Don’t Be Holy! - Chapter 105

In stark contrast to Eir’s serious question, Rubel’s answer was light and casual.

He chuckled once, then spoke as if joking.

“You’re just a foolish witch, aren’t you?”

“Foolish…? You’ve been thinking of me like that all this time?”

Well, there had been plenty of evidence to suggest it, but hearing it outright was still shocking.

Rubel answered as if it were obvious.

“You’ve been like that from the start. You haven’t hidden a single thing properly, have you?”

That was true. But despite that, he still firmly believed she was a witch, which paradoxically proved just how thoroughly she had deceived him.

Eir felt a strange mix of emotions in this paradox.

How absurd would he feel if he found out the truth?

If he learned that she was actually a runaway priestess who had betrayed the divine, and that she had been toying with him and deceiving him all this time? No, if he realized that his own judgment had been so clouded that he had strayed so far from the truth?

A bitter expression naturally formed on her face. Rubel mistook it for her being hurt by his harsh words.

“Don’t worry. It means you’re a good person.”

Eir was dumbfounded by his flippant remark and raised her voice.

“What? You just called me foolish!”

“Foolish people are often the good ones.”

Seeing him speak with such conviction made her worried. Here she was, agonizing over how to deceive him with a dramatic “performance,” even conspiring with another witch, while he, oblivious, warned her about witches.

What an idiot.

“You’re the one who should be careful.”

“Of what?”

Eir couldn’t bring herself to say, “Of me,” and simply shrugged.

The warm flames crackled in the center, and Eir and Rubel began eating the grilled fish. Strangely, even though they were eating the same way without utensils, Eir ended up with soot smeared all over her cheeks, while Rubel remained spotless. It was baffling.

But when Rubel saw her messy face, he laughed so hard he threw his head back. Eir decided she didn’t mind getting soot on her face if it made him laugh like that.

As she stared blankly at his laughter, Eir suddenly became aware of her own thoughts and tilted her head in confusion.

What? Wait, what?

What am I thinking?

She abruptly stopped her train of thought, flustered, and rolled her eyes. The words the serious rabbit had said earlier came to mind.

‘Do you like Rubel now?’

The question, which had only caused mild embarrassment at the time, now echoed like thunder in her heart. This is ridiculous. There’s no reason for that. I’m scared of him. I’m just… a little, just a little grateful, but…

But then, with the same boyish smile still on his face, he reached out and wiped her cheek.

“Are you an idiot?”

His smooth hand moved effortlessly. What she thought was him cleaning her face turned out to be him smearing the soot to draw cat whiskers on her. He laughed uncontrollably at his own handiwork.

“This is hilarious.”

The corners of his lips curled up, his eyes narrowed, and his refreshing laughter, along with those unbearably teasing blue eyes, all imprinted themselves on Eir’s heart.

Wait, am I doomed in a different way now?

Why? Why do I like this man? This makes no sense. This lunatic… Why me?

But as soon as she thought that, all his good qualities suddenly flooded her mind.

From the time he stayed by her side as “Lu” in Solvik, to when he returned to being Rubel Shinote, and now, as a mix of both “Lu” and Rubel Shinote on this island—his various appearances flashed through her mind.

Handsome, patient, unpredictable, fiercely gentle, protective of his own, and yet only caring about the divine and himself. All those contradictory traits suddenly surfaced, pounding at her heart.

It seemed she had been quietly storing away those aspects of him all along.

What should I do?

Rubel, who had been playing with her face, suddenly stopped when he noticed she was acting unusually foolish.

“What’s wrong? Why are you like this?”