The Villain’s Aide Has Run Away

It was such a simple matter, yet the Empress unnecessarily wasted time. Brian pulled out the Dean’s chair and spoke to the leader of the Shadow Sect.

“Please, have a seat here.”

The leader strolled leisurely over and sat in the chair Brian offered. Brian stood beside him, bowing politely.

Though it was the dead of night, the leader’s expression seemed oddly reflective. He brushed his hand across the surface of the desk.

Meanwhile, a man pulled out a piece of paper and began writing. The handwriting was identical to that of Baron Kelly, who had just collapsed after merely sitting down.

In a single day, the leader of the Shadow Sect had risen from the library librarian to the position of Dean.

“Go to the Empress.”

Brian bowed deeply, sincerity in his gesture.

“Shadows must exist under the sun, after all.”

The shadow that would be revealed with the sunrise, along with the chaos of the Empire, was not far off.

***

The carriage carrying Kailos and Leslun returned to the villa.

Leslun remained slumped, staring blankly at Kailos picking up his coat.

“Would you like to go somewhere else if you don’t like it here?”

“No,” Leslun replied.

It was still dark. The villa felt better than going elsewhere. Kailos seemed to check on Leslun’s mood, but Leslun was truly fine.

He was more worried that Kailos might feel uneasy.

Kailos nodded as if understanding everything and spread the coat open.

Leslun looked at the coat draped over him.

“Then let’s go inside.”

Kailos wrapped Leslun in his coat and stepped down from the carriage. Being held in his firm embrace, Leslun couldn’t see the outside, which somehow made it feel even cozier. He burrowed deeper into Kailos’ arms.

“Seems my confession worked quite well. That’s a relief.”

Even without a confession, he just liked Kailos as he was.

“Will you call me by my nickname again, like before?”

“Kail…”

“Well done, my sunshine.”

By then, the air had grown warm. When Kailos removed the coat, Leslun realized where he was.

Seeing the bathtub filled with hot water, Leslun’s eyes widened and blinked rapidly.

“Let’s wash up and sleep.”

Kailos carried Leslun to the tub and then began removing his own clothes.

Watching each layer of Kailos’ clothing fall, Leslun quickly averted his gaze. Even though it wasn’t the first time seeing him without clothes, he couldn’t help feeling self-conscious.

The sound of clothes sliding against his skin and hitting the floor was unmistakably clear.

Leslun’s mind, previously dazed by staring at Kailos’ sculpted body, suddenly returned.

“Your Highness.”

Even if Leslun insisted on undressing himself, Kailos didn’t intend to let go. Instead of pulling roughly, he slowly removed Leslun’s clothes layer by layer.

Then he gently pushed Leslun into the tub first. Before Leslun could even step out again, Kailos entered the water.

The warm water shifted and sloshed as he entered, but the tub was spacious enough for both of them.

The water embraced Leslun as gently as Kailos’ hands. He exhaled without realizing it.

Tension melted from his toes upward, and even his previously hardened heart seemed to thaw. The cozy warmth made his eyelids grow heavy.

But that wasn’t all.

Kailos held Leslun’s ankles and began massaging his feet. No matter how Leslun protested, saying it was dirty or unnecessary, Kailos focused silently on his feet.

It felt as though the pulse of his body followed the touch, sending a wave of sensation deep inside. It tingled yet brought a pleasant, electric thrill.

Leslun closed his eyes for a moment, overwhelmed by indescribable relief and a subtle tremor.

“Your Highness. You don’t have to do this.”

“If you don’t want me to, I won’t.”

“It’s not about wanting or not.”

Receiving such indulgent treatment from the Crown Prince left Leslun at a loss.

Kailos continued to caress his feet and said,

“You’ve been running around so much. This will help relax you. You’re frail, yet you overexerted yourself.”

“Then I will do it myself.”

“No, I will do it.”

Kailos quietly continued, meeting Leslun’s eyes.

“Just touching your feet like this excites me. It makes me upset knowing how hard you’ve worked. It’s as if you’ve completely forgotten that you ran away from me…”

Here, it didn’t matter that Kailos was the Crown Prince or that Leslun was his aide.

“You’ve already confessed, so why do you keep doing this? Why keep… making me want to give you everything…”