Tamed A Blackened Slave Man

I blinked several times, taken aback by Cassadin’s declaration. From my position, resting my head on Cassadin’s chest while sitting on the bed, I turned my head towards him and asked,

“You’re going to become the Emperor? Don’t tell me you’re planning to overthrow the current Emperor, Cassadin.”

In response to my question, Cassadin shook his head. In his eyes, I saw a familiar look—one of an endless pit of madness.

Cassadin’s eyes curled into a smile, and he gently pushed me down onto the bed. With my sudden change of perspective, I heard Cassadin’s voice whispering into my ear.

“I’ve learned that when all the ministers, including the Emperor’s advisor, agree that a person is suitable to become an heir to the throne, then they will have met the conditions for obtaining the right to succeed the throne.”

What Cassadin said next was something that I also knew. However, it was nearly impossible for someone to inherit the throne in such a way.

Even if all the other ministers agreed to it, there was hardly a chance that the Emperor’s advisor would agree to another obtaining the right to the throne.

As evidence of that, there hadn’t been a single person in the entire history of the empire who gained the right to inherit the throne in that manner. In reality, the system might as well not exist.

I looked up at Cassadin’s face, who made me lie down on the bed. There wasn’t a hint of hesitation in his eyes.

He only continued to gaze down at me with certainty.

‘He’s serious.’

Seeing such a resolute expression, I felt my throat tighten, tears threatening to spill from my eyes.

Unlike me, who was consumed by my desire for revenge, Cassadin had been thinking about his future with me this entire time.

How innocent and beautiful was that? How could one person’s heart be so pure and clean?

‘On the other hand, I……’

I felt so pathetic compared to Cassadin. I did not deserve such unconditional love.

But even though I knew I didn’t deserve it, I found myself reassured by the fact that he still desired me. My expression must have betrayed my feelings, as Cassadin’s eyes filled with concern as he spoke to me.

“Why do you look so sad? Did what I said upset you?”

“……”

I silently took in the sight of Cassadin’s worried face. His brilliantly clear skin and purple eyes, framed by soft eyebrows, glittered brighter than any jewel in the world.

What remained in those deep purple eyes after the abyss had disappeared was just me, and only me.

“Technically speaking, it wouldn’t be considered treason, but if you don’t think it’s alright, I’ll look for another……”

I interrupted Cassadin by wrapping my arms around his neck.

As soon as I did, Cassadin stopped speaking. What should I do with this kind child?

“Why must you test my patience in such a way?”

His voice was low, but it contained a boiling passion.

As I hugged Cassadin, I could smell a clean, refreshing scent that I had missed.

I had been missing you.

I wanted to see you more than anyone else.

“……I missed you.”

Cassadin let out a deep sigh after hearing my quiet voice. I pulled back one of my arms wrapped around his neck and brought my hand to his cheek.

While caressing his cheek, I felt an intense gaze inspecting my body from top to bottom.

Despite looking ready to pounce on me at any moment, Cassadin didn’t lay a finger on me.

Eyes filled with a bottomless pit of desire looked down at me. From Cassadin’s face, I could see that the only thing inside of him at that moment was me.

I knew very well what that look meant. Cassadin was asking for my permission.

Instead of answering, I gave him a gentle smile.

Releasing a heated sigh, Cassadin lifted one of my hands to his lips, and then enveloped my index finger. He gazed down at me with an expression that was both dreamy and sensual.

It was merely a kiss on the finger, but he appeared so sensual that my face immediately turned red.

After toying with my finger for a while, Cassadin finally stopped. A faint smile graced his face as he quietly studied my features. I could see my reflection in his clear yet dark violet eyes.

I looked up at him wordlessly, unable to find something to say, which in turn caused the lustful expression in his eyes to retreat beneath his long lashes.

“……As I suspected, this isn’t going to be possible. I feel far too tainted to hold someone as pure as you in my arms.”

Cassadin quietly murmured to me with an expression far too sorrowful. It pained my heart to hear the self-deprecating tone in his deep voice and see the sad look on his face.

Once he finished speaking, Cassadin distanced himself from me.

I quickly grabbed the hand of the man who was pulling away. Cassadin’s downcast eyes trembled faintly.

To think that the purest being in the world was calling himself tainted when I was the actual tainted one.

I, the sinful one who tried to drag him into my childish desire for revenge. I, the foolish one, who realized how precious he was to me only after pushing him away.

“Cassadin.”

I quietly called out Cassadin’s name. A lump formed in my throat just from uttering that name.

Gently caressing Cassadin’s troubled face, I spoke to him.

“If you are tainted, then every single person in this world is tainted. Do you remember what I said to you before?”

“……I do.”

“I want it.”

Hearing that, Cassadin’s lowered eyes slowly rose again. His eyes widened as he stared back at me.

Looking directly into his shocked yet surprised eyes, I gave Cassadin the brightest smile that I could muster.

“I want to do it with you.”

As I repeated myself once more, Cassadin’s deep amethyst eyes slowly scanned over me.

It seemed that after studying my face, he realized my sincerity and no longer held back.

“If you end up regretting it, don’t blame me.”

As soon as he finished his sentence, Cassadin buried his face in my nape.

With the hand that had been playing with my hair, he took hold of mine, leaving his mark on me.

I felt Cassadin’s breath grow rough against my neck as a moan escaped my lips. His touch was hot enough to scorch my skin.

Cassadin slowly unbuttoned his uniform. The moment it fell to the floor, his toned body filled my entire field of vision.

My breath hitched involuntarily at the sight of his chiseled abs and broad shoulders.

But I was only given a brief moment to admire him before Cassadin whispered in my ear.

“I’ve wanted to do this since the first moment I saw you.”

Cassadin’s whisper was incredibly sensual. Just hearing his voice made my head spin.

In this moment with Cassadin, I didn’t want to think about anything else.

Whether that was Damian or Lillian. Or even the youngest Princess of the Elsia Kingdom, who was to be the Emperor’s gift to Cassadin.

‘Would you still love me as you do now if you knew everything about me? Would you still trust me if you knew I had returned from the future?’

Despite the unease weighing on my heart, I couldn’t bear to let you go.

I was afraid that Cassadin might leave me if he knew everything.

I was disgustingly selfish. I despised myself for being such a person.

‘When everything is over, will you marry me?’

Am I worthy of marrying someone like you?

‘And yet… the time I’m spending with you right now is so precious to me.’

When I grasped Cassadin’s face with both of my hands and stared into his eyes, his maniacal gaze was fixed on me. His gaze was desperately clear and crazed.

Those were the eyes of a beast that desired me.

And such eyes only felt love for me.

Cassadin wasn’t the only one who was insane. I probably looked just as insane in his eyes.

“I love you.”

Like an answer to my confession, Cassadin passionately claimed my lips. Our breaths intertwined with each other, and our bodies heated in response.

The large hands that tenderly caressed my body felt much too hot. But Cassadin’s gaze as he looked at me was just as heated as his touch.

Cassadin pressed his lips onto my collarbone and neck time after time. When I responded to that unfamiliar feeling with light sighs, Cassadin smiled joyously.

I heard Cassadin’s deep, cavernous voice echo in my ear.

“You are my one and only shelter in this world.”

When I gazed up toward the source of the longing voice with a hypnotized expression, Cassadin’s movements became even rougher.

I felt my mind and body melting with every single movement Cassadin made. I lost count of how many times I had dug my fingernails into his back.

Cassadin had been truly, undoubtedly remarkable.

As time passed, the windowless room turned dark.

It was only deep into the night that Cassadin released me from his embrace.

No. It wasn’t accurate to say that he had let me go, since Cassadin still had his arms wrapped around my waist.

Facing each other while lying down, Cassadin was using one hand to support his chin and another around my waist.

Cassadin’s face still looked far too sensual in the light reflected by the fireplace. My face heated up again.

“How will you go to the banquet tomorrow in this state?”

Cassadin gently traced his hand over my collarbone and neck, using the hand that had been wrapped around my waist. As he had said, my body was full of imprints that he had left.

Feeling a bit embarrassed by Cassadin’s intense gaze, I pulled up the blanket on the bed to cover my body as much as possible.

This action prompted a bright laugh from him. Cassadin tenderly pressed his hand against my cheek as he spoke.

“I’m so happy, I can’t tell if this is a dream or reality. Could this be the fulfillment of my wishes after dreaming of you every single day?”

The way Cassadin’s eyes were focused solely on me was so indescribably beautiful that I couldn’t look away.

“Do you know how worried I was over the past two months that someone might steal you away from me?”

I felt the same way. Even though I knew in my head that Cassadin could take care of himself, I still found myself worrying about him.

“Did that bastard Damian do anything to you while I was away?”

Cassadin’s question made my heart skip a beat.

“I found it odd that I didn’t see him on the battlefield.”

“……”

“So, I was worried that he might have done something to you.”

How would Cassadin react if I told him that Damian bit my neck to test my healing abilities?

‘Even though the scar has already disappeared, if Cassadin hears about this…’

I didn’t want to cause unnecessary worry for Cassadin. He was already busy enough with the Emperor’s supervision and his duties as a Marquess.

I shook my head in response to Cassadin’s concerns.

“Don’t worry.”

“……”

“Nothing happened.”

Only then did Cassadin seem to relax, and he gave me a beautiful smile.

“If it were up to me, I would want to stay here with you forever, but it’s getting late now, so we should return home.”

“……”

“I will escort you back to the mansion. But why don’t we put our clothes back on first?”

With that, Cassadin began to assist me in dressing. I surrendered my body to his gentle touch.

Once he had finished, he gazed at my neck and said,

“It seems the marks I’ve left can still be seen even with your clothes on.”

Cassadin pressed his lips against my neck. Sensing my flinch, a soft chuckle escaped from his mouth.

“It’s better that way.”

Cassadin said this as if he truly meant it. But when I glared back at him with narrowed eyes, he smiled and claimed it was a joke.

When I rose from the bed, pain surged through my entire body as if a blunt hammer had struck me, and my legs wobbled. In contrast, Cassadin appeared completely unaffected, and… remarkably healthy.

He didn’t seem the least bit exhausted after our entire ordeal. Instead, he just gazed at me intensely.

“Cassadin, you need to get dressed as well.”

Just as Cassadin had helped me dress, I assisted him in the same way. As I fastened each button on his uniform, I could feel his gaze on me.

When I finished buttoning his uniform and looked up, he pressed his lips against mine as if he had been waiting. This made my heart flutter.

Taking his hand, I quickened my pace to hurry back to the mansion. When I stopped due to my shaky legs, Cassadin looked down at me with concern.

“If you’re too tired, why don’t we take a carriage back?”

“I’m alright. It would cause even more trouble if someone saw us.”

As expected on a winter night, there weren’t many people out on the streets.

But that relief was short-lived. I noticed someone standing in front of the mansion.

At first, I thought it was my father who had come out because of my late return, but he was currently out patrolling the territory. So it couldn’t be him.

As we got closer to the mansion, the vague figure of the person became clearer.

The individual’s hair was the same color as the pitch-black sky where the moon hung. Beneath those were green eyes reminiscent of emeralds.

When his gaze met mine, the man’s thin lips curled upward.

The moment the man’s eyes dropped to my neck, his smile began to falter.

Why was Damian visiting the mansion at this late hour? Did he have something to tell me while Father was out on patrol?

Although I didn’t know his reason for visiting, I could see that his gaze was focused on my neck. After quietly observing me for a moment, Damian’s lips slowly parted.

“Aren.”