Chapter 157: Secret Agreement
Inside the quiet garden, two figures stood in a small clearing, tucked away from the colorful flowers and tall trees.
One of them was checking a sharp dagger calmly, looking at the person who stood in front of her with a curved smile. On the other hand, the other person just stood there sweating nervously.
’Why am I even feeling afraid of her? Even though I felt no fear in front of the assassins, did she use some kind of curse on me? No, I can’t sense any magic at all...’
Azrael looked at his notorious fiancée, who was definitely planning something fishy.
"Can you keep that dagger away and tell me what you mean by taking responsibility for my life? Are you seriously planning to marry me?"
"Don’t tell me that you secretly have a crush on me?"
Her lips twitched at the mention of the word ’crush’. Her emerald eyes narrowed slightly, showing she felt a little annoyed, but she answered with a voice relatively softer than her harsh expression.
"I don’t hate you..."
Azrael looked at her warily at those strange words. She didn’t hate him? That was the last thing he could ever think of after facing such an immense amount of trouble because of her actions.
"Seriously, are you joking right now? You tried several different methods to kill me. I had almost been expelled from the academy because of your generosity, and my whole life had become a daily routine of facing trouble solely because of you. And now you are telling me you don’t hate me?.."
He paused, his eyes widening.
"Don’t tell me you are a sadistic person who feels pleasure by seeing others get into trouble?"
Leviya looked at him as she folded her arms, and the dagger vanished from her hand into thin air. She looked at him with cold eyes, but the curve on her lips still remained firm as she stepped closer to his personal space.
Azrael felt a sudden sense of crisis as she stepped closer. Before he could do anything to retreat, she grasped his hand. Even though her delicate hand was smaller than his, her grip was surprisingly strong. He tried to pull his hand away, but it was of no use. Her other hand raised to hold his chin, forcing it a little down so he had to look right into her eyes.
"You seem to have grown quite a spine. It seems that since I wasn’t able to do anything to you back in the academy by myself, you got bold..."
She tilted her head.
"But, yeah, it is true that I still want to kill you even now..."
Suddenly, the sharp dagger appeared in her hand again. The very same hand which held his chin now pressed the blade against his throat.
"Should I slice it?..."
’Wow, what a nice killer, actually asking me if she should kill me? Should I say yes? Will she really dare to kill me right here in my own house?..’
As he looked at her properly, staring deep into her eyes, there was no expression existing to suggest that she was joking or being playful.
’Damn, is she really serious? Is she really trying to make me beg her not to kill me? F*cking bitch!’
"Can you stop playing games now and get straight to the point? Why did you bring me here?..."
She remained still while looking at him calmly, then pulled her hand away. She threw away the dagger and stepped backward without taking her eyes away from his face.
"I am not interested in such a weak ass like you..."
Azrael nodded without feeling even the slightest bit offended. He already knew that; it wasn’t something new to hear. Leviya looked at him, trying to find any change in his expression, but found none. Then she continued speaking.
"And the second thing is... I already have someone I like."
This time, he couldn’t help but be genuinely surprised. The two-faced girl, Leviya, the famous star of the academy, actually had someone she liked? That was brand new news for Azrael, as he had never heard any rumors that she was even dating someone. But he couldn’t be too sure, as he was not that close to her in the first place. He wasn’t interested in her enough to investigate what she does or who she remains with in her free time.
He nodded calmly. He didn’t feel bad that the person she liked was not him but someone else. It was her life and her choice, so he didn’t get to judge her for it.
"Then what do you want from me?..."
She looked at him with a calm face, but there was a distinct hint of curiosity in her expression since he didn’t ask her anything about the unknown guy she was talking about liking.
"Don’t you want to ask me anything about it?..."
Azrael looked calmly at her, tilting his head as a small smirk tugged on his lips.
"Nah, it is better for me not to know that. Alas, I might start to feel bad for that poor guy."
Leviya’s lips twitched imperceptibly at his sarcastic answer. A genuine smile started to make its way up her face, which she tried hard to suppress as she quickly looked away.
Azrael didn’t tease her about the expression. He just looked at her for a second and asked again.
"You didn’t answer my question. What did you want from me then?..."
She remained silent for a few seconds, considering his question as her expression turned blank.
"What I want is simple... I am planning to leave before we get married... I know Lady Sylvia will surely search for me. But, I will run away from her radar and make sure to hide myself well..."
Azrael’s expression changed as he looked at her, feeling a sudden sense of sympathy after hearing her plan, and he said.
"No, you don’t have to do that. I can talk to my mother about this arrangement. She will surely have to cancel the wedding..."
Leviya’s expression darkened instantly as her eyes turned cold again. She stepped closer to him, meeting his eyes fiercely.
"No, you aren’t going to tell her anything! It is my decision to live my life however I want. I don’t want to live under someone’s protection. I don’t care what she promised to my late mother, I will live my life on my own terms! So you will go along with my plan, understood?!"
Azrael couldn’t help but step back at her cold expression. She was dead serious about her decision, acting as if she had already planned everything out. After sighing heavily, he finally nodded his head involuntarily.
"What about the guy you like? Won’t you two be together?"
Leviya pursed her lips as the coldness in her eyes dimmed, and she stepped back.
"I don’t know... I don’t know if he is going to accept me for how I am. But even if he doesn’t, I will not touch anyone beside him..."
He looked away, suddenly feeling a strange tightness in his chest for some reason, which he quickly tried to ignore. He didn’t know why he was suddenly feeling strange at the thought of her choosing someone else, but he kept his thoughts to himself and nodded.
"Okay... If that is your decision, then I am with you... I will do exactly as you say..."
Without waiting for a reply, he turned around and started to leave the quiet garden. His expression dimmed as he walked, but then he forced a smile and turned his head back one last time.
"Just to make it our official deal, stop sending those pathetic goons after me from now on..."
Leviya nodded with a small, genuine smile.
"Well, maybe I won’t. But I can’t promise..."
After seeing her smile once more at him, he turned back around again and left the garden, leaving any nonessential thoughts behind. He felt like he was missing some crucial part of himself as he kept his steps moving forward.
’Sigh... Her genuine smile is dangerous. Much more dangerous than the fake one. I almost felt a heart attack...’
As Azrael’s figure disappeared completely from the garden, Leviya stood all alone while looking at the flowers. Her face had again returned to being expressionless, the smile long gone, as she stared at the beautiful flowers glowing softly under the moonlight.
Her eyes moistened as a single drop of a tear started to make its way down her face. She wiped it away quickly with her finger, straightened her posture, and walked back inside the mansion.