A Knight Who Protects His Enemies

Vivian harshly chased away the maid.

Once everyone left and only the two of us remained in the room, Vivian brushed her silky hair back and looked at me.

“Is it fun to scare people like that?”

I asked her.

Vivian gave me a look that said she didn’t understand anything.

“…Fun?”

At the same time, she sat down in front of a small table that had been prepared next to the bed, continuing what she was doing even before the maids had arrived.

We were having dinner.

…Of course, I wasn’t eating.

“Who do you think is doing this out of boredom, Kylo? I was really angry just now.”

I scoffed.

“…So you’re saying you’re like this just because we exchanged looks?”

“If you don’t like me doing this, then you should stop seeing other girls.”

“…Why don’t you just gouge out my eyes then?”

Vivian shook her head with a smile.

As if to say, what kind of words are those?

“…Then you wouldn’t be able to see me.”

“…”

“…I’m happiest when you look at me.”

Now that she had me trapped here, Vivian was speaking without any hesitation.

She kept conveying her intensely honest feelings.

Though she was still a bit shy, and her face was slightly flushed… she had clearly spoken those words.

Saying that she felt happiest when I looked at her, such an embarrassing statement came out easily.

And yet, she never uttered the words “I love you.”

She would never say that I was precious to her.

That fact felt oddly distant now.

“Vivian, you’re not normal.”

“When have we been normal?”

It wasn’t wrong. But she knew that wasn’t the point.

“…If you’ve had enough fun, then let’s stop here and let me go. What’s left for you?”

She sighed as if she couldn’t believe it.

“…Kylo, do you still think this is a game?”

No, it didn’t feel like a game.

However, I couldn’t accept the sight of her confidently walking down a path of destruction.

If she stopped here, things could be managed easily.

I finally spoke the words I had been holding back.

“…You might be acting like this because you haven’t met another man. Aside from me—”

-Slap!

Vivian, who had shown no emotional reaction to any of my words, reacted sensitively to the mention of her connections with other men.

Putting down her cutlery, she whispered.

“…Do you think another man could get hurt for me like you do?”

“…”

“Could someone love me, even when surrounded by nothing but evil? Can he accept me, who had nothing?”

“…”

Vivian looked at me.

“The ones who rush at me, saying they like me right now… all evaluate me based on what I’ve achieved. They only see me as the one who established Rondore, the one who made Roktana wealthy again… No one sees me as a stuttering fool.”

“…”

“Since then, it’s been you who has protected me. You are the only one in this world who has truly accepted me. Even you might not realize how much of a salvation that has been for me.”

“…I’m sick of the way you’re showing yourself right now.”

Vivian smiled.

“Don’t lie to me, Kylo.”

“…”

Was what I said a lie? Vivian’s firmness had me confused now.

“Kylo, emotions aren’t as easy as just saying the words. Even if I want to hate you… I can’t. Just like how I feel for you, you feel the same for me.”

“…I’ve said it several times that it’s because I’m cursed.”

“You aren’t even sure if you really are a curse, are you?”

“…”

“Shout all you want about being cursed. I know. That’s not a curse. You truly love me… and that truth sustains me. Even when I show you this ugly side, your unwavering heart… I’m grateful.”

I sat there, frowning.

Vivian gently stroked my cheek, as if she found that beautiful.

It was like she was touching a treasure.

I was afraid to touch it, fearing it would break.

She looked at me for a long while and, seeing my frowning face, she muttered defensively.

“…But Kylo, I had no other choice. In my cruel world, you alone shine… how could I let you go? Am I to live my life in unhappiness then?”

Thinking about her being left alone pained me as well.

However, I couldn’t just sit here and be afraid of that.

“If I disappear, you might find something that will make you happy.”

“That should have shown up in my life long ago if that were the case.”

Vivian declared.

“…You should have been right beside me when I was trembling in fear, begging for help. You were the only one who came for me, right?”

After saying that, she went back to preparing food.

A fragrant soup and beautifully roasted meat.

And a cool glass of water was set down.

“Eat, Kylo.”

As she had been doing earlier, Vivian insistently tried to feed me the food.

I shook my head again today.

It would be the most foolish thing to say I didn’t want to be imprisoned, yet swallowing her offered food.

Has it been about 10 days now?

Even she, who had tried to feed me three times a day, was gradually losing her composure due to my continuous rejections.

“…You’re testing my limits again.”

“…”

“…Kylo, if you could look into my mind right now… you would know how much I cherish you.”

As much as I was starving, Vivian was starving too.

That thought weighed heavily on my heart.

However, even if it weighed on my heart, it couldn’t break my resolve.

“…You eat.”

Her eyes sparked with fire at my words.

-Slap!

Vivian slammed her cutlery down angrily and came close to my face, alternately staring into my eyes.

The frustration and irritation that she had clenched in her jaw surged all at once.

“Are you trying to let yourself starve to death, Kylo?”

“That wouldn’t be too bad.”

“…Do you have to push me away that much?”

Fueled by her irritation, I spoke back.

“…Just give up, Vivian.”

“Ha… Kylo…”

She roughly tossed her hair back and whispered.

“…No, never. I like it more this way. The harder it is, the more I like it. This is you. Fine, let’s fight today.”

Vivian picked up her utensils again and put a piece of cut meat in her mouth.

However, her gaze didn’t leave me.

-Swoosh!

In an instant, Vivian charged at me as if she were pouncing.

“Ugh!”

My upper body was pushed back, and I fell over.

Vivian climbed on top of me, looking down at me.

The irritation and anger from before tangled together, giving her a dangerous look.

-Swoosh.

She suddenly grabbed my nose.

Blocking my breath.

I slowly came to understand what she was trying to do.

The smirk that seemed mischievous on her face turned into something serious as she leaned down and kissed me.

And with a wink, she waited for my mouth to open.

We exchanged gazes for a long time.

Many conversations passed through our eyes.

I asked whether it had to be this way, but Vivian raised an eyebrow playfully, challenging that it must be.

As my breath became shallow, I hurriedly opened my mouth.

In that moment, Vivian opened hers too, and food slipped into my mouth along with her moist tongue.

And she stayed there, covering my mouth.

It seemed like she wouldn’t allow me to spit it out.

Yet, she didn’t let go of my nose.

As if to say I should breathe with the breath we shared.

Pushing her tongue deep into my mouth to prevent my teeth from closing, she stayed like that until the food passed down my throat.

“Phew…”

“Gack…! Gack!!”

Only after I had ingested the food like that did Vivian sit up with a satisfied look on her face.

She repeated that same action several more times.

I realized that if she was prepared to dirty herself, there was no way I could defeat her.

“…Enough, now.”

But Vivian shook her head.

“Nope.”

“…”

“I’m not going to let you go just because you surrender. It’s fun to do this. If only you had been obedient when I was treating you well, how much better would it be?”

Vivian kept putting food in her mouth, chewing, and then kissing me.

The irritation, anger, and frustration she felt hadn’t been completely resolved, and it seemed like she was taking it out on me.

I could sense that her day hadn’t been particularly smooth.

Until the meal prepared by the maids ran out, Vivian continued with that behavior.

****

A few more days passed, and Vivian’s birthday was just a day away.

The preparations had already been completed.

The castle was lavishly decorated, reflecting her prestige and influence.

This event centered around Vivian had developed beyond a simple banquet; it was establishing itself as a venue for harmony and peace.

It was planned to last not just one day, but several.

This birthday banquet would gather not only the nobles of Delum Kingdom but also those of the East Kingdom, thanks to Lady Lynne’s meticulous efforts in preparing everything successfully.

However, despite the magnificent decorations inside the castle, Vivian’s heart was unendingly dark.

As time passed, her feelings became increasingly muddied.

Vivian watched Kylo, who lay sleeping soundly on the bed.

Nothing she had gained from their ongoing stand-off was worth anything.

Kylo’s strong resolve within didn’t seem to waver at all.

In the past, when he cared for her, his personality was the most reassuring, but now it had become the chain that frustrated her the most.

Vivian knew that imprisoning him wasn’t the end. There was a need for a process afterward.

Of course, it had been impulsive to hold him down… she thought she could somehow change Kylo’s heart.

Behind that belief was Kylo’s love.

Vivian could still feel it.

Even if he was angry and bored with her, the foundation of love beneath it had not yet extinguished.

His unyielding will was still applied to his feelings of love.

She could catch glimpses of his worried and affectionate glances directed at her from time to time.

However, even with that love, Kylo continued to try to leave.

His determination had not changed.

Vivian felt restless as well.

What if his determination never changed for a lifetime?

What if he left with love in his heart, never to return?

What if he intended to leave her as a past memory?

…What if he ended up starting a family with another woman?

That was a future that could not come to pass.

Just imagining it made her heart ache unbearably.

Vivian couldn’t deny that she had acted impulsively after imprisoning Kylo.

However, anyone in her position would have done the same.

Without anyone to judge her, without anyone to punish her… could anyone endure having a beloved one bound?

Even with just simple affection, a normal human would try all sorts of actions toward their partner.

However, Vivian had endured all this even without merely being in the stage of affection.

“…”

But even that was beginning to waver now.

As her impatience bloomed, the boiling frustration reached a breaking point.

It was certain that she couldn’t change Kylo’s heart by the time the banquet began.

She knew that a future was coming where she would have to hide him from the eyes of the guests.

…This time, she wanted to dance with him.

Yet, that too was becoming an unachievable future.

Vivian had learned to dance solely for Kylo.

She had imagined sharing a romantic moment with him.

However, that time was becoming completely futile now.

If Kylo’s heart never bent, then that would be the outcome.

Vivian kept watching Kylo, who lay there, breathing quietly while still bound.

Even having him, she wanted more.

Even having possessed him, she wanted to possess him more.

She had never been the type to be greedy.

Her only goal in childhood had been to survive; she had wished for nothing beyond survival.

But now she realized.

There was just one thing for which her greed would not dry up.

For Kylo, this thirst would not quench.

Every scar of his, every strand of hair, each breath he took, she wanted to monopolize.

Following that desire, she was monopolizing him now, but for some reason, he felt farther away than ever.

Vivian gently stroked his cheek, trying to suppress her anxiety.

At that, Kylo lightly blinked awake.

That moment when he was waking from sleep was Vivian’s favorite.

In that brief moment, Kylo couldn’t reveal the sharp hostility he felt towards her.

His soft gaze, reminiscent of the past, was directed at her, and that was Vivian’s only solace.

That was why she always woke up before Kylo each morning and watched him wake.

“…”

“…”

A silent gaze exchanged between us.

Vivian wished for that moment to last forever.

Yet she knew.

This was merely a moment to catch our breaths before the fight.

She also understood that Kylo didn’t dislike this moment.

It was probably for the same reason as her.

However, as always, Kylo chose not to take the easy route, and he steeled his expression, breaking the peace.

Hostility bloomed in his eyes.

“…Look at me like you love me.”

Vivian unknowingly commanded him in that moment.

It was from her anger that this time was coming to an end too quickly.

“…Look at me like I’m precious to you.”

Kylo did not comply.

He remained unyielding.

Perhaps because it was morning, Vivian’s emotions grew even more intense.

Tears were welling up in her eyes, tightening her throat, but she transformed that frustration into anger.

She couldn’t cry in front of Kylo.

Her impatience made her emotions run wild.

Vivian climbed onto Kylo’s body.

Her hands went carelessly to Kylo’s neck.

-Thud!

“Look at me as if you love me…!!”

Vivian glared at him while gripping his neck.

“Why do you have to take such a difficult path…!! Why can’t you admit it’s not a curse!!”

She couldn’t tell what expression she was making.

“I have to tell you I’m yours over and over!!!”

Vivian screamed as if she was proclaiming.

Kylo’s dry lips slowly parted.

“…Go ahead.”

He said.

At that provocation, her reason snapped.

Vivian poured strength into her hand.

She glared fiercely into his eyes.

“…”

“…”

…But in the end, she couldn’t bring herself to choke his neck.

Her hands trembled, but she couldn’t genuinely tighten her grip.

He was just too precious. She loved him far too much.

If she spoke those feelings out loud, it would burst forth like something too big to stop.

She slumped over his body like a marionette with its strings cut.

“…Just once, Kylo. Just once.”

She was losing her mind.

She thought she was tormenting Kylo… but it was Vivian who was withering away.

“…Just once, treat me as you did before.”

As if begging for a drop of water in the desert, Vivian pleaded for his affection.

“…Just once. Call my name and say you love me.”

“…”

Kylo closed his eyes tightly without answering.

Vivian could tell that he too was fighting his own painful battle.

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