Marry Me, Leon Oppa
The lessons at home were fun but difficult.
The very first thing I learned was truly hard to understand. That the difference between nobles and commoners was like heaven and earth. We were all people, so why was it that way? It was such a difficult world.
When I said it was hard to understand, the teacher told me to just memorize it if I didn’t know. That wasn’t the answer I wanted, but I let it pass. After all, I was only able to receive this education because of Leon oppa. The way I lived now was entirely thanks to him. If Leon oppa hadn’t brought me here, I never would have been able to attend classes!
That was why Leon oppa was my favorite person in the entire world!
“And so the previous emperor married nobles in order to strengthen the royal authority.”
Marriage? It was a word I had never heard before.
“Teacher, what is marriage?”
“Hmm, marriage. It is when two people who love each other—the bride and the groom—share an oath kiss and live together for the rest of their lives. Just so you know, the bride is the woman and the groom is the man.”
“An oath kiss?”
“Correct. It is only possible when their hearts truly connect. Your own parents married and built a family together. During the ceremony known as a wedding, they make a vow of love in front of everyone. That is the oath kiss. For legal procedures, a marriage registration must also be completed.”
“Hmm, it’s difficult! But Papa and Mama kiss my cheek every day?”
“Cough, I see. However, this is different. It is lips touching lips. And it is only possible once you are an adult, after the age of sixteen.”
“Sixteen… After that age, you live with the groom for the rest of your life after the wedding?”
“That is correct, princess. You will learn more about that content when you are a little older. Lessons about family and s*xuality begin after the age of nine.”
Sometimes I regretted being so young. There were so many things I wanted to know but couldn’t.
More than that—marriage. If two people who loved each other spent their entire lives together…
Leon oppa.
It could only be Leon oppa. He always called me his lovely little sister! That meant he loved me, right? I loved him too.
When I became an adult, I would marry oppa. I needed to tell him in advance!
There were still classes left, though.
…
I wanted to run to him right then and say let’s get married, but the next class started immediately. There were so many lessons that it was a little exhausting.
It was time for etiquette class. The maid unnie had told me the teacher was famous for being a spinster. When I asked what that meant, she had smiled awkwardly and told me never to ask the teacher about it. It was too much—not giving me an answer and then forbidding me from asking.
In today’s lesson, the teacher taught me that nobles must never carelessly reveal their true feelings. It was strange. Our family always told each other they loved one another!
“Teacher, then does that mean I can’t tell the person I want to marry directly either?”
“You must not, princess. Noble ladies do not confess first. They wait gracefully. It is vulgar behavior unbecoming of nobility. No one would like it.”
Hng. Would Leon oppa hate me if I said it?
“There was once someone who confessed first and was rejected. After that, no one approached her. And that person was absolutely not me…”
The teacher smiled bitterly.
What if Leon oppa rejected my confession? That scared me so much. For some reason, I felt like it would hurt terribly. Leon oppa would never do that, of course.
“Someone as beautiful as the princess would surely have others confessing to her first. Definitely. So do not worry.”
The etiquette teacher said with a smile. Still, I had wanted to do it myself. It was a shame. But since it was the teacher’s words, I decided to believe them. I was also afraid oppa might reject me. Then oppa would be the one who was broken.
…
Mama and Papa looked at each other and spoke sweet words. Whenever I saw them, they seemed so close. It must be because they loved each other, right?
Hehe. Every time I saw them, I felt a little envious. When I became an adult, I would be able to marry oppa just like them.
When I looked at Leon oppa’s profile, I felt strangely shy. Even though I knew I shouldn’t, I ended up gripping his hand tightly. Every time, Leon oppa would stroke my head. As expected, oppa must be thinking the same thing as me, right?
…
The villa was so pretty and beautiful! Coming to such a wonderful place with my real family made me incredibly happy. Living with family was this good. The whole world seemed to sparkle.
It was all thanks to Leon oppa! If it weren’t for him, I would still be locked in that dirty room, getting beaten. I might even have been sold to a brothel.
But what was a brothel? When I asked people what kind of place it was, they frowned and refused to answer. They said it was somewhere I shouldn’t know about yet. That I would never go there in my life and didn’t need to know. Hng. Being young really was disappointing. There were so many things they wouldn’t tell me even when I was curious.
I couldn’t even marry Leon oppa!
…
Being on a boat felt wonderful! The cool breeze made me happy, and the lake scenery was beautiful. The way light sparkled on the water was called “yoonseul.” It was incredibly pretty, but in my eyes, Leon oppa was even prettier!
…
Leon oppa caught a big fish the same color as my hair. Could this be what they called fate? I wanted to catch a yellow fish too and give it to him. He would definitely like it.
Huh? My body was floating upward.
…
“Shut the hell up!!! If you don’t kneel, I’ll snap this bitch’s neck right now!”
Bad person. Trash. Waste.
He was threatening me to get what he wanted. Threatening my precious family—my beloved oppa.
My eyes met oppa’s. I saw him slowly bending his knees.
No.
No.
Don’t do it because of me.
Nobles shouldn’t do that. He had said it was better to die than be humiliated. Oppa couldn’t die because of me.
“Le…on… o…oppa—”
Ah, oppa had knelt. It was all because of me. As expected, I really was waste. I was still that child from the attic. Useless. Dirty. I was waste. Oppa couldn’t die. I would rather die myself. I had no value—
‘You have the right to be loved.’
Leon oppa.
That’s right. Leon oppa never lied. So this situation wasn’t because of me. It was all because of this piece of trash.
My head cooled. My eyes met Leon oppa’s again. His mouth was beginning to open.
No.
Not anymore. Not anymore—
“Don’t you dare insult Leon oppa!!!”
A slight tingling ran through my body, and the hand gripping me lost its strength. I wanted to push it away, but I had no strength left either. That waste threw me into the lake. Normally I would have escaped, but I had no energy and sank.
I was sinking. I couldn’t breathe. No strength. My clothes felt so heavy. I didn’t want to die like this. I hadn’t even married Leon oppa yet. No. I didn’t want to die. No matter how I struggled, I couldn’t rise. I didn’t know what to do. My mind went white.
Above all, I wanted to see Leon oppa. Please, please save me.
‘Leon oppa…’
…
Suddenly someone grabbed my waist. I forced my heavy eyes open. Red eyes. A beautiful face. It was Leon oppa.
As expected, Leon oppa would save me no matter what. He always protected me. He was always by my side. He held my hand. He stroked my head. Because it was that kind of oppa, I felt safe. The choking sensation eased into something comfortable. I just needed to trust Leon oppa. So it would be okay to rest for a little while, right?
…
Something soft touched my lips. Air flowed into my mouth, letting me breathe. What was this soft thing? When I opened my eyes, I saw Leon oppa’s red ones.
Oh. This was…
‘The oath kiss.’
It wasn’t a kiss on the cheek. There was no wedding and I wasn’t an adult yet, but we had kissed! Then didn’t that mean I was at least a little bit married? Fiancée. Yes, we were engaged!!
I clutched tightly at oppa’s clothes as he held me. I would never let go. Because Leon oppa was my fiancé.
…
Uh.
Oppa was collapsing. He was bleeding. Blood came from people who were in pain.
“Turn the boat around immediately!! Darling, please step aside for a moment. I must infuse aura.”
“Dar…ling… Our… our Leon…”
“Calm yourself. I will insert the aura while you stabilize the disrupted paths with mana. Get a hold of yourself. This is for our precious son.”
“Hup, yes… yes. I’m ready. Thank you.”
What were they saying? What could I do? Was there nothing I could do? Because of me, Leon oppa—
No.
Ah, no. No. Why did oppa have to suffer because of someone like me?
“O…oppa—”
Smile at me like usual. Hold my hand like usual.
“Ester, you mustn’t touch him right now. It could truly… cause a very big problem. Calm down and wait, dear.”
Mama stopped me. Why couldn’t I? Why couldn’t I do it?
“Yes, Ester. And it is not your fault. Leon will be fine. Do not worry.”
No, it is my fault, Papa. It is definitely my fault. Oppa became like this while saving me. No. You can’t die. You have to stay with me forever. You said you would keep me from crying, keep me from being sad. You said we would become family. I haven’t even told you I want to marry you yet. Wake up. Wake up, Leon oppa.
…
Four days passed. Oppa lay there like a doll, unmoving.
“Ester… please… please eat something. It’s dangerous if you continue like this.”
“Yes, open your mouth, dear? Mom is begging you.”
If oppa wasn’t eating, how could I eat? While oppa was lying there, why would I eat? I turned my head away and lay down.
“Ester…”
Beside oppa’s large bed, Mama, Papa, and I sat side by side in chairs. This was called a sick visit, they said. It was supposed to be short, but I never left the room. I didn’t want to be apart from oppa. I wasn’t hungry. I wasn’t happy. Because oppa wasn’t here, I didn’t want to smile. I didn’t want to leave his side.
“Please, if you collapse too, what are we supposed to do…”
Mama’s desperate voice reached me. My heart hurt too. Mama and Papa looked at me and cried. My heart weakened, and I put food in my mouth. But—
“Urk—”
“Ester!! Hooook—”
“Aah, Ester…”
When I ate, I vomited. I couldn’t swallow. Fortunately I threw up on the floor, so oppa’s bed didn’t get dirty. If it had, I would have been even more useless. Please wake up, oppa.
…
Night fell. It was the fourth day sleeping beside oppa. Each day felt endlessly long and painful. My parents had returned to their room. They were too big to lie down together with him. I lay beside oppa. I didn’t touch him—they had said it could be dangerous. I simply watched oppa, who lay there unmoving like a doll.
Pretty oppa. Beloved oppa. My oppa. Leon oppa.
When oppa woke up, I wouldn’t hold back anymore. I had held back and nearly never gotten to say the words I wanted to say to him.
“Please wake up, so…”
Until you wake, I definitely won’t leave. I’ll stay right here. Oppa is mine.
‘So I will become strong.’
Mama was a mage and Papa was a sword master. That was how they had saved oppa. I hadn’t been able to do anything. Oppa was mine, yet only the two of them had helped. I would save and help my oppa. I would become strong and protect him. So—
“Please wake up soon…”
It was a familiar ceiling. This was my room. How long had it been since I fainted?
I turned my head and saw Ester. Her round eyes met mine and slowly widened. Cute. Just like a cat. But why did she look so thin? How had she lost all the weight she had gained?
“O… oppa?”
Oh no. Even her voice was weak. She must have been terribly shocked by my collapse.
“Yes, Ester. I’m all right.”
“O…oppaaaa— Hwaaaaa—”
Oof. When Ester threw herself into my arms, my whole body ached. It seemed I had overdone it after all. More importantly, she was much lighter than before. She had definitely lost weight.
“Ester, did you perhaps not eat—”
“Oppa— Hic.”
Hmm. Nagging the moment I woke up probably wasn’t a good idea. Ester was hiccupping, trying to say something. Damn it. It was all because I was so weak.
“My beloved little sister. Calm down and speak slowly.”
“Hic— Hwoo— Hup.”
Damn it. Even her crying was cute. This was all Ester’s fault. As expected, my future wife would have to endure a bit of hardship. The child was overdoing it at only around fifteen…
“Hic, marry me, Leon oppa.”
…Huh?