Tamed Monster - Chapter 126

Judging by Kuinan’s reaction, the threat had landed effectively. The bastard taking his leave with such leisurely composure was irritating enough to make one see red.

“We’ll see each other again soon, Kuinan. I’ll be sure to tell Hector what was discussed today.”

Monsters were vile creatures. From the mocking tone alone, Kuinan could tell the bastard intended to twist the story to his advantage and turn Hector to his side.

Sure, Kuinan had been acting contrary. But he was still sacrificing himself to live among humans. And yet, the implication was that such things weren’t even worth credit.

‘I should kill him now. If I don’t, this’ll definitely come back to bite me….’

He knew, rationally, that he couldn’t just let him go. But when Sylvia’s safety came to mind, falling out with Hector felt far more dangerous than dealing with this bastard.

No matter how high and mighty that monster thought himself, he couldn’t defeat Kuinan—or Hector—so long as neither let their guard down. That was an obvious truth.

Today’s lapse, getting caught from behind, was a one-time mistake. It wouldn’t happen again. If Kuinan simply stayed alert, there was no way Sylvia would ever be taken by such a third-rate creature.

‘Maybe it’s time I give Hector his arm back. Compared to these backstabbing idiots, that bastard almost seems likable.’

Uncovering the secret of the poison and retrieving every last bit of it was at least a hundred times harder than swapping Hector’s right arm with the corpse of another dead monster. Might as well take care of the easier task first.

While Kuinan lingered, lost in thought, half of the despicable monsters had already slipped across the river.

Though he was confident no one would take her from him, the creeping unease wouldn’t fade.

Kuinan wasted a long time watching the monsters across the river, unable to move his feet until the faint light of dawn began to break.

* * *

While Kuinan was away, Sylvia immediately attempted to escape.

Click. The moment she silently opened the door and stepped one foot outside, the small clone Kuinan had planted in the doorframe formed tiny fangs and bit down on her without warning.

Sylvia screamed, letting go of the handle as she stumbled backward and fell hard onto the floor.

“Don’t do anything stupid. Stay inside.“

The clone wasn’t sophisticated enough to form words, but the message was clear enough. Sylvia understood. She remained seated in the middle of the bedroom without moving until Kuinan returned from the Golden River.

When their eyes met, Kuinan let out a deep sigh, as if he’d expected nothing else.

“You were going to leave, weren’t you?”

He’d deliberately gone out without binding her—only putting her to sleep. And she’d repaid him by striking the back of his head the moment he turned away. Lately, he’d been getting stabbed in the back by one bastard after another; it was to the point his head throbbed even in his sleep.

Truth be told, his chest hurt too. After everything he’d done for her, she’d tried to run without a shred of shame.

By his original plan, he should have shattered both her ankles on the spot.

…but after the standoff with his comrades, he was too exhausted to act. She was lucky.

Muttering that they should sleep more, Kuinan scooped her up and tossed her onto the bed, then pressed his heavy body down over her struggling form.

“Ugh—!”

It felt less like being held down and more like being crushed to death. Even as she groaned in pain, Kuinan didn’t move for a long while. Only when her breathing truly began to sound wrong did he finally lift himself off her.

Completely drained, she didn’t even try to take advantage of her freedom. She simply clung to his side, gasping for breath.

Kuinan spoke abruptly.

“You should be grateful. If I’d stuck to my original resolve, both your ankles would be broken by now.”

His mind had changed. Because in that brief span of time, his love for her had only grown stronger. A bloated, obsessive love that knew no bounds. It was an emotion utterly foreign to monsters. Kuinan called it love, but to Sylvia, it held not a trace of sweetness.

To a human, a monster boasting of his love simply because he’d decided not to break her ankles was nothing but terror.

At this point, he might as well have kept an animal as a pet instead. Treating a thinking, reasoning being with such reckless dominance was nothing more than cruelty. This monster would probably never understand that his actions were fundamentally wrong.

Having nothing left to say to a creature incapable of understanding, Sylvia remained silent.

Perhaps unsettled by that silence, the monster kept throwing out meaningless questions. Afraid of repercussions, Sylvia occasionally showed that she was listening only by meeting his gaze. But she didn’t take in a single word he said.