I’m in Trouble Because The Emperor Thinks My Time is Limited - Chapter 38

“So, when are you going to tell me why you came looking for me today?”

Melaine, who had been rambling on endlessly, finally stopped talking.

When I first asked, he had quickly changed the subject, and eventually, we ended up discussing the most popular items at the central square bakery. So, I had no choice but to ask again about his true purpose for visiting.

Melaine’s eyes widened as he began to act awkwardly.

‘So he did have a reason for coming after all.’

His head tilted slightly, and his hands fidgeted nervously—something about his mannerisms reminded me of his dragon form.

“I’m curious about something.”

“What is it?”

Melaine hesitated to bring up the topic. His eyes darted around anxiously, and he looked somewhat flustered. After some time, he glanced at the door before finally speaking.

“What do you see in the emperor?”

“Ah, well—”

“Lindel, are you planning to take that human as your mate?”

Melaine cut me off before I could answer, sounding strangely impatient. I was caught off guard by his question about mates. What was he talking about all of a sudden?

“What?”

“No matter if the emperor has dragon blood, he’s still human. If you choose him as your mate, you’re the one who’ll suffer in the end. Do you really think that human is worth that?”

“…Huh?”

Melaine seemed to sense something strange in my vague response. His expression turned skeptical as he asked again.

“…You don’t know what it means to be a mate, do you?”

“I know what it means! It’s your lifelong companion, like in marriage. I’m not completely clueless, you know?”

“That’s just the general definition. ‘A dragon’s mate’ is far more significant than that. You really don’t know?”

“I really don’t.”

Melaine looked truly shocked, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. His expression silently scolded me, wondering how I could be so ignorant.

After a moment, his face softened with understanding.

“…You really did grow up separated from your kind, didn’t you? In that case, this isn’t your fault.”

There was a hint of pity in his eyes as he looked at me. But from my perspective, it felt unfair. How was I supposed to know anything about dragon mates?

“I mean, I’m human, so it’s perfectly normal that I wouldn’t know this…”

I looked at Melaine in confusion, wondering why he had come out of the blue to ask about mates. Then, a thought crossed my mind.

Perhaps Sionel had sent Melaine to gauge my feelings about becoming empress.

I decided to test the waters by asking, “Did Sionel tell you to ask me this?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Was he trying to find out if I’m interested in becoming empress?”

It seemed I was wrong, judging by the way Melaine’s brow furrowed.

“Has the emperor ever mentioned anything about mates to you?”

“Well, not as a mate exactly, but he did ask me to be empress…”

“That crazy human—does he even know what that means…?” Melaine muttered to himself, his expression showing clear frustration.

“What does Sionel know?”

“The emperor isn’t normal.”

“Huh? All of a sudden?”

Ignoring my confused expression, Melaine lowered his voice as if someone might overhear.

“I get that you care about him and all.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“But he can’t be your mate. Think about it carefully.”

Melaine placed his hands on my shoulders, but even though he seemed to be holding me gently, I couldn’t shake him off. His strength, though restrained, was undeniable.

With emphasis, he added, “The emperor is insane.”

For a moment, I could only stare at him.

Why had Melaine suddenly come to talk about mates, and why was he now telling me that Sionel was crazy?

I took a deep breath and finally spoke, “Sionel is crazy, yes.”

“No, that’s not what I—wait, what?”

It seemed Melaine had expected me to argue with him, but I didn’t. He looked momentarily flustered.

But unfortunately for him, I agreed with his statement. Honestly, even from my perspective, Sionel wasn’t exactly normal.

“He’s never been a normal person, not since I’ve known him. The way he thinks, the things he does… none of it’s typical.”

“…Oh. Well, I guess you already knew. I thought you’d tell me I was the one spouting nonsense.”

Melaine seemed more surprised than I expected.

But as someone who had witnessed Sionel’s unusual behavior firsthand, I couldn’t deny the truth. I gazed into the distance, my eyes clouded with memories.

He had been a young prince with no backing—a black sheep far from the line of succession. There had been many obstacles before he ascended to the throne. His rise to power had been nearly impossible, but he had done it.

And because of that, I could say with certainty: “He’s crazy. Scarily crazy.”

For a moment, we both fell silent.

I was lost in the memories of my past, while Melaine was stunned by my unexpected response.

After a moment, Melaine awkwardly removed his hands from my shoulders.

“And yet, you still love him?”

“Apparently so. I love him despite knowing all of this.”

I could feel Melaine’s bewildered gaze on me, but I couldn’t help my answer.

Knowing he was crazy didn’t change the fact that I loved him. From the moment I first saw Sionel, I had never stopped loving him, not for a single day. No matter what kind of person Sionel was, I loved him.

And though everyone else called his decisions madness, I had always found them admirable. As a fellow black sheep, I understood him.

‘I guess I’m not exactly sane either.’

Thanks to that realization, I was able to smile at Melaine, who continued to look at me with concern.

“I don’t know what it means to be a dragon’s mate, but don’t worry too much.”

“But, Lindel—”

“I’ll be fine.”

After all, I am human, so it wouldn’t matter anyway. My confident response seemed to finally put Melaine at ease.

Melaine scrunched his face in confusion, but then smiled as if amused.

I teased him lightly, adding, “I don’t know what you and Sionel are hiding from me, but I’m tougher than you think. Don’t underestimate me.”

Melaine’s smile froze in place.

When I lightly tapped his nose, his startled reaction caused him to pull back. No matter how I looked at it, he was fun to tease.

“Did you really think I believed that nonsense about you fixing the palace’s barrier?”

“You knew?”

“I knew it was a lie.”

Melaine’s eyes darted away, as if he couldn’t tell me the truth.

“I won’t ask any more questions. But I have one request.”

“…What is it?”

“If Sionel starts acting too crazy, stop him. The fact that you came to me to say he’s mad is a bit worrying.”

I could accept him being crazy, but I didn’t want Sionel to die because of it. For a dragon to say someone was mad—that certainly said something. Even though I loved him, Sionel was far from ordinary.

“Alright. I promise,” Melaine answered quietly.

“Good! Oh, and about what being a dragon’s mate means—huh?”

Just as I was about to ask what exactly a dragon’s mate was, wind began to swirl around Melaine. With a light step, he jumped into the air, his body starting to fade from the feet up.

“You’re leaving?”

“It’s time for me to get back to work. I snuck out, after all.”

“I wanted to ask about the mate thing.”

Melaine struck a dramatic pose, his playful eyes sparkling. “I’m not going to tell you.”

“What?”

“You said you’d be fine! So you don’t need to know, right?”

With those teasing words, Melaine disappeared, leaving me behind. I could only laugh at the empty space where he had been.

“Now I’m even more curious!”

***

Melaine landed silently in a quiet room, hiding all traces of his presence.

Sitting in a plush chair, reading documents, was a man with golden hair. Melaine snuck up behind him and peeked over his shoulder to glance at the paperwork. It was full of boring details about budgets and expenses.

Melaine quickly lost interest and moved away, walking lightly on his feet. That was when the man spoke without even turning around.

“You’re no dragon—you’re a sneaky little cat.”

“And you must be a dragon, not a human. How do you always know I’m here?”

Melaine’s voice was filled with irritation, but Sionel showed no interest in responding.

“You’re insufferable.”

Melaine grumbled as he gathered mana in his hands. Ever since arriving at the palace, there hadn’t been a single day where he could rest.

‘Is that guy even human?’

Every time Melaine saw Sionel, he was overcome with an unsettling feeling. As someone who had learned to completely erase his presence from a young age, Melaine was a master at hiding. Even Lindel, a dragon like him, couldn’t detect his approach.

But Sionel always sensed him—so accurately, it was terrifying. Sionel was undeniably dangerous, and Melaine couldn’t help but worry about Lindel. That was why he had secretly gone to see her today.

At first, he had thought she was just a poor dragon being deceived by a human. But the more he got to know them, the more he realized it was the opposite. He now believed it was Lindel who was deceiving Sionel.

But after meeting with Lindel today, Melaine realized his worries had been misplaced.

‘She said, “I love him even though I know he’s crazy.”’

Melaine recalled Lindel’s words. To love someone—that was a feeling Melaine couldn’t understand.

Having always been an outcast, he had never had the chance to form a close bond with anyone. That made Lindel’s existence all the more fascinating to him.

“Hey.”

Though he didn’t receive a response, Melaine continued speaking as if it were normal.

“Do you know what ‘a dragon’s mate’ is?”

“Reverse scale.”[1]

“…You’re terrifying.”

Melaine frowned at Sionel’s immediate answer. Sometimes, it felt like Sionel and Lindel were the ones who were switched.

“Lindel doesn’t even know what it means to be a dragon’s mate. Don’t you want to be her mate?”

Sionel didn’t answer. The only sound was the gentle rustle of papers as he calmly continued reading.

Melaine muttered quietly to himself, wondering how someone could be so indifferent.

Becoming a dragon’s mate wasn’t the romantic ideal many imagined it to be—it was a brutal reality. A dragon offers their reverse scale to their mate as a symbol of love, but in doing so, they give their mate the power to control their life. A dragon’s reverse scale is akin to their heart.

While dragons offered it as a sign of love, most stories didn’t end well. Melaine had witnessed a dragon die, betrayed by their mate, their heart taken from them. That’s why Melaine had never considered taking a mate.

“What does Lindel even see in a human like you?”

Melaine’s jewel-like eyes settled on Sionel’s back. The man, with his cold, emotionless face, was impossible to like. So, Melaine couldn’t understand what Lindel saw in him.

As he thought back to Lindel’s bright smile when she had asked him to take care of Sionel, Melaine felt a bit of mischief. Her smile had been so radiant, so full of happiness, that Melaine hadn’t been able to bring himself to explain what being a dragon’s mate truly meant.

‘Maybe I’m a little jealous.’

Lindel had lived through hardships just like he had, yet she led a completely different life. He envied her ability to care for someone.

“…But I don’t need anything like that,” Melaine muttered to himself, his voice tinged with sadness, though he didn’t realize it.

Meanwhile, Sionel’s blue eyes watched Melaine quietly.

[1] 역린 (逆鱗) literally means the “reverse scale” and refers to a specific part of a dragon in mythology. According to Chinese and Korean folklore, the reverse scale is a single scale on a dragon’s throat that grows in the opposite direction of the others. Touching this scale would enrage the dragon, as it is considered extremely sensitive and a source of its wrath.