15. In Leon Estate

After the barrier was completed, the Leonis Empire faced a crisis. This led me to wonder if the first Emperor of Leonis foresaw such events? Events that should have occurred a thousand years ago have only come now.

However, thanks to the dedication of the Previous Duke and the possessed priests, most of the commoners who lived in the Capital were unharmed. The previous Duke had also made arrangements through the guards to prevent significant harm to other noble families.

Ironically, the palace was the hardest-hit area.

The surviving nobles were now down to the Crown Prince. He had miraculously survived in the ruins, but apart from him, the whereabouts of the rest of the royal family were unknown.

Noah had also survived unscathed. I heard he started babbling strange things as soon as he woke up, but from now on, he was under surveillance.

Despite knowing the original story had changed and I belonged to my original position, I had no intention of creating an environment where Lucian could change his mind. According to the Previous Duke and Lucian’s intentions, we decided to go to the Leon Estate. Since we had originally planned to leave the Empire, there were no lingering attachments.

The one with the most lingering attachments was probably Bellisa, but the Bourgogne family of Bellisa had also decided to leave the Capital and move to their estate. By the way, the Bourgogne estate was right next to Leon Estate.

“Ack!”

“Ray, be careful.”

We were on our way to Leon Estate in a carriage that we had managed to save among all the carriages that the Previous Duke had sent away.

In the cramped carriage, it was me, Lucian, along with Amber, Samuel, and the Countess. The Previous Duke had sent us ahead, claiming that he needed to stay in the Capital to assess the situation.

Since I was guilty of Samuel and the Countess getting involved, I couldn’t leave them behind in the Capital, so I asked Lucian to let them stay in the Duke’s estate for a while.

“Are you okay, sister?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

The carriage was not only cramped but also had the worst comfort.

As we entered the winding road, my buttocks kept bouncing off the seat and sticking back repeatedly. Oscar, who was sitting next to the coachman, opened a small window and asked.

“Master, are you okay?”

Oh, this carriage didn’t even block the noise.

Damian, who had stuck only his face to the carriage window, asked too.

“Are you okay, Master?”

When Damian, who had been on the carriage’s roof, came down and asked, I felt my face flush. No, it wasn’t a problem I could solve with my will. Look, it wasn’t just me. There was also Amber and the Countess…

“…Am I the only one?”

I expected Amber and the Countess to be the same as me, but the two of them, even in this shaky carriage, swayed flexibly like reeds but didn’t bounce around like I did.

“If it’s difficult, come here.”

Lucian, who was sitting next to me, picked me up and placed me on his lap.

It felt nice to be embraced in his broad arms, but there were so many onlookers that it made me feel self-conscious. In the heat of embarrassment, I tried to push him away, but his large hand gently pressed my nape, leaning me against his shoulder.

“Rest a little. We’ll arrive when you wake up.”

I silently cursed inside that I couldn’t possibly fall asleep in this condition. Still, I indeed fell asleep while being held in his arms.

Later, when I woke up from the swaying sensation, we had indeed arrived, just as he had said.

“Are you awake?”

Lucian was carrying me somewhere.

“Where is this?”

“It’s a mansion in the Leon Estate.”

“When did we arrive?”

When I curled up my body even more as I was still feeling tired, he held me even tighter.

“We just arrived.”

“Uung… I see.”

“Duke, I will open the door for you.”

I thought it was just the two of us, so I was surprised when I heard a voice from behind. When I looked over his shoulder, the butler who had been in the previous mansion was bowing to me.

Only then did I start to feel a bit more awake. When I glanced around, I noticed that the mansion in Leon Estate had a different structure and style than the one in the Capital. It was much more old-fashioned.

The butler cautiously approached us and opened the door for us.

“Be on standby.”

“Alright, Duke.”

Even though I heard the door close, I was too preoccupied with exploring the room for the first time to pay attention.

It seemed like a room the Duke used. After passing through a spacious and elegant living room, I could see a well-arranged bed in the bedroom. It was slightly smaller than the one Lucian used and smaller than the one in the Ducal couple’s bedroom.

When we reached the bed, Lucian, who had placed me on it, looked at me and asked,

“Are you hungry?”

“Um… I feel a bit hungry.”

“Okay, I’ll prepare some water for you to bathe. You can warm up first.”

“Okay. But what about the Duchess?”

“She has already gone into her bedroom, so I told them not to disturb her.”

“Alright, that’s a good idea.”

As soon as I realized that we were alone in the bedroom, I felt embarrassed, and my heart started racing. Why did I feel this way now when I’ve been like this without any problem before?

My heart didn’t seem to follow my will.

Lucian went into the bathroom, probably to fill the bathtub with water himself. He had a usual expression, unlike me.

In the meantime, I went to the window.

The sun had set, but thanks to magical lamps that illuminated the darkness, I could see the contours of the garden. The garden looked much larger than the mansion in the Capital and had more trees than flowers.

I followed the path lined with small garden statues. I looked up, and in the night sky, I saw yellow stars scattered like flowers in the garden. I was captivated by the sight.

I opened the balcony door and stepped outside. The cool breeze carried the scent of the sea. I reached out to the balcony railing and closed my eyes.

Then, I heard the faint sound of waves in the distance.

As I took a deep breath and exhaled, suddenly, Lucian, who had approached silently, wrapped his arms around my waist and clung to me. I could feel his warm breath on my nape. He leaned over and placed his face on my shoulder.

“It’s all over now, really.”

I whispered as I placed my hand on top of his hand on my waist.

It felt more like a self-talk than something meant for him. He must have realized it, too, because he didn’t respond separately. Instead, he just raised his head from my shoulder and kissed my cheek again.

The lips that lingered for a moment before pulling away felt dry.

I was tired from spending so much time in the carriage, and even before that, I hadn’t had a proper rest. We had been dealing with non-human beings and hadn’t had a chance to relax.

It seemed that I had spent quite a bit of time on the balcony. He had instructed the butler to bring food before coming to see me, so I had already eaten soup even before soaking in the bathtub. As I filled myself with the hot soup, bread, and fresh fruit, my body began to relax.

Lucian, who saw me slouching in the chair, stood up from his chair and hugged me again.

“Why?”

Why did he keep lifting me like this? Was he not tired? I felt both sorry and amazed as I kept getting tired and slouching while he moved effortlessly.

“Luci, your physical strength is really something.”

If I could use my divine power to heal others, why couldn’t I control my own body the way I wanted to?

Although it was frustrating, being in his arms felt good, so I just raised the corners of my lips quietly. When I raised my gaze, our eyes met immediately. His eyes, which had looked as cold as metal, now shone with a deep golden hue, like thick honey.

This was the situation where honey dripped from his eyes.

As I was captivated by his eyes and couldn’t look away, my feet touched the ground. His long fingers started unbuttoning the jacket.

I had been too drowsy to move, so I just watched him do it.

The jacket fell to the floor, and the buttons began to pop one by one. Did he not know how to unbutton a shirt properly? Why did he keep ripping off buttons?

When the pressure that had been pressing against my lower abdomen spread open, I inadvertently let out a breath I had been holding breath.

I was dazed but also nervous because of his touch.

He quickly undressed me before Lucian undressed himself in a haphazard manner. As he removed his clothes, his smooth, muscular body was revealed. Before I could say anything, my body was lifted again.

He carried me into the bathroom.

“Huah…”

The slightly hot water reached my neck, and my tense body gradually relaxed. The scent of roses tickled my nose, perhaps because he had added bath salts.

As I nestled my face against the area where his shoulders met his neck, I let out a sigh of relief.

Lucian wrapped his arms around me, supporting me firmly. Was this what it felt like to be comfortable on someone’s body? The feeling of his muscles that seemed hard to the eye was like a cushion against my skin.

“Huu…”

As he entered the warm water, Lucian also let out a deep sigh. He looked up at the ceiling, his eyelids flickering. The ceiling was much more elaborate than the old bathroom’s, adorned with vines and flower-shaped carvings.

When his long arms tightened around my waist, the entire surface of his body came into contact with mine.

It was quite a fulfilling feeling.

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