Rashanin threatened her to watch her words. But Elisabeth retorted, asking what the big deal was.
“Between us, this much is nothing. Besides, I’m not lying. Unhyuk. You who are serving such a Duke must be a very kind person, or you must have been forced to praise him because of the Duke’s threats. Which is it?”
“Of course it’s not the former. And as for the latter…… It would be more correct to say I received a bribe rather than a threat.”
“A bribe?”
“Mr. Rashanin gave it to me saying it wasn’t, but in this situation, it’s become a bribe.”
“What did you receive that makes you so loyal?”
“You’re looking at it right now, Ms. Elisabeth. It’s quite splendid.”
In a situation where Elisabeth was leading the conversation and throwing various questions at him, if he only gave short answers, the atmosphere would sink. He deliberately put on a smiling face and answered as shamelessly as possible, spreading his arms slightly. Then Elisabeth’s eyes widened, saying “Aha.”
“Clothes, not jewels. This is…….”
Elisabeth trailed off, then looked at Rashanin with a meaningful gaze. Rashanin, who had been cutting his sea bass dish, opened his mouth indifferently.
“I don’t care what you wear.”
“It’s unexpected.”
“Mind your own business. It’s my concern.”
“Whether I mind or not is also my concern.”
“You don’t actually like me, do you? Seeing how you chased me all the way here and are hounding me, even if you say no, I have my doubts. Princess.”
“It seems you have a brain problem, why don’t you get it checked? These days there are machines that can take pictures inside the brain. Ah? You wouldn’t know, would you? You’ve only slept for 30 years, so you wouldn’t know how the world has changed, right?”
Huh? Slept for 30 years? He sensed something strange in the two’s harsh conversation. But there was no one to answer the question that arose in his mind.
“If such a machine exists, shouldn’t we look inside the Princess’s head first, not mine? I’m curious about the reason you’re chasing me when you say you dislike me.”
“Either get hit a few more times. Then I’ll obediently withdraw.”
“You want to kill me.”
“You just won’t die easily.”
The two seemed to really not get along. If they were truly mortal enemies, they wouldn’t even sit in the same place, but it was true that they couldn’t stand not snarling at each other. As Rashanin said, they felt like competitors who didn’t like each other.
Really, if they just didn’t talk and stood side by side, they’d be perfect beauties.
He sighed while swallowing the tender sea bass. When he entered the restaurant with these two, truly without a word of exaggeration, a moment of silence fell over the restaurant. Even the hands of the musician playing the piano live stopped. Someone didn’t even notice when the meat about to enter their mouth fell down.
Rashanin in a white shirt with a wide collar wrapping around his long neck, a wide navy necktie, and a conservative three-button suit, and Elisabeth in a sleek black evening dress with a deeply cut chest and a thick necklace of gold and diamonds around her neck were so stylish and beautiful they seemed to have just walked out of a fashion magazine. Moreover, their unique presence was enough to silence people and capture their attention.
What was fortunate was that the reserved seat was a private room. Otherwise, the probability of not knowing whether food was entering his mouth or nose while enduring people’s various gazes throughout dinner would have been very high.
While the waiters were setting up the lamb dish following the sea bass, he looked at Elisabeth, who was still having a sharp war of nerves with Rashanin. Elisabeth in a black evening dress with her gorgeous blonde hair down was no ordinary beauty. The visual beauty created by the gold and black color scheme and abundant hair was mesmerizing. Not only him, but the waiters serving were also stealing glances at Elisabeth.
If Rashanin was too handsome for a man, Elisabeth was simply a beauty to be praised without question. Since he was a man, it was natural for his gaze to go more to Elisabeth among the beauties. The phrase “a beauty whose glance could topple a nation” fit her perfectly—suggesting she could bring down a country with just a look. Her elegant and dignified behavior that conveyed her noble birth captivated the eyes and heart.
But it’s too late when you approach a beautiful flower only to realize it’s a carnivorous plant.
“If you stare like that, I’ll misunderstand. Unhyuk.”
“Pardon?”
“That you’ve fallen for me.”
Elisabeth smiled as she set down the wine glass she’d been drinking from. Only then did he realize he’d been staring at her in a daze. Rashanin beside him let out a light laugh.
“Mr. Lee Unhyuk was like that when he first saw me too.”
He was at a loss for words at Rashanin’s point. In the two vampires’ brief conversation, he’d instantly become a human blushing with embarrassment. What was fortunate was that despite his flustered state, his face didn’t turn red.
“Unhyuk, did you really fall for me?”
“I just thought you were beautiful.”
“You didn’t fall for me?”
She was as persistent as Rashanin. Why did she have to resemble him only in things like this? He calmly met the gaze of Elisabeth, who prettily opened her blue eyes and asked as if she didn’t know.
“There’s a saying in Chinese classics, haeohwa. If you interpret the meaning, it means a flower that understands words. Since flowers can’t understand words…… it means the person speaking is as beautiful as a flower. I thought that when I saw you, Ms. Elisabeth.”
Having spoken for a while, it really was embarrassingly flattering. But with a ‘whatever’ mindset, he spoke without hiding anything.
Compared to Manuel sitting across from him showing no change in expression, the reactions of the two sitting on either side were stark. Rashanin raised just one corner of his lips as if scoffing, while Elisabeth laughed with surprised eyes.
“My, it’s been a while since I’ve heard such blatant praise. Do you say such things to women often?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Then only to me?”
“Well, it’s because you’re that beautiful.”
Once he’d said she was beautiful, the second time wasn’t difficult. Elisabeth’s blue eyes, which had been staring intently, sparkled like jewels. If this wasn’t beautiful, what would be?
“Then what about the Duke over there? He’s been praised as having unparalleled beauty in this world.”
“Why are you dragging me into this?”
He looked at Rashanin, whom Elisabeth had pointed at with her finger. The man in the three-button jacket suit was contributing to elevating the class of this place.
He is good-looking. Enough that he fell completely for him when they kissed last night. Rather than being disgusted after kissing a man, the fact that he sighed wondering what to do about it was largely due to that handsome face…… no. For mental health, he immediately stopped thinking about the kiss.
“You’re handsome. Very much so.”
“Compared to me?”
He didn’t know why she was asking such a question. Moreover, Rashanin was a man. It was unreasonable to compare him to Elisabeth. Feeling a bit awkward, he looked back and forth between the two.
If not for their blue and purple eyes, judging the superiority of beauty between the two vampires who resembled each other like siblings was extremely difficult. Rashanin was a man, but even his frowning face was handsome. But still, he was a man.
But strangely, Rashanin was looking at him with a face full of anticipation, or rather trust. Surely he wasn’t expecting him to say he was better? Elisabeth is a woman and you’re a man. Do you want to hear that you’re prettier than a woman?
He seemed to have gotten caught in a strange power struggle. Feeling tired, he took a long breath.
“Isn’t it natural that a woman is more beautiful than a man.”
When he sided with Elisabeth, the two vampires’ expressions changed differently. Unlike Elisabeth, who laughed out loud, Rashanin grimaced. He furrowed his brow as if he’d drunk salt water thinking it was plain water. To be more precise, he looked as if he’d been betrayed.
He’d only stated the truth. If you make that expression, it makes me feel like I’m a bad person.
“Hahaha. So there are humans who don’t fall for the Duke’s beauty. If father had heard this, he would have been very pleased. I really like you.”
“Lee Unhyuk-ssi. Let me give you some advice—whatever the Princess says, don’t fall for her tricks. No matter how beautiful her face is like a flower, the inside is completely different from the outside.”
“You shouldn’t talk about others like that, Duke. And do you think people like this are common?”
“That’s why he’s my guide.”
“Just a guide? You know that’s not befitting of a Duke, don’t you?”
“Are you going to make me say the same thing again, Princess?”
“Why are you getting angry? If you don’t want to, then just don’t do it.”
Someone please save me. I desperately wished an emergency would come up and I’d get called away urgently. Being stuck between flower-like beautiful vampires baring their teeth and having a fierce argument made me feel like my soul was flying away.
“Rashanin-ssi. There’s something I’d like to ask.”
“Go ahead.”
When I spoke to divert their attention, Rashanin, who had been glaring at Elisabeth, turned his gaze to me. I had to catch my breath for a moment at his eyes that still retained their sharpness.
“Earlier, Elisabeth-ssi said that Rashanin-ssi only slept for 30 years. I’m curious what you meant by that.”
“Exactly what it sounds like.”
“Pardon?”
