Villain, Let Me Touch You! - Chapter 29
I like my abilities. I liked it so much that I gave it a name.
Prescriber.
It means a person who can see and erase the names of diseases. I took the name from the unique profession in this world called ‘inscriber,’ a tattoo artist who engraved desired names for those who haven’t been imprinted on. A person who inscribes names, one who defies destiny.
Is this plagiarism?
Let’s just call it an homage.
I cured Helios with my prescriber ability, but I’d be remiss if I said that was all there was to it. I poured my entire time to heal Helios. Knowing that he recognized my sincerity and effort made my shoulders feel lighter.
“When did he write all this?”
I rubbed the bridge of my nose and handed the notebook back to Jamie. She neatly put it away.
“What do you plan to do from now on?” Jamie asked as she finished tidying up.
She wasn’t asking about my afternoon schedules or vacation plans for next month. I had been imprinted. If Helios isn’t imprinted with me in six months, I die. The problem is in two months, he will have a name other than mine.
There’s only one way to survive—erase the name of His Highness from my body.
Simple, I thought. If there’s someone who can inscribe, wouldn’t there be someone who can erase?
Even though it didn’t appear in the novel, my ability was also something not mentioned in the story. So maybe I can find someone who can do it. I should start by asking an inscriber.
It was a good idea until I realized I wasn’t exactly able to go outside. I was confined, imprisoned by my own health.
Well, what do I do now? It was quite a conundrum.
***
“Let’s just hold hands.”
I never expected to hear such a common and cliché line. I stared intently at Helios, who was seated against the headboard of the bed. He had come to me after attending to some business, uttered the clichéd phrase, and then very innocently grabbed my hand firmly while using his other hand to look through a report.
He had said something this morning that not even a dog, or even Jamie for that matter, would believe. I don’t know why there’s not a single word about that.
“Your eyes are boring a hole through me, Rienna.”
He put down the report in his hand, and I jolted in surprise. Then, he grabbed my chin to meet his gaze.
“Do you have something to say?”
I had a lot to say. There were so many things I wanted to ask. How did he feel when he found out about the name imprinted on my body? What was the intention behind the sudden proposal? Was that offer still on the table?
No! Cross out the last question! What if His Highness doesn’t cancel the proposal?
I had already mentally dismissed the proposal as an absurd one-off.
Erase it, erase it all!
I rubbed my palm over the top of my head like I was trying to erase an illness, but it only made his words clearer.
‘Marry me, Rienna.’
“Why, what’s wrong? Are you hurting somewhere?”
Helios leaned in close. His innocent, sunny expression disturbed me. He’s probably forgotten all about it. Maybe he said it on impulse, out of pity for me.
Whatever. If he really wants to marry me, I’d have no answer.
As I thought about this, my mind became a bit flustered.
“No, I’m not hurt. It’s fine.”
I lifted my hand from Helios’s grasp. I shook it gently, and his gaze met mine.
“I never believed in fate. I knew about the concept of imprinting, but…”
“Do you believe now?”
“I don’t want to believe it, but what can I do? It showed up like this. And also… it’s your name.”
Helios’s face darkened. Watching his troubled expression, I realized I had been selfish, only considering my situation without considering his perspective. After all, my imprinting had been an unexpected accident. I became a burden to him that he couldn’t put down. It’s bound to be quite a headache.
In theory, I should wait for about 6 months to see if he’ll imprint on me or not.
Until then, I had to keep myself alive regardless of Helios’s will. If by any chance my name showed up on his body after I had made a mistake, it would be a huge problem.
Not that it would ever appear.
For the time being, physical contact was a must—unwanted or not. It hurt me, but what fault was it of his? As the recipient of a one-sided imprint, I couldn’t help but apologize.
I bowed my head and lifted it. “I’m sorry.”
Helios’s gaze wavered. “For what?”
“I’m sorry for imprinting your name, Your Highness. But it wasn’t intentional. You know that, right?”
Helios’s eyes narrowed. He seemed to be pondering something, and then his face fell.
“Rienna, did you think I would be offended by your imprinting my name?” he asked. He even seemed angry.
I stuck my head in my hands and said, “Aren’t you?”
Helios let out a long sigh and ran his free hand over his face. When he lowered his hand, he was smiling, but I knew that he was still angry.
“Not at all.”
“Not at all? Even though I’m the reason you’re going through all this trouble?”
Helios lifted our clasped hands to his eye level and let go of the report. He lowered our raised hand and turned fully toward me. Then he lowered his head to meet my eyes. A deep shadow fell over me as I lay there.
“Um, Your Highness?”
I felt like I was going to hit his nose if I continued like this, so I put a lot of pressure on the back of his head. Even though I had receded enough for his down-filled pillow to sink, the distance between me and him gradually shrunk.
“Uh, Your Highness, you’re too close.”
“Look carefully.”
