Chapter 71: Chapter 71. Testing And Trial, Part XII
Chapter 71. Testing And Trial, Part XII
Translator: Khan
Editor Group: Liber Reverie
He shrugged his shoulders like the ti when he had the fierce eyes of a prey-seeking predator.
“... so?”
“Will you mind if I stay with you for a mont? In this crowd being alone is dangerous, isn’t it?”
“... well, I don’t think it’s dangerous.”
Rather, his presence seed more dangerous. Despite Aria’s reply, which was close to rejection, Asher sat in front of her, regardless. Nothing was laid on the ground, but he didn’t care if the dust was thick. Aria swallowed a false smile because he acted at will without asking for permission.
“No, it’s dangerous.”
He answered as if there was danger ahead. If there wasn’t, he would make it. Aria, who swept away her goosebumps after a mont of horror, tried hard to ignore him. She wished that his party would co back soon, and he would disappear together with them.
“Co to think of it... your clothes are pretty simple.”
His eyes swept through Aria’s body. It seed that it was a totally different outfit than before. It was no wonder that she had been wearing a dress at the first eting, which Mielle had been given as a gift by Oscar.
Aria didn’t feel the value of answering back. If he had had an idea, he wouldn’t have asked her that question. It was ridiculous to dress up colorfully in such a crowded place.
“I’m sure you’ll get a lot of presents... I guess you didn’t get a nice present that you like.”
There was a aning in the man’s words. It was hard to figure out what he ant since they were thickly covered, but it didn’t sound like a thoughtless, spontaneous exhortation. Aria narrowed her eyes. It was a look of doubt.
“... what are you talking about?”
“It doesn’t an much. It simply ans that you are beautiful, and n around you won’t leave you.”
‘Is it true? Why do I keep worrying?’ She should just ignore it, but after a few words, she kept answering. Again this ti, as he was about to answer sothing, she soon swallowed her words. A bit of silence followed.
In the anti, the person who sang on the stage changed from an old man to a young man, and the fast-paced, upbeat song made a noise. The man, who turned around and saw it, suddenly grabbed Aria by the hand, muttering, ‘It’s faster than I thought.’
“What’s this...?!”
Just as she was about to shout, firecrackers exploded all over the place, and people who were surprised by the flas that exploded here and there ran around to escape from the square.
Aria, too, got up from her seat in surprise. Before realizing that the sound of firecrackers was just loud but not hurtful, her body was stiffened, feeling fear by the sudden situation.
“Miss!”
She could hear a voice nearby as if it was calling her. ‘What the hell am I supposed to do...!’
“This way!”
As she was in a panic, her hand was pulled by a very strong force. In the midst of her hectic mind, Aria was forced to be led by her captured hand. It felt as if it were the only touch that would save her.
Out of the square, far away, past the waves of people, she ran and ran until she was out of breath. She fled from people passing by like a flash as if she had run so fast in her life.
She thought that she was fortunate to have co in comfortable shoes, not pointed ones. It was when she entered a quiet alley that she had never been in before when she had been a commoner. Then Aria realized that the man who held her hand was not a knight, nor Jessie, but a beast.
“Haah, hah...”
Unlike Aria, who was breathing heavily, Asher was calm as if nothing had happened. He bent his upper body to support Aria’s body, which was panting.
“Are you all right?”
“... haah, haah... No.”
As if it weren’t okay for anyone to see, he asked Aria’s condition and patted her on the back. He even wiped it with his sleeve when he saw a drop of sweat coming from her forehead past the side of her face to the end of her chin.
“I don’t have a hand towel, so forgive for my rudeness.”
‘What’s new?’ He’d already done so many rude things. The degree of the rudeness of wiping the sweat off with his sleeve was nothing but a trifling matter that could not be considered impolite. Only a long ti later did Aria escape from his arms and ask, looking around.
“Where the hell are we?”
“Well, sowhere in the capital.”
“It’s a place I don’t rember... Ugh, isn’t that a pretty good distance from the center?”
“I’m afraid so.”
Not a carriage passed, let alone a shadow of a man. ‘I didn’t move on sothing, but how did I get this far?’
Suddenly she felt dizzy, and her eyes went black. She couldn’t figure out how to get back. Now all this was in an unpredictable situation, sothing that she had never experienced before.
Unlike the worried Aria, Asher did not respond much. She asked him if he knew how to get back, but the answer was no.
“What the hell happened?”
When she asked him while wrapping her head, all she could hear was that he didn’t know. It was worth it because they ran away in a hurry. Aria soon decided to stop asking him sothing. It was nothing but a waste of energy.
“Let’s go back now.”
“How?”
“Wouldn’t it co out of sowhere if we walked around with no definite objective in view?”
“What if we go to a more remote place?”
“Then I can’t help it.”
It was only natural to walk until they found a road, but there was one concern. It was to see if her weak legs could stand. There was already a slight pain in her feet. Before long, it was clear that sothing bad was going to happen to her ankles.
‘Will they really be all right?’
As soon as he saw Aria’s gaze on her leg, he looked down for a mont. He had a thought and asked her as if he had found the answer.
“Do you have any pain in your legs?”
“...”
Though she had been a commoner in the past, she was now a daughter of a noble, so shouldn’t it be natural? She only took a short walk through the garden. Walking for a long ti gave her unbearable pain even though she might be used to the high-heeled shoes that overworked her feet.
“Would you like to carry you on my back?”
“... yeah?”
“If you have trouble walking, I can’t help it.”
“No!”
‘How can I do such a disgraceful act?’ Aria tried hard to pretend that she was okay and took the lead and stepped out of the way. As she walked briskly without knowing where she was going, Asher burst out laughing behind her.
“Let’s go together!”
“...”
‘Does he feel alright in this situation?’ Without knowing where she was going right now, she had no idea what she was going to do, and Asher ca near her and adjusted his speed to walk with her.
“Are you sure you don’t want to carry you on my back?”
“Sure.”
“If your leg hurts, please let know. It’s a street that no one’s in anyway.”
“It won’t happen.”
Aria did not give her eyes to Asher, vowing that she would never be carried on his back even if her leg was broken or even if she died. Asher continued to smile at her determined appearance.
“I never thought I’d walk alone with you.”
“I’m surprised too because I don’t get to walk together with you like this.”
“Well, sotis a new eting is important, isn’t it?”
“I agree, but that’s only when I et soone who can help.”
“I think you are soone who can help .”
“You think the opposite of .”
Aria was treating Asher coldly because she had a long life as a wicked woman. Still, he kept talking and expressing favors, apparently not hurt at all.
‘Is he a man without a grain of self-respect?’
She was surprised at the image that was completely different from the one she had t for the first ti, but she tried hard to keep herself calm. The image hidden inside her would certainly be different from what it was now. There was sothing he wanted, and he just stepped back to get it. She stiffened her back, thinking that she should not be easily deceived by what he would say.
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