The Arranged Suitor Was the Kidnapper

Zenox remained silent for a moment.

His gaze lingered, as if trying to gauge the reason behind her question.

Laria realized belatedly what she had said. The alcohol had suddenly jolted her awake.

“If it’s difficult to answer…”

“Well.”

Zenox, interrupting Laria, took a step closer.

As the distance narrowed, Laria instinctively stepped back. Her back touched the hard marble railing.

With nowhere else to retreat, Laria’s gaze wandered through the empty space.

Zenox stretched out both arms and enclosed Laria within them. She couldn’t move as if she had fallen into a trap.

‘I shouldn’t ask!’

She kept her mouth shut as if she didn’t know anything, but it was the alcohol that was the problem. Zenox, who was holding Laria to prevent her from running away, met her gaze.

“But why did you suddenly ask such a question?”

Instead of answering, she was momentarily tongue-tied by his counter-question. She needed to answer well from now on.

What if Zenox found out she was Whitie?

When she met him in Whitie form last time, it was different from what she had imagined.

Instead of getting angry or scolding her, he had desperately called her by name. It seemed like he missed Whitie more than the fox orb.

‘But… it’s still about Whitie.’

Despite being the same entity, Laria was ultimately a beastman. The gap between a young fox and a beastman was as vast as the sky and the earth.

Even if she had escaped as Whitie and couldn’t speak… Laria could have told him the truth at any time, but she chose silence.

Either way, it seemed like a hopeless ending was looming.

“Just, I was curious why Your Wxcellency suddenly… thought of me as Whitie.”

“Is that so.”

Zenox didn’t press further.

She sighed internally in relief, thinking it might just pass like the incident with the bank. But he continued speaking.

“I concluded that there’s no way the young lady could be Whitie.”

“Huh?”

“If the young lady was Whitie, she would have disappeared during the time she lived with me.”

If she had been part of the Rohan family, they would have reported her disappearance the moment she vanished.

But no one knew of Laria’s disappearance. Not even the employees working at the Rohan mansion. And Laria knew the reason for that.

‘Because it never happened… ‘

To be precise, the fact that she disappeared had been erased from everyone’s memory. When she thought about it, she still felt melancholic.

‘I don’t know if it’s fortunate or unfortunate.’

If her disappearance coincided with the time she spent as Whitie, she wouldn’t be able to escape suspicion. But since she had never disappeared, Laria could escape Zenox’s suspicion.

“You know my family. They’re so strict that I can’t even stay out overnight.”

Zenox nodded. Laria, who let out a sigh of relief internally, pushed Zenox’s arm away.

“Would you please step aside now? I think it’s best to go inside slowly.”

His arm was so strong that it didn’t budge an inch.

“Hmm… “

A low, throaty sound escaped.

When Zenox slowly lowered his head, Laria, who was swallowed by his shadow, tensed up against the hard marble railing at her back.

“I have a secret that I haven’t told anyone. Should I tell you?”

“No.”

Why would he tell me, of all people…?

Laria quickly rejected, but it seemed that her opinion didn’t matter much to Zenox.

“In the Krassium family, insanity has been passed down for generations.”

Laria’s forehead narrowed at the sudden story. She knew that the wolf clan’s genetic disease was insanity, but hasn’t it almost disappeared by now?

“And there’s an heirloom that prevents insanity.”

Her heart sank with a thud.

“I gave it to Whitie… but I haven’t found it yet.”

Laria knew what the Krassium family’s heirloom was.

Laria’s pupils shook uncontrollably.

‘Is he crazy?!’

He gave something so important to her? The fox orb not only amplified magical power but also suppressed the wolf clan’s madness?

It was something she had never heard before.

“So, what happens if you don’t have it? You go crazy… right?”

Laria asked with an anxious look, and Zenox smiled sardonically.

His laughter wasn’t like someone who had brought up a serious topic. Zenox looked down at the arm touching Laria and said:

“I will probably end up that way in the end.”

His voice, unlike his laughter, was eerily calm, as if he was waiting for death.

Laria couldn’t breathe. What if Zenox found out that she had swallowed the fox orb and couldn’t return it now?

Laria couldn’t breathe.

There was a reason why Zenox was looking for the fox orb so much. It wasn’t just an heirloom, it was an heirloom that prevented madness!

‘For some reason, I felt a little strange these days…!’

The thought that it might be due to mania made her dizzy.

What happens if she tells Zenox the truth?

Would he want to split her stomach? The orb must have already been absorbed.

‘If I hadn’t swallowed the fox orb… ‘

The thought that she might die from guilt was dizzying.

Pushing him into the pit of madness when he could have lived perfectly. Laria almost vomited out a voice that seemed to be dying.

“…So you’re looking for Whitie because of the fox orb?”

“Not just because of that, but I need the fox orb to prevent insanity.”

If he found out that she swallowed the fox orb couldn’t return it now…

Laria suddenly shook her head.

‘I need to find a way to separate the fox orb from my body for now.’

Laria had tried several times before, but all of them failed. Back then, she thought it couldn’t be helped, but now it has become an issue she can’t just ignore.

‘If I can return the fox orb later… let’s reveal the truth.’

She will tell everything about what happened and why she couldn’t speak the truth.

Maybe she won’t be forgiven by Zenox, but…

“…”

Even in the darkness, Zenox silently observed Laria’s shimmering eyes. He released the arm that had held Laria and asked:

“Shall we go in?” 

In response to Zenox’s suggestion, Laria nodded silently.

As they exited the terrace, many people glanced in their direction. Their faces were filled with curiosity about what kind of conversation had taken place.

But Laria was no longer affected by their gazes or voices, as her mind was preoccupied with the question of how to separate the fox orb.

An elaborate piece played by a symphony orchestra filled the noisy banquet hall. Everyone stopped talking and turned their attention to one place.

A middle-aged couple, affectionately holding hands as they descended the staircase, stood there.

The moment Laria saw the man with bright blond hair, she recognized who Ishel resembled. It was almost as if the emperor had given birth alone. 

“We are grateful to everyone for attending this glorious day.” 

As the Emperor’s words began, most people in the hall gazed favorably at the imperial couple.

The current imperial family had a good reputation, not only for handling internal affairs well but also for maintaining peaceful diplomacy with other nations, resulting in fewer conflicts. 

Moreover, both the Emperor and Empress were known for their good character, and they received much praise from those around them.

Above all, since the Emperor’s ascension to the throne, he had already prevented several major disasters, so it was only natural for him to have a lot of supporters. 

‘Why does he keep looking this way?’

While the Emperor spoke, his gaze remained fixed on Laria and Zenox. He seemed to be smiling so contentedly that Laria was reminded of her grandfather, who lived in the countryside. 

‘Grandpa used to smile like that every time he saw me.’

However, when he looked at Zenox, his expression briefly turned wistful. It was the same expression her grandfather wore when he thought of his deceased grandmother through Laria.

Laria felt oddly uncomfortable.

‘What’s going on, really?’

Rather than trying to control his nephew, he seemed more like a doting uncle, making her confused about his intentions.

When the greeting, which wasn’t very long, ended, the Empress standing next to the Emperor smiled softly.

“I hope you go back with happy memories.”

The long-awaited greeting came to an end, and the Emperor and Empress descended from the stage. Instead of taking their prepared seats, they walked toward Laria and Zenox.

It was a surprise that they would deal with both the Crown Prince and the imperial couple.

What if they suddenly ask them to get married in their faces? 

“…” 

Seeing the tense Laria, Zenox glanced at the Emperor. After lowering his head once, the sulking Emperor didn’t approach anymore. Even when dealing with nobles who greeted him, he just kept glancing over here.

Zenox looked down at Laria, who was avoiding eye contact due to embarrassment, and whispered:

“His Majesty seems to be very interested in our relationship.”

“It seems so.”

The way he stared seemed as if he could see through her face.

“But we should still greet him, right…?”

“If it’s uncomfortable, you don’t have to.”

Even if they stabbed each other in the back behind the scenes, in front of others, the noble society was all about laughing and enjoying themselves. Moreover, if they came to the banquet and left without even greeting the Emperor, it would undoubtedly lead to gossip.

Laria didn’t want to see Zenox receive criticism, and she thought.

‘Even if it’s revealed later that I’m Whitie, I have to do my job now.’

As Zenox’s future fiance, she had to fulfill her duties.

Finally, the determined Laria linked arms with Zenox.

It was the moment she lifted her foot to greet the Emperor and Empress.

“Aaaah!!”

A scream echoed throughout the banquet hall. Laria quickly turned her head towards the source of the scream and saw people collapsing on the ground, vomiting blood.