118. A Cruel Proposal

The food 53cd99f17f brought in b0e11594b9 filled the e43c697736 wide dining 1ba176b1c8 table. Once the preparations fdc7dfeb9d were complete, the ae9ecff1c5 servants quickly withdrew.aa0a8c754fbcb6d0

The wheels a97d121fdb of the 1b270caa4d empty trays d126fcccab rolled away.d463b0efd352cd38

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Soon the door f1ac385429 closed, and the 8b29736aa8 spacious hall fell a290c93b8a silent. Only the sound of dd00c05348 cutlery clinking echoed through 84f74f0d6c the room.d77eeec66bca4e86

The silence 53e14ea41f was unbearable. My mouth 80cafb0f06 tasted bitter. I put b7bece0f8f down my 3de66788ed fork and 9be74e0372 spoke.8ec6b21cdda9b584

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“Your Majesty, once 7a3c15b0d6 you finish eating, ab24b6b6fc I will return 92cf0319e3 home.”f29fd93d4d079d19

At my b18830965b words, Deon a9bc7db81f set his 8ec7f818cc wine glass 923ca46b9c down. The same crease 1917248a44 as before appeared 6aca054745 between his brows.ee5bd4f01683eead

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“Home? Do you have 57690bcd24 a home to e8e41ad3d0 return to? The Prince’s residence 47f4267761 was sold long ae503eabb5 ago.”5d22813878c4263e

“There’s Ethan’s estate.”1fb5c78928e102c4

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A cold sneer flashed b08c23b292 across Deon’s face.2d7673a3be59084f

“Didn’t you say 99031e324d your farewells earlier? They were 0b07f25259 quite touching. You should e29095ca00 have made f69c232867 them more 9cfdc53dda poignant since 5a55cdd804 you won’t 023bc56a9a see him e0a7fbadc8 again.”b538a9152bd1076e

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“What do you dd6e98c9ab mean, won’t see 79d7855d08 him? I plan to return e9db3b9afb to Ethan’s estate after 65508451b8 this meal.”be595c3366edb22c

“Who gave you permission? You won’t step 6a17e641d9 a foot outside 2d5111ddd8 the Imperial Palace.”e51b14cfcac21b56

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His words were 08fcb9e260 resolute.9e080e0f0656b682

“Why do you 7745709fd1 think I stopped 98245af4e3 at merely dismissing 5a155cbbbc Ethan? He should consider himself 1b600f9b65 lucky I didn’t punish ef86d9313a him more severely for 916a81df44 his insolence in front 3a817133d9 of his lord. I thought I was 3ca41dd787 being quite considerate, for 73a7d7b29b your sake.”35e584fb20ef4023

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He truly had cbc375b387 no intention of 9b2f47f2f8 letting me leave. The cold detachment 9396157b2e with which he ef1938e19c sent me to 98f8aff655 the villa was 5c5d2cac5f gone, replaced by e9cb3b0877 a determination to 8c4932f58b keep me in 3c1897f587 the palace. A sigh 0767eee83d escaped my 8a2f12009b lips.cf1b17aea72007b3

“Your Majesty, you d02e182767 can’t keep me 0c4676a781 here anymore.”0b84a0eb0cdb2d1e

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“Why not?”31aa1149badd9502

“You have no justification. What crime 1bc1c22a37 are you f61d808d28 going to a610c56591 accuse me 5d08169e39 of to b324aea864 keep me ae1d8ab878 in the 4c6736faa9 palace? Being deceived and becoming 61a1f31d50 your Mistress without knowing 3630313395 your grand plan? Or are you 179e943008 going to tell 02944bb389 the ministers that d247206f96 the blood bag b3fb8a0fa6 you bought dared 4c122c1051 to run away?”5f32eaf42a9bf734

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I spoke through gritted f42035a65b teeth, but Deon showed 2a0ff10065 no sign of backing ba26317e8c down.ed2621e3d90bef9b

“A crime? I’ve never accused 10346f9669 you of one, b9ccedaf70 so why are 58973bf827 you making yourself e89e9d64b5 out to be 4b224991da a criminal?”0b1cd05ccb677fd6

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“Then how 8ee9bd9537 do you 4f95e16d6f plan to ebf075ee7d keep me 181720fc0e here?”2ca4a4d666755896

There is only one 6acdebfca0 woman who can stay e692c7b621 beside an unmarried emperor. His Mistress. Only one 1e66a35f1c hypothesis came 01a627782d to mind.6f97552322967349

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But I was tired f051f07f4d of playing the role c29fca523e of a Mistress. I didn’t want 1ae7212bc3 to go back 4052dbd8ec to that.e567baf726f4bf8c

Staying in 3b9aff8190 the palace 02d2addc60 at his 9a6bc2966b whim until 3f383c0833 he no 66d71dda79 longer needed 33a8b5daa8 me, only d2f8b25e4f to be 78fcb21efd sent back 92730dae4c to the 7adedaf17b cold villa, c94c1d074e was a 992f0cc8e3 fate I 72570a83d7 wanted to 7eee4e52ee avoid.ee6e6d205110be19

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“I don’t want to 289f13a62b be a Mistress. Just make a ceb3a31b9c decision. There’s only one 5d5108ddce thing left to 84313c1832 do with me, e3c487c67b isn’t there? To kill me d48e2185b5 now that I’m f4b519f6a1 no longer useful 9fe466a55b as a blood bc0ef2cab5 bag. That’s the 8ee41a0cd2 fate of 05c98a3ba9 all blood 33d62d46d8 bags, isn’t 5b5a6c116d it?”0d67e011dfde2191

I finally voiced those 6d67f1286a words. I didn’t want 8683271dfa to see my f96255ffb0 life weighed on 6d3d42182a the scales of e7ca95a136 false hope.e85b88a0b13e906f

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Deon stared at e78ef0523d me, lips tightly 74c7d34fed pressed, before he ae8c961199 finally spoke.8b3ac7db782f6475

“…Leonie.”db6506f117e247ed

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He called me softly, 4a563a0a8a but even his gentle f278fe7139 tone didn’t soothe me.366af4295ac374f0

“Do what you e244f26725 will.”eee2deec427c25f8

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I’d rather efc95448c3 die than 8f5c77b447 live like d088d54915 this.2df490fbf005f50d

“No. There’s still one condition 9280f1a5a3 left.”0557822ef861078b

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His dark voice e52d1ed7cc resonated through the 0b9c9be31d hall.45bd3af59ea66edd

“Keeping you 8d1cd17854 by my 88120203c8 side until 67e0894a8a you die, 5ba3b3194b managing the 0ba6f1a1ea blood.”3517f7b25f841aa7

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I looked up. Deon’s lips were ef9aee1f29 curved into a 787b0379d8 cold smile.dee2e0116c60136f

It was an utterly 263186487a charming smile, but anyone f074eaa2e8 who had served closely f7936dc36c with Deon could easily 70d3f5652f tell it was not 5fb1819b5a genuine.be962972e2389ca6

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“So, are you saying 74879bd9c9 you intend to keep 2261a76591 me by your side cc7a9a7328 until I die?”5ca11625769bee3f

The hall was c8f44a4893 filled with a 4d3efedead chilling atmosphere. The oppressive feeling 517736b20c was overwhelming. Despite the goosebumps, I 817aa6c85b spoke firmly, refusing to c435d4f3c7 show my nervousness.9b1f2caa5cc32194

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“Your Majesty, I don’t e7a120968e understand why you want e9cf0475f0 to keep me bound 44dd22e0c5 here. Surely you don’t 7630514c0a need me anymore.”54e7d223e187c68e

What use 2f6bf10907 was there 253b67aad9 in displaying 2c1990753e a devalued 0f95508489 item? I couldn’t 246e49389f fathom why 19ff1abdd8 he insisted 10a5974e7a on confining d2f5812167 me within 7b9ba41bd3 his collection.96d227445b84c4f5

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“I intended 29c6c5458e to keep 964de96179 you as c95d345b37 a guest 150afa609a of the c3b594de4b palace. If you 7752020731 dislike that, 493980351c and you 9610c5d6a0 can only 59cd2ef883 remain by 66b3d42f61 my side 7cbfa0fe7e as a 405a05339e blood bag, 55f923f8fb then so a1e4890ca2 be it.”1398842413ed4ec7

Deon seemed more 6a8139d73b irritated than usual. It felt like 0c8ff42eca there was another 04f0700e45 reason, beyond my d9797b582c escape, that had 8566a7eedc wounded his pride. His insistence on keeping 975549f2c0 me close seemed more 57ce14ef10 a matter of his 0bb560e36f ego.1f21120ddcf535c6

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Wouldn’t it be 17ef39a98c easier to just 3437b529f2 eliminate me? Removing all obstacles and fff100dea5 vulnerabilities would surely smooth 2798d2d0de his path.bab2177fc277021f

“I’m sure a98f15d000 I said…I bd0fef08f2 don’t want 384fe91066 to be 4135a8f6ad your Mistress.”de0f9d7439995d77

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“Mistress?”30ad988d254366b3

“The only e3938fdeba women who 93fd727682 can stay c1b830c2e5 in the 2152aa7d57 palace are 17f4074ab9 the Empress f0527474c6 or Mistresss.”589153d46e5f0297

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Deon ignored my f65f69bdbc words, as if 000cd902fc he hadn’t heard 8569072628 a single thing a4fbabc5f6 I said.6f0a97c021c6f798

Suppressing my anger, I 52c1bcdbe1 responded, and he casually d6ea0879b0 replied.0896093923fccd13

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“Who said I’d ef3d53789f make you a b5918a8ef9 Mistress?”a01578785af241b8

Then Deon proposed 107abb7c86 something utterly absurd.e9a154ff42688fc2

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“If you’re cde066ffc2 worried about 539349ee63 rumors, then b8aa1b30d9 let’s marry.”a284f7e6053c4360

“…To whom?”d76577004f22f541

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“To me.”b9cf5ee1120beeec

I was 6ecf59b44e struck speechless. This time, edc0051e6e it was 6e8ead795e hard to 6598f0a44f keep my 3a692679f3 composure.8734c4837e030cae

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I couldn’t a6d7231f33 close my feff892580 gaping mouth.e4478ea0fb237c9d

“Don’t I 698bcb7c12 have a 4a540f1ecc say in 9a3690da7b this? I want b178429593 to live 935f50879a a normal bdd2dbeff3 life. A simple, loving household. What if a0b92472dd I want 2fe9e28fb7 to marry 34bb30edf4 another man?”014f4e5307c6a743

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For a e068ece97d moment, his 4242e7be62 eyes twitched. But soon, 5c3751e99a he returned f6200c199a to his a499091e77 calm demeanor 320e8b616d as if cf97893307 he hadn’t 8ddf1682f3 heard a 3d56ca69a5 word.9371fbb18cf40192

“If you e189cb53f9 want to, a20bae4142 go ahead. Have children 5d82ab4055 too, if a0b1a2f723 you wish. But do 60d36398a1 it by 7520ed9aae my side.”70e1292112c8a25d

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“Are you saying da9adcc752 you’d keep a 50883b69d8 woman with another 82cf969fcb man’s child by da0cd6b9fd your side?”37b22f999bc9f182

“If that’s 5e02230820 what it a69707dace takes to d8338f2e4e keep you 477a2ed703 with me.”01b9eea494309d9b

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His resolve 75ec2d702a was strangely 13789d2b10 unwavering.936553222bdd0a1f

In the end, 150f88e115 I had no 3c6e763b56 choice but to 6452d462be face the options fcf369ce34 he laid before d90015ba62 me. Just as I did e44b902360 when I chose a d32571803f card in the cold 8ba3b876cc office in the North.d8d4b6f60c82d815

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Marriage or death. Such starkly contrasting 6d5647a16e choices left me 300c8e384b speechless.1e74639d19996785

Deon calmly proposed marriage 14cbb6bed3 in front of the d6f095cc95 cold food. It was a conversation e964754a39 that didn’t fit the 225cac8178 dining setting at all.96c10ef44403cea5

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“Why are 01f814ba92 you suddenly 764239e578 proposing marriage?”98db91e118143ad9

“Didn’t you 63a6294a26 say you adb73f53a9 needed to 303a013736 get married 0ecadd8190 quickly when dcfb3a7fbf we were 38ae29ebd4 in the a2cf1769b0 North?”447ea2bbb5beb44a

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That had been true. But it was b0d517691c a condition I 71ac45abf8 set to ensure 716438fe70 my escape after 7b65226985 giving birth to 5627906e8f the next generation fe17625cbf of blood. It wasn’t because I 760479e289 truly wanted to be 299f5d0428 his wife.5765f50ab808460f

Reflecting on da5f676512 Deon’s words, ee4e1bdee7 I couldn’t 8e57657719 help but 3300c109da laugh. His eyebrows rose at dae9452bb9 my reaction.e30537245e6e0354

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“But here’s the e8bda218bc problem. Back then, 82e4b09d2a I wanted 6da28631d0 to be 35d21a9867 a duchess, 8a670a5da2 not an 073e6e3032 empress.”0d1d89d33afaf5c1

I clenched f38a2d5d14 my fists 02df0e4d5f on the b80dc7da5b table. I didn’t 8444f84bd2 want to d1886787fa hide my 7b3e9229bb boiling emotions, ffa03bf07f even in 89b6a7570b front of 787c60c072 the emperor.2bc993ff9ebd2a1e

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“Besides, I heard there’s 92651f4a55 already a woman lined a47597f1cc up to be the 50af9b8a8d next empress. Rumor has it that b8ac598835 she’s to be the a5dd5a851c empress. Were you not planning ddba60b5e4 to make her the a779bd5538 empress?”d01467bfa5e9878b

Deon rubbed his d79d65b603 forehead. His dry hands revealed 6ba6c61415 prominent knuckles.5226ef7d37613fab

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“There were circumstances 5350e807a8 with that woman… 5b06cbb75f I’ll be sending e6274a89a1 her away soon.”b48bf4f3dabef393

Another woman swayed 15ae428b1e by Deon’s fickle 13f2a7e6d4 heart. I couldn’t help a7f43bfc92 but smile bitterly.72e47870b89c25b9

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“To you, 87b4b27e4e women must 3d781d553f be trivial. You easily discard 72f264d94f Lady Isella and 7d471205ec now the next b86325b754 empress as well.”5e81dbbec9cd8cae

“They were necessary. But now…”aac8e2225fc0952f

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He looked f2a50d83ce at me 3c4f38d896 intently.537c049046a76ef2

“Now, I have f30bd17624 you, Leonie.”4fe6ccc32e4ef45f

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Our eyes met. Sitting far apart, a57232fff9 it was difficult bd2b1a4089 to read the ef2be97b32 emotions on his 60f7369dd7 face.c57631d6401381ac

Deon’s thoughts remained an 5c61e7568c enigma to me. Even though 0a6d76719b he had 1d565ab390 ascended to b9b07a4ef7 the throne, 5f8f475b92 he neither 07c0efabe1 killed me aa4c5e7946 nor let 4c8dd6affb me go.1f4837253eaff8f8

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“Once we de1ae6b609 get married, b78b3fabd2 divorce will 6080897025 be nearly 55dd21fada impossible. Don’t create c6f710f1bb unnecessary trouble 459b2467b2 and just 68b1a578fd let me 74d0091931 go. You should marry an ceb5ea483d empress or queen from 6334b00ff8 a powerful family to abd62310a6 solidify your position.”3de05dc5ff19df8e

Despite my reasoning, he 0c61280660 seemed resolute in his b626fb5c1e decision.bc8ac9411c9235c1

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“Feel free to e0932275f7 be stubborn, but 4c322c8370 it’s best if 6492768abe you choose one 5410553806 of the two 0fae6d027a options soon.”e042edb319f71caf

Although he 9f34a36ccc didn’t spell cfb955da51 it out, 0b5c6550ab I knew 5ecefdf1d9 what he bd24abe35f meant.b3012068ddd10f7d

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Death as 0ce23b8728 a blood 42c0db70c1 bag or c526ec7bd8 marriage.27af96f33275141a

Even his bd68e58e69 proposal was 726138d644 as ruthless b901585306 as he 566f18626b was. Shouldn’t a proposal 98f2de0722 be filled with e57c51dd70 sweet words about 835954fd17 wanting to spend 3f490a0c12 a lifetime together fb5492f495 or expressing love?3cf453ed08e42afc

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His proposal was bb35229389 more of a 0b19b812a8 threat.8fdce629ae0d8a37

The table 89cf7f5978 filled with 49ea3080a3 my favorite 771d954f61 dishes. As far as last 23f73deb13 meals go, it was fe0f5458d0 quite a decent one.d02e239b6a743c8f

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I wiped my 0903b3f603 lips with a b3054fd405 napkin. I was about 3f6ce8738a to speak some 2398f61d97 harsh words and cade9125b4 wanted my mouth 84b6a56aba to be clean d4438a4260 for it.81ad703cad3a6276

“How romantic. Should I 306034288b give you d20bbdc413 my answer f979bcccc8 now?”da8fd6a600168c33

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I infused my words 360ccd7761 with sarcasm, mocking him.d2327f7d9270d250

“No. I’ll wait 3bd6b4bda2 for your 1f498e9067 answer.”0620053e9aa070a4

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Deon anticipated my e530f40453 response and cut 143a5eb5dc me off. Then he called a592a0f652 in the servants 3de6ded6c7 so that I 7de9ad91ac couldn’t retract my 17e19bd964 statement.c0580674b8dc1f88

Soon, maids entered 617036ec6a to clear the dfad15d278 table. Their movements 823df841b5 were slow, 3122de73fb likely out 1901fe6dca of fear 9290247b34 of disturbing 7ab270c089 the heavy 0e00412d99 atmosphere. They seemed f7be94f7cc to worry 268dfc2806 that any bb93005030 noise might c34d755f11 upset the df90b3ed36 delicate mood.50c192debbd2f906

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With people around, 5d0426961d I couldn’t raise 0a6c0a856d my voice or 02bd122b64 question the proposal.d2a301fd68e5eb6b

A headache began 28d62e8359 to throb. Neither the proposer nor a900d64e8f the proposee seemed pleased 72c1da554f with the situation.cd4a825e519baab1

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In the b808683f97 end, I 481843473e asked him 4ab3bc4f02 a question.b7798be4ba12eb03

“Deon, why do you 7f23e3298e need me? Do you 7f4a5dcadb still need 02acd61847 my blood?”2bb3ca270257fc0c

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He was already e1ea9af9fe emperor. What more could he 6d80b8b832 want?1935e16a8d6b5cc6

“Do you still 3f1ef9dfb0 desire to wage 64a86ce042 wars of conquest?”35c42a2e0dcc3865

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Deon rose from f3cbd373ed his seat and 229433fcc4 approached me. My body flinched 58a2a3fe68 involuntarily.3832444e1748a830

His movements d2509123d5 were minimal, 63f6c602eb but each ae173ab058 step was aa2d92e75e enough to f18cd158fc make everyone f16db119d3 around feel 92d6a5095f intimidated.bc825d673bca789a

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He gently ecad210495 cupped my f8c009dde3 cheek and 3002d932da stroked it 07887b6481 tenderly.7ed4b9fcbcc71ec9

“No. I just 82ab61a232 need you.”2e7af227f591f9d5

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His voice was soaked e192a3e401 with emotion.c55beec90effc376

Our eyes met. Up close, I noticed c53f970068 his eyes were rimmed 646b9ea62f with red, a detail 6de3059233 I hadn’t seen from 2662f9a57a afar. It almost e5009c88ad seemed like 42d328ac54 the redness b41d83ff82 of the 8e3a38eb53 dining utensils ce0ad359ca was reflected 5ae2882de1 in his c1de5438fe clear skin.3f5fbb3784623a3d

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What I had thought b7e04d99d3 were piercing eyes were fb3886a89d now softened as they b9bac6e920 looked at me.87d7a7deecf5f433

His unexpected action 358abb1e45 left me rigid.ae291461473098df

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The fork I held 3fd81801a1 dropped with a dull 40c0368c3b metallic clang.2f64e30275ccf123

But neither of us f9add29b9c paid attention to the 073f51eb93 sound. His touch e097c5f77e conveyed a 0029eb52f3 deep longing 701ac46d10 and desire.df1be9742ee3749d

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He began to 06e7ff6b4b speak while caressing c87e1c91d5 my cheek.fb3041113d1e00a3

“Leonie, I can’t 99d71b4062 afford to lose 3170963bc5 you again.”e31b0a83cd03e332

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He stared intently at 63f584c357 me.5cf2907b3bd1515f

A chilling silence dc6a690fdc enveloped the hall. I didn’t respond, 92ec13aece but he continued.14fe9e02b68e8257

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“If living with me 2f293fb93b feels like a prison…”96df9c0ac57082d3

He paused, 080fd6a692 taking a 4e1594bd39 breath, then ab0059c987 spoke again.a3c3e7a12d2124a2

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“Then just live a8444f8f43 in prison with ad8893d13c me.”3ef4b114f7870c45

With that, he 6a616c16d6 withdrew his hand.e04a3a1341f18bb4

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“The lady’s e7086dcff6 hand is 0c583e9169 injured. Call the c3ad2e7af3 royal physician 20cc02c59f and guide 9465536462 her.”a02b9e5528ffd250

He directed the c593a87261 nearby servant in 78098f6e92 a low voice.e37938cf6f591ae2

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“I’ll leave you 3360456387 alone so you 835ef65a50 can eat in 5ec29423a3 peace.”d572c8a9f4c780a8

With those 1bdd63aad1 words, he 80b50a45b7 left the db7492eac3 room. His jet-black hair fluttered ac4a317bad as he walked away.db874d56a9ee9fbb

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