CH 6

He appeared to be drenched in blood as a result of what had happened. When he stated that he had to kill his knights, he was covered with the bodily fluids of the monsters and human blood.

‘Wait, not only the monsters, but also the knights—not the knights who betrayed them?’

Leonis’s rage was enormous as he regarded Celia as the only way to break the curse. He planned to torture and kill Marquis Montague. The gatekeeper, servants, and knights, who had already tried to defend the entrance, were dying with their necks and limbs severed. 

Despite her terror, Lily continues to block Leonis. She holds him responsible for Celia’s death,  blaming him for being irresponsible. Leonis then grasped Lily’s neck. He discovers that Celia is not the only clue in removing the curse as the curse is softened by contact with Lily.

Whoa!

The shouts of the soldiers and knights distracted Celia from her thoughts. She gently climbed out of bed and made her way to the barracks’ entrance. 

After sleeping for half a day and eating a broth soup with Leonis’s help, her body seemed to feel better.

“What’s going on?”

As she stood at the entrance of the tent, the servant approached her and showed his face.

“His Excellency seemed to have killed the mother of the monsters. The queen ant was the one who led the attack, so they’ll lose their centripetal point and wander around.”

When Celia gazed attentively over the knight’s shoulder, he stepped aside so she could see. 

The battlefield was quite far from here. The guard noticed the monsters and attacked them before the barracks were assaulted.

She could hear the cries of monsters and the shouts of people, but she couldn’t see Leonis because of the fighters.

“It seems there isn’t much left,” said the knight, who stood by Celia’s side.

Celia watched the scene with a nervous look. Leonis from the original story slaughtered his aides, and she has no idea why. She felt concerned since that event is taking place right now.

‘Why? The curse—it must be receding if you killed the monsters?’

Even if it wasn’t completely gone, she knew it would fade away. The soldiers were no longer shouting whether the killing of the monsters was nearing its end. All she could hear were the monsters’ strange cries.

‘Huh?’

Among the soldiers who had hurriedly retreated, a young man was walking towards the barracks. Leonis had a good physique to begin with, but when he was heavily armed, his broad shoulders and chest appeared prominent.

The helmet coated in the bodily fluid of a monster was thrown to the floor under his rough touch. As he came near the bonfire, his face was illuminated by the blazing light.

The red eyes—the blood-like irises seemed to glow.

‘Something…’

His eyes were bloodshot, and because his irises were initially red, the hue of his entire eye appeared to be the same. The soldiers and knights who were watching retreated from Leonis, as if perplexed.

Knowing what would happen when his madness spreads, his aides were the ones who were the most worried. 

“Your Excellency…”

Leonis was heading to the barracks where Celia was. When he couldn’t push the madness away with slaughter, Celia reflexively came to his mind. 

No one but her. She could suppress the madness that seemed to be bursting out at any moment! 

Celia faltered, but then remembered Lily. If she gets scared and flees, or if she stays here for a while… and if Leonis’s madness explodes in the meantime…

Someone’s going to die!

“Ma-madam?”

The knight called out to her in a small voice, but Celia did not listen. Rather, she pushed him aside and moved closer to Leonis.

Like an escort knight, he tried to catch Celia quickly, but her body stiffened and refused to move. Leonis gazed at Celia the moment he reached out to touch her.

Her reaction was delayed because she froze for a brief moment.

Every time Leonis moved, she heard a clatter of armor. Celia’s heart was pounding, and it seemed to sink lower every time it sounded. Leonis still held a sword drenched in a monster’s bodily fluid.

‘I’m scared….’

Despite her fear, Celia faced Leonis. She could feel his fiery gaze scanning over her clothes. He had a beastly look on his face.

Celia’s outfit had changed from her heavy wedding gown to a light indoor dress. She came to a halt about a step away from Leonis.

Leonis’s eyes were fixed on Celia. She reached out her hand, desperately suppressing something as she longed for something else. She was terrified that her heart would stop beating, but she had to touch Leonis.

The red eyes shifted their gaze to her outstretched hand. She was afraid he would shake it off, but Leonis allowed Celia’s hand to touch his cheek.

‘Ah.’

Leonis’s cheeks were hot, despite her initial thought of it being cold. His face wasn’t like that, but it was strange. Strength was released from the palm that had been tightly gripping his sword.

Tak. The sword loudly fell on the floor.

Celia’s hand slid off from Leonis’s cheek at the sound, but a hand several times larger than hers wrapped around the back of her hand. 

His body, which was huge in contrast to hers, leaned towards Celia. It looked as if a large beast was about to attack the slender girl. Leonis’s firm arms wrapped around Celia’s waist as she flinched and moved backwards.

His eyes were completely reddened, but it was visible that they were gone. Celia looked up at Leonis, who was also gazing into her face.

He had his lips folded and he was staring at Celia’s thick lips with a greedy gaze.

‘Eh?’

Celia’s eyes widened as she realized Lily and Leonis hadn’t kissed in the scene where they first met. She felt a lump of heated lips pressing against her careless gap between her lips without hesitation.

“Hmmph…”

As he engulfed Celia’s soft lips in one bite, Leonis felt the buzzing madness fade away quickly. From the moment her fingertips brushed his cheek, the sweltering heat dissipated.

As though it had turned into lust, the lips were as heated as the body.

It seemed Celia’s lips had a soft taste so he kissed them without hesitation. It made Leonis shiver because it was so smooth and sweet… A wave of desire that he’d never felt before rushed through his body.

“Uhh, haa… Hmpp….!”

Celia wriggled in his arms, as if embarrassed by the deep kiss. It was an act that made her question what kind of stimulus Leonis was seeking to elicit from her. He lifted her slender figure by cradling her in his arms and tucking his hands beneath her hips.

“Humph!”

Leonis strode towards the barracks, enjoying Celia’s soft lips whether she looked at him or not.

The knights and soldiers guarding the barracks appeared to be fleeing the scene quickly. Leonis walked roughly to the entrance of the barracks and went inside.

‘Just now…’

‘What did I see?’

Everyone knew that Duke Cardian’s wedding to Lady Montague, whom he met at the ballroom, was a one-sided marriage.

Nonetheless, he is cursed, so there had to be another cause!

The Duke’s aide coughed loudly outside the Duke’s barracks! He cleared his throat. Their superior cleared his throat, and so the soldiers scattered in search of work under his sharp gaze.

Their lord got married today.

‘Lady Montague… The new Duchess of Cardian has suppressed the Duke’s madness!’

The aide walked, thrilled at the fact. He needed to clear things up, but he didn’t think he would be tired tonight.

✦ ✦ ✦

“Mpph, uhh…..Haa….”

It seems that he has come to his senses now, so why isn’t he collapsing? She knew kissing was supposed to feel this way, but she’d never experienced it before.

The slick and mixed saliva, the lump of flesh stuck to her little tongue, and the tease from the tip of his tongue as it brushed through her mouth were all thrillingly pleasing.

‘Is this also a male lead buff? Is this really a buff?’

It was not easy for Leonis to date because he was cursed. It was made worse by the fact that virgin men were popular at the time the novel was serialized. 

‘You are a compassionate man!’

Recalling the characteristics of the male lead of western Korean romance fantasy novels, who has no choice but to be perfect at everything even though he has never done it before, Celia tried to come to her senses.

She began to think that the male lead, who she had only read about in novels and comics, was attempting to ‘feel the climax with only a kiss!’

“Ugh, uh huh!”

Pat. Leonis’s good-looking face frowned and furrowed his eyebrows at Celia, who tapped him on the shoulder, trembling. She was sincerely trying to give up and put up with just a kiss, but he had no idea why she was telling him to stop this good moment.

He didn’t touch anything inappropriate or take off her clothes.

Leonis, who had barely raised his head from Celia’s lips, looked at her with regret in his gaze. The face was distorted by the interruption of the pleasant moment. Of course, his expression lifted when he saw Celia’s flushed face and her saliva-soaked lips.

He had no reason to stop when the impulse struck. To be fair, she didn’t even try to remove his clothes or touch him.

However, as soon as he tried to claim her lips again, Celia’s palm pushed his face away.

“Oh, sir, it hurts, it hurts—”