My Disfigured Duke Husband Helps Me Plot My Revenge
Chapter 107: The Path Ahead

Chapter 107: The Path Ahead

Stephano eyed Leonor for a moment after she asked such a question.

Did Valerio die?

The words rolled around in the king’s head.

He was dying to tell her the truth. It felt like she was asking permission to continue with the care that had formed for the duke. To the king, it was obvious that there was something between them. He hoped it was the truth.

Yet he couldn’t tell her Valerio died because he hadn’t. Even if Desmond claimed that he had, it wasn’t the truth.

Stephano believed Desmond was the same person even if he changed. Changing was part of life. The king had changed the most out of anyone.

At once he was a spoiled and prideful child but after he saw his mother die unfairly, he became someone willing to chop off his own father’s head to take the throne. He changed and he wouldn’t hide it from anyone.

"There’s not enough evidence for me to confirm or deny whether or not Valerio is dead," he diplomatically answered, hoping to preserve Leonor’s heart. "There are hundreds of men we will never know survived or not. This is the brutal truth of war. My father was disorganized and treated people like expendable supplies."

Leonor’s head was downcast and her eyes fluttered closed.

"I understand your reasoning for sending me to this place," she admitted. "But I’m unsure of what I’m supposed to do. I’m starting to have feelings for two people and I feel like I’m betraying them both."

She put a hand over her mouth as if trying to hold back from saying anything more.

Stephano had to look away from Leonor or he would confess years worth of secrets so she could feel the happiness that was so close to her. Yet it wasn’t his business to.

He knew she wasn’t a shallow noble lady who would shun someone because of their ghastly appearance. However, Desmond wasn’t who she fell in love with. She probably pictured beautiful Valerio when she pictured romance. He was the hero in her story but didn’t exist as he once was.

He was divided completely in half for Desmond and Leonor. He wanted to be loyal to them equally but he knew he couldn’t be with the secrets he carried.

"It isn’t uncommon for people to have multiple partners in their life," Stephano said. "You were 16 when you met Valerio. You have a lifetime to figure out your happiness and cross paths as they come."

Leonor was slumping more and more with her hands on the cold bench as Stephano laid out the truth. It had occurred to her many times to simply move forward. The love they had was sweet and innocent but it was merely a memory she had.

Yet she had a hard time giving up the best moments of her life. She couldn’t bring herself to cheapen the feelings he elicited from her.

Even with all the adventures she went on while in the Magic Academy, she finished each day wishing she could tell Valerio how good she was getting and how her magic was improving. She no longer felt tired when she used her mana. He would have been so proud but she had no way to reach him no matter what lengths she went to try.

With her father breathing down her neck at every turn, there was no way to find him and no way to figure out how to get into contact.

Perhaps she was simply comfortable yearning for someone she couldn’t have because it was what she had known for six years.

"Here you are preoccupied with my love life," Leonor said after breathing out a sigh. "I hear no announcements about a queen. Aren’t your issues more important than mine?"

She cast her sapphire eyes in his direction and Stephano scoffed.

"Love is a curse I refuse to be burdened with," Stephano responded quickly as if it were a response he had already chosen for people who asked him such a thing. "If you’re suggesting I get into a loveless arranged marriage for an heir, should I ask you to supply me with one? The thought occurred to me before I met Desmond." ¹

Leonor gasped and her face felt hot. The thought of the two of them in a marriage was laughable.

However, she realized the marriage she was in wasn’t that far off. There was no affection. They were as good as two friends living side by side.

"Do you think you’re funny?" she asked. "Making me nervous when I’m already in an affectionless marriage chosen for me?"

Leonor was smirking and the king knew she wasn’t offended by his suggestion.

"Your father would have loved that too much," he said.

Leonor scoffed in response and stood up. Eve ran to her feet and stared at the king with her fur standing on edge.

"What are you thinking about me for her to react like that?" Stephano asked.

"Nothing I wouldn’t tell you to your face, your highness," Leonor responded with a grin.

However, she decided they had spent enough time outside to be deemed appropriate. It was time to start back onto the other side of the path and she gestured for Stephano to follow her.

She didn’t want to be one of the nobles with loose morals. She always overheard rumors her mother and father discussed with other noble couples and she was disgusted by the behavior of the rich behind closed doors.

They walked a bit longer in relative silence until the king turned to Leonor.

"Truthfully, Leonor," Stephano said. "I’m happy to see you living better than you were with the count. That’s all that matters to me."

Leonor observed the faraway smile on his face and wondered about things she couldn’t bring herself to ask him.

"I want the same for you," Leonor said. "Your happiness is the happiness of the entire kingdom."

He laughed as if it were ridiculous. It made her feel like he had his heart broken before but she would never force someone to reveal that about themselves.

"I think it’s time for me to sleep," Stephano said as they neared the doors at the heart of the estate. "I can’t be around you for any longer if you’re going to put ridiculous thoughts in my head."

"Our rooms are in the same wing," she said. "Perhaps I’ll change your mind in the next month."

The young king laughed again but silence ensued as they walked to their area of the estate and she wondered if she struck a nerve. He was the most likely person to laugh in the face of pain or irritation.

Stephano made it to his door first and he turned to wish Leonor goodnight. Yet he waited for her to disappear into her room before shutting his door. The duke’s house was undoubtedly safe but he was a naturally paranoid person.

As he finally walked into his room and shut his door, the wind was practically knocked out of him as he was shoved into one of the chairs. The fire in the fireplace revealed an angry green eye to him.