I Plotted The World Destruction With The Male Lead - Chapter 36

‘No.’

Van was fully aware that he was already pushing her too far. Even at this level, Eleanor might not be able to walk properly tomorrow. The Guiding had already been more than sufficient, but his royal body, filled with insatiable greed, still craved to hold her more.

No, it wasn’t just his body—Van himself didn’t want to let Eleanor go.

Every time he touched her, he feared she would shatter, and yet, if he didn’t touch her, it felt like he wouldn’t survive.

How could I not love you?

The days he had failed to recognize his own Guide, the time he had lost, felt unbearably unjust.

As Eleanor’s tongue curled around his own, Van trembled in bliss.

“Eleanor… mmh…”

Holding her soft body tightly within his arms, he explored and savored every inch of her. He knew he shouldn’t. And yet, he did. He wanted to be the prison that confined her for the rest of her life, to ensure she could never escape from his embrace.

Feeling the longing in her fingertips as she touched him, Van let out a low groan.

She was touching him.

“…I love you.”

The words spilled out, mingled with a heated breath, as if they had always belonged there.

Yet, it was Eleanor who was startled first, and only then did Van realize what he had just said.

He had known for some time that Eleanor had taken root in his heart.

He had already recognized his feelings for her—something close to love.

But he had never spoken it aloud before.

Because he feared she might reject him.

Just as Charlotte had.

He feared Eleanor would find his love burdensome and push him away.

As her body stiffened in response, Van felt like he was plunging into a bottomless abyss—until suddenly, he felt something else.

Eleanor had grabbed his backside.

Before and after his regression, no one had ever touched him there.

His crimson eyes widened in shock, and in response, Eleanor’s gaze sparkled playfully.

Van looked at her, half in a trance, half in anticipation.

“I touched you there, and yet… you’re standing at attention?”

Whether it was due to surprise or something else, his length inside her had hardened even further.

In fact, her teasing words only seemed to make it grow.

She was still holding onto him.

Her slender, delicate fingers felt unbearably tantalizing.

“Tomorrow… my lady… you won’t be leaving… the bed…”

As he whispered the promise, Eleanor seemed to smile.

Van was utterly captivated by that smile and found himself speaking again.

“I love you, Eleanor…”

The moment he said it, the emotion became an undeniable truth.

Perhaps it had been so long before he even realized it himself.

Their lips met once more, sweeter and more intoxicating than ever.

Van found himself unable to part from Eleanor for a very, very long time after that.

*

The empire was abuzz with all kinds of rumors.

The most shocking news concerned the Duke of Armoire’s household, but another misfortune quickly followed. The Marquis of Enrick, the Warden of the North, had lost his only heir.

Charlotte Enrick.

The Rose of the North had reportedly died suddenly from an illness. The marquis was devastated, and the imperial family, along with all the high-ranking nobles, hurriedly sent their condolences. The Grand Duke of Granmire could not postpone the engagement, but he canceled the celebratory Banquet out of respect for the Marquis of Enrick. Instead, the engagement ceremony would be a small, private affair attended only by family.

‘There’s no way Carlyle killed Charlotte.’

Upon hearing the news, Eleanor was certain that Carlyle had taken her. With the mages under his command, forging a corpse that resembled Charlotte would have been a trivial task. She was one of only three known Guides in the empire. Even before the regression, Charlotte had never faced any true danger—there was no reason for her to suddenly fall ill.

It seemed that Marquis Enrick himself was unaware that the corpse wasn’t actually his daughter.

‘It would be best to inform the marquis… but the Warden of the North is a paranoid man.’

Even setting aside the North’s isolationist tendencies, he was obsessively protective of his daughter, to the point of near madness.

Approaching him recklessly could backfire.

Eleanor wasn’t particularly worried about Charlotte’s safety.

Even as a mere commoner, Eleanor had been treated with a degree of courtesy by Carlyle simply because she was a Guide.

In this life as well, Carlyle was likely planning to make Charlotte his Empress.

He was not foolish enough to mistreat the woman who would bear his child.

What truly concerned Eleanor was Van.

There was no way Van wouldn’t have heard the same news she had.

If Eleanor had spent six years as Carlyle’s betrothed, then Van had spent those same six years courting and loving Charlotte.

By the time the novel’s story had begun, that love had already withered into nothing.

But human emotions weren’t so simple.

Even Eleanor knew that if she were to face Carlyle again, her emotions would be in turmoil.

That was why she steeled herself, locking her heart away.

Not that it would be difficult—her emotions were ruled by anger above all else.

But then…

‘I love you, Eleanor…’

The memory of his whispered confession made Eleanor’s face flush.

It was a completely different feeling from the painful ache she used to feel when she thought of Carlyle.

This feeling swallowed that pain whole, making her heart pound.

She had vowed to focus only on revenge against Carlyle, and yet… something else had begun to take root.

‘Ah…’

She must have told herself countless times that she couldn’t allow herself to love Van yet.

But how could she hold firm when every night, she was wrapped in the arms of a man who truly loved her?

He touched her as if she were the most precious thing in the world.

Carlyle’s cold, distant indifference had left deep scars in her heart, but when compared to Van’s warmth…

It was nothing at all.

Van’s heat consumed Eleanor in an instant, shaking her to the core.

Even as she felt like she might lose her mind, an overwhelming joy surged through her, bringing tears to her eyes before she even realized it.

Fortunately, since they were in the midst of their passion, Van seemed to mistake the reason for her tears.

But it was true.

Eleanor was happy to be loved by him.

Even her own parents had never given her love.

Love that came with conditions, love that always demanded something greater in return—such affections only left people feeling wretched.

‘But still.’

Eleanor lightly fanned her flushed cheeks, remembering how she had spent the night clinging to Van, her hands gripping his waist.

‘Maybe that was a bit too much.’

She had been the one to tease and seduce him, so she had no complaints.

But Van, on the other hand, seemed to be deeply ashamed of having pushed her so far that she could barely walk.

‘I’m sorry. Until you recover, I will serve as your legs…’

That was unacceptable.

They were in the imperial palace, surrounded by watchful eyes.

Even just walking with Van’s support would draw too much attention.

But Van wasn’t talking about simply supporting her—he wanted to carry her.

When Eleanor refused in horror, Van looked at her with clear disappointment.

Since his body was now perfectly stabilized from the Guiding, she sent him away.

Van had things he needed to take care of, and she needed to rest.

Now, she had just woken from a long afternoon nap.

It would be some time before Van returned.

She could go outside for a walk or summon someone to inquire about what the Empress was doing.

‘How long has it been since I felt this way?’

After spending six years trapped in the Armoire duchy’s mansion, she had returned to her old home upon her regression, only to endure another suffocating period before ending up here.

The days she spent in the imperial palace’s eastern annex were the most peaceful and carefree in her life.

Since her status was still uncertain, she had declined invitations to Banquets and social gatherings.

She had already declared that, for now, she would focus solely on Van’s Guiding.

‘After the engagement, will I move into the Grand Duke’s estate? Or will I stay here in the annex until the wedding?’

Judging by the Emperor and Empress’s attitude, the latter seemed more likely.

They had no children of their own and had practically raised Van as their own son.

Eleanor thought of Van, who was currently outside.

It frustrated her to realize that, before her regression, she had spent six years doing nothing but Guiding and studying.

She knew little of the outside world and had no idea what events were about to unfold.

If she at least knew how Carlyle had managed to dismantle Van and the Emperor’s power while expanding his own, it would have been useful.

Her knowledge was based on the original novel, which primarily covered events after Carlyle had already ascended the throne.

She knew very little about what had happened before that.

Her understanding was limited to Van’s recollections and the few things he had told her while they were on the run.

‘Van.’

He had not told her in detail how he planned to oppose Carlyle.

But from the recent accusations against Carlyle, Eleanor had learned that the western noble faction was weaker than she had expected.

Since the Emperor had no intention of giving Eleanor to Carlyle, those nobles had begun to shift their allegiance to Van.

It was an unreliable alliance—one that could turn at any moment—but for now, they supported Van.

‘Carlyle expanded his mage forces and eliminated key nobles who formed the backbone of Van’s faction. And most critically, after assassinating the Emperor, he placed the blame on…’