chapter 52
“Your Majesty the Emperor is surprisingly perceptive and has extremely competent informants under his command.”
“Ah… yes, I think that would be good.”
Rubiana was taken aback.
She found it astonishing that Elion was thinking so carefully about their fake romance.
“Now, let’s see… why don’t we try calling?”
Elion turned his head to look at Rubiana.
She felt his gaze but didn’t have the courage to meet his eyes.
She was embarrassed for no reason.
“…Elion.”
She barely managed to say his name in a timid voice.
Elion chuckled softly beside her.
“How about calling me while looking at me this time?”
His voice was full of laughter and mischief.
Annoyed at the thought that he was teasing her, Rubiana quickly turned her head and glared at him.
With her eyes half-open and lips pursed, she scowled.
“You’re making fun of me, aren’t you?”
“No. I just mean we should practice. The more we practice, the more perfect it will be, right?”
“….”
“Come on, go ahead.”
“…Elion.”
“Good.”
Elion nodded with a kind smile.
It was the expression of a grandfather praising his granddaughter.
Ah… he really is teasing me! Rubiana’s eyes narrowed further.
“Your Highness, you should try it too. Practice.”
“Ah…”
“Go on.”
“Ru… Rubiana.”
Elion’s face turned bright red.
Despite being the one who started it, he was now more embarrassed, and Rubiana couldn’t help but giggle at how silly and cute he looked.
Elion watched her half-moon eyes and laughing expression, mesmerized.
Without giving his reason a chance to intervene, he moved closer and kissed her.
It felt like… two magnets of opposite polarity being naturally drawn together.
Without room for thoughts or emotions to interfere, it happened naturally, as it should.
Rubiana, startled by the sudden kiss, flinched her shoulders. Only then did Elion pull back, finally coming to his senses.
Frozen like a stone by the enormous mistake he had just made, Elion stammered:
“S-sorry. I didn’t mean to… it’s not… it’s not like that…”
Rubiana’s eyes sparkled with mischief at his panicked expression.
Half teasing, half impulsive, she said:
“No. Do it again. I liked it.”
“….”
Their gazes, smiling softly at each other, intertwined gently.
Then, another warm kiss followed.
“I’m crazy, I’m really crazy!”
Late at night, lying down to sleep, she couldn’t.
Instead, she tossed the innocent blanket around, remembering the kiss she had shared with Elion just hours ago.
“Ugh… why did I do that? Why? Why? Why?!”
‘Do it again? I liked it?’ Why did she say something like that!
It had clearly started as a playful joke.
But when Elion’s lips touched hers, Rubiana finally realized it was no longer just a joke.
His kiss was so gentle and sweet.
It was also intense and intoxicating.
It was different from the kisses exchanged while sharing magic.
It was… a real kiss.
Like a kiss between lovers.
A real kiss…!
She felt affection in the way Elion gently nibbled, sucked, licked, and bit her lips.
She felt it in the way his hands cradled her cheek, brushed her shoulder, and wrapped around her back.
It was undeniably affection.
It couldn’t be explained as anything else.
No, whether it was affection or not didn’t matter.
What mattered was that Rubiana wanted it to be affection.
She wanted this man to cherish her.
Just as she cherished him.
‘I cherish Elion? No… that’s impossible!’
Even now, just thinking of him made her heart race with joy.
Her mind was filled with thoughts of him, and her lips still felt the faint warmth he had left.
By now, Rubiana had to admit it.
She had been conquered by Elion.
Heart and body alike.
Was it because she touched him every day while exchanging magic, creating a tender attachment?
“No! Pull yourself together, Rubiana! Elion is just… a fleeting encounter. Your true destiny lies elsewhere.”
She would eventually be with Chad.
That was the rule of this world.
Once the possession was complete and the gap between body and soul disappeared, her relationship with Elion would need to end.
“This relationship is just a contract of mutual necessity.”
So she needed to shake off these futile feelings quickly.
Rubiana pulled the blanket over her head and squeezed her eyes shut.
The only image in her dark, closed vision was Elion’s face, flustered and red.
“This is… serious. Something’s definitely wrong with me.”
At the same time, Elion, lying down, was tormented as well.
He blamed himself for being led by instinct.
Rubiana, laughing playfully with her half-moon eyes, was just too cute.
“If she’s cute, I should just think ‘cute’ and be done with it. But why… why did I kiss her there too?!”
He buried his hands in his hair.
He hadn’t realized how dangerous exchanging magic could be.
This was all the consequence of failing to maintain a safe distance.
Sighing heavily, Elion exhaled in frustration.
Worse, he couldn’t stop recalling Rubiana’s bright, half-moon-eyed smile even now.
When he decided to share his magic with her, he hadn’t imagined that he would be so emotionally affected by the relationship.
That he would feel so comfortable and tender toward her.
That he would want to continue this relationship.
“It’s all fake. Pull yourself together.”
This was a relationship with a definite end.
It would end the day Rubiana fully recovered.
Exchanging magic was real, but all the romance, the engagement—it was fake.
Holding hands, sitting side by side in the carriage, kissing, spending nights together—it was all just to exchange magic.
It had been like this from the start and would remain so until the end.
There was no hope, no despair.
Elion closed his eyes, resolving to restrain his feelings before it was too late.
He decided to ignore the sharp ache deep in his chest.
The next day, the carriage carrying Rubiana and Elion left the capital early in the morning.
They were heading to the Aduvan region, a full day’s ride west from the capital.
It was where one of Elion’s many villas across the empire was closest.
Count Payson and his wife worried a little about Rubiana going on a recovery trip, but eventually allowed it.
They thought it would be better for her health to stay in a forested provincial estate than in the capital.
And traveling with her fiancé-to-be, Elion, gave them even more peace of mind.
Everyone knew Elion was the strongest knight in the empire.
There was no need to worry about what others might think of an unmarried man and woman traveling alone.
Rumors of their engagement were already widespread.
“Rest well and take care, Rubiana.”
“Please take good care of our Rubi, Your Highness.”
Bidding farewell to the Paysons, Rubiana and Elion climbed into the carriage.
As usual, they sat side by side, their arms touching.
But unlike usual, an awkward silence hung in the carriage.
Several reasons caused it.
First was the embarrassment from the overly intimate, inappropriate kiss shared on Rubiana’s bed the night before.
Second was the shame of the magical exchanges that would continue at the villa over the next week.
Third was the need to restrain the growing tender feelings toward each other.
As the carriage traveled, Rubiana and Elion each opened a newspaper and began to read.
About an hour later, Rubiana began nodding off.
To the right, to the left, forward again.
Elion found it impossible to focus on the newspaper with such distractions.
