Chapter 449 - 449: Substitute Bride of the Demon King (53)

He had been holding Yue Ran's hand for far longer than he intended, the warmth of her skin radiating into his own.

With a sudden rush of embarrassment flooding his cheeks, Andre immediately released her grip, feeling the heat of the moment linger in the air between them.

As Andre's gaze drifted, it unexpectedly locked with hers. The sight was enchanting; a pair of clear and distinct eyes looked at him, bright and vivid, shimmering like sunlit water as they reflected his image, seemingly full of his figure, as though he were not just a momentary distraction, but her entire universe.

At that moment, Andre's heart beat faster.

There was an unfamiliar stirring within him, a sensation that fluttered restlessly in his chest.

The man looked at Yue Ran's face in a daze, but she remained blissfully unaware of his gaze. Her attention was wholly focused on the injury that marred her hand, her eyes working diligently to examine the damage.

The warm golden rays of sunlight poured through the window, enveloping her in a soft, ethereal glow. Each beam seemed to radiate an otherworldly beauty, each ray lighting her figure as if she were draped in gossamer threads of pure light. Even the slight furrow of her brow, hinting at her pain and discomfort, appeared almost sacred in this enchanting illumination, further amplifying the angelic aura that surrounded her.

Andre was on the verge of uttering something to alleviate the awkwardness that enveloped the room when an abrupt noise echoed from outside the door, slicing through the silence.

Startled, both he and Yue Ran turned to see the wooden door pushed open on its hinges.

The figure that stepped inside caused a jolt of clarity to rush through Andre, yanking him from the haze of distraction. Without thinking, he instinctively tugged at the sleeve of Yue Ran's dress, his fingers tightening to hide their hands under the blanket, desperate to prevent anyone from seeing anything.

"Ow…" Yue Ran winced, her voice laced with surprise as a frown etched itself onto her delicate features as she hissed in pain. "What are you doing? Be gentle, will you?"

As soon as her voice fell, a familiar voice broke through the air from the doorway, threaded with worry. "Andre, are you okay?"

"…Ellie?" Andre breathed, the name escaping his lips like a whisper carried by the wind. His eyes widened in disbelief, and a stunned expression washed over his face, as if he were trying to convince himself of her presence.

Yue Ran also happened to study Ellie, the female protagonist, who had a face quite similar to her own, in her full figure.

However, just as her surprise began to settle, her gaze collided unexpectedly with another pair of eyes— a pair of eyes laden with shadows of gloom, hints of depression, and a myriad of unexpressed emotions— each one intertwining and layered deeply within him, almost as if they were intricately woven into the very fabric of his being.

They belonged to Silas.

Yue Ran held his gaze for several heartbeats. After a moment of silence, she calmly looked away.

Silas had no intention of entering the door. However, when he raised his gaze, he encountered a scene that seized his breath. He found himself staring at two figures on the bed, their hands tightly clasped together. The proximity of their bodies and their postures exuded an unmistakable intimacy— a closeness that seemed to wrap around them like a warm blanket, a stark contrast to the chill that settled in his heart.

It was just like what she had done to him at the beginning.

At that moment, the repressed, restrained, and forbearing emotions he had stifled and accumulated in his heart for a long time finally burst out. It was as if he had found a certain outlet at that moment. Everything surged forth like a tidal wave breaking free from a dam that could no longer contain it. His heart felt like a reservoir on the brink of collapse, a catastrophic structural failure, leaving nothing untouched by its tumultuous tide.

Jealousy and possessiveness coursed through his veins like a wildfire, igniting every nerve in his body and consuming his very being. It snaked its way through his bloodstream, enveloping his organs and squeezing them mercilessly, suffocating him from the inside out, seeping out from his skin, encasing him, and then grasping his soul with its dark tendrils.

It was especially turbulent when he caught sight of Yue Ran and Andre locked in what he could only describe as a "shared moment of intimacy."

The sight crashed into him like a vicious wave, a jarring ache sliced through his chest, sharp and relentless. It was so uncomfortable that Silas felt like he was suffocating on land, as if the very air had been snatched away, rendering him breathless and disoriented. He could not help but have a burning desire to rush forward and completely separate the two of them.

But… why?

Why did it hurt so much?

Why did he feel this way?

These troubling questions fluttered in the back of his mind.

He obviously harbored feelings for Ellie; it was evident that she had captured his heart. Yet, despite this undeniable truth, just why… why was his mind inexplicably plagued by memories of Leila— Leila and Leila alone?

Why? Just why? Why couldn't he shake her from his mind?

Silas clenched his fingers tightly behind his back and forced himself to rein in the tumultuous storm of emotions swirling within him.

A little in front of him, Ellie caught the subtle shift in his mood, sensing the tension radiating off him. Misinterpreting his inner turmoil as jealousy, she leaned closer, her voice soft and soothing. "Sil, I have told you before; I just want to say a few words to Andre. There is nothing else behind it."

Andre, aside from Yue Ran, also noticed Silas, his lifetime enemy, behind Ellie when she had turned her head around to speak.