Chapter 08
A Life-or-Death Push and Pull
They say that even if you’re dragged into a tiger’s den, as long as you keep your wits about you, you can come out with its hide.
But this wasn’t a tiger’s den—this was the residence of a man who looked like he could kill a tiger with his bare hands.
How was I supposed to survive this?
“We’ve arrived.”
A long, gloved hand in pristine white casually pushed open the heavy bronze door.
Without realizing it, I flinched and instinctively tried to step away from that hand—but I forced myself to stop when his voice sounded above me.
“Go on in.”
At his gesture, I entered under his watchful gaze, tense from head to toe.
There didn’t seem to be any servants. The vast, empty interior was so quiet that the sound of water dripping onto the wooden floor echoed clearly.
“Sit on the sofa.”
“It’ll get wet…”
“Sit.”
“…Yes, sir.”
I perched awkwardly on the luxurious sofa. It was so comfortable I felt like I could fall asleep on the spot.
The Admiral personally brought me a blanket, then even prepared hot water and brewed tea himself.
“I’ll do it!”
“You expect a guest to prepare their own tea?”
“…No.”
Before I knew it, I was wrapped in a blanket, sitting on a soft sofa, sipping warm tea.
“Thank you…”
After being soaked in cold seawater, the warmth made my whole body relax, like a child after playing in the water.
For a brief moment, my tension eased as I looked at the Admiral sitting across from me.
Why is he being so nice?
Could it really be just kindness?
Pity for a noble lady who fell into the sea…?
“Lady Lavius.”
Yeah, right.
Just look at those eyes. This was obviously a setup to lower my guard.
The Admiral leaned forward slightly, his elbows resting on his thighs.
With the light behind him, his massive shadow swallowed me whole.
His face, half in shadow, looked inhumanly beautiful—and cold.
Like prey facing a predator, my throat went dry.
He spoke slowly.
“Do you know why I brought you here?”
His piercing gaze instantly snapped me out of my drowsiness. The comfortable sofa suddenly felt like a bed of nails.
…Play dumb. Stall until Mikhail comes back with the dress.
“I assumed it was out of concern for me catching a cold. As expected of the Admiral who governs the South, your generosity is as vast as the ocean—”
“That’s not all, is it?”
Damn it.
I swallowed hard, then widened my eyes in feigned surprise.
“Pardon? Then… are you saying there’s another reason you brought me here alone?”
I deliberately looked at him like he was some kind of criminal. He frowned slightly, then relaxed and replied in a calm voice.
“Indeed. There is another reason.”
But unlike his voice, his eyes burned sharply.
It’d be easier to catch a great white shark with a fishing rod than survive this…
Holding back tears, I forced myself to speak.
“…I knew.”
He tilted his head slightly, signaling me to continue.
I clenched my trembling hands and spoke with solemn determination.
“It’s because… I…”
Activating Social Survival Skill Lv.2: Acting.
“…because I overfished and damaged the marine ecosystem! I’m so sorry! It was my first time fishing today, and I got carried away because the fish kept biting…!”
The Admiral’s hand, which had been propping up his chin, slipped.
“…What?”
“I promise I’ll never overfish again!”
Honestly, I did regret catching that many fish.
If I’d just left earlier, I wouldn’t be in this mess.
The Admiral blinked, then let out a disbelieving chuckle.
“Very well. I’ve heard your resolution.”
The atmosphere loosened slightly, and I finally felt a bit relieved.
Seems like my workplace-honed acting skills still worked.
“I mean it.”
“I believe you.”
Short, but somehow softer than before.
Just as I was about to thank him and make my escape—
He smiled faintly and asked:
“So then—how did you learn about the curse?”
AAAAAHHH!!
I screamed internally.
IT’S NOT OVER?!
“…A curse?”
“At the fishing grounds—you avoided my hand.”
It felt like a tiger had sunk its teeth into the back of my neck.
“As if you’d rather fall into the sea than touch me.”
Under his inescapable gaze, I scrambled to piece together an excuse.
“I was merely trying to respect your germaphobia—nothing more—”
“Is that so?”
He didn’t even let me finish. Tilting his head, he reached his hand toward my head—
“AHH! Don’t touch me!”
I instinctively threw my arms up to block him—then remembered that if he touched me, I was dead, and twisted my body away instead.
“…Heh. How considerate you are.”
His low, amused voice echoed across the black marble table.
Utterly humiliating.
But hey—better humiliation than death.
“I—I actually have germaphobia too!”
“Strange. You had no issue when your servant grabbed your shoulder.”
“….”
“Anything else?”
I clenched my teeth.
“He’s familiar, and you’re not! And even if you meant to help—touching a lady’s body on first meeting? I thought you were more of a gentleman.”
The Admiral smiled, eyes curving.
“My apologies. Though I thought removing the seaweed from your hair would be appreciated.”
“…It’s a new trend.”
“Is it?”
“I’m going to make it one.”
“I look forward to it.”
I ripped the seaweed from my hair and threw it aside.
Watching me, he murmured:
“So—you avoided me because you dislike being touched by unfamiliar men.”
He clearly didn’t believe me.
But what could he do? I said it.
He didn’t press further.
“What do you think, Ziphel?”
“An obvious lie.”
A cold, emotionless voice answered—from right behind me.
I hadn’t even realized someone else was here.
A chill ran down my spine.
“She does not have germaphobia. She has had more than five fiancés.”
“Th-that’s because after coming down from Linefelt, I suffered a shock—!”
“According to the coachman of the Lavius estate, she shows no aversion when offered a hand while boarding or disembarking.”
Coachman! How could you betray me?!
And when did they even investigate that?!
“He’s not a ‘man’ to me, just like Mikhail—a servant—”
“She said: ‘There are many handsome men in the South. Handshakes as greetings? How delightful. Fishing grounds are places to catch nobles—’”
“STOP! STOP!!”
I was going to die of embarrassment.
How could he quote everything word for word?!
“Have you been spying on me this whole time?”
“The Elcanto household has excellent memory.”
“So you’re admitting to planting informants in the Elcanto family?”
“The Count of Elcanto is a Vice Admiral.”
“….”
I sank like the Titanic.
No survivors.
“Conclusion: Lady Kalia Lavius is aware of Admiral Aquilus’s curse.”
“Good work.”
“Thank you.”
The man saluted sharply—but didn’t leave.
Instead, he asked:
“Shall I eliminate her?”
Before the sentence even finished, something cold touched my neck.
“Ghh!”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a blade—less than a hand’s breadth from my throat.
“P-please—!”
“Who told you about the curse?”
The Admiral’s expression was completely devoid of warmth.
“I—I…”
What was I supposed to say?
I read it in a novel called Contract Saintess where you get screwed over by the Emperor?
Yeah, that would get me tortured, not saved.
“If you refuse to answer—”
Wait… fish…?
“No one told me!”
“Then you overheard? The Duke of Lavius?”
“No! I just… instinctively felt like I had to avoid your touch!”
He clearly didn’t believe me.
The blade felt closer.
Tears welled up as I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
“I—I don’t know exactly, but maybe the Sea God! The Sea God told me!”
My desperate cry echoed through the empty residence.
“The Sea God?”
This region worshipped the Sea God.
I had to gamble on that.
“You dare invoke the Sea God so lightly?”
Ziphel’s voice sharpened, and the blade pressed closer.
Wow, his faith is intense.
“It’s true! Did you not see the fish I caught earlier? Without the Sea God’s help, would that even be possible?!”
Totally because of the artifact, but whatever.
They wouldn’t know that.
“…Not entirely implausible.”
The Admiral muttered.
I felt like I’d been dragged from hell to heaven.
But the next words crushed that hope instantly.
“That would explain why you don’t fully understand the curse.”
“…What?”
Wait—what did he just say?
“You didn’t know that my curse only activates through direct skin contact.”
