Villainous Husband

Chapter 52.1

Chapter 52.1

Raniero stared blankly at me as I put the food into my mouth.

Each time the exposed area of the bottom of the plate widened little by little, the area where his body touched mine also widened little by little, and he soon rested his chin on my shoulder while wrapping his arms around my waist.

When the last piece of bread finally went down my throat, he scanned the structure of the room with his eyes and murmured:

"...The bed is small."

I listened and thought about what he had said. However, as if emphasizing his words, Raniero complained once more.

"Only one person could barely lie down."

"Because it's a single bed."

When I answered involuntarily and glanced at him, his eyes narrowed.

"I'm pointing out that part, Empress."

I tried to give an explanation, starting with 'priests, paladins, and saints didn't marry,' but my mouth soon shut. It was because when I thought of the explanation, I could clearly see what he was pointing out.

He then smiled as I quickly averted my eyes and parted my speechless lips. Raniero touched me cleverly and subtly. Of course, the intention of the hand stroking my lower abdomen was clearly visible... it was to add heat to my body.

Lowering my eyes, his lips slid from the bottom of my ear to the tip of my chin.

For some reason, I felt nauseous.

I closed my eyes tightly before grabbing his upper body with both arms and pushing him away. For a moment, I didn't even know what I was doing.

It must have been the same with Raniero, who was bewildered. He moved away from me slowly, staring at me with startled eyes. Even though my heart was beating wildly, my fingers and toes felt cold in the room where the fire in the fireplace was burning with such a cheerful sound.

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I quickly withdrew my hand, which was still on his shoulder.

...It was the first time I had rejected Raniero.

I never imagined rejecting him. Not only in the early days of marriage when I was afraid of him but also in the flower field when I was most vigilant. Even the most, I only ever tried to tease him tersely.

Raniero had never been rejected since he was born.

'I've committed an outrageous act...'

His thin lips parted slowly, and the eyes that were flooding with confusion slowly settled. I was even more scared seeing that. Leaning my upper body toward Raniero, I placed my hands on my knees before any contempt or anger showed in his eyes, then I quickly shouted.

"I-I was just kidding, Your Majesty!"

My whole body trembled.

Like the day I secretly went to see Eden and was caught by Raniero, a fear I hadn't felt in a while came over me, and a smile escaped my lips. I couldn't tell if I was smiling well without looking awkward or not.

"Why... why are you so surprised? It's just a joke... I was surprised, too."

"Angie."

His low voice was dry, which brought me more anxiety. I hurriedly took his hand and rubbed my lips on the back of it.

I had to wash away his displeasure somehow.

My servile appearance wasn't humiliating. Had I been humiliated by this, he wouldn't have been lenient with me. Regardless, he was silent.

Still, that wasn't a bad sign.

I kissed his knuckles over and over again, but when I kissed the wedding ring, I couldn't control my trembling. Perhaps because that tension had made it boring, Raniero's hand slipped out of mine. I became desperate, like a child who had been deprived of something they loved so much.

"Your Majesty..."

"No."

All the blood drained from my face, and I muttered in vain.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. If it's because of my mistake..."

"No, it's not."

How couldn't not be... I wasn't an idiot.

The next moment, Raniero firmly gripped my cold, trembling hand before he lowered his head and met my eyes.

"I'm not angry."

"...."

"Don't cry. Don't be afraid."

I swore I hadn't cried until now, but tears burst at those words.

Fearing that it would be annoying if I even cried, I let my tears fall while clenching my teeth. Raniero just watched me cry before he let out a shallow sigh and stretched out his arm, and hugged me.

Resting my head on his chest, I closed my eyes.

Raniero's heartbeat was slow and steady. It was only then that I could feel the fact that he wasn't angry. Then, he slowly brushed my hair. It was a very caring touch... to the extent that if I hadn't been a little more fearful, I might have had vain hopes that his essence had changed.

His pale, elongated hands laid me down and wrapped me in a blanket before he wiped my still-wet eyes with his fingertips.

"It must have been a very arduous journey for you."

As my consciousness faded in an instant, his voice now felt afar.

Sleep now.