The Male Lead Is Obsessed With Proposing to Me - Chapter 49

43. 43. The only weakness

Suddenly, the room’s atmosphere grew icy. 

A golden aura radiated from Benelucia, signifying that, as a sword master, his emotional energy had reached an uncontrollable level.

“Speak properly!” 

Benelucia demanded, his voice a growl of a beast caged.

The butler, though not a knight, knelt on the floor in submission. 

Ardante, however, appeared in an even worse state, his trembling body rooted to the spot.

Only after witnessing this did Benelucia realize that he had unleashed his swordsman aura and managed to regain his composure after a moment of effort. 

Nonetheless, the room remained frigid.

“That’s the information that came from His Majesty’s immediate aide’s office this morning, Your Highness.” 

Ardante explained once more.

Just as Cliff kept an eye on Benelucia, Benelucia also kept tabs on Cliff de Helios. 

Despite being each other’s only blood relative in the world, they harbored deep suspicions against one another and didn’t fully trust the other.

Although Cliff didn’t monitor Benelucia as closely as he desired, he ensured that Benelucia received news from the Imperial Family ahead of others.

Benelucia soon became irritated. 

He clenched his teeth and muttered, disgruntled. 

“You’re testing me again. Aren’t you, Your majesty?”

Benelucia didn’t believe that this valuable piece of information had reached him by chance. 

It came directly from the Emperor’s aides, and Benelucia knew how harshly Cliff managed them. 

If the aides had truly leaked this information, their heads would have rolled this morning, right when Ardante delivered the news.

Ultimately, this could mean only one thing, Cliff dw Helios, the emperor of the Empire, intended for the information about the empress selection order and the candidate list to reach Benelucia specifically.

“Get the carriage ready, I need to go to the Imperial Palace.” 

Benelucia commanded, instructing for preparations to be made to set out as soon as possible. 

His steps were quicker than those of the just-awoken Ardante. 

Having survived the battlefield as a young adult, Benelucia was capable of handling simple preparations himself. 

He didn’t need the attendants to serve him nor did he need them to handle the preparations for his departure. 

The attendants couldn’t keep up with his urgent gestures as he readied himself to leave. 

This was because a swordmaster’s pace was far greater than that of ordinary folks. Ultimately, Benelucia handled nearly everything on his own, from washing and dressing to fetching his horse from the stable. He needed no assistance.

This entire process unfolded while the staff were still reeling from the Grand Duke’s swift actions. 

Although the butler and head maid were the first to regain their composure among the employees, by then, Benelucia had already ridden off towards the Imperial Palace.

***

“Brother, what’s your intention in doing this to me?” 

Benelucia wasted no time in getting straight to the point as soon as he entered the emperor’s throne room. 

He desperately needed to know why his Sally was a candidate in his brother’s Empress Selection.

For the first time since the day Cliff de Helios decided to send Lucalina to war, Benelucia showed no deference.

“Your Highness the Grand Duke…! No matter how much you desire to know the answer, such an attitude towards His Majesty—!” 

The emperor’s chamberlain pointed out Benelucia’s rudeness, he planned to seek discipline for his rudeness, but Cliff raised his hand to silence him.

“Do tell, what’s got my brother so upset?” 

Cliff de Helios questioned Benelucia in a seemingly brotherly manner, though the more it spoke in that brotherly, loving tone, the more infuriated Benelucia became.

“Sally— I heard you’ve nominated Senelia Daphnen as a candidate for empress selection.” Benelucia accused Cliff of his wrongdoing, he questioned why his brother thought it was a good idea to bring his lover in as a candidate for empress.

“I did.” 

Cliff de Helios nodded without hesitation, as if there was nothing amiss with his decision.

“She was my lover for six years.” 

Benelucia muttered, taking a deep breath and restraining himself from yelling at the Emperor. 

Cliff’s personality allowed him some leeway so he didn’t show excessive courtesy to the emperor, but he should not forget who holds the highest power. 

Benelucia could hardly be in a better mood after being willingly ensnared in Cliff’s deliberate provocation. 

Nonetheless, any shouting here would have defeated Benelucia’s purpose and might have resulted in punishment for insubordination against the emperor, leading to his expulsion from the throne room. 

He couldn’t risk that, not when he had not received the answers he seeked. 

“But didn’t you two break up?” 

Despite Grand Duke’s attempts to stay composed, Cliff de Helios seemed determined to provoke him with his remarks.

“No matter if we’d broken up or not! How could you want to take the woman who was your brother’s lover as your wife!!!” 

Unable to endure it any longer, the male lead, Grand Duke Benelucia Afron, erupted in anger. 

Pretending that Senelia had separated from Benelucia and had no further connection with him was becoming unbearable for Cliff. Alas, after all, he already knew the truth.

He couldn’t disregard his brother’s intuition, there was always the chance that Benelucia would catch on. 

Bang! 

As if anticipating this, Cliff struck the throne’s armrest. 

“Benelucia Afron. Do you dare to confront me?” 

His voice lowered to a growl, a signal for Benelucia to back track.

[T/L: Back track meaning to back down or drop the topic of discussion.]

…And normally, Benelucia would have backed down. 

However, this time, Benelucia stood his ground.

“It’s not my intention to oppose the Emperor’s will, but rather to uphold our brotherly morals. Moreover, you need to consider the royal family’s reputation in social circles if Senelia Daphnen, who was once my lover, became my brother’s wife.”

Benelucia attempted to convey his concerns without letting his feelings for Senelia show.

Hadn’t we already witnessed the consequences of gossip with Lucalina? 

If Cliff discovered the depth of Benelucia’s affection for Senelia, she would become his vulnerability. 

Of course, relinquishing his vulnerabilities didn’t matter to Benelucia, as he knew how resilient he was. 

But Senelia was different, and Benelucia couldn’t bear to see her suffer.

“Grand Duke Benelucia Afron, do you really think you can challenge me?” 

Benelucia’s words seemed to have no impact on Cliff, who was naturally obstinate. 

What Clifford stated wasn’t entirely untrue, it was only right of him to take his younger brother’s words as a challenge of authority. 

Cliff had earned a reputation as the greatest tyrant, and the nobles were terrified of him.

“If there’s a fool blabbering nonsense in front of me, and they’re willing to sacrifice their head for it, making an example of them is sufficient.” 

Despite being half-brothers, Cliff had eliminated all his blood relatives to seize power. 

Even if he did something as outrageous as taking his biological brother’s wife, no one would dare to oppose him. 

Cliff believed his actions were justifiable by the law, and those who violated his authority would be met with grim fates.

“… Does it absolutely have to be Senelia Daphnen?” 

Benelucia asked desperately, unaware of the desperation seeping into his voice. 

Senelia had been by his side for a year, shared a bed for a year, and they had been official lovers for six years after. 

Yet, he didn’t truly know her. 

However, one thing was certain to him.

Senelia wouldn’t find happiness by Cliff’s side. 

If she became empress, she would wither and fade, rendering Benelucia’s sacrifice of letting her go meaningless.

“That’s correct.” 

Surprisingly, Cliff readily agreed with Benelucia’s words. 

The Grand Duke should have been suspicious, but his thoughts were consumed by the comforting notion of Senelia’s freedom.

“But, Ben, as you’re aware, the pressure from the nobles to welcome the empress is steadily increasing.” 

Benelucia tried to remain composed for a moment. 

Since when did Cliff care so much about the nobles’ opinions? 

It was a blatant deception.

“I don’t want my power to be divided. To prevent that, I need a female from a noble and honorable family suitable for the empress’s role but without any real power. You understand why Senelia Daphnen fits the bill, yes?” 

Cliff explained in amusement. Benelucia felt frustrated. 

He quickly realized that Senelia was one of the only three daughters of families who met those specific criteria, confirming that Cliff had been targeting Senelia from the beginning.

“Brother, are you doing this because of Lucalina?” 

Benelucia’s astute mind connected the dots, understanding why Cliff had chosen Senelia. 

It wasn’t difficult to deduce, considering this occurred right after Lucalina’s confession. 

Now, Cliff had effectively taken Senelia as a hostage. 

If Benelucia accepted Lucalina’s confession, Senelia would be left to live an unhappy life.

“Didn’t I repeatedly warn you to stay away from Marquis Elihan?” 

Benelucia’s suspicions were confirmed. 

Cliff was wary of Benelucia forming strong alliances through marriage, and he made no effort to hide it, just as he did this time.

The Grand Duke fell silent for a moment. 

Revealing my inability to let Senelia suffer here would make her my new weakness…

If he showed such a display of emotion, his ordinary, free life would come to an end.

“…Of course, you’re old enough. If you won’t listen to your brother, there’s nothing I can do.” 

Cliff belatedly added, leaving Benelucia with no choice but to make a decision.