Mr. Kadan in the Deep Forest - Chapter 19
It seemed that Kadan didn’t know the answer. Ruth yelled out that his hand hurt, but Kadan didn’t even spare him a glance. After all, a person’s hand wouldn’t break from this small amount. Of course, someone fragile like Luna might be an exception.
Just as Kadan was about to take a step, Ruth asked a question and grabbed his ankle.
“What about you, monster?”
“What?”
“I’m asking what you want to do.”
Well, since you want to shake things up without mercy, I figured you’d come to ask that. Ruth chuckled to himself, but Kadan was caught off guard by the question.
“Ha! Your face is red. Why? Did I hit the mark?”
“I…”
“I’ve heard all the rumors, you bastard. Last time, you bought a woman’s outdoor clothes, and today, you asked for pajamas? You said you’d pay anything and wanted the best one, didn’t you?”
The only tailor in the village was famous for being picky, yet she was unusually kind to Kadan. She went around the village gossiping, claiming that Kadan was the most perfect subject in the world or that he had a body made by the gods.
“The Madam cried and caused a scene when you bought women’s pajamas. She’s certain you’ve got a lover.”
“A lover?”
“Yeah, that means a woman you like. Kissing, touching, and, as you put it, penetration.”
Ruth mimicked the motion with his waist again and laughed mischievously.
A woman you like. Kadan mulled over Ruth’s explanation, his mouth opening and closing like an idiot.
“You bought them for that reason, didn’t you? To make her your bride?”
Bride. Kadan was even more surprised by the word ‘bride’ than when he’d heard ‘lover.’ He knew what the term meant—it referred to a life-long companion. How could he ever think of such a thing with such a beautiful woman?
He definitely hadn’t bought the clothes with that intention. Every time he saw Luna wearing his clothes, it made him uncomfortable below, and he thought she would find it uncomfortable when the sleeves of the clothes kept slipping off.
One day, as he passed by the tailor shop, he saw Luna’s face floating above a mannequin wearing the clothes. So, he bought them. He only choose one set, fearing that if he bought more, she would end up doing more chores around the house. He had bought them with no ulterior motive.
But explaining all of this was difficult for Kadan. He simply waved his large hands around.
“No, that’s not it.”
“Sure, it’s not. You like her, don’t you?”
“No!”
Kadan quickly averted his gaze and denied it. With a bright red face and fidgeting with his large hands, he looked exactly like a boy in love for the first time. Ruth snickered.
“Live up to your size. If you don’t want to be caught, at least don’t make it obvious. So, how are you going to win over a woman?”
“I’m not trying to.”
“Then are you going to let her slip away? Are you going to give her to someone else?”
“…”
Kadan clenched his teeth tightly. His jaw twitched.
Saying that he would ‘lose’ Luna was completely wrong. Luna wasn’t a prey that could be caught just like that. She was a woman meant to recover from her wounds and leave for her nest. Whether she stayed by his side or left was entirely up to Luna.
As the silence stretched on, Ruth, watching him, struck his chest in frustration.
“Ugh, how frustrating. Do you really think you’re going to get married if you keep being so naïve? You’re going to lose that woman and get eaten up by someone like the tailor’s Madam?”
“I’m strong. I won’t be eaten.”
“Sure, sure. If you’re going to let her slip away, then give her to me, I’ll take her.”
Ruth remembered Luna shivering in the bath and licked his lower lip.
A woman with striking golden hair and fair skin. Even though her body was slender, she had decent curves, and her face was symmetrical. Everything about her was appealing. She was probably of lowly status, but there was a certain elegance to her that stirred his desire to conquer her.
If she hadn’t been that monster’s woman, Ruth would’ve tried to win her over already by any means. He didn’t hide his disappointment.
“You know I’m the most handsome in our village, right? If I set my mind to it, I could have any woman in bed in just one day. Oh, by the way, do you know what I mean by taking them to bed? It means penetration, penetration.”
Ruth tapped his hipbone and implied s****l activity. For a moment, Kadan’s face hardened, and he reached out to grab Ruth by the collar, lifting him off the ground.
“I’ll kill you.”
His eyes were bloodshot, full of killing intent. Ruth coughed and tried to pry Kadan’s hand away, but he couldn’t budge even a finger.
“I-I was just joking! Let me go, cough, cough!”
This bastard says he’s not trying to win her over, and then acts like this! Ruth, feeling wronged, slapped Kadan’s hand away.
“Luna’s not an object. She decides what happens. Not you.”
Kadan corrected Ruth’s words in a low voice. Every time Ruth treated Luna disrespectfully, Kadan felt the urge to cut off that deceitful tongue.
“W-What are you saying, cough… Let me go!”
“Don’t get around Luna.”
“I got it. You won’t see a single hair of mine, just let go!”
Kadan loosened his grip on Ruth’s collar, and Ruth was thrown to the ground, gasping for breath.
