“Your Highness, the shadow has passed by.”
Several letters were placed in the silently held-out hand. Rhodnes's cold eyes read the scribbled letters.
In reality, it was a report disguised as a letter. A report from the shadows watching over Noevian Trovica.
“I ask if I should continue chasing it. There is nothing unusual yet, only information that a new name has been created.”
“Don’t approach him. Keep chasing him.”
“...How about just leaving him alone?”
Vincenzo asked hesitantly. Rhodnes scanned the following letter without answering.
“The Emperor wishes to re-organize Her Majesty Empress Letina’s funeral.”
“Are there people who have two funerals?”
“This time, the royal family wishes to keep the ceremony brief and solemn, rather than according to tradition.”
“It’s not good to hold onto a dead person for too long. Should I thank you for at least pretending to ask my opinion?”
Contrary to his calm tone of voice, his sharp eyes did not rest. Vincenzo took a deep breath and left the tent.
Only then did Rhodnes open the letter at the bottom. As soon as he opened the letter, his sharp eyes drooped down.
It was a letter from Adrienne.
Rhodnes let out a groan-like sigh and buried his face in his hands. The sight of Adrienne’s clean and crisp smile was enough to kill him.
He has been handling urgent state affairs on behalf of the Emperor, who has been in seclusion in the palace, carrying the coffin of his mother, Empress Letina.
If he grabbed the collar of the servant who came to the bridal chamber with a rotten look on his face and a bundle of work in his arms and shook him a few times, everything would be quiet for a day or two.
But subduing monsters is a different story.
'Madness will disappear if you cut off the obsession. Those who possess powers beyond the original human range need somewhere to continuously pour that power.'
Rossi's voice was clear enough to hear. He gathered Adrienne's letters in both hands and sank into his chair.
'If Adrienne is the cause of the thirst that the Prince experiences, it must be because she is special. Since you are someone he focuses on with all your might, it is understandable that you would have considered Adrienne to be the object of your madness when you were young. The reason you go mad upon seeing the blood of a monster is because you have not yet accepted magic as a beneficial force.'
'Then what should I do?'
'Now that Adrienne has found her magic, you won't have to press your power on her. Her magic will receive yours. If you see a monster and want to destroy it with your mind, you should fully accept that your power is beneficial and willingly use it.'
A rare sympathetic voice wandered through my head.
'It seems like the Prince has endured too much all this time.'
As Rossi said.
The power that was once desperate to hide and control was now freely available.
The soldiers who took part in the short punitive campaign had to work half as hard, and he no longer fought like a bloodthirsty monster as before.
A madness created by an obsession to be with Adrienne.
A madness created by the patience that was desperately controlled for fear that the ominous guy would take away the attention that should have been poured on his brother.
All of that was something that could be solved by just not enduring it.
Isn't this a solution so simple that it seems absurd?
Rhodnes laughed bitterly and lay down on the cot.
In the hearts of the monsters that were killed, blue-green jewels that looked just like Adrienne's eyes were created. They were beautiful and ethereal objects filled with pure magic power. Ah, Adrienne...
Rhodnes kissed the letter he was holding so carefully. He was desperate to see Adrienne.
The monster subjugation that had been scheduled for a month was coming to an end in about two weeks. At night, they wiped out the monsters that appeared, and during the day, they searched the corpses of dead monsters, pulled out their hearts, and obtained jewels.
According to Rossi, who went on a campaign to study demons, the price of one jewel would be equivalent to that of two or three large castles.
But such words did not reach Rhodnes' ears at all. As soon as he saw the jewel that resembled Adrienne's eyes, he was busy imagining putting it around her white, slender neck.
As he put on the necklace, he bit and licked the nape of her neck, which was so tender that the veins were visible... Rhodnes gritted his teeth and came to the conclusion that he would have to return to the palace by tomorrow evening, instead of the original three days later.
It was already too early to bring it forward and everyone was sleep-deprived, but since all the monsters were killed, the lord of this territory or Vincenzo could take care of the cleanup.
He had been holding on tight for fear of being accused of being swept up in the Crown Princess's skirt recently and of putting his work on the back burner.
Since he got married and was busy rolling around in bed, missing Adrienne in the air without being able to draw even one of those common portraits was torture.
Rhodnes kissed the letter, which was filled with Adrienne's scent, for a long time, then opened it while lying down.
Contrary to expectations, the content of the letter was very short.
The eyes that had been drooping with regret quickly brightened when they saw the contents.
“Vincenzo!!”
“Yes, Your Highness-!”
“The demons are all dead, so you take care of the rest. I’m going straight to the palace now.”
"Yes?"
Vincenzo was dumbfounded by his master's sudden change of heart. Not paying attention to his adjutant's surprised eyes, Rhodnes shouted outside the tent like a fierce tyrant, telling someone to bring him his horse.
There was no time to catch him after that, because Rhodnes, who had wrapped his cloak around his waist, had left the tent with the emergency package he had roughly unpacked on the makeshift table tied around his waist.
From the moment he left the palace, he had to comfort and appease his lord, who had a face that seemed determined to return to his wife.
It was Vincenzo who kept watching and holding on to Rhodnes, who was washing himself obsessively as if he was going to rush off to see his wife right after finishing his work.
“Your Highness! Your Highness!!”
Vincenzo was clutching his head.
Oh, shit.
Vincenzo, who was stamping his feet while looking at his lord who had already become a dot in the distance, picked up the letter that the Crown Princess had dropped to see with his bleary eyes what on earth the Crown Princess had said that made him run away like a mad dog.
“...Damn it, Rhodnes.”
The name of his cousin, his lord, came out of Vincenzo's mouth along with a curse for the first time in years. There was only one word in the letter that moved Rhodnes.
"I miss you so much today, my love."
As always, the training was Vincenzo's job.
***
With the new Crown Princess entering the palace, the greenhouse has become busier than usual.
It was because of the news of Rhodnes' return that was sent by Marquis Vincenzo Winston.
“I’ll do it myself, so you all go out now.”
"Nut..."
“I am not glass.”
The servants of the Crown Princess' palace were anxious to see Adrienne walk around, lest they harm their precious grandson.
But knowing that Adrienne didn't like being treated like a sick person, they followed the order without saying a word.
The maid, Jonah, who Blie had insisted on leaving behind, stood firm in front of the greenhouse, ready to jump in if Adrienne showed even the slightest sign of distress.
Adrienne enjoyed the freedom she had enjoyed in a space where all the servants had disappeared.
The cold of winter, which was drawing to a close, was easily tolerated in the greenhouse, and the interior, where eastern flowers had been transplanted, boasted the freshest fragrance in recent years thanks to Adrienne.
As soon as Adrienne heard the news of Rhodnes's return, she placed a basket of cookies she had baked herself on the table that morning.
A few days ago, she heard the news of her pregnancy and sent a letter to Rhodnes on impulse because she missed him so much.
She never intended to interfere with his work. She just wanted to keep in touch with him like they did when they were kids, and if he wrote back that he wanted to see her too, she would tease him with a present for him when he got back.
“Adrienne!”
She was touching her lower abdomen with mixed emotions, not knowing how to bring up the subject and wondering if the palace doctor's words about being pregnant were in fact a misdiagnosis, when a man's voice, like lightning, pierced through the peaceful greenhouse.
“Roan!”
Without even asking how she was doing, the crisp collar of his coat, which had returned with the cold air behind it, filled her nose with the scent of new clothes.
Rhodnes ran to her and hugged her tightly, then immediately kissed her on the top of her head.
The maids who had been bringing hot tea were seen running out of the greenhouse in surprise. Adrienne managed to get Rhodnes away.
“I missed you, Roan.”
“Is that the end?”
Rhodnes' eyes were very busy.
Two hot hands cupped her clean face.
Rhodnes, who had been poking at her eyes, nose, and mouth as if he was going to swallow them all, moaned deeply and kissed her gently.
There was no room for his body, bent over towards her.
As usual, Rhodnes' eyes, which were engrossed in the scene as if he had missed her so much, were fierce and sinister, even though his long eyelashes were lowered without even closing.
The weight of his pants, which had been pressing heavily against her stomach since earlier, made it hard to breathe.
Finally, the tablecloth on the spacious outdoor table was grabbed by a large, skinny hand, and the dishes on it fell down with a loud noise.
Adrienne was suddenly pushed back and sat down across the table.
She reflexively reached out to grab the basket of cookies that had slipped to the edge of the table.
Fortunately, the basket of cookies did not fall over, and the outstretched hand was caught by Rhodnes.
“Roan!”
“I thought you were crazy about me, but I couldn’t waste time drinking tea.”
A low voice warned fiercely in Adrienne's ear.
Rhodnes, who saw Adrienne's blushing face, pulled up the hem of her pink dress with urgent hands.
A hot palm ran up her round thigh, and a huge man's body suddenly entered between her spread legs.
Then, Rhodnes's earnest lips touched her exposed collarbone.
In an instant, Adrienne came to her senses and pushed hard against Rhodnes's chest.
In reading her mood, the ghostly Rhodnes was easily pushed away, killing her momentum.
However, the speed at which the body accepts rejection and the speed at which the mind accepts it are different.
In an instant, Rhodnes, who had been pitifully pushed away, stared at her like a wounded animal.
Adrienne warned, pulling down her dress and buttoning up the slightly ruffled front.
“From now on, you won’t be touching me for at least the next two months.”
It only took a moment for the fierce eyes to lose their momentum.
It seemed as if his invisible ears had drooped in an instant.
A pitiful face turned towards her as if she could hear the sound of Cowan's cherished toy being taken away.
“What did I... do wrong?”
Rhodnes asked pitifully.
“I will bring you a few demon hearts, and I will arrive with an empty wagon full of jewels and gold coins, Rien.”
He continued talking nonsense as if he was trying to make up for a mistake he didn't make.
Adrienne looked at Rhodnes with a strange look in her eyes, her eyes reddening.
“Whatever you give me, it can never be as good as what I can give you.”
“...You? Are you talking about you?”
“I already gave myself to you?”
Adrienne said with a slightly harmed expression on her face.
Rhodnes, who had his anxiety slightly calmed by that brief affection, approached Adrienne slowly like an abandoned and then found an animal and carefully hugged her.
Adrienne, who confirmed that he had calmed down a bit, although his heavy pants were still the same, silently hugged him.
“I don’t know what you’ll give me, but you’re enough for me. You don’t have to give me anything else.”
Rhodnes took a deep breath and kissed Adrienne's forehead gently.
Adrienne chuckled softly and ran both hands over her lower abdomen.
“What a heartless father he is, my child. He says he doesn’t need anything but me.”
The lips that had been stroking her blonde hair that flowed like honey stopped after a while.
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