RETURN OF THE FEMALE KNIGHT

66. That was How it Began

But that was how it began. Before returning to the Imperial Palace, Jungkook had etiquette instructors teach him how to treat women. In the past, Jungkook considered women as inanimate objects, his behavior towards them appalling. Even Jimin had never seen the prince treat women with any particular sensitivity in all his days with him.

Then suddenly, Lalisa appeared. Jimin immediately noticed the changes in Jungkook when he first introduced Lalisa to him. All Jungkook worked towards was for her.

'So he will send me further.'

Among the knights, Jimin operated the best in the dark, and so he was often involved in assassination or infiltration of enemy positions. However, he was mostly in charge of guarding Jungkook's person. The fact that Jungkook sent him to Lalisa revealed how much he prioritized her safety.

Jungkook's and Jimin's ears picked up the sound of Lalisa moving about the room. She had woken up again. Jungkook turned his head towards the door, then gave an order to Jimin.

"There's not much time, so you must infiltrate the mansion as soon as possible."

"Yes, General."

After Jungkook finished speaking, he strode inside the room. As Jimin watched Jungkook's urgently retreating back, he felt it again. He didn't know if Lalisa might accidentally summon a bloodstorm if she made a mistake...

Jimin had heard of it once in the past. On the back of a dragon's neck was a scale that had grown upside-down, and so it was called a reverse scale, and was said to be the dragon's weak point.

Jimin felt as if he had found Jungkook's reverse scale.

*

*

Lalisa recovered to full strength. In truth, the drain on her energy was not so much the drug, but the fatigue accumulated from the wedding preparations. After a sound sleep, she woke up lighter and more refreshed than before. Then, Jungkook brought up something unexpected to her.

"What? What did you say?"

Lalisa's eyes widened, but Jungkook continued on idly.

"I said you don't need to pay the dowry."

"Is...is that possible?"

Marriages among nobles rarely came without dowry. When they were, people gossiped, saying it was a marriage of true love. It wasn't necessarily wrong. However, no bride has ever not paid a dowry for an imperial marriage.

"I already talked to my father. I'm telling you now so you won't be surprised."

"The Emperor approved it?"

Although Lalisa didn't know Gongyoo very well, she observed him to be a shrewd politician when they last met. It was hard to believe that he would approve a wedding without a dowry, even if it was with the Blaise family. Jungkook gave her a smile.

"My father believes that the Imperial Family would be ruined otherwise."

"Ruined? You mean..."

Lalisa's gaze turned to the blue bead ring on her finger. Although Jungkook and Gongyoo claimed different things about the ring, it was clear that Gongyoo valued it extremely. If he really believed that the man who married Lalisa would become emperor and revivor of the Ruford Empire, he would never let that wedding go. Jungkook had deftly exploited that part of his father's psychology.

"Did you threaten him with what you said about this ring?"

"'Compromise' is probably a more appropriate word than 'threat', but he wouldn't waive the dowry otherwise."