Chapter 16 | Uselessly Handsome
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He wasn’t being subtle at all. He was clearly trying to encourage her to take him up on his offer, even with how low his voice was.
Olivia perked her ears, asking without hiding how interested she was in what he had to say.
[Olivia] “How do you propose you do that?”
[Cryer] “Claim these were assassination attempts on the Imperial Princess.”
[Olivia] “That sounds quite grand.”
[Cryer] “If you want to get rid of them all at once, you need a damn good reason for it.”
And what could be better than dealing with everything annoying in one fell swoop?
Neither Cryer, who was speaking, nor Olivia, who was listening, questioned that fact. They both knew that Cryer could deal with the remaining knights, many of which were knights in name alone, with ease.
But the next moment, Olivia shook her head.
[Olivia] “The deaths of a few pieces of trash don’t matter right now. What’s more important is right here, right now!”
She picked up the documents she’d been glancing at this entire time and shook them in the air.
[Olivia] “We’re finding out that the ancients were involved in this missing persons case!”
This wasn’t some simple matter of people disappearing or a random case of serial murders. Looking at the corpses they’d found in that field, each had the mark of the ancient branded onto their foreheads.
Had she known this would become an important piece of the puzzle, she would’ve dug into this case and found out the truth prior to her return.
Cryer closed the book in his hand, watching Olivia scatter the documents around, so frazzled she looked like she was seconds away from pulling out her own hair.
[Cryer] “Calm down.”
[Olivia] “How can I calm down? Do you have any idea how long I’ve been pouring over these documents?”
[Cryer] “Four hours and twenty eight minutes to be exact.”
[Olivia] “Exactly! But no matter how many times I read them, I make no progress! It doesn’t make any sense! Agh, I should’ve found out who that burnt corpse belonged to before I returned!”
But it was too late to lament her regrets.
Defeatedly, Olivia tossed her documents up into the air, leaving her arms paused in place. Sighing, she slowly sank in her seat as her arms drooped down to her sides.
[Olivia] “But I didn’t even know about an ancient god, so even if I’d done some research before coming back, I wouldn’t have figured out anything useful………..What? Why are you laughing?”
His head was turned to the side, but seeing his broad and steely shoulders shaking, it was obvious she was laughing at her.
Olivia huffed, marching up to him and grabbing the book from his hand.
[Olivia] “What are you laughing for? Quit laughing! I’m all upset and you’re going to stand there and laugh at me!?”
As Olivia rapidly tapped the edge of the book against his shoulder, Cryer grabbed Olivia’s wrist, speaking with a smile on his face that just couldn’t go away.
[Cryer] “I’m not.”
[Olivia] “You are!”
[Cryer] “I just thought it was cute, seeing someone as harmless and small as you do something so stupid looking, Princess.”
By now, she knew that the things that came out of Cryer’s mouth were never lies, but……..
Olivia didn’t really know what to say.
Did he just say…….cute……? What?
She’d heard people use that word before, and she definitely heard him use it just now, but hearing something and actually understanding it were completely different things. Obviously she couldn’t find the words to respond because in order to converse with someone, understanding what they’re saying to you is a key part of the process.
While Olivia sat there, biting her lip, Cryer reached out for some of the scattered documents.
Olivia looked up at him, staring at his swaying silver hair while pressing her hand onto her heart. Actually, no. Not her heart, but rather her stomach. It felt itchy, like she’d swallowed a feather.
Within that past of his that he no longer remembered, honestly, what on earth was he up to?
Reflected in Olivia’s eyes like a blue night sky was Cryer’s silver hair like the moon. As she unconsciously reached out for his head, her hand stopped at the sound of his voice.
[Cryer] “What’s been hampering your progress?”
But rather than touching his head, Olivia very naturally turned her hand down towards the paper he was holding, tapping her fingers against a specific part of it.
[Olivia] “The list of the missing people isn’t accurate.”
Feeling a headache set in, Olivia rubbed her temple.
[Olivia] “I told you before, right? The culprit was found dead in the house of one of the missing people?”
[Cryer] “Yeah. And you said you couldn’t identify the body.”
[Olivia] “I thought if we could find out which house it was, we could hide there and maybe catch the culprit before they get set ablaze.”
Olivia took the list of names from him, quietly folding the paper into a little airplane.
[Olivia] “But I won’t be able to find the house where the body was found on this list, even if I were to memorize it, search the map, and perfectly recall them as I do.”
[Cryer] “Do you remember what house it was?”
[Olivia] “No. If I did, I wouldn’t be this close to tearing my own hair out. All I can remember is what I heard in passing, and even with that, I have my doubts about a few things.”
Olivia tilted her head, taking the paper airplane she had made and lightly tossing it into the air. Effortlessly, Cryer caught it with one hand.
[Cryer] “What if I check all the houses on this list?”
[Olivia] “All of them?”
[Cryer] “Yup.”
[Olivia] “It’s not that the idea didn’t cross my mind.”
Olivia shook her head.
[Olivia] “There might be some missing people whose names aren’t listed here. Even if you were to go around and check every single one of these locations….”
[Cryer] “I might not be able to find the house from before your return.”
[Olivia] “Yes.”
Olivia stood up, walking over to the large sofa while completely ignoring the massive pile of papers on her desk, plopping herself on the cushions. With her, she already had all the documents related to the incident, many of which she’d already memorized.
[Olivia] “What sort of crazy bastard would do this……”
Sitting very loosely in her seat, almost drowning in the cushions, a shadow loomed over Olivia’s face as she bitterly cursed under her breath.
Olivia poked her face out from behind the document in her hands as darkness fell over her.
[Olivia] “Can I help you?”
With his hands on either side of the seat, Cryer was looking down on her, pinning her in place.
If she were anyone else, this sort of situation would be a heart pounding and gushy moment. The kind that would be dyed with sparkles and bubbles and would make any young lady’s face turn red, or maybe make their eyes widen with shock and awe.
But Olivia was far from ordinary at this point.
She’d regressed four times now, and so she was about as distant from the norm as the sun was. She glanced down at the strong arms pinning her in place, gently waving her papers around as she asked again.
[Olivia] “What are you doing?”
With his mouth in a straight line, Cryer looked down at her.
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[Cryer] “You reached out your hand earlier, but you took it back.”
[Olivia] “Earlier? I did?”
At the unexpected question, Olivia innocently tilted her head in curiosity, but then she quickly quieted, turning her eyes to the side. Clearly she was trying to avoid answering any further, but Cryer wasn’t going to let this slide so easily.
Some time passed as Olivia continued to avoid Cryer’s gaze before finally, she sighed, mumbling softly under her breath.
[Olivia] “It just moved on its own.”
And of course, though her voice was as quiet as the crawling of an ant, Cryer didn’t miss it.
[Cryer] “Just?”
[Olivia] “Yes. Just……..”
It was an answer, but at the same time, it wasn’t, but she didn’t know what else she could say. She didn’t reach out towards him with any kind of thought or intention, so that’s the only answer she could give.
But even so, a faint smile grew on Cryer’s face as he looked down at Olivia’s rounded forehead, trying to hide her face behind the papers in her hands.
She said something similar the first time she reached out to touch him.
[Olivia] ‘I don’t know. My hand just kind of moved on its own.’
It wasn’t the exact same, but still.
Without asking any more questions, Cryer changed the subject.
[Cryer] “Are you not surprised by me anymore?”
Olivia slowly moved the papers away from her face, rubbing a hand against her heart.
[Olivia] “I suppose not. It feels a little more familiar now.”
She didn’t feel so surprised that her heart beat so wildly, it felt like it could jump right out of her throat. Olivia looked up at him, suddenly realizing something.
[Olivia] “You really are uselessly handsome.”
When she said that, she spoke very plainly through thin sighs, as though she were stating a simple fact. Cryer raised an eyebrow.
[Cryer] “Uselessly?”
[Olivia] “Yes. Uselessly.”
She was evaluating him a little rudely, but despite that fact, Cryer didn’t seem particularly angry or peeved by her words.
[Cryer] “I’ve never heard anyone say that before.”
[Olivia] “That you’re handsome?”
[Cryer] “No. That this particular side of me was useless.”
[Olivia] “What, so you were already aware that you’re handsome?”
[Cyer] “Kind of.”
[Olivia] “Well, that’s a little vague of you to say.”
In truth, Cryer had never truly seen his own face properly. He had no need of that knowledge, and he didn’t actually care all that much about how he looked.
But the daughter of the mage that resurrected him and branded him as a slave of the ancients, Greta would always whisper towards him—
[Greta] ‘You have been chosen by the Gods. You are a being of pure perfection, as flawless as a living piece of art.’
When Cryer fell into silence, Olivia narrowed her eyes as she looked at him.
She also never bothered to think twice about his appearance, especially since she’d never had the chance to speak to him face to face like this in the past. Before her return, coming into contact with him meant assured death, so it was pointless to take in his features.
And to be honest, even after her return, looking at his face was the last thing on her mind because she was so focused on the mounting issue of catching Cryer and stopping the war.
But looking at him now, he had a very straight forehead, framed with silver hair, and sharp features, with a nose that fell in a straight line and a jawline that was cut like sharp granite.
[Olivia] “With a face like that, it makes it very easy for others to speak of how the Imperial Princess fell in love at first sight and took you in as a lover.”
Olivia was frowning so much that deep valleys were forming on her forehead, her voice sounding extremely dissatisfied.
[Olivia] “If it weren’t for your uselessly handsome face, then maybe they’d spread a rumor about how I’d recognized your skill with a sword at first glance and kept you by my side because of that……..instead?”
Rambling on like a stream of consciousness flowing from between her lips, Olivia suddenly quieted, blinking rapidly as she did. With every blink, one could easily see the cogs in her brain, turning to formulate a plan.
[Olivia] “Cryer.”
Olivia called out to Cryer with a smile on her face.
But the smile she had wasn’t a good one, it seemed more cruel than that. Seeing that kind of smile, Cryer looked her directly in the eye, replying with a smirk.
[Cryer] “What’s with that mean looking smile?”
[Olivia] “Mean….? That’s so rude……Hmph.”
Cryer’s words made Olivia frown. Immediately she touched her fingers to her lips, the rest of her words trailing off. Maybe the maliciousness of her smile was too strong to ignore.
Olivia held out her hands, pushing her palms against Cryer’s chest.
[Olivia] “For now, just move out of the way.”
Pulling back from Olivia, Cryer plopped himself down on the sofa just across from her, and Olivia straightened out her back.
[Olivia] “Didn’t you tell me before that you were getting stronger?”
[Cryer] “Yup.”
[Olivia] “Gauging your current strength, how strong would you say you are now? Do you think there are any knights within the Empire capable of defeating you at your current level?”
Olivia’s eyes were sparkling.
Just by looking at how strong the twinkle was, it was clear she’d already decided the answer before even asking her question. But her eagerness was no match for Cryer, who answered plainly and bluntly with cold realism.
[Cryer] “I can’t say for certain. I haven’t met every single knight in the Empire.”
Immediately, Olivia’s shoulders sagged and she loosely leaned back in her seat—sinking into the sofa.
[Olivia] “Isn’t this supposed to be your chance to say, ‘No one can even scratch me’?
[Cryer] “Do you want me to lie?”
[Olivia] “No need to be so prickly. Hmph.”
Olivia waved her hands around, fumbling around for a pen and quickly jotted down a list of names, quickly shoving it in Cryer’s face.
[Olivia] “Fight all the knights on this list. I’ll tell you more once we get there.”
Without a word, Cryer skimmed his eyes over the list. As Olivia watched him slowly going over the names, her soft expression suddenly narrowed.
With thin eyes, she leaned forward.
[Olivia] “And I’ll tell you this just in case but—”
[Cryer] “I won’t kill them.”
With how simply and bluntly he answered, his words coming out without wasting a single breath, all Olivia could really do in response was scoff.
[Olivia] “Were you planning on killing them?”
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Cryer just shrugged.
[Cryer] “Ever since this happened, I haven’t been able to knock someone out without killing them.”
When he said ‘this’, he was probably referring to the brand on his chest—the one he always unconsciously went to touch.
[Olivia] “You did mention…….that the ancient god wants blood.”
Olivia’s words were calm, and Cryer just gave her a thin smile.