WLYV 57

Chapter 57

 What If She Hates Me?

Teishar couldn’t sleep properly. No matter how much he thought about it, he felt terrible for acting so indifferent toward Lorencia. With a bitter smile, he paced back and forth across his room, full of regret.

But there was a reason for it. Every time he looked at Lorencia, his heart dropped so painfully it almost hurt to breathe. He had warned himself coldly that he couldn’t allow such feelings for someone who was already hurting.

“No.”

He told himself, “This isn’t love. It’s not affection.” But the moment he thought about being her escort for her debutante ball and sharing her first dance, a wild grin broke out on his face.

Then he shouted again in his mind, “It’s not love!”—but as soon as he remembered her in the red dress and black diamond jewelry he’d given her as a gift, a chill ran down his spine, his body trembling with a thrill that made him shiver.

It just felt… so good.

Was it wrong for a serpent like him to love a child of the goddess Ella? Was there truly something sinful about loving someone? Was it right to push Lorencia away simply because she hadn’t yet gone through her coming-of-age ceremony? Honestly, her age didn’t matter to him.

“The only person who can catch every last piece of trash in this world and make her the happiest person alive…”

He finished the thought. It was him. There was no longer any doubt or hesitation about his feelings. Once she accepted his confession, they could get engaged once he returned to the Polloyd Empire—and if she wished for it, he would propose and marry her.

“But… what if I confess, and Lady Lorencia ends up hating me?”

Teishar laughed at himself. He finally admitted it: a one-sided love had begun. Adrian had been right. It wasn’t just duty as a serpent—he truly had feelings for her, which was why he wanted to treat her better, why he didn’t want to be apart from her. He had denied it, even though his head was so full of her that he couldn’t think about anything else.

“I’ve lost my mind. I’m drumming, playing trumpets, getting married, and having kids all on my own.”

Once he admitted that what he felt was love, everything made sense. Teishar finally accepted his own symptoms with a kind of calm clarity. As he became honest with himself, a soft laugh escaped his lips.

“I miss her.”

He pulled the curtains open—it was still dawn. Lorencia was surely asleep at this hour. Even though he wanted to see her, he couldn’t just go.

“Maybe I’ll sneak over and just take a look at her sleeping face?”

Now that he had accepted his feelings, his heart seemed completely uncontrollable.

“If Leo starts crying loudly, Lady Lorencia might wake up. No, I shouldn’t sneak over. If I just wait a few hours, I’ll see her anyway.”

Unlike yesterday, Teishar’s face looked refreshed. He drew his sword, changed clothes, and headed toward the private training grounds Adrian had arranged for him.

At the entrance to the training hall, he paused. He took a deep breath, inhaling the cold morning air. With a sharp metallic sound, he unsheathed his sword and took his stance, swinging it up and down repeatedly. The broadsword he used was heavier and longer than most, double-edged and dangerous if not handled with precision.

Basic slashing and cutting stances were important, but unless one had skill, power, and speed, no strike could truly cut clean through.

Teishar imagined Luance, Daniel, and the people of House Heredian floating in the air as he thrust and slashed. He didn’t stop swinging until the cold dawn air gave way to warm sunlight.

All the while, he kept thinking—again and again—about how he could make Lorencia accept him.

“My lord, there you are.”

At Evan’s voice, Teishar stopped mid-swing and relaxed his grip.

“What is it, Evan? So early in the morning?”
“Lady Lorencia is anxiously looking for you, my lord.”
“What?”

Teishar’s brows shot up, his lips curving into a crescent. His red eyes gleamed.

“Lady Lorencia… is looking for me? Anxiously? Really, Evan?”
“Yes, my lord.”

Rather than wonder why Lorencia was searching for him so early, Teishar pressed a hand against his chest and started running—simply thrilled that he’d get to see her.

Now that he had acknowledged his love, everything felt different from when he acted purely out of duty as a serpent. His heart pounded, his palms were sweaty, and his lips and mouth were completely dry. He swallowed repeatedly, nerves tightening.

Taking a slow breath, Teishar asked softly,

“Lady Lorencia, is something the matter?”

His cheeks were slightly flushed as he spoke.

“Um… Marquis Spencer,” she began.
“Yes, Lady Lorencia.”
“You don’t look well since yesterday. Your face is all red—even your ears. Are you running a fever?”

Lorencia looked over his face with genuine worry, feeling a little guilty for calling him so early if he was unwell.

“It’s because I ran here after sword practice, that’s all.”
“Ah, I see. I’m glad you’re not sick.”

Teishar spoke as kindly as he could, but seeing the lingering worry in Lorencia’s eyes made him worry in turn. What had happened overnight to make her look like that?

It couldn’t be the people from Count Heredian’s house—they wouldn’t dare come. And Luance was still confined to his own palace. So who could have caused that expression?

Could it be… that she was upset about how cold he’d been yesterday?

Teishar’s face turned pale, his heart starting to pound erratically.

“Would you tell me what’s wrong?”

When he asked in a concerned voice, Lorencia let out a long sigh.

“I’m sorry for sighing, Marquis Spencer.”
“It’s all right. Whatever it is, it’s my fault.”
“What? Why are you apologizing so suddenly?”
“I thought you might be angry at me for being cold yesterday. I wanted to apologize.”

Lorencia tilted her head. Had he been cold to her yesterday? Not that she remembered.

“I wasn’t angry.”
“Truly? I’m relieved. I’ll never act coldly toward you again.”
“The reason I asked to see you urgently is because of a dream I had last night.”

Then Lorencia told Teishar about her dream.

“There’s one thing that bothers me,” he said afterward.
“What is it, Marquis Spencer?”
“The High Priestess of the Temple of Ella—the one mentioned in your dream.”

Lorencia let out a quiet ah of realization.

“Now that you mention it, not long after Prince Luance ascended the throne, the Temple of Ella was moved to the Ischther Empire.”
“The temple was moved?”
“Yes. And soon after, an imperial marriage was arranged between Emperor Luance and the High Priestess.”

Lorencia clenched her fists tightly.

With her gift of foresight, she had helped lead Luance to victory. Many women had admired him as he shone as emperor—but the one chosen as empress was the High Priestess of Ella’s temple. Lorencia had learned this just before she was branded a witch.

The war-weary people rejoiced that the temple had been relocated and that the priestess would become their empress. Meanwhile, Lorencia herself had been accused of witchcraft, tried, and thrown into a pitch-black cell where not a ray of light reached.

“Relocating a temple isn’t an ordinary thing. If they moved it right after the war, then there must have been some kind of deal between the temple and Prince Luance,” Teishar said.

Lorencia’s eyes widened.

“It seems we’ll have to investigate whether the Temple of Ella, Prince Luance, and Duke Daniel are connected,” she said.
“Understood. I’ll make sure it’s investigated thoroughly.”

When Lorencia nodded and smiled faintly, Teishar smiled back. His long fingers brushed along her cheek and the corner of her eye. Their gazes met.

“Marquis Spencer.”
“Yes?”
“Today you’re not avoiding my eyes.”
“I don’t intend to ever look away again.”
“Actually, when you did yesterday, I felt a little sad.”
“I’m sorry. But I hope that one day you’ll be the one avoiding my gaze.”
“Why would I ever avoid you?”
“If that day comes, you’d better be prepared.”
“Prepared for what?”

Lorencia tilted her head at his cryptic words.

“I’ll tell you when the time comes.”

With a lazy, satisfied smile, Teishar ran his fingers through her red hair, gently combing through it before resting his hand atop her head.

“Every time you pat my head like this, I feel so calm. It’s comforting,” Lorencia said with a bright smile.

She couldn’t predict what the future would hold, but she knew many things had already changed because of her choices. And honestly, she was a little afraid that things might still get worse.

“I feel the same,” Teishar replied softly.

Still, with him beside her, she felt she could endure anything. More than anything, what made her happiest was how natural and easy it had become to be near him.

When he lifted his hand from her head, Lorencia smiled again, leaned her head against his shoulder, and closed her eyes.

It was peaceful—warm—and her chest fluttered with a sweet, ticklish feeling.

The current Emperor of the Ischther Empire, Adolf, was known to everyone as a deeply devoted husband. His love for Empress Ines was especially strong. To be loved by the emperor meant wielding great power, yet Ines had little influence in high society.

The reason was none other than the imperial concubine, Pelleyna.

“A baron’s daughter as empress—how disgraceful to our pride.”

At that time, Ines had been unmarried and had never dreamed she could become empress. Even being chosen as a concubine would have been an immense honor for a baron’s family—but Adolf had sworn to make her his empress, and he had kept that promise.

And soon, she would learn the true reason why she had to become empress.