Chapter One

The wind today seems a bit raucous.

As I open my eyes, what I see is a ceiling that I am too familiar with – I have seen its patterns many times over.

"Have I become accustomed to this damned ceiling?"

The boy, helplessly shaking his head and heaving a sigh as he stands up from the sofa, holds his head in his hand. This is not a good sign. It seems like I've grown used to this life –

How ridiculous!

As Ye Yu, or "Night Rain" in English, stands up, the sound of a chain being pulled can be heard.

"This is not a good sign…!"

Staring at the collar around his neck, and the chain extending to the large bed, his eyes widened in disbelief.

Clanking sounds…

He walks step by step toward Lelia, who is peacefully sleeping on the bed.

Thud-

Without holding back, he kicked Lelia off the bed with his bare foot.

Uhuhuhu-

A cute little cry sounds.

After a few seconds, a blonde girl with messy hair rises up unsteadily from the edge of the bed, revealing her head full of disheveled hair.

It’s like a volcano that’s about to erupt.

“Nan, Gong, Ye, Yu…!”

Lelia rages, her eyes flaring, calling out Night Rain’s name through gritted teeth.

“Haha, finally awake, my dear wife? You sure do know how to tease, are you so starved for affection?”

Night Rain, arms folded, retorts with a smirk, not even slightly intimidated by the furious Lion Princess.

“Do you want me to get physical with you, my dear husband? Because if you do, my hands are itching for it.”

Lelia, her face flushed in outrage and her fists clenched, replied through gritted teeth.

“Oh, turns out you feel the same way. Isn’t that just perfect? Let’s fight then.”

Night Rain replies with an equally insincere smile.

Then, they both pick up a knight’s sword. Considering this is the princess's room with all the furniture, is it really fine to start a fight here?

“You seem to underestimate your opponent, my dear husband. You're facing a renowned warrior, known as the undefeated Lion Princess. You ought to be careful. It may take less than three seconds for this battle to end.”

“Seems like the esteemed Lion Princess herself hasn’t quite understood her opponent either. Listen well, since you asked so sincerely, allow me to show you some mercy… What?!!”

Night Rain intended to brag about his accolades to intimidate princess Lelia, but she couldn’t be bothered to listen his rambles. She dashed towards him.

Night rain clumsily rolled away.

“You…!”

Unable to voice his indignation, Lelia swung at him again.

“Don’t despise cunning in war. Don’t you even understand this, my foolish husband?”

“Are you trying to kill your husband…?!!”

Night Rain started to run, Lelia began to chase. Once again, the room became chaotic.

“I must say, your ability to run away is quite impressive, just like a rat.”

Wiping the sweat from her brow, Lelia was panting, yet she still couldn't catch Night Rain.

Hearing Lelia's praise, Night Rain puffed up his chest proudly.

“I must say, I can't think of anyone in this world who can surpass me in this particular skill. My speed is unmatchable. Please refer to me as ‘the sound-speed prince who shuttles through the galaxy.’”

“And so what, my dear husband? Do you only know how to run away? Are you too afraid to face me directly?”

Lelia grounded herself and gripped her sword, ready for combat. However, this did not affect Night Rain at all.

“Face you directly? How could you be so starved…”

He certainly has a dirty mind.

Night Rain frowned, this woman is over the top. Marrying this kind of woman… Will I get NTR’d in the future?

In an instance, just an instance, Lelia suddenly erupted in rage.

She glared fiercely at Night Rain.

“I don’t know why, but I always feel like you are belittling my existence.”

“Holy shit, can you read minds?!”

Night Rain was stunned. Could she see through his thoughts? This woman was terrifying.

“It seems like it’s true.”

It seems Lelia’s face fell."Are you ready to die...!"

"Princess Lelia, Prince, breakfast is ready."

Lelia’s personal lady’s maid, Restia, reported so. All the while, she had been in this room, but she kept turning a blind eye to what Yeyu and Lelia were doing.

"Restia, can you stop calling me Prince? Isn’t that too aloof?"

Contrarily, Yeyu was fonder of this emotionless, black-haired maid than Lelia.

"I'm terribly sorry, Mr. Simian Prince, but as a maid, it's disrespectful to directly call the prince by his name."

"Well, you've already been disrespectful, you jerk."

...

"Wow, I'm satiated. The royal breakfast is really something else. It's not something I've had before; this is gourmet heaven! Ah, I'm in heaven."

After breakfast, Yeyu lay on a large rock by the lake, where he had met the king for the first time, basking in the sun, stroking his filled belly.

He lazily grinned with a dog's tail grass in his mouth.

"Being a prince is really leisurely, huh? I don’t have to do anything."

"It's just that you don't want to do anything. The prince's work can actually get busy too."

Yeyu moved his gaze to see a dishevelled, elderly man with white hair and wearing a straw hat appear.

“So, you are here, King-sama.”

“Being known for my fishing, of course I am here.”

Everton started to prepare the bait.

“How's the life here treating you?”

“It's great. I have food, a place to stay, and so many lovely maids.”

“Seems like your focus is completely on the maids, but I’ll let that slide.”

Everton didn't bother arguing with Yeyu. With a swipe of the fishing rod, the fishing line sprayed into the air and fell into the lake, creating a small splash.

Both men remained silent; Everton patiently waited for a catch, and Yeyu was happily langorous, lazily basking in the sun.

About half an hour later...

“Hey, kiddo.”

“What’s up?”

Everton looked at Yeyu, who didn't even open his eyes. The emotions within his eyes shifted a little.

“Have you been dreaming these days?”

“You mean the abrupt appearances of that white-haired girl? Yes, I dream of her every day.”

“Then, what does she do after she appears?”

“...”

Suddenly, Yeyu lost his voice. Everton looked perplexed to see Yeyu now sitting up with a darkened face.

“She beats me...!”

“What?”

The king seemed to have misheard.

“I said that every time, the girl keeps a tight grip on me. She beats me with her fists!”

“...You didn’t fight back?”

The king asked clumsily, but Yeyu’s emotionally charged response showed his furious state.

“Fight back? I am not a masochist. Being a man, I would definitely fight back, but what if I can’t defeat her?”

Yeyu held his head, seemingly horrified at something.

“Damn it, I can't defeat her. How absurdly strong is she, really? I even resorted to unexpected chest attacks.”

“Um...what happened next? Was it successful?”

Suddenly, King Everton seemed to be interested in the boy’s following actions.

Yeyu hung his head, expressing utmost dejection. A spirit of failure spewed out of him. He looked fairly dispirited.

“My hand got twisted.”

Dang, dang, dang—

Contestant Ye Yu was knocked down repeatedly and couldn't get back up. The mysterious white-haired girl wins.

“…”

In that instant, the atmosphere between the king and the dispirited Ye Yu shifted, turning from bright to dim, sad black and white.

The king sympathetically patted his son-in-law's shoulder.

“Please mourn—”