My Will Did Not Mean This

Aslan was strangely kind today. Instead of Vivian, he closed the window tightly and pulled down all the several layers of curtains. Only after her draft(?) was completely blocked did he hug his fiancee with a satisfied face.

Vivian had been quite satisfied with Aslan’s means of transportation so far, so she hugged him without saying anything and let his body hang out comfortably.

‘Even a few steps to bed, you have to be held by someone else, and you’re a complete sleeper.’

Moreover, she didn’t know why, but Aslan’s body temperature was hot as if he had been boiled in a train firebox. She felt even warmer when he stared out the window for a moment, making the air around him so warm that she wondered when she had ever felt the chill.

“Your complexion isn’t bad, but I hope you get some rest today.”

Aslan set Vivian down on the bed and gently touched her cheek with his finger. Her red cheeks were as sweet as ripe fruit.

“Okay.”

“Aren’t you just going to answer well again?”

“I know that my body is precious.”

As soon as she arrived in the capital, she was being grilled by merchants due to the coming-of-age ceremony, which was still over a month away. She also wanted to rest well for a day or so. Then she suddenly remembered something.

‘When does Aslan rest?’

He always woke up earlier than she did and went to bed late. As the best magic swordsman on the continent, he did not neglect training, but at the same time, he perfectly handled the official duties given to him as a member of the royal family and as a lord.

Vivian realized that she had never seen him at ease before.

“That’s why Aslan should also take care of his health.”

It was just a word thrown without much thought, but the tickling movement that was stroking Vivian’s cheek stopped. Aslan was staring at her with startled eyes.

“Are you worried about me now?”

“It sounds funny when the patient says it, doesn’t it?”

“No, I swear I didn’t think like that, but…”

He awkwardly touched the back of his neck, as if this was the first time someone cared about him. Although he knew that in order to clear up Vivian’s misunderstanding, he had to follow through on what he said, he seemed to be at a loss as he could not find an appropriate answer.

“Don’t find it difficult. In times like this, you can just say thank you for my concern.”

In her case, she just listened with one ear and let it out.

Did he feel the difference between words and actions? Aslan, who seemed a little hesitant, finally opened his mouth.

“…Thank you, Vivian.”

“Good job.”

Vivian patted the back of his hand vigorously as he avoided her gaze as if embarrassed.

＊ ＊ ＊

Aslan, who was walking down a corridor filled with silence, suddenly stopped. When he turned his head, the Grand Duchess’ bedroom came into view. This was where he had been staying until just now, and it was also where Vivian spent most of her time.

‘I should have acted more naturally.’

Aslan looked down at the back of his hand, where he could still feel Vivian’s warmth.

Her gaze was naturally reminiscent. Underneath the fan-like eyelashes, deep blue eyes sparkle like the autumn sky. Her colors were so captivating and lovely that he couldn’t dare take his eyes off them.

‘What if she thought it was strange?’

But just now he couldn’t see Vivian’s eyes.

As the prince of the empire and the ruler of the North, he was unable to say a single word properly in front of her, so he avoided her gaze and ended up ignoring her. The moment he heard her voice worrying about him, an unidentifiable hot emotion surged through him, rendering him speechless.

‘Ah, this is your true self.’

‘Krrrrr…’

‘Dirty and disgusting.’

Aslan remembered the day he first entered the townhouse. It was about six years ago. He was first discovered by Johannes as a demon beast, and after being whipped for countless hours, he returned to human form. However, they said that dirty animals cannot live in the same palace as people, so he was thrown out to this mansion, which was in ruins at the time.

The windows and marble were broken, the wood was rotting, and dust, mold, and cobwebs were everywhere. The most intense sensation was the smell of his own blood assailing his nose.

‘No matter how long time passed, there was always a terrible bloody smell in the Grand Duke’s residence…’

Aslan looked down the hallway where he currently stood.

The only difference was that Vivian was sleeping in the bedroom on the other side, and a new appearance was overlaid on the afterimage of the past. Ornaments made of soft milky marble and painted with gold. A magnificently shining chandelier. Sunlight shining gently beyond the spotless glass window. And her sweet scent seeping deep into his lungs.

‘When did that small body take over this huge mansion?’

No matter where his eyes turned, her touch remained. She slept a lot and was bothered a lot, and when he thought of Vivian, who must have been running around and blushing, his mouth naturally relaxed.

“Master.”

At that very moment, the chamberlain approached him and bowed before him.

“What’s going on?”

“An invitation arrived from the Crown Prince’s Palace again today.”

“…He is persistent.”

His feeling of walking on a cloud suddenly plummeted.

Johannes has been sending invitations to Vivian every day since the hunting festival ended.

‘It’s almost time to see Her Majesty. I would be happy to invite you another day.’

‘Oh my gosh, I’ve been holding on to a busy person for too long. Then, I’ll send you a formal invitation later.’

On the day he entered the palace with Vivian at the Emperor’s summons, it was clear that she had caught the pod by responding to her courtesy. It may not be just his feelings that Johannes was being mean to Vivian.

He was very displeased.

“Tear it apart.”

“However, if we continue to deal with it this way, there is a possibility that problems may arise. It would be better to tell your wife and send her a formal rejection letter…”

“You just have to keep this one thing in mind.”

Aslan cut off the chamberlain’s words as if it wasn’t worth hearing any more.

“If a problem arises, I take full responsibility.”

His golden eyes flashed brightly like a wild beast.

“Vivian is already not in good health, so don’t worry her too much. Do you understand?”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Aslan’s command was nothing short of heaven’s will. The chamberlain expressed absolute obedience to his one and only master by bowing his head deeply.

＊ ＊ ＊

At the same time, Vivian was sitting on the sofa, lost in thought, instead of taking a nap.

“Now I understand. Aslan has no sense of security in his eyes.”

In the original work, the motivation that drove him was his desire for revenge against the royal family. To him, his own life was as worthless as an ant on the street. It was the kind of thing that could be given away whenever necessary. However, because he decided to decide the woman’s life together, he only postponed his choice until the very end.

‘But not even love could save Aslan. In the end, he used himself as a sacrifice to resurrect the demon Astaroth…’

There was no need to say anything now that Aslan did not know the existence of the imprint. Of course, even if he knew, he wouldn’t even care about his own small and precious life. If he died, she would automatically die with him, so she was so upset that she was going crazy and jumping up and down. Still, she had to think. She had to think to live.

“Since Jesus described it as an unexpected difficulty, we should consider the possibility that it will take more than three years to remove this damned imprint.”

There was a reason why Vivian pointed out ‘three years’ precisely. That was because that was the point at which Aslan died in the original. This was the point at which he engaged in a final battle with Johannes, who has newly ascended to the throne, and is ultimately defeated.

‘No matter how you think about it, the surest way to save Aslan is to make him Emperor.’

At first she thought it was crazy, but the more she thought about it, the more she became convinced that it wasn’t impossible. The army that followed him was powerful, the profits from the magic stone mine were equivalent to the national budget, and the strength of Aslan himself, the magic swordsman, had already surpassed that of Johannes.

So, a single prince would have waged war against the nation.

‘Of course, there are no expected difficulties. The most problematic thing among them is that Aslan’s reputation among the nobles and people is extremely low.’

When he ascended to the throne, the backlash that would break out like wildfire was clearly visible.

“Ah, it’s frustrating. The real damn guy isn’t Aslan, it’s the crown prince!”

Everyone in the empire thought of Aslan like this. He was a dirty and mean hyena-like person who was trying to take his older brother’s place. In fact, there was someone else who brought a thousand-year-old snake inside.

“We need an opportunity to turn the situation around. It’s time for a fake doctor to appear, so why not use him?”

There was a doctor who came from a land far to the east. He possessed very mysterious medical skills and saved many patients with incurable diseases after arriving on the continent. Voices praising him quickly spread throughout the empire, and the doctor finally  entered the capital Minerva. However, what he used was a fake medicine that only temporarily relieved pain, and even that was highly addictive, rendering people disabled if taken for a long period of time. If it was terminally ill patients who took the medicine, the results were even worse.

 “Under normal circumstances, I would expose the doctor’s identity and give Aslan the credit for saving his patients…”

She had no intention of hitting the fake. But she would make him one of Johannes. Public reputation was like a seesaw; when one side fell, the other side naturally rose.

In particular, how big a blow would it be if a person who was perfect without a single flaw became the subject of gossip?

‘It is much easier to bring down a person than to bring him up. Just like Johannes did to Aslan.’

It was a good thing that it became easier to move around outside under the pretext of preparing for the coming-of-age ceremony.

Vivian’s eyes lit up as she thought of a way to formally visit Johannes’ palace.

 

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