How a Villain Defies Destiny Chapter 159

 

‘But is it really okay to drink this?’

 

I ended up picking up the cup because of the dragon’s gaze, but I couldn’t quite bring myself to drink the cocoa right away.

 

I was anxious that something strange might have been mixed into it.

 

Even though he had sworn by the gods to guarantee my safety, I knew that oaths weren’t absolute, so hesitation was inevitable.

 

‘For example… poison or something.’

 

While I was staring down at the brown liquid with those thoughts, a dry, emotionless voice came from across the table.

 

“There’s no poison, so you don’t need to worry.”

 

When I lifted my gaze, I saw him already sitting on the opposite side, resting his chin on his hand and watching me as if observing me.

 

The strange atmosphere radiating from his vertically slit pupils, like those of a reptile, made me shrink back involuntarily, and I quickly lowered my eyes again.

 

“Then… thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”

 

After a short word of thanks, I brought the mug to my lips.

 

I had been a little nervous because steam was rising as if it were boiling hot, but surprisingly, the temperature was just right.

 

“…”

 

Perhaps because the surroundings were deathly silent, the sound of me gulping down the cocoa felt unusually loud.

 

‘This is so awkward I could die.’

 

The sweet flavor that perfectly suited my taste spread through my mouth, but my mind was in turmoil.

 

It was because of this bizarre situation of sitting face-to-face with a dragon drinking cocoa, along with his unsettling answers that seemed to read my thoughts completely.

 

‘I’ve often had my inner thoughts seen through because of my easily readable expressions, but this is… how should I put it…’

 

It felt closer to talking with Fenrir, who could read thoughts, than with the quick-witted Yves Leblanc or Endymion.

 

“So, how is it?”

 

How is what? What does he mean?

 

While I was bewildered by the abrupt question, he continued.

 

“The cocoa.”

 

“Huh? Oh, um… It’s sweet and delicious?”

 

Startled by the unexpected question, my voice rose at the end. But he didn’t seem to care about my vague reaction at all.

 

“I’m glad it suits your taste.”

 

Instead of pointing out that I hadn’t given any real review, I chose to drink the rest of the cocoa while he nodded in satisfaction.

 

I still couldn’t figure out the dragon’s intentions, but the smooth, moderately sweet cocoa really was exactly to my liking.

 

Then, the corner of his mouth twitched noticeably.

 

It really looked like he was pleased that I was drinking the cocoa well.

 

‘No way… It must just be my imagination.’

 

There was absolutely no benefit to him if I drank the cocoa deliciously.

 

I dismissed the thought that had crossed my mind as a mere mood and suddenly remembered the main topic I had forgotten.

 

“Ah! As I mentioned earlier, I received a divine oracle from Lady Astarte and came to find you…”

 

“Kephri.”

 

“Yes?”

 

“My name.”

 

“…I’m Laura.”

 

I couldn’t quite understand the flow of the conversation, but I followed his lead and introduced myself first.

 

At any rate, since he had even revealed his name, it probably meant he was willing to talk with me. I tried to think positively.

 

“Um… Lord Kephri, may I get to the main point now?”

 

“Go ahead.”

 

Worried that he might interrupt again with his unpredictable way of thinking, I asked for permission before bringing up the main subject, and this time Kephri readily accepted.

 

“Lady Astarte said that if I went to find you, Lord Kephri, I would learn what I’m curious about.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

He asked back in an indifferent tone, but unlike his relaxed voice, his eyes shone sharply like metal.

 

“Hmm… I don’t have any particular guesses, but is it this?”

 

The moment his fingertips touched my forehead, a gentle, soft silver light flowed out.

 

At the same time, an enormous divine power began to emanate from him. It was overwhelmingly greater and more immense than Selene’s.

 

‘By the way, do dragons in this world possess divine power too?’

 

From what Fenrir had briefly explained last time about the dragon race’s characteristics, there had been no mention of divine power.

 

While I was lost in those thoughts, I noticed something astonishing.

 

Kephri’s golden eyes had turned red.

 

While I was puzzled by the successive strange phenomena…

 

“A rescue request, huh.”

 

After staying silent for a while, he suddenly muttered meaningfully to himself.

 

Since the oracle was far more important to me than Kephri’s changes right now, I pushed aside my surging curiosity and focused on the main topic again.

 

“What kind of rescue request is it?”

 

I asked in a voice full of excitement, expecting the piled-up questions to finally be resolved, but what came out of his mouth was something I could never have imagined.

 

“Astarte asks for help to rescue herself, who has been trapped underground by Nanna’s schemes.”

 

“What?”

 

My brain momentarily froze.

 

The topic that emerged had nothing to do with what I had roughly guessed.

 

“Wait a minute. It’s not a request to help us, but Lady Astarte’s rescue request?”

 

“That’s right.”

 

I checked again, wondering if I had misheard, but the answer was the same.

 

‘I thought it would be something like asking to help us, who are suffering because of Nanna.’

 

I had even thought she would give a decisive hint to end this problem.

 

But I gained nothing from this.

 

“Is that… everything?”

 

I asked again, clutching at straws, and Kephri slowly added,

 

“Your situation is also mentioned. As well as the strange things Nanna has done.”

 

That was at least a silver lining amid misfortune.

 

“Can you explain it to me?”

 

“What exactly?”

 

“The strange things Lady Nanna has done and the situation I’m in.”

 

A faint wrinkle formed between Kephri’s brows, whose expression had barely changed, like a soulless machine.

 

“In the end, you want me to tell you everything from start to finish.”

 

I shrank back at the aura he momentarily released and couldn’t say anything, falling silent.

 

‘How scary…’

 

Both divine beasts and dragons were transcendent beings beyond the reach of humans, but the sense of ennui emanating from Kephri was subtly different from that of the long-lived Huluppu or Fenrir.

 

Especially after his eyes turned red, the mysterious sense of alienation grew even stronger.

 

It felt like he was wrapped in a colossal energy that embraced everything, something that couldn’t be expressed in words.

 

That was why even I, who had boldly asked questions out of personal curiosity in front of Fenrir and Huluppu without fear, couldn’t act recklessly in front of him.

 

‘Still, I can’t go back empty-handed after coming all this way.’

 

On the surface, he seemed dry and barren as if he had no emotions, but in the extraordinary actions he had shown in this short time, I sensed a faint trace of humanity.

 

Of course, it felt more like a machine learning human emotions, but I decided not to give up that sliver of hope.

 

“I once heard from Lord Fenrir that there are three separate dimensions, the divine realm, the surface world, and the underworld, and that the gods can freely travel between them.”

 

After organizing my thoughts, I carefully opened my mouth.

 

“But why has Lady Astarte been trapped underground?”

 

If you think there’s too much to do from the beginning, you’ll get exhausted before even starting.

 

I deliberately broke the question into smaller pieces, keeping in mind the possibility that Kephri might also feel bothered by the burden of having to explain a long story all at once.

 

‘There’s a saying that even a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, after all!’

 

I tried hard to shake off my impatience and calmly waited for his answer.

 

“Because a new ruler has appeared in the underworld.”

 

Thankfully, Kephri answered.

 

“Who is it? Does it have something to do with Lady Nanna?”

 

However, to my follow-up questions, he simply kept his mouth shut and stared at me silently.

 

‘He seemed like he could read my inner thoughts like Lord Fenrir… Did he notice my ulterior motives?’

 

With plenty to feel guilty about, I waited nervously.

 

If my pathetic trick of trying to coax him into telling me what I wanted was exposed, I had no idea how he would react.

 

‘He wouldn’t suddenly kill me for making fun of him, right?’

 

No killing intent had leaked out at all, but somehow I felt that he could easily take a life without blinking, so I couldn’t relax.

 

‘I haven’t even properly dated and been lovey-dovey with Yves Leblanc yet… I can’t die like this…’

 

While I was trembling in fear that I might end my life right here, reflecting on my lingering attachments to life—

 

“Open.”

 

Kephri, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly said something out of nowhere.

 

“Yes?”

 

I couldn’t help but be flustered by the single sentence that neatly omitted subject and object.

 

“Open it.”

 

On the other hand, he repeated the same words, unconcerned by my startled and intimidated appearance.

 

“W-what?”

 

“Your mouth.”

 

I mustered courage despite my fear and asked back for smooth communication, but he once again spat out only concise words.

 

“Eh?”

 

I was so dumbfounded by his sudden demand, where only the subject and verb were clearly stated, that I couldn’t even refute it.

 

“Ack…!”

 

His long finger slipped through the small gap between my slightly parted lips and invaded my mouth.

 

The moment I instinctively tried to bite down on the finger that had entered without warning… His fingertip touched the roof of my mouth.

 

“Ah…”