097. Cruelly
“Can you keep walking?”
“Yes, thanks to this. Thank you.”
Emilia lifted her ankle, which was tightly bound with a bandage.
“If it’s hard, just tell me. It’s nothing to carry just one of you.”
He spoke bluntly and walked away. Emilia followed. As she limped along, leaning on the strong man’s arm, shr suddenly remembered the day when the heavy rain poured down. Hot blood rushed to her lower abdomen, and she felt dizzy again.
To distract herself, Emilia deliberately looked elsewhere to distract herself. Fortunately, she could hear faint music from afar. Thanks to the cheerful melody of the accordion and fiddle, Emilia was able to temporarily escape from the man’s scent that kept coming in and the firm muscles that were barely touching her.
But the peace did not last long.
“Over there! Let’s go!”
On the other side, several young women were running frantically toward them.
If Emilia hadn't turned around so quickly, if Hardius hadn't pulled her towards him, she probably would've collided head-on with one of them.
They narrowly avoided a collision, but faced an even bigger problem. The bodies of the man and woman, who had been trying so hard to avoid, collided head-on, crushing their chests.
Emilia took a deep breath. It took her a long time to be able to exhale again.
Fortunately, Hardius didn't seem to be very conscious of it. Unlike her, who constantly felt dizzy, he simply stopped walking for a moment and looked around as if assessing something.
While he was thinking about something, he suddenly turned toward an alley. He must have thought that a quiet alley would be better than a street crowded with people, even if it was a little further away.
It was a relief to her to know that, unlike herself, he was a person who became calmer in the face of a crisis.
“Just now...”
As they entered a quiet street, Emilia spoke softly. She had chosen conversation as another way to distract herself.
“I saw Moriah’s house. And the fence.”
“...”
She continued talking to herself, paying no attention to his unanswered question.
“When I look at it, I feel both funny and sad... My mind becomes very complicated. I used to think that I knew what kind of person the master was better than anyone else, but now I really don’t know.”
Hardius remained silent, but from the slightly slower pace, she could tell he was waiting for her to say more.
“You are the most indifferent and cold-hearted person I know. But sometimes, it feels the opposite. You seem so mature that it’s hard to believe you’re the same age, but at other times, you seem more childish than crazy.”
“Does that mean you’re fickle?”
Emilia shook her head.
“At first, I thought it was a whim, but it wasn’t like that at all. It was...”
Emilia, who was limping, stopped walking for a moment and rolled her eyes, thinking deeply about something.
“...A kaleidoscope, perhaps?”
"Kaleidoscope?"
“I mean, that small, magical container that the magician showed me earlier. If you look from the outside, it’s just a few marbles inside... but if you turn the container just a little bit, it looks completely different. It’s just like that with you, Master. It’s unpredictable.”
“Well, I’m not sure, but I think there’s one thing similar.”
Emilia's eyes turned back to Hardius. He was smiling bitterly.
“I’m trapped. Like one of those little marbles that can’t get out of that tight little box. If I’ve confused you, that’s probably why.”
You are free, but I am not free yet.
Emilia felt her heart grow impatient as his cold and dark gaze came back to her.
Suddenly, the mask covering her face felt very suffocating.
Charlotte isn't the only one who really needs a mask. There are too many barriers between them, and Emilia Bern is still someone who must be hidden from Hardius.
Of course, Emilia was not the least bit dissatisfied with that fact. Even when she had hated Hardius Meyer the most, she had never once been dissatisfied with the fact that his world would never accept her.
When Duchess Meyer came to hear about the issue of the engagement agreement, didn't she feel a sense of relief and even gratitude?
Before their relationship was revealed, Hardius had to be freed first.
Although she didn't know exactly what 'freedom' meant or what he planned to do, Emilia felt that only by getting out from under her mother's shadow would he be able to breathe.
“I... don’t want to rush you, my lord.”
Emilia whispered desperately.
She wasn't sure how deep her feelings for Hardy Meyer could go, or if she could love him enough to push herself on an adventure, but one thing was certain.
Now is not the time to take such a risky risk. They need time.
“I can wait. Until you are free. I can hide as long as you want. So...”
That was when.
“Get out of the way! Get out of the way!”
The faint music began to grow louder and louder, almost ear-splitting, along with someone's shout. Emilia unconsciously turned her head, and so did Hardius.
People were rushing in from the entrance of the alley they had passed. The first thing they saw was musicians playing the accordion and the fiddle. Then came hundreds of people jumping up and down, arm in arm.
The identity of the crowd that suddenly rushed into the quiet alley like a wave was none other than a masquerade parade.
Fuck.
Hardius swallowed a curse and strengthened the arm that supported Emilia.
His sharp eyes began to consider whether it would be more effective to run with the woman in his arms or to avoid the crowd. The decision was made in a matter of seconds.
“This way.”
Hardius pushed Emilia against the wall with a careful but quick hand. He then covered her with his body, trying to protect her from the tidal wave of people that had surged in.
But the line of dancers continued on endlessly, and it became increasingly difficult to avoid them.
He looked around again and found a hollow in the stone wall and hurriedly walked through it. The space was too small for the two of them, but at least she could avoid the disaster of having her feet stepped on by people.
Hardius covered her again, leaning her against the wall. The music and all the noise from the dancers were deafening, but the man's senses were completely focused on the woman in his arms.
Emilia was still small, still slender, still beautiful, and still trying to continue the conversation with a serious look in her eyes.
“I don’t know exactly what my feelings are towards you, Master...”
“...”
“As I said before, I have no intention of meeting another man.”
Hardius looked down at Emilia, who was chirping like a bird. Because of his intense gaze, Emilia thought he was concentrating on her words, but in reality, his mind was going blank.
“So, you shouldn’t rush things. I’m much more stable now. That means you don’t have to be anxious about me. For the time being, I plan to focus solely on taking care of my mother and younger siblings. We have plenty of time. Not all women in the world risk their lives for love or marriage. In fact, even the president of ‘Latang’, where I work...”
"Stop."
Hardius suddenly interrupted.
“I know what you're trying to say.”
Something like desperation behind the hard voice froze Emilia.
Her gaze, which had been fixed on the man's Adam's apple between the collar of his pure white shirt, slowly moved upward. The moment their eyes met, Emilia was able to realize it.
She was fooled again by that man's calm demeanor.
All that was seething in his pupils, which had turned a dark shade of gray, was passion.
The shock hit her head, and a strange heat rose from deep within her stomach. Her body was tightly pressed against the people, avoiding them, and the memories of that terribly erotic night were instantly revived.
“Yeah, it’s not you who’s in a hurry.”
He breathed hot breath into her ear and stroked her chin with his fingertips.
“It’s always been me. It’s always been that way.”
The man's thumb ran up her chin and touched her lips. Emilia stood there, unable to breathe, holding on with all her might.
The exciting music and energetic dancing kept bringing back forgotten memories.
They did it on the beach, in Elver, and at the ball in Luen.
The memory of dancing together made her breath quicken and her head spin. Feeling the cold stone wall behind her and the hot man in front of her, Emilia tried to calm her heart. However, her body, which was close to his body, the fire that started there, heated her blood and pushed her to her limit.
“A childish me who can’t control my impulses.”
He muttered as if chewing, and pressed her lower lip with his fingertips to forcefully open the inside. The moist mucous membrane was breathtakingly alluring, like a flower that attracts bees.
“I am the problem.”
He, who seemed about to press his lips against hers at any moment, paused for a moment and took off his mask. Emilia looked up at the black hair flowing softly along the pitch-black leather.
“I can’t stand it, Emilia.”
Hardius, who whispered desperately, also released Emilia. The man's bare face slowly began to approach.
Just before their lips touched, Emilia tightly closed her eyes. With the pitch-black darkness, everything in the world began to disappear. The tumultuous noise, the worries and concerns that burned in her heart, even all the memories of the past few months...
The next moment, their lips finally touched. The man’s lips, which had been slowly covering her, moved away too quickly, regrettably. As if she had just tasted a drop of oasis in the desert, Emilia’s entire body was drenched in thirst.
The moment Emilia let out the breath she had been holding, their lips met again as if they had been waiting. Saliva flowed along the contact surface, and the sticky friction left a long aftertaste. He hesitated as if he should put his tongue in or not, then suddenly let out a hot breath and moved away again.
Hardius took a deep breath as if trying to regain some self-control. But in the end, he failed. A final growl echoed through the man’s throat, and with a strong force, her body was completely crushed against the wall.
He inserted his tongue in one go and moved violently as if he was trying to swallow everything about her. Like a vicious beast tearing apart its prey, he explored the woman, trembling like an aspen tree, that sweet cave without hesitation.
Emilia's hand, which had been instinctively pushing away, suddenly lost its strength.
Sigh.
The groan-like exclamation was clearly a cry. It was surrender and surrender. Emilia willingly opened her body towards him, shuddering with pure pleasure.
It was also a stunning coincidence and a cruel twist of fate for Bianca.
Bianca, who had come to town with her coachman to fix a broken carriage wheel and the empty alley where the dancers had ebbed away like the tide, eventually ended up seeing the two of them.
That boy who was alone, embracing all kinds of misery on the pure white snow field... That child who she believed was her destiny... Has now become a man and is madly lusting after his woman.
“Can you keep walking?”
“Yes, thanks to this. Thank you.”
Emilia lifted her ankle, which was tightly bound with a bandage.
“If it’s hard, just tell me. It’s nothing to carry just one of you.”
He spoke bluntly and walked away. Emilia followed. As she limped along, leaning on the strong man’s arm, shr suddenly remembered the day when the heavy rain poured down. Hot blood rushed to her lower abdomen, and she felt dizzy again.
To distract herself, Emilia deliberately looked elsewhere to distract herself. Fortunately, she could hear faint music from afar. Thanks to the cheerful melody of the accordion and fiddle, Emilia was able to temporarily escape from the man’s scent that kept coming in and the firm muscles that were barely touching her.
But the peace did not last long.
“Over there! Let’s go!”
On the other side, several young women were running frantically toward them.
If Emilia hadn't turned around so quickly, if Hardius hadn't pulled her towards him, she probably would've collided head-on with one of them.
They narrowly avoided a collision, but faced an even bigger problem. The bodies of the man and woman, who had been trying so hard to avoid, collided head-on, crushing their chests.
Emilia took a deep breath. It took her a long time to be able to exhale again.
Fortunately, Hardius didn't seem to be very conscious of it. Unlike her, who constantly felt dizzy, he simply stopped walking for a moment and looked around as if assessing something.
While he was thinking about something, he suddenly turned toward an alley. He must have thought that a quiet alley would be better than a street crowded with people, even if it was a little further away.
It was a relief to her to know that, unlike herself, he was a person who became calmer in the face of a crisis.
“Just now...”
As they entered a quiet street, Emilia spoke softly. She had chosen conversation as another way to distract herself.
“I saw Moriah’s house. And the fence.”
“...”
She continued talking to herself, paying no attention to his unanswered question.
“When I look at it, I feel both funny and sad... My mind becomes very complicated. I used to think that I knew what kind of person the master was better than anyone else, but now I really don’t know.”
Hardius remained silent, but from the slightly slower pace, she could tell he was waiting for her to say more.
“You are the most indifferent and cold-hearted person I know. But sometimes, it feels the opposite. You seem so mature that it’s hard to believe you’re the same age, but at other times, you seem more childish than crazy.”
“Does that mean you’re fickle?”
Emilia shook her head.
“At first, I thought it was a whim, but it wasn’t like that at all. It was...”
Emilia, who was limping, stopped walking for a moment and rolled her eyes, thinking deeply about something.
“...A kaleidoscope, perhaps?”
"Kaleidoscope?"
“I mean, that small, magical container that the magician showed me earlier. If you look from the outside, it’s just a few marbles inside... but if you turn the container just a little bit, it looks completely different. It’s just like that with you, Master. It’s unpredictable.”
“Well, I’m not sure, but I think there’s one thing similar.”
Emilia's eyes turned back to Hardius. He was smiling bitterly.
“I’m trapped. Like one of those little marbles that can’t get out of that tight little box. If I’ve confused you, that’s probably why.”
You are free, but I am not free yet.
Emilia felt her heart grow impatient as his cold and dark gaze came back to her.
Suddenly, the mask covering her face felt very suffocating.
Charlotte isn't the only one who really needs a mask. There are too many barriers between them, and Emilia Bern is still someone who must be hidden from Hardius.
Of course, Emilia was not the least bit dissatisfied with that fact. Even when she had hated Hardius Meyer the most, she had never once been dissatisfied with the fact that his world would never accept her.
When Duchess Meyer came to hear about the issue of the engagement agreement, didn't she feel a sense of relief and even gratitude?
Before their relationship was revealed, Hardius had to be freed first.
Although she didn't know exactly what 'freedom' meant or what he planned to do, Emilia felt that only by getting out from under her mother's shadow would he be able to breathe.
“I... don’t want to rush you, my lord.”
Emilia whispered desperately.
She wasn't sure how deep her feelings for Hardy Meyer could go, or if she could love him enough to push herself on an adventure, but one thing was certain.
Now is not the time to take such a risky risk. They need time.
“I can wait. Until you are free. I can hide as long as you want. So...”
That was when.
“Get out of the way! Get out of the way!”
The faint music began to grow louder and louder, almost ear-splitting, along with someone's shout. Emilia unconsciously turned her head, and so did Hardius.
People were rushing in from the entrance of the alley they had passed. The first thing they saw was musicians playing the accordion and the fiddle. Then came hundreds of people jumping up and down, arm in arm.
The identity of the crowd that suddenly rushed into the quiet alley like a wave was none other than a masquerade parade.
Fuck.
Hardius swallowed a curse and strengthened the arm that supported Emilia.
His sharp eyes began to consider whether it would be more effective to run with the woman in his arms or to avoid the crowd. The decision was made in a matter of seconds.
“This way.”
Hardius pushed Emilia against the wall with a careful but quick hand. He then covered her with his body, trying to protect her from the tidal wave of people that had surged in.
But the line of dancers continued on endlessly, and it became increasingly difficult to avoid them.
He looked around again and found a hollow in the stone wall and hurriedly walked through it. The space was too small for the two of them, but at least she could avoid the disaster of having her feet stepped on by people.
Hardius covered her again, leaning her against the wall. The music and all the noise from the dancers were deafening, but the man's senses were completely focused on the woman in his arms.
Emilia was still small, still slender, still beautiful, and still trying to continue the conversation with a serious look in her eyes.
“I don’t know exactly what my feelings are towards you, Master...”
“...”
“As I said before, I have no intention of meeting another man.”
Hardius looked down at Emilia, who was chirping like a bird. Because of his intense gaze, Emilia thought he was concentrating on her words, but in reality, his mind was going blank.
“So, you shouldn’t rush things. I’m much more stable now. That means you don’t have to be anxious about me. For the time being, I plan to focus solely on taking care of my mother and younger siblings. We have plenty of time. Not all women in the world risk their lives for love or marriage. In fact, even the president of ‘Latang’, where I work...”
"Stop."
Hardius suddenly interrupted.
“I know what you're trying to say.”
Something like desperation behind the hard voice froze Emilia.
Her gaze, which had been fixed on the man's Adam's apple between the collar of his pure white shirt, slowly moved upward. The moment their eyes met, Emilia was able to realize it.
She was fooled again by that man's calm demeanor.
All that was seething in his pupils, which had turned a dark shade of gray, was passion.
The shock hit her head, and a strange heat rose from deep within her stomach. Her body was tightly pressed against the people, avoiding them, and the memories of that terribly erotic night were instantly revived.
“Yeah, it’s not you who’s in a hurry.”
He breathed hot breath into her ear and stroked her chin with his fingertips.
“It’s always been me. It’s always been that way.”
The man's thumb ran up her chin and touched her lips. Emilia stood there, unable to breathe, holding on with all her might.
The exciting music and energetic dancing kept bringing back forgotten memories.
They did it on the beach, in Elver, and at the ball in Luen.
The memory of dancing together made her breath quicken and her head spin. Feeling the cold stone wall behind her and the hot man in front of her, Emilia tried to calm her heart. However, her body, which was close to his body, the fire that started there, heated her blood and pushed her to her limit.
“A childish me who can’t control my impulses.”
He muttered as if chewing, and pressed her lower lip with his fingertips to forcefully open the inside. The moist mucous membrane was breathtakingly alluring, like a flower that attracts bees.
“I am the problem.”
He, who seemed about to press his lips against hers at any moment, paused for a moment and took off his mask. Emilia looked up at the black hair flowing softly along the pitch-black leather.
“I can’t stand it, Emilia.”
Hardius, who whispered desperately, also released Emilia. The man's bare face slowly began to approach.
Just before their lips touched, Emilia tightly closed her eyes. With the pitch-black darkness, everything in the world began to disappear. The tumultuous noise, the worries and concerns that burned in her heart, even all the memories of the past few months...
The next moment, their lips finally touched. The man’s lips, which had been slowly covering her, moved away too quickly, regrettably. As if she had just tasted a drop of oasis in the desert, Emilia’s entire body was drenched in thirst.
The moment Emilia let out the breath she had been holding, their lips met again as if they had been waiting. Saliva flowed along the contact surface, and the sticky friction left a long aftertaste. He hesitated as if he should put his tongue in or not, then suddenly let out a hot breath and moved away again.
Hardius took a deep breath as if trying to regain some self-control. But in the end, he failed. A final growl echoed through the man’s throat, and with a strong force, her body was completely crushed against the wall.
He inserted his tongue in one go and moved violently as if he was trying to swallow everything about her. Like a vicious beast tearing apart its prey, he explored the woman, trembling like an aspen tree, that sweet cave without hesitation.
Emilia's hand, which had been instinctively pushing away, suddenly lost its strength.
Sigh.
The groan-like exclamation was clearly a cry. It was surrender and surrender. Emilia willingly opened her body towards him, shuddering with pure pleasure.
It was also a stunning coincidence and a cruel twist of fate for Bianca.
Bianca, who had come to town with her coachman to fix a broken carriage wheel and the empty alley where the dancers had ebbed away like the tide, eventually ended up seeing the two of them.
That boy who was alone, embracing all kinds of misery on the pure white snow field... That child who she believed was her destiny... Has now become a man and is madly lusting after his woman.
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