I Will Not Fall For the Villain’s Flirtations - Chapter 4 Part 8

“I think I should say something….”

The expression on Peidos’s face after he heard the magician’s opinion earlier, was unsettling. He realized that it wasn’t something that could be simply dismissed as a miracle no matter how much he thought about it.

It’s already been a while since the holy relics were stolen. When you consider my extraordinary healing that only a person with amazing magical powers could perform and the records of outsiders entering, it could lead to some kind of conclusion.

That I am a spy.

“This is unfair, I’m going crazy.”

If I speak, I will be under Keene’s surveillance, and if I don’t speak, I will be suspected as a spy.

Am I being too paranoid?

He also said that he’d check me again later, so I thought I should see him for now.

But just as I was about to enter the East Building, someone dragged me into the bushes.

“Ahh!”

A pair of strong arms caught my body as I lost my balance. The face I looked up at in surprise was remarkably handsome, a sight I hadn’t seen in a long time.

It seemed particularly radiant probably because it had been a while. Looks like I still haven’t fully adapted to that damn appearance.

“After I cured you, you immediately went to find another man?”

“…….”

And I’ll never get used to that bullshit either.

In response to his vague question, I sighed and stood up straight. It turned out that he had indeed visited yesterday.

“Keene, was it really you who cured me?”

He stared at me without answering, but the expression on his face undoubtedly conveyed a positive response.

“…Why, exactly?”

“You’re saying I should have let Du die?”

“It’s not that… You’re the one who sent the demons.”

Interest flickered in his eyes and a crooked smile formed at the corner of his lips.

“How did you know?”

“……”

I lost my words at his sarcastic remark.

How can a person be so contradictory?

His actions are incomprehensibly impulsive, seemingly dictated by his mood at any given moment.

One minute he’s threatening me, the next he’s asking me out on a date, and then he’s making ridiculous demands that catch me off guard.

Even his friendly attitude doesn’t make sense. Even when I didn’t know his name, he always carried an inexplicable familiarity and mischievousness. From the moment our paths crossed at the temple until now, the combination of threats and strange flirting remained consistently repulsive.

Is he simply an unpredictable person, or could he even be a psychopath who acts for his own amusement?

“Why did you spare my life?”

You sent a demon that almost killed me, or rather, I could have actually died. If it weren’t for Peidos, I would have certainly perished.

“I don’t understand your question, Du.”

“You sent the demon. Weren’t you telling me to die?”

He furrowed his eyebrows at my direct words. His expression appeared utterly confusing to me.

Before we could continue our confrontation while looking into each other’s eyes, Keene grabbed my hand as if he sensed something outside the bushes.

“Let’s go to Du’s room and talk.”

I wasn’t given time to respond. As soon as he finished speaking, I was pulled into a swirling whirlpool of dizzying magic.

My already throbbing head intensified with pain within the whirlpool of magic. As someone prone to motion sickness, I groaned and instinctively leaned against something for support. Keene lowered his arm and adjusted my posture to make me more comfortable.

His display of hypocrisy was almost unbearable, but at this moment when my vision was spinning like a spinning top, there was nothing else I could do but close my eyes and lean on him.

Seemingly familiar with the pattern, he remained silent when we arrived and gently supported my back until I regained consciousness. When my senses gradually returned, I once again became angry at his unreasonable attitude.

I forcefully pushed away his chest and held a grudge against him.

“Don’t do this! After all the nonsense you’ve done to get me killed!”

“If you’re talking about me sending the demons, no, I didn’t want Du to die.”

“What did you say?”

I couldn’t believe it.

Isn’t it funny to think that I would naturally survive that situation? Did he really think I was such a great magician like him?

“I sent a bird to fetch Du, but Du killed the bird.”

…What?

In my surprise, I barely managed to utter the words.

“Well, that bird was…….”

My goodness, that monster was sent by Keene!

Not only that, it stupidly caught Prim in the middle!

“How would I know if you didn’t tell me!”

“I didn’t think Du would respond so effectively.”

“…Ha.”

If I had to say, it was Peidos who killed the monster, not me. But that didn’t matter, regardless of who did it, Yol would be heated.

“It was because of that that I almost died!”

Of course, I had nothing to say to the guy who was threatening to kill me. Nevertheless, with an amusing sincerity, Keene ridiculously sympathized and apologized.

“I’m sorry. Were you very scared?”

“…….”

While my blood pressure was still rising, shouting once already made me feel a little better. When I thought back to the moment I was on the verge of death, my legs still trembled, but it also felt like a distant dream, as I’d already recovered from that.

When my anger subsided a bit, my head was filled with rational curiosity. No, perhaps it was a desire to blame someone.

“Why did you even send the monster. That place was already ruthlessly destroyed.”

The Magic Tower didn’t have much to gain from attacking it, nor was it much of a threat. What was his reason for attacking the purification team that went there?

But Keene only laughed without answering.

This kid, he’s undoubtedly a psychopath. Did he consider the number of casualties? No, if he had considered that, he wouldn’t have sent the monsters in the first place.

But in order to give such an order, he must be of quite a high rank, right?

Doubt suddenly crept in. Exactly how high of a position does Keene hold in the Magic Tower?

“It seems like you’re someone who ranks quite high up in the Tower. Considering how you could give such orders.”

The corners of his mouth curled up even more at the casual question.

“Is that important to you, Du?”

“It’s not important, but….”

I was just curious. They said that treating Wolven’s poison requires a very difficult process, so someone with that level of magic is definitely exceptional.

How did I get involved with such a dangerous man?

“Didn’t you want to see me?”

“…Would you want to see someone like me?”

“I really wanted to see you, Du. Even though as soon as you got better, Du went to see some other man.”

Keene leaned closer to me as he said that.

“I wonder who you went to see.”

“…….”

“I wonder why you want to go see him.”

I started to get nervous again as I was about to face his cunningly shining eyes. Swallowing my saliva, I made up an excuse.

“It’s related to my vacation… I had something to ask about…”

“To a holy knight?”

“Well, Con asked me to ask…”

Keene lowered his head to level with my eyes. He lightly touched my lips, with a meaningful smile that seemed to see through me.

“Have you been keeping your mouth shut?”

“… Huh? Of course.”

It was a mischievous gaze that didn’t suit that wicked smile. When I took a step back, he immediately closed the distance again and asked.

“Do I need to check, or is it unnecessary?”

“Of, of course!”

I quickly stepped back and answered urgently, worried about what he might do. Then he chuckled and straightened up his leaned torso

“If you tremble so cutely, I can’t help but probe deeper.”

“…….”

His amethyst eyes, which had returned to their original light, sparkled playfully. Suppressing the desire to slap his smooth forehead, I took a deep breath.

What on earth does this man see in me that makes him do this? He doesn’t seem particularly entertained by my reactions.

“Who do you resemble with your cuteness? Your mother? Your father?”

“My dad.”

It was a question that didn’t deserve an answer, but my response came out almost instinctively. Well, my dad is the cutest person in the universe. And he’s slightly better than Mom in terms of personality.

“Really? I thought you resembled your mother, especially your eyes.”

“… Have you seen my family?”

“I stayed for a while after I treated you with my energy.”

“……”

I didn’t look in the mirror, but it was not difficult to guess that my face turned pale.

I didn’t know why he mentioned my family, but it sounded like a reminder for me to take good care of myself since the lives of my family members also depend on me.

“Why do you look scared again? Did I do something wrong?”

“……”

“Ah. Is it because Du’s afraid I’ll hurt your family? I’m too busy to go to Liche. Don’t worry.”

The words of a human who is desperately trying to intimidate a mere novitiate are not at all trustworthy. But I had no means of obtaining assurances, no ability to enforce them, not now.

When I nodded my head sadly, he gently pinched my cheek and smiled softly.

“It’s good to see you lively again.”

“……”

I decided not to say thank you. Strictly speaking, I was on the verge of death purely because of this great man right in front of me.

“I think you’ll handle the mission just fine.”

“……”

“You haven’t forgotten, right? The key to the safe.”

See, as always, when he flatters or teases, he resorts to threats.

I fiercely glared at him, who reminded me of a subject I didn’t want to bring up.

“How could I forget?”

Then Keene smiled a long smile. He brushed my hair behind my ear with a tender touch and sweetly whispered.

“Stay strong.”

“……”

“See you later?”

As a bright light spread, the figure in front of me disappeared. As I thought about the bleak future, I once again set my sights on the goal.

* * *

The purification team returned the next morning at dawn. Leila rushed over and grabbed my shoulder, looking around anxiously, she spoke.

“You! They said you were hurt!”

“Oh, I’m fine now. How about the other priests?”

According to her, thanks to their elite escort, there were no casualties.

Indeed, St Gabriel Knights is not called the shield of the kingdom for nothing. It was a nickname that suited well with the nature of the kingdom, which focuses more on defense rather than offense.

Fortunately, it seemed that the fact that I had been poisoned by a wolven was not widely known.

No one, including Oscar, who had been babbling about whether it was a miracle or something else, mentioned anything about the questionable healing in front of me.

It was fortunate for me, but at the same time, there was a lingering unease. They went on about how Leila had to urgently receive treatment because a scratch from a demon had festered on her.