Obey Me Now

“I’ll marry you.”

Amelia’s composure faltered entirely.

“Really? Just like that?”

“You said it yourself—it’s a marriage of convenience. If a discarded prince wants revenge on the brother he despises, he has to become emperor. Besides…”

His tone darkened, cold and sharp, and a chill ran down Amelia’s spine as his piercing gaze locked onto hers.

“There’s something I want now.”

“Something you want?”

His eyes didn’t waver as he stared at her.

“There’s something I can only have if I become emperor. I won’t let this opportunity slip away. In fact, I need you just as much as you need me.”

The intensity of his gaze reflected a hunger, a burning ambition for the throne. Taking her outstretched hand, he clasped it tightly.

“If you’re going to make me emperor, you’ll need to take full responsibility for teaching me everything I need to know. From start to finish.”

His grip tightened slightly, sending a faint shiver through her.

“Whatever it takes, I’ll see it through to the end. Can you handle someone like me?”

His deep, commanding voice and piercing blue eyes bore into her, overwhelming her. Though she had approached him with her own agenda, she now felt as though he were the one pulling her into his orbit.

“He didn’t ask why I want revenge on Edzoff. It doesn’t matter to him. What matters is our shared ambition—for the throne.”

Amelia steadied herself and tightened her grip on his hand.

“Of course I can. It’s exactly what I want, too. I will make you emperor, Duke Clio.”

A relationship of mutual use. That was all she needed.

Eclite seemed almost breathless as he nodded.

“Then, what’s our next step?”

“You know about the banquet tomorrow night at House Fiore?”

“They’re introducing candidates for the next Duke of Fiore, correct?”

“Yes. Most of the nobility will be there. That’s where we’ll announce our marriage.”

“And you’ll also be introduced as one of the candidates.”

Eclite quickly pieced the situation together.

“That’s the plan.”

“Good.”

“Good?”

“That way, you won’t have to face that daunting event alone.”

The unexpected sentiment left Amelia momentarily speechless. She could only stare at him in surprise until Mami’s voice broke the silence.

“My lady, it’s me. May I come in?”

“Yes, come in.”

Amelia finally managed to tear her gaze away from Eclite.

“My lady, about tomorrow morning—oh my! Who’s this?”

Mami froze, startled at the sight of Eclite standing with Amelia.

“Mami, apologize for your rudeness and show proper respect. This is Duke Clio.”

“Pardon? Cl-Clio, Duke Clio? How… No, never mind. Duke Clio.”

Mami quickly bowed her head.

“Treat him with the utmost courtesy. He’ll also be attending tomorrow’s banquet.”

“Of course. I’ll make the necessary arrangements immediately!”

As Eclite followed Mami out, he spoke briefly.

“Then, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yes, until tomorrow,” Amelia replied.

Once Eclite was gone, Amelia sank onto the bed, her legs giving out beneath her.

“Hah… this is going well, right?”

Too much had happened all at once.

“One hurdle cleared. Now just the most important one left.”

She had to be recognized as a candidate, pass the trial, and become the head of House Fiore.

A daunting task…

She recalled his words from earlier. He was right. Someone who couldn’t handle a gun stepping forward as the head of the Musketeer family would undoubtedly face sharp criticism and ridicule.

“But you won’t be alone.”

“Still… I really won’t be alone.”

It was just a relationship of convenience, a contract. Yet, for the first time, she felt as though she truly had someone on her side. It was strangely comforting.

Eclite stepped out of the room and finally let the tension drain from his body.

“Hah…”

If Keihil had seen him, he wouldn’t have believed the uncharacteristically vulnerable sigh that escaped his lips.

“Y-Your Grace?”

Mami stopped in her tracks, eyeing him nervously. Eclite caught her gaze and casually pulled his robe back over himself, concealing his appearance once again.

“Come to think of it, she wasn’t afraid of me.”

She had only said she was glad to see him. Her words hadn’t carried a trace of fear or deceit.

As he began to walk again, a breeze blew through a partially open window, stopping him in his tracks. On the windowsill sat a withered flower, its petals curled from the lack of nourishment. It seemed to have taken root briefly before succumbing.

This warm southern land, where wildflowers bloomed so easily, was a world away from the frozen North where he had been abandoned. He had vowed never to return to the South, determined to confine himself to the icy wasteland forever. His presence in the wider world had always caused nothing but chaos.

“Yet here I am, because of you, Lady Amelia.”

He had known it from the moment he saw her, from the instant her voice reached him.

“Refusing her… was never an option.”

He turned and walked away. Behind him, the once-withered flower on the windowsill began to bloom again.

Amelia waited for Mami to return. Surely, her maid would come running, full of curiosity and questions. But the person who came to see her wasn’t Mami.

“My lady, are you there?”

One of the duchy’s maids entered, bowing respectfully.

“I bring greetings from Duke Fiore.”

“Duke Fiore? Grandfather has returned?” Amelia asked, her eyes widening.

“Yes, my lady. The Duke wishes to see you.”

“That’s wonderful. I was hoping to meet him—”

“Amelia.”

The familiar voice cut through her words. Amelia froze and turned toward the source of the voice.

“…Messarina.”

Her breathing hitched as her younger stepsister stepped into the room.

“Excuse me, could you leave us for a moment?” Amelia’s tone grew cold, causing the maid to bow and quickly leave.

“Come in, Messarina. Let’s talk.”

“You said you wanted me to be happy!”

Amelia stopped in her tracks.

Messarina stepped closer, her tone not one of apology but blame.

“You always told me you wanted me to be happy!”

Summoning the last of her emotional restraint, Amelia spoke evenly.

“Not once have you ever felt remorse for what you did, have you?”

Please, just once, ask for my forgiveness.

But instead…

“I’m sorry for deceiving you,” Messarina said, her tone lacking sincerity. “But I don’t think I stole Duke Bastyan from you. He was mine first. He always loved me! Loving him isn’t something I need to apologize for.”

“…”

Messarina’s voice softened, her words dripping with self-justification.

“So, I’ll make him happy, and that’s enough. You want him to be happy too, don’t you? I’ll fill the void you left, and everything will be fine.”

A bitter laugh escaped Amelia’s lips.

“Don’t dress up your selfishness as if you did it for me, Messarina. It’s revolting.”

“W-what?”

Messarina flinched, startled by Amelia’s icy demeanor.

“And don’t call me ‘sister.’ I know now—we were never family.”

She felt no pain, no disappointment. Only exhaustion. Why had she ever hoped for more? Messarina and Edzoff were two of a kind.

“If we were truly family, you wouldn’t be waiting for me to die so you can live your love story free of scandal. You wouldn’t be so eager for my absence to justify your sordid affair.”

Messarina clenched her teeth at the word “scandal.”

“It’s not a scandal!”

“Can you stand by his side at tomorrow’s banquet? You can’t, because he doesn’t want you there. That’s what makes it a scandal.”

Amelia faced her sister directly, no longer holding back.

“I meant it when I said I wanted you to be happy. So here’s some advice: don’t trust him too much. He’s using you, too.”

“No! He loves me!”

“You’ve felt it, haven’t you? That’s why you ran away that day. If I was just a tool to him, then you’re nothing more than a toy.”

“He loves me!” Messarina screamed, her voice trembling with desperation.

Her lips twisted into an ugly sneer as she spat out the words Amelia had known were buried beneath her facade.

“He never loved you, not for a second! How could he, when you’re just a dying woman?”

Her venomous words revealed the truth Amelia had always known.

“No one ever wished for me to live. Why should I wish for their happiness anymore?”

“Messarina, don’t overdress for the banquet tomorrow. You’ll look ridiculous.”

Messarina blinked, startled by the sudden shift.

“I’m going to make you cry. Miserably, publicly, and utterly.”

Amelia’s voice carried the quiet weight of a promise, one Messarina would soon come to regret.