How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love – Chapter 183

Author: Chewyy

“Is there some kind of problem because of this Sesto thing?”

Leona, who had been quietly listening to what the others were saying, asked cautiously.

Leonhard hesitated for a moment and then nodded.

Anyway, everyone there now knows that Raenel is of Sesto’s bloodline. It would be no use hiding it now.

“Where should I begin…. You all remember the incident Young Lady Cloud went through, right?”

Everyone nodded at Leonhard’s words. Of course, they couldn’t not remember. All four of them were staying at Cloud Castle when Layla was kidnapped by the monster.

“According to Young Lady Cloud’s testimony, the wizards were looking for someone who was being followed by a monster. Other than that, they were unable to specify the personal details of the person they were looking for.…”

“Could it be that person was the Marquise?”

“Yes.”

Leonhard also explained about bloodstones.

A stone made from the blood of what is believed to be Raenel’s biological father.

With it, a group of wizards called Onyx are controlling monsters.

He suspected that Onyx was targeting Raenel to use her blood for the same reason.

“You all remember the barbarians at the Silver Frost Tower demanding my wife. I believe it wasn’t because she was my wife—they must have known she was of Sesto blood.”

“How would they even know that the Marquise has Sesto blood?”

“Who do they think they are, demanding the Marquise like that?”

“Didn’t they say barbarians can’t harm those of Sesto blood…?”

“That’s what puzzles me too.”

‘What were the barbarians planning to do with Raenel?’

‘Did they know that having her could allow them to control monsters, but they’d also end up blindly following her?’

‘Or perhaps they knew a way to use her blood without harming her?’

‘Anyway, I can’t let those bastards near her.’

Leonhard had already sent someone at dawn to strengthen the guard at the Hiyela Gate.

He’d ordered that not a single barbarian be allowed through—Wizards and knights of Ajas would take care of it.

“The only good thing is that, unlike the barbarians, that Onyx group didn’t notice my wife’s bloodline.”

“How can you be sure?”

“If they knew, they wouldn’t be this quiet.”

“Right. They’re the ones who kidnapped Young Lady Cloud. Even if it’s the Marquise, they wouldn’t hold back.”

There are no eternal secrets in this world.

The moment they let their guard down thinking no one knew about Raenel, her safety would vanish.

‘Before they notice… I’ll take them all down first.’

By the way, what happened to the Blue Thorn Mercenaries and the wizards of ajas that were sent to them?

He’d missed many updates due to the sudden departure. He needed to look into that.

Leonhard glanced around at the four people.

“The reason I’m telling you all this isn’t just because of my wife’s secret—it’s because you’re her guards. You understand what I mean, right?”

As Catherine frowned, Leona nodded.

“I will keep the bloodline of Marquise a complete secret. And I will prevent those of unknown identity from approaching her.”

“Me too! I’ll keep my mouth shut and do my best!”

“I will obey your orders.”

Across from Ethan, who nodded with a solemn face, only Catherine still furrowed.

“Umm, I’ll keep the secret too… But I’m not one of her guards, though….”

There was a hint of hope on Catherine’s face as she asked.

Leonhard stared at her for a moment before finally deciding on her punishment.

“Catherine.”

“Huh? I mean, yes!”

“From today, you’ll be guarding Raenel too.”

“Hooray!”

“But secretly.”

“What…?”

Guard duty was one thing, but a secret guard?

As Catherine blinked in confusion, Leonhard continued.

“Guard her quietly from a place where you can’t be seen. Sometimes, you see better from afar than up close.”

“Uh… so, even Raenel isn’t supposed to know I’m guarding her?”

Contrary to her hopes, Leonhard firmly nodded.

“Yes. She’d definitely be bothered if she knew.”

“Ugh….”

Seeing Catherine pout, Leonhard felt his decision might actually serve as a punishment.

“If anyone suspicious approaches Raenel—especially if even the smallest monster gets close to her…..”

“Should I kill them?”

Leonhard nodded at Catherine, who spoke the murderous words in a nonchalant voice.

“If you can’t capture them alive, our priority is to make sure they don’t realize that Raenel is Sesto.”

“Hmm… got it. Prioritize her safety, but dig into them if there’s a chance, right?”

“That’s my specialty!”

Catherine grinned and swung her arms confidently.

Watching her should’ve made Leonhard feel reassured, but instead, he worried she might cause trouble somewhere again.

‘The compensation requested from the Silver Frost Tower…’

It wasn’t enough to damage the Ajas treasury, but still a painful amount to sign off on.

Leonhard hesitated for a moment, wondering if Catherine’s punishment was too light, and then said to her:

“I will inform the others that you have been placed under house arrest for disobeying orders. You must stay out of sight of everyone except those here. Any objections?”

“Well, I did disobey the captain… so, no objections.”

Leonhard nodded, unaware of Ethan’s slight relief at hearing that the people here were excluded.

“Okay. Then everyone returns to your original positions.”

Once the knights left with a salute, Leonhard summoned Crow.

‘Only by eliminating those mysterious figures can Raenel truly be safe.’

‘Before, we didn’t know their goal and hesitated. But now, Ajas will go all in to wipe them out.’

‘For the sake of the woman I love.’

* * *

My mind was filled with dark clouds because I had so many worries, but the sky was blue without a single cloud.

“Mother, look! The flowers are blooming even though it’s not a greenhouse.”

Noah suddenly let go of my hand and ran off somewhere. He squatted under a tree in the garden, pointing at something.

I walked over to Noah, knelt down, and admired the yellow dandelions in bloom.

“It’s a dandelion. It seems that Ajas has definitely gotten warmer.”

“A dandelion? Is this a dandelion?”

“Yeah. Isn’t it pretty?”

Noah blinked and looked at the yellow flowers in bloom, then nodded.

“It looks just like Father.”

“What?”

At Noah’s words, I thought of Leonhard and couldn’t help bursting into laughter.

“You’re right, now that I see it, it’s kind of the same color as Leon’s hair.”

“The sweet rose blooming in the greenhouse looks like Mother.”

Sweet Rose was a small rose, a pink color very similar to the color of my hair.

‘Was that why he always seemed to take such a special interest in that flower, out of all the others?’

Somehow, I felt a little happier, and my lips curled up into a smile. But then, Noah suddenly asked me with a serious face.

“But… are there no black flowers?”

“Why aren’t there any black flowers? We have them in our greenhouse too.”

“Really?”

“Yup. There’s a black rose called the Velvet Rose, and when it blooms, it’s stunning. The petals are thick and feel like silk, so it is said that a princess from a certain country once wore a dress made of velvet rose petals to every banquet.”

“Dresses made from flowers? How?”

Actually, I don’t know if this is a true story because I read it in an old book.

But Noah was looking at me with curious eyes, so I tried to recall my memories as best I could.

“If you used a special kind of thread, you could sew the petals without damaging them. Of course, since they were made of flower petals, the dress would wilt in just two or three days, so you could only wear it once.”

“That’s amazing… Do you think someone could make one now?”

“Hmm, probably really hard. They said you had planted a whole field of velvet roses to make one dress.”

And I don’t even know what kind of thread that ‘special’ one was.

“I want to try making one someday.”

“A dress?”

“Yes. If I succeed, please wear it.”

“Oh my! Sure, it’s a promise.”

I held out my pinky to Noah. He used to feel awkward about it, but now he naturally linked his pinky with mine.

“Later, if Noah makes me a dress, I’ll definitely wear it.”

“It might take a long time. But don’t forget the promise you made today.”

“Of course! There’s no way I would forget the promise I made to Noah.”

A son who said he would make his mother a dress. I wondered where in the world there would be such a filial son.