I Slept with the Villain Holding My Hand Chapter 108 - Their Thoughts

 

The morning air was crisp as Lilith plopped down onto her seat with a sigh.  

 

“Why is she acting like this?” 

 

Lexie muttered under her breath while organizing Merria’s belongings. 

 

“She took one look at me, decided she didn’t like my outfit, and just… flopped back into bed. Maybe she noticed I used more hairpins than usual…”  

 

Of course, Lilith and Lexie both knew that wasn’t the real reason. But it wasn’t Lexie’s place to say anything, so they danced around the truth with half-hearted conversation.  

 

Merria, who appeared to be sleeping peacefully without a trace of illness, had—according to Lexie—vehemently insisted on playing the patient. 

 

Lexie, ever the dutiful attendant, had no choice but to humor her.  

 

By the time Serinia returned from her morning stroll with Miles, Lilith had already been unceremoniously dismissed by the knight and found herself hunting with Jeffrey instead.  

 

‘Hmm.’  

 

Lilith’s lips twitched in amusement as she watched Reukis Frederick’s exaggerated reaction to the news of Merria’s ‘illness.’  

 

“I stopped by earlier,” she said lightly, shrugging. 

 

“Since Serinia seemed interested in hunting last time, I thought I’d invite her. But when I got there, Merria refused to get out of bed.”  

 

To Lilith, Merria looked anything but sick. 

 

And yet, the Grand Duke—completely oblivious—seemed genuinely distressed.  

 

‘If this is just a lovestruck act, I’ll play along.’  

 

Misinterpreting the dynamic between Reukis’ panic and Merria’s feigned illness, Lilith lowered her eyes sympathetically.  

 

“The Duke left early for state affairs, Serinia is off with her aunt at some tea gathering… Poor Merria, all alone in the tent, suffering.”  

 

“I’ll go check on her immediately. Something urgent came up.”  

 

Without waiting for a response, Reukis gave a curt nod of thanks and vanished like the wind, leaving Lilith and Jeffrey blinking in stunned silence.  

 

“Merria really is something else…” Lilith muttered under her breath.  

 

Jeffrey burst into laughter. 

 

“This is my first time seeing the Grand Duke up close, but he’s nothing like the rumors.”  

 

“Agreed.” 

 

Lilith smirked.  

 

💫

 

Reukis rushed back to the encampment in a frenzy. 

 

The servants startled at his abrupt return, but he paid them no mind, tossing off his coat and barking orders at Jaina—medicine, sweet drinks, warm soup, anything to soothe an ailing lover.  

 

He scrubbed himself down with perfumed soap in record time, as if washing away the morning’s hunt would erase his guilt for not noticing sooner.  

 

‘She must be alone right now.’  

 

His chest tightened at the thought.  

 

Her friends were occupied—one hunting, the other playing the part of future Crown Princess. 

 

And with her family gone, Merria would be by herself, likely sulking.  

 

‘I should’ve realized. I should’ve—’  

 

His fists clenched. Just as he finished dressing, a faint tremor rippled beneath his feet.  

 

Then—chaos.  

 

The distant blare of a warning horn pierced the air, followed by the clamor of shouting guards. 

 

The signal for an emergency.  

 

Reukis snatched up his sword, his momentary panic for Merria shoved aside as Kalix burst in, breathless.  

 

“Your Grace!”  

 

The Altheon’s captain had returned. Duty called.  

 

“Report.”  

 

Kalix straightened, “An ambush targeting the Crown Prince—and an explosion of unknown origin deep in the woods. Five assassins confirmed, three dead in combat. The rest are being pursued.”  

 

“An explosion?”  

 

“Yes. Even the attackers seemed caught off guard, so it may have been an accident or a third party’s doing. But…” Kalix hesitated, then forced the words out.  

 

“His Highness Altheon… and His Majesty the Emperor were caught in the blast.”  

 

Silence—  

 

The tremor they’d felt—if it reached ‘here’, the devastation at the epicenter must have been catastrophic.  

 

Reukis exhaled sharply. 

 

“I’ll go to His Highness. You stay here and monitor the situation. Keep this contained.”  

 

“Understood.”  

 

As Kalix bowed, Reukis turned on his heel, his mind already racing—toward duty, toward danger.  

 

And, though he couldn’t admit it, toward the woman he’d left waiting.

 

Just moments ago, what awaited Altheon as he ventured deep into the woods for the hunt was not prey—but the Emperor.  

 

When he met the Emperor’s piercing gaze, he nearly lost control of his expression—something utterly unlike him.  

 

But now that their eyes had met, he couldn’t pretend not to see him.  

 

Wearing the face of the Crown Prince, Altheon approached Aprion.  

 

“Your Majesty.”  

 

At his call, Aprion glanced over. In his unblemished hands was an unfamiliar bow and arrow—an odd sight. 

 

The more Altheon saw, the more questions arose.  

 

“What brings you this far?”  

 

At Altheon’s question, Aprion awkwardly handed the bow to Rupert, who stood beside him.  

 

“Hunting.”  

 

The curt reply made Altheon raise an eyebrow.  

 

‘The Emperor? Hunting? Why?’  

 

Though the question lingered in his mind, he wasn’t naive enough to voice it.  

 

“I see.”  

 

He nodded as if to say he wouldn’t pry further.

 

But the Emperor didn’t seem satisfied with that. He spoke again, unprompted.  

 

“The Imperial Consort wanted a silver fox.”  

 

“…?”  

 

“She insisted that even if I promised to get her one, she’d prefer it if I caught it myself.”  

 

Aprion smiled faintly, recalling Helena from last night.  

 

But Altheon, watching him, couldn’t bring himself to mirror that smile.  

 

“…”  

 

‘What does he want me to say?’ 

 

Altheon felt more than just confusion—he was baffled.  

 

In his memories, Aprion was neither a father nor an emperor—just a foolish man entangled in affairs.  

 

When Altheon was born as the first prince, Aprion had been too busy comforting his anxious consort to seek out him or his mother.  

 

Only when Helena became pregnant did that farce finally stop.  

 

As Altheon grew, his mother seemed to regain her smile—but he saw it clearly.  

 

The sorrow in her eyes as she gazed out the window.  

 

And when he grew tall enough, he realized—Her gaze always lingered on the glass greenhouse where Aprion and Helena often took tea.  

 

Christine, bound to the empire by nothing but the title of Empress, lived a lonely life.  

 

And before her heart could find solace, her short life came to an end.  

 

Even on the day of the Empress’s funeral, Altheon had watched as the Emperor visited the consort’s chambers.  

 

‘Is this truly the ruler of an empire?’

 

A man drowning in love and pity, flailing like a fool—he looked more pathetic than a commoner in the streets.  

 

That was Aprion.  

 

A man unfit to be emperor, who ruined the lives of two women.  

 

Altheon stared at him with indifferent eyes. This was nothing but a waste of time.  

 

Just as he was about to leave—  

 

— “Your Highness!”

 

One of his knights drew his sword with a sharp cry.  

 

Masked men appeared in an instant, launching their attack.  

 

Clang—!

 

The sound of clashing steel echoed through the woods.  

 

Elexis guarded the Emperor while the Knights of Altheros and the Crown Prince dealt with the assassins.  

 

Altheon and his knights were strong.  

 

They held the attackers at bay, ensuring not even a drop of blood reached the Emperor.  

 

But in their focus on the enemy, they failed to notice where they were being led—  

 

The moment Altheon stepped on a certain spot—  

 

Boom!

 

A hidden magic circle erupted beneath them, unleashing a massive explosion.  

 

Burnt leaves turned to ash, obscuring their vision, and flames swelled as if to devour the forest.  

 

In the heart of the inferno, Altheon had to stop mid-swing.  

 

The blue sky was swallowed by black smoke rising from the ground.  

 

Amid the crimson waves, Altheon stood tall, encased in a pale light.  

 

Woosh—

 

As the flames weakened, so did the barrier surrounding him.  

 

When he raised his hand to touch it, the bracelet Karina had given him clinked softly beneath his scorched sleeve.  

 

The gem embedded in it had lost its glow, cracked—as if it had exhausted its power.  

 

— “I asked for a protection spell to be placed on it.”  

 

— “Please don’t get hurt.” 

 

— “Your Highness.” 

 

The memory of his last meal with Karina surfaced.  

 

‘She protected me.’  

 

“Hah.”  

 

Realizing that, he felt an inexplicable sorrow. It truly sank in—just how much danger he was always in.  

 

His ears, still ringing from the explosion, slowly began to recover.  

 

— “Crown Prince!”

 

At the distant call, Altheon blankly turned his gaze.  

 

One of his knights, his arm blackened by burns, was rushing toward him.  

 

As Altheon watched, a faint, crumbling voice made him look back.  

 

Rupert, the captain of Elexis’s knights, was kneeling before someone, his eyes trembling.  

 

“Your Majesty…”  

 

Even he seemed unable to stand, his usual stern demeanor gone.  

 

Following Rupert’s gaze, Altheon’s violet eyes slowly shifted— And then widened.  

 

A figure lay collapsed on the charred grass.  

 

Strands of golden hair, stark against the blackened earth, were strewn across the ground.