Episode 9
‘Please say something!’
As time passed in silence, my stomach twisted in fear. Finally, Huz put his hand over mine.
“Haa…”
He let out a deep, heavy sigh. My heart sank too.
“Snow White,” he said in a shaky, dangerous voice.
“You’re getting bolder just because I praised you once, huh?”
He pulled my hands off and turned around. I was too scared to speak, but the moment our eyes met, I froze like a fool.
“You’ve lost your mind.”
His voice was threatening, but his eyes were trembling.
‘Is he trying to hold himself back?’
Then suddenly—
Whoosh.
His hand grabbed my neck.
“Eek…!” I gasped and grabbed his wrist without thinking.
But instead of choking me, his hand just rested there. It wasn’t tight. It didn’t hurt at all.
He seemed to shake slightly.
‘Is he… nervous?’
His face looked even sadder now. He kept gripping and loosening his hand, just lightly touching my skin.
“I want to kill you…”
But I can’t.
He didn’t say the second part aloud—but I could read it from his lips.
Then he gritted his teeth, let go of me, and left.
I just stood there, confused.
I touched my neck—it felt cold.
It was Huz’s body temperature.
That cold, pitiful feeling lingered.
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‘Did things work out in the end?’ I thought as I looked out the window.
The kids came and took a bucket of junk, then left safely. I touched my neck—it was still okay.
‘From now on, I won’t help again. Whether they live or die, I don’t care.’
I was so embarrassed. I hugged a murderer to save kids I didn’t even know! That was a one-time mistake.
I touched my lips with my finger and muttered quietly:
“…Does he have a painful memory about his curse?”
He looked so sad when I asked about it.
I guess I should avoid talking about curses from now on.
Still, it was strange…
When I hugged him, he froze like a statue.
Then after a long pause, he reached for my neck.
But he didn’t choke me. He couldn’t, even though he wanted to.
He trembled, threatened me, and then ran away.
‘That’s actually good for me.’
If he already hesitates to kill me, that’s something to be happy about.
But still…
“Haa.”
Even though I’m safe, I couldn’t feel peaceful.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw his sad expression.
‘Does he get sick if he doesn’t kill someone?’
I didn’t know. I pulled at my cheeks and tugged my hair in frustration.
The more I got to know him, the more complicated he seemed.
That’s just how Huz is.
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Two more weeks passed.
The kids came by three more times.
Even when I saw them leave safely, I couldn’t stop thinking about Huz.
I couldn’t forget his sad smile or his pained face.
I even dreamed about it.
—Snow White. Don’t try to find out about my curse.
—I’ll kill you if you do.
He held my hand and begged me… while pretending to threaten me.
—I want to kill you…
But he bit his lip and ran away.
“Haa.”
I sighed again and closed my book.
Now, I was reading a romance novel about a prince and a commoner.
But I couldn’t focus at all.
So I brought the book and a fork outside to copy the writing. Even if I was thinking random thoughts, at least my handwriting was getting better.
But then…
“Oh god.”
I realized I was writing things like:
‘Does he have bad memories of the curse?’
‘If he can’t kill, will something bad happen to him?’
Embarrassed, I threw the fork away.
‘Now that I think about it, I never even apologized.’
I stared at the words on the ground. I hurt him twice and just left it.
‘I should say sorry when he comes back.’
It’s not right to hit someone’s weak spot and ignore it.
‘How do I apologize?’
I looked up at the cloudy sky, thinking hard.
‘Maybe I can get him to like me more while I’m at it.’
Two birds with one stone: apologize and earn points in my “taming” plan.
“Alright, what would Huz like?”
He seems to like my hands—should I let him hold them for an hour?
“No, that’s not enough.”
How about a hug?
“…Absolutely not.”
I frowned just thinking about it.
He looked tortured after a single hug. Unless he asks, I should avoid touching him.
‘Should I give him a gift?’
Good idea! But…
“I have nothing to give.”
No money, no stores, and I can’t go outside.
“How do I show sincerity?”
I thought hard, but nothing came to mind. I sighed and gathered the book and fork.
“Forget it. I give up on getting points.”
Too bad. I’ll just say sorry with words.
Then, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted something—and smiled.
“This will work.”
Looks like I can prepare a small gift after all.
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That night, the moon was high in the sky.
The bedroom window opened quietly.
Huz leaned in through the frame, his body lit by moonlight.
Inea was fast asleep, breathing softly.
“Hmm…”
She moved around a bit and mumbled. Huz watched her quietly.
He had visited her secretly every night since bringing her here.
If he didn’t see her even once, he felt so anxious he’d get a fever.
But since she was scared of him, he could only watch like a thief.
He reached out and gently brushed her soft coral hair.
Two weeks ago, when she suddenly hugged him—he lost control.
His mind went blank.
Two strong emotions he usually kept in check—love and hate—took over.
She was so soft, like a doll…
And yet, it made him feel disgusted too. The mix of feelings drove him mad.
He tried to strangle her.
…But then she groaned softly and touched his wrist.
Her warmth wrapped around his waist. That gentle touch stopped him.
She was so warm. It made him shiver.
Her shaky breath, her pale skin, her trembling eyes—all of it was beautiful.
He couldn’t kill her.
Why? Why not?
He wanted to kill her so badly.
But in the end, he ran away.
Her hug broke the walls he’d built. Since then, his emotions had been spinning out of control.
Even now, all he could look at was her neck.
“…Ah.”
His hand, which had been brushing her hair, moved to her neck.
But instead, he clenched his fist and touched her cheek instead.
She was warm, like sunlight.
His crazy thoughts calmed down a little.
Because of the undead blood in his body, he was always cold. But Inea felt like a living heater.
“Hmm…”
Suddenly, she moved and turned toward him. Huz flinched.
Just as he was about to leave, she pressed her face against his hand.
“It’s cold…”
Huz’s mouth dropped open.
“You should drink… warm water…”
Still asleep, she mumbled softly and went quiet again.
‘Are you telling me to drink warm water… because my hand is cold?’
Huz laughed bitterly.
Then the smile faded.
“That’s cruel.”
From beginning to end… everything about her is cruel.
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The morning sun filled the room.
“Mmm! I slept great!”
I stretched and did a few exercises to wake myself up.
I ate grilled eel and tangerines, then started my usual lazy day.
I read, studied writing, took a nap, danced around, and even cleaned up.
I squashed some bugs, washed the dishes, and counted clouds just to pass time.
“One sheep, two sheep… three—wait, that looks like a pig.”
Suddenly, I heard footsteps on the roof.
Surprised, I sat up. A familiar figure landed lightly on the ground.
“Huz?”
He usually came back after 3 or 4 weeks—but today it had only been 15 days.
When he turned toward me, I smiled brightly.
“Welcome back!”
Perfect timing! I had just prepared a gift.
I got down from my chair and walked to the flower blooming by the front door.
Huz crouched near me and tilted his head.
“What are you doing?”
“This.”
I picked the flower and stood up, holding it out.
His eyes narrowed a bit.
“I didn’t get a chance to apologize… for hugging you and asking something I shouldn’t have.”
A breeze blew through, rustling my hair and the flower petals.
“This was the only thing I could give you.”
The wildflower had red petals, just like Huz’s eyes.
I was embarrassed but hopeful.
“Do you not like flowers?”
He didn’t say anything. I lowered my hand.
“Sorry, I was being silly. I’ll throw it away.”
“…How troublesome.”
He reached out awkwardly.
“Give it to me.”
Oh? That’s a good sign. I thought he’d reject it or crush it.
But instead, he gently took the flower and placed it in his pocket.
It looked tiny in his big hand.
“Such a useless thing…”
He clicked his tongue, but carefully tucked the flower away so it wouldn’t break.
‘He’s pretending to be cold.’
I held back a smile.
