The Villain is Being Suspiciously Kind - Chapter 99

Chapter 99

At the same time Citrina was looking at the elf’s dress, Desian was at the imperial palace.
He had followed the whispers of the magic sword.
The magic sword was trying very hard not to be destroyed. If he walked towards where the sword pointed, he could see the Star Palace, where the envoys of the Holy Kingdom were gathered.
‘There’s still some energy left.’
He didn’t know if it was a residual force or if it was from someone’s body.
He knew people were talking about him. However, he couldn’t act like he used to. The corners of his mouth twitched upwards grumpily.
“It’s, it’s a request from the delegation.”
Desian didn’t show his attitude. He didn’t have much interest in the attendants.
He’d never killed an attendant.
The man’s voice was muffled by Desian’s thoughts.

“The delegation wants to see me?”
“Yes…”
Desian looked at the magic sword held roughly in his hand. It lay there like a dead mouse. Even so, the attendant looked terrified.
“I’ll be there soon.”
It wasn’t yet the right time. He could only meet the delegation when he had a thorough understanding of the sword technique. He was not in the mood to take chances concerning Citrina’s safety.
Desian faked a gentle voice and face.
He shouldn’t do things his way.
He shouldn’t.
Citrina wouldn’t like it.
His thought circuitry was simpler than he realized.
But apparently, there were limits to pretending to be gentle. He had no problem being sweet when facing Citrina.
The attendant lowered his head and cowered. His body trembled slightly.

“Then you should go.”
Desian hid his wicked schemes and smiled gracefully. This shouldn’t be too difficult now.
But he might as well plant a spy.
He was curious to see what they were up to.
Desian slowly summoned a shadow. The shadow read Desian’s mind and crept out of sight.
It went to the Star Palace, where Elaina and her companions stayed.
Instead of watching the shadow’s figure, Desian turned to leave the Imperial Palace.

That is if the small sphere in his jacket hadn’t moved.
It had rung only once so far, to alert him to Citrina being in danger.
Had something happened that he wasn’t aware of, something dangerous? If he were to lose her again, he didn’t know how he would react.
Desian’s expression hardened into something frightening. Slowly, he pulled out his image sphere.
It opened with a click.

[Del!]
“Rina?”
Citrina’s smiling face appeared on the crystal ball.
[Del, Hi? Can you see me?]
“Yeah.”

There were her pinkish cheeks, white skin, and sparkling eyes.
Desian whispered her name, quickly checking on her status.
Nothing.

“Did something happen?”
But even with her safety assured, he had to check one more time.
Desian closed his eyes for a moment, waiting for her answer.
Seeing Desian’s tension, Citrina laughed low.
[No, nothing’s wrong!]
“…Then?”

What came next made his heart skip a beat.
[I just missed you.]
With that, she smiled brightly.
Citrina might be uneasy, knowing that the curse of the world was aimed at her.
Nevertheless, she seemed genuinely cheerful. Seeing her like that put Desian at ease.
Slowly, he spoke the words he usually held back but wanted to say all the time.
“I missed you too.”
[Really?]
“Yeah, always.”
He always wanted to tell her he missed her.
Citrina didn’t understand the depth of those words. But her mouth still twitched into a surprised smile.
[Del, this crystal ball is pretty.]
“Mmm.”
Desian whispered low.
He could guess what Citrina was going to say. She never backs down, with her feisty voice.
Citrina’s voice was pretty,
The way her mouth moved as she spoke was so lovely that he kept listening. He always wanted to listen.
[So I want one too.]
“Yeah.”
[Don’t just give one to Lita, give me one as well. Let’s keep in touch every day.]
Citrina didn’t even seem embarrassed. Somewhere to the left side of his chest felt a bit stiff, but she looked natural.
“I’ll give it to you.”
The reply came easily and quickly.
[Then can we keep in touch every day?]
“Of course, Rina.”
With that affirmation, Desian felt a pleasant urge.
Until now, he’d been holding himself back since meeting Citrina, ever since they separated, and ever since they’d been reunited.
He’d been suppressing his feelings that would surely make her run away if she knew the full magnitude of them.
But he didn’t know how to control this feeling.
“I’ll go there.”
[Huh?]

At this moment, he realized that he didn’t need to suppress his impulse.
“I’ll head there now.”
[You’re coming now? Are you not busy?]
Citrina looked surprised. He could easily read even her slightest expression.

“Yeah. Right away.”
[Now is not a good time, um…in a few hours I’ll be free.]
Citrina smiled awkwardly. The transition from friends to lovers seemed to give her an unfamiliar feeling.
[That’s good. Um…then I’ll make you something delicious.]

Citrina smiled broadly and waved. Even her pink fingertips made him dizzy. [T. L. Note: I kid you not. The Korean text says her fingertips make him dizzy.]
Perhaps he could go see Citrina after hearing the report from the shadow.
She didn’t know all of his feelings yet. Just a bit more, slow and steady.

****

Meanwhile, the shadow sent by Desian headed toward the annex where Sen and Elaina were staying.
Sir Sen who had left Citrina’s mansion. He headed towards the imperial palace in a foul mood. He could feel people gawking at him in his paladin robes.
Various rumors seemed to have already been spread by the servants.

“Elaina-nim, really-“
“You must have met with Citrina.”
Elaina scoffed as if she had expected this. She looked around the room with a calm face.
While Elaina was detained at this location, not many people were around to monitor her. The emperor still had a soft spot for divine power.
Nevertheless, Elaina’s every move was watched.

“Solitary Root, Noble Holy Water, Prophecy Shard.”
The Prophecy Shard is the Holy State’s most prized possession. Elaina stared at it, muttering Genfiros’s words under her breath.
Perhaps this would be the last time.
And it would be dangerous.
However, she couldn’t stop doing this. She had already committed attempted murder. Even if she buried all of the evidence, she didn’t know when she would be caught.
Elaina stood in front of a cliff.

“Isn’t it dangerous?” [Sen]
Elaina cut off Sen’s words.
“But it’s to uncover the truth.”
Elaina disguised the curse as a spell to uncover the truth. The naive knight had already believed it all.

“Now, what are the others doing?”
They were the ones who took over Genfiros’s responsibilities and spoke with him from time to time. They might be feeling doubts. But Elaina’s senses were already anesthetized.

“It looked to me like they were digging for information.”
His eyes looked innocent. Those eyes sparkled, not casting any doubts on what he wanted to believe.
Elaina smiled at him.
“…Really?”
Elaina grinned.

“Yes. But…it seemed like everyone was trying to give up.”
Yes, as the group had lost its central figure, Genfiros, it was forced to crash. Elaina rolled her eyes.
“Sen.”
“What?”
“You have to crack the mind to hear the magic best. That’s what he said.”
“Yes.”
“That’s what Genfiros said.”
For the magic curse to work, she must chip away at Citrina’s mind. With that goal, Elaina tried various methods.
However, nothing worked.

“…Yes, I can’t be the only one who’s miserable, can I?”
A blood vessel popped out from the white of Elaina’s eyes. Elaina was going to crack Citrina’s mind.
And the solution she came up with was simple.
Pretending not to notice Sen’s pallid complexion, Elaina jeered.

“Shouldn’t we use that person’s most precious thing?”
When she returned to the empire, Elaina thought long and hard.
What would be the most effective way to mess with someone’s emotions?
And then it finally hit her.
Citrina Foluin’s weak point and Desian Pietro’s weak point were each other.
The corners of Elaina’s mouth turned up.

The complexion of a man who has lost his pride, who has lost someone he relied on, is nervous and unstable.
Unlike Genfiros, Elaina didn’t have a clear picture of Desian Pietro. Genfiros hadn’t told her the whole story, and by the time Desian’s notoriety spread, he was living in the Holy Land.
‘I’ll exploit that weakness and just mess with Citrina.’
When trust in people is broken, humans die. Elaina had, so Citrina would too.
She remembered the time when she believed in Citrina so strongly when she was looking forward to the financial support that would come from her.

Then Citrina slapped her on the back of the head.
It was very harsh too.
“I’ll be sure to…”
“…What? Elaina-nim.”
Sen gripped Elaina’s unsteady shoulders tightly. Elaina seemed to forget, for a moment, that Sen was in front of her.
As she clutched the table, Elaina’s fingers went white.
She had to hold it together for the time being.
“No. Sen, when are you going back?”
“Um…I think I’ll leave soon, possibly. Everyone…seems to be anxious. It’s strange, isn’t it?”
Sen smiled, embarrassed.

“Soon…”
“Yes. Elaina-nim will be back with us by then. Your confinement will soon be lifted. Don’t worry too much.”
Sen was a big supporter of Elaina. That’s how it should have been with Citrina too. She should have served Elaina.
“Okay. Can I ask you one more favor then?”
“Yes, Elaina-nim!”
“I just need you to deliver a letter.”
She couldn’t mess with them right away. She had to wait until their hearts were broken and vulnerable.
And it seemed the way to break it was easy.

“And…can you find a rumor for me?”
Sen shook his head at Elaina’s smile. What could she possibly be trying to say? This wasn’t the Elaina that Sen knew.
“…What rumor?”
“Nothing much, just a rumor about Duke Pietro.”
“Then, are you messing with the Duke?”
Sen asked hesitantly. Elaina shook her head. That’s because it couldn’t look like she was provoking Duke Pietro.
“No. “No. I’m not touching the Duke.”
With Elaina’s assurance, Sen decided to go ahead. He had spent some time talking with Citrina, but in his mind, Elaina was the ideal person. His hands were sweaty, and Sen wiped them on his thighs.

“You must be right, Elaina-nim. No way…”
He worshiped Elaina without reservation, which meant he was ready to do whatever she asked, whatever she commanded.
Elaina knew what was going on in Sen’s head.
Regardless of who won or lost, Elaina was going to give Citrina a pretty good shock.
What would Citrina’s reaction be if she realized what kind of monster she was embracing?