Luoye did not notice the subtle, intricate changes in Anna.
Or rather, he did notice, but subconsciously assumed it was just Anna’s usual behavior as a Princess fangirl.
After all, at the funeral, there was a Thousand Gold Widow—no, a Thousand Gold Young Lady—who made no attempt to hide her longing for Alicia, and when Anna returned to this house, her aura had changed as well.
So, if Anna was recalling something Alicia had said and showed any strange changes, it wouldn’t be surprising.
Luoye sighed inwardly, wondering just how charming Alicia must have been, for so many women to fall for her.
Could it be that the Princess is actually a Demoness?
The previous image of White Moonlight was wrong; it was Demoness Aili who was the true Princess.
Of course, considering this guess, Luoye now had to put on an act of being captivated by Alicia’s personality.
Even if he and Alicia only had a marriage contract in name, at the very least, he couldn’t show a careless attitude in front of Anna, who admired Alicia. He had to at least act as if he would do anything for Alicia, and that he was deeply hurt by her passing.
Luoye forced out a few tears, recalling all the saddest moments of his life.
“Lady Luoye, please don’t be too sad.”
Anna timely handed over a handkerchief. Luoye took it and wiped away his crocodile tears.
He did his best to look calm, putting on the air of “though losing my wife is painful, life must go on,” and turned around, planning to continue reading the Letters Alicia had left behind.
Picking up the coffee cup, he had a hunch that the work ahead would be long—organizing heirlooms, gathering clues, playing Detective—none of it would be a short process.
At least for Luoye, who had just finished overtime and crossed over to attend a funeral for a few hours, he definitely needed coffee to stay energized.
He took a sip.
“So bitter…”
Luoye immediately frowned, glancing down at the dark brown Pure Black Coffee Liquid, thinking to himself, Why didn’t Anna put in a single Sugar Cube?
“Would you like me to add Milk for you?”
“No, just Sugar Cubes is fine.” Luoye replied out of habit.
Adding Milk was too extravagant. As someone who often worked overtime, Luoye always chose to add sugar—convenient and a quick boost for the brain.
“Yes.”
Anna looked at Lady Luoye, who was buried in sorting through Her Highness’s Letters, her gaze gradually sharpening and turning cold.
As expected, Lady Luoye had no feelings for Alicia at all.
She had probed so many times just now, and this man had fallen for every test, showing no hesitation.
Alicia had clearly never liked people entering her room.
Alicia had clearly disliked others reading her letters.
And Alicia clearly preferred Red Tea; when Anna accompanied her, they always drank Red Tea.
Yet the moment Alicia was gone, he changed his preferences, no longer adding Milk as before, but instead choosing to add sugar directly.
It was as if he were saying that every moment he spent with Alicia before was just him accommodating her.
Unforgivable.
This kind of behavior was absolutely unforgivable.
But this thought suddenly changed when Anna returned to the Bedroom.
Anna fetched some Sugar Cubes from the Kitchen and returned to the Bedroom. Seeing Luoye at the Book Desk, seriously reading the Letters, holding his coffee cup, tilting his head in that way Alicia liked to think, and earnestly studying the notes Her Highness had left behind, a different kind of revenge suddenly rose in her heart.
No… it wasn’t really revenge.
Rather, it was something she had always wanted to do to Alicia, but never had the right opportunity.
Now, the chance had presented itself.
Anna chuckled softly, quietly closed the door, and locked every Window.
Her gaze subtly fixed on Luoye.
If Alicia were still alive, then sooner or later, Her Highness would marry Luoye, right?
If the Wedding were held as planned, it would be Luoye sharing Cross-cup Wine with Alicia, right?
If their married life was harmonious, then every night, it would be Luoye sleeping beside Alicia, right?
Even, the only one who could enjoy being pinned beneath Alicia every day, witnessing Her Highness’s most perfect moments, would be Lady Luoye!
In other words, Luoye was the most important thing Alicia had left behind.
A living possession that only Alicia could ever enjoy—absolutely not to be tainted by anyone else.
But if…
If she herself were to defile this thing…
Anna’s cheeks unconsciously flushed, her eyes growing hazy.
She walked to Luoye’s side, picked up the Tongs, dropped in a Sugar Cube, and at the same time, placed down a small accessory she always carried but never dared use on Alicia.
Sitting on the Chair, Luoye hadn’t noticed Anna’s footsteps at all; her movements were light, but the pleasant scent of her Perfume drifted over, lingering at his nose.
He turned to look, just as Anna finished adding the sugar.
“Thank you.”
Luoye nodded, and under Anna’s “You’re welcome” and that dangerous gaze, he downed the still-warm coffee in one gulp.
With the sugar boost, he immediately felt more energized.
Looking at the Letters in his hand, he could still piece together some clues about Alicia. Judging from the correspondence, Alicia had been lively and spirited in recent times, showing no signs of illness, so the chance of dying from sickness was extremely low.
Assuming it wasn’t suicide, then most likely—it was murder.
But who could pull this off, assassinating the Empire’s Most Beloved Daughter within the Capital’s guarded walls?
Luoye pursed his lips in thought, wondering who in the Empire could manage such a feat…
Suddenly, Luoye dropped the Letter in his hand.
A wave of burning heat swept through his body, the heat in his lower abdomen growing more and more intense.
What’s going on? Ever since he crossed over, he hadn’t eaten or drunk anything—at a Princess’s Funeral, there wouldn’t be any feasting, so how could he have been drugged? From the Funeral till now, he’d only had a cup of coffee…
Luoye turned and glared at Anna: “What did you make me drink?!”
Anna gazed at Luoye with a smile and a flirtatious air, slowly slipping off her Black Dress. The straps slid from her snow-white shoulders, her graceful figure fully revealed. What made his heart race was that her cold silhouette was surprisingly curvy, her pale peaks supported by a Lace-edged Garment.
If not for the dazed, increasingly confused look in her eyes and the blush on her cheeks, this could have been an indescribably beautiful encounter.
Luoye thought, This is clearly coming for me!
But what did he do to deserve Anna treating him like this?
“Calm down. If you’re trying to test my loyalty to Alicia, then you’ve already failed…”
Luoye stubbornly lifted his chin, glaring at Anna, but she didn’t let him finish. She stepped forward, pressed down on his shoulders, even bracing one knee against the Chair, pinning him in place.
Just as Luoye was about to resist, he suddenly realized something shocking.
Damn it, Anna’s actually a Physique Practitioner?
Such a beautiful girl, who looked so delicate and easy to push down—yet she could easily overpower him, a grown man, with no effort?
No wonder Mages fear Close Combat. Or rather, a Mage who can’t fight Close Combat isn’t a good Mage.
Luoye stared as the golden-haired, purple-eyed girl before him gently lifted his chin, her fingertip tracing down his body, across his neck, collarbone, drawing circles on his chest, finally stopping over his heart.
Wherever her finger touched, it felt as if a line of fire had brushed him, a strange sensation welling up from deep within.
Anna slowly turned the Chair, letting him lean against the Book Desk, her bright and deep eyes filled with sickness and obsession.
“Hey, this is Alicia’s favorite Book Desk. If we did that kind of thing here…”
A few question marks slowly floated through Luoye’s mind as he looked at the inexplicably perverse golden-haired girl before him.
“Lady Luoye, you and Alicia haven’t married yet, right…”
“Which means, you’re Alicia’s possession, but Her Highness hasn’t used you yet…”
“If something Alicia hasn’t even used gets used by me first, and right here on her favorite Book Desk…”
Anna undid his Necktie, unfastened the buttons of his Suit one by one with her slender, jade-like fingers, her fingertips constantly brushing his chest.
“The Princess won’t know… the Princess won’t know… the Princess won’t know!”
“Hey, Lady Luoye, you’ll keep your mouth shut, won’t you? For Alicia’s sake, you won’t let her find out, right?”
Anna tore at his clothes, wagging her tail like a pet begging its master, her face full of excitement.
“Lady Luoye, let me taste what even Aili-chan hasn’t tasted yet!”
Luoye was utterly shocked by Anna’s strange desires and twisted logic.
He thought, Alicia, isn’t your bodyguard a little too sexually repressed? Her train of thought isn’t normal at all!
Being sexually repressed toward you ≠ not wanting to steal you away.
What kind of hardcore yandere is this?!
Is Luoye a boy or a girl?