He looked like an intricately carved doll. An expressionless doll devoid of any emotion.

Zachary began approaching me with his gaze fixed on me. Warning bells rang frantically in my head. It felt like every cell in my body was screaming that I shouldn’t leave him be right now.

“I… I…”

I tried to say something, but I could only stammer, unable to form proper words.

My voice faded at the end as if my throat was being constricted. I couldn’t move a finger, as if paralyzed.

It was overwhelming fear. This kind of terror might only be felt when facing an unavoidable disaster. Trembling violently, I barely managed to come to my senses as Zachary approached.

‘I need to run away.’

I had to escape from here to survive.

Unlike before, I wasn’t sure that the person in front of me wouldn’t harm me. I was merely prey facing a predator. Rational thought stopped, and only survival instinct took over.

I sprang up and fled towards the bathroom. Even covering that short distance made my whole body tingle. Driven by the sole desire to live, I ran into the bathroom like a madman and locked the door. Immediately, I heard knocking on the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

Hearing just the polite knocking sound, what had just happened felt like a dream.

As I stood frozen, staring at the door, I heard knocking again. Then came the sound of the doorknob being pulled. After pulling the doorknob several times with a clicking sound, a soft voice was heard.

“Young master.”

It sounded like Zachary, no different from usual. But at that moment, I retched.

“Ugh…”

My vision swam. It felt like everything I had eaten for dinner earlier would come up. Since I hadn’t eaten much, I just kept dry heaving, covering my mouth. As I tried desperately to hold back the nausea, a groan escaped. Immediately after, the door opened with the sound of the doorknob breaking.

Hadn’t he been unable to open the door just a moment ago?

Startled, I looked up to find Zachary right in front of me.

“Young master.”

He lowered himself and sat down in front of me. He reached out as if to help me, but I shook my head and backed away, still covering my mouth with both hands as I felt like I might vomit again.

“No, don’t. I think I’m going to…”

“It’s alright.”

He pulled me towards him. Embracing me, he patted my back as if soothing a child and said,

“Go ahead and vomit.”

How could he say that now… I tried to push him away somehow, but he didn’t budge an inch.

‘No.’

It was my limit. Unable to hold back the nausea rising to my throat, I ended up vomiting on Zachary while in his arms. But even in that situation, Zachary didn’t push me away. He even continued patting my back.

“How can you… now…”

After vomiting, the horrific situation became clearer. My face turned deathly pale at the thought of having soiled him. Yet Zachary paid no mind. He simply took out a handkerchief and wiped my mouth while examining my face.

“Are you alright?”

I was speechless at his calm attitude, as if nothing had happened, as if he didn’t care that he was in a mess. Seeing me frozen, Zachary’s expression turned worried. It was completely different from his expressionless face earlier. I stammered as I spoke to him.

“I’m sorry. My stomach wasn’t feeling well… so…”

“It’s nothing.”

Zachary, as if it was no big deal, took off the top he was wearing. In an instant, he had removed the servant’s uniform that was difficult to put on and take off, and stood before me with his upper body exposed.

My eyes wandered in the air, not knowing where to look at his well-built body. There was no trace of the cold face from earlier. He embraced me with the slightly gentle face I knew.

“I should be thanking you for forgiving me.”

Forgiveness…?

As I stared at Zachary in bewilderment, he seemed genuinely grateful to me.

“I will never do that again.”

He interlaced his fingers with my awkwardly outstretched hand and rubbed it against his cheek. It was a seductive gesture, like an animal fawning over its master. I flinched for a while before freezing.

Where should I even begin to point out the issues? I was the one who vomited, I was the one who committed the offense. Yet he says I forgave him just for saying a few words… And he’s thanking me for that…

‘I should be telling him firmly that he needs to go back, that it’s time…’

My lips moved but no words came out. The chilling eyes that had stared at me earlier kept coming to mind. That doll-like face and those cold, dark blue eyes that had stared at me without any emotion. I thought that if I faced that again, I might truly be devoured by him.

“Young master?”

I pulled my hand back, startled by the dark blue eyes for a moment, and he stared at me intently again. Even now, unlike his fawning gestures, his gaze focused on me was sharp. It was keen, as if he was about to see right through me.

I hurriedly reached out and hugged Zachary’s neck. I was afraid he might discover the emotions I was feeling towards him right now.

Zachary seemed surprised at first, but soon leaned into my embrace obediently. If he had seen my face awkwardly trying to mask my emotions, he might have been suspicious. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to have seen it as he was nestled against me.

“No. I just had something to think about for a moment.”

“What were you thinking about?”

He naturally wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me towards him.

“It’s hot…”

After saying that, I felt my body heating up. Well, of course it would, being nestled in Zachary’s arms like this. When had we gotten so close?

As I was carefully trying to move back, Zachary firmly held my waist, preventing me from moving.

“…Uh.”

Then Zachary kissed my neck directly. I tried to push him away, saying I was sweaty and dirty, but he clung even closer. His persistent sucking on my neck made me bury my forehead against his bare body and groan. I could clearly hear the sound of him biting and sucking on my skin.

“You…!”

That wasn’t all. I looked down and opened my mouth. The bulge protruding from his pants was pressed against my lower body. He rubbed his center against mine.

“Ah, young master.”

Could it be that this happened because I hugged him?

Heat rises where our centers meet. As he moved his hips once, I could clearly feel the presence beyond his clothes. Though I couldn’t see it with my eyes, it felt as vivid as if I were looking directly at it.

Heat rushed to my eyelids and I squeezed my eyes shut, but that only seemed to make it grow larger.

“…Hik!”

As I fumbled to push his body away, my fingertips touched the front of his pants. The hot heat beyond the clothes seemed to spread to me as well. I immediately opened my eyes wide and looked at Zachary.

Zachary let out a low laugh, then took my hand and rubbed it against his cheek before kissing it. His well-shaped lips repeatedly kissed my stiff, outstretched fingers. Then he placed my hand on top of his head. He rubbed his head against my frozen, stiff palm.

As if asking to be petted and loved.

“Don’t abandon me.”

He pleaded from under my hand.

‘I should tell him the truth and tell him to prepare to go back…’

I clenched my trembling hand into a fist, trying hard to put strength into it. No. Seeing Zachary’s current state, I had a feeling that I absolutely shouldn’t tell him.

I could instinctively tell that the fear I had felt earlier wasn’t an illusion. I couldn’t fathom what the spell-bound Zachary might do to stay by my side.

“You mustn’t abandon me. That’s the only way…”

Zachary acted as if he was going to say something more, then let out a low breath. But strangely, I thought I heard some mumbling. As if… nothing would happen that way… But thinking it was an auditory hallucination, I shook my head.

As I stroked his hair with stiff hands, Zachary let out a moan as if in pain.

“Ah, young master. It feels so good. So…”

There were only ten days left.

Zachary was attaching meaning to each and every one of my attitudes and reactions. He seemed to fear being abandoned and ignored by me, yet also appeared ready to devour me at any moment if I made a wrong move. Was it because of the spell? If so, how much of it was the influence of the spell?

‘But now I don’t even have time to think.’

With so little time left, I decided that I needed to minimize variables.

To do that…

‘Until the last day, I won’t tell Zachary that he’s going back.’

That was the conclusion I reached.