Living a Scheming Marriage with a Mad Villain - Chapter 52

“Uh, well… that is…”

Unable to continue speaking, I stayed silent. Then Reus spoke to Luden.

“We have a bathroom in the room, so don’t worry and go ahead.”

Enough? Enough of what!

“Then… please call me again when you need something.”

Luden looked a bit disappointed as he stepped back, and we entered the room.

The room was very dark. Because of that, the night view outside the window was very clear, but it didn’t catch my eye much.

At that moment, Reus said,

“Do you feel disappointed? Then tell Luden to prepare it.”

“Huh?”

Could he be suggesting we take a spa together now?

“Th-That might be a bit much, don’t you think? Even if others think we are married, we are connected by contract… I mean, of course, people won’t say we grew distant, but still….”

“What are you thinking about?”

Reus pressed a button near the door, and the lights in the room turned on all at once, lighting up everywhere.

“I was saying if you want to go alone, just say so.”

Because of that, my bright red face was fully exposed.

“What were you thinking about alone… that made your face like that?”

Instead of finishing his words, Reus’s finger gently touched the edge of my cheek.

We exchanged looks for a moment, then he shook his head.

“You have to speak to be understood.”

“Just shaking your head doesn’t make it clear what you want to say.”

I never want to tell you…!

My whole body felt like it was creaking. I felt like I had to run somewhere right away, but there were so many doors it confused me.

While I hesitated, Reus put his arm around my shoulder.

“Shall we change clothes first?”

I nodded, and Reus gently pushed me forward and took me to a small dressing room.

“If you change your mind, just say so anytime.”

“I can’t go with you, but I can tell Luden for you.”

With a sound of a thud, I sat down on the floor leaning against the door. I don’t know why I misunderstood things and got all excited alone.

‘Ah, how embarrassing…’

I wanted to run away from the festival or whatever. Maybe because it was a strange place, I opened my eyes wide. Seeing the sunlight shining brightly into the room, it seemed to be early morning.

‘I think I woke up much earlier than usual.’

The embarrassment from yesterday hadn’t fully gone, so I wanted to avoid meeting Reus as long as possible.

I carefully looked around, making almost no noise from the bedding, and luckily, the space next to me was empty.

‘Could he have gone to train even at the hotel?’

Thinking that was so like Reus, a sigh of relief escaped me.

“Haa… that’s a relief…”

“A relief?”

‘I thought my heart would fall out…!’

I don’t know why this man always appears without making a sound. My startled heart hadn’t calmed down, so I squinted slightly and looked up.

“You scared me, Reus…”

Reus naturally reached out and rubbed my forehead with his thumb as he sat on the edge of the bed.

“Why did you wake up so early? Was your bed uncomfortable?”

I thought he was going to tease me like yesterday, but he was quite serious.

“Not uncomfortable, just maybe because the bed suddenly changed.”

“Still, try to get some more sleep. You’ll get tired quickly if you wander around from afternoon until evening.”

“I’m fine”

But Reus insisted and laid me back down, pulling the blanket up to under my chin.

“Lately you haven’t been sleeping enough. If you suddenly reduce your sleep time, you will definitely get tired. Think of your body and rest a little more.”

Since Peria visited, Reus always put my condition first no matter what. I understood that his regular attendance at meals was just part of his worry.

But I was still a little puzzled by how he made time to share tea with me or come with me to see the festival today.

“Reus.”

“Go back to sleep.”

“I have a question. Can I ask?”

Without a word, Reus slowly nodded.

“Why do you treat me so well…?”

“You seemed like you weren’t thinking much, but you were actually concerned.”

I waited quietly for his answer, but Reus stayed silent for a while. He looked at me quietly with eyes I couldn’t read, then finally spoke.

“You are… my benefactor, aren’t you?”

It was such an obvious answer, but I felt a little deflated and my shoulders relaxed.

What was I expecting to hear by asking such an obvious question? I didn’t even understand myself.

“Let’s sleep now. That way you can fully enjoy the festival you wanted to see.”

Reus covered my eyes with his big hand. I wanted to see his face a little more, but the warm touch made sleep come over me like a lie.

After lunch, in the late afternoon, we finally came to the festival street. Like Reus suggested before, we used magic tools to change our hair color and changed into clothes that common people of the empire would wear.

‘I didn’t expect him to go this far.’

Reus wore a loose shirt and dark pants that peasants would wear. Because of the magic tool that changes hair color randomly, his hair was no longer bright silver but a very dark black.

I was used to seeing him in neat suits, so seeing him like this with changed hair color and relaxed clothes felt like he was a different person.

Of course, I also changed into less stiff clothes and changed my hair from platinum blonde to light brown.

Feeling a little awkward about the change, I was adjusting my hair when Reus suddenly reached out his hand.

Because the festival street was crowded, we couldn’t walk as he usually escorted me. So if we held hands, we would have to hold both hands tightly like a couple…

‘Would he find me too annoying if I did that?’

I hesitated a moment, then Reus called me by a nickname he had chosen for today.

“El.”

“Yes, Re…o.”

“For safety, I want you to cooperate at least this much, even if you don’t really want to.”

He carefully placed his hand on mine, lightly squeezed it, then intertwined our fingers tightly with no gaps.

“Then let’s go, El.”

We naturally merged into the crowd. Walking hand in hand, just the two of us, it really felt like…

‘A date.’

If Reus heard that, he might feel a little uncomfortable, but that’s the feeling I had.

He was someone I used to have trouble even making eye contact with, so I don’t know when we became this comfortable.

A tickling feeling brushed my chest, and I fidgeted my hand. Reus looked down at me.

“Is it uncomfortable?”

“No, I’m just worried my hands might get sweaty…”

Answering shyly, Reus gave a short laugh as if I was worrying over nothing.

We walked aimlessly following where most people were going. After walking a bit, we entered the middle of the festival street, which became even more crowded.

The noisy sounds made the atmosphere hectic and confusing.

But today, this chaos wasn’t bad. Though maybe not for the man holding my hand.

The more we walked inside, the more Reus’s expression twisted slightly. He didn’t seem to get used to the people bumping into us or the uncontrolled street.

“Are you regretting coming with me?”

“No, I’m not.”

“You sound like you are.”

He always shuts up when things get a little uncomfortable.

While we were walking without direction, cheers could be heard from a little far away, getting louder as they came closer. Not far off, a procession of men appeared.

I noticed there were a lot of people gathered here earlier, and it seemed like they had been waiting for this parade.

The men walked forward throwing flower pollen from baskets, making the festival mood even stronger.

But the people didn’t seem to see the pollen.

The men in the procession were all handsome and well-built, so the crowd seemed to move their heads in sync as if connected.

‘But what kind of procession is this?’

I wondered silently, watching the parade without much thought, when the men started putting the flower crowns they were wearing onto nearby female spectators.

“Ah…”

Because of that, I wore a flower crown too. But it didn’t stop there.

The men suddenly took off their shirts!

White shirts flew everywhere, revealing tanned muscular bodies. The women around screamed excitedly as if they had been waiting for this moment.

Since it happened right in front of me, I opened my eyes wide in surprise. Then suddenly, there was a thump and my vision went dark.

“Reu… no, Leo, why are your hands…?”

I tried to feel the large hands covering my eyes, but they didn’t move away. Then I heard the flower crown flying far away from my head.

“Re, Leo…! Why did you throw the crown again…!”

But Reus didn’t answer.

Meanwhile, the cheers followed the procession and slowly moved away. After the crowd thinned a bit, the large hands blocking my view finally moved away.

“Leo…! How could you just throw the crown? What if someone got hurt?”

“I threw it to a place with fewer people.”

“That’s not the point… Why did you throw the crown in the first place?”

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