Chapter 24
His lips, deceptively thin yet full, had kissed, tasted, and drew me in so thoroughly. When I first possessed this body, I thought I was doomed, but now I wonder if I’ve won the lottery.
Lysei unconsciously reached out and gently touched Edin’s lips.
Edin’s brow furrowed slightly but quickly smoothed out. His sleeping face looked so innocent and pure.
That same face, during intimacy, was unbelievably wild.
‘Could any woman resist falling for this man?’ she wondered.
And at that moment…
A chill ran down her spine.
‘The heroine’s man.’
It wasn’t that she’d forgotten, but the passion with Edin had completely swept the thought away.
This man was the original story’s male protagonist, devoted to and obsessed with the heroine.
He was the one who would overcome all other potential suitors and become the heroine’s man, the true male lead of the book.
‘Oh, right. I almost forgot, I can’t fall for him. He’s not mine.’
Edin’s current obsession with her, so similar to his feelings for the heroine in the book, had briefly fooled her.
She was an extra, destined for execution by the Empress’s order, now inhabiting this body. She’d been striving to avoid that fate, but she had no way of making the heroine’s man hers.
Even if he treated her well now, he would abandon her without a second glance when the heroine appeared.
‘Don’t fall for him. I can’t.’
Lysei bit her lip and slowly sat up. As always, the familiar ache spread through her body, and a soft groan escaped her lips.
“Ow…”
With the Emperor asleep beside her, she moved even more carefully than usual.
But then…
Suddenly, a hand grasped her waist and pulled her back down.
Lysei landed against Edin’s chest, staring at him with wide eyes. His beauty was breathtaking, especially considering he had just woken up.
“Where are you going?”
‘This terrifyingly sweet obsession… it’s intoxicating.’
“You’re awake?”
“Where are you going?”
“Nowhere but within this room. Why so curious?” Lysei said, trying to sit up again.
Edin pulled her closer, burying his face against her side, his voice a low, melodious rumble.
“Stay by my side. I cleared my entire schedule for that very reason.”
‘Did he just skip his duties? The Emperor?’
“Your Majesty, did you…?”
“We haven’t shared a meal.”
‘…Huh? A meal?’
“We haven’t had a leisurely conversation.”
‘…?’
“We haven’t… spent any real time together.”
Edin slowly lifted his head, meeting Lysei’s gaze with a smile.
“I haven’t done anything with you yet.”
Thump.
Thump, thump, thump.
Her heart pounded painfully in her chest.
The pheromones, subtly emanating from him since he woke, now overwhelmed her, making her feel breathless. He wouldn’t be controlling them because he didn’t know she was an Omega, but the intoxicating scent made her want to pounce on him.
“Your Majesty…”
“My name.”
“.…”
“Call me by my name.”
‘Call me by my name.’
‘How could I dare…’
‘It’s a name I grant only to you.’
Suddenly, conversations between the heroine and Edin from the book flashed through her mind.
It was a name he had granted only to the heroine. In this land, where no one dared address the Emperor casually, only the heroine had been allowed that privilege.
But why…
“I grant you alone the right to call me by my name, Sei.”
Why was he saying something so similar to her?
He even shortened her name, just as he had shortened the heroine’s name, Luigia, to Gia.
Lysei’s mind went blank, bewildered and flustered. This was far more disconcerting than a confession.
‘This will change the original story. Is this okay?’
A sudden fear gripped her.
Of course, her own survival was paramount, but she had hoped the rest of the story would unfold as written.
The book’s climax involved the heroine and the Emperor joining forces to defeat the heretics threatening the empire.
If they didn’t unite, the empire would fall, and her hard-won survival would be threatened again.
So, she didn’t particularly want to change the Emperor’s destined relationship with the heroine…
“Hmm? Say it.”
But the Emperor’s coaxing gaze, pleading with her to say his name, shattered the walls she had so carefully built. His devastatingly handsome face didn’t help matters.
“Edin.”
The moment Lysei spoke his name, Edin kissed her waist. A soft m0an escaped her lips.
“Mmm…”
Smooch, smooch, smooch.
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