I sucked in another deep breath and tugged lightly at the corner of Captian's shirt. When he didn't react or push me away, my courage grew. I eased closer to him, my lips curling into a small smile. My face, which had been pale, suddenly felt fuller of life; that little mole under my eye made me feel like a fragile flower in full bloom delicate, but somehow alluring. "President Anderson, Hezze's family owns a hospital." I brought up something related to modern medicine, my eyes lighting up like pearls.
Captian raised a brow, signaling me to continue. I curled my lips and boldly went on, "I really like everything related to medicine. I want to study it more deeply. That way, if you ever get sick or hurt, you can just leave it to me. Letting anyone else handle it… would be hard to feel at ease, right?"
His expression relaxed a little. "And I'm supposed to feel at ease leaving it to you?"
I wet my lips, the faint scent of my own perfume drifting between us. "Of course. I'll definitely take good care of you. President Anderson, you can rest assured."
My tone was soft, obedient, and sweet enough to melt someone's resolve.
He frowned, clearly irritated by this unfamiliar softness rising inside him. If it were anyone else talking like this, he probably would've kicked them out already.
Seeing his face darken, I bit my lip, a little rattled. I'd already acted weak, said everything I could, so why still no reaction? Was this soft, coaxing approach not working at all?
I sighed inwardly, my gaze dimming. This demon king really was impossible to please.
"Fine."
Just when I thought he was going to refuse, Captian spoke.
I brightened instantly, my eyes going wide. "President Anderson, what did you say?"
His voice stayed as cold as ever. "If you didn't hear it clearly, then don't go."
I shook my head frantically, gripping his sleeve. "No, I heard you. You agreed, right? I knew it, President Anderson is the one who treats me the best."
My little mouth was as sweet as honey, practically praising him all the way into the clouds.
His gaze deepened. He knew these were just tricks, knew these compliments weren't from the heart. But he was still willing to walk right into the trap. As long as I didn't cross any real lines, he could tolerate me.
I had no idea what he was thinking. Right now my head was full of one thing only: after class I could go to Hezze's house to practice piano. That meant I could actually complete the two–week promise. No matter how I thought about it, I couldn't suppress the excitement rising inside me.
Seeing how bright and radiant I looked, he couldn't resist claiming my lips again. The lingering kiss went on for a long time, until my head was spinning before he finally let me go.
Face burning red, backpack already on, I bolted for the door. "President Anderson, I'm sleepy, I'm going back to my room to sleep first!"
He watched my retreating back. Didn't want him to touch her, huh? But time was the one thing he had plenty of if he wanted to "play" with me slowly.
The next day.
I wore the same pink dress to school, the one he'd prepared for me. As soon as I arrived, both Hezze and Halley were ridiculously enthusiastic, especially Halley, who kept calling me "little fairy," making me want to bury my face in the ground.
"Halley, can I talk to you about something?" I turned to him, looking very serious.
"Little fairy, what do you want to talk about?" Halley tilted his head, curious. His skin was fair, his eyes bright and clear, he really did look like a little puppy, absurdly cute. Boys like him probably got doted on by adults and older girls everywhere.
I spoke carefully, afraid I'd startle him if I wasn't gentle enough. "Could you… not call me 'little fairy' anymore? I feel really embarrassed."
"Embarrassed?" Halley blinked. "But I think it sounds really nice. It's a sign of admiration and respect from me, you know!"
I almost choked. Admiration and respect? It sounded more like the cringe fantasies of a hormonal teenage boy.
"Actually, you can just call me by my name. 'Rosy' is fine." I really just wanted him to act more normal.
Halley didn't reply right away; he seemed to be thinking about something. I didn't push it. Right then, Liona walked into the classroom with her bag over her shoulder, looking completely drained, like she'd just gone through some massive blow.
I was startled by how defeated she looked. I remembered running into her at the Western restaurant last time—she'd still been acting all high and mighty back then, flaunting herself like some rich heiress above everyone else. Yet after just two short days she looked like this like some powerless little mouse with no money, no status. The contrast was so dramatic I couldn't help but stare.
"Whoa, did Liona's family go bankrupt or something?" Hezze was shocked too.
I shook my head. "I don't know. Maybe she went through something big."
"A serious illness?" Hezze whispered another guess.
I hesitated. "Maybe. But it probably isn't that bad… right?"
We were just quietly gossiping, but Liona was unusually sensitive. It was as if she knew we were talking about her; she suddenly slammed her book on the desk and snapped, "Talking, talking, talking what are you talking about? Gossiping about others behind their backs, you'd better be careful or karma's going to come bite you!"
The moment she said that, all the whispering in the classroom died. Hezze and I also shut up.
But by lunchtime, half the school was buzzing with rumors about Liona again. After all, people's mouths were impossible to control.
"Did you guys hear? Liona from Class A came to school today looking totally dead, like she's seriously ill or something."
"It's not illness. I heard from my cousin that Liona's family lost a piece of land in the city center worth several hundred million."
"I heard that too. They say Ninth Master took it from them."
The moment Anderson's name came up, everyone fell silent in shock. In Alchimie City, everyone knew how dangerous and ruthless he was, how he could call the shots like a storm. Only an idiot would dare provoke him. The Robbery family really must be stupid daring to anger him like that. The fact they were still alive was already lucky. Losing a piece of land was nothing in comparison.
"Wow, the Robbery family is wild. They actually dared to offend President Anderson!" Hezze couldn't help but sigh after hearing the gossip.
I had been about to say something, but then felt that something about this sounded… off. A piece of land in the city center, worth hundreds of millions, now in Captian's hands, it sounded exactly like the land on that transfer contract I got yesterday.
Had he really taken that land from the Robbery family? Not only that, he'd even handed the deed to me. If the Robberys ever found out, wouldn't they hate me to death?
A mix of absurdity and awkwardness washed over me. I curled my lips and gave a dry little laugh. "Yeah, that's really wild daring to offend President Anderson like that."
Thinking back to that day at the Western restaurant, it really did seem like he was small–minded and vindictive.
The story of Liona offending him spread through the entire school. And really, who was President Anderson, if not the last person anyone should dare cross?