In a moment of carelessness, his knee struck Marianne’s forehead directly. Suddenly, it seemed like stars were bursting in front of her eyes. She was dizzied by the physical pain she was experiencing for the first time.
At the same time as Marianne crumpled,
“…….”
The expression vanished from Christoph’s face. No, the expression vanished for a fleeting moment, and in its place, fierce anger took hold.
His eyes were sharper than ever before, and the air around him emitted a sharp foreboding, like a razor blade. It seemed like it would cut even if one were to approach just a little closer.
He silently approached with big strides.
“Don’t interfere, just get lost!”
The man shook his leg roughly once again. Marianne’s hand, which had barely grabbed his leg, dropped away with a snap.
The man quickly turned his back. That moment.
“How dare you.”
Christoph threw a punch at him. Along with a smack, the man’s jaw twisted.
He opened his eyes wide, as if not understanding what had happened, with a bewildered expression. Staggering, he eventually collapsed on the spot.
Marianne, forgetting her pain at the unfamiliar sight of Christoph, who had lived his whole life as a noble gentleman and a dignified intellectual, stared with wide eyes.
She had never seen him swing a fist before. And that too, so skillfully.
“How dare you, knowing who this woman is.”
Christoph spoke, chewing his boiling anger, emphasizing each word with force. And he took one step closer to the man who had collapsed.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Christoph swung his leg. There was no time to stop him. With an unusual sound and a smack, the man fell limply without even screaming.
Thump.
A velvet purse fell from the collapsing man’s embrace. A blue gem rolled out from the loosely tied purse and stopped at Christoph’s feet.
“…….”
Marianne blinked her eyes with a puzzled expression, and Jan alternated between looking at Christoph and the man with a surprised face.
From a distance, the sound of guards running with shrill whistles could be heard. Even amidst that, Christoph was staring at Marianne with deeply sunken eyes.
(This is a time delimiter.)
“Marianne.”
Christoph called her name. It was a scratchy voice, like someone who hadn’t spoken for a very long time.
Marianne looked back at him only after Jan and the guards took the man away, and she let her shoulders sag. She opened her mouth, struggling to appear composed.
“This isn’t a suitable place to talk. Shall we move? There’s a park nearby.”
She handed the cane back to a gentleman standing dumbly and took the first step, leaving the words “Thank you.”
The quiet sound of footsteps following her was heard from behind. Realizing that just seeing his face weakened her resolve, Marianne bit her lip slightly.
The twilight began to fall. The park, emptied of children, was rarely frequented and held a serenity different from noon. Marianne, looking for a suitable place, sat on an empty bench.
“Just wait a moment, Marianne.”
Christoph, who had been looking down at her, suddenly turned. Marianne watched his retreating back, seriously contemplating fleeing right then and there.
But that thought shattered before it could even take form. It was unlikely that he didn’t know the boarding house. After all, behind him was the presence of Count Schneider.
What to do……?
Marianne looked up at the sky with troubled eyes. A quiet sigh dispersed in her breath. Christoph, whom she had met again, still made her heart race.
Suddenly, she remembered the moment she first fell in love with him. His elegant and dignified appearance, as if he were in a different world all by himself. The leisurely and brave appearance of the master of that place.
The rampant rumors did not even capture half of his beauty.
Even so, Marianne knew that if she took his hand now, she would repeat the same mistake. To hope, only to be disappointed, and finally to resign.
She didn’t want to go back to that time. Despair had been enough as it was.
She closed her eyes tightly to steady her trembling heart and then opened them. The moment Marianne clenched the hem of her dress.
“Here.”
A dark shadow covered her face. Marianne slowly opened her closed eyes. In the center of her gradually widening view was the sight of Christoph holding out a handkerchief.
“Press it against your forehead. It’s already starting to turn red.”
Christoph slightly furrowed his brow. It seemed as if a curse, “Damn it,” could be heard from between his teeth. Marianne, who had opened her eyes wide, soon let out a faint laugh.
That couldn’t be.
Christoph was the grandson of Count Schneider. He had received toplevel education from birth and attended private schools, the exclusive domain of the upper class.
His speech and demeanor were always overflowing with refinement. Sometimes they were even different enough to intimidate others. Marianne had never seen him utter a harsh word even once.
So there was no way a vulgar curse could have come from his mouth. Perhaps she had heard it wrong.
“Thank you.”
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.
