Chapter 4.
I’m Bored, Should We Just Elope in the Middle of the Night?
Miklok, having been shown to the guest room by a servant, found the unfolding situation incredibly entertaining.
The sheer audacity of that obvious lie—how she pushed through it so shamelessly! It made a faint smile tug at the corners of his lips.
“Her name was… Lea, wasn’t it?”
“Sorry? What was that, Your Highness?”
“Nothing.”
William, who hadn’t quite caught Miklok’s muttering, asked again, but Miklok quickly returned to his expressionless face.
Still, Lea’s voice echoed in his head.
“Just like I’ve heard, you’re sooo handsome. I could live off your face alone for the rest of my life!”
“If my future husband looks like this, I’d follow him even to hell!”
She was clearly dressed for a midnight escape, cheeks flushed red, bouncing on her toes while clinging to his arm.
The sparkle in her eyes… even the sting in his palm came back to him.
What was that strange sensation?
He hadn’t expected it at all, but this potential bride had piqued his curiosity, and Miklok wasn’t displeased with the situation.
“Moving up the departure date by four days turned out to be a stroke of luck.”
Originally, they had planned to leave five days later when the royal carriage from Pritan arrived to fetch Lea.
But in a desperate bid to cover her weak lie, she had insisted on leaving immediately. And since Miklok was eager to go monster hunting, he had no reason to refuse.
“I worry whether a noble lady from the Empire can handle this journey. She’ll have to ride with Your Highness for at least two or three days.”
William was already concerned for Lea’s safety. But Miklok remained unbothered.
“If she can’t handle it, well, she’ll probably just faint.”
Meaning he’d keep going whether she passed out or not. William suddenly felt sorry for Lea—but what could he do? It was her fate to have such an indifferent husband.
“By the way, it seems a rat has snuck into the marquis’ residence.”
“Oh?”
“On the way from the stables, I saw a little rat scurry up to a window on the second floor, west end. But well, even if it’s a thief, we’re not obligated to report it, are we?”
“No, not really…”
Miklok nodded—then suddenly paused.
“Did you say the second floor, west end?”
“Yes, but… no way, right?”
The next instant, Miklok shot off like a spring, sword in hand, and William dashed after him.
There was no real proof the “rat” had entered Lea’s room, but the unease spreading from Miklok’s chest drove him forward.
Without hesitation, Miklok flung open the door to the west wing’s second-floor room. Millie didn’t even have time to block him.
Inside, Lea was hugging some guy and patting his back comfortingly.
Sparks flew from Miklok’s eyes.
“How am I supposed to interpret this scene?”
His heart thundered wildly, but his voice was cold as ice.
Startled, Lea looked back at him. Miklok found her reaction oddly adorable, but quickly forced his gaze toward the man instead.
The guy looked weak and scrawny—like a typical bookworm.
Though Robbie had practiced swordsmanship and horseback riding steadily, Miklok had no time to discern any trace of masculinity in him.
Is that really her type?
A sharp hostility flared up in Miklok.
“Get away from him. Now.”
He looked like he might stab the guy right then and there, but Lea quickly rushed forward.
“This is a misunderstanding. I—I can explain!”
Miklok stared at her for a long moment before speaking slowly.
“Then go ahead and try.”
Seeing King Miklok’s eyes shift from dark blue to crimson red as he stared at Robbie gave me chills.
Ah, so this is why everyone calls him a blood demon! But wow, those red eyes actually suit that face so well!
No! Now’s not the time to be admiring him! Robbie’s life could be in danger!
I forced a smile and began,
“This is Robbie Stone, the eldest son of Count Stone of the Haran Empire, and my childhood friend. I’m leaving so suddenly, so—uh, oh! He just came to say goodbye!”
“At this hour?”
He scoffed in disbelief. But I pushed through.
“Well, thanks to someone, the sudden departure caught us off guard. I thought I wouldn’t get the chance to say goodbye, so I asked him to come.”
“Instead of using the door, he climbed in through the window?”
“I didn’t want to wake anyone up this late, so I had him use the window. Robbie was just about to leave, right Robbie?”
Though Miklok squinted suspiciously at me, I turned my attention to Robbie, deliberately ignoring his stare.
“Thanks for coming, Robbie. It means a lot. I’ve seen your face now, so you can go. Shoo, go on.”
Trying to calm my pounding heart, I pushed Robbie toward the window. His face was full of confusion.
“I’m going to live happily ever after with my handsome husband, so you take care too. Bye!!”
“Lea!!”
And with that, I shoved him out the window.
“Ahhhh! Leaaaaa!!”
I heard his scream as he fell from the second floor, but I quickly slammed the window shut. He’s been sneaking in and out through that window for over ten years—he’ll be fine.
I turned back to King Miklok with a bright smile, acting as if nothing had happened. He was still staring at me with narrowed eyes.
“Really? You were just saying goodbye to a childhood friend?”
“Of course! Why else would I see Robbie at this hour?”
“I see.”
“Yes, exactly!”
I nodded vigorously, full of confidence.
“Good. Otherwise, that old raccoon from Haran would’ve become a real headache.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
He suddenly brought up the Emperor of Haran, and I tilted my head in confusion.
“If you and that boy had eloped, I was planning to go cut off Duke Jake’s head—the Emperor’s brother.”
“Duke Jake? Why him?”
“Two months ago, he tried to chop down our kingdom’s sacred gold pine. I spared him by only taking an arm. But then, the Emperor had the audacity to send a marriage proposal.”
Ah, that punk is why my husband went from raccoon to blood demon!
I suddenly felt annoyed at how my life was being manipulated by others.
Still, thanks to that idiot prince, I could follow my mother’s final wish. So I took a deep breath to calm myself.
“If the princess chosen by the Emperor eloped with another man, the Imperial family would have to pay. I wonder what that old raccoon would do to the Marquis of Uzkal and the Stone family then? I doubt he’d be as merciful as to stop at just eradicating them.”
He let out a cruel laugh, clearly satisfied with his own words.
Even with just a faint smile, his cold face lit up like the moon emerging from behind clouds. Ridiculously handsome. Wait—what am I even thinking right now?!
If Robbie and I had actually eloped, we would’ve been relentlessly hunted down by Imperial soldiers until we met a miserable end. And the Uzkal and Stone families…
Ugh. I didn’t even want to imagine it.
I put aside my pride and activated Cutesy Mode, Level 1.
“Oh come on~ Me, eloping with Robbie? He’s totally not my type!”
“Really?”
“Of course! I could live with a mean husband, but never with an ugly one!!”
“What?”
A crack finally appeared on his serene face.
“Did you just call me mean?”
Oh, crap. That man’s got terrifyingly sharp ears.
“What are you saying~ I was just saying you’re super handsome!”
Miklok, seeing Lea wriggle her way out like a slippery eel, decided to let it slide.
He could tolerate this level of lying.
But letting it slide without consequences would be boring. She had to pay some price for it.
“If you like my face that much, I’m quite pleased.”
A wicked glint entered his eye, and Lea’s forced smile began to twitch.
Miklok could read her shifting emotions like an open book, and it amused him.
“No matter how close you are with a childhood friend, I hope you never look at another man like that again.”
“Look how?”
Her eyes went wide.
“With eyes like you’re about to cry your heart out.”
“Me? At Robbie? No way!”
“Good. Keep it that way. If you ever look at someone else like that again… I’ll gouge your eyes out.”
Startled by his harsh words, Lea instinctively covered her eyes. That innocent reaction stirred something in him again.
“Of course, since you’re totally smitten with my face, I doubt that’ll ever happen.”
“Y-yes! Of course!”
Lea nodded so fast it made a whooshing sound.
“Then, since we’re bored, shall we elope in the night?”
“…What?”
Her head froze mid-nod.
“You’re dressed to go out, your bags are packed…”
He casually picked up her bag from the floor.
“And you’re hopelessly in love with my face—enough to follow me to hell—so it wouldn’t be weird for us to elope…”
“Well, technically that’s true, but—Kyaa!”
Miklok suddenly scooped her into his arms.
“William.”
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“Once dawn breaks, explain everything to the Marquis of Uzkal. That the King of Pritan and his daughter fell for each other and eloped in the night.”
“But… dawn is just around the corner. Why not wait a bit…?”
William looked flustered by Miklok’s recklessness. The marquis would think they were crazy!
“That’s for you to figure out. Just say I couldn’t wait any longer.”
With that, Miklok jumped out of the second-floor window—Lea in his arms.
His horse, which had carried us nonstop for five hours, showed no signs of tiring.
Thanks to Sir Pallet’s lessons, I wasn’t afraid of riding, but this speed was insane.
What did this horse eat?! Did this war-crazed demon get his steed straight from hell too?!
The world zoomed past in a dizzying blur.
Yet, despite the breakneck speed, I felt completely secure in Miklok’s arms.
His firm chest supported my back, making this ride more comfortable than a carriage.
I suddenly wondered what kind of expression he was wearing—but I didn’t dare turn to check.
Instead, I fixed my gaze ahead. And just then, the last image I saw of Millie came to mind.
“My lady! Miss Lea—mmph!”
Millie had run to the window, calling for me when Miklok jumped out holding me. But she’d quickly been subdued by Sir William.
She’s not hurt… right?
I sighed deeply. My stiff back slowly began to slump forward.
At that moment, the horse abruptly slowed. The blur of the landscape gradually came into focus.
Once the horse came to a full stop, Miklok grabbed my chin and turned my face toward him. His eyes were icy like a midwinter lake.
“That sigh… was it because the one riding with you isn’t that scrawny brat?”
