* * *
“What the hell is that guy’s problem? So annoying.”
Cha Rui’s eyes were sharp enough to cut glass, and if I didn’t do something, he looked like he was about to storm off after him.
He was usually so composed, but ever since setting foot in this mansion, he’d been oddly irritable.
While Woo Jaehyun and Do Soohyuk were casually chatting with others, Cha Rui had been scanning the area with full alertness.
The tension he gave off was so intense, no one dared approach us.
At this rate, the entire image of the Chasung Guild might take a hit…
I noticed a blue-haired man watching us with a scornful look and decided to change the mood.
I grabbed Cha Rui’s wrist.
“Let’s go explore the mansion. Come on.”
“…”
Surprisingly, Cha Rui allowed himself to be pulled along without resistance.
The mansion was massive, with so many rooms that I just picked the nearest door and stepped in without thinking.
“Oh…”
Despite our rushed entrance, the room turned out to be surprisingly cozy.
It was smaller than the others—almost like a private study.
Tucked into a quiet corner, the room gave off a strangely warm feeling thanks to the fireplace and velvet sofa.
The shelves were packed with old books, their age evident even at a glance.
“This place is nice, huh? Look at this.”
I let out a low breath of admiration and picked up a brass candlestick on the mantle.
The ornate design and fine craftsmanship were clearly the result of great care.
“Nice, huh…”
Cha Rui glanced around the room with a disinterested look before dropping his gaze to the wrist I was still holding.
The slight twitch of his lip made it obvious he wasn’t thrilled.
Whoops.
I’d been holding on this whole time without realizing.
Flustered, I quickly let go and casually moved away, pretending nothing happened.
Then, a large painting caught my eye, and I stopped in front of it.
Slicked-back pomade hair, a full beard, and a massive build.
“A portrait?”
No wonder it looked familiar—it was Igor, the owner of the mansion.
I’d only ever seen things like this in movies.
I didn’t expect to see an actual oil painting in this day and age. And in such a classic style, too.
Was this part of that oligarch culture?
It was fascinating, but also kind of ridiculous.
He didn’t look the type, but it seemed he had a flair for self-praise.
You could tell just from the arrogant expression captured in the portrait.
“What a smug old geezer.”
Suddenly, Cha Rui was beside me, arms crossed as he glared up at the painting.
He was leaning on one leg, his whole stance slanted with obvious disdain.
He’d made it clear from the start that he didn’t like Igor, and now he was even clicking his tongue at the portrait.
“Why? The guy’s done a lot of great things. He was even ranked among the top 50 most influential people in the world.”
“And how would you know that?”
His sharp rebuttal caught me off guard, my mouth snapping shut.
I only muttered that because I felt bad, but now it looked like I was hiding something.
I should’ve just kept quiet.
Cha Rui looked down at me, clearly suspicious.
“B-Because he’s that famous.”
I quickly looked away and fixed my gaze back on the painting.
Thankfully, he didn’t press further.
He just sighed in irritation, still clearly displeased.
“Whatever. I still don’t like him. His face. His eyes. Everything.”
…Huh?
I looked at Cha Rui blankly.
He, of all people, was criticizing someone’s looks and eyes?
The guy whose own appearance and gaze scared half the population?
It was kind of absurd.
Of course, Cha Rui was stunning—he had the face of a famous actor, after all.
In the previous world, people had even dubbed him a “visual genius.”
That decadent vibe of his, combined with his perpetually tired, half-lidded eyes, only fueled the public’s obsession.
That’s probably why he was always cast in ads or shoots with seductive, revealing themes.
But those same traits didn’t help Cha Rui much anymore.
Sure, he looked like the perfect model on paper, but now… he was also brutal and inhumanly powerful.
With a face like that, tearing someone apart without mercy…
It was no wonder people were more afraid of him than attracted to him.
He had to know how others perceived him—and yet, here he was, judging Igor purely on appearance.
Even though Igor, at least in his portrait, looked completely dignified and normal.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“…It’s nothing.”
Still, I didn’t come all the way to Russia just to pick a fight.
There was plenty I wanted to say, but for now, I decided to let it slide.
On a day like this, I couldn’t bring myself to scold someone who’s staying by my side.
When I narrowed my eyes at him in irritation, Cha Rui blinked at me, confused.
“Wait, hold on.”
Just then, a single fine eyelash had landed just under his eye.
I spotted it purely by chance and, almost on reflex, raised my hand to brush it off.
The room was dim, so I had to lean in close to remove it properly.
His lashes, softly curled like a doll’s, were surprisingly long even at a glance.
As I lightly touched them, a small sound of awe escaped me without thinking.
“Wow… Your eyelashes are really long.”
I’d never noticed before, but I guess I’d learned something new.
Well—more accurately, I’d never had the chance to look closely, probably because of that intense gaze of his.
Come to think of it, they’re black, not red?
So it’s not related to his hair color then?
My eyes slowly scanned over Cha Rui’s hair, and I reached out to touch it.
The styled strands curled softly around my fingers.
“Hm.”
The red went all the way down to the roots—definitely not dyed.
No, this kind of natural color isn’t something dye could achieve in the first place.
I’ve met all kinds of people doing delivery work, but I’ve never seen hair that looked like it was lit on fire by the sun.
And let’s be real—does it make sense for an S-rank to be regularly dyeing their hair?
Honestly, I was a little curious.
The image of Cha Rui getting his hair dyed at a salon popped into my mind, and I let out a small, amused snort.
Anyway, if I had to guess, I’d say his appearance must’ve changed after awakening as an S-rank.
That seemed like the most reasonable explanation.
Or… should I just ask him now?
I was just about to lower my hand and step back when, suddenly, Cha Rui grabbed my wrist, stopping me in my tracks.
With my hand still in his hair, I froze awkwardly between him and nowhere to go.
It didn’t hurt, but the suddenness of it caught me off guard.
What surprised me more was how incredibly close we were—so close that it was weird I hadn’t realized it earlier.
Messing with his hair like this… had I lost my mind?
Just because we’d gotten a little closer, I’d let my guard down and acted way too casually.
From his perspective, it must’ve been annoying.
“W-Why?”
“…”
I tried to pull my hand away again, but Cha Rui didn’t move an inch.
He just looked down at me, expressionless.
That cool, blatant gaze felt strangely familiar.
Wait a second… this atmosphere…
Something about it felt exactly like that moment in my room before—like something was about to happen, the kind of spine-tingling tension that made the hairs on my neck stand up.
I physically felt the chill climbing up the back of my neck and instinctively lowered my gaze—but then Cha Rui’s other hand suddenly cupped my chin, forcing me to look back up at him.
His gray eyes flicked between mine before slowly trailing downward.
At the same time, the hand that had been brushing near my mouth began to slide up along my jawline.
Before long, his gaze landed squarely on my lips, and his fingers brushed up to my earlobe.
Then, as his fingertips gently caressed the soft flesh there—
“Nh.”
A quiet sound escaped me.
Shocked by my own voice, I sucked in a sharp breath and bit down on my lower lip.
My face was burning—no doubt bright red by now.
‘God, how embarrassing…!’
Cha Rui’s eyes wavered slightly, maybe just as startled by the sound I’d made.
Guess he didn’t expect something that indecent to come out of my mouth either.
But only for a moment.
His hand, which had hesitated, resumed its path—now slowly stroking the outer rim of my ear.
No matter how I tried to turn my head away, he followed with unrelenting persistence.
Th-this feels way too weird.
It was like my body flinched on its own, sending a shiver straight up my spine.
Normally, I wasn’t particularly sensitive around my ears, but maybe the body of “Seo Inho” was different.
I gritted my teeth to keep another sound from slipping out.
I didn’t know why Cha Rui was doing this, but with my wrist still held tight, there was no escaping his touch.
Actually, did I even want to escape?
My mouth wasn’t sealed shut, so why couldn’t I say, “stop”?
As I forced myself to hold in another noise, I suddenly opened my eyes at a strange feeling.
A shadow had fallen over me—Cha Rui was now so close I could feel his breath, and his face was quickly descending toward my lips.
* * *
