TGLWM 14

Chapter 14

“Florence.”

A dark voice, like his jet-black hair, faintly echoed in her ears. Looking at the countless daggers and throwing stars embedded in the spot where she had been standing, she only then realized that she had nearly been reduced to a bloody mess and killed.

“…Ugh.”

Having been pulled back from death’s door by the narrowest of margins, tears streamed endlessly from Florence’s eyes. In fact, she was so dazed that she didn’t even realize she was crying. Completely forgetting that she had considered Edelston an uncomfortable person, she clung to him as if he were her lifeline.

“You’re all right now. Slowly… it’s all right.”

His warm, weighty hand patted her back gently. Inside his arms, which were large enough to completely envelop her, she felt a strange warmth and gradually began to calm down.

Meanwhile, the women who had hurled their weapons the moment they sensed someone in the bushes had come running, ready to take down the intruder—torture if alive, and if dead, so be it.

“Got— *gulp!*”

But what they found there was the Grand Duke, with a face more terrifying than the grim reaper, and a woman trembling with her face buried in his embrace.

*We’re done for.*

That golden-tinged, soft silver-blonde curly hair! That was none other than Her Highness the Grand Duchess, whom they had been hearing about so much over the past few days that their ears were ringing.

“Hehe~ Today’s torture tool is the whip! The whiiip! Ah, why are you grabbing me like— *gasp!*”

Realizing the situation in an instant, they roughly grabbed their last arriving comrade—who had been dancing about—and forced her to kneel, then began to plead.

“We’re so sorry, Your Highness! We failed to recognize you… we were wrong!”

“Please forgive us!”

As if they had never been playing such a ferocious game, they bowed their heads so low they nearly touched the ground, their hair standing on end as they broke out in cold sweat. They had nearly killed the beloved consort of the Black Antler himself! Just imagining the scale of his wrath made them feel as if all the blood in their bodies was draining away.

They could only pray that Her Highness the Grand Duchess was a merciful person.

Watching the employees who had begun banging their heads on the ground with a sour expression, Florence whispered quietly enough that they couldn’t hear.

“…Your Highness, for now, I’d like to move from this spot.”

From the circumstances, it seemed to be a misunderstanding, but these were the people who had hurled blades at her with frightening skill. The image of the flying knives was still vivid, and with her trembling body not yet fully settled, she wasn’t in a state to say much.

“As you wish.”

Edelston, who had been glaring at the kneeling supplicants as if he would devour them, immediately followed her request.

“Her Highness’s rest is paramount, so we will return for now. I will decide on your treatment later. Return to your quarters and reflect on your actions.”

Holding Florence tightly in his arms like a man who had obtained the most precious thing in the world, Edelston began to walk.

She was trembling like a wounded little bird. This was likely her first time experiencing a life-threatening situation, so the shock must have been considerable. Feeling her breath, as if she were taking deep breaths to calm herself, against his chest, his heart pounded helplessly as if he had finally embraced a treasure he had been searching for decades.

*I’m glad I followed her.*

After the meal, Miranda had informed him that Florence had gone for a walk in the outdoor garden alone. Edelston had headed toward the garden in quick strides, intending to casually run into her and subtly spend time together.

But perhaps it was because the weather was so beautiful. Or perhaps because she was so lovely. Watching her look around in the early summer sunlight was so precious that it felt like a waste to even blink.

Perhaps it was because those distant, dazzling days when she had loved him came to mind. Her tearful confession of love beneath the great cedar tree overlapped with the present. Perhaps it was because it was so similar to the dreams he had wandered through countless times, only to wake up empty-handed.

*’You, with me…’*

There were so many words he could have offered with a smile, yet strangely, his lips wouldn’t part.

So he had followed her like a fool from behind, only coming to his senses when he realized they had reached the female employees’ quarters. Though they usually worked as maids in the Grand Ducal castle, this was in fact the residence of the female special operatives of the combat organization he led.

The fact that they had yet to see Florence flashed through his mind, and at the same moment, one of the operatives sensed Florence’s presence and let out a fierce cry.

*’Intruder! Take care of them!’*

The moment he saw the glinting blades fly toward her, his body moved on its own. His mind was consumed by a single purpose: to save Florence. He was in a state of pure, thoughtless instinct. Nothing else mattered.

Feeling time stretch out in a strange, fragmented way, he caught Florence by the narrowest margin and pulled her into his arms.

*If she had died, I would have died right there with her.*

Just as plants cannot live without sunlight, a world without Florence was nothing but an empty void with no value to him. Because she existed in this world, Edelston had clawed his way through the back alleys of the red-light district, and had stopped at nothing to rise to the position of Black Antler.

She was the meaning of his life, the driving force that had made him run all this way.

Perhaps because he had pushed his physical abilities to their limits, his entire body ached with sharp pains, but hearing her suppressed sobs hurt his heart more than his body.

And now, she was alive and breathing in his arms.

The woman he had yearned for while writhing in pain. The woman who ruled his world, his soul, and even his breath—she was now completely entrusting her body to him.

If this was a dream, he wished it would never end; if it was reality, it was a moment filled with pure joy.

Florence, still with her face buried in his arms, did not see it, but everyone who saw the Grand Duke’s expression was utterly dumbfounded.

*Oh my, his eyes are dripping with honey and obsession…*

*He’s crazy. That’s the real deal. And it’s even scary!*

*Her Highness the Grand Duchess is stuck for life.*

The back of Edelston’s neck, as he entered the Grand Ducal castle, was bright red. Those who had wondered if the Black Antler might actually be a demon realized he was human only upon seeing that red neck.

Not having their heads chopped off on the spot was already a blessing. Filled with joy at being alive, they praised the merciful Grand Duchess and scurried back to their quarters to change out of their sweat-soaked clothes.

—

* * *

—

As the Grand Duke entered the castle’s main entrance carrying the Grand Duchess, all the employees around stopped in their tracks, stared blankly for a moment, then startled back to their senses and bowed their heads.

Some of them, too, learned for the first time today that the Grand Duke was not a demon but a human. To think he would wear such a warm expression, as if spring breezes lingered there! He was clearly deeply, hopelessly smitten.

*Let us swear loyalty to Her Highness the Grand Duchess!*

Though it was said that the one who loves more loses, it was plainly visible that the true pinnacle of power in the Grand Ducal castle was now Her Highness, not the Grand Duke.

“You may put me down now.”

Feeling eyes on her from all directions, Florence was so embarrassed she felt her face might burst. She had obediently let herself be carried because her legs had given out, but as someone who would soon vacate the position of Grand Duchess, being seen like this was hardly good for her.

But whether he didn’t hear her request to be put down, or chose not to hear it, he continued walking silently.

Finally, she tugged lightly at the front of his shirt, and only then did she get a response.

“…Please put me down.”

“I don’t—no, I can’t.”

It sounded like he was about to say “I don’t want to.”

This man, this Grand Duke, was like a tenacious and persistent hunter. From their very first meeting at the imperial banquet to now, once he caught hold of something, he refused to let go easily.

*I think I’ve gotten tangled up with the wrong strange man.*

She had thought she had lived a fairly uneventful twenty years, so she couldn’t understand why such things were happening to her. From a humiliating broken engagement to an unwanted marriage, and even a near-death experience—her luck was abysmally bad.

Was God playing a petty trick on her, saying, “Hey, girl, you’re twenty now, how about experiencing some hardship?”

As she was mulling over life’s serious questions, a heavy voice full of concern rumbled through his chest and reached her ears.

“You mustn’t overexert yourself until you’ve fully calmed down.”

“…I am calm now, so I can go to the Grand Duchess’s chambers alone.”

“If you say so.”

Edelston looked at Florence’s stiffened form for a moment, then smiled wryly and gently set her down.

The moment her feet touched the floor, Florence tried to stand up as if to prove her words, but for some reason, her body wouldn’t keep its balance.