Please Kill Me - Chapter 133
So, Leonid should just discard someone like her as easily as he would any other.
Why does it always have to end up like this? She can’t explain it logically, but she has a guess.
‘It’s probably just my bad luck.’
And so, she seems to belong in Offenbach after all. The reason she can’t bring herself to leave is probably because of lingering attachments.
Yekaterina tentatively reached out. Her fingertips touched Leonid’s forehead. The once neat forehead was now partially covered by disheveled hair. Even if she tidied it now, it would soon become disheveled again; so why did she feel compelled to perform this meaningless act?
Yekaterina withdrew her hand and tried to turn away.
Or rather, she tried to turn away, but if her hand hadn’t been caught by the one she was trying to tidy up…
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“…Were you awake?”
“I’d say I haven’t slept at all. You escaped from my watch twice, and you thought I would just let you go?”
Leonid sat up. His bare torso, defined with muscularity, formed an alluring silhouette.
But in the darkness, the view only revealed his silhouette. The light wasn’t sufficient to show his expression, so Yekaterina couldn’t see what kind of expression Leonid had.
Would he be frowning as usual? He wouldn’t be smiling, so perhaps he looked a bit forlorn.
If she could see his face, would she still be able to turn her back on him?
When that question crossed her mind, the figure in the darkness spoke softly.
“Don’t go.”
The voice was drier than she expected.
“There’s no real reason you must leave. If the issue is simply that I’ve disappointed you, I’ll try to do better. Just stay with me. You don’t dislike me, do you?”
You didn’t reject me.
Yekaterina fell silent for a moment, then spoke the prepared words.
“I don’t want you.”
“…”
“I thought maybe experiencing it once would make me want you, but nothing has changed. What matters to me is Offenbach alone.”
When her words ended, an oppressive silence followed. She had expected anger or perhaps even pleading, but instead, there was an endless silence.
For the first time, not being able to see the other’s expression made her feel uneasy.
After what seemed like an eternity, Leonid’s low voice broke the silence.
“…I see. No matter what I do, I mean nothing to you.”
Yekaterina withdrew her hand without responding. The hand that had held her fell helplessly to the ground.
Leonid was always like this.
He would act as if he would never let go, but when Yekaterina pushed him away, he would retreat without resistance. Though it was dark, Yekaterina could sense that Leonid’s gaze no longer fixed on her.
As she had done all along, Yekaterina spoke in her emotionless tone.
“Thank you for everything.”
With those words, Yekaterina turned and left the tent. As she pulled aside the fabric and stepped out, she saw the sky gradually brightening from the eastern horizon.
A single tear slipped down her cheek as she watched the cloud-covered sky. Her face contorted in pain, but no more tears came.
Yekaterina stood there, clutching her stomach as if she had been kicked. Then she straightened up, wiped her expression clean, and pulled her hood over her head.
* * *
When she returned to the Offenbach tent, Dmitry, who had not been sleeping, greeted her.
“Welcome back, Sister. Seeing you unharmed suggests you kept your promise.”
“…Yes, I kept my promise. So you should keep yours.”
“Of course. But…”
Dmitry stepped closer, his gaze moving from the inside of Yekaterina’s collar to her eyes.
“You look tired. We should head back soon. You’ll need to adjust to the new Offenbach quickly.”
“New Offenbach?”
“Do you think it will be the same now that Father is dead?”
It couldn’t possibly be the same as when she was treated like a slave.
“Go rest. We’ll return once the sun is fully up.”
With his businesslike tone, Yekaterina quickly put aside her confusion and stepped outside.
Dmitry knew well that, despite his advice to rest, Yekaterina would not remain at ease for long.
Even when she slept, she was always on guard, waking at the slightest disturbance.
Dmitry wanted to talk to Yekaterina a little longer, but unfortunately, the situation was not favorable.
“…Leonid Rostislav.”
Dmitry muttered the name through clenched teeth, his hand gripping the desk tightly, veins standing out on his wrist as he made a fist.
The moment he saw the red marks inside Yekaterina’s collar, Dmitry had to exert all his effort to prevent his brow from furrowing. He didn’t need to ask who had left those marks.
‘Since when?’
It was shocking. He almost wanted to ask Yekaterina directly about her relationship with him.
However, he was not a fool to let such things disrupt his plans. Dmitry had to remain the most rational and composed in front of Yekaterina.
‘Sister will never abandon Offenbach.’
