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Chapter 43
“I-I’m not quite sure what you mean.”
Avoiding the piercing violet eyes staring at her, she subtly turned her gaze away.
Then Leonardo followed Fleur’s eyes with his head.
The look was the same as when he had teased her, pretending to be a shadow, but the feeling was completely different.
Back then, she had snapped at him, demanding to know what he was looking at. Now, she was desperately trying to avoid his gaze.
The silent tension continued between them.
“Jane.”
He called her, still keeping his eyes fixed on Fleur.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Go out and make preparations.”
“Understood.”
After a respectful bow, Jane quickly stepped aside.
What on earth did he intend to say that required sending someone out?
Fleur also struggled to suppress her own urge to dash out.
“Honey.”
“Ugh—don’t call me that… ugh!”
The awkward term made goosebumps rise along her back. She twisted her shoulders and widened her eyes.
But the moment her eyes met Leonardo’s, she realized her mistake and bit her lower lip tightly.
Yet he was already smiling, as if he had caught her.
“So, this side is genuine after all.”
“Th-that’s not it…”
Congratulations. Your affection increased without a quest.
Current Leonardo Affection: 17% → 19%
Flustered by the sudden increase in affection, Fleur had no idea what excuse to give.
“I proposed this deal because I admired how you didn’t back down, even knowing I was the Emperor’s shadow.”
“…”
“But now you can’t even look me in the eyes, and my trust disappears. In that case, the laws regarding the head of the household will be null and void.”
Leonardo, who had approached to within a hand’s width, suddenly turned away coldly.
Instinctively, she reached out and grabbed his arm.
“W-wait a moment!”
He stopped walking but tilted his head slightly, keeping his gaze on her.
“It’s only natural that my attitude would be different.”
“Why?”
“I thought you were just the shadow. But you are the Emperor. Because of what I’ve done, not only I but my precious staff could be punished. I’m asking for forgiveness.”
Listening quietly, he fully turned to face Fleur.
“So you apologized for the sake of others.”
“…”
“I want to hear your true feelings. Don’t you have something to say to me?”
Raising one eyebrow, he asked again.
What did he want to hear? Fleur rolled her eyes, trying to come up with the right answer.
But no matter how hard she thought, nothing came to mind.
“There’s only one thing I want to say.”
“Go ahead.”
“…Your Majesty, you’re really annoying.”
She gave up on trying to sound proper.
Her true personality was already revealed to Leonardo, and trying to hide it now wouldn’t convince him of anything.
Moreover, she had vaguely noticed that every time she acted haughty toward him, his affection seemed to increase—a gamble that had paid off.
Congratulations. Your affection increased without a quest.
Current Leonardo Affection: 19% → 22%
Feeling validated, Fleur glared at him with even more intensity.
“How have you never been honest with me once during all this time? You must have enjoyed listening to me talk so ignorantly, not knowing you were His Majesty.”
“Yes. It was very enjoyable.”
As she vented her annoyance, a smirk grew on his lips.
What a pervert.
“Honestly, I feel no remorse at all. Considering how I was deceived, I rather feel that I should be the one receiving an apology from Your Majesty.”
“Is that so? My apologies, then.”
The lame apology left her completely deflated.
She really wanted to slap him.
“This is my true feeling. Now that I’ve spoken honestly, can we continue our deal?”
“Fine. But keep this attitude from now on.”
“…I don’t mind, but you can’t suddenly change your mind and punish me.”
“That remains to be seen.”
“Eh?!”
Fleur was startled as Leonardo chuckled lightly and turned away.
Finally realizing it was a joke, she glared at him—but only then noticed his outfit.
He was dressed as if ready to go out: a deep blue shirt, black vest, and black pants. The material looked unusually thick for the season.
“Do you have plans afterward?”
“Yes.”
“Ah, then I’ll quickly make way after our discussion. When do you plan to go to Shamal? I can prepare the recipes according to the schedule.”
Leonardo picked up the thick winter jacket from the sofa, looked her in the eyes, and smiled, showing his open palm.
“Five days from now?”
“No, 5—”
“5?”
“4.”
“…Excuse me?”
“3.”
“…”
“2.”
“W-wait!”
“1. Done.”
“Wait! I said wait!”
Fleur struggled as palace maids on either side forced her to walk.
More maids approached and moved her like luggage.
Just as she was about to be lifted onto the palace carriage, she turned and shouted at Leonardo, who was strolling casually behind them.
“You can’t just leave suddenly like this! I haven’t brought anything!”
“It’s fine. I anticipated that, so I prepared it.”
His smirk scraped at her nerves.
“I’ll come back at dawn tomorrow, so please postpone your plans!”
She pleaded desperately. Her voice was so pitiful that even the surrounding maids peeked, wanting to hear his response.
Leonardo looked around indifferently and nodded toward the carriage.
“Take her.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The carriage door opened, and Fleur was seated inside. She tried to rush out, but he blocked the entrance with his large frame.
“Y-Your Majesty… please, just for one day…”
She held up her right index finger with her left hand wrapping around it, shrinking her body to look as pitiful as possible. Her eyebrows drooped.
Leonardo, seeing this, mimicked her raised eyebrow expression and lightly tapped the carriage roof with his hand.
“Depart.”
At his absolute command, the carriage wheels began to move. Fleur, pale, secretly pulled out the whistle she had been clutching in her hand.
She didn’t know if it would reach Dylan before the palace, but she had to try.
Just as she was about to blow,
“You carry little toys, don’t you?”
He snatched it a beat earlier.
“W-wait. That’s mine! Give it back!”
“If you behave.”
He lightly closed the door and sat beside her before she could react.
Unable to do anything but be dragged along, Fleur slumped in defeat.
“You’re really too much…”
“Yes.”
“I haven’t even prepared anything, and now we’re going like this. I won’t be able to do anything properly.”
“That won’t do.”
The playful tone in Leonardo’s voice suddenly turned serious.
“You told me you were going to Shamal. Not preparing is your own carelessness.”
“You only said we’d go, but didn’t specify when.”
“Why does the exact timing matter? Once informed, you must do it as quickly as possible.”
“You didn’t do it yourself because you knew it couldn’t be done in a snap, which is why you traded with me, right?”
“That’s why I set what you wanted as the stakes.”
He looked at her confidently, as if nothing was wrong.
“Develop at least one recipe. If not, I won’t return.”
Fleur felt despair rising again.
“Uh, Dylan!”
The carriage was finally leaving the palace gate when she spotted Dylan still standing in front of Valenga’s carriage, watching the path she had taken.
Why wasn’t he inside the carriage?
Fleur clung to the window, watching him, then turned to Leonardo.
“Your Majesty, it doesn’t matter if we leave now. But please let me greet him first.”
She had promised Dylan she would explain everything when she returned. Leaving without saying anything would distract him at Shamal.
“Just a moment. Five minutes, even one minute is fine. Let me speak to him directly.”
She clasped her hands as if praying. Her eyes were red, on the verge of tears.
As the two stared silently at each other, Leonardo broke the silence first.
“Call me ‘honey.’”
“…Excuse me?”
“Then I’ll stop the carriage.”
His tone was playful as usual, but his expression was serious.
Fleur, realizing she had no choice, quietly grabbed the end of his sleeve and whispered.
“…Honey. Please stop the carriage, okay?”
Congratulations. Your affection increased without a quest.
Current Leonardo Affection: 22% → 25%
Leonardo stared at her, slightly dazed. Then, raising his hand, he rang the bell on the carriage wall, and the carriage slowly stopped.
“Just three minutes.”
“That’s enough!”
Before he could change his mind, she flung open the door and ran to Dylan.
Leonardo followed her with narrowed eyes.
