The Obsessive Male Lead Is Actually Scary
Chapter 32: Blushing Prince

Chapter 32: Blushing Prince

"We’ll start your real training tomorrow," Alessio said, handing me a towel to wipe off the sweat.

I flashed him a confident smile as I took the towel from his hand, dabbing at my forehead like a proud overachiever who just conquered a mountain.

"Oh, done with training already?" Caleb called out, walking over with Mateo beside him.

Mateo handed a rolled-up paper to Alessio without a word.

"We just got word from the team," Caleb went on. "They’ve been digging into Count Belmont’s records, both recent and old. Turns out he’s been funneling funds through false ledgers and front estates for years. There’s strong evidence of black market dealings, and signs of embezzlement too, likely tied to House Wittelsbach. It’s still under investigation, though. The auction site within the Empire hasn’t been pinpointed yet."

Mateo spoke next, calm as ever. "We’ve stationed a few men near his manor in the capital. The rest are on their way to his estate."

Alessio unrolled the parchment and studied it carefully.

"Hm... his orphanage," he murmured after a long pause. "Send a unit there too. If he’s been treating kids like disposable stock for labor and sale, that so-called charitable image he parades around the Empire doesn’t sit right."

He rolled the paper back up, his face calm but intent.

Count Belmont’s orphanage had been running for four years now. To the people of the Empire, he was seen as a generous noble, quietly regarded as a benefactor to the forgotten. On occasion, he was spotted in the capital, kneeling to speak with children, handing out bread, or reading stories in the garden of the manor-like orphanage. Even the local papers praised him. "A noble with a heart," one had called him.

But I’d seen his true face.

I remembered the way he looked at Emir, like he was filth clinging to the sole of his boot. That cold scowl, the disgust in his eyes, as if the boy’s life didn’t matter. As if hurting him was no different from discarding a broken tool.

I clenched my fists at the memory.

’Wow... if he lived on Earth, he’d probably win Best Supporting Actor for "Most Two-Faced Bastard."’

I was annoyed and grabbed the nearest water bottle, draining it in one go.

The three men turned to look at me, completely bewildered.

I turned my head toward them with such force that all of them flinched at once and awkwardly looked away.

"I’m going inside first. You three keep talking about your top-secret man stuff."

I stomped off with exaggerated frustration, fists clenched like a pouty child trying to storm off dramatically.

But I didn’t go straight to my room.

Instead, I made a quiet detour and stopped by the kids’ room to check on them.

Knock, knock.

I gently rapped on the door. It creaked open slowly, and a small face peeked through the gap.

It was Emir.

As soon as he saw me, his eyes lit up.

"Madam Sonia!"

"Huh?! Madam?"

I blinked, startled.

"Oh, uh... aren’t you married?" he asked innocently.

"Me? Married? To who exactly?"

"Eh? Aren’t you married to that Mister with the brown hair?"

"Brown hair...?"

He suddenly pointed past me, behind my shoulder.

"That Mister with brown hair!"

He was pointing directly at Alessio, who had appeared silently behind me.

Alessio jolted, clearly caught off guard. "What’s this about?"

Ah, right. He meant Alessio.

I’d forgotten he was always wearing that glamour ring. Of course, everyone else saw the altered version of him.

Thanks to my nullifying ability, I only ever saw his real face.

’I didn’t even notice until Emir pointed right at him.’

Emir blushed and scratched his cheek with his finger. "I-I thought you were married, so I called Miss Sonia ’Madam’ earlier. I’m sorry."

"Haha, no way!" I laughed, flapping my hands dismissively. "We’re not married."

Then I turned to Alessio. "Hey, why’d you come upstairs so fast? Weren’t you guys still discussing stuff?"

"..."

He didn’t answer.

"Alessio?" I tilted my head and leaned in slightly, peering up into his face.

He flinched, took a quick step back, and brought a hand up to cover his mouth, almost like he was trying to hide something. I wasn’t sure, but his face looked a little flushed.

’Is it just the heat outside?’

"Ah, well... we wanted to continue the discussion in my room since I had to grab something too," he stammered. "I just thought, you know... we could make a quick stop here first to check on the kids..."

His voice trailed off awkwardly, and his ears turned red.

Behind him, Caleb and Mateo were trying very hard not to laugh. They looked like two grown men watching a rom-com in real time, their lips twitching, eyes glimmering in barely contained amusement.

It wasn’t often they saw this side of Alessio.

In fact, ever since his mother passed when he was just a boy, Alessio had built walls around himself so thick they might as well have been imperial fortresses. He spoke little. Always responded in moderation. Never gave too much, never too little.

Cold, calculated, composed.

But lately... something had changed.

Ever since that first escape from the Wittelsbach estate with Sonia, ever since they’d been thrown into this ridiculous, terrifying, perilous journey together, he’d been different.

He talked more.

He smiled more.

And most telling of all... he mentioned her to them through the communication pendant. More than once. Sometimes mid-report, sometimes randomly. As if he didn’t even notice how naturally her name slipped into his updates.

He didn’t realize how his face softened when he looked at her.

Or how quickly he responded when she called.

Or how easily he let her in, when he kept everyone else at arm’s length.

’Your Highness, we’re so happy for you.’

Caleb and Mateo didn’t say a word, but it showed in their eyes. There was teary-eyed pride, like parents watching their kid stumble into their first crush.

"Ahem, anyway... since I’ve checked on the kids and they’re doing fine, I’ll be on my way now..." I cleared my throat and slowly backed away from the doorway.

"Ah, okay."

Alessio spun on his heels almost too quickly, briskly walking down the hallway with his ears glowing bright red.

’Is he feeling hot? Well, the temperature outside is warmer than usual.’

I didn’t think much of it and stepped up to the siblings’ room for a quick visit. Emir opened the door wider as I approached, and as I stepped inside, I finally got a clearer look at Amira.

She was sitting up in bed, her cheeks and lips already showing more color. It looked like she’d regained some strength too.

She offered a small smile and bowed her head slightly, quietly amused, like someone who’d just watched a scene straight out of a first-love drama.

"?"

I blinked, tilting my head with a puzzled look.

* * *

’Me and her? Married?’

Alessio sat alone in his room, the door now shut behind him.

Caleb and Mateo had left a few minutes ago after wrapping up the rest of their discussion. It had gone on longer than expected, covering strategy and more than a few difficult decisions. Alessio had stayed composed throughout, issuing commands with his usual clarity.

But the moment they stepped out... the atmosphere shifted.

His face was still faintly flushed, the corners of his mouth twitching as that boy’s words echoed again in his mind.

"That Mister with brown hair!"

"I-I thought you were married, so I called Miss Sonia ’Madam’ earlier."

"..."

He didn’t say anything aloud, but something stirred inside him.

Something... warm. Restless. Like a flutter, deep beneath the skin.

No, not quite a flutter. More like the way light dances on water: soft, impossible to grasp, and yet somehow pulling him in.

He leaned back slightly against the chair, letting his eyes drift upward.

Was it always like this?

He thought back to those quiet years in hiding, raised in secret by Grandmama. The empty halls of the countryside manor. The long days spent with books instead of friends. The hush that followed his name, even within his own home.

His mother’s passing had left a silence of its own, lingering like the echo of a closed door. His father, though distant, kept a tight hold. With Alessio as his only heir, he had grown fiercely protective, always afraid the boy’s true identity might slip through a careless moment or that danger might find him before he came of age.

Then there was that first time he met Sonia.

She hadn’t left much of an impression. Just another noble lady, like the many he’d encountered before.

The second time...

When he met her again, right before they carried out the plan to escape the duchy. The very same day they ran.

She caught him off guard.

Resolute. Lively. Amusing in a way that drew him in. Still reckless... but different.

She surprised him. Made him listen. Made him let her get close. And once she started speaking, it was impossible not to give her his full attention.

The escape. The chaos she wore like a second skin. The way she rolled her eyes when he got too serious. The way she walked into danger like it couldn’t touch her.

And the way she lingered in his thoughts more often than he liked to admit.

He exhaled quietly, hand resting against the arm of the chair.

He hadn’t realized it then. Maybe not even until now.

But something had changed.

And he wasn’t sure he could turn it back.