Chapter 40. A Fox-Like Man (1)
After yet another exhausting meeting, I stepped out of the room.
“You’ve worked hard, Your Majesty the Empress.”
As if he had been waiting, someone spoke to me.
Right. I had forgotten about him.
“You’re still here…?”
“Of course. I am, after all, Your Majesty’s personal guard knight.”
He replied with a shameless smile.
Seriously…
Why are you the one serving as my guard knight?
I stared blankly at Leonard.
Suddenly, I recalled the tea party from a few days ago.
Yes. That was where the problem had started.
When the noblewomen brought up the topic of lovers and started talking about Leonard, it had been fine.
After all, I had planned to make it clear that they were wrong.
But then—
‘He just had to appear at that exact moment…’
His timing was impeccable.
As if he had been waiting for the perfect entrance!
His bombshell announcement left the noblewomen in awe.
— Hohoho, it seems we were worried for no reason.
— Indeed. Her Majesty must have already made up her mind.
— Of course, she’s the Empress, after all.
Even though I had denied it, I had spoken too late.
— Hohoho, no need to be shy, Your Majesty.
— We are all on Your Majesty’s side.
No matter how much I denied it, they simply assumed I was too embarrassed to admit it.
And so, after Leonard declared himself my guard knight at the tea party…
He had been sticking to my side far more than before.
Wherever I went, he followed without fail.
That alone might have been tolerable.
But the real problem was the way people started looking at me.
With every step I took, I felt more stares than usual.
To be precise, the stares were directed at me and Leonard, who followed behind me.
Even the palace maids mentioned that a new rumor had begun spreading among the courtiers.
That Leonard might truly become my lover.
I had already been troubled when people whispered about our supposed “ambiguous relationship.”
But now, the rumor had escalated.
Why was everything becoming more complicated?
“What exactly… are you thinking?”
“Whatever do you mean?”
“How did you end up as my guard? Should the Empire’s Knight Commander be doing something like this?”
“My, I’m honored by Your Majesty’s concern.”
“It’s not you I’m worried about. It’s the Empire and its people.”
“As expected of Your Majesty. Thinking of the Empire’s people, including me.”
“…….”
I was speechless.
His smiling face had never looked more irritating.
“…I never knew you were this shameless.”
“I never knew either.”
“…….”
“But in front of Your Majesty, I can’t seem to help myself.”
It sounded as if I were someone special to him.
I had felt this same unsettling sensation before.
When I awoke after collapsing, his voice and gaze had given me this same feeling.
‘No. Get a grip.’
I couldn’t let myself be shaken.
I had every intention of divorcing Jerome and leaving this place.
I wanted to completely break free from the original story’s trajectory.
To go far away, somewhere no one knew me.
To live a simple, peaceful life for as long as possible.
That meant I needed to stop getting involved with the characters from the original story.
If I stayed with them, I would inevitably get tangled up in the plot.
I needed to draw a clear line with him.
“Sir Leonard.”
“Yes.”
“Just so you know, no matter what you do, it’s pointless. I have no intention of taking a lover.”
The moment I spoke definitively, Leonard raised an eyebrow.
“Am I not good enough?”
Not good enough?
If anything, he was too much.
He was undoubtedly one of the most eligible bachelors in the Empire.
“It’s not that. It’s not about you— I don’t intend to take a lover, period.”
“May I ask why?”
Why, indeed.
I couldn’t exactly bring up my divorce plans here.
“I am already a married woman.”
Of course, a married woman who wants to get divorced.
“Taking a lover while married? That’s unthinkable for me.”
Having a lover would only make my divorce more complicated.
Leonard studied me for a moment before asking an odd question.
“Do you love His Majesty the Emperor?”
“As if.”
I immediately hardened my expression.
There was no way I would like such an absurd person.
Hearing my answer, a small smirk curled on Leonard’s lips.
“Then there’s no problem.”
He spoke as if there was nothing to be concerned about.
“As long as Your Majesty looks only at me…”
With an enchanting smile, he finished his sentence.
“I don’t mind being your lover.”
***
Watching Helena and Leonard from a distance, a pair of eyes widened.
“My god.”
It was Conrad, a knight under Leonard’s command.
Upon spotting Leonard, Conrad was stunned.
‘He’s actually guarding her?!’
He almost let out a scream but quickly covered his mouth.
He had come because he couldn’t believe it until he saw it with his own eyes.
He had wanted to come sooner, but training had kept him busy.
Still, he had waited patiently for the right opportunity.
And finally!
He had barely managed to escape that hellish training.
“It’s real…”
He was truly serving as a guard.
Conrad mumbled as if in shock.
‘Is this really the same Commander I know?’
He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
Leonard was a man of perfection.
Not only did he have flawless features, but his swordsmanship was also impeccable.
As a knight, he was someone worthy of respect.
The idol of all knights!
But as a direct superior, it was different.
As the Knight Commander, Leonard was a strict and disciplined man.
Especially during training, he was utterly relentless.
Harsh drills were a given.
Even when the training grounds echoed with the knights’ groans, he wouldn’t so much as blink.
And now, that same man was smiling?
Sure, he did smile from time to time.
But those were strictly business-like, formal smiles.
Yes, that’s how it used to be.
‘But what is that smile…?’
The way he smiled at Her Majesty the Empress was different.
The moment he smiled, his usually cold expression softened, transforming him into a giant, affectionate dog.
It was suspicious enough to make one wonder if someone was impersonating him.
Even the slyest fox had nothing on him.
“Hmm, I need to observe this.”
This warranted a full academic report.
Escaping training today was already proving worthwhile.
With a determined expression, Conrad nodded to himself.
“What are you doing?”
A dull voice rang behind him.
“Just keep walking. I’m in the middle of something important.”
I was witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime miracle.
Conrad didn’t even bother turning around to answer.
He already knew who it was just by the voice.
He had to hear it every day, whether he liked it or not.
“More important than training?”
“Of course! If I miss this, I’ll never get to see—!”
Conrad never got to finish his sentence.
“Hey! Let go of me.”
Someone had grabbed him by the scruff and was dragging him away.
“Yaaahhh! Let go! I have to see this—!”
It was a rare chance to witness his direct superior’s love life firsthand!
Conrad struggled fiercely, but it was useless.
The man silently hauled him away.
“Let’s go. Stop interfering.”
***
Back in my room, I asked the maids to prepare tea.
Leonard, without hesitation, asked for a cup as well.
I tilted my head.
“Do personal guard knights normally drink tea with the one they’re guarding?”
“Let’s just say I’m here as the Knight Commander.”
Oh, I see.
So, you can just switch between roles like that, huh?
I surrendered to his shamelessness.
“Please wait a moment. The tea will be ready soon.”
The maids, watching us, exchanged amused smiles before leaving the room.
“Oh, I almost forgot.”
A task I had meant to do before the meeting suddenly came to mind.
I had planned to do it earlier, but I had run out of time.
I took out a book.
When I opened it, a collection of pressed red flowers appeared.
Though they had lost their original freshness, their dried form was still beautiful.
I carefully placed a new flower inside.
“This flower…”
Leonard murmured as he observed me.
“Pretty, isn’t it? Cedric gave it to me.”
“Cedric… You mean the Guardian of Verdure?”
“That’s right.”
“I didn’t expect him to gift flowers to Your Majesty.”
Leonard spoke in a low voice, but I was too focused on arranging the flowers to hear him.
“What was this flower called again? Beg..ona… something…”
“Perhaps Begonia?”
“Oh! Yes, that’s it. Begonia.”
I nodded in agreement.
“So, you know this flower as well, Sir Leonard? Cedric told me it’s a common wildflower.”
At my words, Leonard raised an eyebrow slightly, as if puzzled.
“That’s what he said?”
“Yes. Is there a problem?”
“No. It’s nothing.”
Leonard shook his head.
“So, that’s why you’ve been drying and keeping the flowers he gives you?”
“He gives me flowers every time we meet. I wasn’t sure what to do with them, so I thought this was a good way to preserve them.”
I had many more pressed flowers stored in other books.
Now that I was showing them, I felt oddly proud.
It was strangely satisfying.
I took out another book and showed him.
“This yellow flower here was also a gift from Cedric.”
I’d have to show it to Cedric later.
He’d probably be surprised.
He’d never expect me to have kept them like this.
As he looked at my collection, Leonard tilted his head slightly.
“Hmm. You seem to cherish his flowers quite a bit.”
“Of course. They were gifts. And they’re beautiful too.”
“They certainly are.”
Leonard leaned in closer to examine them.
It seemed he wanted a better look at the flowers.
‘But this is… too close.’
His strikingly handsome face was suddenly far too near.
I could feel his breath.
And then—
“If I were to gift you flowers, would you cherish them like this as well?”
His voice brushed against my ear, sending a shiver down my spine.
I instinctively turned my head—
“……!”
But that was a mistake.
Something soft and warm brushed against my lips.
I immediately pulled back.
“This, um…”
I needed to say something.
Anything.
But my mind had gone blank.
My face burned with heat.
I didn’t need a mirror to know my cheeks were bright red.
Thump, thump.
I tried to ignore the rapid pounding of my heart.
“I… I’m sorry. That was an accident…”
The words lingered in my mouth.
The sensation of soft warmth and hot breath still lingered on my lips.
The suddenness of it all left my mind in complete disarray.
It had only lasted a brief moment—
But it felt agonizingly long.
And then, as if reluctant to part, he slowly leaned away.
His eyes curled into a lazy smile.
“In that case…”
His voice, deep and smooth, sent another shiver through me.
“Does that make us even?”
—
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