You! Don’t Press that Button! - Chap 110
As Asmil, who had been watching my flustered state with amused eyes, raised his upper body and sat cross-legged, the blanket slipped down to reveal his smooth shoulders and chest.
“Ah, but you were definitely wearing clothes earlier…”
“Curious why I took them off?”
His red eyes curved beautifully, clearly showing the mischievous intentions behind them. Quickly shaking my head at the thought that I absolutely shouldn’t know, I noticed his voice still sounded tired and deep.
With the blanket loosely draped around him, Asmil looked like one of those gods from ancient Greek mythology. Is it because he’s handsome? He fits the image surprisingly well. As my gaze was inadvertently drawn to him, Karhan’s shoulder subtly blocked my view.
Watching this scene, Asmil let out a laugh and said:
“I could stay like this, but that would make Seol sad.”
“Why would I be?”
“Don’t you remember?”
Asmil asked, raising an eyebrow cockily. His confident behavior suggested he truly believed I would be sad. Feeling inexplicably guilty, I lifted my gaze upward and thought carefully.
Something intimate? Did I promise something like that?
While furrowing my brows and getting lost in the ornate patterns on the ceiling, I recalled our conversation at Asmil’s hideout.
‘It’s something very intimate.’
‘I’ll tell you later.’
‘I don’t feel like talking about it right now.’
Ah, right! He did say that. Seriously, how can someone speak in such a deliberately misleading way? If this is a talent, it’s certainly a questionable one.
Finally understanding the situation, I let out a small sigh and tapped Karhan’s shoulder. His silver-gray eyes, filled with a cold light, turned toward me.
“Hic!”
Ah, hiccups.
The situation was so tense that a hiccup escaped. Hic-hic, as my body jerked and I tried to swallow my breath, Karhan’s eyes softened slightly. My head swayed back and forth under his gentle touch as he stroked it, as if soothing my startled heart.
“I’m not angry with you. Don’t be afraid.”
“Mm-hmm.”
His affectionate tone settled on the bridge of my nose. Realizing this was the moment to explain, as his anger had subsided slightly, I carefully opened my lips.
“About that intimate thing, when I went to his hideout, Asmil said he had something to ask of me. I think that’s what he’s talking about.”
“You slept together?”
“S-slept?! Well, yes, we did sleep but… I mean… he looked really tired so I just lay down with him…”
Even as I made excuses, I felt strange about it myself and lowered my head. Though I knew “sleeping together” didn’t mean that kind of sleeping, it was still terribly embarrassing.
“I’m sorry. But really, nothing happened…”
“I know.”
A gentle smile spread across Karhan’s face as he said this. Only then did I realize that since he knew everything that happened in the mansion, I didn’t actually need to explain. He was teasing me! Though I pouted, I couldn’t help feeling relieved.
Karhan slowly lowered his head and pressed his lips against my neck. His touch was gentle yet full of desire, as if wanting to leave a mark, and I reached out to grab his shoulders.
Chu, a light sound emerged as he lifted his head. I inwardly sighed as his gaze gradually moved away.
“You two seem close.”
“Why are you here?”
“I have no business with you. I need to talk to Seol alone.”
Asmil spoke deliberately provocatively, like someone trying to get under Karhan’s skin. Though he usually acted this way, there was a strange sincerity to it now. While before it seemed like he did it for fun, now he looked like someone desperate to actually mock Karhan.
Even as Karhan glared at him with obvious displeasure, Asmil just smirked and stayed silent. Feeling I needed to intervene between the two’s tense atmosphere, I stepped between them. I gently pulled on Karhan’s arm.
“Karhan. Let me talk with him.”
“I can’t leave you alone.”
“It’s okay. You confirmed nothing happened, right?”
After my careful persuasion, the stubbornly standing Karhan slowly lowered his head. Perhaps because of this, a gloomy light filled his silver-gray eyes.
I reached up to brush back a strand of his navy hair that had fallen forward as I spoke.
“It’s fine. You’ll come running if anything happens, right?”
As I smiled with upturned lips, Karhan’s tightly set mouth softened. When I patted his shoulders as if soothing a child, he lifted his head and gave a slight nod.
“…Alright.”
My eyes automatically closed as his large hand lightly brushed my cheek. After kneading my cheek softly, he slowly pulled away. As his gaze, which had been fixed on me, swept past Asmil, I felt a chill as cold as falling snow.
Only after Karhan left the room did the atmosphere lighten. It felt like all energy had been drained after a storm passed. I flopped down onto the chair in the middle with wobbly legs, and Asmil approached with a smile and sat across from me. Just like at Lairas, he created a transparent barrier around us and asked:
“Lover?”
I answered with a slow nod. Asmil took a comfortable position as if in his own home, wearing a languid smile. He crossed his long legs and swung his foot back and forth.
“I had a good sleep after so long.”
Ah. Now that I think about it, he did look really tired before falling asleep. Is he okay now? I opened my eyes wide and examined Asmil’s condition. His sleep-drunk voice had disappeared, and his face looked refreshed.
“…Having trouble sleeping lately?”
When I asked with a hint of concern, wondering if he had insomnia, Asmil gently curved his eyes.
“After you guys left, I lost something and it’s been bothering me.”
“Lost something?”
“Yeah. I told it to go cool off, but it’s not coming back.”
Asmil frowned, looking uncharacteristically troubled. But can a lost item go cool off? Is it even really an object? As if noticing my confusion, Asmil spoke again.
“If you find my lost item, I’ll give you whatever you want.”
His red eyes gleamed. Though I knew there must be some hidden agenda, I had no choice but to ask.
“What is this thing…?”
At my careful question, Asmil replied without losing his smile:
“Its name is Asdion. Bring him to me.”
Asdion? My eyes widened so much they could have popped out. Wait, lost item?! That’s not a lost item, that’s more like a runaway teenager! But didn’t he absolutely adore Asmil? He never seemed like he’d leave his side…
Seeing my shocked expression, Asmil raised his eyebrows and made a troubled face. His downturned lips revealed his feelings.
“Wouldn’t it be faster if you used your Asmil powers instead of me?”
It seemed much easier to use Asmil’s strange magic than rely on me, who only had the ability to transform. I asked with crooked eyebrows, but Asmil shrugged as if he’d heard something absurd.
“Why should I have to do that?”
But you’re the one who asked me to find him… I narrowed my eyes at Asmil. Noticing my mixed feelings of dissatisfaction, he raised one corner of his mouth and said:
“I have my pride as a master.”
“If it’s urgent, isn’t this not the time for pride…?”
When I carefully asked, Asmil completely ignored me. What’s with that damn pride of his that makes him so stubborn? From my perspective, he seems like he should be actively searching himself. As I kept glancing at him sideways, Asmil, who had been pouting, opened his mouth.
“He seems to have a magic stone.”
“Magic stone?”
“Yeah. It varies depending on the stone, but usually they twist the flow of mana, making magic useless.”
Why the hell did they make something like that? He continued speaking as if lamenting his situation.
If Asmil finds it difficult, doesn’t that mean my chances are even slimmer? A warning light flashed in my head saying the probability would be less than 1%.
But he seemed to want nothing else from me. I turned down the corners of my lips and made a slightly pitiful face.
I’ll need to actively search for Asdion after spending these three days at Atlena. Since Karhan is a duke, we should be able to thoroughly investigate everywhere. I can’t be disappointed before even starting, so I carefully made plans and gave a slight nod.
Asmil, who was practically lying down in the chair, raised both arms and stretched. After making a satisfying cracking sound, he slumped back down. His brightly shining red eyes blinked slowly before closing completely.
“…Is he sleeping?”
What’s this? Why is he sleeping here? Even when I raised my hand and waved it over his closed eyelids, he seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep and didn’t even twitch an eyebrow. He was sleeping so peacefully, like it was his own home, without moving an inch.
“This is my room.”
Though I voiced my opinion with unconcealed bewilderment, he still didn’t move. I opened my eyes wide and carefully studied Asmil’s face.
Could this be a heaven-sent opportunity for revenge? Come to think of it, this guy did a lot of bad things to me. Kidnapping me, making me dance, trying to feed me weird bugs…
A mischievous thought slowly crept up from deep inside my mind. I licked my dry lips once and scanned the surroundings. Conveniently, there was an ink bottle and pen stuck in it on the bedside table.
I tiptoed carefully so as not to wake Asmil, lifted the pen, and came back to slowly bring the ink-covered pen toward his peacefully sleeping face. Maybe because I knew I was doing something bad, my hand trembled.
Gulp. The sound of swallowing echoed loudly in the quiet room. Carefully… doodle…
Just as the pen tip was about to touch Asmil’s bridge of nose, his red eyes snapped open fiercely.
“Eek!”
I jumped in surprise, my body jerking as I squeezed my eyes shut. Asmil reached out to grab my wrist and pushed me down to the floor. Just before the back of my head could hit the floor, fortunately, his hand cushioned it.
“Ugh…”
As I cautiously opened my tightly shut eyes, I saw Asmil pinning me down. He looked at the pen in my gripped wrist, tilted his head, and smiled.
“What were you planning to do with this?”
“N-nothing at all…”
My throat went completely dry. As I turned my gaze away and rounded my lips pretending to whistle, Asmil’s body shook with laughter. His narrowed eyes seemed to ask “Really?” but I deliberately avoided meeting his gaze.
His large hand that had been pressing down my wrist sensually rubbed the soft flesh inside before applying strong pressure.
“I’ll have to add one more condition.”
“To what?”
His devious lips curved upward.
“Don’t erase it.”
What…?
