CH 219

Theon's eyes trembled weakly, capturing Ayla.

"Now that the disrupters are gone, should we finish what we were doing?"

"?"

Ayla blinked her big eyes towards him, who gave her a sinister gaze, as if she didn't know anything.

Seeing that, a laugh burst out from between Theon's lips.

"I will get going now. It's been quite some time."

"You're going like this?"

"Hm…"

Smack.

After hesitating for a while, Ayla's lips lightly touched Theon's cheek and then separated.

Without giving him a chance to react, Ayla, who was blushing, ran away at a quick pace.

"Ahh. I'll let you go today because you're cute."

His voice, filled with regret, echoed in the empty office.

Caressing his own cheek, the corner of Theon's lips rose slightly.

***

Ayla, who was going up the stairs, saw a familiar back.

The disheveled silver hair was fluttering in the wind, giving off a brilliant glow.

Ayla's footsteps, as she was silently approaching Eden's back, stopped in an instant.

Eden's steps as he walked towards Kyle, who was standing in front of him, also came to a halt.

‘Ugh. He put up with him for ten years.'

Ayla, who was watching the two of them, hid behind a pillar.

If she had moved a little more without noticing Kyle, her life might have been in jeopardy like before.

As she breathed quietly, she could hear the two men talking like they were on thin ice.

"I heard you're with Theon?"

"The conditions suggested by His Highness were pretty good."

"It's a little disappointing. I was expecting you to come back."

"Even a dog recognizes its owner."

"Owner… You should end your rebellion and come back. I don't like the new guys."

"I guess the Grand Duke's residence will reek of blood."

"Thanks to you."

A fishy smile appeared on Eden's face at Kyle's indifferent reaction.

Eden, who suddenly went in front of Kyle, put his hand on his shoulder.

"I am not coming back. You shouldn't have provoked me."

Eden whispered in a low voice.

He tapped Kyle on the shoulder a couple of times and continued walking.

"Arrogant."

Seeing Eden's back as he moved away, Kyle snorted as if it was ridiculous.

Then, the moment he was about to turn around and get out of there,

Rustle.

Kyle's gaze sharpened at the unfamiliar sound coming from behind the pillar.

His cold eyes stared at the source of the sound.

The corners of Kyle's lips curled up as he discovered the skirt that was peeking from the side of the large pillar.

Tap, tap.

It felt like her heart was about to explode at the sound of the shoes approaching little by little.

Putting her hands together, Ayla grabbed her chest, which was beating loudly.

When the regular sound of footsteps stopped right in front of her, Ayla's shoulders shook slightly.

As Ayla slowly raised her head, Kyle's cold appearance entered her field of view.

"I… I apologize. I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

Ayla's blue eyes looking at Kyle shook incessantly.

Ayla crouched her body at Kyle's figure, who hesitated as if he had something to say.

Her appearance resembled that of an herbivore that came across a predator.

A relatively weak person who hides in a corner and rolls their pitiful eyes for fear of being harmed.

Throb.

He felt a heavy pain on the side of his chest.

He kept getting an unknown feeling coming from the person he thought had nothing to do with him.

What was it? Even he couldn't understand his heart.

Why does he keep thinking of Zenia when he looks at this child? Why does he keep getting angry?

The heavy silence surrounding the two of them was not intended to be easily broken.

How much longer would they be like this?

A name that shouldn't have been mentioned flowed out from between Kyle's confused lips.

"Zenia."

He saw the figure of the one he loved in the person he hated enough that he thought he could kill right away.

Zenia's clear eyes overlapped with Ayla's violently shaking blue eyes.

It seemed that Zenia's confident voice could be heard on top of Ayla's trembling voice.

The terrified and crouching child kept worrying.

Kyle frowned as he remembered the day when he was choking the weak Ayla.

The day he lost his reason at the voice of Ayla begging for her life.

In a way, it was an overreaction.

Did he really have to show his worst to this child who couldn't even make eye contact and was engulfed in fear?

He wondered why he had driven her into a corner over such a trivial matter.

Kyle, who had stretched out a hand over Ayla's trembling shoulder, shook his head and stopped.

‘What the hell am I thinking?'

A sad smile appeared on Kyle's lips.

Turning around without saying a word, he quickly disappeared.

***