"I… I did it," I whispered, barely believing the words myself.
For a moment, I could only stare at Bruno.
He was alive.
Actually alive.
Without thinking, I rushed to his side and helped him sit up.
"Bruno! Are you okay? Do you feel better now?" I asked quickly, my voice shaking with relief.
He coughed several times, his body trembling before he finally managed to steady his breathing.
Then he slowly lifted his head and looked around.
The inn was in ruins.
Broken wood.
Cracked walls.
Shattered furniture.
The aftermath of a battle that looked like hell itself had passed through it.
Bruno frowned in confusion.
"What happened?" he asked weakly.
"The last thing I remember was eating dinner and then…"
His eyes widened as he looked around again.
"…this."
"You were enchanted," Dylan said coldly.
Bruno turned to him.
"Luckily, Clover managed to save you before it was too late," Dylan added.
Bruno's eyes shifted to me.
For a second, he looked stunned.
Then, without warning, he stood up too quickly and lowered his head.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I caused all of this trouble."
"It's not your fau—"
"We're leaving immediately."
Dylan's sharp voice cut right through my words.
I froze.
Then I forced a smile I didn't feel.
Of course.
Why was I even surprised anymore?
Inside my head, I was already screaming.
I really hate him.
By the time we left, the sky was beginning to lighten.
It was already five in the morning.
Which meant the battle had lasted far longer than I'd realized.
And just like that, we continued the journey on foot.
For three whole days.
We walked.
Rested.
Slept in the woods.
Then walked again.
By the fourth day, we finally arrived in a town.
The village market was crowded and noisy, full of merchants shouting over one another, children running between stalls, and the smell of spices, roasted meat, and dust hanging thick in the air.
We were exhausted.
No—I was exhausted.
Because the two inhuman creatures in front of me looked like they could walk another thousand miles without blinking.
I glared at Dylan's back.
If they both had magic, then why in the world couldn't they just teleport us instead of making me suffer like this?
"We need a place to clean up," Dylan said.
For once in my life…
I agreed with him.
"Right away, sir," Bruno said before quickly disappearing into the crowd.
I folded my arms and looked at Dylan in annoyance.
Honestly, his face was such a waste.
A man could be that beautiful and still have the personality of a cursed stone.
I wondered what kind of woman would willingly choose someone like him.
Then I noticed several girls nearby stealing glances at him, whispering to each other, blushing shamelessly.
I blinked.
Oh.
So apparently…
there were plenty of foolish women in the world.
My gaze shifted back to Dylan.
He stood there quietly, calm as ever, as if nothing could ever disturb him.
Anyone seeing him right now would never believe that only days ago he had looked like a monster more terrifying than the demons themselves.
Black wings.
Black eyes.
That terrifying power.
Just remembering it made a chill run down my spine.
What was he?
Whatever he was…
Every instinct in me screamed the same thing.
Stay away from him.
I quickly looked away before he caught me staring and somehow found a way to make it insufferable.
A few minutes later, Bruno returned and leaned in to whisper something into Dylan's ear.
From the look on Dylan's face, I guessed he had found us a place to stay.
"We'll rest here tonight," Dylan said. "By tomorrow, we'll reach our destination."
With that, the three of us followed Bruno through a narrow road branching away from the market.
The moment I entered the room, I collapsed onto the bed.
Finally.
A real bed.
After three days of sleeping in the forest with tree roots and stones pretending to be pillows, I felt like crying.
I rolled over with a sigh of relief—
Then froze.
Dylan was removing his robe.
I shot upright so fast I nearly got dizzy.
"What are you doing?!" I shouted.
He turned.
Bare-chested.
My eyes widened.
Immediately, I slapped both hands over my face.
"You pervert!" I yelled. "What exactly do you think you're doing?!"
He scoffed.
"Stop pretending to be innocent."
"Wh—what?! Why would I be pretending?!" I sputtered. "You're in my room!"
"This is our room," he said flatly.
I slowly lowered my hands.
"Huh?"
"How can a man and a woman share a room?" I demanded.
His gaze moved over me lazily.
Then he asked in the most offensive tone possible—
"What do you have?"
I blinked.
"What?"
Then I followed his eyes.
Straight to my chest.
My face burned so fast I thought I might burst into flames.
Instinctively, I crossed my arms over myself.
"You—!"
I stood up from the bed, ready to attack him.
But the moment I took a step, my foot caught on the edge of the blanket.
My balance disappeared.
My eyes widened in horror.
No.
No, no, no—
I was falling.
Just before I hit the floor, Dylan grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him.
But somehow…
That only made it worse.
Instead of falling to the ground—
I fell straight on top of him.
We crashed onto the bed together.
My breath caught.
My palms were pressed flat against his bare chest.
Warm.
Firm.
Muscular.
I slowly lifted my face.
And my eyes met his.
He was staring at me with that unreadable, annoyingly calm expression.
For a second, neither of us moved.
Then his lips curved ever so slightly.
"Your fantasy has finally come true," he murmured. "Enjoy it. This might be your one and only chance."
My face burned hotter.
I scrambled off him immediately.
"It's not like I asked you to save me!" I snapped.
And that seemed to get his attention.
Because for once, the teasing look in his eyes disappeared.
I folded my arms tightly.
"Back at the inn…" I said, unable to stop myself.
My voice came out sharper than I intended.
"You didn't save me first."
Silence.
I swallowed.
Why did that still hurt?
Why did I even care?
I forced a bitter laugh.
"And now suddenly you save me? What, is that your way of saying you wanted an excuse to touch me?"
The words came out before I could stop them.
He didn't answer.
Not a single word.
I looked away first.
"I'm using the bathroom," I muttered, then rushed off before I could embarrass myself even more.
Thirty minutes later, I stepped out of the bathroom with a white towel wrapped tightly around my chest.
Dylan was waiting outside.
Without looking at me, he pointed to a neatly folded nightgown on the table.
"Change into that," he said. "Bruno brought it."
Then he walked into the bathroom.
I stared at the gown for a second.
Bruno had brought it?
That was… unexpectedly thoughtful.
I changed quickly and climbed into bed.
By the time Dylan came out again, he was dressed in a loose black robe.
I immediately shut my eyes and pretended to be asleep.
There was no way I was about to have a normal conversation while sharing a room with a man.
Especially him.
I had already spread a blanket on the floor for him.
So if he had any sense at all, he would sleep there and stay far away from me.
For a few seconds, the room was silent.
Then—
Footsteps.
My whole body tensed.
He was walking closer.
Why was he walking closer?
I already prepared the blanket for him!
Don't tell me—
My heart started pounding wildly.
No way.
No actual way.
The footsteps stopped.
Right in front of me.
I couldn't take it anymore.
My eyes flew open.
And there he was.
Standing over me.
Before I could even speak, he leaned down.
Closer.
Closer.
Closer.
My breath caught in my throat.
My entire mind went blank.
His face was so close now that I could feel the warmth of his breath against my skin.
My heart nearly exploded.
Am I really about to have my first kiss…?
With him?!
I stared at his lips, completely frozen.
And then—