Once I finished speaking, Max kissed me slowly. I accepted his gentle gesture for a moment, but then his kiss suddenly turned passionate, bringing me into a swirling storm. Without realizing it, I was gasping softly as I struggled to accept him. Not long after, he pulled away. His relaxed eyes met mine before he lowered his head and kissed my neck.
"Max, that's my—"
I was slightly taken aback by how his lips were on my neck. Then, I felt pain; he was sucking my skin and digging his sharp fangs into me.
Startled by the unfamiliar sensation, I called out to him. "Max, wait a minute—"
However, a soft sigh suddenly escaped me. The pain had turned into pleasure, and I trembled from the foreign experience. He started licking my neck and I continued to quiver at the peculiar feeling—a mix of pain and a tickling sensation. He looked up and grinned.
"You're beautiful."
I stared blankly at his handsome face for a moment. Then, I realized what had happened and pushed him away.
"Max, just now...!"
I was going to yell at him for what he had done to me and educate him on how this was an inappropriate act, but then he gave me a light kiss on the lips.
"What kind of embroidery did you sew onto the handkerchief?" he asked.
I shot him a sullen look for interrupting me, but he hugged me to distract me again. "I love you, Jubelian.”
In the end, I couldn't get mad at him. I had no choice but to pat him on the head instead.
Taking in how she caressed his hair, he smiled slightly. He was glad that she didn't get upset. At first, Max was just trying to appease his impatience by burying his face into her porcelain neck to relish in her fragrant scent. He had no other intention. However, the moment he saw her unblemished skin, a barbaric impulse arose from within him. He wanted to leave his mark on her skin so that others wouldn't dare to approach her.
He hadn’t planned on this from the beginning, so he had tried to stop his assault-like behavior. However, as the bruise grew more prominent on her pale skin, like a blossoming flower, he couldn't stop. Her tearful eyes and soft sighs didn’t help, either.
As he dug his teeth into her, Max became anxious. What if she ended up changing her mind and saying goodbye to him? He was afraid that someone other than him would see her like this.
If he became one with her now, would this intense longing for her go away? His whole body was aflame with his desire for her, but after looking into her naïve eyes, Max had no choice but to calm himself down. She wasn’t ready yet. He was on the verge of going mad from impatience and frustration but he made a promise to himself.
"I love you, Jubelian,” he confessed.
Even if it meant he would be in pain for now, he would wait until the woman he loved was ready. Until then, he would hide his debased desires and feign innocence.
Pulling Max by his hair, Jubelian began to complain. "If you do that again without notice, I’ll kick you out. Do you understand?"
Even her whining sounded cute. Max laughed for a moment. Then, his crimson eyes lit up.
Well, that wouldn’t matter because he would propose to her after her coming-of-age ceremony. Until then, Max pledged to remain patient about the bothersome flies surrounding his lover.
He lightly caressed her cheek.
After Max left, I examined my neck in the mirror. It was ridiculous; I had a huge bruise on one side of it now. I scowled unconsciously. He acted like a vampire and the marks he left behind were far too clear. It was inconsiderate on his part since now I had to cover my neck even at home. I sighed as I looked for a piece of cloth I could use.
Would this do? I covered the bruise with a small scarf. I had just finished when I heard someone call out to me.
"Jubelian, it’s me.”
It was Geraldine. I opened my door, and he greeted me with a displeased look.
"Is something the matter?" I asked.
Although I deemed him a good-for-nothing, Geraldine was a skilled knight and, frankly, a bit of a show-off. It was only natural for him to be dissatisfied with the situation he was in. After all, he didn’t know Max's identity or the other important factors contributing to my father's order to keep a low profile at the hunting competition.
"Actually,” I added, "I have a favor to ask you, Dean.”
He sighed. "What is it?"
"About the hunting contest—" I began, and he let out another sigh.
"I already know. I’ll stay out of the public eye, so don't worry too much.”
"No, not that. Are you aware that Lord Elios visited earlier?"
"Yes."
"The thing is, he was arguing with me and saying that he would win first place in the competition."
I made it sound like he made a declaration against my family, but that wasn’t what had happened. All he did was give me a simple proposal, but I bent the truth for my own purposes. Given Geraldine's personality, I knew exactly how he would react.
As expected, his expression conveyed his displeasure once I finished speaking. "Did he really say that?"
"Yes,” I affirmed. "He told me he was going to take first place and that I should cheer for him."
"Are you telling me the truth?" Geraldine asked, his eyes full of doubt.
I deliberately adopted a disappointed look. "Yes, I am."
His face contorted with rage. "What the hell does he know? All he's held throughout his whole life would be some books! How dare he look down on the Floyen household? Our knights are renowned as the most skilled swordsmen in this empire!"
I took Geraldine's hands. "Dean, I’m heartbroken. I feel like my family’s being looked down upon because I’m representing my house as a woman..."
"What are you talking about?! Such a thing doesn't matter! You’re still His Grace’s only heir! I won’t let anyone look down on you!"
"It's a shame that our knights might be looked down on because of me..."
I trailed off on purpose. Geraldine held my hands tightly. "Don't worry. Even if we can't get first place, I’ll shut that Elios guy up."
At his reassurance, I grinned. "Thank you, Dean."
Geraldine smiled back. Then, he furrowed his brows. "By the way, why are you covering your neck? Did something happen?”
"Oh, this is just... I have a bit of a sore throat,” I lied. "I think I caught a cold."
Quickly shaking me away, Geraldine staggered back. "Why are you only saying that now?! I could've caught it, too!"
I knew he cared about himself a lot, but I didn't know it was to this extent.
"Oh, I can't let this go. I’ll go visit Allen,” he said.
Listening to his selfish jabbering, I sighed. Could I really trust him to carry out my plans?