Imprinted with the Obsessive Male Lead - Chapter 64

Chase slowly nodded, his gaze turning slightly cold. As he did, he rubbed the back of his neck. After hesitating a bit more, I asked,

“Then… the previous Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess didn’t imprint?”

At that moment, Chase’s movements stopped. For a second, I regretted asking. His expression was so frightening that I wondered if I had said something wrong.

But I was truly curious. Why did a Grand Duke who possessed the wolves’ blessing get swept up in a mana storm and die? Was there some other reason? And imprinting… perhaps he had done it with someone other than the Grand Duchess first, or something like that.

Without realizing it, I frowned and focused on my thoughts. Then Chase flicked his finger lightly and tapped my forehead.

“Ah.”

“What are you thinking about?”

“Nothing in particular…”

I tried to brush it off, but Chase looked at me as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.

“I told you, you can only share the blessing with one person. The only woman my father loved his whole life was my mother, so if he were to give it to anyone, it would have been her. But he never shared that privilege.”

What? Then that just makes it more confusing. It felt like the situation was only getting more tangled.

“Was there a reason he couldn’t imprint?”

“My mage is quite curious.”

Chase twisted his lips into a smile and stepped closer toward me. With his large frame blocking the moonlight behind him, I instinctively shrank back.

“I’m sorry. I was just curious about imprint-”

“If you’re that curious, should I tell you the method?”

What?

***

Nita’s round eyes widened. Her cheeks, which had seemed to cool slightly in the cold air, flushed again as if heat was rising.

It had been something he had tossed out lightly, almost like a joke. But her reaction was so exactly as expected that Chase let out a small scoff, the corners of his lips lifting.

“You know the method?”

“I do.”

“Ah, well, I suppose you would.”

As if realizing her question had been foolish, Nita smiled awkwardly in embarrassment. Chase stepped right up to her, close enough that there was barely any space between them, and easily grasped her slender waist, lifting her onto the window frame. Standing close in front of her, he leaned one arm against the frame.

Even without going this far to corner her, she wouldn’t be able to escape unless she wanted to, but he felt like teasing her a little.

For someone who is his mage.

The fact that she had been drunk in front of another man, not him, while he wasn’t there, bothered him a little.

“So. How much should I tell you?”

“…No. I mean, it’s not like I absolutely have to know.”

Why do you have to be so close…?

He stared at Nita as her voice trailed off.

Now that he was this close, her delicate features were clearly visible, and for some reason, the corners of his lips kept lifting. He tensed his brows to suppress the pointless smile.

Perhaps burdened by his gaze, Nita’s flustered cheeks turned even redder.

The information about Michael that he had heard from his subordinate crossed his mind.

A lunatic who conducted experiments by injecting mana into human bodies.

After hearing that, he understood more clearly why Nita had clung to him and refused to leave. Because the other party was someone who toyed with mana. Since mana didn’t affect him, she must have thought he could protect her better than anyone.

Nita hesitated as if she wanted to say something, then quietly asked,

“Then… is it what I think it is?”

“What do you mean?”

“Imprinting. You said it’s done with someone you love. That… that kind of thing. Right?”

It seemed she had tried to infer the method on her own. Well. Imprinting didn’t necessarily have to be done with someone you loved. But… what you’re imagining is correct.

Chase’s gaze drifted down to Nita’s reddened lips. Nita, who had been looking at him intently with innocent eyes, pressed her lips together. Seeing her lower lip curl slightly under the upper one in tension, Chase let out a faint smile.

“So?”

When there was some distance between them, Nita would say whatever she wanted, but when the distance closed, she became noticeably tense. It was the same now. Even though he had lifted her onto the window frame, Nita was still lower than him. Tilting his head slightly, Chase deliberately pressed his body closer to hers. Close enough that he could feel her breath, tinged faintly with the scent of juice.

“How much should I tell you?”