RPOF

Chapter 8

Exactly nine times.

I had been turned away by Lesius exactly nine times.

The imperial guard knight, who was usually strict and dignified, lowered his head carefully while watching my reaction.

“I’m sorry. His Majesty has given a strict order not to let the Duke enter.”

I was burning with frustration.

It had already been three days since Hesen territory was attacked. Three whole days.

Hesen County bordered Berwen territory. And more than anything—

“Kellian came in person?!”

In the original story, Kellian was supposed to stay in the shadows and pull the strings.

Why is he coming himself? Why?!

Kellian was an unofficial Sword Master.

I was the only one who could stop him. I wanted to rush to Hesen immediately, but—

“Report again. I have something urgent to tell His Majesty.”

Lesius blocked me.

I had confidently brought an order requesting permission to go to battle, but it came back stamped with rejection.

“The Duke of Berwen is not permitted to deploy.”

“But Your Majesty, as you know, Hesen’s command system is in chaos! And the Crown Prince of Bahat is unpredictable! Please allow me to go!”

“I do not overturn my decisions. Return.”

I was even placed under house arrest.

“Lesius. Make a decision worthy of an emperor. If I don’t go, soldiers will die!”

“As Emperor, I declare that from this moment, the Duke of Berwen is confined for one week for insubordination.”

Lesius had gently brushed my cheek, his face strangely sad.

“Not this time. Lewin, go back.”

That was the first time I had seen Lesius so firm.

So this time too, I was sure that solid door would not open—

Thud.

…But it did?

The heavy door carved with delicate patterns opened slowly.

“Come in.”

Inside the bedroom, Lesius sat behind a desk prepared for a work-obsessed emperor.

He looked up from his documents, still wearing his monocle.

I deliberately avoided his gaze as I stepped inside.

“You’re angry.”

Yes. I was sulking.

Not as a friend throwing a tantrum.

As a duke, I simply couldn’t accept my lord’s decision.

“Even if we’re close, public and private matters are separate. Is that how I raised you?”

Thud.

The heavy door closed, and silence filled the room.

“Your Majesty. This order is impossible for me to accept. Please reconsider—”

“Alright.”

“…What?”

Lesius removed his glasses and placed them on the desk.

With his hardened expression and no glasses to soften it, the atmosphere changed instantly.

His sharp eyes stood out.

So this is why he’s called a mad emperor.

He usually wore a gentle smile, so this side of him felt unfamiliar.

Lesius rubbed his face, then nodded tiredly.

“Fine. Do what you want.”

I wasn’t sure whether to be happy or not.

Look at his face. He must’ve been under a lot of stress…

Seeing him so worn down pricked my conscience.

“…Understood. I’ll proceed with that understanding.”

I shuffled backward awkwardly.

It was the first time I’d argued so strongly with Lesius, so things still felt strange.

“Lewin, I’m really—”

His damp voice stopped me.

When I turned back, Lesius was pressing his palm tightly against one eye.

Are you… crying?

“Don’t hate me.”

The tears were gone, but his voice was still hoarse.

“…Hey, wait.”

I walked toward him.

“As if I’d hate you—”

I was too flustered to speak properly.

The last time Lesius had cried in front of me was when the former emperor passed away.

This wasn’t full-on crying, just holding back tears.

“…You still cry easily, huh? You used to cry every day when I hit you.”

Yeah. That’s true.

When we were kids training with swords, if I accidentally hit Lesius, I always ended up comforting him.

It was strange.

The more we trained, the worse he seemed to get. I still didn’t understand that.

He used to be called a sword genius.

“Yeah. And every time, you hugged me.”

Like back then.

Lesius looked up at me with a pitiful expression.

“Am I too big now?”

“Huh?”

“Too big… to hug?”

He looked so down that I finally closed the distance.

He must be under so much pressure.

He looks grown, but to me, he’s still just a kid.

“Are you okay? Did something happen?”

I awkwardly wrapped my arms around his head.

Without saying anything, Lesius pulled me tightly by the waist.

“You told me to make decisions like an emperor.”

Ah. So that’s why.

It must have been hard for him. He’s always been sensitive. He probably carried it alone.

“That’s always hard for me. You know that. You’re all I have. If I lose you too, who do I lean on and cry to?”

His delicate green eyes, still wet, looked up at me. He bit his lip.

Between his uneven breaths, I could glimpse his firm chest through his slightly open shirt.

When did he grow up this much?

Just like the male lead Rosalyn described—restrained until the moment he breaks.

Oh. Lesius is a male lead too.

He really is handsome.

A second male lead, but still one of the most impressive men in this world.

I can’t take my eyes off him.

I don’t know why Lesius was staring too.

We stood there, locked in silence, staring at each other.

“I’m not going to die. I’m a Sword Master.”

I broke the silence awkwardly.

Lesius buried his face against my stomach, his breath warm through my shirt.

“…Stay the night.”

He spoke quietly, his voice unusually low.

“I’ll schedule a simple departure ceremony at dawn.”

Still leaning against me, he clutched my clothes tightly.

“If you go back to your estate, you won’t even have time to sleep. I’ll have the attendants prepare everything.”

Hmm. That was logical.

It took an hour to go to Berwen and another hour to return.

Two hours wasted.

It really was better to have my armor brought here.

“Lewin… are you still mad?”

Lesius looked up with bloodshot eyes.

Like a puppy afraid of being abandoned.

Strangely, those red-veined eyes felt dangerously tempting.

“…Well. If you’re okay with it, I’m fine.”

Saving time worked for me.

“So you’ll really stay?”

He nodded while rubbing his head against my shirt.

I straightened my wrinkled clothes and walked toward the emperor’s massive bed.

Ah. I should change clothes.

I was disguised with dark magic, but not completely male.

If I asked for clothes, they’d probably bring a nightgown, so I just took off my outerwear.

“When are you sleeping?”

I lay on my side in just a thin shirt.

“I still have documents to sign.”

As he answered, Lesius opened the window, letting cold air in.

“Are you cold?”

“No.”

Worrying about a Sword Master, really.

“Come sleep soon. You have to wake up at dawn too.”

“I don’t think I can.”

“…Sleep?”

His reddened eyes curved gently.

“I have too much to do. I don’t think I should sleep.”

Yeah. Being emperor really is hard.

Seeing how hard Lesius works for the empire, I don’t get why Rosalyn always judges him so harshly.

I’ve watched him for over twenty years.

Poor Lesius.

With that thought, I closed my eyes.

Later

“Your Majesty.”

Lesius sat on the edge of the bed, looking at Lewin with sorrowful eyes.

A shadow approached him.

“The task you ordered is complete. Kellian’s side should have encountered the Tohor tribe by now.”

“I see. Just in case, deal with the Grand Duke’s matter quickly too. If there was a way to knock him down, there must be a way to wake him.”

“Yes.”

The shadow vanished, leaving the room quiet again.

Lesius gently stroked Lewin’s furrowed brow.

What kind of nightmare are you having?

He had barely dealt with the wolves inside the empire, and now beasts outside its borders were causing chaos.

Lesius hated this situation.

Why is it so hard to let you sleep peacefully, Lewin?

His gaze lingered on Lewin’s calm face.

At the same time.

Deep in a canyon, hidden from the Second Prince of Bahat, lay Kellian’s camp.

Dragging a sword dripping with blood, Kellian stepped out of his tent.

“Your Highness!”

A knight stared back and forth between Kellian and the blade.

“Did you… kill them?”

“Yes. They annoyed me.”

The knight gasped.

Those inside were envoys of the Tohor tribe.

They likely came to propose a secret deal.

Like barbarians, they didn’t bargain much, but sometimes made outrageous demands.

And Kellian, with his short temper, probably cut them down mid-talk.

“Your Highness! They might attack the capital immediately! If our forces are tied up there, those hiding in the shadows could rise again!”

Without any concern, Kellian brushed the blood from his hair.

“You must return at once!”

“I’m not going back.”

He tossed the blood-stained sword to the ground. It clanged sharply.

“I’ve been curious. The Duke of Berwen led the border forces for a long time. We should have crossed paths at least once. Don’t you think?”

“……”

“But we never did. We always just missed each other. Now I think I know why.”

Thinking about it now, it was all Emperor Hailen’s doing.

He thought the man was just a bookish bureaucrat.

To pull something like this—bold indeed.

“Provoking the Tohor tribe… this feels like Hailen’s plan.”

“What do you mean—”

“It’s probably a move to keep the Duke and me from meeting.”

Kellian wiped the blood from his neck with his palm, only smearing it more.

“When someone tells you not to do something, it just makes you want to do it more.”

One corner of his mouth lifted.

His eyes turned wildly toward the south.

Toward the Hailen Empire.

“Now I want to see him even more.”

The cruelly beautiful man’s eyes curved playfully.