Switch Mode

Chapter 6

Zen quietly watched as Deborah brought a bite of cake to her mouth.

‘This is so awkward.’

Deborah struggled to chew and swallow the cake. When her eyes met Zen’s, she gave him a small smile, but he quickly looked away and hooked a finger through his teacup handle.

‘If anyone should be avoiding someone, it’s me…’

At that moment, Deborah still couldn’t believe it. Is he really going to make me eat all of this? She thought once she ate a single piece of cake, they would continue talking. But as soon as her plate was empty, Zen placed another dessert on her small dish.

“Mr. Baker, I’m okay. I’ve had enough,” she said.

“How could one slice of cake be enough? Eat more.”

“No, I…”

“…Is it because it doesn’t taste good?” Zen frowned.

“What?” Deborah asked, confused.

“…You!” Zen called out to the footman waiting outside the sitting room. The footman approached quickly yet gracefully. Zen twisted his handsome face into a scowl and growled, “Go get the chef.”

“Mr. Baker!” Deborah cried out in shock. Zen turned his eyes toward her without moving his head.

His side profile was breathtaking. Like a marble sculpture crafted by a master artisan, with a shiny nose, smooth cheeks, and long, thick lashes there wasn’t a single flaw.

He didn’t look at all like the man who’d just scowled so threateningly.

“It’s delicious. Really. I’ve never had cake this good in my life,” she said awkwardly.

Zen let out a sigh and finally looked back at her. The quick-witted footman lowered his head and quietly left the room.

Trying to prove her point, Deborah picked up her fork again.

‘What am I even doing right now?’

So Deborah kept eating until Zen was ready to leave. If the footman hadn’t come to fetch him at someone’s request, she might have had to eat every dessert on the table.

“You should get going now,” the footman said.

“Sigh…” Zen let out a long breath and stood up reluctantly. “I have a lot to do, so I’ll be heading out. I should be back around this time tomorrow… No, probably around noon.”

“Then I’ll return to the hotel for now and come see you tomorrow or the day after.”

At her words, Zen frowned. “What are you talking about? I clearly told you earlier that you can’t go back to the hotel. Did you forget already?”

Deborah stared at him in disbelief, her lips slightly pursed. Seeming amused by her expression, Zen smirked and his handsome face looked even more dazzling.

“I’ll have someone bring your things from the hotel. If you need anything else, ask the staff.”

“Mr. Baker—”

“Oh, and one more thing. Don’t even think about leaving the estate until I return. I won’t allow it.”

Deborah was stunned by his harsh words. She took a few deep breaths and asked, “…Did I hear you right just now?”

“Yes, you did. You’re free to go anywhere within the estate walls like the garden but outside your room, you must be accompanied by staff. No exceptions.”

Zen spoke as if only his words mattered, and Deborah felt dizzy from it all.

“Um, Mr. Baker,” she called again.

Her voice trembled but the one whose eyes wavered was Zen.

This place was unfamiliar to Deborah, so Zen’s gaze should’ve felt unfamiliar too. But for some reason, it didn’t. Is it because I’ve read about him in the novel?

“Sir,” the footman called Zen again, likely trying to hurry him.

Zen gave the footman a displeased look, then turned back to Deborah.

“Well then… I’ll be going.”

He showed a smug smile with that striking face of his and walked off.

Deborah found Zen incredibly annoying. But the most annoying thing was that even while behaving this way, he still looked beautiful.

‘Seriously, what a guy.’

Thanks to Zen’s madness, Deborah’s head and stomach felt like they were about to burst. And now she was expected to eat more?

‘This is torture!’

“I’m sorry, I’m really full,” she said sincerely. “If I eat more, I’ll get sick.”

“Then how about something easier to digest—like soup? Just try one spoonful. It’s fine if you don’t finish it.”

“No, I can’t waste such fine food. So please, could you do me a favor? If Mr. Baker says anything, tell him I firmly refused. I’ll tell him the same myself.”

The maid hesitated, then finally said, “Then please let us know if you need anything,” and left the room.

Deborah gave a small nod in response, then collapsed onto the bed as soon as the maid was gone.

‘Ugh, this is so uncomfortable.’

The cloud-like bed, the princess-style room, her stomach full of sweet desserts—none of it felt right. And most of all, her situation, standing on the edge of this dreadful story.

‘What’s going to happen next…’

Deborah went over the story she remembered from the novel. She was sure there was a maid who did makeup and styling. A minor villain who looked down on the heroine, Dia.

‘Wait, am I that villain?’

Well… she wasn’t sure. The story didn’t have that many villains. And she didn’t even remember the name of that styling maid. If it were “Deborah,” surely she’d recall it.

‘Right. I’m sure the name Deborah didn’t appear in the story.’

If someone asked her to swear on her life, she wouldn’t bet on it. But she was somewhat confident.

‘If I become the styling maid, doesn’t that change the story?’

Although, it would just mean that the once-nameless villain now had a name: Deborah.

‘But that alone probably won’t change the future much.’

As far as she could remember, the story was about a man obsessed with revenge who ruined a poor woman’s life. That dark storyline hadn’t changed.

Deborah sighed deeply and shook her head.

‘No, wait. Do I really have to become a styling maid?’

She pressed both palms hard against her cheeks, and her mouth dropped open like a startled fish.

‘I really don’t want to!’

She had always thought this. That she didn’t want to play even the smallest role in this horrible story.

She just wanted a normal life.

Like the dream she had when she got married to live with pride even if she was poor, to never face injustice even without great wealth. To live peacefully and leave the world quietly.

“Aaah… I’m not asking for much. Just a little peace. Why can’t I have even that…”

Suddenly, she felt overwhelmed with emotion. Compared to the misfortunes Dia would face later, her troubles now weren’t even that bad—but still.

Inside the rattling car, Zen held a thick stack of papers.

They outlined budgets for several large factories and detailed plans to forcibly acquire a company.

If Zen succeeded in the acquisition, job cuts would be inevitable. Families might lose their livelihoods but Zen felt no sympathy.

He despised the very concept of sympathy.

“Thanks to the Marchioness of Forea, the Zelaman sale should go smoothly,” said Todd, who sat across from Zen with dark brown hair and bark-colored eyes.

People thought Todd was the head of a car company called Baem, but he was really just “Zen’s man”—nothing more, nothing less.

“Yes. She’s really something. Always dancing over my head like it’s a ballroom floor,” Zen replied with a bitter smile.

Marchioness of Forea. That eccentric woman. Zen wouldn’t be who he was today without her.

[“Burn is living in misery here.”]

A graceful noblewoman with cold hands. If she had truly cared about Burn, Zen would’ve never accepted her help.

But she didn’t care about Burn. On the contrary, she wanted Burn to fall. That’s why Zen took her hand.

Still, he didn’t expect her to have Deborah with her. Was this part of her plan, too?

‘No… there’s no way she knew I was looking for Debbie.’

So this must be a cruel coincidence—or perhaps, a reward from the gods for all his past suffering.

‘It’s still hot.’

Where Deborah’s eyes had touched, his skin burned and wouldn’t cool. If her fingers had touched him instead, he might have lost control and acted like a child.

‘But I’m not that person anymore.’

Ten years had passed. So long that Zen hadn’t even recognized her voice right away.

‘But it’s not time that kept you from recognizing me… is it?’

Zen smiled bitterly. His mouth tasted sour, like he had chewed something unpleasant. Then, a sweet voice echoed in his mind:

[“Here! Try it—it’s good, right? Don’t you feel better?”]

That moment when Deborah had forced a cookie into his mouth and smiled—it felt like a distant memory now.

Yet Zen thought:

‘What’s the difference between the you from then and the you now?’

Embarrassingly, he couldn’t find much difference. She was still warm, still kind, still stubborn without being arrogant.

‘I feel ridiculous for imagining how you might’ve changed… You’re exactly the same.’

Zen gave a soft laugh and looked out the window. Gas lamps flickered to life, lighting the dark city. A view he had long grown tired of.

‘Why did you disappear back then? You were quite loved as a maid in the Heather household…’

But Deborah had suddenly vanished. After she was gone, the Heathers acted like she had never existed.

[“There’s no such person. Don’t ever come here again.”]

The fear, despair, and helplessness Zen had felt then were impossible to describe.

‘Back then, I had no power. And the Heathers soon returned to their home country.’

What had happened? What kind of life had Deborah lived after vanishing from his sight?

‘…She got married.’

Who was he? What kind of man had taken that place next to her? While Zen was missing her, that man had seen her smiling face, kissed her playfully.

How dare he.

“……”

The papers in Zen’s hand crumpled pathetically.

 

athena
Author: athena

The Heroine Ended Up Running Away

The Heroine Ended Up Running Away

Status: Ongoing Author:
"I bought you. You’re mine, and I won’t let anyone take what’s mine ever again. Never." Zen Baker, the obsessive male lead in a dark novel who lives only for revenge. Deborah wanted to avoid the original story no matter what, but she ends up facing him during a maid interview. "Then first question. Ten years ago, why did you leave the Heather family?" Zen keeps asking questions that have nothing to do with the interview. "Are you defending your husband in front of me right now?" "Because the dead can’t defend themselves." When Deborah says she’s married, Zen reacts with shock and anger—but when he hears she’s a widow, his expression becomes unreadable. "You can’t go back to the hotel. You won’t be taking the train either." Deborah tries to refuse the job, but Zen does everything he can to keep her close. In the end, Deborah ends up working at the Baker estate and decides to at least try to prevent the tragedy of the heroine, Dia. But Zen Baker, who’s supposed to be a terrible man, keeps acting differently from the original story. "Unfortunately, I don’t know how to apologize with just words." "How can I stop myself from worrying?" "Did you like snow?" Deborah feels confused, thinking he might actually be a good person. She even starts to see a glimpse of the boy she met ten years ago in him. Her heart begins to waver. These feelings... she doesn’t want to know what they mean.

Comment

0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
error: Content is protected !!

Options

not work with dark mode
Reset
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x