“There is nothing left ladylike about me.”
Luca turned sharply, his black eyes glinting with curiosity as he tilted his head. “Did you say something?”
Aeliana stiffened, her lips pressing into a tight line. Her gaze darted toward him briefly before snapping away, her cheeks flushed with a mix of embarrassment and frustration.
“I didn’t say anything, you bastard,” she snapped, her voice sharp and defensive.
Luca’s brows arched slightly, a knowing smile tugging at his lips. “Alright, alright,” he said, his tone placating but playful. He turned back toward the fire, his attention seemingly absorbed by the flickering flames.
‘Why does he always have that look? Like he knows something I don’t.’ Aeliana glared at the back of his head, her chest still heaving from her earlier outburst. ‘Smug bastard. Acting like he’s better than everyone just because he can swing a sword.’
Her thoughts were interrupted as a faint scent wafted through the air.
“Hm?” Her nose twitched involuntarily, catching the warm, savory aroma. It was faint at first, but then it grew stronger, wrapping around her senses with tantalizing allure.
The smell of cooking meat, seasoned with something rich and earthy, reached her fully, and her body reacted before her mind could stop it.
Grumble.
A loud, unmistakable sound echoed in the cavern.
“Ah…” Aeliana’s face burned as she instinctively clutched her stomach, pressing her arms tightly against it as though to muffle the embarrassing noise. Her amber eyes widened in mortification. ‘No. No, no, no. This can’t be happening.’
But the damage was done.
Luca glanced over his shoulder, his smirk returning with full force. His dark eyes glimmered with amusement as he caught her panicked expression.
“Well, well,” he drawled, his voice light with mockery. “Sounds like someone’s hungry.”
“I’m not,” she shot back quickly, her voice betraying her as it cracked slightly. Her hands tightened around her stomach, as though willing it to silence itself. ‘Shut up, shut up, shut up! Of all the times to betray me, now?!’
Luca chuckled softly, turning fully to face her. He leaned against the rock casually, crossing his arms as he observed her with the kind of smug satisfaction that made her blood boil. “Oh? Could’ve fooled me. That growl could’ve scared off a bear.”
“I said I’m not hungry,” Aeliana hissed, her voice low and venomous. She refused to meet his gaze, her eyes fixated on the ground. ‘This is humiliating. How does he always manage to make everything worse?’
Luca’s smirk widened as he crouched by the fire, reaching for something just out of her view. When he straightened, he held a skewer with sizzling, perfectly seared meat, its juices glistening in the firelight.
The aroma hit her full force, and her stomach betrayed her again with a quieter, more pitiful grumble.
Aeliana’s hands balled into fists, her nails biting into her palms. ‘Why. Why does this have to happen now? I’d rather face the wiry bastard again than deal with this.’
Luca twirled the skewer lazily in his fingers, letting the scent waft toward her with an almost deliberate tease. “You sure? Because it smells like you could use this.”
She shot him a glare that could have melted steel, her pride warring with the gnawing hunger clawing at her insides. “I said I’m fine,” she growled through gritted teeth.
Luca raised a brow, then shrugged, his expression feigning innocence. “Suit yourself.” He turned his attention back to the skewer, taking a slow, deliberate bite. The sound of him chewing only made the smell seem stronger, and Aeliana’s stomach twisted painfully.
‘Don’t you dare give in,’ she told herself, her eyes locked on the flames. ‘You’ve been through worse than this. You don’t need him or his stupid food.’
Another grumble escaped, softer but no less humiliating.
Luca didn’t look at her this time, but his smirk grew as he spoke. “You know,” he said casually, “it’d be a shame to waste perfectly good food. I’ve got more if you change your mind.”
Aeliana clenched her fists tighter, her pride screaming at her to refuse, but the ache in her stomach
Aeliana clenched her fists tighter, her pride screaming at her to refuse, but the ache in her stomach was becoming unbearable. ‘Damn him. Damn him and his stupid smirk and his stupid skewers.’
Her lips parted slightly, but no words came out. She couldn’t bring herself to say it, to admit even the smallest defeat.
Luca didn’t press further. He simply continued eating, his calm demeanor only making her frustration boil hotter.
‘I hate him,’ she thought bitterly. But as another pang of hunger struck, her resolve wavered. ‘I hate him… but maybe… just this once…’
Her gaze flicked to the skewer in his hand, the sight of the meat glistening in the firelight making her stomach churn with longing.
She swallowed hard, her pride and hunger locked in a fierce battle.
Then her gaze darted between the fire and Luca, her jaw tight as she fought the relentless hunger gnawing at her insides. The aroma of the cooked meat taunted her, a cruel reminder of her body’s betrayal.
‘No. Absolutely not,’ she thought, her nails digging deeper into her palms. ‘There is no way I’m giving him the satisfaction. That infuriating smirk… it’s like he knows.’
Her amber eyes narrowed at Luca, who continued to eat leisurely, his expression maddeningly calm. She couldn’t let him win. Not like this.
Instead, she curled tighter into the corner of the cavern, her arms wrapping around her knees as though shielding herself from the humiliation. Her stomach ached with every inhale of the savory scent, but she clenched her teeth and glared at the dancing flames.
‘Let him enjoy his stupid skewer,’ she thought bitterly, her face burning. ‘I don’t need it. I’ve endured worse. I can endure this.’
The sound of Luca taking another deliberate bite grated on her nerves like nails on stone. She shifted slightly, trying to block it out, but it was no use. He didn’t say anything, didn’t taunt her further. Yet somehow, that was worse.
The silence stretched, broken only by the crackle of the fire and the occasional sound of Luca chewing. Just as the tension seemed unbearable, his voice cut through the stillness.
“Why have you been watching me?”
Aeliana froze, her body stiffening like a taut bowstring.
“W-what?” she stammered, her head snapping toward him. Her voice came out sharper than she intended, betraying her unease.
Luca’s dark eyes flicked to her briefly before returning to the fire. He took another unhurried bite, as though the question were casual and not the grenade he’d just thrown into the conversation.
“From the ship behind,” he clarified, his tone deceptively light. “Why were you watching me?”
‘There’s no way,’ she thought, her pulse quickening. Her fingers tightened their grip on her knees, the blood draining from her face. ‘I was far away. There’s no way he could have known… right?’
But the weight of his words settled heavily on her chest. He wasn’t guessing. He knew.
Her voice wavered slightly. “I-I wasn’t watching you.”
Luca’s smirk returned, faint but unmistakable. He leaned back slightly, his posture casual yet entirely deliberate. “Really? Because I’d swear those eyes behind that veil were locked on me the entire time.”
Aeliana’s face burned hotter, and she gritted her teeth, struggling to find a retort.
‘He’s lying. He has to be lying. How could he possibly know?’
But his calm demeanor, the easy confidence in his voice, made her doubt her own certainty.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she snapped, her voice firmer this time, though the edge of panic still clung to it.
Luca chuckled softly, the sound low and maddeningly self-assured. He glanced at her again, his gaze sharp and piercing. “You’re a terrible liar.”
Aeliana flinched as though struck, her pride bristling under the accusation. Her fists clenched at her sides, and she glared at him with all the defiance she could muster.
“I wasn’t lying,” she insisted, her voice cold but trembling. “I have no interest in watching someone like you.”
Luca didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he set the now-empty skewer aside and leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees as the firelight flickered across his face.
“Someone like me, huh?” he said, his tone quieter now, almost contemplative. “Then why did you keep staring?”
She had watched him—his movements, his precision, the way he moved in the battlefield with ruthless efficiency.
It had been… interesting…A beacon of enjoyment that she came to enjoy at her end moments of freedom.
But, there was no way she would admit it.
“I don’t owe you an explanation,” she said finally, her voice icy. “And I don’t have to justify anything to you.”
Luca tilted his head, his smirk softening into something closer to amusement than mockery. “Fair enough,” he said, leaning back again. “Keep your secrets, little missy. But I’m not wrong.”
Her heart pounded against her ribs as his words hung in the air. The playful lilt in his tone only fueled her frustration, but beneath it all, a seed of unease took root.
‘Did he really know that I was watching him there at that time?’ Discover more stories at My Virtual Library Empire
A question that she had in her heart.
SWOOSH!
Just then, she felt the wind blowing.
“Oh….we have company it seems….”
———-A/N————
Sorry for not posting for a little.
My keyboard was broken and the new one just arrived. It also served as a break, and now that I look at it, it seems I really needed it.
From now on, you may expect regular updates.