Chapter 5
The stunned guard stood there with his mouth hanging open.
Lucy was just as surprised.
‘He’s really this blunt and rude?’
Well, it was true that he only treated the heroine kindly and was cold to everyone else.
But seeing it in person made his personality feel even more intense.
‘Still… this situation looks suspicious even to me.’
‘So why is he helping me?’
Knowing how awful the male lead’s personality was only made her more nervous.
Just as Lucy clenched her fists anxiously…
“Hmm.”
A low chuckle came from inside the armor.
Edward slowly tilted his helmet toward the guard.
For a brief moment, the gesture looked strangely innocent despite his massive frame.
“You look young.”
“Y-Yes! I only enlisted recently…”
“But are your ears already blocked at your age?”
“…”
“Poor thing. Shall I open them for you myself?”
As he spoke, Edward casually rested a hand on the sword at his waist.
As if he sincerely meant it.
“Imagine having the Dragon Incarnation personally fix your ears.”
“…”
“You should consider it an honor for your family.”
He even managed to sound incredibly full of himself while saying it.
Shing.
The sharp sword slowly slid out of its sheath.
“Hii!”
The guard hiccupped in fright and stumbled backward.
Lucy stared with her mouth open.
‘I always wondered what the male lead’s terrible personality was good for…’
‘Turns out he uses it to bully other people.’
Go! Beat him!
Not that she needed to cheer.
One ordinary temple guard…
Versus the continent’s only Dragon Incarnation, a duke, the savior of the continent, and countless other titles.
The winner had already been decided.
“I-I’m sorry…”
“As long as you understand.”
“…”
“Go see a doctor immediately and get your hearing checked.”
“…I’ll remember that.”
Keeping his head lowered, the guard hurried away as fast as he could.
“Hm.”
Sounding satisfied, Edward began walking again.
Still quietly resting in his arms, Lucy stole a glance at him.
Then she met those crimson eyes looking down at her.
‘Whoa.’
She immediately looked away, cold sweat running down her back.
If she kept making eye contact, he might decide to personally remove her eyes next.
‘I don’t know why he helped me…’
‘But if I stay quiet, make myself invisible like decoration, then maybe I can escape later…’
“Name.”
“…”
…That was the plan.
“Me?”
“Do I have to ask twice?”
“Lucy! My name is Luciana!”
As soon as she answered, another satisfied hum came from inside the armor.
It sounded like a pleased cat purring.
A cat?
It didn’t suit someone this huge at all.
Yet somehow, that was the first comparison that came to mind.
“Why were you there?”
“Well…”
“…It doesn’t really matter.”
What doesn’t matter?
‘Because you’re going to kill me or hand me over to the temple anyway?’
The unpredictable conversation made Lucy’s head spin.
‘He saved me just now…’
‘But if I upset him, who knows what he’ll do?’
‘He only treats the heroine kindly. Everyone else gets treated like trash.’
Ironically, in the original story he barely even got to meet the real heroine.
He was just bad-tempered from beginning to end.
‘How annoying must my existence be to someone like him?’
One wrong answer…
And she might end up dead.
‘Stay calm. Think of a way out.’
While Lucy desperately tried to hold on to both her fading strength and fading consciousness…
Edward quietly looked down at the little mouse caught in his arms.
In truth…
He was in an extremely good mood.
‘How long has it been since I’ve felt this refreshed?’
His headache had faded.
The violent power inside him had calmed down.
It even made him feel more generous than usual.
Normally, he would have simply punched that guard away.
Instead, he’d graciously offered to “fix” the man’s ears himself before chasing him off.
‘What exactly is this?’
The temple had sounded the emergency bell and sent people searching everywhere for this girl.
She had clearly escaped desperately.
Most importantly…
There was the feeling whenever she touched him.
‘She must be a very important test subject.’
As Edward narrowed his eyes behind his helmet and tightened his arm around Lucy’s waist—
“Hic!”
“…”
The tiny woman let out a startled hiccup and quickly looked up at him.
For just a moment…
He thought her dark eyes sparkled strangely.
“…You’re Duke Edward, aren’t you?”
“…”
“The empire’s one and only Golden Dragon Incarnation, the slayer of monsters, the savior of the continent…”
“And?”
“I’ve come to bring you good news.”
It sounded like something a cult member would say.
But Lucy had thought this through carefully.
‘Make him happy however I can and survive.’
If the male lead abandoned her…
The temple would capture her again.
But letting him hand her over to the temple wasn’t an option either.
So there was only one choice.
‘Take the initiative.’
She had to make sure he wanted to take her with him.
‘I’m not asking for much.’
At least get her outside the temple.
Even better if he took her outside the capital.
‘The duke’s estate is in the North.’
‘If I can tag along all the way there…’
‘I’ll be outside the temple’s influence.’
The moment she realized that…
Her survival instincts kicked into full gear.
“Lately you’ve been having headaches and your whole body aches, haven’t you?”
“Hm.”
“Instead of calming down after purification, the dark energy only gets worse. Doesn’t it make you feel terrible?”
“Hmm.”
“And that’s why you’ve been acting like a complete je… I mean, losing your temper with everyone, right?”
“Hmm.”
Lucy forced a bright smile as she looked up at him.
“You’ve come to exactly the right person.”
“I wasn’t the one who came looking for you.”
“It’s fate either way. Because I know the answer! Hoho!”
The more she talked…
The more she sounded like a scam artist selling miracle products.
But she’d already started.
Backing down now would only make her look more suspicious.
“Parasite. You’re sure you weren’t the one who stole the bread?”
“Oh my, of course not. Have you ever seen such an honest parasite?”
“Hmm…”
“You’ve been having a hard time lately, haven’t you? Would you like a massage?”
Lucy remembered her days in the shelter.
If she was going to act shameless…
She had to commit to it.
If anyone discovered she had stolen extra food…
She would have been beaten half to death and thrown out.
“There. I covered for you, so hurry up and eat.”
“Thank you, Sis…”
“If you’re grateful, then pray that my sisters come back safely.”
She remembered secretly sharing the stolen food with children who were in situations just like hers.
‘Not helpful right now.’
Shaking away the memories of her previous life, Lucy deliberately put on a shameless smile.
Holding herself together with sheer determination, she spoke.
“It seems you still haven’t found the person destined to help you.”
“The person destined to help me?”
“The one who will kindly protect you from those who oppose you, comfort you even while surviving on little sleep…”
She grinned.
“So in short…”
“Half?”
“Yes! As expected of someone so intelligent. You figured it out immediately…”
“So you’re just calling me a half-finished man because I don’t have a mate.”
If he weren’t wearing a helmet…
She was sure he’d be smiling sarcastically.
‘This is terrifying.’
Still, she couldn’t stop now.
“Hohoho! But don’t worry! I’ll help you find your real mate…”
“I was under the impression my mate had already been decided.”
‘There it is.’
‘My lifeline!’
Lucy gathered her courage and declared confidently,
“Master, that woman is a fake!”
Edward suddenly stopped moving.
Lucy nodded dramatically.
Then she patted his arm as though she completely understood his situation.
“You believe it’s Lady Sepina, don’t you? But even after receiving her purification, you never really felt better, did you? That’s because, even though the temple keeps insisting Lady Sepina is your true mate…”
She leaned in slightly.
“…she’s actually a fake.”
“What did you just say?”
“Yes, I know it’s shocking. I understand completely. Lady Sepina is a fa—”
“Before that.”
“Huh?”
Lucy blinked in confusion.
Before that…?
‘What did I say?’
“…Master, that woman is a fake?”
“‘Master,’ huh.”
The crimson eyes visible through the helmet curved as though he liked the word.
“So…”
“Does that mean you belong to me now?”
