Chapter – 95
The questioning continued after that, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that Leonard was like a horse being put up for auction.
From the middle onward, I thought about pulling him out, but Leonard refused on his own and burned with competitive spirit. He seemed curious to see just how high his score could go.
*’Seriously… what kind of person were you in your past life, you bastard?’*
About twenty minutes later, the Q&A session finally came to an end.
Unlike Leonard’s refreshingly composed expression, Aurora’s face was subtle. Her brow was slightly furrowed, but she said nothing.
*’Passed the minimum standard, I guess.’*
No—what is this, the college entrance exam?
“…Well, yes. He seems like a good husband candidate.”
“Then may I go to sleep with my wife now?”
“Aurora, Leonard. Don’t we need to have a meeting?”
“No, Charles. I only intended to have a light conversation on the first night.”
Aurora stood up, slowly handing her pen and papers to the priestess.
“The battle has just ended, so His Highness must be tired.”
Then perhaps you shouldn’t have asked questions that dealt such mental blows.
But I kept my mouth shut. Because otherwise, I might end up on the receiving end of Aurora’s mental bombardment too.
“Well then, Prince, Charles. Have a good night.”
—
As soon as we returned to the bedroom, Leonard flopped onto the bed with a thud.
Startled by his appearance, so different from his earlier confident demeanor, I cried out.
“Leonard, I’m sorry!”
But what came from him wasn’t a rebuke—it was laughter.
“No, this was the most difficult battle I’ve ever faced. Thanks to you, I had fun.”
“Fun…?”
“I’ve never had friends, so I’ve never experienced or even heard of anything like this.”
His unexpectedly poignant words left me speechless.
As I froze, Leonard sat up on the bed. A soft smile rose on his sculpted face. Then he reached out his hand toward me.
“Don’t stand there—come here, wife.”
“Wi-wife?”
“What else should I call you? ‘Miss’? That feels too formal.”
……
I walked over slowly and took Leonard’s hand. He swiftly turned his body and pushed me down onto the bed.
*’I… knew this was coming.’*
If I had come to a man’s bed without knowing what was about to happen, that would truly be an oblivious web novel heroine. And I am not that kind of heroine.
As I blushed and dropped my gaze, he climbed on top of me.
“It seems my friend’s examination is over. What about you?”
The way he slowly unbuttoned his shirt looked mischievous and sly.
I tried not to look at the tanned skin and abs hidden beneath his shirt, and muttered quietly.
“Well… I guess you’re not bad. I’ve always had high standards.”
“So you didn’t even glance at the male leads in romance novels?”
“Can we stop talking about Cedric Myers, please—”
I couldn’t continue. Something soft descended upon my lips, and the ribbon tying the front of my dress slowly came undone.
The clumsy way his hands undressed me was very much to my liking.
“This world’s clothes are so annoying. Why do people wear so many layers?”
“Still, don’t tear them.”
……
His dissatisfied face drew an involuntary smile from me. But if he tore this expensive custom-made dress… hmm.
As I began to feel embarrassed, I asked another question.
“What else annoys you?”
“No smartphones. Food that doesn’t suit my taste. Strange mannerisms. Stuffy etiquette.”
“Still, I’m glad I was born pretty. This handsome face, too.”
As I smiled and stroked his face, Leonard’s eyes widened slightly.
Then he took his hands off my dress and gently caressed my cheek.
“…Good thing this face is edible.”
His suddenly lowered voice caught my attention. I quickly raised both hands to cup his face.
“Leonard. I didn’t just say I like your face.”
“I know. I feel the same.”
The palms touching my cheeks felt burning hot.
“So even if we’d met in Korea, I would have fallen for you.”
“…What?”
My heart plummeted to the floor in an instant.
In my past life, I had never received love—not even from my family. I never expected to be loved by anyone. Yet here I was, in another world, meeting someone who said they loved me.
As I froze in the bizarre situation, he gave a faint smile.
“Actually, Korea would have been better. Rather than a place like this…”
His words trailed off, as if dissolving into a faint mist in the air.
The two flames facing each other trembled slightly. Clearly, the memories of the past were gripping him again.
How on earth could I free him from his past?
…God.
I threw my arms tightly around his neck.
Please, forgive this man.
—
* * *
—
Moonlight seeped through the gap in the curtains, leaving silvery traces on the bedroom floor.
On the bed, Charlotte lay asleep with even, deep breaths.
Her steady breathing filled the silent room.
Beneath that breath, a very old memory lifted its head.
The moment James was dying.
—
*—Take care of… her.*
—
At first, he thought he had lost his mind and heard nonsense.
But later, when he came to his senses and casually asked Lord Plance, he learned about Aria.
‘She’ was a priestess who had entered the Tower of Lethe to subdue the monsters within, and to James—trapped in the tower—she was like an older sister.
But one day, she disappeared without a trace, and James had always missed her, they said.
That was all.
Even Lord Plance knew very little about Aria.
He had been searching for her for James’s sake—who would have thought she’d be with Damian?
……
The fact that she was with Damian as a corpse meant she had most likely been killed by him.
That man again.
Damian.
Every time he heard that name, his breath was choked by unbearable rage.
The air wouldn’t even reach his lungs, as if a shard of ice was lodged in the center of his heart.
How long must he keep hearing that name in this endless fire of fury? Why must he suffer so much?
God, what did I do so wrong that…
“Leonard?”
At the sleep-laden voice, his eyes snapped open.
Charlotte had woken and was half-sitting up on the bed.
“What are you doing over there?”
……
The moment he saw the pitch-black darkness behind the woman smiling brightly, he realized it.
The hands that emerged from the veil of night, beckoning him to come. The bone-chilling cold of the underworld. The sorrowful screams and shrieks that struck his ears.
The torn flesh of the silent ones, the countless corpses of his comrades strewn across the Verheim Gorge.
And Damian’s voice echoing all around.
—
*—Did you think the Punishment Unit would be granted a peaceful old age and a tranquil death?*
—
‘…I see.’
Of course he had done wrong.
Though his life began unjustly, there were certainly moments—however brief—when he could have turned onto a different path.
But he didn’t choose that path. He glorified it as revenge, hatred, and justice, and ultimately continued down the road of slaughter.
Could he truly beg for God’s mercy under the excuse of having killed out of necessity? Could he really be forgiven for taking others’ lives to save his own?
That’s why he had always prepared himself for death to come someday.
It was only that now, because he had a purpose, he wished it would be delayed.
“It’s nothing.”
Leonard slowly rose from the chair.
God’s mercy would never reach him—not even by a single hair.
That was the fairness of the world, and so it should be.
That way… Damian, too, would receive his fair price.
—
* * *
—
The day before the hunting festival, I arrived at Redford territory with Aurora, Cecilia, and Leonard.
Upon arriving at the teleportation circle, the first thing that caught my eye was Onos Castle—truly elegant.
The towering spires and silver roofs sparkled in the sunlight, and the gardens and fountains blended together like a scene from a fairy tale.
Prince Chris himself offered to guide us.
He was still beautiful and elegant. Even Cecilia kept glancing at him, her cheeks flushed.
Aurora, utterly smitten with Erdan, only looked straight ahead, though.
“The three of you may rest in the guest chambers and join the hunting festival tomorrow.”
“Will… His Highness the Prince not be dining with us today?”
Watching Cecilia cautiously strike up a conversation, I thought they looked good together.
*’Perhaps Prince Chris becoming Cecilia’s husband wouldn’t be so bad.’*
That would complete the second contract with Leonard.
As I was lost in various thoughts, the Emperor’s chief attendant came running from afar.
“I apologize for interrupting your conversation. Your Highness the Sixth Prince—His Majesty the Emperor summons you.”
