How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love

“Yes. I’ll gladly accept the invitation.”

 

“Okay. I’ll make sure to tell my mother that you accepted the invitation.”

 

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 

Mario bowed his head and greeted Noah, and this time he finally left the room.

 

His pace was unusually fast as he walked down the hallway. However, he was so excited that he didn’t even realize it.

 

‘Okay. It’s a success.’ 

 

It was not a lunch, it was invitations to dinners that were reserved for guests or intimates.

 

‘As we enjoy our dinner, it is inevitable that it will get late, and it is polite to ask guests who stay late to stay the night.’

 

‘In the absence of the castle’s owner, the hostess invites a young man to dinner, and it’s just me?’

 

I’m going to spend the night in this castle somehow and I’m going to visit Marquise’s bedroom.’ 

 

It didn’t matter if he couldn’t get in. As long as the servants of the castle saw him wandering around in front of the bedroom door, it was the end.

 

‘They’ll say, ‘I saw it with my own two eyes!’ and spread the word that the Marquise had an affair with me.’

 

‘I’ll tell the same thing when the Marquis comes and interrogates me later.’

 

Mario kept his head down to hide his smirk as he walked on. A heavy bag of gold coins floated before his eyes.

 

“You said you graduated from the military academy? Do you know Alexander Howard?”

 

“It doesn’t matter if you don’t know. Just take the test and become a private teacher. If you succeed, I’ll forgive your debt.”

 

“I will provide you with information about Alexander Howard, but you must pretend to be close to him and approach the Marquise, and pretend to be in love with her. If it really works, all the better.”

 

“Don’t worry. Even if His Highness becomes angry, you will only be expelled from Ajas. After that, I will give you enough money to live wherever you want.” 

 

Alexander Howard. Even though they are both from the military academy, they have never once personally talked with each other.

 

But one incident that made Mario remember his name remains vivid in his mind.

 

The incident where he threw a glove at a senior who insulted his younger sister.

 

Alexander Howard was so talented that he joined the Red Lions Knights the same year he graduated from the military academy. However, he was still young at the time and his skills were inferior to those of his seniors.

 

Nevertheless, he threw his gloves without hesitation, and even though his arms were cracked and his body was covered in bruises from being hit with a wooden sword, he persisted and eventually received an apology from his senior.

 

He collapsed afterward and was taken to the ward for treatment.

 

‘Why did the brother who is not related by blood to his younger sister do such a thing? Did he get hit in the eye?’

 

A fist flew before the glove. After making a person’s face look like an octopus, he was called by the teacher and severely punished, but he threw the glove at his classmate. 

 

He probably punched him four times before his classmate apologized and said he was wrong.

 

The incident gave Alexander Howard the nickname “The Poisonous One” and made it so that no one ever mentioned his younger sister again. The same goes for Mario.

 

Mario was curious about how pretty his younger sister was but soon lost interest.

 

Mario never thought he would hear that name again in Ajas. 

 

‘Oh….She was definitely pretty.’

 

The woman, whose appearance did not resemble Alexander Howard in the least because their blood was not mixed, had a still somewhat washed-out innocence and naivety on her face.

 

She is far from the elegance and modesty that are the virtues of a noblewoman. However, her lively and girlish appearance caught his eye.

 

When she was in a good mood, her cheeks turned a peach color, and she had a shy look that made Mario’s heart flutter for no reason.

 

Mario couldn’t help but giggle as he imagined cupping her cheek with his hand.

 

‘If you get kicked out of the castle,….I think it would be a good idea for me to take you along, considering your feelings.’

 

‘I could take care of you as long as I wanted until I got sick of you. Soon, I would have a huge amount of gold in my hands…’

 

* * * 

 

The only light in the room came from sunlight streaming through the transparent glass windows.

 

The place should have been the only bright thing in the room, but I could barely keep my eyes open because I was dazzled.

 

“Raenel?”

 

“Huh…? Oh my god.”

 

A brilliant halo shines from behind my husband’s head.

 

I don’t know how he managed to look so good in a place where barbarians and monsters attacked at all hours of the day, but he must have done something.

 

‘Is there no limit to handsomeness? How can a face that is already so handsome become even more handsome?’

 

“Does this suit not suit me?”

 

“Oh, no way! I dare say with all my 20 years of tailoring experience and all the years I make a living as a tailor. This suit will be the masterpiece of my life, and the guests at your wedding will shower you with hundreds of words of praise!”

 

“Shall I just say the words of admiration? Every woman who has been a guest on your wedding day will be fascinated. Oh, my God, Your Highness is wearing a brooch on a pendant with such a large egg, and I can’t believe it’s not noticeable at all.”

 

Even though it was still in the fitting stage, the tailor and jeweler were so moved that they had tears in their eyes.

 

I raised my voice in a very serious tone, fearing that if I left them alone, they might end up confessing to him that they were in love with him.

 

“Wouldn’t it be better for my husband to wear a veil? If that happens, there’ll be an unfortunate incident where all the young ladies will confess their love for him on our wedding day.”

 

“That is true, but…It would be a great loss to cover up that beauty.”

 

“That’s right, that’s right. It’s no different from covering up a national treasure with a cloth. Please show mercy for the sake of the aesthetic sense of the people, Marquise.”

 

Leonhard looked at the jeweler with a dumbfounded expression at that remark, but she didn’t care at all and came over to me and whispered. 

 

“Marquise, don’t you want to show off to the guests at the wedding? My husband is so handsome! That man is my man!”

 

“I want to brag, but I want to keep that face to myself.” 

 

“That’s…! Okay, I understand that feeling too.”

 

“Of course not. If he were my husband, I would have locked him in his room and not let him go anywhere.”

 

I’d like to do that too. It’s a bit much, though, since there’s no room where I can lock that guy up.

 

Anyway, I couldn’t decide right away whether to cover his face or show it off, so I decided to put off ordering a veil for the groom for now. After all, the wedding date hadn’t been set yet.

 

“By the way, white really suits you. You look like an angel descending from heaven.”

 

The suit, decorated with intricate embroidery of gold thread and golden epaulets and buttons of blue sapphire, the symbol of Ajas and the same color as his eyes, fell straight and long to fit the lines of his slender body.

 

The suit itself is already gorgeous, but it also includes a belt, brooch, gold chain, and ceremonial sword.

 

I briefly thought that half of the halo that dazzled my eyes might have been the light reflected from the jewels he wore, but it quickly disappeared.

 

What’s the point of wearing all that glittering gold and jewels? Everyone’s eyes are drawn to his face.

 

“They say the face is the completion of fashion.… No matter what you put on, you can’t beat this face. Don’t you think so?”

 

“As a tailor, I am very angry, but yes, what the Marquise said is true.” 

 

“Perhaps I should have used a larger gemstone, then it wouldn’t have been too much at all.”

 

“No, that’s too much. Just keep the accessories to this extent.”

 

Leonhard, who had been quietly listening to our arguments, finally raised his hand to stop the jeweler.

 

And he looked at me with a slightly tense look, as if he didn’t understand the conversation between me and them, and asked,

 

“So, do you think it’s okay?”

 

“It’s not just okay, it’s perfect.”

 

When I gave him a thumbs up, Leonhard closed his eyes as if he was relieved.

 

I almost grabbed my left chest at the sight of his soft, melting smile that he gave me without thinking.

 

‘Hah, really. If a person is too handsome, their looks can become a weapon.’

 

“You should stop taking care of your looks now.…At this rate, I really feel like I need to learn self-defense.”

 

“What are you talking about?”

 

‘There are more than one or two young ladies trying to get you, so I’m saying that I need to learn martial arts to subdue them…’

 

It wasn’t a joke, it was sincere, but I swallowed my words because if I said those words out loud, I would get the disapproving stares of not only Leonhard but also my guards and maids.

 

While I was waving my hand to say it was nothing, the admiring tailor approached Leonhard and checked his cuffs and trousers.

 

“It doesn’t seem like there’s anything that needs to be fixed. Is there anything that feels uncomfortable?” 

 

“My thighs feel a little tight.”

 

“Your thighs?”

 

It was definitely not my intention to look at his sturdy thighs at those words. 

 

‘He wasn’t naked and I only briefly glanced at his thighs, which were clearly wearing pants, so why did my face turn red?’

 

‘That’s what…..we call that a horse thigh.’

 

My mouth felt strangely dry, and I swallowed hard, staring at the ceiling.

 

I was afraid that I would be caught like that, so I just stared at the ceiling while the tailor wrote down Leonhard’s request in her notebook.

 

“Then I will fix it like this. You may change your clothes now, Your Highness.”

 

The tailor packed up the clothes Leonhard had taken off and prepared to go home. 

 

When I nodded graciously to the jeweler who asked if she could add a few more embellishments to the suit, Leonhard, who had been looking through the tailor’s luggage, cautiously intervened.

 

“Is the fitting of your dress finished?”

 

“Yes, it was all finished a long time ago, along with Noah’s suit. Everything from the reception dress to the evening dress, everything.”

 

Leonhard’s eyebrows furrowed at my firm answer. 

 

Seeing him look so disappointed, the tailor let out a surprised, “Oh,” sound.

 

“You worked hard today. Be careful on your way back, and contact me when the clothes are finished.” 

 

“Yes. Then I will take my leave now, Your Highness the Marquis, Your Highness the Marquise.”

 

The tailor and the jeweler, who noticed Leonhard’s face, went outside with several assistants and their luggage.

 

I glared at Leonhard, who still couldn’t hide his regret.

 * * *