The Tragic Male Lead Chose the Wrong Partner

* * *

“He said… he wants to be real.”
I felt the same way.
It was a completely different feeling from when I arrogantly thought all I needed was his heart.

I had forgotten the truth that the moment you gain something precious, you also begin to fear losing it.
Cynthia shut her eyes tightly, then opened them again.
As the red glow of the eclipse began to fade, Masera lifted his lips from the back of her hand and whispered,

“So please, don’t think of leaving my side.”
Cynthia looked into his lowered eyes, heavy with languid tenderness.
“I will never let you be unhappy.”

His words came in a controlled tone, carefully selected with deliberation.
As she looked at him offering what sounded like a vow, a wave of tears swelled in her throat.
With her identity a lie, Cynthia’s heart—bound by original sin—could never be truly at ease.

* * *
'What am I supposed to do?'
Back in the bedroom, lying on the bed, I stared up at the ceiling in turmoil.

He gave me a sincere confession… and even kissed my hand. Doesn’t that mean I have to take responsibility now?
I bit my lip and ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ glanced over at him lying on the sofa.
My head and heart were both a mess.

I couldn’t even bring myself to ask why he forgave someone from the very royal family that was his enemy. Because I wasn’t truly a princess.
I had no right to be forgiven.
'I need to tell him the truth and apologize.'
But how? When?

Will he believe me when I say I had no choice but to live to avoid death?
What if he hates me?
When I first met him, my resolve to one day reveal the truth was always built on the premise that we would part ways.

But now, everything had changed.
'What if even my sincerity becomes a lie in the end?'
The remnants of exhilaration and guilt clashed violently in my chest.

“Cynthia.”
As I lay there groaning with my head buried, I heard his voice.
He was sitting on the sofa, looking back at me.

'Did he just call me by name? We’re on a first-name basis now?'
I shot upright in surprise.
“Y-yes?”

“May I come over there?”
Was that… a request to sleep in the same bed? My face flushed as I stammered.
“Wh-why? Why, why, why?!”

“…Is it that shocking? You asked four times.”
He brushed his tousled hair and smiled.
“I don’t mean anything improper. It’s just… a bit cold.”

He was really starting to pull out all the seductive tricks now.
“Go ahead. I couldn’t sleep anyway.”
After all that friendliness, drawing a harsh boundary out of nowhere would be strange too.

As soon as I said that, Masera came over and slipped under the blanket. In the blink of an eye, I was caught in his arms.
Holding my head close and gently stroking my hair, he murmured,
“I’m going to correct what I said before—when I used to say I disliked everything you said.”

“Y-yes.”
My cheek was pressed against his broad chest, and I could barely speak. Rather than trapped, I felt more like… embraced.
“From now on, I’ll do whatever you ask. If you want to go somewhere, I’ll go. If you want to do something, I’ll join you. I’ll even wear that damn hat from the zoo.”

Apparently, he still hadn’t forgiven the tangerine hat and animal headband incident.
He kept stroking and touching my cheek, like someone who had finally released long-held urges.
It felt like a giant tiger, once a wary cat that only scratched and ran, had suddenly curled up and started licking me with a coarse tongue.

As he caressed me gently, he continued:
“And I’ll make sure you feel good, day and night.”
Did he just say that with a straight face? Isn’t this pace a little fast?

“What… method will you use?”
In my nervousness, I accidentally asked like a formal translator.
“I’ll do whatever you like best. Didn’t you once say you wanted a puppy?”

Masera was reminding me that I was a hopelessly worn-out human being.
But… he remembered. That one time I muttered as we passed a dog, “I’m the only one without a puppy.”
“A puppy would be nice, but… would it get along with our cats?”

“Trained dogs don’t harm living things.”
He loosened his arms slightly and added,
“As long as humans don’t just bark orders.”

There was a tinge of bitterness in his words.
I reached out and stroked his hair.
Like a tamed beast, he bowed his head obediently. The fact that his hair smelled the same as mine stirred a strange feeling in me.

Now it was him nestled in my arms as he asked,
“Can I sleep like this with you every night?”
Was this really the same man who used to press the ‘I dislike this’ button every time like some antisocial automaton?

His straightforwardness was dizzying. If there were a novel titled The Tsundere Husband’s Hidden Pursuit, this would be it.
'If only time could slow down.'
For the first time, I had a selfish thought.

* * *
Hearing that the Visente couple had been dumped at a gambling den, Makia covered his mouth and chuckled.
“Ah, how amusing.”

“President, what should we do? They don’t look like they’re in any shape to repay the debt.”
Makia waved his hand indifferently.
“Get the money. I don’t care if you break their legs and make them beg or put them to work like pigs and dogs—just deal with it.”

Lighting the cigar between his lips, he added in a low voice,
“Have the full amount with interest collected through the Recanosa ducal house. I’m sure they’ll get the message.”
Recalling the look Helene had given him, Makia smiled faintly. That had definitely been the gaze of a woman looking at a man.

Seducing noblewomen and winning their favor was a skill he’d mastered while crawling through the underworld.
'That pale woman will be even easier. She can’t walk past someone in pain without stopping.'
Pity and sympathy were double-edged blades. Misused, they could destroy your whole life.

Makia bit off a leather glove with his teeth and said,
“Send a collection notice to the Recanosa duchy.”
As the glove slipped off, the tail of a chilling snake tattoo peeked out from underneath.

* * *
At dawn, the Grand Madam summoned Helene.
'Must be about that debtor couple.'

Helene had a good guess as to why she was being called but still wore a composed expression.
Even if the Visente couple had sold her name to a crime syndicate, it wouldn’t matter. Since Capitano was involved, they’d surely take care of it themselves.
But the moment she stepped into the Grand Madam’s room and faced her, Helene felt her whole body freeze.

“Helene.”
The Grand Madam was always stern and cold, but today she radiated a sharpness that felt like it could cut at the slightest touch.
“Those people—turns out they didn’t just fall on hard times. They were in debt to an underground organization. Did you know?”

Her chilling gaze implied she already knew the answer. Helene nodded.
With the same cold face, the Grand Madam continued,
“Then you made me write a letter to help a pair of debtors, fully aware of everything?”

“They were abandoned by Brigadier General Visente, who was only their foster son, and stripped of their title. What choice did they have but to resort to loan sharks? Shouldn’t the Brigadier General take some responsibility too?”
The Grand Madam let out a long sigh without replying.
“The problem is—it was gambling debt. And though your foster brother had no obligation to repay it, they barged into his residence and caused a scene.”

She handed a document across the table to Helene.
“His side has sent an invoice for everything they consumed and used.”
Helene’s brow furrowed in irritation as she snapped back,

“Why are they billing the ducal house? That’s absurd.”
The Grand Madam offered her another set of documents.
“Not the ducal house. You. And this as well.”

“…Pardon?”
Helene’s face grew increasingly confused as she accepted the papers.
“What is this…”

“Since the Duchess is a distant relative of the ducal house, she declared she would take responsibility and help them. Would that not be interpreted as a willingness to cover the debt?
For reference, we know a great deal about the Duchess.”
It was a debt collection letter from the organization.

With her chin held high, the Grand Madam glared at the flustered Helene.
“If you want to use your status as Duchess, then you’d better be prepared to pay the price.”