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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: The Ruined Male Lead Chose the Wrong Opponent
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I made a beeline for Masera in tunnel-vision mode, but he was out.
Apparently, he had a mountain of backlog from his trip.
'Ever since the day after our honeymoon, it's been so hard to even catch a glimpse of him.'
While I was waiting in the empty bedroom that had nothing but a bed, word came that he'd returned to the official residence, so I rushed out to greet him.
"Brigadier General, I need to talk to you alone."
"Let's do it tomorrow. I'm swamped."
He hurried off to his office like he was fleeing.
Since he said he was busy, all I could do was wait obediently in my room.
"......Why isn't he coming? I'm gonna die of sleepiness."
Even by dawn, he still hadn't come to the room. I later heard from Dalia that...
"The Brigadier General said you only sleep together on consummation night."
"Oh."
Was this one of those political marriage clichés—separate rooms?
Not that he had any intention of doing that with me anyway, so wasn't this basically saying we'd have separate rooms forever?
It seemed like Masera had finally started putting real distance between us.
"Fine, whatever."
I jumped up from my seat and threw on a sweater over my outfit.
"This is about Eugene, who's precious to everyone in the residence."
How could they pretend not to know when my voice was dripping with sadness?
With my resolve firm, I headed straight for Masera's office.
"Brigadier General?"
The office was empty, but his uniform coat was hanging there, and the firewood in the stove was still burning, so he had to be somewhere nearby.
'Is he sleeping?'
Deciding I had to wake him if necessary, I strode confidently toward the adjoining room.
Click.
The bathroom door straight ahead swung open.
Through the thick steam billowing out like mist, my eyes met Masera's as he ruffled his platinum hair.
He'd only ever shown himself all bundled up during our honeymoon, but now his upper body was completely bare. At least he still had his pants on.
"Gasp."
I covered my eyes with my hands and stepped back.
But I'd already seen everything through the gaps in my fingers.
Perfectly sculpted battle muscles, broad shoulders, a chest as vast as the sea, a slim waist, and even the veins and forearms on the arm holding the towel.
Analysis complete: Masera had the face of a noble young master and the body of a beast.
"......"
But it wasn't just something to praise as impressive. His body was covered in scars left by war.
'Gunshots, slashes, burns......'
The traces of his struggle to survive were vividly etched there.
From my past life experience, I could tell how he'd gotten most of them just by looking.
Because I'd been covered in scars like that too.
Suddenly feeling like crying, I pressed my hands hard over my eyes and said,
"Brigadier General. Sorry to barge in like this. It's urgent."
"What's so urgent?"
In that instant, the fresh soap scent and steamy heat from his just-washed body rushed close.
"Coming here so fearlessly dressed like that."
His dry voice made me check my own outfit.
It was a perfectly modest nightgown with a sweater coat over it.
"Isn't this basically full battle armor?"
Who's the one dressed like that without fear?
I couldn't understand the standards of this all-ages-rated guy freaking out over what was basically loungewear...
Then, he crooked one corner of his mouth and stepped even closer.
"Did you arbitrarily decide on a consummation date just because I mentioned it?"
"No."
"I had no intention of that to begin with, and even if we did, it wouldn't change anything about our relationship."
"That's not what this is about, you idiot."
Ah, put some clothes on already!
The more I backed away, the closer he came, leaving me in a bind. At this rate, it seemed like he was the one who wanted to consummate.
Before I knew it, my back was against the wall, meeting his cool gaze.
Ah, he was trying to scare me off.
"You have no fear, stripping in front of me like this! You've forced my hand now! Let's have some fun!"
I flung off my sweater coat.
Time to teach this second-life human what fear is.
As I threw my arms around his body, he flinched back and grabbed my shoulders.
"What the hell are you......"
"I'm putting into practice the words you wanted to hear, you tsundere."
"Tsun-what?"
His soldierly pride and competitive spirit kicked in, and the hand on my shoulder slid to my waist.
He tightened his arms around me and said,
"Go ahead, do whatever you want."
Backing down meant losing.
My own competitive fire was no slouch either, so even with my cheek pressed against his firm chest, I tried to keep my cool.
"Next step toward consummation!"
At my bold shout, he flinched again.
That's when Masera whipped his head around at some noise.
I followed his gaze and locked eyes with Diego, who was standing there frozen with his mouth agape.
Thud.
The sound of Diego dropping the report in his hand.
Diego was staring at us locked in a tight embrace without a single gap. Anyone could see it was a steamy atmosphere.
"......Holy crap."
It was the exclamation from the ever-intellectual Diego.
"Sorry for interrupting......"
Too shocked to even finish, he bolted away.
We were enveloped in cold silence and stillness. I could see goosebumps rising on Masera's skin.
He must be embarrassed.
"Hey. Let's call a truce for a bit."
I was just as mortified, so I raised the white flag first.
He released me as if shoving me away and quickly threw on a robe.
Then he turned back to me with the piercing gaze of a wild beast.
"You should head back now. Your body-tackle strategy failed."
"Forget the body slams or whatever—look at this for a sec."
I showed him the book I'd placed on the side table.
His dawn-colored eyes narrowed in wariness from a distance, then gradually widened.
"You actually got your hands on that book?"
"I didn't procure it myself. The tutor gave it to Eugene. Seems like he's teaching some weird ideology, so maybe we should fire him."
I quickly got to the point before more misunderstandings could pile up.
"You're saying to chase away the person Eugene trusts most?"
"Yes. It didn't look like the kid followed him out of affection. It felt forced, suppressed."
Finally, with Masera listening properly, I added,
"Seems like he's planting hatred for the Esat People."
I explained the incident with Major Rodriguez too.
Masera, who'd been listening quietly, nodded.
"Understood."
"But how did that tutor end up in the residence anyway?"
"Eugene's a wary kid who doesn't let anyone close. We held over twenty tutor interviews, but Hayden was the first he didn't reject."
As he poured wine into a glass, his eyes drifted like he was reminiscing.
"Is his background solid?"
"He's an intellectual who fled from a colony occupied by the Empire. We verified his university professor credentials and papers."
Not everyone from an Imperial colony hated the Empire.
Often, there were traitors assimilated into their ideology.
"My stance is that anyone teaching kids how to hate others doesn't qualify as a teacher. Adults who discriminate and hate will eventually earn everyone's hatred."
Kids taught that way grow up to repeat cycles of conflict and war.
After Cynthia left, Masera stared absently at the book she'd left behind.
He was recalling the air raid on the Duchy from the past.
The Duchy had been bombed on the pretext of sheltering Esat refugees.
In just one hour, countless people died or were injured, and the city lay in ruins.
Masera had been tasked with finding the daughter of an allied naval admiral missing in the bombing.
Her husband, the lieutenant colonel, had kept his composure and commanded the scene, but he seemed oddly out of it.
Rumor had it the admiral's daughter had married without love, clinging desperately, and that the lieutenant colonel hated his wife. He'd heard whispers like that.
"We've found Mrs. Gronendal. She's alive, but... it's..."
She was discovered in a horrific state three days after going missing and ultimately passed away in the military hospital.
As Masera emerged from reporting the results and leaving the ward, he saw a black-haired lieutenant colonel standing facing a brick wall.
Tears were falling to the ground beneath his bowed head.
"Don't forgive a fool like me who was blinded by rage and never saw the truth..."
His soliloquy reeked of belated regret and loss.
Only realizing it after everything ended, huh.
As Masera walked lost in thought, he spotted a black-haired child standing with the sunset at his back.
The boy was gazing forlornly at the distant lieutenant colonel.
"The son of Lieutenant Colonel Gronendal?"
At Masera's question, the boy—with bandages on his arm and his face plastered with patches—shook his head.
"I thought he was my dad..."
The mumbling child rubbed his eyes with his bandaged arm, then quickly ran off.
That was Masera and Eugene's first encounter.
