When he entered the corridor where the guest room was, he deliberately made noise as he walked.
“Hmm. Hmm.”
Not content with just making the sound of footsteps, he also cleared his throat before knocking.
He hoped El wouldn’t be startled.
Coincidentally, at that moment, thunder shook the foundation again.
“Ugh.”
Whether she had thrown the blanket over herself or not, a dull moan was heard.
Lapellian quickly knocked and called El.
“El.”
His voice, heavier than usual, penetrated the door.
From within, along with the sound of rustling and something hurting, was heard.
‘Did she fall? Did she trip?’
He wanted to check inside, but Lapellian could not readily open the door.
It was uncomfortable to just enter the room of a seventeenyearold girl.
He waited patiently for the door to open.
Soon the creamcolored door, consumed by darkness and electric light, opened a crack.
“Hello…….”
Roar! Bang!
“Agh!”
El, who tried to politely greet Lapellian standing at the door even in this situation, jumped at the striking thunder again.
But she couldn’t even properly scream.
El, as if she had an obsession with not moaning or screaming, clenched her mouth and tightened her entire body.
“The sky is being too much, huh?”
Seeing her like that, Lapellian threw a light joke to ease the tension.
El, who was not in her right mind, just nodded without really hearing what he was saying.
‘She must be dizzy.’
Sure enough, as he thought, El staggered.
He instinctively chuckled and caught El’s trembling shoulder.
“May I come in for a moment?”
This time too, El did not answer with words but tried to nod her head.
Lapellian stopped her, and El, still covering her mouth with her hand, took a few steps back.
Lapellian stepped into the room, illuminated by sharp lightning.
“I, I was too noisy. Sorry, ah! For that.”
El was scared not only by the thunder but also by the lightning brightening the sky.
This time, El, unable to cover her mouth, glanced at Lapellian.
“My siblings were also scared.”
“Really?”
El, who had been trembling, looked up at him with wide eyes, as if she had heard good news.
“It’s okay to be scared. What can you do about being scared?”
Lapellian said lightly, as if it was not a big deal, and gently stroked El’s head.
‘It’s okay to be scared……ah.’
El had lived receiving scolding and ridicule from people just because she was scared of thunder and lightning on rainy days.
Living among those people and hearing such kind words, her eyes warmed.
“Thank you.”
El bowed her head with a big comfort to him.
Lapellian wondered if this was something to be grateful for, but he didn’t say any more.
“You should sleep.”
“Yes, I should.”
Lapellian muttered to himself as he looked at the bed.
It was a quiet sound, but El responded with a voice mixed with awkwardness and difficulty to his words.
‘What to do.’
Lapellian had come to find her, feeling responsible for bringing her here as she seemed scared, but he was a little puzzled.
How to get through this night was a big concern.
‘Briel and Riel sleep together in one bed…….’
Although planning to live together in one house, it was different from blood relatives.
If she were a younger child, about six or seven, it would have been a different matter, but this was not the case.
Although El’s appearance still looked young, she was actually a lady, so Lapellian was cautious in his actions.
“Shall we lie down on the bed first?”
“Yes.”
Lapellian asked, putting on the kindest face he could.
El answered immediately, but she didn’t move right away.
In the deep night, loud sounds and dazzling lights had scared El too much.
Lapellian lowered his posture toward the hesitating El.
“Can I hold you?”
“Yes?”
“I’ll carry you.”
“Ah…….”
At times like this, someone’s warmth was the most urgently needed thing.
But El didn’t even know that such a thing would be needed and helpful at this moment.
Because of this, such consideration made her hesitate to respond.
“If you don’t like it, you can hold my hand.”
Lapellian reached out his hand to El.
A beautiful hand was placed before the scared girl’s eyes.
Again, a flash, lightning drove away the darkness, heralding thunder.
Terribly, El, who disliked thunder and lightning, ran into his arms instead of his hand.
Lapellian gently picked up El and headed towards the bed.
He patted El’s back as she buried her head in his shoulder and gently laid her on the cozy bed.
El’s eyes, as she lay on the bed, trembled with fear.
He brought a chair and sat by the bedside, reaching out his hand.
“Holding hands would be nice.”
The hand that had been tightly clutching the blanket hesitantly grabbed him.
The frightened, cold hand was pitiable.
“What story shall I tell you?”
“Yes?”
“My younger siblings used to fall asleep when they heard old stories.”
“Will you…… stay with me?”
“It was me who brought you here, so it must also be me to take responsibility for you.”
“…….”
“I’ll stay until you fall asleep.”
As if to say he wouldn’t let go of the hand he had taken, Lapellian gently but firmly grasped El’s hand.
“If you can’t sleep, Your Grace…….”
“It’s not time for me to sleep yet. Don’t worry and be at ease.”
Flash! Rumble. Bang! Roar.
New thunder and lightning gathered above their heads.
El hesitated to respond, then quickly nodded her head.
A faint smile played at the corners of Lapellian’s mouth, as he brought to his lips one by one the stories he had told Briel and Riel.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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