Hansel’s Enchanted Fairytale: Fill Me Up With Magic! - Chapter 36
Hansel kept a close eye on him, observing whether her residual coughs had truly stopped.
He was an utterly peculiar man. Despite the impassive expression etched onto his face, his thoughts were laid bare for anyone to see.
It wasn’t a lack of ability to conceal them but rather an absence of intention to do so. Likely, he didn’t even know why one would need to hide their inner thoughts in the first place.
True strength often came with simplicity.
A predator moved leisurely, while prey sharpened its senses and hastened its steps. The weak had no choice but to strain every nerve to decipher their adversary’s intentions just to survive.
If Hansel had lost her parents at a young age and been left alone in the forest, she’d have ended up as protein in the stomach of a wolf or boar before nightfall.
But this man before her? He was nothing less than a king, reigning over all mages, feared by even the mightiest of them.
Her stubborn, brittle inferiority complex twisted painfully inside her.
What could she do about being born flawed and defective? All she could do was try to fix herself, a faulty product from the start.
Yes, she had come here risking her life to master magic.
Instead of being kicked to death by sheep in the middle of the night, Hansel decided to try something bolder.
She pulled his loose coat tightly around her, as if it were a cherished possession.
“Thanks. It’s warm.”
Her gratitude seemed to please him. His sharp gaze softened ever so slightly.
Ignoring the sheep’s incessant bleating in the background, Hansel took a small step closer to him.
“Hey, there’s something I’ve been curious about. Can you tell me?”
“You’re curious about me?”
“Yeah. You gave me your coat because you thought I might be cold, and you said such kind things earlier in the kitchen. I guess it’s made me want to know more about you.”
Hansel was fully aware of how shameless and audacious she sounded, but she couldn’t help it. If she ran away now, she’d just end up as some runaway who had to suck off a strange man only to return and marry another stranger. Guilt wasn’t a luxury she could afford.
She stepped closer, standing directly in front of him, and looked up at him.
“You remember things your father told you. Does that mean you miss him a lot?”
“Not really.”
His response missed the mark entirely, and Hansel’s eyelashes trembled slightly.
“It just came to mind,” he added.
Hansel quickly composed her expression.
“Really? Well, do you remember anything else? Like, was your father similar to you in any way?”
He seemed to lose focus, his gaze turning distant as if deep in thought. Then, furrowing his brow slightly, he slowly opened his mouth.
“He said warm bodies sow seeds well.”
What kind of talk was that to share with a seven-year-old? It was bizarre that he even remembered it.
Before Hansel could recover from her shock, he continued.
“And carrying on the family line was important.”
The gears in Hansel’s mind turned furiously.
It was confirmed now. If she wanted to gain his magical abilities, she’d have to sleep with him—literally.
If she didn’t want to run away, this was her only option. A figurative light bulb went off in Hansel’s mind as she realized how to tip the scales in her favor.
She resolved to be as endearing as possible.
If she could somehow go all the way with him, wouldn’t that give her magic? His power as the Witch of the Gingerbread House was so immense that, once gained, she could escape in no time.
Hansel lowered her head slightly, her gaze landing on his hand.
After staring at his fingers for a moment, she suddenly reached out and clasped his hand. His shoulders flinched in surprise, though he stood as still as a stone.
His hand was warm, almost like a heat pack, despite being exposed to the cold air. Was this magic, or just his naturally blessed constitution?
Hansel shook off the stray thoughts buzzing in her head and let out a small sigh.
“You answered my question, so now I’ll tell you something new.”
“Okay.”
“But before that, I have one more thing I want to ask…”
He stayed still, quietly waiting for her to speak. Finally, Hansel looked up at him.
“Your name. Won’t you tell me?”
Regardless of the situation, he was about to become her first man. The least she could do was learn his name before they spent the night together. It was the bare minimum of dignity and conscience she could preserve.
He didn’t respond.
No, it seemed he couldn’t.
His red eyes trembled faintly between slightly widened lids, as if unsure how to react. Then, after a moment, his uncertainty subsided.
His broad chest rose and fell, the air escaping in a slow, shallow breath.
“…Dante.”
His already deep voice dropped further, roughened with hesitation. Uttering his name seemed utterly foreign to him.
He tightened his grip on Hansel’s hand.
“That’s my name. Dante.”
Dante. It was a princely name.
Yet somehow, it felt oddly familiar, as though she had heard it before. There was something faintly nostalgic about it…
Or maybe it was just a beautiful name.
Hansel thought to herself that, even after leaving this place, this name was one she wouldn’t forget. She murmured his name softly.
“Dante…”
Dante stared intently at Hansel’s lips as she spoke his name, his crimson eyes flickering with an inexplicable light.
Neither of them realized it, but Hansel had already crossed an irreversible line.
