Chapter 173

The Substitute Loic held me tightly, leaving me no room to escape, moving with firm intensity.

His movements were burning hot, yet filled entirely with affection.

As he kissed me tenderly and gradually picked up the pace, soft sounds escaped my lips.

The cool, pleasant scent of him made my mind go hazy.

Loic was right.

The more exhausted my body became, the more completely my fear disappeared—until nothing remained.

“Don’t think about anything else,” Loic whispered beside my ear, breathing heavily.

“Right now, just keep me in your heart.”

My shaking vision was filled with his blazing gaze.

Overwhelmed by the waves of sensation, I clung tightly around Loic’s neck.

The next day, we returned to the castle.

Loic kept everything that happened in the Ebern Forest strictly secret.

If the imperial family learned the Grand Duchess had been kidnapped by a dragon, they would inevitably question the reason.…