5 IS THIS FLIRTING?

[SHOULD I steal that child's candy cane?]

Zoe, who was sitting on the stair in front of the closed candy shop behind her, thought to herself while watching a crying little girl from across the street. The child was alone, so she must have been lost.

Judging by the kid's clothes, it seemed like she was a commoner.

Thus, the nobles walking past her ignored her.

[I'm awful for having the urge to steal from a child. Well, should I buy it instead? Yep, here goes nothing.]

She stood up and crossed the street to approach the crying little girl. Then she squatted down in front of her. The candy cane in the child's hand was making her drool. She even had to remind herself that she was a decent adult, so she should act like one.

"Hi," Zoe greeted the child. "Can I buy your candy cane?"

It seemed like it wasn't the right approach because the little girl only cried louder.

She had to cover her ears with her hands to protect her eardrums.

[Ladies and gentlemen, this is why I don't like kids. I mean, they're cute and all. But the thought of dealing with them 24/7 sounds like a nightmare to me.]

"Please don't cry or else I'll cry, too," she said in a panic. "Are you hurt? Do you want me to bring you to the hospital? Wait, are you lost? Then, let me help you find your parents–"

"Bruno is missing!" the child cried loudly. "Big sister, please help me find my brother!"

"Oh, okay," she said, then she slowly pulled her hands away from her ears. "May I know what your brother looks like?"

"He's fat!" the little girl cried.

"Uhm, what else? What is he wearing when he disappeared?"

The child stopped crying, then she looked at her as if she was stupid. "Big sister, dogs don't wear clothes."

She closed her eyes tight and reminded herself that she was dealing with a child.

[You should have said so earlier!]

"Okay, it's a dog," she said, then she opened her eyes. "Do you know what kind of breed it is?"

"My siblings said it's a bulldog," the little girl said between sobs. "This is a secret, but Bruno is a dog used for fighting. If our father finds out that I lost him, he will punish me."

Ah, her heart ached for the child.

She might not have a maternal instinct. But she was still a human who could feel empathy for other people. Plus, she liked dogs.

"Alright, I'll help you find your dog," she assured the child while wiping the tears on her cheeks using her hands. "What's your name?"

"I'm Mira," the little girl said in a now calm voice. "Big sister, I actually know where Bruno is. But I'm too scared to help him because he was caught by a monster."

"A monster?"

"He looks human, but he's trying to eat Bruno," Mira said between hiccups. "Big sister, can you save my dog?"

Zoe tilted her head to one side. "Well, it depends if the monster is handsome or not."

***

AS SOON as Zoe heard that the "monster" that was trying to eat the dog was "handsome," she already had a feeling that the child must have seen Isaak Viotto.

She remembered that in the original story, Runa was scared of the ghoul duke at first because the Crown Princess heard the story about Isaak Viotto eating a dog alive. The story didn't state (or maybe she had forgotten) whether or not the rumor was true.

Thus, she went to the alley where Mira said she had last seen her dog with the handsome monster.

And voila, she finally met the character that would serve as Runa's father figure later.

Grand Duke Isaak Viotto.

[Oh, he's a Grand Duke and not just an ordinary duke. My small brain just remembered it.]

She suddenly remembered it because Isaak Viotto still looked expensive despite his current situation.

[I didn't expect to meet Isaak Viotto, the ghoul duke, as soon as I entered the novel.]

Scratch that.

She should say that she didn't expect to find the ghoul duke in a dark alley, but there she was now.

Isaak Viotto was crouched down in the corner while holding a dog. Considering the fact that he had his mouth wide open as if he was about to bite the dog, it was obvious that she just interrupted his meal. He only closed his mouth when he felt her presence, then he turned to her.

[Oh no, he's hot.]

The ghoul duke had black hair and glowing violet eyes. Yes, his eye color was unique, but instead of thinking that his eyes were beautiful, she thought they were yummy. After all, his eyes reminded her of violet pansies that she would often throw in her salad to add color to it.

Isaak Viotto snarled at her, baring his fangs at her. "What are you looking at?"

"Your eyes," Zoe said without thinking. Dammit, thinking was really her weakest point. "They look yummy."

"Huh?"

"I like putting violet pansies in my salad," she explained. "They're delicious."

He just looked at her as if she was crazy.

She was aware that Duke Isaak Viotto was a GHOUL and ghouls, apparently, eat human flesh. But...

[Dang, he's really hot.]

"Give me the dog," Zoe told the ghoul duke. "I'll make you steak tartare in return."

The ghoul duke didn't react, but it seemed like he was distracted.

After all, the bulldog got away from his grasp. Then, the angry dog ran towards her while barking loudly.

She knew that the dog would attack her and running would only put her at a greater risk. So instead of fighting, she just offered her arm. When the dog bit it, she pushed her forearm into the bite as she got down on one knee carefully.

Then, when she noticed that it pried the dog's jaws apart--- preventing it from clamping down--- she pushed her forearm as far back as possible. After that, she grabbed the dog by the scruff of its neck with her other hand.

Now the dog was muzzled, and she had control over its head.

Of course, it hurt. But since she acted fast, she was pretty sure that it would lessen the damage the bite would cost her.

"Good boy," she said while giving the dog a sinister smile. "I. Said. Good. Boy."

It seemed like Bruno felt her "killing intent" because the dog stopped chomping on her forearm, then it made a sound as if it was whining.

[I should be the one whining here, Bruno!]

"Let go."

She looked up at Isaak Viotto, who was now standing in front of her. But she got distracted by his crotch area. And the bulge she saw suggested that…

[He's big down there, huh?]

Her own dirty thought made her gulp.

[God, I'm so thirsty!]

Luckily, the ghoul duke squatted down.

Before she could even mourn the loss of a magnificent view, she was surprised by what Isaak Viotto did next: he gave Bruno a karate chop on the neck. It was enough for the dog to get knocked down.

Now she felt bad for threatening it a while ago.

"You shouldn't be too rough on animals even if you plan to eat them," she lectured the ghoul duke. "There's a humane way to take their lives, you know?"

Isaak Viotto just looked at her with glowing violet eyes. But looking closely, it looked like he was judging her with those pretty eyes of his. "You're not scared of me," he said bluntly. "Are you not afraid of getting eaten?"

"Literally or sexually?"

"What?"

"What?" she asked back. "I thought we were flirting."

The ghoul duke looked dumbfounded.

She, on the other hand, was distracted when she felt a sting on her forearm. When she looked down, she saw the dog's bite mark. And it was bleeding. "Damn, boy. You have good teeth," she said. "Is there an anti-rabies vaccine here?"

She was trying to remember the name of the hospital in the novel when suddenly, Isaak Viotto grabbed her hand. It wasn't done gently, but it also didn't hurt her.

[Ah, he isn't as rough as I thought he was.]

After that, he pulled out a small vial from the inside pocket of his suit.

He opened the lid of the bottle using his mouth, then he poured the warm, blue liquid into her wound. Then, a few seconds later, the sting from the bite disappeared along with the teeth mark on her skin.

She thought he was done treating her wound magically, so she was surprised when he pulled the white handkerchief from his breast pocket. Then, he used it to wipe the blood off of her skin.

It wasn't needed, but for some reason, he tied his handkerchief on her forearm.

"I wasn't trying to eat the dog," Isaak Viotto said defensively when he raised his head to look her in the eye. "We were just playing."

"And what kind of play was it?"

"It's called 'none of your business,'" he said, then he stood up while fixing his clothes.

She rolled her eyes at his sarcasm, but she didn't let the chance to stare at his crotch area again go to waste. But all of a sudden, he turned his back on her.

[Tsk.]

"Hey, your handkerchief," she said. "I'll wash it and return it to you."

He didn't respond, so she thought he was ignoring her.

But fortunately, she was wrong.

Isaak Viotto turned to her, his violet eyes still glowing. And this time, his whole body turned translucent. Ah, she remembered that from the novel. He must be using a teleportation spell. "If you have the courage to return it to me after you find out who I am, then you're welcome to approach me."

Hah.

Was that a challenge?

"I'll return it to you with a bang," Zoe said confidently, then she winked at him. "See you later."

***

NOTE: Hi! Please consider ADDING 'I Won't Let The Ghoul Duke Go Hungry!' to your LIBRARY. Thank you! <3