Chapter 220

Chapter 220

“You know me because I’m the lord of Acrab, right?”

Ja Yanghwa twitched.

“And it’s not because of anything good.”

She flinched again.

I bit back my chuckle, trying not to show my amusement.

Ja Yanghwa was trying her best to hide her reactions, but she couldn’t help but flinch every time I hit a nerve. She finally peered out of her shell, realizing that her reactions were giving her away.

I was amazed at how she had managed to survive this long. She was like a delicate, fragile creature.

I grinned, hoping to put her at ease. “So, how does this little cutie know me then?”

It wasn’t until I saw the stunned look on Ja Yanghwa’s face, with her mouth hanging open and eyes wide, that I realized my words were slimy and creepy, like I had melted a stick of butter in my mouth.

Shame washed over me as I realized my tone was no different from the villains in romantic manhwas. I cleared my throat, taking a moment to reflect on my behavior.

“Okay, so how do you know me, if not in a positive way?” I tried to sound more professional, but the thought of her being a small and precious creature still lingered in my mind.

Why is my first impression always so bad?

Despite my sleazy words, they seemed to have an effect on Ja Yanghwa. She cautiously poked her head out and mumbled, “Someone told me. You’re an evil person who’s involved with something taboo and I should stay away from you if I ever see you.”

“Evil? Taboo?” I asked, intrigued.

“Your domain, Acrab, is known to have been damaged by forbidden time magic. I know who did it. What terrible things are you and the crown prince of this country up to? Everyone is being misled.”

I was shocked and couldn’t respond.

“I can’t trust you. How are you manipulating Azel? I couldn’t sense anything… To be deceived like that!” she continued.

I shook my head, trying to understand what she was saying. This was all so absurd.

“Were you just trying to bewitch me too? I almost got deceived…!” she added, sounding scared.

I stared at her in disbelief, completely taken aback.

‘Wow, she’s a cutie,’ I thought to myself as I looked at Ja Yanghwa. She had shoulder-length dark brown bob hair that was tied and braided with a small white string. Her doe-like eyes, combined with her small frame and plump lips, made her look incredibly adorable.

It was no wonder Julius was always so nervous around her in the original work.

“Who told you that I was evil?” I asked, trying to get to the bottom of things.

“My benefactor, who saved me,” she answered, sounding a little nervous. “That person warned me not to trust people like you.”

“And what did this person look like?” I pressed on, hoping for a lead.

“Uh, they were very beautiful,” she stammered, “but a man.”

I raised an eyebrow and used my magic to bind her, causing her to jump in surprise. The black, thin line of magic that I used was the same spell I used to bind Walter back in Hoiore.

“Do you know his name?” I asked, trying to get more information.

“He said he couldn’t reveal his identity because he had to save more people in the future,” she replied, still sounding a little nervous.

I wondered if she was just naive or if she was actually being tricked. Either way, I wanted to make it clear to her that I wasn’t the villain she thought I was.

“Have you ever thought that you might have been tricked by him?” I asked, trying to appeal to her better judgement. “I’m actually a nice person and I didn’t manipulate Azel.”

“No way, he saved me!”

I couldn’t believe it, the only man I thought of as handsome was Walter. We met in the North, but he was long gone, and I knew he couldn’t be the one who saved me. He was weak, a discarded medium.

If I had to pick someone else who was as good-looking, it would be Asta. He was the right-hand man to Princess Exchetra, known as the Limb of Darkness. I only caught a glimpse of him at the ball, but I couldn’t shake off his alluring presence.

It made sense now. Another transmigrator must have gotten wind of Ja Yanghwa and taken her before I could. That’s why she showed up out of nowhere in this place.

So, it seemed that there were three potential candidates for Julius’ female lead, but now there was no one. That’s why Princess Exchetra was pushing me to fill that role.

‘She knew about it and kept them apart.’

If that was the case, it would be hard to find another suitable female lead in the future.

“You don’t have any evidence that I’m evil.” I spoke up.

“What are you talking about? Your magic is evidence. The power to inflict such pain is proof that you’re evil!” she shot back.

I flinched this time, my eyebrows furrowed, and my hand tightened on the magical string attached to Ja Yanghwa.

What made Ja Yanghwa so special was her ability to sense the magical energy within people.

People could ask where the magic energy came from, but since only Ja Yanghwa could feel it, there was no other option but to trust her judgment.

In fact, if Ja Yanghwa felt that ten people were strange, then all ten of them would likely be dark magicians. If they were deemed strange by Ja Yanghwa, most of them were either criminals or had committed wrongdoings, even if they weren’t magicians.