There were several reasons why Stella had simply kept the love potion hidden in her study. First, Stella did not want to fall in love. She knew how emotionally draining it was to give and receive love, and the process felt too painful. Second, she did not know the true power of this 'love potion.' In other words, she could not use it recklessly because she could not gauge what side effects it might cause or how it would affect her. And above all, Stella...
"Do you have a drinking appointment again today?"
"It can't be helped for the sake of the Duke's family. Still, I will be back as early as possible, so please don't worry too much."
She felt sorry for Kendrick. When she faced death once, she was able to look back on her life objectively. The biggest reason their marriage had spiraled into disaster was Stella herself. She wanted to receive from Kendrick the love she hadn't received from her parents. She acted childishly and clung to him like a puppy. She was grateful and sorry enough that he had tried for years without turning away from her. So, she wanted to leave him.
'Because my presence by his side is poison to Kendrick.'
She didn't want to feed Kendrick a love potion to win his love back, nor did she think it would be disrespectful to him to feed it to another man and play love games. But...
"I love you, Stella."
"Kendrick, let go of this."
To think Kendrick had actually drunk the 'love potion' like this. Stella couldn't hold back her astonishment.
At first, she thought there was an earthquake.
"Wow, why is a person's heartbeat this loud?"
As she was held in his arms, she realized it. That this magnificent sound was coming from Kendrick's heart. He had been holding Stella tightly for a few minutes and hadn't let go. A lot had happened during those few minutes, one of which was the knights standing outside opening the study door and coming in.
"Duke. What is that loud noise...!"
"It looks like there's an earthquake. Evacuate immediately!"
Stella, who was in his arms, was startled and averted her gaze, and Kendrick got angry.
"Stop talking nonsense and get out."
Even though they were a married couple, Stella felt her ears burning at the thought that they had been caught clinging to each other without any regard for dignity.
It seems like the sound is gradually fading away.
"Um, how long do I have to stay in your arms?"
Whenever Stella asked to be let go, Kendrick buried his face in her shoulder and shook his head. It meant he didn't even want to hear such things.
"Is this what a love potion is?"
It seemed like Kendrick had become a child.
"I can't let go."
His low voice, which seemed to echo in the room, had a strangely moist quality to it.
"I can't let go of my arm."
Stella had no choice but to stay in his arms for a few more minutes.
'I can't keep staying like this.'
If she had known nothing, she would have first suspected that Kendrick was making fun of her. But now, Stella felt as though his current state was entirely her fault.
'I should have kept the love potion safer.'
Or she should have stopped Kendrick when he said he was going to drink, even if it meant throwing herself in front of him.
She bit her lip nervously.
"Don't do that, Stella."
However, even this was stopped by Kendrick. His fingers traced Stella's lips.
"I don't want you to be in pain."
His expression was languid, and his eyes were full of affection. Stella blinked, still finding the situation unreal, then gently touched the area under Kendrick's eye. He squinted as if struck by a sharp pain, but his gaze soon softened as he felt Stella's touch.
'What should I do?'
Stella wanted to return Kendrick to his original self somehow. Just in case, she tried feeding him the chocolate Kendrick had brought. At that, Kendrick's arms, which had been binding her, loosened slightly. Seizing the opportunity, Stella broke free from him.
"It seems like eating something sweet makes me feel a bit better."
"Stella."
Kendrick's gaze as he looked at her was desperate. Seeing that even the rims of his ears were flushed red, it seemed he had a fever.
"Kendrick, call a doctor first. Your face is too red."
She regretted not receiving the antidote to the 'love potion' from God.
The doctor who examined Kendrick said.
"There is no answer."
"Yes?"
Stella asked back, puzzled by the doctor's overly firm attitude.
"First off, the symptoms you have exhibited so far, Lord Kendrick, are an excessive fever and heart palpitations. At first, I thought this might be due to a sudden rise in blood pressure, but that is not the case. Did he perhaps accidentally take some kind of magic potion?"
"Yeah, that's right."
"In that case, that is not my job. You must meet the wizards and obtain the antidote."
The doctor bowed his head as if apologetic for not being able to be of help. And Stella was still being held by one hand by Kendrick.
"Just in case, let's look into other symptoms. Duke, you mentioned that your heart pounded loudly as soon as you took the medicine, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"How was the pain?"
"It stung and suffocated me. But..."
Kendrick's gaze turned toward Stella.
"The pain went away when I hugged Stella."
Hmm, the groaning doctor tried making another request.
"Both of you, try letting go of each other's hands."
Kendrick looked at Stella's hand, which he was holding tightly. She had loosened her grip after hearing the doctor's words, but Kendrick held on and would not let go.
"I can't let go."
"Come on."
"No."
Kendrick finally let his guard down as Stella twisted his wrist while feeding him the chocolate. Ten seconds passed after he swallowed the chocolate. As the chocolate completely disappeared from his mouth, he clutched his heart and let out a groan, as if the pain had returned. He reached out his hand toward Stella as if begging her to hold it. When she gently squeezed his index finger, his breathing became even.
It seems that the drug is somehow related to Stella. And the chocolate seems to act as a painkiller for heart pain.
So, is Kendrick still feeling pain while I'm gone?
"Stella, would you like to go outside the room?"
"Out of the room?"
"What are you talking about? That's absolutely out of the question."
Kendrick held Stella's hand tightly.
"I see you have a tendency to depend on Stella. You will likely suffer even greater pain if she disappears from your sight."
"What...?"
It was getting more and more miserable. She had to write alone in her study and get critiques from Roy. No, more than that.
'What should I do when I wash my body?'
Do I have to hold Kendrick's hand even when showering?
"It must be Stella who has the hardest time from this."
She squeezed her eyes shut and then opened them.
The good news is that there are painkillers in the form of chocolate and candy. And while such remedies are very potent, they are known to lose their effectiveness over time.
Stella recalled the time he first drank the love potion. His heart, which had beaten so violently that even the knights thought there was an earthquake, was not that loud now. It was at a level where it could be heard clearly and continuously, like the second hand of a clock.
This must not be revealed to others.
Stella had to find a way to cope. She shook off Kendrick's arm, intending to tell the servant to make some candy that wouldn't melt easily.
"Stella."
However, as soon as Stella left the room, Kendrick,
"Ahhh."
He clutched his head and complained of a headache. The doctor looked at Stella.
"You must be having a hard time."
The look in his eyes became one of speaking.
After that, Kendrick had to live with candy in his mouth. He had rarely touched sweets since childhood. He also had trauma related to it.
He particularly hated macarons. Nevertheless, since his heart ached and he could not live without being in physical contact with Stella, he had no choice but to eat sweets continuously. However, even this method only provided temporary pain relief, and his thirst for Stella did not subside.
"Do you really have to write alone?"
"I can't concentrate when you're next to me because it distracts me."
Even when she was alone, Stella found it difficult to concentrate on her work due to her worries about Kendrick. Nevertheless, she had no choice but to work hard on her own to achieve her dream of becoming a writer.
'To obtain Hajean's magic stone, you must gain the recognition of the Imperial Family.'
She initially had the goal of making her debut through a major newspaper, but after hearing Roy's words, she changed her mind a little.
'Imperial court exclusive author.'
If she became the Imperial Family's exclusive author, she could fulfill her dream and keep her health. Although there was the risk that she might continue to run into Kendrick even after the divorce, since she couldn't emigrate. However, becoming the Imperial Family's exclusive author was like trying to catch a star in the sky. Because the benefits were so numerous, it was obvious that not only famous authors from the Empire but also renowned authors from other countries would apply.
Still, the Imperial Household author passed away a few years ago.
It is about time to pick a new author.
Now that a new Princess has been born, the odds of a fairy tale writer like her have gone up.
As she tried to think hopefully, she felt much more at ease. Kendrick, unable to suppress his longing for Stella, would drop by the study unexpectedly. Whenever that happened, Stella would leave one hand to Kendrick while writing with the other.
"But why was a drug that drives someone like this crazy in your drawer?"
When Kendrick suddenly asked that question, Stella felt as if she had frozen. Her neck was so stiff it ached. She already felt deeply sorry that Kendrick seemed to be suffering because of her. Since things had come to this, she decided to tell the truth without lying.
"Um, actually, I died once."
"Did you receive this as a gift from a man? That, the man who said he would teach you how to read?"
Huh?
"Do you have a drinking appointment again today?"
"It can't be helped for the sake of the Duke's family. Still, I will be back as early as possible, so please don't worry too much."
She felt sorry for Kendrick. When she faced death once, she was able to look back on her life objectively. The biggest reason their marriage had spiraled into disaster was Stella herself. She wanted to receive from Kendrick the love she hadn't received from her parents. She acted childishly and clung to him like a puppy. She was grateful and sorry enough that he had tried for years without turning away from her. So, she wanted to leave him.
'Because my presence by his side is poison to Kendrick.'
She didn't want to feed Kendrick a love potion to win his love back, nor did she think it would be disrespectful to him to feed it to another man and play love games. But...
"I love you, Stella."
"Kendrick, let go of this."
To think Kendrick had actually drunk the 'love potion' like this. Stella couldn't hold back her astonishment.
At first, she thought there was an earthquake.
"Wow, why is a person's heartbeat this loud?"
As she was held in his arms, she realized it. That this magnificent sound was coming from Kendrick's heart. He had been holding Stella tightly for a few minutes and hadn't let go. A lot had happened during those few minutes, one of which was the knights standing outside opening the study door and coming in.
"Duke. What is that loud noise...!"
"It looks like there's an earthquake. Evacuate immediately!"
Stella, who was in his arms, was startled and averted her gaze, and Kendrick got angry.
"Stop talking nonsense and get out."
Even though they were a married couple, Stella felt her ears burning at the thought that they had been caught clinging to each other without any regard for dignity.
It seems like the sound is gradually fading away.
"Um, how long do I have to stay in your arms?"
Whenever Stella asked to be let go, Kendrick buried his face in her shoulder and shook his head. It meant he didn't even want to hear such things.
"Is this what a love potion is?"
It seemed like Kendrick had become a child.
"I can't let go."
His low voice, which seemed to echo in the room, had a strangely moist quality to it.
"I can't let go of my arm."
Stella had no choice but to stay in his arms for a few more minutes.
'I can't keep staying like this.'
If she had known nothing, she would have first suspected that Kendrick was making fun of her. But now, Stella felt as though his current state was entirely her fault.
'I should have kept the love potion safer.'
Or she should have stopped Kendrick when he said he was going to drink, even if it meant throwing herself in front of him.
She bit her lip nervously.
"Don't do that, Stella."
However, even this was stopped by Kendrick. His fingers traced Stella's lips.
"I don't want you to be in pain."
His expression was languid, and his eyes were full of affection. Stella blinked, still finding the situation unreal, then gently touched the area under Kendrick's eye. He squinted as if struck by a sharp pain, but his gaze soon softened as he felt Stella's touch.
'What should I do?'
Stella wanted to return Kendrick to his original self somehow. Just in case, she tried feeding him the chocolate Kendrick had brought. At that, Kendrick's arms, which had been binding her, loosened slightly. Seizing the opportunity, Stella broke free from him.
"It seems like eating something sweet makes me feel a bit better."
"Stella."
Kendrick's gaze as he looked at her was desperate. Seeing that even the rims of his ears were flushed red, it seemed he had a fever.
"Kendrick, call a doctor first. Your face is too red."
She regretted not receiving the antidote to the 'love potion' from God.
***
The doctor who examined Kendrick said.
"There is no answer."
"Yes?"
Stella asked back, puzzled by the doctor's overly firm attitude.
"First off, the symptoms you have exhibited so far, Lord Kendrick, are an excessive fever and heart palpitations. At first, I thought this might be due to a sudden rise in blood pressure, but that is not the case. Did he perhaps accidentally take some kind of magic potion?"
"Yeah, that's right."
"In that case, that is not my job. You must meet the wizards and obtain the antidote."
The doctor bowed his head as if apologetic for not being able to be of help. And Stella was still being held by one hand by Kendrick.
"Just in case, let's look into other symptoms. Duke, you mentioned that your heart pounded loudly as soon as you took the medicine, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"How was the pain?"
"It stung and suffocated me. But..."
Kendrick's gaze turned toward Stella.
"The pain went away when I hugged Stella."
Hmm, the groaning doctor tried making another request.
"Both of you, try letting go of each other's hands."
Kendrick looked at Stella's hand, which he was holding tightly. She had loosened her grip after hearing the doctor's words, but Kendrick held on and would not let go.
"I can't let go."
"Come on."
"No."
Kendrick finally let his guard down as Stella twisted his wrist while feeding him the chocolate. Ten seconds passed after he swallowed the chocolate. As the chocolate completely disappeared from his mouth, he clutched his heart and let out a groan, as if the pain had returned. He reached out his hand toward Stella as if begging her to hold it. When she gently squeezed his index finger, his breathing became even.
It seems that the drug is somehow related to Stella. And the chocolate seems to act as a painkiller for heart pain.
So, is Kendrick still feeling pain while I'm gone?
"Stella, would you like to go outside the room?"
"Out of the room?"
"What are you talking about? That's absolutely out of the question."
Kendrick held Stella's hand tightly.
"I see you have a tendency to depend on Stella. You will likely suffer even greater pain if she disappears from your sight."
"What...?"
It was getting more and more miserable. She had to write alone in her study and get critiques from Roy. No, more than that.
'What should I do when I wash my body?'
Do I have to hold Kendrick's hand even when showering?
"It must be Stella who has the hardest time from this."
She squeezed her eyes shut and then opened them.
The good news is that there are painkillers in the form of chocolate and candy. And while such remedies are very potent, they are known to lose their effectiveness over time.
Stella recalled the time he first drank the love potion. His heart, which had beaten so violently that even the knights thought there was an earthquake, was not that loud now. It was at a level where it could be heard clearly and continuously, like the second hand of a clock.
This must not be revealed to others.
Stella had to find a way to cope. She shook off Kendrick's arm, intending to tell the servant to make some candy that wouldn't melt easily.
"Stella."
However, as soon as Stella left the room, Kendrick,
"Ahhh."
He clutched his head and complained of a headache. The doctor looked at Stella.
"You must be having a hard time."
The look in his eyes became one of speaking.
***
After that, Kendrick had to live with candy in his mouth. He had rarely touched sweets since childhood. He also had trauma related to it.
He particularly hated macarons. Nevertheless, since his heart ached and he could not live without being in physical contact with Stella, he had no choice but to eat sweets continuously. However, even this method only provided temporary pain relief, and his thirst for Stella did not subside.
"Do you really have to write alone?"
"I can't concentrate when you're next to me because it distracts me."
Even when she was alone, Stella found it difficult to concentrate on her work due to her worries about Kendrick. Nevertheless, she had no choice but to work hard on her own to achieve her dream of becoming a writer.
'To obtain Hajean's magic stone, you must gain the recognition of the Imperial Family.'
She initially had the goal of making her debut through a major newspaper, but after hearing Roy's words, she changed her mind a little.
'Imperial court exclusive author.'
If she became the Imperial Family's exclusive author, she could fulfill her dream and keep her health. Although there was the risk that she might continue to run into Kendrick even after the divorce, since she couldn't emigrate. However, becoming the Imperial Family's exclusive author was like trying to catch a star in the sky. Because the benefits were so numerous, it was obvious that not only famous authors from the Empire but also renowned authors from other countries would apply.
Still, the Imperial Household author passed away a few years ago.
It is about time to pick a new author.
Now that a new Princess has been born, the odds of a fairy tale writer like her have gone up.
As she tried to think hopefully, she felt much more at ease. Kendrick, unable to suppress his longing for Stella, would drop by the study unexpectedly. Whenever that happened, Stella would leave one hand to Kendrick while writing with the other.
"But why was a drug that drives someone like this crazy in your drawer?"
When Kendrick suddenly asked that question, Stella felt as if she had frozen. Her neck was so stiff it ached. She already felt deeply sorry that Kendrick seemed to be suffering because of her. Since things had come to this, she decided to tell the truth without lying.
"Um, actually, I died once."
"Did you receive this as a gift from a man? That, the man who said he would teach you how to read?"
Huh?
However, things in the world did not go as planned.
"No."
"Then, are you planning to feed it to another man?"
"No."
Stella got excited without realizing it and ended up shouting loudly. Kendrick was satisfied with her firm denial.
"Then... why did you have this? No way."
Stella was worried about what else might come out of his mouth.
"Were you planning to feed me?"
It wasn't exactly like that, but saying so seemed like the best way to avoid the situation.
"Yeah, that's right. I've been thinking about doing that for a long time, but I didn't use it because I felt uneasy about it."
At this, Kendrick's cheek twitched. Then, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. She had thought his black hair and calm eyes made him look cold despite his handsome looks, but now she saw that wasn't the case at all. With his cheeks flushed and his gaze wistful, he looked like a completely different person. If it weren't for his solid, chestnut-like body...
Stella might have thought he was cute...
Comments
Post a Comment