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Chapter 01
In the Bestian Empire, which had unified the entire continent, there lived a single mad dog.
His name was Aldehid.
He was a man who had appeared out of nowhere and brought the whole continent under one rule.
There were tales that he had slain a dragon, and rumors that he had beaten the Demon King to a pulp.
In short, he was what one would call the strongest being in the world.
But had the gods not said that they never give everything to a single human?
“What is it, old man?”
Aldehid spoke as he elegantly stretched out his long legs.
The man he had just called “old man”—the emperor—let out a deep sigh.
That rude little bastard. His personality’s gone straight to hell. Just because he’s the strongest, does he think he can do anything?
Unfortunately, that was how the world worked.
That was all there was to it.
On top of that, it was Aldehid who had saved his life and placed him on the imperial throne in the first place.
I’m just a puppet, so what choice do I have? Right.
The emperor knew all too well that if Aldehid so desired, his own neck could be on the guillotine at any moment.
“N-no, um, I mean, Lord Aldehid. That’s not what I meant.”
“What now? I’m busy.”
“Well, th-then, could you just listen to me for one minute? J-just one?”
When Aldehid nodded indifferently, the emperor glanced at his face and sighed inwardly.
“Anyway, as thanks for unifying the empire over the past three years, I’ve given you a noble title, land, and money. Everything.”
“Yeah, and?”
“Is there anything else you need?”
“Not really.”
He had truly appeared out of nowhere one day. His origins were, naturally, impossible to trace, and even the name ‘Aldehid’ was something he claimed to have given himself.
The emperor granted him the noble title of duke and appointed him commander of the Imperial Guard.
Up to that point, everything had been fine.
The one and only problem was that there was no one who could put a leash on him.
The emperor desperately wanted to make Aldehid completely his ally—someone who could never betray him.
And so, the most convenient and effective solution he came up with was…
“Aldehid, I would like to arrange an engagement between you and my eldest daughter, Princess Rosaria, who is said to be the most beautiful woman in the empire. That would make you a direct member of the imperial family. What do you think?”
At that moment, Aldehid’s expression turned icy.
Why? Why, why on earth?
Had he found out that Rosaria wasn’t actually the most beautiful woman in the empire?
“Hey, old man. Are you insane?”
Feeling the murderous aura surging around Aldehid, the emperor swallowed his fear and asked,
“I-if that makes you uncomfortable…”
Then, unexpectedly, a flush rose to Aldehid’s cheeks.
“My dream is to marry for love.”
Aldehid looked so deranged as he said that that the emperor replied in all seriousness, unconsciously using honorifics.
“W-well, I sincerely hope you are able to have a love marriage…”
“Yeah.”
Even cutting off the emperor mid-sentence like that, there was no one who could stop Aldehid once he went off the rails.
Throughout the conversation, Aldehid had looked impatient. He glanced at his wristwatch and suddenly jumped to his feet.
“W-where are you going…?”
“I have an appointment. Why? Got something else to say?”
When Aldehid raised an eyebrow, the emperor immediately shrank back.
“N-not really anything important…”
“Then we’re done, old man. I’m not getting engaged.”
Right. With Aldehid, it was better not to say anything at all.
That guy was well and truly insane.
About ten minutes later.
Whistling, Aldehid arrived in front of a certain building.
It was the headquarters of the Anmix Knights, the imperial order directly under the emperor.
The person Aldehid, the commander of the order, was looking for there was an utterly ordinary mage.
Just as Aldehid—whose vicious expression made him look like he might split the world in half if provoked—was about to impatiently open the archive door, he froze.
No, no. This look won’t do.
He pulled a cute little mirror with a ribbon from his pocket and checked his appearance.
“Hm…”
Staring at his reflection, he fell into deep thought.
Somehow, I look kind of cute today.
He didn’t realize that forcing the corners of his mouth upward had actually made his face look even more ferocious than usual.
Taking a deep breath with a face armed with what he believed to be “maximum cuteness,” Aldehid carefully opened the door. From inside the archive came a low voice.
“What is it? Who comes in without knocking?”
The man who hadn’t even twitched an eyebrow before the emperor instantly wilted. Soon, Aldehid spoke.
“Sowwy. Noonaaa, can I come in?”
Shockingly, his tongue had practically been cut in half.
If the emperor had heard it, he would have been horrified, but the woman who heard the voice replied as if it were nothing.
“Aldehy? Sure, come in.”
As Aldehid fully stepped into the archive, the lights clicked on.
Like a puppy suffering from separation anxiety, Aldehid strode straight toward the woman, following her scent.
“Now, Aldehid. Wait there.”
At that moment, the huge man slumped his shoulders, looking unmistakably sulky.
“I’m not Aldehid, I’m Bbu-bbu… hng.”
“You should speak properly.”
“Y-yesh…”
Aldehid cautiously watched the woman’s reaction.
After all, she was the “noona” he respected and loved more than anyone in the world.
Meanwhile, Sienna—Aldehid’s beloved “noona”—pressed her fingers to her forehead.
A young man suddenly developing a lisp… what a pity.
But she couldn’t begin to guess the cause. Sighing, she gestured toward the sofa.
“Come on, sit down for now.”
“O-kay…”
Aldehid crammed his massive body into a single-seat sofa.
Sitting on the sofa opposite him, Sienna asked seriously,
“So, Alde—no, Bbu-bbu. Why on earth has your tongue gotten so short?”
“Huh? You said I was cute back then. And that you like men who act sweet…”
When a huge man with a cold expression tries to act cute, it’s honestly a bit mentally taxing.
Running a hand through her hair, Sienna muttered,
“Fine. So what did you run all the way here to say?”
“I missed you.”
“I told you not to act like this at work. You’re my superior, and I’m your subordinate.”
Sienna pressed her forehead again.
Just looking at his sulky face made it obvious what he was thinking. We’re just boss and subordinate? That’s all we are?
But she couldn’t just let it slide like this.
Sienna scolded him firmly.
“We agreed to keep our relationship a secret. It would interfere with work.”
“Okay, okay, I get it. Then just grant me one favor…”
Aldehid hunched his shoulders carefully.
But because he was built like a mountain, doing that didn’t make him look small at all. He was simply a giant man with hunched shoulders.
Sienna looked at him with an uneasy expression.
“What is it?”
“Noona, don’t go to the company dinner. Have dinner with me instead.”
“No. Tonight’s dinner menu is beef.”
At Sienna’s firm refusal, Aldehid flinched and hunched his shoulders even more.
Faced with the passive attack of a 190-centimeter-tall giant, Sienna felt momentarily dizzy.
“What is it? Why do you look so depressed? You don’t even like me telling you to save your money?”
“…There’s a man.”
“You’re talking about one man. And Lord Brix is a man in his sixties with a family, Bbu-bbu.”
“Huh? Brix? You’re calling him by name?”
His tongue instantly returned to normal.
At the same time, his eyebrows shot upward.
A longer tongue was welcome, but the more vicious expression was not a good sign. To be precise, it meant Lord Brix’s life was in danger.
“Hey.”
At Sienna’s single word, Aldehid’s gaze immediately turned obedient.
“But still, that man—”
She corrected him sharply.
“Who drops honorifics when talking about a gentleman in his sixties?”
“B-but… Lord Brix is still a man…”
She had no idea what he was even trying to say.
Sienna decided to placate him for now. But the moment she took hold of his shoulder, his earlobes slowly turned red…
“Can’t you skip it and stay with me?”
His thick fingers slipped into Sienna’s smooth hand.
Soon, their fingers slowly intertwined. She could feel his pulse at her fingertips, and his body heat flowed into her hand.
Aldehid’s cheeks were already flushed. Meeting Sienna’s eyes, he whispered sweetly, acting spoiled.
“I’m jealous.”
Sienna let out a deep sigh.
I was planning to spend the rest of my life just doing good deeds and then die peacefully.
And then an overly affectionate madman barged into her fishing ground.
She hadn’t even set up a fishing ground, but he’d woven his own net and calmly thrown himself right in.
Where on earth had things gone wrong?
