Chapter 137
It was a gentle smile, yet one that was ominous and fierce, as though it carried the scent of blood. Iora awkwardly pulled up the corners of her lips and fidgeted with her fingers. It felt as though a sharp current was flowing through the place where he touched her.
“How did you see that again…? Everyone was so distracted that no one noticed.”
“Do you think I’m like those people? Ha, I wanted to catch the bastard who pulled such a dirty trick and make him pay dearly. …Really, I wanted to run there immediately, kick away the bastard who protected you, and hold you instead. I wanted to rush in like a mad dog and tear him apart. Because of this wound.”
“Ugh, it tickles…”
His fingers withdrew, and now his palm slowly covered her cheek. Feeling the warmth that seemed to seep into the inside of her neck, Iora slowly let out a breath. Their eyes met, and the man with the fierce smile whispered in a dangerous voice.
“I held myself back because it wasn’t my place to deal with the one who caused this. I endured it. Very, very obediently.”
It sent a chill through her.
In that moment, she understood why people were afraid of this man. It felt as though she had seen a glimpse of that cruelty.
And yet, even knowing the fear of a horror movie, she felt that strange thrill that made her want to watch it again.
“You should praise me, Iora.”
“Why… should I praise you?”
“I told you. I endured it because it was your share to handle.”
Iora thought about it again. He really was a dangerous person.
The curving red lips dazzled her vision.
If he hadn’t blown a soft breath, she might have remained frozen like a statue. But what followed afterward almost made Iora’s heart stop for real.
Something quickly brushed over the place where the wound had been.
It was incredibly soft…
“!”
“I’ll be satisfied with this.”
“R-right, r-right now…”
Lick. His red tongue brushed over his lips before disappearing again. It was a bewitching smile. Vigros, who let out a dizzying smile, flicked his finger in front of her wide eyes, which were filled with confusion.
It was an intense gaze.
Iora’s mouth closed. She felt like she shouldn’t say anything that would break this tense atmosphere. It felt as though she was looking at a crouching beast that was barely holding itself back.
Within those deep blue eyes that shone with a heavy light was her own reflection, her face completely flushed red.
His hand gently brushed through her hair. The ribbon hair ornament swayed, tickling softly.
“If it had been me, I wouldn’t have even let you get a wound like this. So.”
Like it was being carved into her, Vigros’s voice seeped into her.
His fingers slipped between hers, one by one, prying them apart as they curled inward.
The fingernails of the hand caressing her damp skin beneath the thin lace glove were firm.
She couldn’t move away.
Feeling as though she had become a dragonfly caught in a spider’s web, Iora swallowed hard.
He smiled.
“Think only of me, Iora.”
It sounded almost like a scolding. As if he were reprimanding her for the moment she had thought of another man just now.
“Think only of me.”
The voice that muttered those words with a wicked smile, as if it were simply the way things should be, had the same suffocating stickiness as tar.
* * *
After falling into this damned <The Saint’s Flower>, and even after finding Kim Jiyeon’s self again, had there ever been a moment this bewildering?
Just what…just what had that man put in his eyes? Honey?
She subtly turned her gaze away, but when she saw him smiling brightly again like a flower blooming softly, Iora made a small groan and turned her head away.
“Why aren’t you looking at me?” he asked. The way he lightly poked her arm without hurting her, as if whining and clinging like a child, made her bite down hard on her lips because she felt like she would end up smiling along with him.
This was truly bewildering. Why was he acting like this?
“Hey, Vigros.”
“What?”
Or perhaps he had been drinking in the middle of the day. Seeing the slight hint of disappointment on his face, that strange dream from before suddenly flashed through her mind, making her earlobes burn hot. Wouldn’t it be truly strange to say that this wicked and mischievous man had looked so fragile and vulnerable?
“Did you eat something bad? Your eyes don’t look right.”
For the briefest moment, Vigros seemed so dumbfounded that he slipped up and lost the hand he had been resting his chin on. Then his eyes turned as though he had been poisoned, and he whispered in a voice that sounded like something boiling over.
“How romantic. Is that really what you say to a lover who is looking at you with a gentle smile?”
“You’re a fake lover. And today you’ve been smiling like someone with too much air in his lungs.”
She pointed toward the corners of his mouth, gesturing as though she were gently pulling them upward in a familiar manner. When she tried to pull her hand away, he leaned his face closer as if telling her to continue. It looked so strangely cute that her fingers curled inward like a shy mimosa.
And the shameless Vigros went one step further.
“Because I like it.”
What?
“Right now, let’s just say that I’m happy that you chose my bouquet. When you make that face like you’ve been pushed to the edge of a cliff, Iora, it makes me want to tease you even more with my unpleasant personality…”
“Your personality is truly… wonderful.”
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