Chapter 5.6

The moment Pharone embraced Elena, Helio, who had been watching from a distance, felt flames ignite in his eyes.  

‘That lunatic…’  

A curse slipped out of his mouth.  

He wanted to rush over immediately and separate the two, but without knowing the exact situation, he couldn’t act rashly.  

Elena had said she intended to seduce Pharone. If things were progressing as planned, his interference might ruin everything. If he appeared at the wrong time, it could raise unnecessary suspicions.  

“Just keep watching. She’s already halfway to success.”  

Was this part of her plan too? Did she really have to go this far?  

Should I just stand by and watch?

His insides churned.  

At that moment, he saw Elena struggling to break free. There was no longer any need to wait.  

He rushed over and struck Pharone on the back of the neck, knocking him unconscious.  

Helio regretted hesitating, even for a moment. Not only had Pharone embraced her, but he had also dared to press his filthy lips toward her.  

The urge to snap Pharone’s neck right then and there was overwhelming.  

He was angry at Elena too. What had she been thinking, wearing an outfit like that?  

He had warned her. Yet here she was, dressed in something that left her shoulders completely exposed and clung to her body…  

Did she underestimate the strength of men? What would have happened if I hadn’t been there? 

He had intended to scold her.  

But the intense emotions that had been boiling inside him vanished the moment he saw her tears.  

Transparent drops streamed endlessly from Elena’s eyes.  

Her trembling figure finally registered in his mind. In an instant, his body cooled, and his rationality returned.  

Red marks stood out starkly on her pale arms, evidence of Pharone’s grip pressing into her delicate skin.  

A surge of fury directed solely at Pharone roiled within him.  

Should I break that man’s neck even now? 

Helio seriously considered it.  

But then, Elena’s small frame burrowed into his chest.  

‘Ugh.’  

He couldn’t breathe.  

The sweet scent wafting from her overwhelmed his senses.  

His heart, which he had barely been aware of before, now pounded furiously, as if it wanted to announce its presence. It raced so fast that his chest ached.  

He didn’t know what to do in such a situation.  

Standing stiffly, he cautiously wrapped his arms around her and held her. Her fragile body seemed to fit perfectly into his embrace.  

He couldn’t hold her tightly for fear of hurting her. Even the slightest pressure felt like it might break her.  

Helio couldn’t bring himself to name the feeling surging within him.  

Or perhaps, deep down, he already knew. He had just been pretending not to.  

Now, he had no choice but to admit it.  

He was drawn to Elena.  

But this feeling was fundamentally different from the one she had for him.  

Could he even call his emotions “love”? 

Helio wasn’t sure.  

His feelings for her had always been more “dislike” than “like.”  

He had disliked how she had barged into his quiet, solitary space without hesitation. He had disliked how she had tried to intrude not only into his space but also into his heart.  

What he hated most was how he had started to change without even realizing it. He couldn’t maintain his composure whenever she was involved.  

He hated seeing her smile at other men. He hated hearing her speak kindly to them.  

At first, he thought it was just because the other man was Lennon. But when she smiled at Pharone, he realized it wasn’t that simple.  

He wanted her to look only at him. He wanted to be the sole reflection in her violet eyes.  

Helio’s gaze darkened with possessiveness.  

Emotions he had never experienced before swirled and tangled within him.  

Could I burden her with these messy feelings?  

He couldn’t allow it. 

Absolutely not. It mustn’t happen.  

Having never received proper love, how could I ever return proper love?  

Unlike the careful embrace at the beginning, his arms were now wrapped tightly around her. 

How was I any different from Pharone at this point?  

Her small, trembling body evoked both sympathy and, deep within, a small sense of satisfaction. She was relying on him.  

The realization made him feel sick. It was as though he had been struck hard in the head.  

Helio slowly released Elena, taking hold of her shoulders to gently separate her from him.  

This wasn’t the kind of emotion she wanted.  

Unless he drained all the blood from his body and became someone entirely new, he had no right to desire her.  

For a moment, he had forgotten the fact that the tainted blood of a man who destroyed a woman’s life with his twisted possessiveness and obsession flowed through his veins.  

He couldn’t repeat his father’s mistakes. Even the thought that he might follow the same path was horrifying.  

For now, it was fine. For now, he could pretend none of this had happened.  

For now…  

***

The Grand Duke’s arms, which had initially embraced her gently, began to tighten.  

Inside his firm hold, Elena gradually felt a sense of security. It was as though she was being protected by an unbreakable wall, safe from anyone who might harm her.  

Even after she calmed down, she remained nestled in his arms, pretending not to notice.  

Perhaps he realized this, as his arms suddenly loosened.  

She wanted to stay in his embrace longer, but when he pushed her shoulders away, she hesitantly stepped back.  

When she glanced up, the Grand Duke’s expression was dark and unreadable, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking.  

After crying in his arms for so long and returning to reality, she began to feel embarrassed.  

Instead of seducing Pharone and extracting information, she had only caused trouble.  

“Thank you so much. I didn’t expect him to act like that so suddenly…”  

She had expected the Grand Duke to say something, but he remained strangely silent.  

When no response came, the atmosphere grew even more awkward.  

‘Ah, the Lord’s son is still here.’  

Perhaps he was worried about how to handle things after what had happened.  

Looking at Pharone, who was still unconscious, Elena started to feel uneasy as well.  

“What should we do about Pharone?”  

As soon as the Grand Duke’s golden eyes, which had been cold and quiet, shifted to Pharone, they gleamed with an icy light.  

The Grand Duke looked down at Pharone with an expression as though he was biting into something bitter. 

“We’ll call someone to deal with him. He’s a fool, so we can make up any excuse, and it’ll work somehow.”  

No, there was a limit to how foolish someone could be. No matter what excuse they came up with, there was no way this situation could be brushed off.  

Or so she thought, but her concerns proved unnecessary—Pharone was far more simple-minded than she had anticipated.  

***

“Ah, here you are. I’ve been looking for you since you weren’t in your room.”  

It was about two hours after they had called someone to move Pharone back to the Lord’s estate.  

As soon as he regained consciousness, Pharone seemed to have searched for Elena, running to her the moment they encountered each other in the hallway.  

“You’re awake! I was worried, but I’m so relieved you recovered quickly.”  

“You… you were worried about me…?”  

Of course, she had been worried—worried about what to say if he woke up and started questioning her.  

Feeling a twinge of guilt as she watched him grow emotional, Elena skillfully maintained her act.  

“We were sitting on a bench, talking, and then you suddenly collapsed. I was so shocked! Do you… remember anything?”  

Had he seen the Grand Duke before losing consciousness?  

Feeling anxious, she carefully tested the waters, but fortunately, Pharone seemed completely oblivious.  

“Yes, I don’t remember much, but the doctor said it might have been a mild heatstroke.”  

Her testimony—that he had suddenly collapsed while they were talking—led the doctor to diagnose him with heatstroke.  

She mentioned that his breathing was shallow and rapid, and he was sweating profusely, listing typical symptoms of heatstroke. Naturally, the doctor had accepted her explanation.  

In reality, Pharone’s final moments before losing consciousness had indeed matched those symptoms, so it wasn’t entirely a lie.  

“It must have been because you were guiding me around in this heat…”  

When she showed a hint of regret, Pharone quickly shook his head.  

“It’s nothing. I volunteered to guide you because I wanted to. Ugh…”  

As he shook his head, he suddenly clutched the back of his neck and let out a groan. This time, it was Elena who felt cold sweat forming.  

“Are… are you all right?”  

“Yes, I’m fine. It’s just that my neck has been hurting strangely since earlier.”  

“It’s probably because you hit the bench. When you collapsed, there was a loud thud.”  

For an improvised excuse, it was fairly convincing.  

The Grand Duke had struck him so cleanly on a vital point that Pharone’s neck bore no visible injuries whatsoever.  

“Ah, I see. But… by any chance…”  

Pharone hesitated for a long moment, as if he had something else to say, before finally speaking.  

“Before I collapsed, were we just talking? For example—and this is purely hypothetical—did I… embrace you or something like that?”  

“Oh my, what nonsense. There’s no way you would do something so improper, Pharone.”  

Feigning ignorance and even sounding indignant, Elena denied it outright. Pharone’s face fell with disappointment.  

She was covering for his mistake, yet instead of being grateful, he looked as though he was sulking.  

Though she wanted to confront him about what had happened earlier, she suppressed the urge.  

After all, it wasn’t a memory she wanted to revisit either.  

Until now, she had thought Pharone seemed like a decent person, but recalling the unsettling look in his eyes during that moment made her shudder.  

“Right? Haha… Yes, I must have dreamed something strange while I was unconscious.”  

“Rest is the most important thing for heatstroke. Please take it easy today. I’ll be on my way now.”  

Pharone looked as though he still had more to say, but before he could act recklessly again, Elena decided it was best to leave.  

Just as she turned to go, a rough hand suddenly grabbed her arm.