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CHAPTER 27
Riana peeked through the window and couldn’t close her gaping mouth.
An explosion. Deborah’s eyes turning into heart shapes.
‘What kind of crazy situation is this?’
Deborah was the female lead of a reverse harem webtoon. She was basically a master at handling multiple male leads.
She trained the men around her so well that readers used to call her “Deborah the Tamer.”
She’d reject the prince’s proposals while still keeping ties with him for networking, got close to the duke for business strategies, and when she needed emotional support, she’d lean on her childhood friend Allen like he was her personal armrest.
But through all of that, she never once gave her heart to anyone. That was the golden rule of her “fishing pond” strategy.
‘And now she’s fallen at first sight for a guy she just met?!’
Worse, he wasn’t even from her story—he was from another webtoon.
Riana suddenly realized something.
‘Wait… did Deborah just never meet a guy who matched her type?’
“You knew this would happen, didn’t you?” Grey muttered angrily, practically tossing the sealed box called Yepkel back at her.
“No! I swear on the heavens, I didn’t expect anything like this…”
Riana groaned and held her forehead in despair. If she had known, she would’ve just gone in herself.
Sure, she might have startled Deborah and become the evil woman who ruined the experiment, but that would’ve been better than this.
She glanced at Grey’s face while walking down the stairs.
‘Wait… did he fall for her too? Is this mutual?’
That would be the absolute worst-case scenario.
‘At least for me.’
But from the universe’s point of view, which seemed determined to turn her into the villainess, it was the most convenient outcome.
‘I’ve already “accidentally” harassed Deborah multiple times. Now all the universe has to do is sprinkle a bit of romance, and boom! I’m the villainess in both stories!’
“Hey, you,” Riana said as they exited Genevieve Hall. Grey replied only with a sharp look. Clearly, he was still annoyed.
She acted like nothing was wrong and asked casually, “That researcher just now—what did you two talk about?”
“Talk? I just did what you told me to do.”
“She seemed familiar… what was her name again… De… something?”
“She said it was Daisy.”
“…Huh?”
Grey still looked sulky, but he said it with confidence.
‘Maybe he’s just really bad with names…’
If he didn’t even remember her name, maybe he hadn’t fallen for her after all.
But Riana still couldn’t relax.
Deborah was the female lead. She could win over a man with just one glance.
If she really tried to seduce someone, how could Grey resist?
There were four days left until the trial. After that, Grey would leave this estate.
‘But in story time, four days is an eternity.’
Riana knew that well. In just three days, she had attended a party as the duke’s partner, gotten locked up, reunited with a fellow prisoner, and bribed him.
When they reached the front of the main building, Riana spoke up.
“I’ll give you the auction flyer.”
“Huh? All of a sudden?”
Grey stopped in his tracks, clearly curious. Riana quickly checked the time. She still had some left before she had to return to Killian.
“I’ll give it to you if you make me one promise.”
Grey narrowed his eyes. Even with his messy appearance after the explosion, that sharp look of his hadn’t dulled.
“What kind of deal is this…?”
Riana hesitated a few times even after starting to speak. But she soon made up her mind.
The flyer wasn’t impossible to replace. After Grey left the estate, she could find another copy easily.
It made more sense to use it now, while it still had bargaining power.
‘It’s not like giving him the flyer means I’ll lose the island. As long as I save enough money first, I’ll be fine.’
She stared straight at Grey.
“Just promise me this one thing while you’re staying here.”
“What is it?”
Riana said firmly, “Don’t fall in love.”
Pfft.
Grey burst out laughing like air leaking from a balloon. Riana kept staring up at him with a serious face.
“I mean it. Swear it, and the flyer is yours.”
Grey might’ve been a jerk, but as a male lead, he had one good quality: he kept his promises.
“I must’ve misheard you. Love? What now?”
He said the word like it was a foreign language.
“No, you heard right.”
“You do know what I am, right? And you’re still saying that?”
“What do you—”
Riana was about to shoot back but went quiet when she saw his face.
His lips were curled up slightly like he was smiling, but his eyes were dark and bitter.
He looked like someone who knew very well that he’d been used as an experiment. Like someone who thought love was a cruel joke for people like him.
