Tamed Monster - Chapter 122

He couldn’t possibly be unaware that crossbreeding between different species went against the laws of nature.

The notion of a monster falling in love with a human had never appeared in any history book, nor even in folklore. It was such an absurdity that it likely hadn’t been mentioned at all. Sylvia tried to reason with him calmly.

“…You don’t like me?”

“No. I mean, we really—”

“Watch your words. It’s not that you don’t like me. You f*****g hate me.”

For a monster, he wielded the imperial tongue with an unsettling fluency, his vulgar phrasing striking straight at the mark. Sylvia flinched. Gritting his teeth, he glared at her with a menacing stare.

“Why do you think I haven’t been mating with you lately?”

He could have overpowered her and taken her by force. In truth, that had been how he’d possessed her body all along. He was a thoughtless monster. An evil, warped creature incapable of conscience, love, grief, or despair. Even human serial killers were rarely this cold-blooded.

And yet, simply because the woman before him pleased him enough, he strained himself to imitate emotions he had never learned, doing his utmost to accommodate her feelings.

By now, she owed him at least the bare minimum of courtesy. He had forgiven her in such a short span of time, despite nearly dying from the sword she had held.

Had he been his former self, he would have snapped her neck on the spot. And that wouldn’t even have been the end of it. He would have torn her corpse to shreds, indulging his rage to his heart’s content.

Instead of punishing her, he kept her safely locked inside, feeding her, bathing her, letting her sleep, attending to her every need. And still, she looked at him with hatred. No—over time, her gaze had grown increasingly unbearable with disgust.

“Isn’t that a bit much? Why are you always plotting to run away? It’s not like we’re sworn enemies.”

“……”

“I won’t get you pregnant. Let’s just live together for the rest of our lives.”

The monster presented what he believed to be his greatest compromise. To suppress his reproductive instinct for her sake was, for him, an extraordinary resolve.

Yet even that reluctant offer—made with his eyes tightly shut—failed to move her. She continued to stare at him as if she found the idea utterly ridiculous.

“…And if I refuse?”

Sylvia asked, genuinely curious. She wanted to know how he would react if she said no. Even though she would be the one unable to bear the consequences if he erupted in fury, she still felt compelled to test the limits of his patience. At first, the monster remained silent.

He grew quiet, frowned, let his gaze drift down to the floor, then lifted his head again to look at Sylvia. He sighed, ran a hand through his hair, stared off into the distance.

He then tossed out a chilling remark.

“…Do you honestly think I need your permission?”

The ease with which he revealed his true nature left Sylvia deflated.

So this was what he truly was. As she recognized a future that could become reality at any moment, her goal crystallized even further. She now knew that harming him to escape was impossible. The only path left was to flee this house by her own means.

“I understand what you mean.”

“Good. Then come to me of your own will. I don’t want you—at least you—to see me as a monster.”

Born a monster, yet unwilling to be treated like one. He must have benefited plenty from being born with such a powerful body. And yet now, he looked oddly like a dejected child being ostracized.

It was rather unsettling. Reluctantly, Sylvia nodded slowly.

“Good. Then we’re reconciled now, right?”

He asked brightly. Looking at his wide smile, the memory of his face peeling away that day felt distant, like a nightmare she’d once dreamed. But in truth, the smiling face was a lie. The face she’d seen then was his real one. Sylvia clenched her mind tight.

‘I can’t kill him. I can’t accept this either. So… the only option is to run. Forever.’

Completely unaware of her thoughts, he watched her nod again, slow and compliant—and smiled innocently, just as he had the first time they met.