“Your Imperial Highness!”
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“Please watch out!”
Renato stopped and turned his head after hearing Louis and Luna call him urgently. Then he saw Blanche running toward him with a contorted face like a demon’s.
“What are you doing?”
Renato reflexively grabbed both of Blanche’s wrists and inadvertently raised his voice. His heart pounded in surprise. Although he had been harassed by Blanche for a long time, this was the first time Blanche had attempted to directly hit him.
While Blanche had thrown random things at Renato or verbally abused him whenever he couldn’t control his temper, he had never raised his hand against Renato to protect the Empress title. But that ended today.
“Eek! Let go! Why are you not letting go?”
Caught by Renato, Blanche struggled to pull his arms out. Not stopping there, he kicked threateningly. But his feet never touched Renato.
Although Renato had soft and fragile looks, he was also an adult man. He could block the attacks of Blanche who had a physique similar to his. Renato scowled, grabbing his wrists firmly.
“Your Imperial Highness!”
Louis and Luna surrounded the two quarreling people. But they could not dare to separate Renato and Blanche.
“Oh, oh my goodness, what, what should I……”
“Your Imperial Highness……”
Louis stamped his feet in fright, while Luna faltered with a bewildered face. They should protect Renato as his chief attendant and guard, but Blanche was the one who attacked him. If they did something wrong, they could be punished for carelessly touching the Empress’ body.
Knowing this, Renato gestured to Louis and Luna that he was fine. Now that Blanche had lost his temper enough to rush at him, they shouldn’t give him any more excuses.
“Your Majesty, please calm down.”
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The Empress’ Palace’s chamberlain, who belatedly came to his senses, also hovered around the two, not knowing what to do. Blanche threw a fit when the chamberlain grabbed him by the shoulder.
“Fuck! I said to let go of me!”
“Will you hit me if I let go of you?”
“You……!”
“The Empress threw a teacup at the Prince and even raised his hand. If this becomes people’s gossip, will the Marquis really like it?”
When Renato mentioned Marquis Medus, Blanche came to his senses and froze. Not missing the gap, Renato grasped Blanche’s wrists. Then he gently pushed Blanche over to the chamberlain who was holding his shoulder.
“His Majesty seems to be very excited, so you should take him back to the Empress’ Palace.”
“Yes, ah, yes, yes!”
Suddenly having Blanche pushed toward him, the chamberlain answered frantically. However, there was no way Blanche would just obediently go back.
“Get your hands off me! Right now!”
“Your Majesty, please calm down your excitement. His Lordship the Marquis will certainly be angry if he finds out. So please……”
The chamberlain desperately dissuaded Blanche from attacking Renato again. Renato was now the most prominent figure in the Empire. Even if they blocked people’s mouths, rumors of this kind of thing would quickly spread, so it would be difficult if the uproar continued.
“……Damn it!”
When both Renato and the chamberlain stopped him by mentioning Marquis Medus, Blanche lost his vigor. However, unable to easily quench his excitement, he huffed and puffed.
Renato straightened the wrinkled clothes with his hands and looked at Blanche with an expressionless face. Blanche’s red, bloodshot eyes were full of hostility toward him.
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There was a time when I felt numb and my legs trembled just by making eye contact with those eyes.
Feeling the change in himself, Renato smiled softly. His smile was as if declaring that Blanche did not affect him anymore.
“Smile? Are you smiling now?”
Sparks flared again in Blanche’s eyes, where his intense emotions had yet to calm down. He thought Renato was sneering at him.
But he didn’t rush at Renato this time. It was because he had realized he could not beat him by force in the previous clash. He didn’t want to be humiliated by Renato again after rushing in for no reason.
“Before leaving, I’d like to say one more thing.”
Renato slowly opened his mouth toward Blanche who was exhaling heavily from rage. He originally didn’t intend to provoke any further, but Blanche’s reaction made Renato think it would be better to sway him now.
“The Marquis recognizes me more than Your Majesty because I thought and took action by myself to achieve results even when he didn’t ask me to. Someone he thought was useless suddenly became incredibly useful. Has Your Majesty ever done so?”
“What……?”
“I mean that you should do something independently to help the Marquis before blaming me or anyone else.”
Hearing Renato’s words, Blanche had a blank expression as if having been powerfully struck in the head. Up until now, he had always acted under Marquis Medus’ orders. For that was the surest and safest way.
“Compared to a Beta like me, Your Majesty is a much more superior dominant Omega, are you not? Please don’t deny or be envious of my achievements, and proudly prove your abilities to the Marquis. Then he will be back as a loving father like he used to be. The Marquis cares for people that are useful to him, after all.”
After finishing his words, Renato turned and left the guest room. Unlike before, Blanche just stood there absent-mindedly. He stayed still there for a long time even after Renato had completely disappeared from view. The words Renato had left behind were engraved in his mind and never left.
* * *
“Welcome.”
Khalid greeted Renato with a bright smile as he arrived at the diplomatic office. Escorted with the man’s enthusiastic hospitality, Renato got down from the carriage and looked up at Khalid with embarrassment.
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“You don’t have to come out to meet me like this……”
“Of course I should come out to meet you. Did you sleep comfortably last night?”
“It was so-so, how about you, your highness?”
Renato roughly affirmed his words and asked back with a light smile. He actually tossed and turned, unable to sleep until dawn, but Khalid would definitely be worried if he said the truth.
“I didn’t sleep well.”
“Pardon?”
Surprised by the unexpected answer, Renato widened his eyes. Maybe he had trouble sleeping for the same reason as me? A small hope filled his heart. Just as he couldn’t sleep because of missing Khalid, he wished the man would think of him even just a bit.
“Why couldn’t you sleep?”
Renato asked, careful not to show anticipation in his voice. He wanted to avoid disappointment by confirming it for no reason, and hoped to hear a desired answer at the same time.
“Uhm, before that, can I be excused for a second?”
“Pardon?”
“I would like to check something for a moment.”
Instead of answering Renato’s question, Khalid nimbly sneaked closer to him. Then he suddenly pulled Renato into his embrace.
“Your, your highness?”
Stiffened up at the sudden embrace, Renato soon came to his senses and called Khalid. Haa, the man’s breath tickled his ear, making shivers run down his spine.
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“Ah, as expected……”
Khalid, who locked Renato in his arms without notice, muttered as if he had realized something. His voice seemed to be satisfied with something.
“Excuse me, your highness, uh, why are you suddenly doing this……”
Renato, bewildered by the unexpected situation, muttered meaningless words, unable to speak properly. As the man’s pleasant low-pitched sound whirled around his ears, his toes stiffened. The sounds of his heart vigorously thumping from the moment he was held in Khalid’s arms disturbed his ears like tinnitus.
Renato wasn’t the only one surprised by Khalid’s sudden action. Nasir who came out together with Khalid to greet him as well as Louis and Luna who accompanied Renato were all shocked.
“Ah, I’m sorry. Were you very surprised?”
Feeling the shock of people around him, Khalid finally realized what he was doing and parted from Renato. Then he looked at Renato with an apologetic expression.
“There was one thing I wanted to check when I met you. I didn’t mean to do this here…… But I momentarily couldn’t hold myself back.”
“There was something you wanted to check with me?”
Renato barely calmed his startled heart and blinked. He remembered Khalid saying he had to check something a while ago. But he didn’t know what hugging had to do with checking.
“About that…… I must have gotten used to sleeping with you, Renato. It has been a while since I last slept alone, so I kept feeling empty when trying to sleep yesterday. So I had a bit of trouble sleeping last night.”
Khalid took a step back from Renato, awkwardly explaining while sweeping the nape of his neck. It seemed he had just come to his senses after doing something subconsciously.
“Uhm, how should I explain…… Should I say it feels as if a stuffed doll I used to hug and sleep with every day during childhood has disappeared? It’s a bit strange to say that at this age, but…… There’s only one reason that came to my mind, so I wanted to check despite knowing it was a stupid thought. I’m sorry for having startled you.”
“Not at all! Actually, I didn’t sleep well last night either.”
Renato quickly shook his head at Khalid’s apology and confessed that it was the same for him. His heart was pounding for a different reason from before. Even though he knew he shouldn’t think so, he was glad that Khalid had trouble sleeping for the same reason as him.
“Your Imperial Highness!”
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“Please watch out!”
Renato stopped and turned his head after hearing Louis and Luna call him urgently. Then he saw Blanche running toward him with a contorted face like a demon’s.
“What are you doing?”
Renato reflexively grabbed both of Blanche’s wrists and inadvertently raised his voice. His heart pounded in surprise. Although he had been harassed by Blanche for a long time, this was the first time Blanche had attempted to directly hit him.
While Blanche had thrown random things at Renato or verbally abused him whenever he couldn’t control his temper, he had never raised his hand against Renato to protect the Empress title. But that ended today.
“Eek! Let go! Why are you not letting go?”
Caught by Renato, Blanche struggled to pull his arms out. Not stopping there, he kicked threateningly. But his feet never touched Renato.
Although Renato had soft and fragile looks, he was also an adult man. He could block the attacks of Blanche who had a physique similar to his. Renato scowled, grabbing his wrists firmly.
“Your Imperial Highness!”
Louis and Luna surrounded the two quarreling people. But they could not dare to separate Renato and Blanche.
“Oh, oh my goodness, what, what should I……”
“Your Imperial Highness……”
Louis stamped his feet in fright, while Luna faltered with a bewildered face. They should protect Renato as his chief attendant and guard, but Blanche was the one who attacked him. If they did something wrong, they could be punished for carelessly touching the Empress’ body.
Knowing this, Renato gestured to Louis and Luna that he was fine. Now that Blanche had lost his temper enough to rush at him, they shouldn’t give him any more excuses.
“Your Majesty, please calm down.”
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The Empress’ Palace’s chamberlain, who belatedly came to his senses, also hovered around the two, not knowing what to do. Blanche threw a fit when the chamberlain grabbed him by the shoulder.
“Fuck! I said to let go of me!”
“Will you hit me if I let go of you?”
“You……!”
“The Empress threw a teacup at the Prince and even raised his hand. If this becomes people’s gossip, will the Marquis really like it?”
When Renato mentioned Marquis Medus, Blanche came to his senses and froze. Not missing the gap, Renato grasped Blanche’s wrists. Then he gently pushed Blanche over to the chamberlain who was holding his shoulder.
“His Majesty seems to be very excited, so you should take him back to the Empress’ Palace.”
“Yes, ah, yes, yes!”
Suddenly having Blanche pushed toward him, the chamberlain answered frantically. However, there was no way Blanche would just obediently go back.
“Get your hands off me! Right now!”
“Your Majesty, please calm down your excitement. His Lordship the Marquis will certainly be angry if he finds out. So please……”
The chamberlain desperately dissuaded Blanche from attacking Renato again. Renato was now the most prominent figure in the Empire. Even if they blocked people’s mouths, rumors of this kind of thing would quickly spread, so it would be difficult if the uproar continued.
“……Damn it!”
When both Renato and the chamberlain stopped him by mentioning Marquis Medus, Blanche lost his vigor. However, unable to easily quench his excitement, he huffed and puffed.
Renato straightened the wrinkled clothes with his hands and looked at Blanche with an expressionless face. Blanche’s red, bloodshot eyes were full of hostility toward him.
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There was a time when I felt numb and my legs trembled just by making eye contact with those eyes.
Feeling the change in himself, Renato smiled softly. His smile was as if declaring that Blanche did not affect him anymore.
“Smile? Are you smiling now?”
Sparks flared again in Blanche’s eyes, where his intense emotions had yet to calm down. He thought Renato was sneering at him.
But he didn’t rush at Renato this time. It was because he had realized he could not beat him by force in the previous clash. He didn’t want to be humiliated by Renato again after rushing in for no reason.
“Before leaving, I’d like to say one more thing.”
Renato slowly opened his mouth toward Blanche who was exhaling heavily from rage. He originally didn’t intend to provoke any further, but Blanche’s reaction made Renato think it would be better to sway him now.
“The Marquis recognizes me more than Your Majesty because I thought and took action by myself to achieve results even when he didn’t ask me to. Someone he thought was useless suddenly became incredibly useful. Has Your Majesty ever done so?”
“What……?”
“I mean that you should do something independently to help the Marquis before blaming me or anyone else.”
Hearing Renato’s words, Blanche had a blank expression as if having been powerfully struck in the head. Up until now, he had always acted under Marquis Medus’ orders. For that was the surest and safest way.
“Compared to a Beta like me, Your Majesty is a much more superior dominant Omega, are you not? Please don’t deny or be envious of my achievements, and proudly prove your abilities to the Marquis. Then he will be back as a loving father like he used to be. The Marquis cares for people that are useful to him, after all.”
After finishing his words, Renato turned and left the guest room. Unlike before, Blanche just stood there absent-mindedly. He stayed still there for a long time even after Renato had completely disappeared from view. The words Renato had left behind were engraved in his mind and never left.
* * *
“Welcome.”
Khalid greeted Renato with a bright smile as he arrived at the diplomatic office. Escorted with the man’s enthusiastic hospitality, Renato got down from the carriage and looked up at Khalid with embarrassment.
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“You don’t have to come out to meet me like this……”
“Of course I should come out to meet you. Did you sleep comfortably last night?”
“It was so-so, how about you, your highness?”
Renato roughly affirmed his words and asked back with a light smile. He actually tossed and turned, unable to sleep until dawn, but Khalid would definitely be worried if he said the truth.
“I didn’t sleep well.”
“Pardon?”
Surprised by the unexpected answer, Renato widened his eyes. Maybe he had trouble sleeping for the same reason as me? A small hope filled his heart. Just as he couldn’t sleep because of missing Khalid, he wished the man would think of him even just a bit.
“Why couldn’t you sleep?”
Renato asked, careful not to show anticipation in his voice. He wanted to avoid disappointment by confirming it for no reason, and hoped to hear a desired answer at the same time.
“Uhm, before that, can I be excused for a second?”
“Pardon?”
“I would like to check something for a moment.”
Instead of answering Renato’s question, Khalid nimbly sneaked closer to him. Then he suddenly pulled Renato into his embrace.
“Your, your highness?”
Stiffened up at the sudden embrace, Renato soon came to his senses and called Khalid. Haa, the man’s breath tickled his ear, making shivers run down his spine.
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“Ah, as expected……”
Khalid, who locked Renato in his arms without notice, muttered as if he had realized something. His voice seemed to be satisfied with something.
“Excuse me, your highness, uh, why are you suddenly doing this……”
Renato, bewildered by the unexpected situation, muttered meaningless words, unable to speak properly. As the man’s pleasant low-pitched sound whirled around his ears, his toes stiffened. The sounds of his heart vigorously thumping from the moment he was held in Khalid’s arms disturbed his ears like tinnitus.
Renato wasn’t the only one surprised by Khalid’s sudden action. Nasir who came out together with Khalid to greet him as well as Louis and Luna who accompanied Renato were all shocked.
“Ah, I’m sorry. Were you very surprised?”
Feeling the shock of people around him, Khalid finally realized what he was doing and parted from Renato. Then he looked at Renato with an apologetic expression.
“There was one thing I wanted to check when I met you. I didn’t mean to do this here…… But I momentarily couldn’t hold myself back.”
“There was something you wanted to check with me?”
Renato barely calmed his startled heart and blinked. He remembered Khalid saying he had to check something a while ago. But he didn’t know what hugging had to do with checking.
“About that…… I must have gotten used to sleeping with you, Renato. It has been a while since I last slept alone, so I kept feeling empty when trying to sleep yesterday. So I had a bit of trouble sleeping last night.”
Khalid took a step back from Renato, awkwardly explaining while sweeping the nape of his neck. It seemed he had just come to his senses after doing something subconsciously.
“Uhm, how should I explain…… Should I say it feels as if a stuffed doll I used to hug and sleep with every day during childhood has disappeared? It’s a bit strange to say that at this age, but…… There’s only one reason that came to my mind, so I wanted to check despite knowing it was a stupid thought. I’m sorry for having startled you.”
“Not at all! Actually, I didn’t sleep well last night either.”
Renato quickly shook his head at Khalid’s apology and confessed that it was the same for him. His heart was pounding for a different reason from before. Even though he knew he shouldn’t think so, he was glad that Khalid had trouble sleeping for the same reason as him.
