It was a Political Marriage, But I’m Being Loved - Chapter 123

Charlize’s voice was sweet. So sweet that, just listening to her, Achilles wanted to throw away everything and stay by her side forever. But he knew better.

“That would be dangerous.”

“I won’t rush or push myself,” he promised. “I’ll pursue them for exactly ten days then come back and marry you. So please, will you trust me and let me go?”

Charlize stared at him for a long moment before speaking.

“You asked His Majesty for this already, didn’t you? And he refused.”

“…Yes,” Achilles admitted, after hesitating briefly. His expression showed he hadn’t wanted to say it. Charlize’s eyes sparkled with amusement.

“Then I’ll allow it. As long as you’re back before our wedding, I don’t see why not.”

The wedding date had been changed without consulting them. Foreign guests had been invited on someone else’s whim. If things could be dictated so freely, they were entitled to make their own choices, too.

Achilles looked slightly surprised.

“You… mean that?”

“Yes. But only if you come back safe. You still have to marry me.”

No matter how strong he was, she still worried. As she let go of his face, he pulled her into a tight embrace. Her body was instantly drawn to his warmth, and when she looked into his eyes—those deep golden eyes—she saw a hunger that sent a chill down her spine.

“When do we leave?” she asked.

If he began early, he could finish early too. Waiting for him at the Tower didn’t sound so bad. There, she could freely practice magic.

“Whenever you give me permission.”

Charlize briefly thought of her family—of the Empress, Oscar, and the Emperor. She loved them. Their relationships weren’t bad. In fact, they were good.

But if she consulted them, they would pressure her to stay—not for her safety, but for the Empire, for Oscar, or for themselves.

Even now, the Emperor hadn’t gotten her approval before responding to Achilles’s request. He made the decision first, then merely informed her after.

She didn’t dislike them—but now she understood their priorities. And for that reason, she wouldn’t factor their reactions into her decision.

“Anyone who sees me as a second option is second to me too.”

A part of her considered spending the precious ten days before her wedding with her family. But she had already spent five or six days with them.

In that time, the Emperor and Oscar were busy hosting foreign dignitaries and managing politics. The Empress, ever focused on Charlize’s status as the future Grand Duchess, had arranged events without even asking for her opinion.

“I don’t want to spend another ten days like that.”

“I should at least leave letters behind.”

Right now, she and Achilles were alone in her room. Whenever they started staring at each other like this, the maids and attendants naturally excused themselves.

Charlize brought out writing paper, envelopes, and a pen. She began drafting her letters.

To the Empress, she wrote something like an excuse. To Oscar, she told him not to worry. And to the Emperor…

[I will marry according to the new date. I understand Your Majesty’s concern about the Grand Temple, but I also believe Achilles has a valid point.]

She could guess why the Emperor had rejected Achilles’s request. The Fragment of the Demon King was still in the capital, and the Holy Pope had not yet arrived.

But Charlize knew that could be resolved simply.

“I’m not cut out to be a noble lady or play politics. Before I met Achilles, I thought I’d naturally live that kind of life—but now I understand.”

She no longer wanted to obsess over reputation in the social scene. Spending time among noblewomen had only made her feel more suffocated.

Charlize waited for the ink to dry, wrote the names of the recipients on each envelope, and sealed them carefully.

When she opened the door and motioned to a nearby attendant, the maid quickly came running.

“Did you call for me, Your Highness?”

“Please deliver these to Their Majesties and the Crown Prince. Also, no one is to enter this room until I call for someone. Understood?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Once she had handed off the letters, Charlize closed the bedroom door again and looked at Achilles. She took his hand and led him away from the entrance.

“What the Emperor and the Church really need,” she said, “is the appearance that the Tower Master is still in the capital.”

“So…”

She wanted him to seal the room with his magic again, just like a few hours ago. The more scandalous a rumor, the faster it spread. If people thought the princess and Tower Master had locked themselves in a bedroom together, word would spread like wildfire.

Meanwhile, they would slip away to the Tower in secret.

Charlize would stay there, under protection, and Achilles would spend ten days tracking down Valter Bianchi and the demon he had contracted with.

“Are you really okay with this?” Achilles asked. “There might be rumors…”

Achilles was not someone easily swayed by rumors.
But he wasn’t unaware either. He knew it was Lize who’d cared enough to ask him to sneak into her room quietly at night, trying not to attract attention.

“It’s alright. It’s only ten days… and once we’re married, the rumors will die down.”

He gazed at her quietly before lowering his head.

“I’m sorry for putting you in this position. When this is over, I promise I’ll make it up to you. Just this once… please, let me be stubborn.”

“Alright.”

Achilles cast a spell to make them invisible and stepped onto the balcony with her in his arms. It didn’t take long to seal the room behind them with a protective enchantment.

“The Tower is farther than the northern fortress. It’ll take longer to reach.”

As he spoke, Lize pressed her face to his chest. With her arms wrapped tightly around his waist, she replied:

“It doesn’t matter. I’m with you.”

Though invisible to the outside world, they could still see each other. So Lize caught the gentle smile that lit up Achilles’s face at her words.

“At last, I’m bringing you to the Tower. I’ve waited a long time, Princess.”

Held close in his arms, she felt herself lift off the ground. As they rose into the air, Lize gave the imperial palace one final glance—then turned away.

The Emperor received Lize’s letter but didn’t open it right away.
He was in the middle of reviewing documents—nothing particularly urgent, just the usual routine. Her letter could wait.

“Why would she do something like this all of a sudden…?”

Without much thought, he placed the envelope on a silver tray and had it set aside on the table. He didn’t put it in a drawer—he knew he’d forget about it if he did.

And with his mind focused on work, he let the letter slip from his thoughts.
He didn’t remember it again until the Empress stormed into his office.

“Arthur!”

It was rare for her to use his name so openly in front of others. The Emperor paused, putting down his pen, and looked up.

“What is it?”

“Did you get a letter from Lize too? I sent someone to her room, and they say she’s holed up again with the Tower Master…”

“The letter…”

With a flick of his hand, an attendant brought over the tray and a letter opener. The Emperor opened the envelope with practiced ease and read its contents swiftly.

His expression darkened.

“That girl…!”

Lize had never caused real trouble growing up—not unless it was related to Valter. And even then, she hadn’t done anything wrong, really. She’d just ended up hurt, quietly enduring pain that no one else saw.

When she was young, the Emperor and Empress had promised to raise her gently. They’d arranged an early engagement to Valter Bianchi—someone suitable, a safe match, a duchess’s life.

But now?

“And she chooses now to act out… because of the Tower Master?”

Even when she had feelings for Valter, she never once did anything that would bring shame to the royal family. But now—Lize had changed.

The Emperor dismissed the other officials and attendants from the room.

“The Tower Master came to see me earlier. He said he wanted to take Lize to the Tower, to protect her, while he tracks down Valter Bianchi and the demon he contracted with.”

“And of course, you refused. …So Lize gave him permission herself.”

“To Achilles, her permission probably mattered more than mine.”

If Lize had been there, perhaps they could’ve reasoned with her. Scolded her. Persuaded her. But instead, she made the choice herself and left.

For a while, both the Emperor and Empress sat in silence, thinking of their daughter. Lize had always been well-mannered, quiet, and unproblematic. It had been a long time since they’d worried about her like this.

The Empress finally broke the silence.

“When Lize returns… please don’t scold her.”

“Even after doing something so willful? She should have more sense of responsibility as a princess. She’s about to become a Grand Duchess.”

“No—she’ll be the Tower Master’s wife. Don’t forget, Your Majesty, you were the one who gave our Lize to him for the Empire’s gain. Who else can she rely on at the Tower? In that closed-off world, do you think being a princess will mean anything?”

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