.
Auredhian Belgot continued smoothly.
“It’s more convenient to confirm your face with a magical artifact than to write lengthy letters, but your situation doesn’t permit it. And they tell me Lebovni has no connected magical artifacts.”
“Ah, well. Lebovni is rather rural….”
I laughed awkwardly. I could almost read the expression forming on that handsome face. Just how rural is it? he was probably thinking. In any case, I myself preferred to stay away from magical items if possible. Getting close to a lump of mana-infused magical stone was practically suicide for me. I quickly exclaimed.
“I’ll write a letter!”
And so, a few minutes later, I was hunched halfway over the tea table, writing diligently.
“‘I’m truly doing well, Father. I haven’t suffered any hardship. All my limbs are intact.'”
….
“‘Please don’t worry too much. Tezebia is doing well, isn’t she? I’m worried whether her health has been affected. There isn’t much time left until the birth…'”
As I recited each passage aloud while writing, Auredhian Belgot’s expression changed strangely.
“Write as you wish, Princess. You don’t need my inspection of every line.”
“Really?”
I lifted my head quickly. Then should I try a little trick? I could subtly hint to Father that I’m doing well, so could he please drag out the Glucaman Road agreement for a bit longer—about a year….
But that trick was caught before I could even attempt it. Auredhian Belgot glanced at my face and spoke firmly.
“I take it back. Hand it over when you’re done. That expression is making me suddenly anxious.”
That uncanny man. I pouted my lips.
“I heard the master of Belgot doesn’t speak out of both sides of his mouth.”
“The fact that you’re saying that suggests your intentions really are impure, doesn’t it?”
“No…they’re not!”
The more I spoke, the more I seemed to dig myself deeper. I glared at him indignantly, then quickly bowed my head again. I was so afraid that the moment I set down my pen, he’d snatch the letter away, so in the end, I couldn’t write a single line about the Glucaman Road agreement.
Well. To sum it up, Auredhian Belgot didn’t even open my letter, let alone read it—he simply handed it to a maidservant. And he wore a terribly languid victor’s smile. At least, that’s how it looked to me. I felt my insides roiling as I forced a smile. Those reddish eyes, normally unremarkable, were infuriatingly smug today.
I should have just written it!
I nibbled at the refreshments on the table with a sullen face. What if Father actually opens the Glucaman Road? That fortress of a man would surely send me back to Lebovni the moment he heard the road was normalized. Oh no. That can’t happen.
I buried my face in my palms. A groan escaped involuntarily.
“Please, Father….”
I’d done my best to reassure him through the letter, so I hoped he’d hold firm in his resolve a little longer. If I return to Lebovni like this, I won’t even make it five years before meeting a tragic end, and Auredhian Belgot will marry that wicked witch. I haven’t even properly started anything yet—I can’t end it here!
While I was groaning to myself for some time, Auredhian Belgot was watching me with a very unfamiliar expression. I blinked at those crimson eyes meeting mine through my fingers. The man laughed lightly.
“You really are incomprehensible sometimes.”
“Pardon?”

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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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