The Beast Who Has Returned Obsesses Over Me - Chapter 6

But then, his expression slowly softened. He was calming down from such intense anger. She was bewildered by this unfamiliar development.

While not completely retracting his suspicious gaze at her reaction, a somewhat relieved expression flitted across Leon’s face. She really didn’t understand why he had asked such a thing and why he was now relieved.

“Come here.”

She really didn’t want to… Her face crumpled, on the verge of tears. Although bewildered, she knew it wasn’t over yet. He might seem calm now, but he could snap at any moment.

He clenched his jaw, his face contorting. That made him even scarier. It seemed like he was angry at her.

And at his silent command, tapping the side of the bed with his hand, she had no choice but to approach him with trembling legs. It was time for her punishment. The more she dragged it out, the more painful it would be for her. It was better to get it over with quickly.

She forced her legs onto the bed and crawled next to him. She knelt down, lowered her gaze, and began to tremble. She was so ashamed that tears welled up in her eyes.

He gently wiped away her tears with his hand. He hadn’t hit her yet.

“You must have been scared.”

His face was blurry because of her tears. She quickly wiped them away and cautiously looked at his face. It seemed like he was angry, but at the same time, it didn’t… She couldn’t figure him out again.

She nodded involuntarily. I am scared. There’s no one as scary as you.

“I must look even scarier with all these injuries.”

This time, she shook her head. No. You were scary even without the injuries.

She would have preferred it if he had just hit her. After a beating, she could at least rest until the next one. Now, he was constantly pressuring her without any respite, in this strange way.

“I’ll recover quickly, for your sake.”

He continued in a soft voice, like he was soothing a crying child. She stared at him with wide eyes. He wasn’t enraged. Was he not going to hit her?

He had angrily called her closer, but he didn’t raise his hand. Then why did he make her come closer? It was still unfamiliar and unsettling.

His hand moved slowly again. Towards her head.

And then, he began to stroke her long, golden hair. His softening gaze seemed to savor the softness. This was the first time he had ever touched her hair like this, letting it slip through his fingers. His expression revealed that this was a first for him too.

“This… isn’t a dream, is it?”

His voice had taken on a languid tone.

She ignored his words. It didn’t matter what kind of delusion he was having due to the aftereffects of the war. She would just leave him be. As long as he didn’t erupt in anger. That was all that mattered to her.

She watched him cautiously, holding her breath, as if she were a statue.

The room was silent except for the faint sound of him stroking her hair. The silence felt strange, but she remained still, careful not to disturb it. It would be disastrous if she interrupted his… gradual return to stability.

Unlike her wildly beating heart, sunlight streamed through the broken windowpane. The drowsy air grew heavier.

Leon’s eyes gradually lost their intensity, his eyelids drooping slowly. His hand, stroking her hair, also slowed. As if he were the only one at peace in this moment, his eyes grew heavy with sleep.

He must have woken up too early. She wished, she desperately wished, for him to fall asleep again.

Finally… her wish came true. His eyes closed, his hand resting amidst her hair, and Leon fell asleep again.

He must have been exhausted. Then why did he wake up in the middle of his sleep?

Yvonne held her breath, confirming that he was asleep, and carefully removed his hand from her hair.

She had been so nervous that he might wake up again.

He had fallen asleep sitting up, but she didn’t dare to lay him down properly. It was more important that he didn’t wake up.

Yvonne quietly slipped off the bed, her forehead damp with cold sweat. She cautiously took a step towards the door. One step… then another…

“Yv…onne?”

He called out to her in a sleepy voice, as if he knew she wasn’t there.

She hurriedly went back to him. His eyes fluttered open, finding her, and a look of relief washed over him. He fidgeted with his hand, so she quickly placed her hair in his grasp. This left her awkwardly bent over.

As he resumed toying with her hair, his eyes slowly closed. Leon’s chest rose and fell in a regular rhythm. It seemed he had fallen asleep again.

He wasn’t even Emil… When Emil was young, he used to be like this. At least Emil was cute when he would open his eyes and look for her if she wasn’t around. Leon, though not a child, seemed to be seeking comfort from her.

[It takes talent to make someone this angry.]

It was impossible for him, the man who used to say such things just by looking at her face, to find peace by looking at her now. His behavior was beyond comprehension.

She decided to stop trying to understand him. Instead, she shifted her focus to self-preservation.

Her legs were starting to ache from staying in a kneeling position for so long. But she couldn’t just let go of his hair and risk waking him up. If he woke up and found her gone, he would lose his temper again. He might have let it slide once, but he wouldn’t be so forgiving twice. He was probably only this lenient because he was utterly exhausted.

She carefully stretched her legs and lay down on the bed, away from him. That was much better. Suddenly, fatigue washed over her. It was as if she had been tossed around in a raging storm, her body heavy and sinking into the mattress. Her limbs felt increasingly limp.

This is bad…

She needed to get away from the terrifying Leon, but her eyelids grew heavy. His low, steady breathing only served to lull her further into drowsiness.

She wouldn’t fall asleep here, would she? Absolutely not. She would just close her eyes for a moment and then escape. That’s what she told herself.

But Yvonne never got to open her eyes again.

The room was filled with the sound of their quiet breathing.

***

Hours later, or perhaps it was already morning, Yvonne could sense bright light filtering through her eyelids. Oh no… She didn’t want to open her eyes. She wanted to sleep more. Her body felt heavy as lead, and she had no desire to get up. As she tried to open her eyes, she felt a stinging sensation around them. While her body pleaded for more sleep, her mind urged her to wake up.

The bright world came into view, but Yvonne, still drowsy from sleep, remained dazed. Her limbs felt heavy and exhausted, as if she had gone through strenuous labor.

Even in her hazy state, she felt an unusual discomfort prickling her skin like thorns.

And then she saw another pair of eyes right in front of her. Deep brown eyes… Then, she began to make out the face of their owner.

Gasp!

It all came flooding back to her. It wasn’t morning, and this wasn’t her room.

Leon, with his shining brown eyes, was lying beside her, facing her. It seemed they had both turned onto their sides in their sleep.

She was so startled that she couldn’t even scream. Her mouth hung open in shock.

Her face pale, Yvonne scrambled out of bed and stumbled to her feet. The sudden movement made her dizzy, and she had to grab onto the bedpost for support.

She had fallen asleep. And next to Leon, of all people. This was insane…

The first person she saw upon waking up was this man. Her head throbbed, and her body reacted with instant rejection.

Yet, he continued to stare at her intently, as if he was seeing her for the first time.

His gaze remained fixed solely on Yvonne. It wasn’t a look of confusion or anxiety. His eyes held a depth of complexity she couldn’t decipher. The way he stared at her, saying nothing, was incredibly unnerving.

“Did you sleep well?”

And then she heard his voice, so unbelievably gentle. This couldn’t be real. Her ears must be playing tricks on her. They were probably still half-asleep.

Leon’s expression darkened as he observed her reaction. It seemed he didn’t like her expression. Then again, pleasing him was harder than reaching for the stars.

Finally, Leon furrowed his brows, expressing his displeasure. But it was Yvonne who was truly discomfited. To think she had fallen asleep next to him… She must have been out of her mind.

She didn’t know when he had woken up, but the thought of him watching her this whole time was terrifying. What was he thinking while looking at her? It couldn’t have been anything good.

Adjusting her disheveled clothes, Yvonne awkwardly walked towards the door. Putting distance between herself and Leon as quickly as possible was the best course of action.

“I… I’ll go check if the servants we sent to the Duk……Duke’s estate have returned.”