IPBPBD 17

Chapter 17

Heh. For a moment, Emilina even forgot she was standing before her kidnapper and let out a derisive laugh.

After pulling something like this, now he said he’d let her go? Whatever their goal was, one thing was clear.

They had no intention of sending her back alive.

Emilina wasn’t naïve enough to believe such words.

The man’s absurd remark eased her fear just a little, and she sneered back.

“Liar. You really mean you’ll let me go?”

As if he ever intended to in the first place. Emilina scoffed.

The man asked indifferently,

“Why do you think it’s a lie?”

“If you were me, could you really believe those words in this situation?”

“Believe it or not, that’s up to you. If you end up realizing something… well, there’s nothing I can do.”

At his quiet addition, Emilina could only stare dumbly.

It sounded ridiculous, yet she felt he was speaking the truth.

How was she supposed to take that? It wasn’t easy to wrap her head around.

And besides, there was another problem.

…Every time someone says things like that, it always comes true somehow.

Or maybe she already knew it, unconsciously.

If this were a novel, it was the textbook kind of death flag.

“So just pretend you don’t know anything and stay quiet. That’s the only way you’ll get out of this alive.”

The man gave his not-so-comforting advice, brushing off his clothes as he stood up.

Really, Emilina wanted to cry.

Was that supposed to reassure her? She’d bet her own wrist that it wasn’t.

Even if unintentional, as a way to terrify her it was brilliantly effective.

Because she wasn’t relieved in the slightest—in fact, she felt even more anxious.

Swallowing her tears inside, Emilina decided to take one last gamble.

At this point, all she could do was try to stir his sympathy.

“Um… Mister.”

Just as he was about to leave, the man turned and looked back at her.

“I’ve only lived fourteen years so far.”

“So what.”

“What do you mean, ‘so what’! A pretty, talented girl like me has such a bright future ahead. Don’t you even feel sorry for me?”

She lowered herself as much as she could while asking.

The point was to look up at him with big, pleading eyes.

But it seemed useless. The man replied dryly,

“Not sure about the ‘pretty’ part.”

Crack.

An invisible cross appeared on Emilina’s forehead.

The man continued in a low voice.

“This is the last warning. Sit still if you want to walk out alive.”

Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.

So she wasn’t pitiful—did that really warrant threatening her like this?

Pouting, Emilina grumbled inwardly.

And then—

“Who said you could make decisions like that?”

A new, unfamiliar voice cut between them.

When she turned her gaze, she saw a ridiculously handsome man leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed.

Judging from his attitude, he was probably the superior. The other man instantly stiffened.

With sharp instincts, Emilina realized this man must be the mastermind behind the kidnapping.

And as expected—it was Raul who had ordered her abduction.

Raul uncrossed his arms and stepped into the room.

Immediately, the man in front of Emilina moved quickly to stand behind him.

Raul looked her up and down and sneered.

It was clearly a mocking laugh.

“Well, well—this is a disappointment. You’ve been hanging around with this shabby little girl all this time?”

No taste at all.

His lazy, drawling tone was so irritating that Emilina snapped.

“Are you finished? I’m still in the middle of growing, you know! Just wait—I’ll turn out great!”

She scowled and glared at him.

Raul tilted his head, as if puzzled.

“Hm? What’s that supposed to mean? You’re going to die here today.”

As if it were the most natural thing, Raul casually spoke of her death.

His brazen attitude left Emilina speechless.

And then she remembered who she was talking to.

He was her kidnapper. And she had just forgotten that for a moment.

Raul began walking straight toward her.

She flinched.

Their eyes met, and Emilina instinctively shrank back.

Raul’s eyes lit up like he’d just found a fun new toy.

He raised one corner of his mouth and spoke.

“But you. You’re surprisingly calm. Seen this kind of thing before? Or is it because of him—”

“…Who’s ‘him’?”

“Curious?”

Raul grinned slyly.

Emilina didn’t answer.

She didn’t want to respond to that unpleasant smile.

But perhaps her silence irritated him, because Raul squatted down and spoke sternly.

“Answer me, girl.”

“N… Not really curious. If I find out, you’ll just kill me, right?”

“Pfft! Ha! What a funny girl. As if not killing you was ever an option.”

Raul chuckled like it was the funniest thing in the world.

His unpredictability made Emilina look at him like he was insane.

Still smiling broadly, he “generously” explained,

“Fine. I like you. I’ll tell you. That guy you live with—he’s my prey. And you’re the bait to lure him in.”

His lips twisted as he spoke.

He looked so delighted just at the thought that it sent chills down Emilina’s spine.

And she realized she hadn’t misheard earlier.

So the target is Kir…

Why him? What business did they have with that kid?

And to go through the trouble of kidnapping her too?

Questions piled up in her head, but she couldn’t find answers right away.

Still, given Raul’s twisted nature, it was clearly nothing good.

And then one fact came to her mind.

No way…

Because Kir could transform into a cat?

Half-human, half-beast—Kir was a special type of beastkin.

Among nobles with twisted tastes, he might be considered a prized commodity.

Maybe Raul was a hunter of such inhuman races.

It makes sense.

And a few days ago, Kir had said this:

“Someone once came after me, calling me the source of their misfortune.”

Someone chasing him. Emilina now suspected that person was Raul.

No—she was certain of it.

Otherwise, why would he pull such a crazy stunt?

Emilina let out a bitter laugh.

Whatever hidden circumstances there were, it didn’t change the fact: she had been kidnapped over something so absurd.

And she was furious at what Raul had done to Kir.

What could he possibly harm on that little body?

Her green eyes turned icy.

If she hadn’t found Kir back then, he might have really died.

The wound had been that fatal. The thought fanned her hostility.

Boiling with anger, Emilina spat out,

“You bastard. Don’t you have anything better to do?”

“Hm?”

Raul tilted his head, as if to say “Go on.”

But his narrowed eyes were as cold as blades.

Undaunted, Emilina continued.

“You set up this whole scheme just to catch one helpless kid? That really shows your level.”

Didn’t a grown man feel any shame?

She snorted mockingly.

Her defiant attitude left Raul’s subordinate pale.

A chilling silence fell heavy over the room.

At last, when the tension was at its peak, Raul broke it with a voice like ice.

“Hey, girl. That’s as far as my patience goes. Do I look like some moral saint to you?”

He was barely holding back his desire for blood.

Raul ended his words with a thin smile.

One hand rested at his waist, ready to draw his blade at any moment.

That gesture alone was enough to threaten her. Emilina swallowed hard.

But it was already too late to back down.

Clenching her trembling hands, she answered firmly.

“So what, are you going to kill me now? If I’m the hostage, don’t I still have value?”

If this kidnapping had a purpose, then surely she still held worth as a bargaining chip.

But that was her fatal misunderstanding.

“Hahaha… Hahahahaha!”

Raul clutched his stomach and roared with laughter.

Then, all at once, he stopped—

—and clamped his hand tight around Emilina’s throat.

“—Khhk!”

“Hostage, huh… A hostage is fine. But since you’ll die anyway, why not have a little fun first?”

He had been irritated already by how little this job was paying off.

Raul looked down at her with a playful, cruel face.

His grip cut off her breath.

And instinctively, Emilina could only feel the raw terror of death.

Her head grew light as blood rushed, her lungs straining for air.

She thrashed desperately in pain, but it was a useless struggle.

Then, the subordinate watching from the side spoke up hesitantly.

“Are you… really going to kill her?”