MLT l CH 7

Episode 7 

Licht tilted his head slightly at her strange question.

Luckily, Ayla didn’t wait for his answer and just kept talking.

“Why aren’t you that beggar?”

“Beggar?”

“Yeah, the beggar! You look just like him…”

“…”

“I still need to get my money back from him…”

She sighed with a gloomy face.

‘Is she dumb or just too kind? Who lends money to a beggar?’

Licht, who didn’t realize that he was the beggar she was talking about, couldn’t make sense of her words.
After all, he’d been trained as a prince since childhood—he’d never make a deal that didn’t bring him profit.

“Anyway, why are you hurt?”

“I’m hurt?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Normally, he would’ve just said “no,” but with Aila, he hesitated. Then he shook his head.
He wanted to lie to her, but the truth was—he wasn’t hurt anywhere.

“I’m not hurt at all.”

“No, you are.”

Ayla was oddly firm. She placed her hands gently over his chest, right above his heart.

Suddenly, Licht’s body bent back sharply.

“Ghh—!”

It was the same reaction he always had when someone touched the cursed spot on his chest.
He grabbed her wrists, but couldn’t stop her. His body arched back, then relaxed again—
and the pain that had been crushing his heart began to fade away.

For the first time, he could breathe easily. The burning pressure in his chest was almost gone.

His red eyes wavered with confusion, while Ayla’s face remained perfectly calm.

“You should feel better now.”

“What… did you just do to me?”

But instead of answering, Ayla yawned and flopped down against his chest.

“I’m sleepy…”

Licht flinched, but he quickly tried to shake her awake. She didn’t move.
Her breathing was deep and steady—she’d already fallen fast asleep.

He stared at her in silence, then gently pushed her off him.
She rolled over onto the soft bed, sleeping peacefully.

‘Seriously… I’m burning up here because of you!’

He exhaled deeply, feeling both frustrated and helpless.

“How can you sleep so soundly—after doing this to me?”

Even though he raised his voice slightly, she didn’t stir at all.

***

The next morning

“…I’m insane.”

Ayla gasped and covered her mouth with both hands.
Even though Licht didn’t move, she knew he must’ve heard her—he was lying right next to her, after all.

Her lost memories had returned.
But instead of being happy, she felt uneasy. Something about them felt… incomplete.

‘I’m sure something else happened after I asked him who he was… but then—nothing. I just blacked out.’

It felt as if someone had cut out part of her memory and stitched it back together roughly.

Still, she was relieved—at least she hadn’t done anything too indecent.
But… touching the Crown Prince like that?!

‘Ugh, damn that alcohol! My worst enemy!’

The memory was so vivid she wanted to bury her head in the pillow.
She couldn’t even look at Licht properly, her face hot with shame.

But she had to pull herself together.
She was the heroine of this story now, and her goal was to change the male lead—not fall for him.
If she got any more tangled with him, things would only go downhill.

‘If I just apologize quickly, everything will be fine. It’s not like we… did anything weird that night.’

Yeah, right.

A flash of memory hit her—her hands on his bare chest.

‘I must’ve lost my mind. Who touches royalty like that?!’

She wanted to faint, but if she did, that’d only prove she remembered everything—so she stayed calm.

‘It’s better if I pretend I don’t remember the embarrassing parts.’

She forced her expression to return to normal.

Of course, she knew it probably wouldn’t fool Licht.
Still, she thought there was a small chance he might let her off easy.
After all, he hadn’t been angry last night… he’d even seemed a little amused.

‘Did he… find me cute? No way. Probably just my imagination.’

Whatever it was, she’d take the chance.

But what she didn’t know was—Licht had been watching her the whole time, noticing every bit of her scheming.

He could see right through her. Her little plans were practically written all over her face.

Clicking his tongue softly, he finally spoke.

“Seems like I made a mistake.”

“Huh?”

“If I’d known you’d try to run away so quickly, I should’ve let you keep misunderstanding things last night.”

Her eyes widened. He’d caught her thoughts exactly.

Licht chuckled quietly.

“Yes, that look. That’s the one.”

She immediately wiped the expression off her face—but it was too late.

He leaned closer again, bracing one hand beside her head.
His shadow fell over her face, dark and heavy.

Her shoulders tensed instinctively.

“I think I have a thing for that flustered look of yours.”

Ayla’s skin prickled.

‘Ugh… pervert!’

She cursed him silently. If only she’d been born into a higher noble family, she’d have told him that to his face.

At that moment, she decided—she had to escape from this shameless prince.

“Your Highness, I’m afraid I’ve remembered nothing from that night, even though you so kindly tried to help me.”

“Hm?”

Licht raised an eyebrow. He quickly realized what she was doing—trying to slip away.

The amusement vanished from his face, replaced by cool seriousness.

“Ayla Kabellet.”

Her shoulders stiffened. His low voice carried a weight that pressed down on her.

“I’ll forgive your rudeness from last night.”

She didn’t believe a word of it.
The Licht from the original novel was never the type to forgive someone who’d crossed him.
If anything, he’d use that as leverage to make them serve him.

‘Let’s just see what he says next.’

Maybe—just maybe—he’d treat her differently.

“I want you to be my personal healer.”

Yep. She knew it.

“Why me?”

“You know the reason.”

Of course she did.

‘Because I’ve read the novel.’

Licht was unconsciously drawn to her—it was part of the story’s setup, their “destined connection.”
That’s why she’d tried so hard to avoid him.

‘But now that connection’s pulling us together again.’

And worse, after last night, he might’ve realized she was the one who could break his curse.

‘If I remember right, our compatibility was said to be almost perfect…’

That must be why she kept losing control around him.

‘Still, no matter what the story says, I won’t accept it!’

She put on an innocent face.

“There are plenty of skilled healers in the palace, Your Highness.”

“None whose energy matches mine.”

“Even if our energy doesn’t match, treatment is still possible.”

“True,” he agreed with a nod.

Then he sat back down across from her instead of right beside her.
Ayla frowned—she could tell he was shifting into negotiation mode.

‘Oh no. He’s going to make this official.’

Licht, a master of negotiation, was now taking her seriously.

If this turned into a real debate, she knew she’d lose.

“I won’t accept, no matter what terms you offer.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”