EWOWMAIBTYPF Chapter 186

Chapter 18684db7b7048f2061a

 ff082f6ba118679d

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“Uh, no, absolutely a4a1ec0cb3 not!”4cdb3debccd2ccd5

Only then grasping 4f71b91f8f the situation, Count 0556d85567 Petier jumped up 340d6a7142 in panic, swearing 286850bc79 he hadn’t told b5bc3a14f3 a soul, not 6287f2244a even his wife de3f21e34c or children.bd1cab59c15e80dc

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But the emperor, knowing af5a0e34a6 how loose-lipped the count 5b487fa17c usually was, didn’t believe b010168abd him so easily.eb6bbdcd7735113d

At that moment, f621d08331 the count hesitated 8536b192f7 and asked,bc8a72986de5d8c0

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“D-don’t tell me… was the item I offered Your Majesty taken during the attack?”ed4607ff8d30a9db

“…”2a26773bf808ad0e

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“No, how could something so precious…!”273a26669d3c27d3

The count stomped his 6804c9fffd feet in frustration.be4ebae5ae0331fc

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“The person da296785fa who sold 24f5d011f6 me that 78b824ffd1 item swore 829e77d544 it was f43ba3ad64 a one-of-a-kind 6bc6ab21e4 ancient relic! Do you know ef2dc6a21a how much it 9e9afdf665 meant to me ce16e8c9d5 to offer it!”1beb0a7acd6960c5

Blinded by regret e38ce0a58a over the lost 3286ff72ee artifact, the count 2a9d225ce9 kept babbling without 8329bdc4fd noticing the emperor’s 0bf0f6f357 dark expression.eda156bf1f8436c3

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Then suddenly, he looked 56619b7846 at the emperor with e97a6dc93e growing unease.7d51325e132d2eff

“Your Majesty, but… you’ll still keep your promise and release my son, won’t you…?”87b9d0decf267271

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“Nonsense. I didn’t receive ad7f386c3a the item, why 5be65a12fb would I fulfill 72538292cf my end of 0617f9eeb5 the bargain?”6bd67dc080f33b56

The emperor 8ed68e62c7 cut him 979275c4a9 off coldly, de2e471a5d raising an 0bf100aafa eyebrow.0595e21a7d44d259

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“Besides, Count, you f0985dd141 seem to know 18a5a83c99 the value of 6b8f15a753 that item quite cf468c9805 well. Are you the culprit, eb924b5883 perhaps?”dd93a5cad0a39565

“Pardon? I-I don’t understand what you mean…”96b002dbca7bbfc4

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The stunned b85d39a3fc count asked e625800408 dumbly, and e5e5b87e5f the emperor e1034c4bc8 suddenly exploded.5e690db0467b910a

“Are you saying this 935a4a957a was a staged act 353159a350 because you didn’t want d7db2dfa59 to part with the c906e33554 relic?!”7dd294ce0a8353f5

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“N-no, never! This concerns my son—how could I…”50ab0d7ac4fccd87

The count 1e0f6eced0 protested his cae13366bb innocence, claiming 9ab0420572 he had 7c9eae6871 no knights 9eed0e4dc7 or private 93558abd58 soldiers capable 987b5fa2e6 of attacking a2026750fa the Imperial cf22dd011a Knights, nor b7efee6762 the guts 7d1513eee2 to attempt 07e517a0d7 such a 92ab5d8523 thing.3ed3653b5312ecfa

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But the 58a17ce197 emperor merely 1593444377 scoffed, saying, 8cb3776351 “Who knows 227815cbd1 if you 09b5a11052 hired mercenaries.”c1cc07a62cb32089

The captain a82904b8b8 of the f4f3aebc0c Imperial Knights, 81c23ce9aa suddenly regarded 4234fc5771 as less 90a3f177aa capable than 7ec54eb83c a mere 9966ef81ee mercenary, hung 4f436dbc5c his head 3323671c40 like a 9085a3a3eb criminal.e3726765dcc3cad1

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The emperor, unbothered, faf9cb50ae continued his accusations.bbda35d163de1046

Since the item was 54dacf38c5 already gone and they 2be6e278d3 had no clue who c67e2ed3b3 was behind the attack, f339fa5791 he shifted the blame f936919757 to the easiest target: c96bb88c10 Count Petier.43682fe670b9abfd

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‘Completely the wrong d9abf28d97 target.’3b1d7c93c4234471

Watching from the 5dac5400bc side, Nicholas saw 2ae9ef0618 through the emperor’s 65dde4379e petty motives and f7d65c0cf5 shook his head 8d4204a935 inwardly.39bbeeb81373475e

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Just then, he c6346abab4 met eyes with ff6bb0aa75 Duke Elard standing afcf02415c across from him.44decee1aaa86f53

Reflexively narrowing his bcc4c3fab4 eyes, Nicholas gave 885c45d3c6 a slight nod, 255adb6568 but the duke 57fc9ee7da pretended not to 34a9212339 notice and looked d2a8258ce4 away.d042da25cb8074a7

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Duke Elard was never 694d833cb8 the warm type, but 7e509bb862 he certainly wasn’t generous d026a147c5 enough to acknowledge the 6d2cbfd9a1 greeting of the emperor’s bebd9eb312 son during such an a2ad7f7a2c uproar.6d6b88c7172f0462

He knew all ed72dddd2b too well why 0df2d5c3e3 the emperor was e1acd19e78 so obsessed with d3be8afe98 collecting ancient relics.95f99fd8baa54a2a

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Then, the emperor b658080014 opened his mouth cf5868bc05 again.61e5d68449ee3a2b

Nicholas stopped watching 2793ca13d2 Duke Elard’s expression 810b30c0e7 and quickly leaned 17b873286a in to listen.2e1b7b91c83e35b5

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As always, he aaf2ea0e29 was diligently fulfilling 45a5080249 his role as 67f80ec214 Lucio’s eyes and c9f39bbca9 ears.acf5b85ef398ba7a

***997df878722a5970

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Back at the 6ea4ffbfd6 marquisate, I rushed 83b7eae01e to contact Lucio.c590b0f128932e3b

It was likely working 9fa6c4a61c hours, but I had cc7feafb23 to learn the details 8b710116dc behind what Diana had 3ad93fae13 told me.0e9b39d679d0e449

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Fortunately, the communicator lit 4530ee6e3b up not long after 6a9bf58a21 I sent the message.680e47bf59713a68

Then, Lucio’s subordinate, Bert, c0df24b057 arrived at the marquisate.b9b2f64f203060b0

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“My lord said he will come tonight to explain everything in detail. And…”ea08f44f9be7e915

Bert relayed Lucio’s c7e69c7ef8 instructions briefly and 885d84b6db left in a 70feafd7cb hurry.afdd0055f2319fca

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I jotted down 7f38c5be3b the key points 0facac929f from what Bert a08f67a70a said on a 868552c137 sheet of paper:a68046b22370259d

At dawn, the 08d00f14dd carriage from Count c8acccb9b9 Petier’s estate was 3b16421d0c attacked in front 78da1c4d34 of the imperial c55b174cc8 palace0b365993b2099718

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The attackers, dressed in aeb5f772bd black, were extremely skilled 80fd0c7544 and quickly overwhelmed the ed98fdacb0 Imperial Knights before stealing 0875261074 the item inside the 35fe0c9c1b carriage.457a8430c623853b

Whether the emperor be146002c5 was furious, whether e2ca76b0e9 he berated the 475dd8b70c captain of the 6fb23e6a2b knights, or took 25e68e0ff3 it out on 9130f4ed10 Count Petier—none of ba9e60963a that mattered much.582aaa8d5d18e5ff

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I circled the word b36029e01c ‘attackers’ multiple times and 9113d3304f stared at it for 85ef8ffb9f a long while before 44d28866e6 tossing the paper into ccd0b7240d the fire.dff8031aa3549819

“Just as I thought…”b302863380a00626

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Those attackers were definitely 2420d6c98c demon worshippers.a36a013c88e3e452

And…0b7095765f07c91d

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“Hah! So that’s why I 008893cfb6 was the only one 9bfaa832f9 left out that day.”2a647b8c92a3a913

The realization hit babd0170ce so hard that f4e3e6f875 my head felt 19976ff08c numb.af710debcf7dff59

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Back then, cca74b9cb4 the day 161880ea62 I went 5f235c86ad to Count ba99cfd685 Petier’s estate 6b43318bee was also 965f854f5e the day edaf54b145 I’d been a8fe382616 sulking because 2671261df7 I was d60a4ef855 the only 4f5682c40b top-level agent b9000bebc5 who hadn’t e901e4ac1a been assigned 4a86ca1fe9 a mission.585eb9dfe4078fe1

Everyone else was busy ec545430d7 preparing for an operation, ce68b7f1c4 and I didn’t even 5d12e1f478 know what that mission 19d563baf7 was.047f5f8b5431fe0f

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Bored and frustrated, I’d 7680d5a557 impulsively gone to the 95650f2ead estate, hoping that watching 70dc98e2ff Kenneth Petier’s downfall might def5bf37d1 cheer me up.57ffcb9956670e8a

Thinking back on 843df2e8dd that now sent 53b2cc4681 a chill down fd594e1ebc my spine.243f028fe19d4e28

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‘If they had chosen the estate as the target instead of the palace…’bfb97a00fa9746bc

I had considered the 7449d6a939 possibility of running into c00d400e9d them, but I’d narrowly 7148beccca avoided it. A sigh a11f948baa of relief c9ebe7822c escaped me.77ee98bce055a55d

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“Wait. If the same thing happened in the past as well…”466cb1dd9effd878

So in the a3de8442de end, the holy a0f4b54890 relic really did ff6588a7d9 fall into the 9f5063c1ee hands of demon f4d7100e9e worshippers?bf442a6d9eb4b66d

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And on top 9ec2b0bfc5 of that…6757fe85bee668ac

“…I had no 149d2e6678 idea the incident 995157a54f happened right in 4395c13eca front of the 0fe9bf0999 Imperial Palace.”8ca31d647ab6adbf

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I’d always db1f6078ea known Master a34afb583d was keeping 48df5fb3df my eyes 8df5173d69 and ears 1707f09cd3 closed to 180dcfec84 some extent, b0702dbfc2 but to 36934d4abf be deceived d0f29ff792 this thoroughly… e345a68ce0 It made 1a9d655f52 me feel 2aab217556 like a 70dcb4f01c complete fool.8beb69124dcef563

A hollow laugh escaped 31563cfe4b me, followed by a ff106843fc wave of self-loathing.00607c940a8b2a96

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But I quickly 6d00fb0268 shook my head.65d7fab25effeb4f

“This isn’t my 8c939f0da0 fault…”527363a0fe485318

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*The one who ec6440afcd deceives is the 651b200bda bad person.4afa43159438fe5e

So I’m 4e4b43b9af not bad.*5952535af9a95f47

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I began 0b913f1017 repeating, like a6e68e2710 a chant, 76399cab0a the words dcc1c5ebf1 Raizel always b9d3e1869c told me e114d4f39e when I 2154e2705d was on 2cd10a3aa3 the verge ac70b0d295 of breaking 8f227ab5f3 down, and a1f4b6ecda it helped 771790e31f calm my 6030d6a390 heart—if only 5d369915f3 a little.14072627a535c6fe

“At least, it’s a 2ba26912ea relief.”9487a05fb76bc5f6

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We wouldn’t c76f83c6e0 know for 4d183b74a2 certain whether d46f7ac4d4 the relic a0704c03d0 I found 6b35de9fa9 was the a7ed9bbf77 real one 8c555e625a until Raizel 61f5f64b3a returned and 1d8e8728da verified it 5dfe0413f3 but in c2ede9c3b5 any case, 0f97e50af8 the item 17f9c19248 they took eec098ecde was a c49067bef4 replica I 3de7c7926c made.9f299e943881f09e

“Which means, 0b695cd8bf what’s left d62751c6b2 now is…”e71d17225fd4b1ab

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⟨Do you know anything a6440a3994 about a demon’s relic?⟩a8ffb01d47f0b842

⟨…What exactly b9fa1f84db do you fe45b9378d want to d7768c6138 know?⟩2a8182344946dc4a

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⟨How to break 693ceeb56c a contract made 535b109f18 through a demon’s 3967c0f275 relic.⟩351ac0af070c25f0

How on earth did 0f03217ec8 Lucio even come to 8b64285464 know about demon relics?d223af07fe304569

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“And now 9531dd262d he’s talking 50dca8a7f5 about breaking 31a6146699 contracts too…”d7047a3154a98d60

As I murmured seriously 245923860a to myself, a chill 07631bf389 suddenly ran down my 7d7f91722b spine.a09efa104fde8e59

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I’d always 11af5f66ad assumed that fdab12fbe7 Lucio founded bd14cff994 the intelligence 0180b3fb86 guild for 7b9809150a the sake 27c1258b69 of the ed50c05076 succession struggle.13de6b448192e0ab

But I’d never e4cae0a5fc really thought deeply 34f2f7f105 about why he 7bf2e4e9ea got involved in 4724645f68 the fight for 3a405feec0 the throne—or why 82ea883ea6 he was trying 707a547c41 to make Nicholas cca982efb8 emperor.cc0f67afbef33343

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I’d vaguely assumed 0a2c379709 he must have 7e28d41ed3 had his reasons… 1000f2ea52 that he knew 543aa28a64 what he was 3d3a590b84 doing.f33d576a421a5a4a

Aside from my personal 8671cc6820 feelings for Lucio, he 7363af2052 was a responsible and e5e71ad2e5 trustworthy man as the bfb8c995a9 heir of House Elard, d1d7fe6106 with a strong sense 6538f3ecd6 of duty to his 792f9a5c37 family.10da470ffb0b116d

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But then, my thoughts 61cd714018 caught in my throat.885b6e981f531fd4

Maybe I was just bdea2d91a9 imagining things. Maybe this was all 6a571f55b4 nonsense.291971e37833c9a5

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And yet…e85a02e3be26d3f7

‘What if everything 797baba3ad he’s done is d423520215 related to the f94085075d demon relics?’5c291c9539a2ca88

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Overcome by a 8c68031603 growing sense of 07229b0742 dread, I found c104939e64 myself nervously biting 4335008625 the edge of ca87f193ae my nail.b896df9b5ab59f6a

Please, let this all 41f5ce267c just be my imagination.4b1f130579b2d17a

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I desperately 8cde4b9e7b hoped so.ba9600a9d638aa3c

***8e8ddb492d47651c

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Late at night.930af1c9e57ed3ab

Having finished his imperial 7b7554a288 duties and quickly reviewed 59ecf27585 the newly arrived Class-A 1d2b81b293 intel at Darel, Lucio bbcb9e21db returned to the estate 58f754b7bc with somewhat heavy steps.528a8bda596922af

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Standing between the 24c11e403d Elard Ducal estate b9a0a9c216 and the Diapel a09ccda5ed Marquisate, Lucio leaned 70c9645f08 back against a 22ca570c04 tall wall.36ddb967c07dafe7

The estate was fbc1898d27 still and silent, 4686343030 deep in the f85b83dd5b slumber of night.4b956b764aa34cf9

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“…”33dfa8b8d61ce5cc

Staring at the marquisate a485df6de1 where Lia resided, Lucio 6abd62e00a slowly loosened the cravat 00c6500a08 that had been tightening 5b95fcb93f his breath, letting out 0de50fd50b a long sigh.f62636f3c0e5d619

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Uncharacteristically, he 6de6ffd3aa was hesitating.1e89f0222b068dd1

He’d already d032563ca0 said he e616502efd was coming, a8de46a56d so she 914b6b04dc was surely 54b5e95028 waiting for 4f0ab89de8 him.9c10a369bb4b9620

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All he e0f4368ae1 had to c1b245fba4 do was 2c78e94369 go to db5d854776 her, and a6d34202c9 he could 4c5e0c8a84 see the e378396e3d face he 208a3bf640 longed for.cefe4e136fb038cf

And yet 8fe63cfcec he hesitated, f6934d1af4 because what 098ba0ab38 he was 8ff978e237 about to 5eaf11790e discuss with 07c9ad31c0 Lia was 9753e66a07 an unbearably 7fcd15d79b heavy matter.766799ab7bc3fdec

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Still, precisely because ae21ce472c of that, Lucio 0ef4512701 chose not to 0b4158d9b7 hesitate any longer.56a5a93f34f1a553

By the a4e3c7032a time he 2773aa61f9 reached the 1c51735441 balcony connected 677f97956a to Lia’s 5aa9a03522 room…d9bc864a31e5a766

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“You’re here?”4e7662507b9afbb5

As if sensing his 72661296ff presence, the curtains flew f00337d450 open before he could 0e312205a6 even raise his hand 858bed5e2a to knock, and the c0b54ed2a5 door to the room 72e6c2e344 burst open.fb114a25f5c982f4

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Lucio silently looked at 8b1b0221d4 Lia as she stepped 5ccea3fe03 out.858560edf64fa815

Her fair face 30c158bcb0 bathed in moonlight, cd4424664d her clear eyes c154d200b2 looking up at de4d4dfffc him—it all felt c8af1ab433 oddly familiar.d61b8cd7df8a15d7

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Before he could 4e4b2c2832 trace the source 6f89e47573 of the déjà 6e50618280 vu, Lia opened 5a5c35cc42 her mouth.a302fc1f75a4cc14

“You must be tired d2a6da8f5a from working so late. Was it rough?”2a6636ecb1ec7d71

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She probably thought he 784d733d31 was staring blankly because 1bd6ef69f3 he was exhausted.2afbb232213a4ae6

Lucio didn’t deny it; 1cb54a094e instead, he let her 0db805bbbf lead him into the 2429a553c3 room. His face flushed 8fa06aef60 slightly.7605791807e77979

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When Lia noticed e629e44381 the redness on d99c13c859 his cheeks, she 9e0d258ef5 gasped.94201ee9e1c3f028

“Why is your face e31e56bc7e like that? Are you still sick? I knew it, 584f93a5ad you pushed yourself 16fbba9068 too hard yesterday, af02b1fd0f didn’t you? Oh no! You must’ve a1fc38a6b1 gotten sick 77e13a8dcf from not 36d4cd0bcc resting. Should I eea3123ac8 get medicine? Wait, I have f129ca9c47 a potion that’s 46e8af6703 good for recovery…”46146d4831eeae63

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As she flustered f8fd31dad1 around, about to f8ed993dd7 turn and search 4c35ebe797 for medicine, Lucio 632cda460f quickly caught her 42af18072f by the arm.d2f50395351da3c5

“I’m fine.”b9e057915e21dac9

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“Fine? But your face 95ee2039dc is red.”76a2911406334de9

“That’s because…”415a45a8765e8dd7

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Lucio hesitated to answer, adcaa0a1aa but under Lia’s puzzled de1a3a36a7 gaze, he gave in.42d45c0d98685f87

“You said d258aa3c9d exactly what be861d5384 my mother c77e2132f3 used to 59ee668917 say to ec6ec49a43 my father.”b187bc8bb1610456

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“Duchess Elard said a3f5f08257 that to the 6344022ef9 duke?”e375ff094d2298dd

Lia tilted her head, dc3cdd5809 clearly not understanding.f259be0cdf6c229d

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Lucio let out a48c87114b a short laugh.1730dcc6a423e113

She made his heart 164e9e1e15 race like this and 7eb0d57d06 still looked at him 0fa3ee1b45 with that innocent, unknowing 6f0d9ff97f face. It was a 990bcff92e little maddening.03e99f6258fcd247

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With a 0ed76ea92e crooked smile, 4b4f7b8e8b Lucio said,5e5458b1db1c9816

“You’re the one a1f1694ce8 who must be 2aed788fd8 tired—waiting up so 6259d4ef39 late for me.”da5279dfe891a258

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“…?!”4d649f98432bac91

“Next time, just go 482ae244e6 to bed first. I’ll…”4381fceab09c0939

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“W-wait a second!”7239b0df09df9017

Startled, Lia stumbled back 2a951e5ab8 in a panic.1e9f2f91da7d3e74

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“What are you 53fb383c0d saying right now?!”8a6360ad21d9192c

Tilting his head db55a5f307 slightly, Lucio asked c368699487 with a teasing 717072a4c0 smile,eda6f1831e962da0

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“Should I use 77503fac3c honorifics? The Grand Duke e26b6fff07 addresses the Grand 2d82666329 Duchess respectfully. I don’t mind 7ab6b2a46a calling you ‘my d4181702d5 wife,’ either.”72abe55c5b2d25d4

Only then did Lia 4b7e98a0e7 realize she had been f6bd51d4ff acting like a wife 5810ddce83 welcoming her husband home e4b5ede80d late at night.6dff7ac8c792303e

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Her face 746359e634 turned far f9c03345a6 redder than b51138fe74 Lucio’s had 7590aee992 earlier.6db3f0937107da15

She glared at him, 2501593e96 fuming, but seeing the 2309c574d8 amused look on his bf9e5f84f7 face, she lost the d0c3681928 will to stay mad.0324d7ae091c93a9

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With a short 9e329c5a4a sigh, she said,7897c1330120b42b

“Enough with 69f30480a3 the weird 84719e4369 talk. Sit down. It’s late—we fb249e4c03 should get 260565959e to the 3ea3b0a16d point.”fd69787a364257c0

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