Chapter 82: The Playboy Theory.

"Hey, Lily... wanna grab lunch together after class?"

She barely even looked in my direction before flat-out rejecting me.

"No."

I pretended to look hurt.

"You know, you could have at least pretended to think about it."

"Why would I do that?"

She didn’t entertain any of my words.

"By the way, why did you leave the banquet so abruptly? Did you, by any chance, hear something?"

I probed.

Although it had been a few days since the banquet, I hadn’t gotten the chance to ask since most of the time, she even refused to talk to me.

At least, she was actually replying today.

The moment the words left my mouth, her expression finally shifted and her body stiffened ever so slightly. I even felt a faint bloodlust seeping from her shadows, which I promptly ignored.

Rwar was just being a cute and overprotective guardian as always.

Even in my previous life, she hadn’t approved of my relationship with Lily for quite some time. Hell, I still remembered her trying to kill me after I asked Lily to become my seventh wife.

Thankfully, Lily saved me back then but it was still one of the more traumatic experiences of my previous life.

Even after our marriage, out of all of Lily’s summons, Rwar hated me the most. She called me a playboy for marrying so many wives.

The amount of times she had tried to convince Lily to divorce me was simply too much.

I was pretty sure she had already started doing something similar in this life as well. So, to make sure there weren’t any unnecessary misunderstandings, I continued.

"You know, even if you did overhear something, I just want you to know that I don’t say things like that lightly. Hell, it was the first time I had ever said something like that to anyone."

I looked straight into her crimson eyes.

"You might hear a lot of bad things about me from certain people." My gaze wandered toward her shadow as I spoke. "But trust me, my focus has always been unwavering."

"Also... I might seem close to Princess Seles but trust me, I just need something from her. So, please don’t misunderstand anything, okay?"

My voice was barely above a whisper.

"What are you talking about?"

She finally turned toward me as though she hadn’t heard a single thing I had said. Watching her deliberately ignore my words, I let out a playful smile.

"Nothing, actually. Just ignore it if you really didn’t hear anything that day."

I shrugged as a faint look of annoyance crossed her face.

"You know, you’re an annoying weirdo."

She muttered before turning back toward the front.

"Who isn’t?" I shot back almost immediately. "So... about that lunch?"

"No."

She answered before I could even finish the sentence.

Even so, I caught the corner of her lips threatening to curl into a smile.

...And somehow, just seeing that felt nice.

***

[Lily’s POV]

What is wrong with him?

Why is he trying so hard to explain himself to me when I clearly couldn’t care less?

Lily’s mind was in chaos even as, for some reason, her body gradually relaxed but the more the boy spoke, the less she understood him.

It had only been a few days since the academy had begun but he kept doing the same thing over and over again.

Even though she had blatantly ignored him ever since the banquet, he refused to give up and somehow, Lily had even begun to expect these small interactions with him.

But just as she was spiraling in those thoughts, Rwar’s voice snapped her out of it.

[Don’t fall for it, Lily.]

Rwar’s voice echoed from her shadows.

[He has learned the one thing that works on almost every woman, giving them attention. He is deliberately showering you with it so you will start craving it and the moment you do, he will pull away, play hard to get and make you chase after him instead.]

[Just like all men do.]

[So don’t fall for it, my child.]

Her voice was barely a whisper inside Lily’s mind as she stole a glance at Zenith beside her.

[And didn’t you hear what he said about that Princess? He tried to sound honest... but it was a trap.]

Rwar spoke with the confidence of a detective who had solved some big case.

[You may not have noticed it at the moment but I analyzed every single word. He said he needed something from that Princess, which is why he is getting close to her.]

She continued in the same speculative tone.

[Doesn’t that just reinforce his playboy nature? If he is willing to get close to the Princess because he wants something from her, what proof do you have that he isn’t trying the same thing with you?]

[What if he wants something from you too?]

’You might be overanalyzing things, Rwar.’

Lily finally broke her silence.

’And what is there for him to even gain by getting close to me? I am just a commoner, a tool raised by the Weaver to carry out his plans. He doesn’t even know my background, so why would he bother trying to use me?’

’Besides, I am definitely not falling for anything... and I’m definitely not craving his attention.’

[....]

Rwar remained silent for a moment.

[This is exactly what I am talking about. See how you are already defending him? And besides... he does have something to gain from you.]

’And what is that?’

Lily asked blankly.

She was genuinely curious what Rwar thought he could possibly want from her.

She was strong, sure but it wasn’t as if he couldn’t find countless women just as powerful with his influence and... looks.

There was even Princess Hope, whom he had accompanied to the banquet that day. She was rich, beautiful and Lily was certain she was at least as strong as herself.

So strength definitely wasn’t what he was after.

Which only made her more curious about Rwar’s answer.

[Your body.]

"What are you talking about?!"

The words escaped her lips far louder than she intended as she instinctively slammed her desk and shot to her feet.

The entire classroom fell silent.

The attention of every student, including the professor, who had just entered, immediately turned toward her.

Only then did Lily realize what she had done.

"Sorry."

Muttering a quiet apology, she sat back down without another word.