The Obsession of the Tyrant Sub-Male Lead is Unnecessary

Episode 19

Verona crawled carefully to the side of her bed and pulled the bell cord that rang a bell in Mary’s room.

At first, there was no response due to the late hour, but after pulling it a few more times, she heard light footsteps approaching. Trembling, she waited for Mary to return.

“Oh my!”

She heard Mary’s surprised voice at the door, but it wasn’t a sound of danger or fear. It was more like a sound of admiration.

A moment later, Mary entered the bedroom.

“Mary.”

“Princess? Why are you sitting on the floor? Did you slip?”

Mary approached with a puzzled look.

“More importantly… was there anyone outside?”

“No? No one was there. Oh, perhaps…”

Mary placed something on the bed and lit a candle, then helped Verona to her feet.

“Are you talking about this?”

Following Mary’s finger, Verona saw a small puppy sleeping soundly on the bed.

“When I came in, it was sleeping by the door. I have no idea where it came from. I didn’t hear about any puppies being kept at the palace. Maybe one of the maids’ dogs?”

Mary said, while also mentioning that they should inform the head maid because it might harm the canary they received as a gift. Her eyes were filled with adoration for the puppy.

“But Princess, where did that rude knight go? Surely he didn’t leave his post on the first night?”

Mary fumed with anger. However, Verona couldn’t take her eyes off the puppy for some reason.

‘Black fur…?’

Black puppies weren’t unusual, but it felt familiar. She realized it resembled the hair color of Carlos and Retrius.

“I’ll have to give him a piece of my mind when I see him tomorrow!”

Mary’s loud voice startled the sleeping puppy awake. It looked directly at her with golden eyes.

“Oh, did I wake you? Go back to sleep.”

Mary picked up the puppy, cooing in a baby voice, and the puppy quickly averted its eyes.

“Princess, would you like to hold it? It’s so tiny and cute.”

Verona took the puppy from Mary, and she was certain.

As soon as it transferred from Mary’s arms to hers, the puppy started trembling even more.

“Mary, it’s okay now. I called you because I thought someone was outside, but it was just this little guy.”

“Oh! I see.”

Mary, still petting the puppy lovingly, looked reassured.

It was indeed cute. But Mary was worried that Olivia, who shared a room with her, disliked animals and might cause a fuss if the puppy stayed.

“I’ll go now. I’ll inform the captain of the guard to send another knight, so don’t worry and sleep well!”

“Alright.”

Mary closed the door securely and left. When the sound of her footsteps faded, Verona put the puppy down. It quickly jumped out of her arms.

“Retti.”

The puppy froze at her quiet call.

“It’s you, isn’t it?”

“….”

“Don’t try to play dumb. Or I’ll ask Carlos.”

Slowly, the puppy turned around, closing and opening its pretty golden eyes with a troubled expression. Then, Retrius appeared.

“…Sorry, Princess.”

He looked more guilty than apologetic.

“I intended to stay up all night on guard, but today I was too tired… especially after His Majesty’s… forceful measures. It’s been a long time since I came to the human world! And turning into a dog is the easiest.”

His rambling explanation made it clear he was caught.

“So that’s why Carlos called you a dog?”

“Uh, yeah… something like that.”

Verona sighed as he fumbled for an excuse.

“I thought an intruder was waiting for a chance to attack. You should have told me beforehand.”

“Sorry. I won’t fall asleep next time.”

“Forget about sleeping. Just make sure you stand guard properly. If I were really attacked… Oh!”

“Huh?”

A sudden thought struck Verona.

If Olivia harbored ill intentions and tried to sneak into her bedroom at night, or if she attempted to approach unnoticed, Retrius, as a male knight, wouldn’t always be able to guard her closely.

A knight’s duty to protect the emperor’s consort was mainly to respond to external threats.

“Would you like to stay as a puppy at night?”

“What? Really, Princess?”

“Yes.”

Retrius, who had been yawning, brightened up at Verona’s suggestion. She promised not to tell Carlos, and Retrius immediately transformed back into a puppy, settling down at the corner of the room, right by the door.

The gentle breathing of the puppy filled the quiet bedroom, putting her at ease.

Verona slept very well that night.

And she dreamed.

A dream where a cute baby with black hair and green eyes babbled happily in her arms.

* * *

When she woke up in the morning, she felt a bit disappointed that it wasn’t real.

Lifting her empty arms, Verona thought.

‘Did I dream of a puppy because I let one into the bedroom?’

Maybe it was because of the change in her sleeping arrangements. She absentmindedly calculated how long she had been in the imperial palace and realized something.

It was already five days past her scheduled period.

Her cycle had never been particularly regular, but the fear intensified because Carlos kept talking about having a child.

‘It could be due to the change in environment.’

It was too early to make any conclusions. No matter how confident Carlos was, how could he be certain of pregnancy just a day after their night together?

Even Verona herself wasn’t sure about her condition.

‘Unless Carlos is not human, there’s no way he could know for sure.’

It hadn’t even been a month since their first night. Verona decided to wait a few more days to see if her period would come.

However, even after washing her face and changing clothes, she couldn’t shake off her unsettled feeling.

“Hey!”

Mary, following Luigi with a breakfast tray, frowned.

“Me?”

“Yes, you, Sir Knight.”

Mary stopped at the door, addressing Retrius who was standing guard.

“You’re actually on duty this morning?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

The maid’s snappy tone surprised Retrius, but he answered nonchalantly, which only irked Mary further.

“Where were you last night? As a guard, it’s dereliction of duty to rest at night!”

Retrius looked bewildered.

“Am I supposed to stay awake all day? When do I sleep?”

“I don’t care. Arrange a shift schedule with other knights. His Majesty appointed you as a guard, so you should ensure nothing like last night happens again!”

“What happened last night exactly…”

Retrius started to raise his voice but quickly glanced at Verona and clamped his mouth shut. However, Verona looked away.

‘You’re on your own. I’m not getting involved.’

Seeing no support from Verona, Retrius stammered an excuse.

“Well, um, I was just tired yesterday…”

Mary scolded him a few more times before returning to Verona with a satisfied expression.

“I’ve straightened things out, Princess. Don’t worry. By the way, where did that puppy from last night go? I don’t see it.”

“Uh… it went back this morning.”

“Oh, so it belonged to someone else? It was so cute with its soft fur.”

Mary seemed genuinely disappointed. Retrius, listening, cleared his throat awkwardly. He seemed uncomfortable seeing Mary, who had scolded him, now speaking fondly about him in his dog form. Luigi, however, looked puzzled and asked,

“What puppy are you talking about, Mary? No one in the side palace keeps pets.”

“Really? Then what was the puppy we saw last night?”

Mary tilted her head in confusion. Verona explained that it disappeared in the morning and then began her breakfast.

Retrius, pretending not to notice, kept clearing his throat. However, Mary repeatedly mentioned how cute and lovely the puppy was, which seemed to make him a bit pleased despite himself.

“Princess, haven’t you made a decision yet?”

After the meal, Luigi asked cautiously while clearing the table.

“Decision? About what?”

“About the request for a conversation from the noblewomen. Miss Merelton was supposed to bring it to you.”

Verona looked at Mary. Mary opened her mouth in surprise.

“Are you saying Miss Merelton didn’t give the letter to the Princess? The letter arrived while we were helping you organize the gifts yesterday. I asked Miss Merelton to deliver it since it wasn’t appropriate to ask a maid.”

Mary looked ready to drag Olivia in by her collar when Olivia entered the room with light footsteps.

“Princess, I have the letter.”

“Miss Olivia, why are you bringing it now?”

Luigi asked sharply. Olivia, with large, soulful eyes, gently placed the silver tray with the letter in front of Verona.

“I’m sorry. I was going to bring it yesterday, but His Majesty was with the Princess.”

“There’s no reason you couldn’t deliver it even if His Majesty was there.”

“I don’t think His Majesty likes seeing me.”

Despite the potential humiliation, Olivia said this with a calm smile.

Knowing that Carlos didn’t hide his dislike for Olivia, Luigi couldn’t argue further.

“But that’s your issue, not the Princess’s. This is about the Princess’s reputation. Acting like that was wrong. Your salary will be reduced.”

“I understand.”

“Be more flexible next time.”

Even with Luigi’s reprimand, Olivia only nodded and didn’t react much. She even volunteered to clear the dishes Mary was about to handle.

‘Has she given up?’

Verona couldn’t read Olivia’s thoughts and decided to think about it later. She picked up the letter from the silver tray.

Inside, it was a request for a gathering from several noblewomen, inviting the new fiancée of the Emperor to join them for tea and conversation. The letter was filled with polite language and elegant calligraphy.

“Luigi, please respond to the letter, accepting the invitation.”

“As you wish, Princess.”

Luigi bowed and left the room to handle the correspondence. Verona, feeling a mix of unease and curiosity about the upcoming meeting, sighed and turned to Retrius, who was still standing by the door.

“Retrius, make sure you’re alert tonight. I can’t afford any more surprises.”

“Of course, Princess.”

Retrius nodded, looking more determined. Mary, having overheard, also gave him a sharp look to reinforce Verona’s command.

Verona tried to shake off the lingering feelings of uncertainty as she prepared for the day, hoping the gathering with the noblewomen would provide some distraction and clarity on her situation.