Follow Your Heart [EN]: Chapter 65

#65.

After that, Roderick and Lee Jae engaged in a fierce battle of wits.

Lee Jae had work to do even in this room. Summoning vengeful spirits one or two at dawn and brutally beating them was her routine for months.

What was different from usual was that Roderick also didn’t seem to have any intention of sleeping.

Yet, he didn’t start a conversation or initiate any kind of skinship [physical affection].

Roderick just stayed awake silently, without saying anything.

He was simply worried that Lee Jae might not be able to sleep again.

Eventually, Lee Jae glanced back.

And she flinched when she met his blue eyes.

Roderick chuckled and stroked her hair.

“Just sleep, fox.”

Feeling quite embarrassed, Lee Jae looked forward again.

Then she cautiously asked.

“Your Majesty, can’t you sleep?”

“It seems like you’re the one who can’t sleep, not me.”

Even more embarrassed, Lee Jae closed her eyes tightly.

How much time had passed?

Hoping for the best, Lee Jae glanced back again.

And those blue eyes were still staring at her intently.

Roderick kissed her forehead, then her lips.

“Sleep. Please, just listen to me.”

She began to feel a little scared.

Why is he being like this to me today?

After that, Lee Jae turned around four or five times at intervals.

Each time, Roderick kissed her cheek or temple, saying a few words.

‘Should I sing you a lullaby? You’ve finally reached the point of making the king sing for you. Actually, I knew this would happen someday, so I practiced. I’m shy, but would you like to hear it?’

‘At this rate, the sun you like so much will rise. If you need a drink, I’ll have one with you.’

‘You said you were sleeping. Don’t you know that if you lie, horns will grow on your butt? The thought of checking is making me excited again.’

‘Can’t sleep? Then be honest. I’ll help you sleep in a different way… the way of a married couple.’

Lee Jae felt more and more terrified.

And when she looked back for the last time, she couldn’t help but ask.

“Um, but why aren’t you sleeping, Your Majesty?”

“How can I sleep when you keep staring at me with those wide eyes?”

“…………”

“When you look at me so prettily, it makes my heart flutter.”

“…………”

“Sleep unless you’re going to take responsibility for it.”

With those words, Lee Jae completely gave up and tried to sleep. In the end, the King and Queen repeated strange things all night long and ended up taking a nap side by side.

The next day, Roderick was the first to wake up. Even at a fairly early hour.

It was partly because he had a lot on his mind these days, but there was another reason.

Kang Lee Jae was pushing her body to its limits, trying to make an already strong human even stronger. The king was fundamentally different in stamina from others.

He stared silently at Lee Jae, who was sleeping soundly.

She can’t sleep well even in this room. I don’t know if she can’t sleep or won’t sleep.

You’re so small, yet you have so many secrets.

Won’t you tell me? Are you going to keep hiding like that?

The questions grew deeper and deeper.

After thinking for a while, he stroked Lee Jae’s cheek a few times and called the chamberlain.

“Chamberlain, are you outside?”

“You were looking for me.”

The chamberlain, who opened the door and entered, flinched again and bowed his head.

This was because the King was once again holding the Queen in his arms, having given her a pillow.

The chamberlain wore a very awkward expression.

What is the meaning of constantly showing us these scenes?

“If you go to my room, there’s a broken statue on the bedside table. Please bring it to me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The Queen was still sleeping in, but the day had already dawned.

The King pulled the Queen’s blanket up to her neck, allowing the chamberlains and maids to enter and exit.

And people glanced at the sight of the King hugging the Queen, blanket and all.

When the chamberlain brought the statue of the Underworld General, Roderick silently held out his hand.

And as the King stared at the grotesque object with a serious face from morning, people’s expressions grew stranger and stranger.

What on earth is His Majesty doing?

When did he say it was a sense that he didn’t know whether it was going against the times or going ahead?

Roderick, who had been looking at the statue for a long time, said to the chamberlain.

“Chamberlain.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Can’t we somehow put this back together?”

“………”

“I think the Queen seems to be a little heartbroken because of this.”

The chamberlain flinched.

“Has Her Majesty the Queen… said that?”

“She keeps saying it’s broken every time she sees it.”

“I don’t know much about it, but she seems to be sad.”

The King knew that this was a trivial matter to order.

But if the Queen was upset, he wanted to do something about it.

And at that moment, there were people who unexpectedly became enraged and stood up.

The Queen’s maids took a step forward without realizing it.

Our Queen was heartbroken because of this? Then His Majesty should have told us sooner. Why were you just standing there? Then that’s Your Majesty’s fault.

Roderick looked at the maids with a puzzled expression, but their faces were very serious and determined.

Deborah, who was leading the maids, was also very offended.

The fact that she didn’t know about it and that the Queen didn’t tell her first was a blemish on her career.

She first glared at the chamberlain, who was the head of the other side.

*Don’t interfere. This is mine, no matter what. Don’t even think about adding anything to it.*

Deborah was about to step forward to fulfill her duty.

However, the chamberlain had the advantage of assisting the King and the situational advantage of the King’s direct inquiry. He preempted with a very gentle voice.

“Your Majesty, these things can be glued together with animal glue. Of course, it is difficult to preserve the shape as it was originally. But I don’t think Your Majesty ordered it because that was important.”

The King nodded.

“Yeah. I was just wondering what kind of way I could convey that I would cherish it.”

The people who confirmed that the King was incredibly sincere to the Queen were silent.

Roderick stroked Lee Jae’s round forehead and swept back her bangs.

It was a gentle and tender touch.

“The Queen is a really good person. You all know that, right?”

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Take good care of her. In my eyes, she seems to be… hurting.”

“Yes, I will keep that in mind.”

And then, whether it was because of the light or the noise, the apricot-colored fox began to frown. Roderick gestured to the chamberlain to quickly remove it [the statue].

When the chamberlain quickly left the room, Lee Jae rubbed her eyes.

“Your Majesty, did I oversleep again?”

Then Roderick kissed the top of her head and said.

“It’s not like that. It’s okay, so sleep a little more.”

“………”

“I’ll wake you up. Let’s sleep more. Okay?”

She would have just gotten up if it wasn’t too much, but Lee Jae had been tossing and turning for the first time in a while.

The apricot-colored fox kept rubbing her eyes. And she looked around.

After confirming that there were no predators around, the fox slipped into the blanket.

After finishing the meeting with the Queen’s old friend in the morning, Roderick was holed up in his study. The King didn’t seem to be in a very good mood, so Jade hesitated.

“Your Majesty.”

“What. Speak.”

“The 2nd Knight Commander has completed the handover of duties to me and the Vice Commander.”

They were planning to appoint the 2nd Knight Commander as the Western Army Commander.

Roderick nodded.

“Then have the Royal Prince come in for a while.”

“Already?”

“The Royal Prince is the highest-ranking member of the royal family in the line of succession. We can’t keep him on the front lines forever.”

Jade asked with some difficulty.

“Won’t the Duke cling to it again?”

“It’s a battle of justification anyway. Have him come in and report for a while.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“If you have nothing more to say, go.”

Roderick waved his hand to dismiss the knights, telling them all to leave. People thought the King was really strange these days.

And what occupied most of his thoughts these days was the Queen.

Hailey. What is the power you are hiding?

After much deliberation, Roderick opened his drawer.

He looked through the report on the Queen and then took out a manuscript of an ancient book.

It was 「A Letter to Future Kings」. He slowly turned the pages.

「During the long period of the Three Years’ War, two families disappeared, and three families surrendered to the Allied Forces and contributed to the founding of Cayenne.

The names of the two are Elias, Schmidt.

The names of the three are Mellon, Russell, Duncan.

The power of the Blake royal family. Fulgor, the Holy Sword.

The power of Elias is Evocatio, Summoning.

The power of Schmidt is Defensio, Barrier.

The power of Mellon is Exorcismus, Annihilation of Spirits.

The power of Russell is Rumpo, Destruction.

And the power of Duncan is…….」

Roderick tried to connect the Queen with the power that had disappeared from the continent four hundred years ago. The reason he came to think this way was that the feelings he experienced because of his wife were too unrealistic.

But the situation he is experiencing does not match the ability passed down in the Duncan family.

Roderick frowned and fell into thought.

The meeting with the second son of the Count ended without any results.

The Queen he heard through other people’s mouths was not his apricot-colored fox.

It was always like that. Only the Queen he saw and felt directly was real.

And at that moment, Roderick suddenly realized something.

There should be one more question here.

*Who are you?*

What if you’re not Duncan?

If you add that question, what will happen to this picture?

Summoning. Is this the power of Elias?

But it was a story that was difficult to affirm easily.