Chapter 9: An Unexpected Wedding Night

After enjoying dinner, Wade returned to his bedroom.

As he had never truly intended to marry, his room was laid out for a solitary life.

Though he possessed a double bed, it was solely for his own comfort.

Lamia had been assigned her own separate room—or so it should have been.

Knock, knock, knock.

Just as Wade was growing weary from the incessant clamor of Lamia’s inner thoughts, a sudden knocking echoed from his door.

Wade rose from his bed, twisted the doorknob, and opened the door just a crack.

“How—”

“Ah! Husband, I’ve come—”

Slam!

The very next second, the instant a flash of purple entered his vision, Wade, drenched in cold sweat, swiftly slammed the door shut.

‘The Dark Lord?!’

With the door now sealed, a wave of lingering fear washed over him.

The sensation was no less terrifying than the childhood horror stories of bears snatching away children who refused to sleep.

What was this now?

Refuse to sleep, and the Dark Lord would burst into his home? He would rather face a bear!

Knock, knock, knock.

Yet, even with the door shut, Lamia continued her relentless knocking, applying no small amount of force.

Wade, clutching the doorknob, could feel the violent tremor of the door.

“Husband? Why won’t you open the door?”

Lamia’s muffled voice, muted by the door, reached him from outside.

Wade gripped the doorknob tightly, as if he couldn’t allow Lamia into his room for the foreseeable future.

During dinner, the Dark Lord’s inner thoughts had truly terrified him.

In her mind, it seemed he had already been violated ten thousand times over.

If this was some form of psychological warfare, he genuinely felt himself growing tense under its assault.

What was even more horrifying was that Lamia had no idea he was using mind-reading on her.

These weren’t thoughts she deliberately projected for him to hear, but her genuine, unadulterated intentions buried deep within her heart.

‘If direct combat proves difficult, is this your chosen method, Dark Lord?’

‘Are you attempting to insult my very being, to break me down mentally?’

‘How could I possibly allow myself to be so easily defeated by you…!’

Despite his resolve, Wade still lacked the courage to open the door.

He seemed to be trapped in an awkward predicament; he couldn’t directly expose Lamia’s true nature, as that would only startle her.

If she were to then throw all caution to the wind, the potential casualties in this densely populated royal city would be immeasurable.

‘…’

‘Could it be… that I must sacrifice myself?’

Haaah… ha…

At this thought, Wade, who had always navigated battles with effortless grace, couldn’t help but draw a deep breath.

A warrior must disregard life and death.

He was the White Knight, sworn to sacrifice everything for humanity.

Moreover, his initial intention in becoming her husband was precisely to control the Demon Lord and prevent her from harming others…

Alright…

Alright…!

Wade, oh Wade—muster the resolve of a White Knight!

Having made the solemn decision that he might very well sacrifice himself, Wade opened his bedroom door.

Yet, the instant he opened the door, a heavy punch, accompanied by the sound of rushing wind, hurtled towards his face with incredible speed.

He reacted swiftly, tilting his head to evade the blow, a punch that could have easily shattered his skull.

In his White Knight armored form, he might have been able to withstand it.

But with his human flesh, unless he could rapidly erect a defensive spell, he would certainly be unable to endure such an impact.

As the punch grazed past Wade’s cheek, he felt the stinging sensation of a wind blade.

If he wasn’t mistaken, half of his face must now be reddened with several streaks from the sheer speed of the air friction.

‘…😨…’

Wade was startled by this sudden assault.

‘Why?’ he wondered. ‘She clearly emitted no killing intent, so how did she achieve such speed?’

‘👊🏻😯?’

Observing Wade, who was momentarily stunned by her action, Lamia raised a brow, still holding her fist.

Then, she retracted her arm and chuckled softly.

“Oops, couldn’t hold back ✊🏻😋.”

[I was going to smash the door open directly, but I didn’t expect him to open it right then… I hope I didn’t scare him.]

‘…’

Though Wade couldn’t fathom why Lamia would be wondering if she’d scared him, he had indeed been startled.

Fortunately, his reflexes were sharp enough to allow him to dodge the punch.

‘She had the perfect opportunity to shatter my head right there, so why did she pull her hand back?’

Meanwhile, Lamia, still chuckling, retracted her fist and then cradled a pillow in both arms.

“I’ve come to spend our wedding night with you, husband.”

As if nothing had happened, she looked up and patted the pillow in her embrace.

“…Huh?” Wade rubbed his throbbing cheek. “What…?”

“Isn’t today our first day of marriage? Isn’t it our wedding night? Shouldn’t we be doing some husband-and-wife things?”

‘…!’

Upon hearing this, Wade’s eyes widened.

‘So, it *is* about this, after all? She conceived this plan during dinner and now intends to put it into practice?’

“No… isn’t this a bit too rushed?”

“While it’s true we’ve registered our marriage, we—ah, um… we haven’t actually held a wedding ceremony yet, have we?”

“The wedding day itself is considered the true wedding night, that’s how it is.”

Wade racked his brain, finally coming up with a rather clumsy excuse.

For traditional individuals, the night of the wedding is indeed considered the wedding night.

However, for those more open-minded, even without a ceremony, if a couple has already registered their marriage, confirmed their relationship, and moved in together… it wouldn’t be out of the question.

Nevertheless, Wade had to say this to buy himself some time.

Today’s events had unfolded too abruptly; he hadn’t yet decided how to proceed.

He absolutely needed a moment to breathe and gather his thoughts.

‘And why, why is this woman in such a hurry to do such a thing?’

‘Could she have hidden some poison or curse within her body, attempting to kill me this way?’

“Hmm?”

Wade’s explanation caused Lamia to tilt her head.

“There’s a rule like that?”

“Of course,” Wade quickly responded.

“And I am a knight; as a knight, I must abide by such sacred regulations, my apologies… as a knight’s wife, you must also do the same.”

Seeing that Lamia seemed to misunderstand human customs in this regard, Wade quickly seized the opportunity to elaborate, effectively trying to mislead her.

“I see.”

Lamia patted the pillow, her crimson eyes blinking, before she bypassed Wade and settled onto his bed, still clutching the pillow.

“Very well then, let’s rest.”

Without the slightest hesitation, she then lay down in his spot.

“…This is my room.”

“No, it’s *our* room.”

Lamia scooted further into the bed, returning the outer half to Wade, then extended a hand and patted the empty space beside her.

“Come on, husband, let’s rest together ❤️”

That deliberately affected, sweet voice sent a shiver down Wade’s spine, and he nervously swallowed.

‘What? Me?’

‘The Dark Lord and I… sharing a bed?’