“Argh! Argh!”
Because he was practically hanging upside down and the blood had rushed to his face, Lev’s face, already a little flushed, turned even redder. It hurt, yes, but beyond the pain there was the humiliation of being smacked on the backside like a child.
“What do you think you are doing!”
“What do you think. A naughty colt learns best from the rod.”
“What?”
At Guien’s snide remark, Lev also let go of his last thread of reason.
“Put me down! I said put me down!”
Lev thrashed, not only kicking his legs but also pounding Guien’s back with his fists, and the faces of the attendants and knights following behind them went pale.
But the smile did not leave the face of Guien, who was striding along with his consort slung over his shoulder. If anything, he seemed positively lively, as if he were enjoying himself.
Before leaving the hall, Guien recalled the face of Michel d’Albret, who had been glaring at him as if he meant to kill him.
“He looked like he was about to die of frustration.”
How dare he harbor vain feelings for my consort. And just a throwaway piece at that. It was intolerable.
“Hmph.”
With a snort, Guien finished ascending the stairs. Lev, who had been struggling alone, panted harshly against the broad back.
The emperor did not seem to be in any pain; he did not show the least sign of disorder. Lev glared at that infuriating back, then thumped his forehead against it with a thud, which was met by a soft, stifled laugh.
“Do not laugh.”
“Why, want to try some more?”
Who would take him up on that.
Lev bit down hard on his lip. The seemingly endless walk came to an abrupt stop. His body lifted and then was lowered to the floor.
Caught off guard by the sudden movement, Lev just stood there blankly until Guien snatched his wrist and started hauling him along again.
“Where are we going?”
The palace staff who suddenly encountered the emperor and his consort could not hide their confusion.
Lev spotted people who were bowing to them with awkward faces, and likewise, with his own embarrassment plain on his face, he glared at Guien’s sturdy back as the emperor marched on. No answer came.
As they walked down the corridor, Lev, too, could tell where Guien was headed. Two knights standing guard in front of the office paid their respects when they saw the emperor, then noticed Lev being dragged behind him and looked startled. The mood felt anything but ordinary.
Guien passed them without a glance, and Lev could only give an awkward smile. To make matters worse, he even recognized one of them, which made it feel all the more mortifying.
“Ha ha, thank you for your hard work.”
Trying to change the mood, he forced himself to speak, but no one answered. The only response was Guien’s grip tightening even more on his wrist.
“Ah, ow! Enough, please!”
There was nowhere left to run, so why was he being handled so roughly.
Lev’s face twisted up. Then his body was shoved forward, making him stumble into the room.
“What is this about?”
Back in his own chambers, free from Guien’s grip, Lev grabbed his throbbing wrist and asked curtly. The polite tone he had tried to maintain in the hall, for the sake of appearances, reverted to his usual manner.
Guien quietly watched his consort and brushed his hair back. Having scuffled and then walked here in one go, the hair he had set neatly before was now tousled.
Lev’s gaze lingered there for a moment. Thanks to how handsome he was, that little bit of disarray only made him look more sensuous.
‘No!’
Lev shook his head hard to fling out the thought that had intruded into his mind. This was no time to be admiring such things.
Barely getting himself under control, Lev steeled his eyes and looked straight at the emperor standing before him.
“What do you think. I already told you earlier, did I not?”
Lev was about to ask what he had supposedly said, then remembered what Guien had said before hauling him here. That he had made another mistake.
Lev’s body went stiff with a flinch. And Guien, who had been watching his consort continuously, realized that Lev had remembered.
“You made a mistake, so you must be punished.”
“Punished, what do you mean?”
Lev could not talk back the way he had a moment ago. In the darkness, Guien’s eyes somehow looked different from usual.
It felt like the gaze of a predator eyeing its prey.
“Undress.”
“Wha— what? What did you say?”
What did I just hear? Unable to believe what he had heard, Lev stammered the question back.
“I said undress.”
Guien emphasized each syllable, as if to leave no doubt.
“You are joking, right?”
“Does it sound like a joke?”
No, it did not. There was no playfulness in the eyes that stared straight at him.
“But, but Your Majesty, you and Michel…”
The instant another man’s name came up, Guien’s eyes sharpened to a cutting edge. Lev, who had blurted out Michel d’Albret’s name in a desperate attempt to wriggle out of the situation, shut his mouth. Only then did he realize how far he had overstepped.
“Why is that name coming up now?”
The voice asking for a reason was as icy as the eyes. It seemed he had truly made a grave mistake. Of all times, why did that name have to slip out now.
Lev did have, in his own way, a reason. He was acting as a consort because of a contract, and the one Guien would truly come to love would be Michel d’Albret, would it not.
“Um, well, that is…”
Lev was a lifelong single and, in his way, a romantic who dreamed of pure, devoted love. For someone like him, the idea of having someone in his heart and yet sharing a bed with another was honestly hard to accept.
Granted, he had staged that kissing scene on the terrace earlier. But that had really been unavoidable…
‘What am I saying? What do you mean unavoidable?’
As that flight of fancy intruded, Lev shook his reddening face vigorously. It was then—
“You really are…”
As if suppressing boiling anger, Guien let out a long sigh. Then, with his face and voice more relaxed than before, he spoke.
“Fine. Then you tell me.”
“Tell you what?”
Relieved that the sharp mood seemed to have eased, Lev tensed up again at the follow-up question.
“What kind of punishment you want to receive.”
I do not want any. That was what he wanted to say. But given Guien’s mood, it did not seem he would let the matter slide.
“Ah, really.”
Clamping down on the sigh rising inside, Lev worked his brain hard.
“Cleaning! Cleaning.”
As Guien waited for an answer, his hands paused halfway through unbuttoning his shirt, which he had been loosening up to the chest.
“What?”
“I will clean.”
Guien stared at his consort in disbelief.
“What cleaning?”
“The stairs, or the corridor, or washing the windows.”
“Honestly… I would like to see what is inside that head of yours.”
Guien let out a soft laugh. Not content with toying with him, he even managed to make him laugh. Well, that much he could allow.
“Cleaning, you say.”
Still, cleaning.
With his shirt open enough to show his chest, Guien crossed his arms.
“Did I hire you as a cleaner?”
“No.”
Of course, Lev knew exactly why he was here. Guien had told him repeatedly. Be faithful to your role.
“Then you know that is not what you should be saying in this situation, do you not?”
The emperor was likely expecting him to undress as he was and climb onto the bed.
But for Lev, who believed that was something only lovers did, it was difficult.
“Fine. I said I would allow it, so I will. Instead…”
Lev, who had been relieved that Guien would not press further and would let him do as he suggested, frowned a little at the word “instead” that followed. If you are going to allow it, then just allow it; why add conditions.
“I will decide what you clean.”
Lev nodded obediently. He had more or less expected that much.
“And also.”
But Guien was not finished.
“And also? There is more?”
“From now on, you will obey without a word, whatever I tell you to do. Whatever it is.”
At that, Lev looked at him in surprise. The golden eyes that met his were gleaming with threat.
Once the emperor left, the hall quickly regained its lively atmosphere. In fact, Guien usually only made a brief appearance at his birthday celebration and then withdrew.
He disliked such gatherings by temperament and confined himself to the minimum needed to satisfy propriety.
After that, what remained was an arena for the nobles to use for society, friendship, and politics.
Thanks to that, the banquet grew more animated as the night wore on. Of course, that was also due to everything that had happened today.
The emperor arriving with his consort, the two of them sharing the first dance, Michel d’Albret appearing there, the sparks that flew between them, and finally the emperor carrying his consort out on his shoulder and that meaningful exchange of looks with Michel d’Albret.
By contrast, the atmosphere on the curtained terrace was markedly different. There stood the young noblemen who had picked a fight with Lev, along with Ivan and the Marquis d’Albret.
“I have no excuse, my lord marquis.”
Ivan was the first to speak, wearing a heavy expression.
“Disappointing.”
The Marquis d’Albret clicked his tongue, showing his displeasure. Ivan bowed his head even lower.
“If you would give me another chance…”
“That will be enough. From now on I will handle it myself. Just bring me proper information.”
The marquis cut him off, as if there was nothing more to hear. Ivan bit his lip hard in frustration.
The mild-featured young man who had been watching the two of them inserted himself into the conversation.
“My lord marquis.”
“Hm?”
“I have a good idea.”
The mild-featured man smiled slyly, belying his appearance, and whispered.
“The harvest festival is coming soon.”
For a moment, even the Marquis d’Albret’s eyes flashed.
“I will discuss the concrete plan with you again.”
“Very well, I will trust you and wait.”
The marquis finally smiled in satisfaction. At that moment, there was a polite knock at the door. All four sets of eyes turned that way.
The Marquis d’Albret had come here when the hall was in an uproar because of the emperor. He had confirmed that no eyes were watching this way and had posted someone at the entrance to keep anyone from coming in, so who would dare knock.
Parting the purple curtain, Michel d’Albret appeared. The marquis’s face hardened at once.
“Go, all of you.”
“Yes.”
At the command, Ivan and the young nobles slipped away toward the garden connected to the terrace.
Coming in, Michel watched the three of them with careful attention. It was unsettling that the emperor’s attendant was mixed in among them.
“Where have you been!”
Startled by the marquis’s rebuke, Michel turned toward him.
“What were you discussing with those men.”
“They came to pay their respects, and I obliged them.”
“Pay their respects…”
Even though Michel stared straight at him, intent on ferreting out the truth, the Marquis d’Albret wore an expression of utter innocence. He even scolded his son for leaving his post.
“You should have attended the emperor properly.”
If he had, tonight’s affair would not have ended in failure. The marquis’s eyes were discontented.
He had found it praiseworthy when Michel went to ask the emperor for a dance, but to let him slip away after holding him for only a moment.
“The promise was only that I attend the birthday celebration.”
Michel spoke as if stating an obvious right. But the marquis saw it differently.
“If you behave like this, do you think I will accept your wishes?”
“Father!”
What the marquis had ordered was clearly to attend the celebration. Now he was acting as if that order had never existed.
A flash of anger crossed Michel’s face, then he remembered that this was how his father had always been. He clenched his fist tighter.
“I have done enough. So from now on, do not concern yourself with what I do.”
The marquis frowned.
“Are you planning to return to the fief?”
“No.”
Then? At the follow-up question, Michel hesitated for a long moment.
“For the time being, I will stay in the capital.”
Michel recalled Lev, who had smiled at him so kindly. He had not done anything with him yet. So he did not want to leave like this.
The Marquis d’Albret studied his son, who seemed lost in some deep thought.
It looked like Michel had other designs. But the marquis held his tongue and decided to watch for now.
In any case, if he stayed in the capital, there would be chances to meet the emperor.
“Very well.”
Father and son stood in the same place with different thoughts.
Lev’s face was scarlet, as if it had been burned. In front of him, Guien stood there with a shameless expression.
“What are you doing? I told you to come here.”
Guien curled one corner of his mouth and urged his consort. But Lev, as if his feet were glued to the floor, did not move at all.
Of course, this situation had been created by the emperor, and Guien did not expect Lev to obey easily.
“Shall I give you a different punishment then?”
Lev flinched at the shoulders and met Guien’s eyes.
“I am coming, I am coming.”
Lev knew there was nowhere left to retreat. This was the best concession Guien had offered.
Even so, to go this far…
Feeling a twinge at the back of his neck, Lev rubbed his nape with his hand. Cold sweat dampened his palm.
“Then, at least sit over there.”
Guien’s gaze followed the direction Lev indicated with his index finger. There was a broad bed. The golden eyes flashed with interest.
“Oh, come on! Not there, the chair next to it, the chair!”
Quicker than Guien could pursue whatever thought had crossed his mind, Lev spoke up. Guien shrugged and sat obediently where his consort had designated.
Leaning back against the rest and laying his arms on the armrests, Guien looked languid. Lev turned his body and slowly stood before the emperor. Even in the dim light, the breathtakingly beautiful face had not a single feature blurred.
Thinking that made him dislike it all the more. Then Lev lowered his head.
A soft, yielding sensation brushed his lips.
.
.
.
.
.
T/N: Wait… I’m… not… ready. Aaahhhh
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