Roderick was waiting for Lee-Jae in his room. She had once again asked if she could sleep there.
He often thought that she had an odd way of being stubborn about the strangest things.
But in truth, he couldn’t exactly say, ‘I keep hearing strange voices whenever I sleep in my room because I’m mad.’
So, he simply went along with her request. Honestly, from the very beginning, he had been indulging this little rascal, this cunning fox, in almost everything.
Just then, the door creaked open slightly, and before the attendants could announce her arrival, a head of peach-colored hair peeked through.
Roderick couldn’t help but chuckle, quickly covering his mouth with the back of his hand.
“What are you doing? Just hurry up and come in.”
“Excuse me.”
Lee-Jae quickly scanned the room before heading toward the bed.
She had just come back from her own room to fetch something. Now, it was time to finally unveil her grand masterpiece to the world.
The King, despite pretending to dislike such things, was actually the most entertained by them. Feeling proud, she squared her shoulders and confidently presented her gift.
“Your Majesty, this is the present I mentioned before.”
“….”
This time, Roderick genuinely hesitated to reach for it, rubbing his forehead instead.
Lee-Jae grinned, gently taking his wrist and placing the carved wooden figure into his palm.
With a disbelieving chuckle, Roderick examined the finished carving. The last one had at least been amusing.
“Hailey.”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
“I’m really curious to see where this all ends.”
Lee-Jae let out a small laugh.
“While you were carving this, did I do something to upset you?”
“Why?”
“This one looks absolutely furious.”
Delighted by his review, Lee-Jae burst into laughter.
“Intimidation is the key to winning any fight.”
“…”
“Your Majesty, you needed a strong and fierce friend. Actually, you always need a friend.”
“…Alright. I have no idea what you’re talking about, but I’ll give you my full support. Go ahead and expand your artistic world.”
Roderick was so bewildered he felt like crying, but he decided to go along with it. The Queen’s face was beaming with pride. As long as she was happy, that was enough.
However, when he moved to place the carving by his bedside, Lee-Jae immediately stopped him.
“Your Majesty, that should go on the bookshelf.”
“Why?”
“It fits the arrangement better over there.”
King Yeomra* was the ruler of the underworld, serving the role of a judge who questions the guilty.
[*T/N: He is the Korean god of the dead and the ruler of the underworld who judges the sins of the dead.]
To vengeful spirits, he was a warning—Did you live your life properly? But a living man like Roderick had no reason to be so close to the ruler of the underworld.
With a sigh, Roderick got out of bed and placed the carving on the bookshelf.
“Hailey.”
“Yes?”
“I feel like my room is getting weirder and weirder.”
Lee-Jae let out a bright laugh, and Roderick, finding it absurd, laughed along with her.
What on earth was so amusing to her right now?
As he watched her, he gave her shoulder a light push.
The moment her back hit the bed, Roderick climbed on top of her.
Her round eyes widened in surprise, but before she could utter a word, he pressed his lips against hers.
Soon, the room was filled with the wet, messy sounds of their kiss.*
[*E/N: lol now add the part where she said King Yeomra witnesses everything and is a judge haha
T/N: STOPPP I’M CRYING. (we both felt like this must be said lol)]
Embarrassed, she tried to turn her head away, but Roderick cupped her cheeks, refusing to let go.
“Mmph…”
A deep, throaty sound rumbled from her throat. With her mouth covered, soft, nasal moans escaped.
Roderick, seemingly aroused by the sound, eagerly explored the inside of her mouth, his tongue gliding against hers.
Their saliva mixed together, trickling down the corner of her lips.
Kisses had a way of stealing away one’s senses.
It was only then that she realized their lower bodies were pressed together. That this kiss was fanning the flames of his desire.
When his large hand began to trace the curves of her body, she turned her head away.
“S-stop… that’s enough.”
“…”
“Please let go…”
Roderick held her face in place and deepened the kiss once more, but as Lee-Jae gasped for air, her trembling hands pressed weakly against his chest.
There was barely any strength in her touch, but in the end, he straightened his back.
“Haa… haa…”
As he sat beside her, she slowly pulled the blanket over herself. His blue eyes still burned with raw desire.
Still catching his breath, Roderick ran a hand through his hair before lifting the blanket slightly to peek at the fox who had hidden away.
“…Why do you push me away?”
“…”
“Why do you keep pushing me away?”
“…”
“Hmm?”
Lee-Jae tried to pull the blanket back over herself, but Roderick held onto the edge, refusing to let go. He wanted an answer.
“Is it because you don’t like me, or because you’re scared?”
“…It’s just… embarrassing.”
His expression showed that he didn’t quite understand.
“Why are you embarrassed? You’re completely fine, and I’m the only one losing my mind here. If anything, I should be the one embarrassed.”
“…”
In the end, Roderick pulled the blanket away entirely and slipped his hands under her arms. Lifting her up effortlessly, he flipped their positions so that she was now straddling him.
Finding herself sitting with her legs spread over him, Lee-Jae panicked and tried to get up. But Roderick held onto her hips, keeping her in place.
Realizing that struggling would only cause their lower bodies to rub together, she froze, her movements gradually subsiding. As she hung her head in embarrassment, Roderick ran a hand down her back.
His touch felt both coaxing and reassuring. It sent a chill down her spine, yet for some reason, with her looking down at him like this, she didn’t feel the urge to hide or escape.
As Lee-Jae’s nerves settled, Roderick asked in a quiet voice,
“Hailey, can you give me a kiss?”
She gazed into his blue eyes for a moment before hesitantly leaning down.
A soft peck. Then another. And another.
When Roderick parted his lips, she timidly deepened the kiss, letting their tongues brush against each other.
It was clumsy but earnest.
Roderick’s lips curved into a smile, and when a low chuckle escaped him, Lee-Jae quickly pulled away and sat upright.
“…Are you laughing because I was terrible at it?”
“No.”
Roderick was simply in a good mood.
Of course, he wanted more. But strangely, this moment was enough. His heart felt oddly ticklish.
This was the same Queen who used to recoil at even holding his hand, who trembled if he embraced her in his sleep.
She reminded him of a wary cat that, after keeping its distance for so long, had finally chosen to sit by his side.
And because of that, he could look forward to the future with a fluttering heart.
“I laughed because you kissed me.”
“…”
Lee-Jae didn’t respond, but Roderick didn’t seem to mind this time.
Gently, he lifted her off him and laid her down beside him. Wrapping an arm around her, he pulled the blanket up to her shoulders himself.
As she lay there, listening to Roderick’s uneven breathing, she found herself lost in thought.
‘Is it because you don’t like me, or because you’re scared?’
The truth was, she was terrified.
Beyond him, his enemies lay in wait.
And yet, he kept trying to treat her well.
And Lee-Jae, despite knowing better, was beginning to like him.
No matter how reckless it was, she kept wanting to help him.
It was this situation—these emotions—that scared her the most.
Lee-Jae’s eyes snapped open in the dead of night.
She had meant to stay awake until Roderick fell asleep, but at some point, she had dozed off. Frustrated with herself, she quickly sat up.
In the corner of the room, the vengeful spirits clung tightly to the shadows, clearly deterred by the Yeomra statue she had carved. Narrowing her eyes, Lee-Jae carefully scanned the spirits, searching for the weakest among them.
The Boy King had told her not to waste her energy on pointless matters, but pacifying the unjustly dead was part of a shaman’s duty. She couldn’t just drive them away with talismans without first listening to their grievances.
Her gaze settled on the spirit of a young child who had seemingly starved to death. She reached out and gently pulled the child toward her.
The spirit had been wary, bristling at her touch, but as soon as Lee-Jae began soothing it, the child hesitated before finally speaking. After all, a child was still just a child.
— I was so hungry… but my mother never came back…
“…”
— I asked people for help, but no one helped me.
“That must have been so lonely.”
— People are all bad. I’ll make them all suffer.
Sitting cross-legged with her back straight, Lee-Jae let out a deep sigh.
Shamans were naturally quick to absorb emotions. They had to empathize with the grievances of spirits in order to help them move on.
And this child’s story… overlapped too much with her own past.
Her eyes glistened with unshed tears.
Lee-Jae had planned to offer a little more comfort before persuading the child to pass on peacefully.
But before she could, a deep voice cut through the silence from behind her.
“Hailey. What are you doing over there?”
“AAAHHHH!”
Sitting up in bed, Roderick raised an eyebrow as she let out a piercing scream.
For a moment, he could’ve sworn that her body lifted slightly off the ground before landing back down.
“…Gods, that scared me.”
“I hate to break it to you, but I was the one who got scared.”
Startled by her reaction, the child’s spirit also shrieked and darted back into the cluster of spirits. Lee-Jae watched helplessly as it disappeared.
All that effort—ruined in an instant.
But they weren’t the only ones alarmed.
“Your Majesty, is something wrong?!”
“We’re coming in!”
“Sire, are you awake?!”
Voices of the knights called urgently from outside the door.
Frozen in place, Lee-Jae couldn’t bring herself to answer.
Instead, Roderick spoke in her stead.
“Do not come in.”
“…Your Majesty?”
“I’m awake. It’s nothing. The Queen must have had a nightmare.”
His casual response quickly put an end to the commotion outside.
But when he turned back to look at her, his blue eyes were filled with confusion.
And it was no wonder.
It was the middle of the night.
And his Queen had been sitting in the center of the room, legs crossed, back perfectly straight, in the dark.
Lee-Jae might have been the one startled, but for Roderick, the real shock was waking up to that sight.
“Hailey.”
“…”
“What the hell were you doing over there?”
As Lee-Jae struggled to calm her racing heart, she clenched her teeth. She had to act as if nothing was wrong.
“Meditation,” she replied brazenly.
“…At this hour?”
“Yes.”
“There?”
“…I was meditating on the bed, but I thought I might startle Your Majesty if you woke up.”
“…You sitting there like that is way scarier.”
“…”
Roderick stared at her suspiciously for a moment. He had the distinct feeling that she was lying again.
But in the end, he let out a sigh and climbed out of bed.
“Still, you shouldn’t sit on the cold floor. It’s not good for you.”
“…”
“You’re a frail little bean, so you need to be extra careful.”
Before she could protest, he scooped her up and carried her back to bed.
After settling himself down, he watched as she hesitated before finally lying beside him.
Roderick didn’t miss the way her gaze lingered toward the corner of the room.
She had done the same thing that morning, staring intently at the same spot.
What exactly was she looking at?
Following her gaze, Roderick glanced at the empty space.
Nothing. There was nothing there.
“Get some more sleep. You can meditate after sunrise.”
Pulling the blanket up over her, he lightly patted her collarbone.
And that was when he noticed something else strange.
Her heart was pounding like mad.
Did she get that startled just because he called her?
But no… if it was just that, then why did her face look so troubled, so full of unease?
A deep frown creased his brow.
What the hell was wrong with his Queen?
