How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love Chapter 100

[To Noah]

 

Surprisingly, that was all that was written on the crumpled paper. 

 

“Nell!”

 

At the same time, the crumpled paper in my hand tore. He tried to take the paper out of my hand but couldn’t control his strength. 

 

Leonhard looked in vain as he looked at the scrap of paper left in his hand.

 

Then he dropped his shoulders like a puppy caught in the rain and retrieved the tattered piece of paper from my hand.

 

“You saw it…Did you?”

 

“Yes. You should have written more, at least you should have said one word to Noah. No, why did you scribble that? You were trying to write a letter to Noah, but you didn’t want to write?”

 

“It’s not like that.… I just thought it seemed too heartless to write just one word.” 

 

“You thought he would care about that?”

 

Anyway, thanks to this, I was able to realize why Leonhard didn’t reply.

 

He must have been bothered by the fact that I accused him of being an indifferent father who had never written a letter to Noah.

 

So, I guess he wanted to write a letter to Noah and enclose it.… But the only thing he has written and erased so far is Noah’s name.

 

As if filling the trash can wasn’t enough, I stuck out my tongue as I looked at the wads of paper rolling around on the floor.

 

“Is it okay to waste paper just because you’re a Marquis?”

 

“I didn’t waste public money because I bought it with my own money.”

 

“I guess I haven’t realized that I have a wife yet. No matter how much you have, I will nag you if you use it carelessly, so don’t waste your money. Okay?” 

 

“I will listen carefully.”

 

“great. Since today is your first time, I will stop nagging you and help you stop wasting money. Why was it so difficult that you were throwing away so much paper?”

 

When I asked him as he picked up each wad of paper that had fallen on the floor, he seemed afraid that I would open it again.

 

Leonhard wrapped his arms around me and sat me down on a chair in the corner of his office and started cleaning the floor.

 

He squeezed the wad of paper piled in the trash can with his hands and answered belatedly and hesitantly.

 

“I’m ashamed to say…. I guess I’m not worthy of raising a child, as you said. I decided to write a letter to my son, and when I put the pen in my hand, my mind went surprisingly blank.”

 

“You are certainly an indifferent father, but there is still room for improvement. You are not wrong with the spelling of your son’s name. I thought you were a terrible person, but I guess you were a less terrible person than I thought. Was it comforting?”

 

“Yes…”

 

I giggled as I saw Leonhard nodding his head. And then I tapped the seat next to me with my hand.

 

“Come and sit down. I will help you write a letter to Noah.” 

 

Then Leonhard took out his handkerchief from his pocket, wiped his hands, and then sat down next to me.

 

Wiping it clean must be a kindness for me to touch it, right? I took his hand and playfully squeezed it.

 

“What is important when writing a letter isn’t fancy words or long-winded rhetoric. Don’t try to write too well from the beginning, just write what you want to say.”

 

“What if I don’t have anything to say?”

 

‘There is nothing the father wants to say to his son?’

 

There were so many things I wanted to say to him, but I decided to stop nagging him, so I swallowed them all.

 

“Then I think you will just write a diary, so you will say, ‘I did this and I did that today, and what was your day like?”

 

“My daily life is just too rough to tell to a child.”

 

“Then write about your meals, like how you didn’t like the soup you ate today.”

 

“Ah, Now that I think about it, I tried pastilla for the first time today and it was delicious. I heard it’s a popular dessert in the North.”

 

‘Did they say that they baked apple puree with egg whites and honey?’

 

I’ve heard of such a dish, but it was my first time trying it. 

 

My mouth started watering as I remembered the taste of the pastilla I had just a few hours ago. 

 

‘Should I tell the chef and ask him to make it again for dessert tomorrow night?’

 

As I thought about that, my voice became much brighter even to my ears. 

 

“They said they used cloud honey. I heard that the cloud apiary is the largest in the entire empire? I definitely think cloud honey tastes the best. But that doesn’t mean I’ve tried all the honey in the empire…”

 

“Can I kiss you?”

 

“What?”

 

I turned my head in disbelief, and those deep blue eyes were right in front of me.

 

Those eyes that caught my gaze were quiet as if they were hiding an unknown monster beneath the surface.

 

“Ah. I told you there was no need to ask.”

 

After saying those words, his head lowered without hesitation, and at the same time, our lips overlapped.

 

The feel of the lips that touched me without hesitation was a little rough rather than soft. The feeling began to rub against my lips and become hot.

 

The breath on my cheek tickled, so I inadvertently pushed his shoulder away, but his body did not move in the least, and Leonhard grabbed my hand and clasped it so that I could not do anything.

 

The moment he lowered his head, the connection deepened. I clenched my hands tightly in his grasp, and helplessly accepted the kiss that gradually deepened.

 

My back was against the wall, and his chest was in front of me. Even the backs of our clasped hands touched the wall, and I was completely trapped in his arms.

 

“Wait…”

 

I could feel the breath barely coming out through the tip of his nose touching my cheek. Only then did Leonhard stop it, as if he had come to his senses.

 

But the distance did not go away. At a distance so close that if I moved my head just a little, our noses would touch. He was looking into my face as if he were examining it with eyes like the ocean in the deep night.

 

I noticed that the woman reflected in Leonhard’s eyes had a very mesmerized face. It was a time when I felt stupid and blinked my eyes non-stop.

 

“I promised to kiss you goodnight.…I think about all the things I haven’t done in a while.”

 

Leonhard’s thumb rubbed my wet lips. I quietly lowered my eyes and followed his movements with my eyes, then lightly bit his thumb.

 

“Isn’t it too much for a goodnight kiss?”

 

“It wasn’t just one night. I couldn’t do it for exactly 10 days and then a few more days.”

 

“Then, if you say you did it all at once,…”

 

I briefly kissed his thumb, which was still pressing against my lips. As I continued to kiss it briefly, his fingers disappeared as if running away.

 

It was exactly what I hoped for. Now there was nothing between his lips and mine. 

 

I hugged Leonhard’s neck with both hands, pulled the back of his head close, and spoke in a whisper.

 

“I think it’s still not enough.”

 

While I was talking, my lips brushed against his, but that was probably a good thing.

 

Because soon his eyes closed and our lips met again.

 

* * * 

 

I can’t even count how many times Leonhard kissed me far more times than the goodnight kiss he never gave me.

 

Today I learned for the first time that kissing too much can be exhausting.

 

In the end, I collapsed from exhaustion and lay down on the bed. 

 

Leonhard looked at the bed with assessing eyes for a moment, then carefully came up and lay down next to me.

 

I couldn’t help but laugh out loud because I thought I knew what he was worried about.

 

“Are you afraid the bed is going to fall down?”

 

“More than that…Isn’t it narrow?”

 

“Did you forget what I said before?”

 

As if he hadn’t forgotten, Leonhard hugged me tightly. 

 

Yes, if your bed is narrow, you can lie closer to each other.

 

I lay down on the arm he gave me as if it were natural and buried my face in his chest.

 

“I didn’t mean to go to sleep.…”

 

“I’ll take you home tomorrow. You must be tired, so please get some sleep.”

 

“No, You don’t have to, It’s okay because I have escorts.” 

 

“I’m not okay, ma’am.”

 

Leonhard leaned his face against my head and spoke in a low whisper.

 

“I was very happy to see my wife after a long time.…but please don’t come here next time, it’s a dangerous place.”

 

“No, It’s not…..The place next to my husband would be the safest in the Border of Ajas.”

 

“Of course that’s true.”

 

I laughed out loud again, pleased with my husband’s reasonable confidence.

 

Then, Leonhard gave me a real goodnight kiss on my forehead.

 

“But Nell, didn’t you say you came because you had something to tell me?”

 

“Ah, that’s right.…Rather than saying something, I came here to ask for permission.”

 

“Permission?”

 

Leonhard repeated, sounding as if he didn’t think I needed permission.

 

Surely he has already entrusted me with the matriarchal ring. That was like permission for me to do whatever I wanted in the castle.

 

It’s what allowed me to turn the castle upside down and fire Noah’s teachers……Still, there’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed.

 

I thought that what I was about to do might be crossing that line. 

 

Lucius, who heard my question, thought for a while and answered that it would be a good idea to ask Leonhard.

 

That’s why I came all the way here by horseback at night with my escorts.

 

“Can I go into Ajas’s treasury? and bring Noah with me?”

 

“I don’t mind if you’re alone, but Noah is not allowed yet.” 

 

“I have signed the registration document. Is there any other reason why he can’t?”

 

“Are you done signing?”

 

“That’s why I came all the way here.”

 

I felt his chest suddenly stiffen as he buried his face in his hands.

 

I loosened my grip on his waist, wondering what else he was so nervous about.

 

“If there is no other reason, I will take Noah into the treasure and come back. Hmm, and I’d like to take something out of there with me, is that okay?” 

 

“Anything is fine except weapons, because it’s dangerous.” 

 

“Anything else besides that? It’s an heirloom from Ajas or it’s something that shouldn’t be left out.”

 

“It doesn’t really matter what it is .…Now that I think about it, there is an interesting item in the treasure room. Have you checked the list?”

 

“I stopped by once, but there were too many. What’s there?”

 

“Do you remember what I told you the other day, that the first Marquis Ajas tamed and rode a dragon.”

 

“Of course, I remember. Do you have a dragon heart or something?” 

 

“No, there are eggs.”

 

“Egg?”

 

Those words were so surprising that they suddenly woke me up from the sleep I had been trying to get.

 

When I looked up with wide eyes, Leonhard smiled slightly and touched my hair, as if he liked my reaction.

 

“Actually, the egg is just a lump of stone, with no chance of hatching, since it’s been three hundred years since the first dragon of Ajas gave birth.”

 

“Three hundred years? Has it been that long?”

 

“According to the records, yes. At first, they kept it in a sunny place and took good care of it, but after a few generations, there was no sign of hatching, so they moved it around and put it away, and it ended up in the treasure room. It’s actually unclear whether that egg is actually there.”

 

“Wow…. I still want to see it. Where is it in the treasure room?” 

 

“It’s in the innermost room. You’ll know it’s the Dragon’s egg when you see it.”

 

“Wow, I can’t wait to see it.”

 

‘It’s a dragon’s egg. What does it look like? It’s bigger than an ostrich egg, right?’

 

* * *