Secret Love Affair between a Former Saint and a Dark Hero - Chapter 16
Crunch, crunch, crunch.
“Aah.”
She hadn’t felt any desire to eat anything since entering this world, so it felt odd to have the thought of wanting something to eat. Hearing him eating the apple made her mouth water. As she swallowed hard, she heard his pitying voice.
“What? Your clothes look expensive, but you look as hungry as a stray dog? You, aristocratic lady, drooling over a mere apple.”
“Excuse me?”
“Well, I guess it can’t be helped.”
There was a snap, a grinding sound, and then a whoosh. Something fell down, and Iora caught it quickly. It was an apple, split in half.
“Here’s the unbitten side. Eat it and try getting back your strength.”
“An apple… I see.”
“You look like you didn’t even get a bloody bite to eat today, that’s why your legs are so weak.”
It wasn’t like that. It wasn’t such a simple problem. Yet, the man’s deep voice had a strange charm to it. Perhaps it really was like that.
Wiping away the remaining tears, Iora cautiously picked up the halved apple and took a bite. Crunch.
It was sweet and refreshing. If someone had seen this scene, they would probably have been horrified and stopped her. A noblewoman picking up something from the ground and eating it—thinking about it made her chuckle.
Maybe this is all a dream. Actually, I might have fallen into a coma in the real world. And now, I’m dreaming. Sol is reading the novel next to me. That’s why I keep dreaming of becoming a character in the novel’s world.
“Hey, girl. What’s your name?”
Iora’s reverie was interrupted by a figure bursting out of the trees. Her mouth dropped open, and she stared at the man’s overpowering presence.
“I know I look good. But if you keep your mouth wide open like that, bugs might get in, so why don’t you close it?”
“Oh… Thank you for your concern. You’re kind…”
“Who? Me?”
“Huh? Yes.”
“That’s an unusual compliment. People are usually offended by the way I talk.”
The man sat barefoot on the tree like a forest elf. He had a languid smile, slender muscular arms leaning slightly back, black shimmering hair that subtly changed in the twilight, and impressive sapphire-colored eyes that seemed to catch the light.
‘Yes, more like a demon than an elf. An enchanting demon.’
The man’s half-lowered eyes had a chocolatey, sticky sweetness to them. A peculiar person exuding a lethargic, sensual aura. Unable to contain a chuckle at her childish thoughts, the man responded with a snort, as if finding something odd.
“You’re obviously a people-pleaser with a foot fetish. Pathetic.”
“…!”
Iora was shocked by his blunt words. It was surprising to hear such rudeness from someone she just met. She was startled by his audacity, appalled by his impoliteness, and frightened that despite all that, he did not come off as a bad person.
“Do I really appear that way?”
“You’ve been told since you were a kid that you’re garbage, that you let people walk all over you, that you worry too much, tsk tsk. You trusted someone who could kill you, and shed tears when they betrayed you.”
The specific details of his words made her inexplicably afraid. At the same time, Iora was tormented by anguish.
Who on earth could that man be? If someone like him worked in the palace, that meant that the talkative maids might have already spread rumors. Could he be a palace knight? But which knight would boldly climb barefoot on a tree in the palace grounds to pick and eat apples?
“You probably ran away without getting a word in, even now still hurting.”
“H-How did you know?”
Startled by the sudden response, the man snickered coolly. It seemed like laughing was a habit for him, yet surprisingly, it suited him well. Even the slight sneering look he cast downwards seemed to fit him like his own shadow.
Then, Iora remembered. She wasn’t cowering at the moment and was slowly sharing her thoughts with someone, however slowly, because the man didn’t despise or curse at her.
“Girl.”
“Yes?”
“What’s your name?”
Suddenly, she became apprehensive. If that man found out who she was, he might feel uncomfortable and reject her like all the others. If he discovered she was the overly ambitious, delusional fake saint, Iora, mentioned in rumors…
‘He might change too.’
This was a cruel world for someone like Iora.
Slowly, resignation began to creep in her violet eyes.
