CH 78

Suddenly, he dropped his overwhelmingly huge shoulders and sat down next to me, raising an arm leisurely.

Then, fwiikk—

My wrist went up with his.

‘Crazy.’

There was a string connecting our wrists.

Whatever kind of ‘power’ it had, the red string was shining softly, and it looked very tough at first glance.

“Annette. If you want to leave me.”

The red eyes tinged with madness were curved. He whispered lowly.

“Cut my wrist off and run away.”

My heart sank.

If I went with Sislin like this, I would have to be with him forever, like a pair of birds locked in a cage forever.

‘Let’s be calm. Sislin’s tendencies, I know them.’

‘If I shake him even a little, he will swallow me in one bite, and he won’t let me go.’

‘I have to keep my mind straight.’

Even if I was caught by the dragon’s claws, I would survive if I kept my senses.

“Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

“…….”

He still didn’t like the way I called him the crown prince.

I could tell just by looking at him. Sislin still wanted to be close to me.

If so, I might be able to use that heart a little bit.

…For my survival.

“If this goes on, I will spend the rest of my life hating the Crown Prince. Until death.”

“…….”

“Is that what you want?”

Widening my eyes, I spoke coldly.

I hoped there would be a small blow, but Sislin’s response was ambiguous. 

He smoothed his chin and said only this.

“That’s a bit difficult.”

“…….”

“Pretty much.”

‘…Anyway, I’m in trouble, right?’

With a calm expression on my face, I said,

“I have my own life. Here on the island of Bayonaire, the bakery I built, my neighbors… They are all things I love.”

“Now that I hear that you love them, I want to burn it all down.”

“……!!!”

‘What the hell is this, you idiot?’

Resting his chin on his long fingers, his sensitive eyes touched me, and he said,

“Because I’m jealous.”

“…I don’t really love them that much.”

He burst out laughing at my flexible evasion strategy.

“But they’re precious.”

I added firmly. This wasn’t the only reason he couldn’t hold me like this.

“And one more. You can’t monopolize me if I go to the palace like this.”

It sounded cringey even to myself, but this must be an important factor for that ‘obsessive maniac’.

Anyway, what the other person wanted was me.

Unsurprisingly, the red eyes held me still, then asked me back briefly.

“Why?”

“As you may know, Gerard is still looking for me.”

“…….”

“Perhaps if I go to the Imperial Palace, he will frantically try to take hold of me. You know? That I have a ‘special’ ability.”

I was speaking without hesitation.

“Gerard knows its worth and is trying to get me.”

“…….”

“Even if my opponent is the Crown Prince, I will never give up. Besides, I was going to be adopted, so there’s enough ‘justification’.”

If Gerard pressed under such circumstances, it would be difficult to monopolize me.

Gerard was, surprisingly, still a reputable prince among the people of the empire (the World Daily has occasionally confirmed his popularity).

If such a Gerard came forward and made things public, it would be difficult to respond.

No matter how Sislin was, if the public opinion of the whole El Dorado was the same, it would be hard to ignore.

‘Unless you want to brutally slaughter them all and become an emperor of a poor empire.’

“…….”

I faced Sislin. Sharp red eyes that looked like they had been cut with a knife.

It was a very different look from before.

I couldn’t figure out what kind of things my ‘Sisl’ had to go through and how it had changed him.

I had no idea how he had lived in the 10 years without me.

I was afraid he would try to swallow me when he calmed down, so I looked at him proudly with my back and neck straight.

“You don’t want to be hated by me.”

The corners of his lips finally rose.

“That’s cruel, Annette.”

‘…Am I cruel? Isn’t that you, Sislin, an obsessive maniac?’

My questions were completely answered by his next words.

“I’ve been looking for you like crazy for 10 years, and now you’re trying to tame me with my affection.”

“…….”

For a moment, his current appearance overlaid with the young Sislin. That little pitiful boy who had crawled out of the dark cave and lived only with me.

But I tried not to be shaken.

‘…Don’t be weak.’

The strategy worked.

Sislin grabbed my hair with a hand twice as large as mine, and touched it with his lips.

Even the hair, which had no sense of touch, seemed to feel the heat.

Maybe it was because of those red eyes that seemed to swallow me up.

“You must obey.”

The low-pitched voice seemed shriveled up.

“For now.”

“…….”

It was a declaration from a man like a ferocious beast, who appeared to know nothing about obedience.

I was clearly aware of this ‘power relation’.

No matter how much he was the crown prince of this country, the weak had always been the preferred side for him in this relationship.

―It was a little cruel, but it was fortunate.

The fact that I had a position where I could defeat him, being pushed by power.

‘Done. I can get out of here now.’

‘If he lets me go, I can go back and do as I had planned.’

I was confident that I would hide better if I succeeded because it was my second escape.

Wasn’t I quite experienced?

Then, for the rest of my life, at least I wouldn’t live a life where I was caught by an obsessive maniac.

It was then. It was pronounced as if Sislin chewed the word and spit it out.

“However.”

“…….”

However? Why did ‘however’ appear?

What, just let me go for free.

“You should swear an oath to not run away.”

Red eyes stared intently at me.

“…I swear.”

I laughed quietly.

“I told you, I won’t leave because my store is here.”

At that moment, Sislin’s face came closer.

I relaxed a bit, and now I could see his face well.

He grew up really well.

Black hair that seemed to have swallowed up the night.

The sharp red eyes under thick eyebrows and the masculine line from a straight forehead to a pointed nose were absolutely perfect.

He gave off a sense of intimidation unique to a predator of the human world, who never had to bow his head to anyone.

He was like a mythical beast created by God to scare humans.

And… 

‘You’re too good-looking.’

If it wasn’t for the situation, it would have captured my attention for a long time.

For a moment, I looked at those lips, afraid of what it would say.

Soon, a heavy voice came out from his throat.

“Tell me you won’t leave my side. Forever.”

“……!”

‘Forever’?

No matter how good and handsome Sislin grew up to be, at this point, I could not help but say this again at this point.

‘Crazy guys are in season.’

I closed my eyes and reopened them.

“I swear. Forever.”

Sorry for the lie, Sislin.

But shouldn’t I live too?

It was at the time I thought that Sislin’s red eyes looked happy for some reason.

“……!”

Ominously, the red string that held us together began to glow.

Shoo-wook—

Instead of connecting Sislin and I, the glowing string remained on my wrist in the form of a ‘bracelet’.

“…What’s this?”

Confused, casual speech came out.

Sislin answered calmly.

“The artifact of the oath, ‘Lucanto’. If you break your oath, I will pay the price.”

I didn’t want to know, but I was forced to ask this question.

“…If I do, what will happen?”

“I will lose my life.”

For a moment, my heart pounded.

Was he saying ‘if you don’t want me to die, don’t even think about running away?’

‘This is crazy, Sislin.’

Sislin narrowed his dark eyes and laughed like a drug addict.

“My heart is bursting.”

“…….”

“You’re mine.”

“……!”

I looked at him in shock.

Breathing in, his chest slowly rising and falling, he kissed my cheek tenderly.

“So, Annette.”

The kiss was sweet, unsuitable for the situation, while the voice was firm.

“If you want to run away, trample on my heart.”

For an instant, my spine stood up tight, and goosebumps rose.

More than just obsession, I felt a horrendous madness.

Sislin bet his life on me.

It was irreversible.

“…This.”

It felt as if I had been swept away by a huge storm, and my mind was in a mess in an instant.

I barely clenched my lips.

Suppressing a scream.

“This is too much…”

‘To leave him, I have to kill him…’

Then I got really curious.

During my absence, what kind of life did Sislin live?

What was it that made him forget to sleep, wagewars, and become the prince who slaughtered his brothers and came to find me?

In the original, it was revenge.

And, now?

I thought I was the weakest in this relationship.

The scale of this relationship was too slanted, that the opponent was holding me by their beating heart, making me unable to move.

“Simple.”

His lips went up.

“You just have to keep your oath, Annette.”

Sislin simply said that.

The carriage made its way through the misty darkness, and soon returned to its earlier position.

To the place where he stole me from.

Sislin put shackles on my heart and wrist before dropping me there.

He smiled, stroking his lips with his rough fingers.

“I’ll come often, so show me around when I come.”

“…….”

“I thought I was going crazy because I missed you.”

The imperial carriage left quickly. I stared blankly at its back.

Steadily, as if I was possessed by a ghost.

Blinking, I pinched my cheek very carefully.

…Maybe this was a dream?

Ame: *laughs like a drug addict maniacally*

Tassie: Annette be like :PikaWhat: “Why are all these guys crazy” MISS MA’AM YOU MADE THEM LIKE THAT BY CONTINUOUSLY MAKING PROBLEMS YOU CAN’T KEEP!!!! sToB iT!!! anyways I enjoy the madness XD