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Chapter 11
In front of someone this straightforward, even I was momentarily at a loss for words.
“Um… do you know what ‘love at first sight’ means?”
“Gold? How much is it?”
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
Whenever I said anything, he seemed ready to do absolutely anything for me.
Did he really fall in love with me at first sight? Or does he have some other motive?
The problem was, after talking with Karcel, I realized something.
He didn’t seem like a scammer.
I shouldn’t have gotten involved with him in the first place, but thanks to him, I managed to complete today’s contract too.
After dealing with all kinds of difficult people and losing faith in humanity, I had gotten pretty good at reading people.
I could usually tell whether someone was a bad person or not.
But for some reason, I couldn’t figure Karcel out.
When I talked to him, he really did seem like the kind of person he claimed to be—someone who simply didn’t know how to treat women and ended up being misunderstood. He didn’t seem like a bad person.
But when I looked at his appearance…
Why does he have to look like the leader of the underworld?!
That face was completely ruining my judgment.
Just his presence alone made this place stop feeling like an ordinary restaurant and turn into some secluded forest hideout where illegal dealings happened.
I nervously bit my lip.
Does he really like me?
If he only had a simple interest in me, I would have been able to suggest a deal.
But this time was different.
Why did it have to be this way?!
I couldn’t bring myself to casually bring up a contract marriage with a man who might actually have feelings for me.
…Of course, there was also a tiny part of me worried that I might say the wrong thing and end up buried in a hole somewhere in the middle of the night.
While I struggled to decide what to say, Karcel calmly spoke.
“Ah, of course, I don’t mean that I truly love Asha right now.”
“Y-yes, of course?”
But I relaxed too soon.
Because he smiled gently and gave me an answer with complete confidence.
“I simply fell in love at first sight.”
Isn’t that basically the same thing?!
I let out a small groan and carefully asked,
“Is it because I confessed to you in the past?”
“When I received your confession… I apologize for saying this, but it didn’t particularly move my heart.”
“Then when exactly did you fall for me at first sight? There was absolutely no reason for you to.”
He had a strange taste in women.
Karcel smiled.
“When I saw you again, I fell in love.”
That still doesn’t explain why!
I blinked at his impossible-to-understand preferences.
Perhaps he sensed my gaze asking “why,” because Karcel obediently explained.
“I don’t know the reason. I simply realized, at that moment, what the dictionary definition of love at first sight truly meant.”
“I-I see.”
“More specifically, I found the bright vitality in Asha’s eyes, the thoughtfulness reflected in her words and actions, and her smile like a fawn in a flower field beautiful.”
A fawn? A flower deer?
Even now, as if he was recalling the moment he first fell for me, Karcel lowered his gaze and suddenly smiled.
That smile, which escaped without him realizing it, caught my attention.
“…Asha?”
Karcel tilted his head when he noticed me staring at him.
“You look like you’re considering running away because you’re overwhelmed.”
He saw right through me.
For a moment, I had actually considered standing up from my chair, saying “Goodbye,” and slowly backing out.
I obediently nodded.
“A little.”
“I tried to hold myself back because I like you, but I suppose it still showed. I’m sorry.”
He apologized awkwardly.
At that moment, I became certain.
That man isn’t a scammer… but there’s no way he isn’t a playboy pretending to be inexperienced.
He had said with his own mouth that he wasn’t used to dealing with women and that this was his first date.
But honestly, everything he had done until now was far too smooth.
So smooth that I had even wondered if he was some kind of scammer targeting women!
“I’ll approach you more slowly if my feelings are making you uncomfortable.”
Even now.
A man like this was speaking to me in such a gentle, low voice.
How was I supposed to believe he had never met another woman before?
Karcel looked into my eyes and smiled faintly.
“I suppose I should try harder so that Asha can feel comfortable around me and trust me.”
The slow, deep voice with which he said those words sounded strangely meaningful.
His red eyes, sitting across from me, briefly shimmered like blood.
His mysterious demeanor made me wary, yet at the same time, it drew me in.
A man who looked incredibly dangerous was showing nothing but kindness toward me.
My heart fluttered.
“Um, Karcel…”
Just as I opened my mouth awkwardly to say something, a server approached and placed the food on the table.
“Your charcoal-grilled chicken and two bowls of today’s soup are here! Enjoy your meal!”
At that moment, a delicious aroma rose from the dishes in front of us.
Even though Karcel had already treated me to a meal earlier, the smell was enough to make my mouth water.
“I’ll enjoy the meal.”
“Yes.”
Thanks to Karcel not pressing me about what I had been about to say, the awkward atmosphere eased somewhat.
During the meal, he was rather quiet.
However, there was one unusual thing about him.
Karcel was extremely skilled with a knife.
How is he so good at deboning chicken?
He only had a fork and knife in his hands, yet within moments, the bones and meat of an entire chicken had been completely separated.
Then he neatly gathered only the chicken leg meat onto a plate and placed it in front of me.
“I thought it might be difficult for a lady to eat with her hands, so I removed the meat for you.”
After witnessing his impressive chicken-deboning performance firsthand, I stared at him in shock.
“How did you remove the meat so perfectly? The chicken looks completely bare!”
Karcel answered casually at my amazement.
“It wasn’t difficult at all. If Asha wants, I’ll remove the meat from anything for you. Just ask me.”
“…You’re talking about chicken, right?”
Maybe put the knife down before saying things like that.
Because it sounds like something else.
“I’ve never done this to a person before, so you don’t have to worry.”
Karcel smiled with his eyes.
Instead of digging deeper into that statement, I started eating the chicken.
After finishing his chicken preparation, Karcel also took a spoonful of soup.
And the eyes that had seemed completely uninterested in the food until then widened in surprise.
Seeing his reaction, I happily exclaimed,
“How is it? Honestly, it’s delicious, right?”
“As Asha said, it really does taste refreshing. It’s light, but it has a deep flavor…”
He nodded and continued eating his soup.
I also focused on my meal again.
Except for the short moment when Karcel went to the restroom, we spent about twenty minutes eating diligently before finishing.
At the same time, he spoke first.
“That was a good meal. Thanks to Asha, I think I discovered a good restaurant.”
“I’m glad it suited your taste.”
Just as I was about to stand up, Karcel spoke again.
“But Asha, before we leave, there’s something I want to ask.”
“What is it?”
I tilted my head, and he asked,
“Don’t you need my help?”
“What?”
“The land. There’s something special about it, isn’t there?”
At those words, I sucked in a breath.
Well, of course I knew other people might wonder why I bought land like that and even offered to share the profits.
But I never expected him to realize so quickly that there was something special about it!
“Ah, no?”
“As you know, I have plenty of money. Whatever is on Asha’s land, I have no desire to take it for myself.”
Once again, I started sweating nervously and subtly avoided his gaze.
Karcel continued speaking calmly.
“I think it’s natural that Asha doesn’t trust me yet. But how about looking at it this way?”
“L-looking at it how?”
“Asha develops that land and obtains something that can make money. And I provide whatever Asha needs—whether it’s connections or information.”
I could only blink at him for a long while.
“…Why?”
“You have something I want from you, don’t you?”
Karcel leaned his upper body forward and looked directly at me.
Then, with a smile at the corner of his lips, he said,
“Asha’s time.”
“My time is rather expensive.”
I was planning to investigate Karcel’s identity properly before deciding whether to propose a contract marriage.
So I answered that way to change the subject.
But he went even further.
“I thought you might say that… so I already paid for today’s meal.”
“What?!”
“You said you would buy me a more expensive meal next time. I was wondering if I could let Asha treat me then.”
Karcel continued teasing me with a mischievous smile.
