Taming The Villainesses-Chapter 386: The Bird of Hochungcheon (1)

These past few days—

I’ve been like a butterfly caught in a spider’s web.

Being held in the arms of the queen, who’s said to be the most beautiful in the country, made it feel like ropes were wrapped around my arms and legs. There was no escaping.

My reason went numb, my thoughts dulled.

And during that time, Ayra’s heart shattered—shattered into tiny, delicate pieces.

Ayra’s mind had been teetering closer to the edge than I’d realized. The cracks that had already formed in her were so brittle that just the smallest gesture from me caused everything to fall apart.

Carrying the guilt of that, the helplessness, and the sticky, heated lust that clung to my body, I felt like my brain was dissolving in venom.

And yet—

Whether it was good fortune or misfortune, I managed to come back to my senses. I grabbed Ayra firmly by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes as I spoke.

“My wish—my second wish still remains. May I say it now?”

Ayra is a person as tempestuous as a typhoon.

But when it comes to promises she’s made herself, she tends to keep them.

So even though she was clearly hurt in all sorts of ways, I bet on the belief that her core nature wouldn't change.

“......”

Ayra blinked at me with an innocent, unguarded expression.

Staring into those eyes made me feel like I could die happily in this room, simply by choosing the option “Perish of thirst while having the most beautiful woman in the world all to yourself.” I squeezed my eyes shut.

And, with resolve, I spoke again.

“Lady Ayra, I’m sure you remember. I haven’t spoken my second wish yet.”

“What is it you want to do?”

Yes—got her!

That was a promising response.

Maybe the answer to this whole mess was about to come out of my mouth. I closed my eyes and tried to think it through.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a wish to Ayra.

A fleeting moment where I might be able to ask anything of the dazzling queen who captivated all. Perhaps that’s why my head was flooded with all sorts of ridiculous impulses.

Like asking her to wear something racy—

Or begging her to seduce me with lewd, embarrassing words she’d normally never say—

Or maybe—

No. Stop.

I shook my head violently to clear my thoughts. The wish I needed to make had to be something far removed from all things carnal and perverse.

Because if I asked for anything like that, even as a joke...

I'd just melt into the queen’s embrace again. This time, her fangs would sink in for real, and everything inside me would dissolve and spill out.

I had to stay calm.

I focused all my strength on staying composed.

Normally, the cold coolant in my head would soak my brain like ice water and give birth to clever ideas, but...

For some reason, these past few days, I couldn’t even feel a trace of my old reliable 《Calm Thinking》. Had the circuits burned out from the repeated shocks, like I’d been struck by lightning?

Just then, as my eyes stayed closed, Ayra’s voice whispered into my ear.

“Teo, what wish do you want to make to me? If you want, I can even dance for you—the courtship dance passed down through the women of House Tarantella.”

A courtship dance passed down in the Tarantella family? That was the first I’d heard of it. A brief image of Ayra dancing flickered in my mind, then faded.

Come to think of it, I’d never once seen Ayra dance. What would that even look like? The curiosity started to build.

But I only had one wish left.

I had to think about the others—those outside who might be waiting or worrying about me.

Yes, think about the others. Elga’s gleaming blonde hair...

The breathy sighs and giggles of the Draco sisters, Mirna and Narmee...

Stella’s pushy nosiness, Marmar’s wagging tail, the bark of our little squirrel dog...

“Teo, look. I’m dancing right now.”

Even though the window was closed and no wind could enter, I felt something swaying faintly in the room. I nearly opened my eyes at her words, but stopped myself and clenched them shut again.

If I looked at her dancing now, I’d fall under her spell.

So, keeping my eyes closed, I spoke.

“Lady Ayra, please go on a date with me—outside.”

***

My home.

My room has a strange kind of magic.

Just being inside it and resting can heal your body and spirit to a surprising degree.

But the longer you stay there, the more the house turns into a trap, shackling you in place. There comes a point when you feel physically unable to step outside.

Back when I lived alone—

...Or maybe when I thought I lived alone—

There was a time I shut myself in after going through something painful. My first girlfriend—whose name I can’t even remember now.

Looking back, I don’t even know if we really dated. I wonder if that period of my life even existed at all. But I still remember vividly what it felt like, being locked in my room back then.

Helpless.

Afraid.

Feeling like I had no reason to go outside.

Thinking I couldn’t go on like that, I enlisted in the military. Even as someone raised in an orphanage, I spent over a year in the army—though I never really had to serve.

Anyway, because of those memories, I know this:

To leave a locked room, you need a trigger—something to crack the shell from the inside.

Sometimes you realize it on your own, but if you can’t, someone else has to break the shell for you.

That’s why I said it to Ayra.

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“Would you please go on a date with me? Outside.”

“......”

She didn’t answer right away.

I peeked with one eye—and met Ayra’s gaze. Her face was terribly cold.

What kind of answer would she give?

Yes or no? Or maybe she’d throw a fit and say no outright? No... Ayra wouldn’t reject my wish. She’d probably say yes.

Even so, my heart was pounding.

Srrrk—

Finally, her radiant lips parted slowly.

“Why?”

Why...?

I hadn’t expected her to question me. That slight opening in my heart was all she needed—her tongue slipped through it.

“We’re already perfectly happy in here, aren’t we? I have you. You have me. Isn’t that perfect? Why do we need to go outside?”

“Well—”

“And the outside is dangerous, remember?”

Before I could reply, Ayra cut in, her voice laced with irritation. Then, as if overcome by anxiety, she began pacing the room—left to right, right to left.

“The outside’s dangerous. There are dark, twisted things out there. They come in. Inward. And we have to keep refining. Perfect rest is superficial...”

Her sentences were crumbling {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} again. Her mind was clearly spiraling.

Was it really the right thing to pull her out into the world?

No, leaving her shut in like this would be worse.

I wouldn’t regret my choice. I’d already made my decision.

“Lady Ayra, it’s already late tonight. So tomorrow—when morning comes, let’s go out together. I saw it through the open window. The autumn flowers blooming around the fortress are beautiful.”

“Flowers...”

“You like flowers, don’t you?”

I stepped forward and gently hugged her. Only then did Ayra finally relax her stiff body.

“Let’s go to bed.”

I pulled away the blankets that had gotten dirty over the past few days. Then I lay down on the bare mattress—no cover, no proper sheets.

“Achoo!”

“Teo, you’ve caught a cold. Is it maybe the Nymph Flu?”

“No way.”

The old room in the fortress was quite chilly.

So much so that lying down at night without any blanket made your jaw chatter and shivers run through your body. Maybe that’s why Ayra nestled into my arms like a baby duckling.

I held her close in return.

Her body was warm.

Rustle—

Then her hand began to crawl across my thigh, creeping like a spider. I knew exactly what that meant.

So I opened my mouth.

“Lady Ayra, tonight... let’s not do anything. Let’s just hold each other and sleep.”

“...Why?”

“Sometimes it’s okay to just sleep, right?”

“Did you start hating me?”

“What? No, that’s not it.”

“Liar. You hate me. You’re already tired of me. That’s why you want to go outside. You’re going to go out there and be with the others instead.”

“......”

Now that I was hearing it—I realized Ayra was showing signs of love deprivation.

Having grown up in an orphanage myself, I was all too familiar with that kind of need.

She’d been checking my love by making demands. And when I didn’t respond, she became anxious.

Looking at her now, she was full of insecurities. Her usual confidence may have been a backlash against her inner fears.

“But tonight, let’s just hold each other.”

I’d finally steeled myself to step outside. If I touched her again now, I’d get caught in her web and never escape.

That’s why I summoned every ounce of superhuman restraint I had and resisted her temptation.

Me, who’d tried every trick to seduce her before—now gritting my teeth to reject her.

Squeeze—

Then Ayra hugged my waist tightly.

“Then... show me proof that you don’t hate me.”

“Proof?”

“Teo, give me one of your eyes. The blue fairy eye. I always thought it was beautiful like a jewel. Give me one, so that you can look only at me.”

An eye? What a chilling thing to say.

But Ayra almost never jokes.

She was saying what she truly meant.

I closed my eyes.

And felt her slender fingers touch my left eyelid.

“Ugh—”

“There. Now, this eye is mine.”

Then her gentle breathing, soft and steady, filled my ears.

She must’ve fallen asleep.

I thought she’d fuss endlessly, but she slept like someone who hadn’t rested in days.

Without dreams.

Like the dead.

Even her breathing grew so faint that I had to sit up a few times to make sure she hadn’t stopped breathing.

***

The next morning.

Chirp chirp. Chirp chirp.

Through the crack in the window, which was blocked by a wardrobe, I could hear birds chirping. Thanks to my fairy affinity with animals, I could sense that morning had come.

“It’s morning. Lady Ayra, it’s morning.”

I sat up and gently shook her awake. Ayra slowly opened her eyes and came to.

“Mmm.”

As she finally let out a small breath, a faint cloud of mist rose from her nose and lips. The northern fortress of Gargarta, beyond the barrier, was quite cold in the mornings.

“Lady Ayra, just like you promised—let’s go outside today. On a date.”

“......”

She didn’t reply.

She simply began to sit up, slowly.

As if I’d been waiting for this, I combed her hair, wiped the dust from her face with a handkerchief, and dressed her—piece by piece.

Rustle—

At last, I gently pulled up the long stockings over her legs, then drew back the curtain covering the mirror in the corner and showed it to her.

“Is this good enough?”

Ayra stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her expression was cold and unreadable.

Srrrk—

I glanced at my own face in the reflection beside her shoulder.

I looked awful. Dark circles under my eyes, hair like a bird’s nest. My soft cheeks had gone hollow.

Ayra was glowing with life, while I looked like all my energy had been sucked out. We really did look like a couple returning from a honeymoon. No... honestly, maybe there was no difference.

“Well then, Lady Ayra. Let’s head outside.”

“Let’s.”

Ayra seemed in surprisingly good shape this morning. Maybe she was prepared. She didn’t resist leaving the room. She understood my words. Spoke clearly.

Thank goodness.

I took her slender fingers and slowly opened the door.

Creak—

The long-closed door groaned as it opened.

The hallway beyond.

The people passing by froze in place as they noticed us. A murmur began to rise in the distance.

And then—

Someone came running toward us.

“You two—what the hell—”

That golden hair sparkled like ginkgo leaves.

It was Elga. So energetic, even this early in the morning. Maybe she’d been waiting for us outside.

“What the hell...”

Elga started to say something—but then trailed off.

She looked at our faces, one by one, and her expression twisted into something complex and hard to describe.

“Hey, Teo. Your eye...”