Chapter 15.
You Can Call Me a Fool
After a storm-like whirl of unbelievable sensations passed, Mick was catching his breath with his face buried in the nape of my neck, holding me tightly from behind.
As our breaths gradually settled and our heartbeats began to return to normal, he started brushing his lips along my neck and behind my ear again.
“Leah, how are you feeling? Are you hurt?”
“It still feels like I was struck by lightning, but… ngh!!”
Every time his lips brushed and lifted away from my skin, it sent electric tingles down my spine and my sides. I couldn’t help but flinch with every touch.
That reaction seemed to please him. A soft laugh came from Mick’s throat as he turned my body to face him.
His lips trailed from my neck down to my shoulder. I reached out and played with his hair, dark and silky, sliding smoothly between my fingers.
“Mmm…”
A moan slipped out before I could stop it.
Only after spending our first night together did I realize—his face, hair, arms, legs, chest, even his fingers—they were all exactly my type. Though his face was still the best of all.
I tried to lift his face, which was nestled against me. But he resisted with a groan, not wanting to move.
Sighing, I gently ran my fingers through his hair and spoke.
“Mick, it’s been a while already. We should get up, wash, and get ready for departure.”
At that, Mick groaned even louder and pulled me tighter into his embrace.
“Mick… but we need to eat.”
He let out a deep sigh in my arms and finally lifted his head.
Even though he had just devoured me with unrelenting passion, his eyes were still dark and hungry, like a tiger eyeing prey.
“Leah, are you hungry?”
“Me? Of course, but… I’m more worried about you. You should eat something before leaving…”
I couldn’t finish my sentence—his lips sealed mine. His hand, which had slid down my spine, was burning hot again.
As that hand slid from my back to my shoulder, then to my arm, the heat began to spread through me, like it was contagious.
“Leah, I’m sorry, but if it’s okay with you…”
“Ahh!!!”
He suddenly bit my shoulder.
“Just one more time, okay? Please?”
He feigned a pleading tone, but he was already on top of me again, devouring me like a tiger swallowing a rabbit.
✦✦✦
While Millie crouched outside the bridal chamber with a food tray beside her, William came running up, flustered.
“Is His Highness ready?”
Millie slowly shook her head. William scratched his forehead, clearly troubled.
“There’s less than twenty minutes left until departure…”
“They might not leave today. It is their wedding night, after all.”
At Millie’s remark, William let out a short sigh.
“If Her Majesty comes to see him off later, make sure she brings a scarf.”
“A scarf? Why?”
“Knights tie scarves they received from their ladies to the tips of their spears before going to war.”
Millie nodded in understanding.
“What an interesting tradition they have in Pritan.”
“Some tie scarves from their mothers or sisters, but nothing strengthens the will to return alive more than a scarf from a lover or wife.”
“That makes sense.”
Millie nodded again, then curiously asked,
“Did you get a scarf, Sir William?”
“What?”
Caught off guard, William looked a bit flustered.
“A perfect knight like me doesn’t need something like a scarf to rely on.”
“Really? Then does His Highness Micklock need one because he’s not perfect?”
“What nonsense!”
William was indignant at the cheeky question. But realizing the contradiction in his own words, he quickly glanced away at the clock.
“Damn, only ten minutes left. Millie, step aside.”
He picked Millie up and moved her to the side before banging on the bedroom door.
“Your Highness, it’s Will. May I come in?”
He didn’t expect a response, but a calm voice answered from inside.
“Come in.”
Startled, William and Millie exchanged surprised looks.
Regaining composure, William quickly opened the door and entered, with Millie following behind, pushing the food tray.
Millie waited in the sitting room, but William boldly passed through the arched doorway into the bedroom.
There, Micklock stood in his full black armor, facing Leah, who had a wistful look on her face. He held his helmet in one hand and gently stroked her cheek with the other.
William froze for a moment, then quietly backed away out of the room.
Leah, her face filled with longing, looked up at Micklock, who looked like he desperately didn’t want to leave.
“You said four months, right?”
“Yes. I’ll return as quickly as I can. If you need anything, consult Duke Xenon.”
“I will. But promise me again—you’ll keep your word.”
Micklock smiled softly and gazed into her eyes.
“I will. And you must keep yours too.”
“You have to come back soon. If it goes over four months, our deal’s off.”
At her firm insistence, Micklock pulled her gently into his arms.
Her small frame fit perfectly against his chest. He placed a soft kiss on her temple, and even that light touch made his lower abdomen tense and his heart race.
“This is driving me crazy.”
His handsome face twisted with frustration. Resting his chin atop her head, he murmured,
“I thought three hours would be enough… Leah, you can call me a fool.”
A faint smile formed on her lips. Micklock looked at her with concern.
“If you’re too tired, you don’t have to come see me off.”
“No, I want to. I have to.”
Clearly pleased, a smile spread across Micklock’s red lips.
After hugging her once more, he quickly turned and stepped away.
“Will, let’s go.”
“Huh? Ah, yes!”
As Micklock disappeared, Leah’s legs gave out and she sank onto the bed.
The time she’d just spent with him already felt like a dream.
A man who treated her—once the unwanted daughter of the Marquis of Uzkall—as the most precious woman in the world.
Just before he got up from the bed, she remembered how he had kissed her wounded palm. Wanting to return the gesture, she kissed his palm in turn.
Then suddenly, she noticed something odd.
“What’s with your hand? Did a monster do this?”
“Oh, this? It’s not an injury…”
“When did this start? Does it hurt?”
“Not really…”
Before he could finish, Leah pressed a kiss to his palm again. Micklock paused, breath caught, then continued.
“It’s not that it doesn’t hurt… Sometimes it aches when I clench my fist.”
She kissed the mark again, and he flinched. Then, looking at her with puppy-dog eyes, he added,
“It gets worse when it rains, too…”
Oh no. How many times must it have rained in his life? The thought of him hurting every time made her face scrunch with sympathy.
“Hehe…”
Unable to hold back his laughter, he suddenly hugged her tightly and peppered her face, neck, and shoulders with kisses.
“Leah, you’re just… too lovable.”
“Mick, really? So it didn’t actually hurt?”
“No. It’s kind of a… secret about my birth.”
Leah’s eyes widened.
“Oh? I have a secret about my birth too!”
She hadn’t meant to say it, but her lips parted slightly—and Micklock kissed them.
“I’ll tell you when I get back.”
“Okay. Then I’ll tell you mine, too.”
“Your secret?”
His expression suddenly darkened. He bit her earlobe.
“It’s not about that brat, is it?”
“I told you, Robbie and I aren’t like that!”
“Then?”
“My mother…”
“Your mother? Alright. I’ll hear it when I return.”
They exchanged a deep kiss and made their promises…
And now, that time already felt like a distant memory.
As Leah was lost in thought, recalling her time with Mick, Millie approached, carrying a fur coat and several scarves.
“Your Majesty, there’s no time to sit around.”
Millie bundled Leah up in a thick coat over her indoor gown.
Then she held out a handful of colorful scarves.
“You have to give His Highness a scarf for good luck before he departs. Hurry, choose one and go see him off.”
Leah chose a deep purple scarf, threw the rest aside, and left the room.
“Yes, we have to hurry. I must give this to him before it’s too late.”
Missing her husband already, Leah’s steps quickened. She didn’t notice Millie stuffing something into her pocket and hurrying after her.
✦✦✦
By the time they reached the square in front of the castle gate, it was already dark. A hundred royal special forces knights were lined up on horseback, ready to depart.
All of them wore armor and helmets similar to Mick’s. They each had a sword at their side and a black spear in hand. Most of their spears had scarves fluttering at the tip like banners.
Under the flickering torchlight, the knights looked ready to charge at any moment.
“Millie, this campaign lasts four months, but we only have a hundred soldiers?”
Leah was surprised by the small number.
“This is a special elite unit. They’ll sweep the western Maon tribes first. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd divisions will move in from the south in three days to take care of the monsters. The follow-up forces are ten times larger.”
Millie’s detailed knowledge of the military arrangements startled Leah.
“Millie, where did you hear all that?”
“Sir Freddy told me while we were waiting.”
“Freddy? That red-haired twin knight?”
Millie nodded, then waved happily when she spotted him. Freddy responded with a warm smile.
Wow. Millie really is the queen of friendliness.
“Go on, Your Majesty. You should see him.”
As Leah approached, the knights parted to make way.
Mick had just finished final briefings with the commanders and turned to look at her. His dark blue eyes deepened as he looked down from his horse.
“Take this.”
Leah lightly kissed the purple scarf and handed it to him.
Mick tied the scarf to the tip of his spear. When he raised it high, the scarf flapped in the wind like a banner. The knights roared in unison.
Then, leaning down from his horse, Mick kissed her. Leah stood on tiptoe, clinging to his neck as the cheers grew louder.
“I’ll be back.”
With those tender words, he straightened up.
The purple scarf fluttered again, and his horse surged forward like the wind.
William, Ralph, and the rest of the hundred knights followed like shadows.
Thus, my husband Micklock and his knights set off for war.
