Chapter 1

Prologue

“Ebi, you have to hide really, really well!”

“Not even a single strand of your hair can show!”

Remembering the children’s adorable instructions, I quietly giggled as I gently closed the door to the library.

“Hmm~ Where should I hide so they’ll never find me?”

I looked around for a place to hide, and just then, someone came into view.

‘Isn’t that Hes?’

He was lying asleep beside the long mahogany table, several chairs pushed together beneath him.

Warm sunlight streamed in through the open window, accompanied by a soft mountain breeze. Beneath it all, the sleeping man looked like a painting straight out of some mythical masterpiece.

Almost entranced, I walked toward him.

Up close, his delicately sculpted features stood out even more.

His sharp, smoothly drawn eyes and long eyelashes. A high enough nose bridge without being imposing, with a sleek, pointed tip.

And on top of all that, his plump lips were tinged with a reddish hue, as though they had been stained by flowers…

Before I knew it, I swallowed hard.

I had suddenly remembered the day I had placed my first seal upon those lips.

Of course, I had only done it because I had no other choice if I wanted to survive, but I could never forget how they had felt.

Even after several days.

Again and again. Constantly.

If I wanted to feel those lips one more time, I’d have to be completely insane.

I was just about to sigh inwardly and step away when—

“Is this… a dream?”

In the suffocating silence, a deep, low voice seemed to reverberate as though submerged underwater, making me flinch.

He let out a sigh and looked at me with hazy eyes before murmuring,

“Of all things, why did it have to be—”

As if trying to confirm whether the person before him was real, he reached out toward my face.

Startled, I took a step backward—

“Ah!”

He suddenly grabbed my wrist and pulled.

As a result, I ended up falling right on top of his flat, solid body.

There had been times when I had been held in Hedius’s arms, but I had never really been conscious of it then. Maybe it was because we were pressed together without even the slightest gap now, but I could feel every one of his muscles, large and small, beneath me.

Heat instantly rushed to my face.

“H-Hes!!”

Flustered, I pushed against his chest and tried to get up, but—

“…Ebi.”

Perhaps he was still not fully awake. He slowly blinked his eyes. Even so, the hand gripping my wrist was remarkably strong.

‘Seriously, why is he so strong even when he’s half-asleep?’

As I squirmed on top of him, he suddenly let out a long breath and murmured,

“…If you keep doing that, it’ll be dangerous.”

Before I could properly interpret what he meant by “dangerous,” I desperately wished he would simply fall asleep again.

After all, the library was so vast that my voice echoed softly through it, and there was no one here except Hesius and me.

On top of that, because of our position, my face was right in front of his.

Once he fully woke up, he might really think I was some kind of shameless woman.

I awkwardly smiled and patted his chest.

“I-I’m Ebi from your dream…. So let’s close our eyes again, okay? Be a good boy…? Hmm?”

At that, Hedius furrowed his brow.

“…As if.”

The moment he calmly said those words, his previously hazy golden eyes suddenly became as clear and bright as stars.

He abruptly raised his upper body.

I was forced to sit up along with him, but I was still sitting on his firm thighs.

Facing me from such a close distance, he let out a languid breath.

“How did you know I was here?”

His voice was no longer hoarse from sleep.

Even though he had only just woken up, there wasn’t a single trace of disarray on his face. Perhaps because he had just awakened, there was only a strangely languid quality about him…

Was it because he was, after all, the leader of a band of thieves?

A handsome face, a languid air about him, and a deep, pleasant voice…

He was practically a thief specifically designed to steal women’s hearts.

My shoulders shrank as though I were someone who had committed a crime.

Thump, thump.

My heartbeat was so loud that I could hear it in my ears.

Come to think of it, he seemed to think I had come here specifically to see him.

“I-I didn’t come here on purpose—”

When I hesitated to answer, he gave a small laugh as though he already understood without needing me to say anything.

“Indeed, no one will find us here. You’re even more forward than I expected, Ebi. In that case…”

As he said that, he tilted one corner of his mouth upward and met my gaze.

“I’ll allow you to do whatever you want to me right now. But not outside.”

In other words, only when the two of us were alone.

His shining golden eyes seemed to say exactly that.

His voice sounded less like a warning and more like an invitation.

‘Does he really have to say it so sweetly? At this rate, you’re going to make me actually want to do something.’

It had actually been easier to casually make physical contact when everyone was around.

But now that we were alone, my entire body had stiffened like a piece of wood.

Because right now, this felt just like a secret rendezvous between lovers.

“Wait… No.”

After thinking it over, he suddenly muttered to himself before whispering into my ear,

“You’ve always been the one to approach me first, so perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad if I made the first move this time.”

My eyes widened at his unexpected words.

He’ll make the first move?

What exactly was he talking about?

This was something I had never anticipated.

‘Besides, Hes doesn’t need me to go this far anymore…’

“If you dislike it, tell me now. If you refuse, I’ll obediently back away.”

He flashed a grin at my flustered expression, but contrary to his words, he continued tempting me with his sweet voice.

Somehow, it felt like the roles had been completely reversed.

While I hesitated, Hedius covered my cold cheek with his heated hand.

Warmth flowed into me through our touching skin.

…This was unfair.

Liking the soft, melting sensation spreading through my body, I rubbed my cheek against his palm.

His long, dark, sharply angled eyes immediately grew shadowy.

His firm thumb carefully brushed across my lips before applying the slightest pressure.

When my lips parted just a little, a satisfied smile bloomed across his face.

In his characteristic languid, low voice, he whispered,

“May I take that as permission?”

Sunlight streaming through the curtains hanging over the library’s huge windows illuminated his mesmerizing golden eyes.

Everything I had done to Hedius until now had been solely for everyone’s sake.

And yet, I still couldn’t believe that Hedius had suddenly been the one to make such a proposal first.

But—

‘Who in their right mind could resist when he’s seducing me with that face?!’

God of the world, system, demon of the Gates!

Please, for the love of everything, don’t test me like this!

Yet contrary to what my mind was saying, both my hands had somehow found their way onto his firm, broad shoulders.

Instead of answering, my trembling hands tightly grasped his shoulders.

As though taking that as permission, he gently wrapped one hand around the back of my neck and slowly pulled me toward him.

Little by little, his face drew closer.

And just as I began to feel Hedius’s heated breath through my thin lips—

“Angel! You’re here, right?!”

Someone suddenly flung open the library door.

But Hedius had noticed the presence before I did.

He pulled me toward himself and covered me with a blanket in one swift motion.

Trapped in his arms before I even knew what was happening, I could hear a heartbeat pounding rapidly.

I couldn’t tell whose it was.

“What is it, Leo?”

Soon, his voice came from beyond the blanket.

“Huh? Lord Hedius! Ah… So you were reading in here. Have you happened to see the Angel?”

I flinched at Leo’s voice.

“If you mean Ebi, weren’t you with her earlier?”

“I was. We’re all playing hide-and-seek together, but I can’t find the Angel anywhere. Hmm… Anyway, I guess she’s not here.”

“No one has come to the library.”

“—Hmm, really? Then I’ll be going. Where could the Angel be hiding, then?”

The door soon closed.

I let out a relieved breath and rubbed my chest.

“Phew…. Leo almost misunderstood what was going on.”

“…Misunderstood?”

I raised my gaze at his low voice.

At some point, Hedius had removed the blanket and was staring at me with his brows drawn together.

‘…Why is he making that face?’

I couldn’t understand why and merely opened and closed my mouth.

“…So you came to the library purely because of hide-and-seek.”

Not because of me.

I nodded absentmindedly, and suddenly, he let out a small laugh.

Then, looking down at me with an expression of displeasure, he reached out with both large hands and cupped my face.

There was an inexplicable warmth in his eyes.

Why?

‘Did I perhaps do something wrong?’

All I had done was spend some enjoyable time with everyone before coming to the library.

It had started with the children’s surprise event for me.

“Ta-da! It’s a flower carriage for Ebi!”

They had decorated a little carriage lavishly with flowers and ribbons just for me.

“From now on, no one will be able to live without you, Ebi! So let’s stay together for a long, long time!”

Then there were the Shadow Village residents, laughing heartily as they joked around.

And—

“All right! I’m in the mood! Who wants to play hide-and-seek?!”

Everyone, adults and children alike, had rushed forward at my suggestion that we play hide-and-seek.

And eventually, I had chosen the library as my hiding place.

Just as I was wondering how things had suddenly ended up like this and thinking back to what had happened moments ago—

A reproachful voice came from above my head.

“Ebi, are you thinking about something else even at a time like this?”

Before I could react, a shadow fell over my face, and warm breath gently descended upon my lips.

“—!”

How had I ended up getting so entangled with Hedius?

All I had wanted to do was prevent Leo from becoming the Dark Overlord.

I squeezed my eyes shut and recalled the moment when I had time-slipped into that brilliant history.