Movement (5)
“…Huh?”
Startled by the noise, Yuriel turned her head toward the window.
Rovent, who had stood up from his seat, looked outside and frowned.
“What’s going on?”
“Well…”
He hesitated, clearly unsure of how to answer. Meanwhile, the shouting from outside grew louder.
There was something familiar about that voice. Taking advantage of his hesitation, Yuriel leaned out the window to get a better look.
“…!”
“You!”
As soon as she recognized the source of the commotion, the man outside also recognized her.
“…Father?”
“You—You! Get down here immediately!”
The man standing beyond the garden gate was unmistakably her father. Despite the knights trying to stop him, he continued making a scene.
After spotting Yuriel, he became even more frantic.
“Why is he here…?”
“He must have used people to find out your location,” Rovent replied with a sigh.
After Akron took Yuriel away from the Count’s household, her father flew into a rage and turned the capital upside down searching for her.
Eventually, he hired people to track her down and found the mansion.
“I need to go down there.”
“But—”
She couldn’t just let her father stand outside like that. Ignoring Rovent’s attempts to stop her, Yuriel made her way downstairs.
Her father was still being held at the gate.
“Please open the gate,” she asked the guards. After a brief pause, they opened the iron doors.
Her father walked in as if it was his right. His arm was bandaged.
“Father—”
“Not only did you bring a man into our house, but now you’re staying out overnight too?!”
Before she could even finish her sentence, he yelled directly in her face.
His face was red with anger, clearly furious.
“…A man?”
“I’m talking about the Duke! He barged into our home and took you without permission!”
He was shouting so loudly that everyone in the mansion could hear him.
“I trusted you, and now you’ve gone off giving yourself to a man who’s not even your husband!”
He sighed and held his forehead, but his words hit Yuriel like a slap.
“What… are you talking about?”
Her voice trembled, but her father responded confidently, accusing her.
“If that’s not it, then why would he take you? Planning to become his mistress or something?”
“…”
Yuriel couldn’t even respond—not because it was true, but because she was so shocked by the absurdity of it.
What he had done to her wasn’t just harsh—it was abuse.
If Akron hadn’t rescued her, she might have died.
“I can’t believe this is happening…”
Thinking her silence was an admission, he clicked his tongue in disgust.
Then he grabbed her wrist harshly with his uninjured hand.
Yuriel winced in pain, but he didn’t care.
“You’re coming home with me—”
“Let go of her.”
A deep voice cut through the air.
Standing not far away, with the carriage behind him, was Akron.
With long strides, he crossed the garden quickly, his face cold and unreadable.
“Do you want the other arm broken too?”
“…Ugh!”
Without hesitation, Akron pried the Count’s hand off Yuriel’s wrist.
The Count staggered back, clutching his injured arm, livid.
“Duke Akron, how dare you?! You broke my wrist, kidnapped my daughter, and now you lock her away in this remote place?!”
He believed he was in the right. What else would you call barging into someone’s home and taking their daughter?
But Akron, now standing protectively in front of Yuriel, remained calm.
“Kidnapped? That’s a strong word.”
“Then what else would you call it?!”
“I’m her lover. I brought her here to protect her.”
Lover.
That one word froze not only the Count but Yuriel too. Her mouth fell open in shock.
“Stop clinging to your grown daughter like a madman.”
Akron smirked, mocking him like an overbearing, outdated parent making a fuss over nothing.
“You—You—!”
The Count was shaking with rage.
“You locked her up and dared to call that love?!”
“No, Father.”
Yuriel’s calm voice cut through his shouting.
She stepped out from behind Akron and spoke clearly.
“I’m here by choice.”
This wasn’t a kidnapping—it was a rescue. And she couldn’t stand her father insulting Akron any longer.
She delivered her final blow.
“Please go home. I’m asking you.”
Her face was firm. Even the Count, caught off guard, went silent for a moment.
Silence settled over the garden as people watched.
“Well, there you have it.”
Akron broke the silence, his voice laced with amusement. He approved of Yuriel’s stance.
“Go ahead and appeal to the Imperial Family if you want. Tell them I kidnapped your daughter.”
He smiled like a lazy lion, but his eyes burned like he might attack at any second.
“Now leave.”
He didn’t wait for a response. He turned around and walked away, Yuriel by his side. She bit her lip, trying to ignore the way her heart pounded.
It was the first time she had stood up to her father. The feeling was strange—scary, yet freeing.
She turned to look back.
“…….”
Her father stood frozen, glaring at them.
Then Yuriel’s eyes widened.
“Filthy girl.”
He mouthed the words silently.
Then he spun around and stormed into his carriage, which sped off, leaving a cloud of dust behind.
Yuriel stood still, stunned.
“Are you alright?”
Akron looked over at her.
Only Yuriel had understood the words her father had mouthed.
“…Yes. I’m fine.”
At that moment, she felt something inside her snap and fell away.
As she stood there, Akron turned to Rovent with a warning.
“If the Count ever shows up again, don’t hesitate to throw him out.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll see to it.”
Rovent bowed and stepped back.
Yuriel felt a little guilty that Rovent had to deal with this because of her. But she didn’t even have the energy to apologize.
Before she knew it, she was at her bedroom door. Even as she stepped inside, she didn’t smile or speak.
“We’ll move to a new estate. Somewhere farther from the capital, where the Count won’t find us.”
Akron gently helped her onto the bed and placed a hand on her abdomen. He seemed to be transferring some energy to her.
But before his hand could glow, Yuriel grabbed it and looked up at him.
Her violet eyes were colder than ever.
She had once believed that being a good daughter would earn her love.
But that was only her wishful thinking. It was never true for them.
She had made up her mind.
“I… I want to go with you.”
Akron’s eyes widened in surprise, then softened back into his usual calm look.
“Alright. That’s a good decision.”
“But before that… I have a favor.”
Yuriel placed her hands over her stomach.
The doctor had told her the baby she carried was rare even among dragon-blooded children. But to her, it was simply her precious child.
She wanted to give birth. To raise the baby. To be a mother.
“Go ahead,” Akron said, stroking his chin, clearly ready to listen.
Yuriel nervously spoke, her voice trembling.
“After I give birth… I want to stay with the child. At least during their early years.”
Her eyes pleaded with him.
“Just until the child grows up… Let me be your wife.”
She knew that once she gave birth, Akron would take responsibility.
But in a noble house where bloodline mattered most, how long could a child born out of wedlock survive?
She could handle the shame herself. But her child didn’t deserve the cruelty the world might throw at them.
“…….”
Akron silently looked at her.
She felt like a criminal, chewing her lip until his thumb gently pressed between her lips to stop her.
She blinked up at him.
“Do you know what it means to be a Duchess?” he asked.
That title came with weight.
The Duchess of House Veiharz had to give up her family and live in the western territory. She would no longer be tied to her original family. It was a strict rule of the Empire to maintain political balance, and it was how the House of Veiharz had lasted so long.
But Yuriel already knew.
She had made her choice the moment her father called her disgusting.
“I know.”
Her gaze was firm.
Akron saw her honesty and liked it.
“The children of Veiharz grow quickly. By the time they’re three, they look nearly fully grown.”
“Really?”
Yuriel blinked in surprise.
“Such a cute reaction.”
Akron smiled and kissed her cheek.
He had no intention of letting her go even after she gave birth.
“Yes. You’ll become my Duchess, give birth to the child, and that child will be the next heir of our house.”
He promised confidently. Then, as if to ease her worry, he added:
“Do whatever you want.”
Yuriel let out a soft sound, her eyelids trembling.
She wasn’t sure if this was relief for her child’s future or fear of what was to come.
She should be happy—but she wasn’t.
She bit the inside of her cheek to calm her stormy emotions.
But the more she resisted, the more everything surged.
‘What do I do…’
She remembered once despairing that she had given her heart to a fantasy.
But now?
Was the real him so different from the dream?
‘Three years.’
That’s how long she would get to stay by his side—as his official partner, raising their child.
That was enough.
More than enough.
She summoned her last bit of courage.
“…Alright. Let’s get married.”
