Welcome to the Demon’s Cabin - Chapter 33

“Mr. Idris, what is the matter?”

“Ah, my apologies. I was just a little surprised…. It seems that in Orihen, they eat fish heads as well.”

“Pardon?”

Irene slowly looked down at the fish skewer she held. From the fish that had been roasted until it darkened, only the head had cleanly disappeared. It seemed she had mindlessly bitten into the head first and chewed the whole thing.

‘No wonder there was a crunching sound, it was the bones.’

“Usually people do not eat them, but I eat them occasionally. The taste is not bad.”

Irene flashed a nonchalant smile and played it off. It was, of course, a lie.

“I see. Well, that is possible.”

Idris, who had been surprisingly startled, changed his attitude as if it were no big deal and began to tear into his portion of the fish again.

If it’s culture, it’s shocking, but if it’s personal taste, is it something you just let slide? I’m not sure whether to call this open-minded or narrow-minded.

‘By the way, if it tastes this good to me, his cooking skills must be really anything but ordinary.’

She thought it over and over, but the more she saw him, the more decent and capable he seemed. He was young and handsome, he was a knight with a sturdy body, and he was even diligent and good at household chores like cooking. Of course, being an illegitimate child was a fatal blow, but the status of a knight was more than enough to offset that flaw.

‘He could have lived very, very happily on the outside.’

Until now, seeing how steady he was, she had thought it might be a false accusation, but she had felt something over the past few days. As expected, you cannot know a person just by their appearance.

Therefore, Irene was now half-convinced that Idris was a rebel. He would not have crawled into the Black Mountains if his crime were anything less than that. Honestly, it was a bit of a comfort. In terms of the nature of the crime, a rebel was much worse than her, who had only killed a few people.

The dinner after that passed and concluded quite peacefully. Even though Irene, as usual, could not even eat half the amount Idris consumed.

* * *

[…….

The conclusion is that Mr. Idris is really good at cooking. My taste buds are not normal, so I cannot be certain, but I can taste saltiness, sweetness, and sourness, would I not be a little similar to a human? I decided to think as I pleased.

By the way, Mr. Idris is, how should I put it…… too strange.

Should I say he is excessively perfect?

As long as he has eyes and a brain, he cannot help but be afraid of me, and he cannot help but hate me for (half) imprisoning him so that he cannot go home, yet he shows no sign of that at all.

It is a marvel that we even speak to each other, but lately, even when I look at his heart rate or pupils, I do not feel any particular change. It is just a normal speed.

His emotions are quite diverse and his expressions are full of life, but there is no, absolutely no reaction toward a ‘demon.’ He laughs when I make a joke, and he really acts as if I am really just a normal girl living with him for a while ‘as a human.’

Can a person be like that?

The more I think about it, the more I feel it is all an act. How can a person act so perfectly all day long?

He must be thinking of me as a demon. No, at the very least he must see me as a monster, and yet he is that calm?

A devout believer is capable of that? No, is it because he is devout? Since he would see me as a demon. And since he is involved in something as big as a rebellion, he might be a master of deception. If it is all a lie, what should I do? Ah, it is all fine. I can forgive everything. I am really not curious about his truths and lies. I made that vow before, did I not. Really, really, really. reallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreally I am sincere.

I am sincere.

I am really telling only the truth, only the truth.

But if even his name is a lie, I think I will be angry for a moment. I can forgive him. I can, but it is still infuriating. Thinking that he smiled at me despite that, the more I think about it, the more infuri…]

Riiip!

In an instant, a long page was torn out and crumpled in Irene’s hand. After throwing her pen aside, she used both hands to mercilessly shred the ink-stained paper. It was minced so finely that the paper’s original shape could no longer be recognized.

Irene exhaled with slightly ragged breaths, clutching her tight chest. The thin chiffon crumpled as if it would tear under her strong grip.

“Why am I like this, really……!”

Her expression distorted as if she were about to cry, she stood up, hitting the desk. The low ceiling of the attic almost touched her head.