Chapter 2 – A Fateful Encounter (2)

The same moment I frowned at what he just said, he placed my arms around his shoulders.

Then, to my surprise, he pulled me into an embrace.

A nice scent.

…And I could feel a pounding heart.

I was so close to him that I couldn’t tell if it was the sound of my heart or if it was the man’s heart.

“Excuse me. Is she with you?” my father asked.

The man turned around wordlessly, and my body, which was still in his embrace, also turned along with him when he did. Now, I had my back to my father.

My hands and back were tense, but the man patted me on the back.

“Do you have any business with us?”

It was a polite voice directed at my father.

“Ah, I’m looking for someone. May I see her?”

“My fiancée?”

“It’ll be just a moment.”

This man who turned me into his fiancée in mere seconds was silent, as if he was contemplating.

That brief silence was tormenting me.

“I don’t think I’m obligated to…”

But the man trailed off and said something else.

“May I know who you are?”

“…Apologies. I am Ecyl Blan.”

Only then did my father introduce himself. It wasn’t like him. He always put on the appearance of a gentleman.

Even his voice had a slight tremor.

“Aha, Count Blan.”

It wasn’t meant to acknowledge him.

The man said this in a dull voice.

“It’s my first time meeting you. I am Robin Vhind.”

As I was trying to guess the man’s identity, I raised my head at his introduction.

The Vhind family wasn’t mentioned in the novel, but they were definitely influential in this world.

I heard they were involved in business.

I didn’t know much about them, but I remember for sure that in the Blan territory, people were saying something about the Vhinds at the recent Parliament meeting.

When two or more people gathered, all sorts of rumors came and went.

I suddenly wondered what kind of face my father was making while recalling these rumors.

“Ah, is that so.”

My father muttered, now embarrassed and awkward.

Then, the silence stretched between them again.

It was the man named Robin Vhind who broke the vague silence.

“Did the person you were looking for pass by here?”

“I think so, yes.”

“That’s strange. No one else but us passed by here… Maybe you were mistaken?”

The man, who was pretending to be innocent, did not receive a response.

But after a while, my father’s reply was unexpected.

“Yes, I might have been.”

“It wouldn’t be too hard to check again. I’ll do it for you.”

The man looked down at me, and his eyes had a gentle curve to them.

The next moment, my body felt weightless.

“Just now…!”

I shut myself up right then even when I wanted to ask what the man was doing.

It was but an instant, yet it felt like I had eye contact with my father.

My heart was beating so hard with fright that I felt faint.

I had a lot to say, but all I could do was lower my head.

“Did you confirm it?”

“…I couldn’t see her face.”

Fortunately, it seemed like he didn’t recognize me.

But I was still within my father’s reach.

It was nerve-wracking. I waited, chewing the flesh in my mouth. Seconds felt like minutes.

Please.

“Well…”

I could hear a light chuckle.

The hand that was on my chin earlier caressed my cheek. I closed my eyes tightly. I shouldn’t have trusted this lunatic. It didn’t help any, but I put some strength in my chin so he couldn’t lift it.

But the man only stroked my cheek and didn’t do anything crazy like lift my face.

“That won’t do. My fiancée has gotten cold in this rain. If she gets sick, then I don’t know what I’ll do.”

“Ahem…”

“If you still insist…”

I thought he’d reveal me right away. In my bewilderment, my back flinched. When I looked up at the man, his eyes were wide open. But soon, they curved beautifully.

He smiled with his eyes, too…

For a moment, I was mesmerized, but I quickly returned to my senses. I frowned, not sure if I felt embarrassed or felt like I was going crazy.

“Pardon, but I do think the lady might get a fever.”

“…I apologize. Then, I’ll be on my way.”

My father finally backed off after this series of rejections.

It was ridiculous.

He’s just leaving?

This easy?

Even though the Vhind family was involved in the Parliament these days, shouldn’t the Blan family be able to at least stand their ground in front of them?

“…By the way.”

The retreating footsteps stopped in their tracks, and my father’s voice resounded throughout the alley.

“Let’s have a meal together next time.”

Then after that, he truly went on his way.

The sound of his footsteps over the damp ground was exceptionally loud. Then, the man whispered into my ear.

“He’s not gone yet.”

At those words, I quickly clung to the man.

How long has it been?

But I realized belatedly that I couldn’t hear anything anymore.

He was playing a joke.

“What is it?”

My late realization made the man smile even wider. Even though my strength wasn’t enough, he let me push him away.

As the urgency disappeared, my mind gradually became rational again.

Robin Vhind.

If what he said was true, then he’s a nobleman. I acted recklessly when I didn’t know who he was, but now, I could be dragged away for contempt against an aristocrat.

“You should know that you’re very suspicious, sir.”

“Huh?”

He smiled as though he was amused at my sudden polite tone.

He was so suspicious.

He just showed up and suddenly helped me. Everything was too convenient, including his timely appearance in this alley.

Conscious of my vigilance against him, he quietly said, “Oh.”

“I happened to see you being chased. I got worried, so I followed you.”

“Why were you worried about me?”

“Exactly. I was wondering about that myself. I thought that if I pretended not to see you, I’d end up awake all night long thinking about you.”

“You’re being very nosy.”

Even if I was still wary of him, I could understand where he was coming from.

I also had a similar experience. Long ago, I intervened in something that had nothing to do with me.

‘Why did you save me?’

I could still remember the voice of the boy who she met six years ago after I ran away from that hellish mansion.

The blurry face of the boy was still buried within my subconscious, unable to let go because of a lingering guilt.

“I have a lot of curiosity.”

After the man raised his hand, only then did I realize that I had yet to let go of it.

But when I tried to pull away, he held onto me fast and intertwined his fingers with mine.

“I know a safe place.”

Suddenly, the hood covering his face fell down. I was still trying to pull my hand out of his grasp, but I saw his face.

The man raised his head. With his leather gloves, he brushed up his black hair back, which had been falling forward, wet because of the rain.

His forehead was revealed. His hair was completely soaked, but because of this, perhaps it made him look more dangerous.

The most striking thing about him were his amber eyes. It was like they were glittering jewels.

Unconsciously, I stared into his eyes for a long time. When I realized this, I lowered my gaze in my embarrassment, looking down again. But this was a mistake.

His shirt, which was also soaked and sticking to his body, revealed the skin beneath it. It became evident to me how tightly knit his muscles were.

I desperately tried to avoid his gaze. Let’s imagine an old man’s face. Let’s do that.

“I’ll let you go once the rain stops pouring.”

Those amber eyes curved ever so beautifully.

He was so handsome that I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

“I’m fi…”

I was about to say I was fine and tried to refuse, but I stopped myself.

My father may have left this alley, but he could still be looking for me nearby. Wouldn’t it be better to follow this man and accept his outstretched hand rather than walk around aimlessly alone? I knew now who was more dangerous between the man and my father.

The man’s behavior earlier just confirmed that he wasn’t someone my father hired.

‘It’s not going to be a big deal…”

I could just use the gun.

And so I nodded, hoping that I wouldn’t need to use the last bullet.

I had no other choice in this place where my father could still be lurking.

* * * 

With me in tow, we went on our way to his mansion. We didn’t exchange any words while we were in the carriage.

“…”

But, he observed me relentlessly.

I didn’t look at him on purpose because I was burdened by the weight behind his gaze, believing that he would see right through me.

So when we happened to make eye contact, I would turn my gaze away immediately.

He was someone who helped me escape from my father.

There was a possibility that he was a pervert or a psychopath, but my father was more of a threat than any other kind of nutcase in the world.

My father had locked me up and strangled me. On the other hand, this man sitting opposite me had helped me out of guilt.

If I walked away and ran through the streets, the same situation could just happen again.

‘It couldn’t be helped. This is the best option.’

There was some relief in thinking so.

“Are you uncomfortable with me?”

Well, besides the obvious, of course it was uncomfortable.

“A little bit.”

He wouldn’t have believed it if I answered no.

Suddenly, I heard the carriage stopping. Then, at the same time, the door slowly began to open. When I directed my gaze towards the sound, an unfamiliar face could be seen through the opened carriage door.

“Welcome back, Baron.”

It was a butler.

“Don’t worry. This is the safest place.

The man reassured me when he saw that I hesitated.

I took off the coat that was draped over my shoulders and returned it to the owner. I almost went crazy because my eyes kept gravitating towards his body.

The fair skin that I could glimpse underneath the translucent rain-soaked shirt…

Droplets of water dripping from his black hair and bright red lips contrasting his pale skin…

It’s quite…

Ah, the most dangerous variable now was this man.

“It’s still raining.”

When I took off the coat, the man looked up at the sky. Even though the rain had let up a little, there was still a light drizzle.

“I’m… fine.”

Just as I was trying to stop him from putting the coat back on my shoulders, I suddenly felt lightheaded.

My arm was hurting as if it was about to break while I’m holding the coat, but the man in front of me was dangerous…

I was about to lose my mind here.

“Aren’t you cold?”

“I can bear with it.”

“But it would be better if you wore it.”

“Rather than me, you should take it.”

My eyes were fixed on what I was trying to imply. Then, I pointed to his kind of, but not really exposed chest.

Then, he said that again.

“Oh.”

I stretched out my arms to open the coat meticulously. But right as I did, another question was thrown at me.

“Then, aren’t you coming in?”