Chapter 16: Undercurrents

“Good morning, my lady!”

Roman had already heard this greeting countless times on the way with Luo Xiya.

The people here didn’t seem to harbor any fear toward their lord, or rather, their feelings for Luo Xiya had long since shifted from reverence to heartfelt affection.

Sensing the admiration in Roman’s gaze beside her, Luo Xiya naturally carried herself with more of a noblewoman’s grace.

Her hand rested elegantly on the sword at her waist, and a flawless smile remained on her face the entire time.

“Tired?”

Luo Xiya suddenly stopped and asked after a while.

Roman shook his head, but the sweat on his forehead clearly betrayed his condition.

A disappointing truth, both in his past life and now, was that his physical condition was quite poor.

He remembered that even back in school, running a thousand meters felt like a death sentence.

His experiences had shaped him into someone quiet and resilient.

No matter how exhausted he was, he had a habit of simply enduring it without a trace of complaint.

Besides, he understood Luo Xiya’s intention.

She wanted to properly introduce him to her territory, and also let her people become familiar with him.

Walking side by side, Roman had originally planned to fall a step behind out of courtesy, but Luo Xiya insisted on walking with him.

Eventually, she even took his hand while they walked.

And when he didn’t object, she simply laced her fingers with his…

Suddenly, a cool sensation flowed into his body, and all the fatigue vanished instantly.

Roman froze for a second before realizing it was the effect of Luo Xiya’s Sacred Seal.

He turned to look and met Luo Xiya’s deep blue eyes.

Those eyes, normally imposing, now felt vast and comforting under her gentle gaze, like being embraced by a boundless ocean.

His heart involuntarily trembled again.

This strange feeling, which he’d never experienced before, seemed to keep overwhelming him over these past two days.

Was his emotional defense really that weak?

He couldn’t help but feel a twinge of shame at the thought.

“Hmm…?”

Luo Xiya, fingers still interlaced with his, suddenly stopped.

A carriage had come to a halt in front of them, not the kind used by merchants, but an ostentatiously decorated noble carriage.

The ornate structure and design were unmistakable, and the horses pulling it looked tall and strong, but were visibly agitated.

Upon seeing the family crest, Luo Xiya’s brows furrowed deeply, her face filled with suspicion.

Roman looked as well and could roughly make out the crest, an eagle.

Without a word, Luo Xiya pulled Roman with her, moving to a blind spot outside the carriage’s line of sight.

Her body temperature and presence seemed to fade all at once, as though she had completely disappeared.

Roman did the same, the two of them reducing their presence until they were nearly undetectable.

Voices from within the carriage reached their ears clearly.

“So, you’ve agreed?”

For some reason, the voice sounded strangely familiar to Roman. It dripped with ridicule and mockery.

“Please… I’m begging you…” It was clearly a girl’s voice, weak and full of pain, pleading desperately.

“Don’t rush. I’ll give it to you right now…”

The first speaker retrieved something, followed by the sound of something being scattered onto the ground.

“Ha… ha…”

The sound of a body collapsing to the floor. Roman’s eyes widened.

As the sound of licking grew clearer, Luo Xiya’s face turned increasingly grim.

“Good doggie. So clean~”

The woman laughed in delight, then seemed to toss something.

“Get lost. Don’t dirty my carriage.”

“Thank you, my lady… thank you…” the girl’s voice trembled as she spoke, then stumbled dazedly out of the carriage.

“If you forget what happened, don’t ever come to me again. Just wait for Luo Xiya to discover what’s wrong with you and strangle you alive.”

The woman actually called out Luo Xiya’s name directly at the end.

It was clear she was hiding something from her, and it definitely wasn’t anything good.

Only after the carriage left did Luo Xiya pull Roman out from the corner of the street.

Since she was still using her Sacred Seal, her eyes remained their brilliant blue, but now they looked like a stormy sea on the verge of erupting, violent waves brewing at any moment.

She looked toward the departing carriage and the tiny, fading figure walking away along the horizon.

Her body was still cold to the touch, but her heart had gone even colder.

Having always treated people with sincerity, Luo Xiya never imagined there would come a day when she, too, would be betrayed.

“Those two were…”

Luo Xiya clearly recognized both the carriage’s owner and the girl.

Roman could tell she knew them both.

“Let’s walk and talk.”

Luo Xiya, her mood soured, pulled Roman along.

As they walked, Luo Xiya suddenly asked, “Do you remember that woman from the auction who kept bidding and trying to buy you?”

“If I remember right, you told me her name was Tania Desmon. A count’s daughter,” Roman said after thinking for a moment.

“Yes. A count’s daughter who actually had the audacity to set her sights on me…”

Luo Xiya’s tone turned icy at the end, laced with a mocking smile.

But it wasn’t a playful smile, it was a cold, biting one.

“And it seems you know that girl too.”

“Her name’s Annie. She’s a maid at the estate.”

Luo Xiya’s hand tightened around her sword hilt, her knuckles turning white.

“I don’t remember her.”

“Someone in her family passed away recently, so I approved her leave to go take care of it before returning.”

Truly, as a lord, she was remarkably understanding, only to stumble right into something like this.

“She seemed to be under the effect of some kind of drug…”

Roman tried to calm Luo Xiya down and offered his analysis.

That girl’s pained reaction had been eerily similar to the withdrawal symptoms he’d seen in his past life.

Could this world have something like that too?

He knew just how terrifying those things were.

They destroyed your body while making you dependent, eventually leaving you a hollowed-out husk of a person.

“Let’s go back.”

Luo Xiya fell silent for a moment before finally speaking.

Clearly, she’d taken Roman’s words to heart and had calmed down a little.

Roman’s brow twitched slightly, a hint of pain showing on his face.

Wait a second…

Luo Xiya instantly let go of Roman’s hand.

She looked at his wrist, it was already bright red, the mark looking almost like he’d been restrained in shackles.

“Why… why didn’t you say anything…”

Her voice began with a complaint, but her expression was clearly filled with self-blame.

She’d been so caught up in her anger that she hadn’t noticed how tightly she’d been gripping him.

Roman was just an ordinary person, how could he withstand her strength…

“It’s nothing,” Roman said with a gentle smile.

“My skin just bruises easily. A little pressure and it turns red.”

But this wasn’t just red…

Luo Xiya stared at the bruising, using a bit of her magic to gently erase it before she finally let out a breath.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt weak.

If she was truly angry, she should’ve stormed over and torn that carriage apart, not taken it out on someone who actually cared about her. It was cowardly and pathetic.

“Sigh…”

Roman sighed as well.

Looks like he’d have to be the one to lift her spirits again.

“I really wasn’t lying earlier,” he leaned in and whispered seriously in her ear, repeating what he’d said before.

“My body really does bruise easily. You’ll… find that out for yourself soon enough.”

Luo Xiya caught the implication instantly.

Her eyes widened, the blue glow of her magical aura vanishing along with her composure, and she stared at Roman in a daze.