The Strange King

The wind blew the long grey hair of the man who was stood with the pointed sword aimed at Odette. His cold hazel eyes glanced at Trish who was standing behind him, then drew back his sword. And without a word , he just walked past Odette.

The surprised Odette turned her head and continued to see the back of the man, who continued to move away.

"Are you okay?"

"Huh?" Odette turned back to the front and found a brown-haired man bent over while giving a helping hand.

Handsome.

Those were the first words that crossed Odette's mind when she saw Trish's face.

After three seconds of fascination, Odette finally nodded and took Trish's hand to stand up. As soon as she stood up, Anwen jumped from the window that Odette had previously passed.

"Miss Ody, what are you doing here?" asked Anwen as she stood by Odette.

"Ody? So your name is Ody. Nice name. I'm Trish," Trish introduced himself as he reached out for a handshake, but Odette just smiled wryly and stepped back slowly, which made Trish and Anwen look at each other confused.

"Miss Ody, what's wrong?"

"No, it's nothing," said Odette with a wry smile as she continued to back away, back away, slowly and . . . run!

"Aaaaagh!" Odette screamed as Anwen and Trish rushed after her.

"MISS ODY, STOP! WHAT'S WRONG?!" shouted Anwen as she ran, but Odette had absolutely no intention to stop because she still thought she was going to be sold.

Turn left, go straight, right, go straight again and bump!

She bounced back slightly when she bumped into the large back of someone who was none other than the jerk. Odette quickly backed away to make some distance and put on a stance when the big man turned around.

The man's hazel eyes looked Odette up and down and then looked at Odette's face with a furrowed brow. "You? The temptress?"

"Huh, what?" Odette's eyes widened slightly when she heard the man call her a temptress.

Anwen, who had just come out of the hall, immediately grabbed Trish who was running beside her. She asked him to hide behind a wall as soon as she saw Odette standing opposite her brother.

"Trishy shhh." Anwen put her index finger in front of his mouth.

"Let's just stay here and listen to them. I wonder if they've done that or not," said Anwen in a whisper, then turned her back to Trish and peeked at Odette and Rion.

"Tsk. Ridiculous!" Trish acted like he didn't care, even if he actually wanted to know too. He also followed Anwen to peek and tried to listen to the conversations of the people there.

"W-what did you call me?" Odette arched an eyebrow.

"Seductress, temptress," said Rion with a flat tone and expression.

"You asshole calling me a temptress? Ignorant! You almost ruined my future, kidnapped me, and now you call me a slut? You're handsome but your morals are so bad!"

"Don't you fear God while doing dirty work like this? A woman gave birth to you and you also have a younger sister. Just imagine if your mother or sister were in my position? Can you accept that?!" Odette said, raising her voice at the last sentence.

"What do you mean?"

“Stop acting! I know your intentions. You want to sell me, right?!”

"Why would I want to sell you?"

"Because you want to make money," answered Odette quickly.

Swoosh...

The wind blew the long hair of both of them.

"There seems to be a misunderstanding between us. We need to sit down to talk about this," Rion said in a very calm tone. He then walked, but his steps stopped when he realized that Odette was not following him.

He glanced back slightly and glanced at Odette over his shoulder.

"Did you know that a misunderstanding can make someone do something that will give them a lifetime of regret," he said.

"Huh?" Odette looked closely at Rion's eyes, which were still glancing at her. For some reason, Odette seemed to see the sadness hidden behind those eyes.

After unmoving for three seconds, Rion turned his head back and Odette, even though she hesitated for a while, decided to follow Rion.

After they walked for a while, they arrived at the castle grounds. Rion led the way towards the right side of the courtyard, to be precise, in the direction of the seat shaded by a shady tree. Besides the seat, there was a pond filled with beautiful fish.

Now Odette sat in a chair opposite Rion. A round table acted as a barrier between them. Not long after they sat down, several servants came with breakfast menus and arranged the menus on the table. Odette was getting more and more confused. Why did the atmosphere in that place feel like a real kingdom the longer she stayed there ?

Was this a royal-themed hotel, or was this a shooting set of a colossal drama? Odette thought hard to find out where she really was now.

After setting the food on the table, the maids left Odette and Rion.

"So why do you think I want to sell you?"

"Just a guess," answered Odette curtly.

"Doesn't that sound like an accusation?" Rion asked while looking at Odette flatly while Odette looked at Rion inquisitively.

Odette looked closely at the pair of hazel eyes that currently stared at her. A while ago, those eyes looked so cold and sharp, but now they looked very flat.

"Does he have a twin or something else?" Odette wondered in her mind while remembering the figure of the man who pointed a sword at her a few minutes ago, and also when the man barked at her when they were at the bottom of the slope yesterday.

"What is it?" Rion asked when Odette didn't answer his question and just dazedly stared straight at him.

Rion's question made Odette slightly surprised and woke her up from her daydream.

"Nothing," she replied as she removed her gaze from Rion and corrected her seat, then looked back at her interlocutor. "I think anyone in my position would think so. I was taken to a strange place by a man who nearly ruined my life. What else would I think?"

Rion's gaze towards Odette looked very straight. "You took the job from my grandmother to seduce me but you got angry when I did that to you. Didn't you get paid to do that with me?"

Hearing Rion's direct question made Odette's eyes widen. "What? You really have no shame! You harassed me and now you accuse me of seducing you? Are you trying to give the impression that it was consensual so that you can escape the law? Huh. So you're more disgusting than I thought."

Odette gave a scornful look, but Rion was consistent with his flat expression. He looked unfazed. "So you're not the seductress my grandmother sent?"

"Of course not! After all, who is your grandmother?! I don't even know her! I may not be rich, but I already have a job and my salary is enough to support me! My mother taught me to live an honorable life. Even if I am desperate and really need money, I will find a better job. As long as I have a fit mind and a healthy body, I'm sure I can get a good job and get out of my troubles well," explained Odette at length when Rion only needed a 'yes' or 'no' answer.

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