I Have No Intention Of Training The Male Leads - Chapter 12 Part 9

12. The Rough Emperor, the Anxious Grand Duke, and the Nobles Who Are Watching Them (9)

Translated by: ???

Eve remembered the predatory instincts deeply ingrained in her soul through long and arduous training in her previous life. Her soul had grown by trampling and tearing apart all that was harmful to her. Eve, no, Ju-yeong, survived that way.

In an instant, the positions of the two were reversed. He had always been the one looking down on her. Eve’s lips, which had taken the high ground, formed a dangerously beautiful curve.

She recalled the sensation of a sharp blade piercing through flesh, from her fingertips. She remembered the smell of blood that resembled the smell of iron and the fragments of life that were scattered in red.

The crumpled and dented sheet of steel, over an extended period of time, relentlessly melted away and was pounded until it finally succeeded in becoming a gleaming blade. Eve became the weapon that would slice and pierce all those who had trampled her and snatched away her life and hope.

“You’re pretending to be quite generous.”

Eve’s fingertips, like a silent serpent, glided over Edward’s body, climbing without a sound. At the chilly touch of the fingers exploring the fabric, Edward wordlessly gazed up at Eve.

“I’ve seen plenty like you in my life. Cocky bastards who think they can control others to their liking.”

Eve’s fingers lightly traced along the man’s jawline as if drawing on it, then delicately glided beneath his vulnerable neck. Her other hand, on the opposite side, firmly gripped the center of Edward’s chest, gradually applying pressure.

“Pretending to have control over the situation, acting all laid-back and carefree, but when you realize things aren’t going your way, it’s too late. That’s when you resort to cheap tricks and try to force things with a pathetic show of authority.”

“You really look unsightly,” Eve added quietly, her smile turning gentle as her eyes bent into a smile. The soft laughter, a stark contrast to her sharp tone, resembled the smile of Eve from the past or the future, whom he could no longer meet.

The tip of her fingers found the spot just beneath the man’s jaw where the throat met, a vulnerable area where the pulse could be felt, and she began to apply pressure. Lost in Eve’s tender laughter, Edward belatedly realized that breathing was becoming increasingly difficult.

“Keu, heugh…”

“I wonder how far I should go before you start floundering miserably.”

Edward’s hand urgently grabbed Eve’s wrist, but he couldn’t prevent her gradual tightening around his throat. Although the area around Eve’s wrist caught in Edward’s grip was turning pale, her hand remained steady. With no movement whatsoever, Eve’s expression as she constricted the man’s throat appeared remarkably serene.

“I bet you didn’t expect to end up like this. Did you?”

Eve had mastered the art of strangulation without evidence. Without needing to use her entire hand to create a deep blue bruise on his neck, just two fingers were enough to exert pressure, leaving no trace of her actions.

Eve’s fingertips applied a delicate yet forceful pressure on the sides of Edward’s adam’s apple, causing intense pain to surge through his neck. However, what tormented Edward even more was the fact that he couldn’t breathe properly. His legs twitched in an attempt to dislodge Eve, but she, seated upon him, completely disregarded his feeble resistance and focused on her task.

A faint, rasping sound of breath struggling in the man’s throat emerged.

“Keu, keugh…!”

“I suppose you never thought things would unfold like this. How much did you underestimate me?”

Eve, in a cold tone, mumbled softly as she calmly gazed down at the prey being pressed beneath her hand. The man’s face was flushed red, as if paint had been smeared all over it. A deep shade of blue was spreading beneath his eyes, and his once blue eyes, which shone green, had lost focus, becoming clouded and hazy.

The grip on his wrist was gradually loosening. And in that moment, a faint glimmer of ecstasy flashed across the face of the man who had been grimacing in pain.

Eve noticed a hint of pleasure briefly flicker in the disarrayed pupils, so she quickly eased her grip and allowed him to breathe. Finally tasting the air flowing through his airway, Edward’s mouth let out a series of coughs, racked with the agony of the prolonged ordeal.

“Cough, cough, cough! Cough…!”

“Are you done catching your breath?”

Inside the tears that naturally welled up, there appeared a faint reddish tint spreading across the whites of Edward’s eyes. Eve, with a composed expression, smiled and grasped the man’s jaw. She had the momentum to easily tighten her grip around his throat once more. Gazing at the tears flowing down his cheek, Eve muttered softly.

“What a real beast you are. Even in this situation, you’re still aroused.”

“Keugh, haha, keugh…”

Raising his head amidst the pain of his constricted throat and the fear of suffocation, there was undoubtedly a mixture of excitement and pleasure. Although Edward was unaware of the physiological response, ultimately, he sensed that this too was intended by Eve. Amidst coughing and hacking, he began to laugh, finding joy in it.

“Perhaps, cough, you should’ve just killed me here.”

“As much as I’d like that.”

Eve playfully covered his throat with her hand, pressing just enough to not overly constrict his breathing as she spoke.

“There are too many traces left that I was here.”

“Well, cough…”

Despite the discomforting pressure, Edward’s expression wasn’t overtly displeased. Disappointed by the lack of the anticipated reaction, Eve withdrew herself from the man’s body, adjusting her posture.

The faint reddish marks beneath his jaw wouldn’t be very noticeable unless one looked closely and lifted his jaw. Even those marks would fade away in a day or two.

Rising and moving to the chair across, Eve crossed her legs and quietly observed Edward, who was tidying his attire in front of her.

“Can he really tolerate even this level of rudeness? How far did this bastard’s personality turn?”

If he had reacted with anger, ranting and raging about almost being killed, she might have understood. But even with Eve’s attitude of openly squandering his life, Edward was just ecstatic. Faced with an almost unfathomable ?lenient? reaction, Eve’s expression turned cold.

The rasping cough gradually subsided, and a silence settled between the two. Neither Eve nor Edward felt the need to voice the thoughts they held within.

The man rising to his feet quietly and neatly adjusted his collar without showing any sign of discomfort. Watching his long, white fingers meticulously tracing the collar, Eve, who had been covertly observing, finally decided to speak.

“My relationship with William is over.”

“Hmm?”

“That man means nothing to me anymore.”

He’s an entirely different person. She couldn’t lash out at him for wearing the skin of the person who tormented ?Eve?. Concluding the one-sided conversation, Eve uncrossed her legs and said.

“If you’re done, stand up now.”

“There’s a little more left.”

“Oh, come on.”

“Well, shall we leave that for future enjoyment?”

Edward, who had finished straightening his crumpled collar, stood up gracefully and spoke cheerfully. Since a considerable amount of time had passed since the two entered the Magnolia room, the people they had left behind in the office must have been worried.

Just before stepping out of the room, Eve firmly pushed away Edward’s arm that was trying to slip his arm under hers for escorting, and she gracefully took two steps back as if standing guard. Edward’s expression sparkled with amusement at her resolute attitude.

To Edward, she was an irresistible drug. Everything that touched her hands became a potent elixir, and anything she passed to his lips was a deadly poison. Yet, it was also the pinnacle of ecstasy he had never experienced before. The man quickly recognized the source of the pleasure coursing up his spine.

Pain and pleasure was not of utmost importance to him. Any physical reaction triggered by external stimuli was inconsequential. Despite his throat being constricted, Edward was exhilarated by the fact that Eve was staring directly at him without averting her gaze. It was only in that moment, when her eyes were wholly focused on him, that he finally felt truly alive.

Amidst the endless regression, there was only one instance when she held him. Even while enduring various torments with an iron chain around her ankle, she met his gaze without avoiding his. Her eyes, a soft greenish brown hue, held an indescribable emotion – not anger, nor hatred – as she faced him without flinching.

After that day, Edward broke a vow he had made to himself and embraced Eve, sowing his seed. It was the only transgression he committed throughout his entire existence. Yet, despite that, he couldn’t possess Eve. Like a liberated songbird, she slipped through his fingers, fluttering away to a place his touch couldn’t reach.

How much time had been wasted until he could regain Eve once more? Gathering tales of the ?god? whenever he could, reminiscing about a future that had now slipped away, the man eventually pushed those memories out of his mind.

Finally, Edward had once again tasted salvation. She was a sweet and fragrant poison that he could not resist swallowing. Even if his tongue were to go numb, blood to gush from his throat, and his life to fade away in the end, it didn’t matter. To him, all of that was hope.

The moment he swallowed his saliva, a sharp pain emanated from the back of his throat, right at the edge of his tongue. The unpleasant pressure and sensation lingered at the edge of his senses, as if an invisible hand was still constricting his windpipe, creating a delusion that he was being suffocated.

Consciously, Edward blinked his eyes twice and then turned his gaze toward the approaching knights at his command. He watched as they drew closer, a sense of familiarity settling in, and then he gently lifted the corners of his mouth, crafting a smile that bloomed like a flower.

If it was what she wanted, it was nothing to play along with her light mischief. The doll-like smile that adorned Edward’s lips grew even deeper.