Chapter 97 - I Don’t Love You Anymore

Mikhail’s stinging flesh was a constant reminder that the man in front of him was dangerous. Nevertheless, he didn’t want to back down. Jubelian was a woman who had blindly followed him without being aware of the dangers surrounding her. He couldn’t tell if she was slow-witted or stupid, but the way she would smile at him, even when he made it obvious he didn’t like her, made his stomach turn.

‘I can’t let such a dangerous man like him stay by that dense woman,’ he decided. Although she may have lacked in many aspects, Jubelian still belonged to him. Mikhail couldn’t help but be bothered by the fact that a parasitic man like Max had attached himself to her. With this reasoning in mind, Mikhail hurriedly stood up and glared at him.

“You. Who are you and what makes you think you can stay by Jubelian?”

“That’s none of your business,” Max replied while slightly furrowing his eyebrows.

At Max’s perverse tone, Mikhail drew his sword without hesitation and pointed the tip towards Max’s neck. “Tell me,” he demanded, the silver blade in his hand not wavering. Mikhail was determined to mercilessly cut down his opponent if Max spoke anymore nonsense.

Even though his life was being threatened, Max remained calm. “Didn’t Jubelian already tell you? We’re lovers.”

The moment he heard those words, Mikhail felt anger surge up inside him. He wanted to cut through the arrogant man’s neck right away but refrained from doing so because he was unsure of Jubelian’s reaction. Mikhail held onto the little patience he had left and raised his voice.

“Nonsense! There’s no way she’d love something like you! Who are you? What purpose—”

“Mikhail Albert Hessen, put that sword down.” A cold, ruthless voice interrupted him.

Mikhail flinched. He never thought he would hear her call his name in such a voice.

“Put that sword down right now,” she repeated.

At her sharp, commanding tone, Mikhail’s hand that was holding the sword fell helplessly to his side. “Jubelian,” he called her name with regret. However, all he received was a frigid stare.

“It’s not Jubelian. It’s Lady Floyen. Please refrain from being disrespectful, Lord Hessen,” she said.

Even though the difference between the status of a duke’s and a marquis’ family may have only been one rank, the gap could never be considered negligible. Even while he dated Jubelian, who was of a higher social ranking, Mikhail had never felt this difference.

“Call me Jubelian, Mikhail,” she had said. The woman Mikhail knew had always treated him kindly without holding back. But now, he could clearly see the distinction between their statuses after she drew a strict line between them.

“I’m sorry, Lady Floyen,” Mikhail said. Deep down, he wanted her to say that she made a mistake just now and to correct her actions, but he received a cold-hearted interrogation instead.

“Why were you pointing your sword at my boyfriend?” she asked while looking at him calmly with her sky-blue lake-like eyes. Even though he had found her bothersome, Mikhail had always thought her eyes were pleasant.

“Answer me,” she ordered.

But now, he couldn’t help but be taken aback by the hostility and lack of sympathy in her eyes.

“My lady, I—” Mikhail opened his mouth to make an excuse, but Jubelian cut him off with a sharp voice.

“An Imperial Knight drawing his sword so easily? If my father found out about this, he would be disappointed,” she said and walked past him towards Max.

“Are you okay?” she asked Max in a warm tone. Mikhail couldn’t believe that she was the same person who had just spoken so harshly to him. Looking at her, he could see that Jubelian’s eyes were now filled with warmth. “Max, I told you to wait for me quietly,” she continued.

“I felt cramped in there because the room was so small,” the man complained. Jubelian sighed and refrained from making any comments about Max’s informal speaking.

“I guess you must have felt confined. I’m sorry,” she apologized.

Mikhail frowned when he heard Jubelian apologize instead of Max. ‘Why is she apologizing when she did nothing wrong…’ Then he recalled a moment from his past that was similar to the event playing out before him. It was the day he got irritated at her because she visited after his training finished. “Oh, you must be tired. I’m sorry,” she had said. He actually wasn’t irritated because he was tired. He reacted that way because he knew she would accept him no matter what. For Mikhail, Jubelian was the most comfortable person for him to be around and someone he could always let out his anger on. It was only now that he realized how terrible he had treated her.

‘Why did I do that?’ he thought, staring at Jubelian with sorrow. He could see her holding out her small, thin hand to Max.

“Let’s go,” she said.

Mikhail clenched his fists at the sight. Her warm eyes, her calm and pleasant voice, and even her small and thin hands were all originally his. He couldn’t lose her to this dangerous man with an unknown identity. Before he could think about his actions, Mikhail angrily stomped towards Jubelian and snatched her wrist.

“Jubelian, we need to talk.” He held onto her slender wrist and tried to drag her away when his wrist was grabbed roughly.

“Let go,” the man said, his eyes filled with bloodlust. Mikhail felt suffocated under the force of his gaze. The strength of his grip, which seemed as if it could break his forearm, was like that of an angry animal rather than a human.

‘How dare a mere commoner…!’ Mikhail tried to shake off Max’s hand, but strangely, it didn’t move an inch. He was about to lash out in anger when Jubelian spoke.

“Stop it, Max.”

At her discouraging words, Max almost immediately released his grip. ‘Why?’ he asked himself. He was doubting his behavior when he recalled the words he once spit out to his master in defiance.

“I think I’ve found it. My weakness.”