Since When Were You The Villain?

Chapter 64.

 

“Being stuck in the office was frustrating. Besides, we’re short on personnel, so I thought I’d lend a hand and also inspect the site.”

Killian casually replied and then directed his intense gaze towards Mikhail’s head.

“By the way, that hat doesn’t suit you at all.”

Killian gestured towards the teddy bear hat that Mihail was wearing.

Mikhail, who for a moment had forgotten that he was wearing a teddy bear hat, was startled, took it off, and replaced it with his usual brim hat.

“Oh, this… It’s a prize from a game at the festival, so I thought I’d give it a try.”

“Together with my fiancée?” (T/L: This man 😂)

Killian playfully tugged at the pink bunny ears on top of Sophia’s head.

Sophie felt a slight blush for no reason.

‘I didn’t do anything special with Mikhail…’

It wasn’t like they deliberately set up a date or anything; they just happened to meet, played a round of darts, and went shopping for skewers.

Considering time alone, it hadn’t even been an hour.

As Sophia was internally making excuses, she suddenly snapped out of it.

‘Why am I justifying myself again? Don’t be so sensitive, Sophia!’

Did Killian really have no feelings about it?

And what if you misunderstand?

It might become one of the reasons later when I switch to Mikhail, and that would be convenient.

While she was thinking this way, Sophia couldn’t shake off the tingling pain.

It wasn’t because she liked Killian, that’s its hurt.

This is… because he’s my fiancé.

Being caught fooling around while having an official fiancé makes it feel uncomfortable for no reason.

Meanwhile, Mikhail also explained the situation to avoid any misunderstandings with Killian.

“Don’t misunderstand. We happened to meet accidentally earlier. But I couldn’t play the game alone, so we ended up playing together.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t misunderstand. Why would I doubt my brother?”

Killian smiled lightly and put a little more strength into his hand that gripped Sofia’s shoulder.

“Besides, my fiancée isn’t the type to do such things.”

Killian’s gaze, which was directed at Mihail, shifted to Sophia.

Even though he said, he did not misunderstand, the pressure from Killian’s fingertips resting on her shoulder felt slightly painful.

“Anyway, meeting each other coincidentally in such a crowded place is truly fate,” Killian said, alternating his gaze between Sophia and Mikhail.

Apparently, he misunderstands that Mikhail and Sophia met by making an appointment.

“It really was just a coincidence. Just as if I met His Grace,” Sophia replied.

She lowered her voice so that others couldn’t hear Mikhail’s title. Thankfully, Killian seemed to believe her words.

However, the atmosphere remained cold.

Sophia thought she needed to somehow lighten up the mood.

“…Would you like to have some?”

She awkwardly extended a bundle of skewers to Killian.

“No, it’s alright. I can’t just snatch the fiancée’s food after meeting for the first time in a while.”

Somehow, his response seemed irritated.

Sophia carefully picked out the most expensive and delicious-looking skewer among the selection and offered it to Kilian.

“But please have one. It’s not spicy, I promise.”

Sophia looked at him as if urging him to accept.

Killian gazed up at her with round eyes.

Sophia awkwardly met his gaze.

The strength seemed to drain from Killian’s hand that held her shoulder.

“It’s okay. I am on duty.”

“Oh, you’re on duty.”

Sophia nodded as she gently pulled the skewer back towards herself.

Killian looked at her shyly and sullenly, as she withdrew the skewer.

“If I start eating one, other members will also want to buy snacks while on duty.”

As if feeling he had been too resolute in his refusal, he added a few words.

“…You’re right. I didn’t think things through.”

Sophia nodded in agreement as she looked at the skewers in her hand.

After being turned down by Killian, her appetite seemed to diminish somehow.

The feeling of excitement that had surged as she bought a bunch of skewers had turned into a cold emptiness.

Then a gentle hand reached out to softly caress Sophia’s head.

“Still, thank you for thinking of me and suggesting it.”

Killian, who had been wearing a stern expression, slightly raised the corners of his mouth.

His once firm and cold red iris had turned warm and tender.

A voice that resonated deep within her heart.

‘Why do you keep making my heart race?’

Sophia pressed her chest to calm the pounding sensation, once again trying to distance herself from Killian after emerging from the Grand Duke manor.

‘Is that person really a murderer…?’

Throughout the past month, every time Killian came to mind, Sophia reminded herself of his true identity as a murderer.

But even with her determination teetering on the brink, a single small smile from him could shatter it all.

The moments when he had been kind came flooding back, while the fact that he was a murderer grew fainter.

‘Let’s go together. To a place that suits you.’

The vivid first impression from the day they first met in the attic.

‘No one has the right to treat my person this way, Madam.’

The gentle hand that he extended when she desperately needed it.

‘You are my companion. Always.’

The passionate confession was whispered softly.

Perhaps all the time they had spent together was so warm and precious that it might have become something to fear losing.

If everything he had shown her was a lie, then even those precious memories might become false.

And now, meeting again almost a month later, he still exuded warmth and charm.

‘Could it be that I’m misunderstanding something?’

Sophia even began to doubt her own memories.

Did I read the book wrong?

Since it was a novel she read casually, could her memory be distorted?

Could he not be a murderer?

Or, at the very least, was there a reason he had to kill them?

I know it’s a strange excuse.

Even if I read the book casually, I shouldn’t have confused the original villain.

Hadn’t I seen him return home wounded in the middle of the night?

But as his warmth seeped in, my heart gained strength.

How could someone like this have killed people?

Why, in the world?

At that moment, a certain voice captured Sophia’s ears.

“Why are you like this?”

Even if you listen to it while passing by it has a clear and beautiful voice.

“Don’t come this way…!”

However, in a tone that seemed as if she was being threatened by someone, Sophia turned her head in the direction of the voice.

At the corner of a narrow alley, a group of men surrounded a woman.

So tightly packed were they that it was hard to see the woman clearly.

Killian and Mihail also turned their heads in the direction Sophia was looking.

“Quite a commotion.”

Knowing that military police officers had been reinforced, it was surprising to witness such behaviour.

Killian’s expression turned chilly.

Mikhail also nodded in agreement.

“Lady Sophia, just stay here for now. Enjoy your skewers.”

Mikhail directed Sophie to a safe spot among the crowd.

At that moment, this scene flashed in Sophia’s mind like a spark.

‘Could it be that the woman surrounded by those thugs…!’

The female protagonist, Estelle Niore?!

Sophia raised her heels and craned her neck, continuously watching where Kilian and Mikhail were heading.

It was to catch a glimpse of the woman encircled by the men.

And between the men’s shoulders, she caught sight of the woman.

Her lush pink hair and emerald green eyes shimmered like peridot stone.

(This is the peridot stone, for better visualization.)

Undeniably breathtaking beauty.

As expected, it was the heroine, Estelle!

‘It’s so obvious she’s the heroine, isn’t it?’ Sophia thought.

Even without knowing the original novel’s content, one could immediately recognize her.

After possessing Sophia for the first time, I thought that her face was also very pretty, but after all, it couldn’t compare to a real female lead.

Unlike Sophia, who appeared somewhat plain due to her excessively thin figure and beautiful face, Estelle exuded a healthy radiance and vibrancy.

Moreover, her lustrous and abundant pink hair captured attention effortlessly.

‘Even her voice is perfect, and it’s enough to make Kilian fall for her,’ Sophie mused.

In the novel, Estelle becomes the object of Killian’s unending obsession and twisted love.

‘…Indeed, it’s better if Estelle and Kilian are connected.’

As Sophia chewed on the end of a skewer stick, she contemplated.

If those two were connected, Sophia Fraus could find someone like Mikhail or another male protagonist.

Then Killian wouldn’t betray her, and Sophia wouldn’t have to marry a murderer.

‘Yes, considering the current situation, that would be the best. Even if it’s for my sake…’

Sophia regained her determination and nodded.

Thinking about it, the story had a promising start.

Originally, it was Mikhail alone who would rescue Estelle.

But now, both men were stepping up together.

A possibility arose that Killian and Estelle might become connected.

‘I’ll like to see how it unfolds.’

Sophia settled in a spot where she had a clear view of the alley, skewer in hand, closely observing the situation.

As Killian and Mikhail approached the troublemakers, the thugs recognized Kilian in his police uniform and began to cautiously back away, eventually deciding to flee.

They quickly realized he wasn’t someone they could take on in a fight.

However, Killian, responsible for maintaining law and order, couldn’t simply let them go.

With a speed that was twice that of the troublemakers, Killian sprinted forward and swiftly apprehended them, knocking them down in an instant.

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TRANSLATOR:

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