The Young Master I Carefully Raised Became Obsessive
Ch. 118

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Chapter 118: Side Story 4

He climbed on top of me and looked down, his green eyes gleaming more intensely than usual.

Gazing at me, he whispered softly, “I didn’t bring any birth control.”

“Me neither.”

Ardion stared at me for a long moment. When I didn’t say anything, he lay down beside me.

I glanced over and saw his chest rising and falling ever so slightly.

“Laila.”

His sudden voice startled me, and I turned my head. Yet even then, I could still feel his gaze. Slowly, I turned my eyes towards him. Despite the deep night, his eyes sparkled with a vivid light, almost unnatural in its clarity.

Ardion called my name but said nothing more.

A strange tension hung in the air, so I cautiously opened my mouth. “What is it?”

Only then did Ardion finally speak. “I think that old man really has something. In all my life, I’ve never seen anyone who could read a person’s heart like that.”

I nodded in agreement. Ardion looked at me, then turned to face my side and gently took my hand in his. His warmth seeped into me, and for some reason, my heart started pounding wildly. His touch, softly grazing the back of my hand, was so tender it took my breath away.

“Laila, you’re all I have. So I just... I don’t want to see you hurting anymore.”

Ardion brought my hand to his lips and kissed it softly. Then he pulled me into a full embrace. With his arms wrapped around my waist, he kissed my forehead. 

In a low, quiet voice, he said, “To be honest, everything the old man said, he was talking about you. Even though we’re married, sometimes it felt like you weren’t truly mine.”

“…”

“But after hearing what he said, I realized I’ve been judging you through the lens of the past. And yet you’re here with me, telling me you love me…”

He hugged me tighter and continued, “I think I got so caught up in everything that I forgot about you for a while.”

I was speechless for a moment. Thinking back, Ardion had been endlessly busy ever since Rowell’s trial. He had gone through so much. Maybe that was why he had become so sensitive and short-tempered. 

Letting out a small sigh, I replied, “I guess I didn’t do so well either. From now on, if something’s bothering me, I’ll come to you first.”

A soft chuckle escaped him as he hugged me tighter. “Anyway, I should thank that old man again tomorrow. Thanks to him, I got to be with you like this again.”

I nodded. With that, we lay down together, agreeing to thank the old man who had read our palms.

For the first time in a while, we fell into a deep, peaceful sleep, warmed by each other’s presence.

By morning, the storm had mostly passed. Thankfully, the rattling windows were intact. Still, because of the rain and wind, wet leaves clung all over the lower parts of the window.

The sky was still full of heavy gray clouds. The rain had stopped, but there was no sign the clouds would clear anytime soon. The gloomy weather lingered, but at least the rain was over.

Ardion wrapped his arms around my waist from behind. When I turned to him with a smile, he kissed my cheek.

His lips naturally found mine. As his deep breath mingled with mine and our lips touched again, I leaned back and found myself against the window. Without letting go, Ardion lifted me and sat me on the windowsill. His hand slid from my waist to my thigh, stroking gently.

In that moment, I opened my eyes. If we kept going, I felt I might lose all sense of reason.

I quickly placed my hands on his shoulders and pushed lightly. Ardion slowly pulled back, breathing lightly, his intense eyes fixed on my lips.

Ignoring the wild thumping of my heart, I opened my mouth. “Ardion.”

Finally, he met my gaze.

“We need to go thank the old man who read our palms yesterday.” I smiled, nudging his chest. With him completely pinning me down, I needed him to move to get off the windowsill.

Ardion backed away without resistance. Then he draped the cloak hanging by the chair over my shoulders.

I looked at him curiously.

He said, “It’s a bit chilly outside.”

With no choice, I nodded and headed downstairs.

“Your Majesty, did you sleep well?”

His aides and servants were already waiting. They looked slightly flustered that we had come down earlier than expected.

Ardion gave a brief nod and looked around. “Where’s the old man who reads palms?”

“The palm reader?” The aide looked puzzled, as if hearing it for the first time.

I found it strange too and looked around. Near the counter, I saw the sign I had noticed yesterday.

I approached it. But this time, there was nothing written on it.

I was sure it said palm readings yesterday…

Then I turned my head, and there it was. The same rocking chair from yesterday, just as I remembered.

At that moment, someone came rushing over. “Your Majesty, I’m afraid we can’t leave today.”

He seemed to be a carriage repairman, holding a hammer in his hand.

Ardion’s face hardened. “What’s the issue?”

“Last night’s storm rocked the carriages and they collided. We can fix it by the end of the day, but the wheels were damaged more than expected…”

“Fix it as soon as possible.”

“Yes, I’ll do my best to hurry.”

Ardion turned to me. “Laila, are you okay with this?”

“I’m fine. But… where’s that old man?”

Then I remembered what the old man had said, that he didn’t like crowded places. 

I quickly said to Ardion, “He said he avoids people when it’s crowded. Maybe that’s why he’s not around now.”

Just then, someone else approached Ardion. “Your Majesty, I’m Arpe, the manager of this place. I apologize for not greeting you properly last night since it was so late. I only now have the chance to welcome you.”

He was quite an elderly man.

“We were lucky to take shelter here last night. But where is the palm reader?”

“Palm reader? I’ve never heard of such a person.”

“What do you mean? He clearly read our palms last night.”

The innkeeper looked truly bewildered. Ardion’s expression darkened. On top of that, a faint mana glow began to seep from his arm.

I quickly grabbed Ardion’s arm. That brought his gaze to me.

“Ardion, something’s off. I clearly saw the sign yesterday, but now there’s nothing on it.”

The innkeeper glanced around nervously before cautiously speaking. “Well… I only manage the building. I’m not the owner. But I’ve heard rumors about a ghost in the shape of an old man appearing here occasionally…”

“A ghost?” My voice rose in surprise as goosebumps ran up my arm.

“I’m sorry. It’s just a rumor, not confirmed. And although this place was spruced up for Your Majesties, truthfully, it was almost abandoned before, and few dared to stay.” The manager bowed his head apologetically.

I looked around. The place did seem quite worn, likely from long neglect.

Still, my skin crawled.

A ghost… So the man we saw yesterday was…

Now that I thought about it, it didn’t make sense how he could have made it up to the third floor without anyone noticing. 

I whispered to Ardion, “Ardion, something’s definitely not right here.”

He seemed to agree, nodding grimly. He turned back to the manager. “Is there anywhere else we can go?”

“There is a proper inn near the village, but it’s not big enough to accommodate everyone. If Your Majesty prefers, we could ask the guests there to vacate…”

“No. We’ll stay here until the carriage is fixed.”

I agreed. I didn’t want to kick anyone out on our account.

Come to think of it, the old man hadn’t harmed us. In fact, it felt like he’d seen into our hearts and helped us reconcile.

I appreciated it, but still…

It all felt eerie.

“If you need anything, please call for me. But please, absolutely do not enter the basement,” the innkeeper said with unusual firmness.

It made me ask without thinking.  “Why not?”

“We once tried to close this place, but there was a loud collapse from below. People panicked and fled. But don’t worry, a fortune teller said as long as no one enters the basement, it’ll be fine.”

“You didn’t even check what was down there?”

“No, and we don’t have the key either. People tend to avoid it altogether. They say an old man died here long ago, and ever since then, strange sounds have come from the basement…”

“Then we should check it.”

Ardion seemed ready to go down right away, but I stopped him.

“Ardion, let’s not start something. We won’t be here for long. And if something happens, the others here will suffer for it.”

At that, Ardion reluctantly backed off.

This inn had more secrets than we’d expected. Uneasy, I glanced around once more.

Even when we first arrived, something had felt off. I just wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible.

T/N: The genre shift… I cannot lol