Chapter Fifty-Eight: Warmth Amidst Sorrow

"You're awake?" Arthur looked delightedly at Shadowmoon as she opened her eyes, reaching out to touch her cheek.

Shadowmoon turned her head away with indifference, refusing to meet Arthur's gaze. His hand froze midair, and his expression instantly darkened as he glared at her.

After a long silence, Shadowmoon finally spoke. "For the next few days, I'm afraid I won't be able to attend to Your Highness. If you still need someone to warm your bed, you might have to find someone else."

Arthur's glare grew fiercer, his eyes almost blazing as he watched her lips move. But seeing her calm demeanor, a wicked smile curled on his lips. "But my bed is particular—it only recognizes certain people. Not just anyone can sleep in it."

"Didn't Your Highness worry I might soil your bed?"

"Soil it?" Arthur's smile was dangerously enchanting, his gaze shifting to Shadowmoon's abdomen. "Don't you always take precautions?"

"Precautions?" For a moment, Shadowmoon looked at him, confused. But when she saw his mischievous grin, her cheeks flushed, and she shot him an irritated glance before regaining her composure. "Even with precautions, accidents can still happen."

Arthur's lips twitched. "Accidents? Then let's change to something else."

Something else? Did he even know what he was saying?

"Change to what?"

"Well, if sanitary pads are useless, then let's try diapers. Aren't they what children use these days? I hear they work quite well." Arthur's expression was very serious as he spoke, then he grinned broadly at Shadowmoon.

Shadowmoon felt her mind had gone blank. What was happening right now? Weren’t they supposed to be enemies? How could they be having such a calm discussion about whether sanitary pads or diapers had better protection? Was he mad, or was she?

"Those are for children," Shadowmoon tried hard to speak to Arthur calmly.

"You're not that old yourself," he replied innocently.

She looked at him, and his demeanor was as if nothing had ever happened between them. But things had clearly happened—how could he act so unaffected? Shadowmoon gazed at Arthur with a complicated look.

He looked back at her, a pain in his eyes he refused to show, masking it with a seductive, devil-may-care smile.

"Our relationship now isn’t exactly one where we can joke so freely and without concern, is it?" Shadowmoon fixed him with a direct stare, not allowing him to evade.

Arthur kept smiling. "Then what do you want? Open conflict? Do you want us to fight until we're exhausted, or be so angry we hurt ourselves?" His expression was unreadable.

"But—" But no matter the situation, it shouldn’t be like this.

Arthur placed a finger to her lips, shushing her softly. "You're not well right now. I don't want to argue."

"So the way we interact depends entirely on your mood? When you’re in a good mood, you talk to me; when you’re not, you tell me to get lost? Is that it?" Shadowmoon looked at Arthur’s still-beautiful face, a pain in her eyes she couldn't conceal.

"I'm in a good mood now and don't want to argue. Sleep. You need the rest." Without waiting for her reply, Arthur took off his shoes, climbed into bed, wrapped Shadowmoon in his arms, and lay down, saying nothing more.

Nestled against his chest, Shadowmoon’s face was buried in his collar, unable to speak a word.

Night deepened. In the spacious bedroom, only their soft breathing echoed. One pair of blue eyes, one pair of violet, shimmered in the darkness like distant stars.

How did things ever come to this?

The next morning, Shadowmoon and Arthur were still fast asleep when a steady knocking at the door woke them. Arthur frowned, opening his eyes, which shone a clear sky-blue. He glanced down at the figure in his arms, saw the delicate brows knit together, and his gaze softened at once. He quickly got out of bed to stop the knocking from continuing.

Outside, the butler stood, looking somewhat conflicted. Arthur glanced at him and said blandly, "What is it?"

------End of Chapter------

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