Chapter 72
“Offer your neck?”
I never expected her to say something so absurd.
Agatha stared at Wendy, her face showing slight bewilderment.
Judging by her tightly pressed lips and tense expression, it didn’t seem like a joke.
‘Is this woman in her right mind?’
If she were to charge at me, she’d be split in half before she could even put up a fight.
Or she’d be reduced to ashes, obliterated by the holy light that burns everything.
Wasn’t she afraid?
‘Someone so weak and powerless.’
Well, she had been different from ordinary people since the moment we first met.
It was that difference that first piqued my interest in her.
Even without knowing who I was, she looked at me as though I were a crawling insect.
Even before the world became this way, I’d been accustomed to receiving only friendly gazes.
It had become second nature for me to draw such looks.
So when I encountered that unfamiliar gaze of hers, it sparked my curiosity.
It had been a trivial curiosity at first.
‘Why does she despise me so much?’
Deep down, I wanted to know what she was thinking.
So I followed her.
I knew it was petty, but I still trailed her steps.
And before I knew it, I arrived at a green meadow under a starry sky, where she stood.
Xenon was there too.
Seeing her standing beside him unsettled me in an inexplicable way.
It was irrational, but I even felt an impulse to drag her away.
Of course, I dismissed the thought back then, thinking I’d have plenty of opportunities later.
Looking back now, perhaps I should have taken her, no matter the cost.
Her overly protective comrades wouldn’t let her be alone.
Even a minor injury would send them into a frenzy, fussing over her endlessly.
From that point, my curiosity began to morph into greed.
A greed for something difficult to obtain.
Not because of its inherent value, but simply because it was hard to acquire.
It was a childish greed, the kind that drives children to covet the unattainable.
Perhaps it was that very greed that burned more fiercely because I had always easily obtained whatever I wanted.
That immature greed evolved further in recent days.
‘Thank you, Xenon.’
Just before the war between black and white factions broke out, while I was patrolling the base, I heard a familiar voice.
Silently, I approached, hidden from view.
It could have been a golden opportunity to learn about the opposing team’s strategy or plans.
But what I saw wasn’t a serious discussion or strategy session.
It was Xenon giving Wendy a flower bracelet.
For the first time, I saw her lips curl into a smile—a smile she had never shown me, only a look of disdain.
‘…Why?’
I didn’t understand.
That measly flower bracelet.
It would wither soon and become worthless trash.
I could offer her something far better—a whole world, even.
So why would she smile so easily at something so insignificant?
From then on, my petty greed evolved into a dangerous desire.
A strange heat burned within me.
As a crown prince who had lived a life of privilege, the unfamiliar feeling of inferiority shook me to my core.
Before heading to the Wind’s Stronghold, I hypnotized the most insignificant-looking woman I could find.
I even stationed the most skilled apostles near the entrance to the stronghold, just in case she faced danger.
But to my disbelief, she emerged unscathed from the chaos I had designed to kill her.
Not only that, but she awakened her younger sibling and returned with a confident demeanor.
‘As expected.’
The more challenging the process of acquisition, the brighter the treasure shines.
I made up my mind.
One day, after all the obstacles surrounding her had been eliminated…
When she was left alone, utterly desolate…
I would approach her and become her only light.
‘So, for now…’
She couldn’t die just yet.
For her to see me as her sole beacon, she needed to experience even greater despair and pain.
Ah, of course. The comment about severing her limbs was partially sincere.
‘Though I have no intention of doing it just yet.’
If she continued to overstep her bounds and act out of place, I might make that cruel choice one day.
Briefly entertaining such thoughts, Agatha rolled Wendy Porcelain’s name on his tongue a few times before slowly opening and closing his eyes.
She was weak.
Despite not having a skill to see others’ stats, Agatha could roughly assess them by observation.
At most, the small child dealing with ghosts—that was her limit.
Perhaps she was even worse off than that, scraping the bottom.
The weak are meant to submit to, rely on, and bow before the strong.
Yet, with that frail, paper-like body, she dared to challenge me head-on.
It was a sight that defied common sense.
But at the same time, that’s what made it…
So irrationally brilliant.
That brilliance must have been what drew those monsters to follow her.
Her audacity.
“But I’m willing to risk my life for my comrades.”
Her passion.
“Get away from my comrades!”
Her devotion.
“Then go ahead. Cut off my limbs, subdue me, and kill Xenon.”
…Ah.
The more he thought about it, the more Agatha reaffirmed the thought: that brilliance must be his.
Though she looked as if she could collapse at any moment,
Though her faint breath barely held her life together,
How could she still stand so proudly, shining so brightly?
He wanted to open up her body, dissect her, and explore her completely.
Her rosy hair, which hadn’t lost its luster even amidst the ruins of a shattered temple, looked especially alluring today.
Her sparkling pink eyes that shone like candy.
Even her cracked lips, which twisted in hatred every time she looked at him.
Everything about her, everything that made up Wendy Porcelain,
Every cell that composed her…
It all stimulated Agatha deeply.
And so, to preserve this stimulus, perhaps stepping back for now was necessary.
“Coward,” she had called him.
Muttering the first title she had ever given him, Agatha let out a faint chuckle.
“That might be true.”
Perhaps she was right—he truly was a coward.
“As you said, I have too much to lose to risk it all in a fight.”
Those who possess much fear losing it all the most.
“And there’s so much I want.”
It was his own greed that held him back from taking a step forward.
The desire to rule over and dominate others from above.
The greed to continue manipulating people’s hearts and toying with them as he pleased.
“In that sense, you’re definitely ahead of me.”
In a fight like this, Agatha knew he had no chance of winning.
It was a battle between someone willing to give up everything and someone unwilling to give up anything.
“Very well.”
Meanwhile, the white faction was steadily gaining the upper hand.
Theo, blessed by the constellation Hercules, was getting drawn into Darwin’s relentless onslaught.
Janette, known for her endurance in long battles, was gradually exposing vulnerabilities as the fight dragged on.
Even Eric, the spearman he had relied on, could barely fend off the enemy’s attacks.
Was it because his chosen cards were too weak?
Or was it because her cards were too strong?
“This fight is your victory.”
Honestly, it was frustrating.
Even now, the desire to drag her away was surging within him.
“Congratulations.”
But looking into her determined eyes now…
If he were to swing his sword at her limbs,
She would likely thrust her neck toward him, demanding he cut that too.
Throwing her life away so recklessly for a gamble.
What an utterly brash and reckless woman.
“Enjoy your victory to the fullest.”
How could he not want her?
He wanted to see those determined eyes transform into admiration, dependence, and submission toward him.
He wanted to take those shining eyes and bury them in the dirt.
To see those starlit eyes roll on the ground,
Lose their light in a haze of dust and shed blurred tears as they finally leaned on him.
So he would endure.
Fine dining requires appropriate preparation, after all.
“I’ll retreat for now.”
Even as he turned his steps away, reluctantly pulling back his feet, his gaze remained fixed on her until the last moment.
Those brilliant eyes, still full of determination.
A searing thirst clawed at his heart as he watched her.
“See you again, Wendy.”
Gritting his teeth, Agatha suppressed his desire and whispered softly.
Then he turned his back and walked away.
—
Read More at – GENZNOVEL.COM!!
PLEASE JOIN OUR DISCORD AND SUBSCRIBE THE ROLE TO RECEIVE LATEST NOTIFICATIONS!!
Click here -> https://discord.gg/S8c2kGVr2g
Comment