Tae Sang threw a bombshell and descended the stairs. Da Jeong, watching his retreating back, widened her eyes as if she’d been sucker punched.
In a man’s house she’d only visited twice, at nearly one in the morning.
She was stunned at the assumption that she would meekly follow. Left alone, Da Jeong firmly planted her heels on the ground.
“Oh, I’m not going. I won’t go.”
The slightest movement would have seemed a sign of her following him. Da Jeong firmly declared, her hands tightly clasped.
Then Tae Sang halted before his car, looking back at her. The slight tilt of his head and upward gaze was full of question.
Da Jeong opened her mouth in a resolute voice.
“Thank you for the offer, but I won’t go.”
“Why not?”
“Why, why you ask? Of course, I can’t go…….”
The confidence on Tae Sang’s face made her momentarily stumble over her words. In contrast, he was as calm as if this was an everyday occurrence.
Was it no big deal to take a woman he barely knew home? Or did he see her as someone who would easily give in to anything?
For a split second, her mind raced like a runaway horse. Da Jeong blinked anxiously and averted her eyes. Her interlocked hands fidgeted in front of her thighs.
“I will leave again.”
Tae Sang, who had been silently watching her entwined fingers, slowly opened his mouth. It was a gentle yet forceful voice that was hard to resist.
“……Pardon?”
“I will take you home, Ms. Han Da Jeong, and then I will leave.”
“Ah…….”
She had been thrown off by his suggestion of going home. Da Jeong, belatedly understanding Tae Sang’s intention, awkwardly mumbled.
“Well, even more reason I can’t go……. How could I take someone else’s home shamelessly?”
“It’s more shameless to wander the streets at night alone. So please, come here.”
He spread out his large hand and gave a light flick. It was a gesture like calling a timid little animal.
At the man’s unexpectedly cute action, Da Jeong unwittingly chuckled. The tension that had been hanging in the air quickly dissipated.
With a lightened expression, Da Jeong lifted her foot. Persuading the stubborn man would have to be postponed.
“Anyone watching would think you’re taking a stray cat off the street.”
“A cat would probably be better.”
“Why?”
“Because they don’t lie or act stubborn.”
“Well, it’s not that I’m purposely being like that…….”
Da Jeong descended the stairs, keeping her gaze fixed on Tae Sang’s face. Each step, one by one, was a challenge in the dim light, and she failed to see the last remaining one.
“Ah!”
Expecting a flat surface, Da Jeong stepped forward, only for her foot to plunge downward, causing her body to drop abruptly. She staggered and stumbled down the rough stairs, halftilted.
Her shoe twisted to the side, and her legs collapsed weakly like a tree felled at its base. Da Jeong desperately reached out to the receding handrail.
Suddenly, Tae Sang sprang out from the darkness like a wild beast. Estimating her falling position, he spread his arms and deftly caught Da Jeong.
“…….”
The heavy arm wrapped around her waist, the firm curvature of his chest; feeling strange and firm, she gasped in his embrace.
“Are you okay?”
His voice, filled with worry, echoed above her. Da Jeong nodded blankly and only managed to open her mouth after a moment.
“Ah, yes. I’m fine.”
“Sigh…….”
He let out a large sigh, and his broad chest heaved.
Even though it was clearly a sigh of relief, Tae Sang tightened his arms around her. It seemed as if unconsciousness, rather than rationality, had taken control of his body.
“I, I’m fine now.”
Da Jeong pushed him away and spoke.
Tae Sang slowly released the tight hold on her waist. His hand involuntarily gripped tighter, as if it was painful to let go of her slender waist.
He forcefully controlled his hand, which was clutching the air and not listening to him. Then, his worried gaze dropped to her ankle.
“It seems like it’s sprained.”
“Yes. A little.”
Da Jeong lightly put weight on her twisted ankle. It did wobble a bit, but it wasn’t unbearable. As she started to limp, Tae Sang hurriedly tightened his grip on her.
“Don’t put pressure on it. It’ll swell more.”
“But if I don’t, I won’t be able to walk…….”
Before he could finish, Tae Sang was beside her. He put his arm around Da Jeong’s shoulder and pulled her into his chest.
“Take off the pressure.”
Tae Sang said as he slightly bowed his head. His breath tickled her ear.
Feeling her hairs stand on end, Da Jeong attempted to create some distance, but her small gesture was immediately stopped by him.
“If you keep putting pressure on it, saying it doesn’t hurt, you’ll suffer for a long time.”
“…….”
The body she could feel beneath his thin shirt was muscular. He must have often sprained or injured himself while mastering various sports.
Da Jeong removed the pressure from her ankle and slowly leaned on Tae Sang. She had no desire to suffer for a long time, just as he had said. Then Tae Sang, as if to commend her, gently brushed her shoulder.
The Villainous Demon Lord Laid an Egg for Her (Female-Dominated)
Several months after transmigrating into a book, Yu Wu found herself facing the demon lord Li You, who could no longer conceal his dragon horns. With one hand on her aching waist and the other gripping a sharp sword, she stared at him.
The demon lord’s eyes were red with fury:
“This is all your doing! Today, I won’t rest until I kill you!”
Yu Wu rubbed her temples. Putting aside the taboo against bloodshed during pregnancy, wasn’t it this very man who willingly walked into her trap that day?!
Warnings:
- Male pregnancy.
- Height ratios are set to mirror typical male-female height proportions.
- Characters include a foot-loving demon lord and an eldest daughter from an immortal family’s concubine lineage.
