The Male Lead Is Trying To Tame Me With Money - Chapter 20

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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20.

‘…Why is the Second Prince coming out here?!’

That woman, they say her nickname is the devil!

Count Gash Yeongshik looked around frantically in the absurd situation.

However, not a single strand of brown hair was visible anywhere.

He had been deceived.

At this sudden thought, Count Gash Yeongshik could no longer endure it and collapsed on the spot, his eyes rolling back.

The first to regain her composure was the Empress.

“How, how are you here.”

This was supposed to be a place where no one should be.

Why was her precious son taking a nighttime stroll in a place that could practically be called an abandoned temple?

“What do you mean how! Mother keeps interfering between Alex and me! I searched and searched for a place to have an intimate date and came here!!”

The Second Prince shouted at the Empress, filled with indignation.

“But how could you tell your own son! And me, who should be living a happy, sweet, and joyful newlywed life!! To take in such a thing?!”

The Second Prince approached the Empress with large strides, consumed by anger.

He even stomped his feet as he spoke.

“I can’t do it! I said I can’t!! How can I share love! I’m going to tell Alex to only look at me!”

Then he dropped a bombshell statement.

“Mother too!! You don’t want to share with the other concubines, mmmph!”

“Be, be quiet! Prince! Is this a place where only you and I are present?”

“Mmmph!”

Though the Empress had firmly covered his mouth so he couldn’t speak, the Second Prince was expressing his sadness and indignation with his whole body.

The Empress engaged in physical combat to stop her nearly grown son’s behavior, losing the veil she had gracefully worn, and soon her dress hem and hair became a complete mess.

Alexis Periander waited for a moment until that commotion settled down, then before stopping the Second Prince, approached Count Gash Yeongshik who was half-unconscious.

“What a pity. I was quite fond of you.”

“Your, Your, Your Highness….”

“But what use is a noble who brings harm to his own country.”

Alexis searched Count Gash Yeongshik’s clothes with a nonchalant smile and leisurely extracted the recording device.

He was at a loss and couldn’t stop Alexis, and it was the Empress who turned pale next.

“Your, Pr, Princess!”

The Empress cried out desperately, looking at the recording device in Alexis’s hand.

Since she was the person who would marry the Second Prince, she thought there was more hope than being caught by a complete stranger.

However, Alexis thoroughly prioritized even in this moment.

“Cute person, come here. I understand your heart.”

She called the Second Prince with a voice so sweet and gentle it was surprising she could use such a tone.

The Second Prince, who had been raging like a wild colt, finally calmed down and slowly separated from the Empress to link arms with Alexis again.

Watching this scene, Count Gash Yeongshik nearly suffocated from jealousy, and the Empress also felt like rolling her eyes at her child’s ingratitude.

However, Alexis, whose boldness was second to none, leisurely secured the recording device and spoke confidently to the Empress.

“Shall we have a talk then? The one who will soon become my new mother?”

It was the moment when the Empress’s negotiating partner changed from a small fry to a big shot.

*

After the commotion at the abandoned temple subsided and Alexis’s knight had even taken away Count Gash Yeongshik, I was finally able to raise my body that I had hidden in the most shadowy place.

“It’s a bit disappointing.”

When I spoke in a small voice, Casian supported my body that was staggering from staying still for so long and said.

“Compared to what we gave up, this isn’t bad either.”

He slowly removed the hood he had pulled down low and met my eyes.

With each step we took, the moonlight grew stronger and his features became clearly visible to me.

“Rose is truly greedy.”

“Please say I value efficiency.”

I felt slightly wronged by Casian’s teasing words.

It would have been nice if the Second Prince had also mentioned what the Empress had done to the other concubines all this time.

That might have been a clue to unraveling what she did to Casian’s mother.

The moment my lips tightened, he firmly grasped my hand and gently shook it.

“That’s exactly why I’m saying this, Rose. If you rush too much, you might ruin everything.”

He slowly bent his waist.

His violet eyes met mine at the same level and spoke soothingly.

“You said it yourself before, didn’t you?”

“….”

I was speechless at the sudden face attack.

Did I say such a thing?

When…?

Was it when I was frantically busy?

As I rolled my eyes trying to recall, Casian laughed softly.

“How sad, my fiancée can’t even remember our private memories.”

“…Your Highness.”

“Be satisfied for now, we didn’t suffer any damage and Princess Alexis will take care of everything, right?”

Casian spoke while lightly kissing the back of my hand he was holding.

I stared at him with focused eyes as he did this, then soon understood and nodded.

The cunning and clever Casian Artez had already received payment in advance from Alexis.

The fairly upright Princess didn’t seem to notice this though.

This abandoned temple was also a place where the Empress hid her assets.

However, there wasn’t enough justification to expose it as a single case yet, and the impact would be small, so we had only gathered information.

‘But if she suggests meeting and sets the appointment here, the story changes.’

She couldn’t not come.

This was why the Empress, who rarely left the palace, responded to Count Gash Yeongshik’s call.

Count Gash Yeongshik naturally didn’t give information about this place being the Empress’s asset hiding spot to Alexis, a foreign princess.

But since she’s a quick-witted person, she would have noticed there was something here and would use it well in her dealings with the Empress.

Then the anxious Empress would be more likely to take some action.

“Of course, of course. Princess Alexis became a great shield for us. Thanks to her, we dealt damage to Her Majesty the Empress and created material for future mistakes.”

Saying this, I felt wronged for no reason and leaned toward Casian.

“But Your Highness used me as bait.”

I wasn’t angry at all, and I thought it was well done, but I felt annoyed for no reason.

‘How could he tell me such a plan only right before execution?’

I had brought him all sorts of things thinking they would help Casian.

Unlike the original story, the Male Lead who was neither completely fair nor very righteous had planned this from when I became Alexis’s temporary aide.

Because if I had problems while belonging to her, it would become Alexis’s responsibility.

So he thought it would be good to use that as a shield to entangle the Empress.

“Are you upset, Rose?”

“How could I be? How dare I.”

I denied it only in words while not hiding my emotions at all.

Could that be called words?

Of course I knew Casian wouldn’t handle my safety carelessly, but I became spiteful for no reason.

It seemed like he didn’t trust me.

It seemed like he thought I might leak something to His Highness Alexis.

After working so hard for the past year, he didn’t trust my work capabilities.

At that moment of lamentation, I felt warm warmth enveloping me from behind.

Casian embraced my waist with both arms and whispered softly in my ear.

“…I wanted to give Rose some time to be at ease, even briefly.”

“….”

“You quite liked Princess Alexis, didn’t you? Unlike me, Rose is delicate.”

I could feel the strength gradually building in the arms that held me.

The sound of his heartbeat gently reached me through my shoulder.

“You naturally handled it well, but your heart must have been uncomfortable. I didn’t want that to happen.”

“…Your Highness.”

“I’m still lacking in giving you sweet rest, in giving you a place to be comfortable, but even if it’s just for a moment.”

Normally, he would have teased me at this point.

I couldn’t find words to respond to his overly sincere attitude.

If you asked whether I was truly disappointed, that wasn’t quite it either.

I just wanted to show a little bit of my feelings.

Because my camaraderie toward Casian was sincere.

Time flowed slowly.

Casian rested his forehead against my shoulder and showed no intention of letting go.

I reached out and stroked Casian’s hair.

“…I won’t say thank you.”

“Mm.”

He answered immediately.

It meant he knew that his considerate heart could feel like distrust to me.

“And Your Highness, don’t talk as if nothing happened to you.”

When you’re getting hurt too.

No matter how much his personality had changed from the original story, his heart couldn’t be completely armored with steel.

As much as he’d become shameless, somewhere there must be shallow scars left behind.

So at least while I’m working as Casian’s aide.

“I’m not weak enough to be unable to handle what I should handle. You hired me to stay by Your Highness’s side.”

“…Rose.”

“So let me handle it too. I’m not someone who would run away from something like this.”

Perhaps this was Casian’s trauma in this changed world.

Because he had lost aide after aide to the demanding work and the Empress’s interference.

At that moment, Casian hugged me even tighter and raised his head to meet my gaze at close range.

“Those words.”

“Yes?”

His eyes, filled with moonlight, curved in a gentle arc.

“Are you saying you’ll take responsibility for me for life?”

“…”

What is this ridiculous mood drift?

When I looked puzzled, Casian’s face broke into an even brighter smile.

“You, you were teasing me, weren’t you?”

“No, how could that be? I’m serious.”

“You were teasing me!”

Feeling wronged, I tried to escape from him, but Casian held me captive with his ridiculously strong strength.

This bad…

When someone was being sincere with you!

Really, trusting Casian Artez was a mistake.

Annoyed, I pressed my lips into a straight line and turned my head away in protest.

“Pfft.”

It was meant to be a serious sign of protest.

But for some reason he found it so amusing that Casian’s annoyingly satisfied laughter rang in my ears.

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