The Male Leads Were Stolen By The Extra [EN]: Chapter 36

<36>

That night, midnight.

“Haa…”

Tan, holding Celonia’s hand tightly, gasped for breath, leaning his forehead against her slender arm.

“Are you alright?”

Along with the gentle voice that pierced his ears amidst the agonizing pain, his torment began to subside. Very quickly.

Could it be that it had been well over a week since he first held her hand?

With each passing day, the intensity of the pain diminished.

The pain still arrived like clockwork at midnight, but it was incomparably milder than before he met her.

Previously, it felt as if the blood flowing through his body had turned entirely into blades, tearing him to pieces, but now it was just the ache of being stabbed in the chest a few times with a sword.

“Have you finished reading all the books Ella gave you?”

Celonia asked, watching his face relax.

Dealing with this every midnight had become as routine as a daily task.

Enough to pass the time by exchanging conversation.

“Yeah…”

He swallowed even the lingering pain along with his reply.

Soon, the pain completely vanished. It had only been a few seconds since he took Celonia’s hand.

But if he pretended to be completely healed like this, she would mercilessly let go of his hand and tell him to go back.

“Ugh…”

Hating that, Tan deliberately groaned, leaning his limp body even more against her.

Her soft, white hand felt so good that he wanted to hold it 24 hours a day.

“I have to go out tomorrow morning. Have your meals alone.”

Celonia gave Tan a heads-up.

Tonight, her father had asked if she could attend the Denroha Marquis’s daughter’s birthday party tomorrow.

Apparently, the Denroha Marquis was her father’s closest friend, and his daughter was very fond of Celonia.

There was no reason not to go, so Celonia readily agreed.

“I’m going too.”

“No! I’ll be back soon, so just take care of your own business. And uninvited people can’t attend.”

Celonia naturally refused.

Who knew what might happen if she took him to a crowded place? Absolutely not.

“You still lack common sense.”

“…”

Tan’s eyebrows twitched, displeased with Celonia’s firm refusal.

“Haaam. Ella lent you some books of knowledge, right? You should know by now that you shouldn’t speak so casually to others.”

Celonia said, rubbing her teary eyes with her hands as she yawned.

It was late. But that didn’t seem to be all. Why did she feel so tired these days after holding his hand?

Her body felt languid, and sleepiness washed over her.

It wasn’t like this on the first day, but it gradually became more so with each passing day.

Could it be because she no longer felt nervous being with him? That was probably it.

After giving him the name Tan, Celonia sometimes forgot that he was the Demon King.

It was only a week ago that she couldn’t stand being with him and was only thinking of ways to kick him out… It was only half a year ago that she had crossed the Demon Forest and climbed the Demon King’s castle to kill him.

Could it be that she felt like he was just another person after spending time together?

Or was it because Tan was unintentionally filling the loneliness or void created by the sudden departure of the male leads?

When she was with him, there was no time to feel lonely.

They had every meal together, and even at this late hour when she felt the most lonely, she had no time to be alone because she was holding his hand.

Whatever it was, it wasn’t good. She didn’t know how he would change if he regained his memories.

“Hey, do you know my age?”

“I don’t.”

“Then why are you speaking informally to me?”

Through the books, Tan had learned the order of human society, that if someone was of high status, regardless of age, one should show them respect.

But why had Celonia spoken informally to him from the beginning?

“It’s a habit. I don’t easily speak informally to people who look older than me.”

Celonia rattled off an excuse that she had come up with in a fleeting moment.

Originally, coming from a Confucian country [a culture that emphasizes respect for elders and hierarchy], she couldn’t easily speak informally to people who looked older.

Of course, the only reason she hadn’t spoken formally to Tan from the beginning was because she knew he was the Demon King.

“You don’t know my age. You think I’m older than you?”

“Look at your face. I’m sure I’m younger than you.”

“Do you want to die?”

“Of course not.”

Celonia remained calm even in the face of the fierce red eyes that glared at her as if annoyed.

If that threat had really come true, she would no longer be in this world.

“How old are you?”

“Me? Twenty-fou- ugh, twenty-one.”

“What?”

“Twenty-one.”

Oops. Celonia quickly corrected herself.

She almost said her real age for a moment. This body is 21 years old.

“Twenty-one.”

Tan repeated Celonia’s answer to himself.

How many years apart were they?

But he couldn’t know his own age, so he couldn’t guess. He just hoped that there wasn’t much difference between them.

“You feel better now, right? Go now. I’m tired.”

“…Ugh, not yet.”

Taking advantage of her lapse, Tan quickly pretended to be in pain at the opportune moment of being told to leave, burying his head further into Celonia’s shoulder.

With each passing day, it became increasingly difficult to turn back.

“Haaam. Don’t lie. You were just talking fine until now…”

“Seeing isn’t everything. Go to sleep first if you’re sleepy. I’ll leave on my own.”

Tan chuckled as he watched Celonia, who was mumbling with her eyes almost closed.

On the first day, she had watched him with a tense face and eyes wide open like an eagle, but as the days went by, she gradually became more lax.

He liked that about her.

He preferred this unguarded appearance in front of him, which had naturally loosened up, to her wary demeanor.

“How can I sleep when you’re like this? It’s uncomfortable.”

Celonia blinked slowly with a sleepy face, shaking the hand he was holding. He was holding it so tightly like a shackle that she couldn’t sleep like this.

That’s what she said, but sleepiness poured in.

“Just sleep.”

Tan was watching her eyelids, which kept falling like heavy weights.

It was fascinating.

He, who didn’t sleep, found it very fascinating that someone was so sleepy like this, that they slept.

It seemed like a different sensation from just closing one’s eyes. What does it feel like to sleep?

“I think I can go now…”

Eventually, she couldn’t finish mumbling the words in her sleep and began to nod off.

She had fallen asleep even though she said it was uncomfortable because he was holding her hand and leaning on her.

Nod, nod. Her head repeatedly fell down and came back up.

Tan reached out to turn his body and lean Celonia against the sofa, without letting go of the hand he was holding, in case her head fell off.

It was at that moment.

Her head, which had completely fallen asleep, dropped down and leaned against Tan’s chest.

“…”

Tan froze.

He couldn’t turn his body back to its original position, let go of his hand, or lean her against the sofa, he just froze.

Because Celonia was digging deeper into his arms as if she thought it was a bed now.

“Ugh…”

Tan let out a low breath as a tingling sensation ran down his spine like an electric shock.

To make matters worse, each time she wriggled and dug into his arms, a subtle scent of fragrance momentarily stimulated the tip of his nose.

It was a powerful scent that made him feel dizzy and lightheaded.

The scent was like a breeze blowing in through the window, like the scent of flowers on a bee that occasionally flew in, like the sweetness of honey.

Where is it coming from?

Tan stiffened like a person with a neck brace, only lowering his gaze.

Then, her white neck was visible through her flowing lavender hair.

Instantly, he felt a strong urge to bury his nose in that neck.

He even had the thought of gnawing on her pure white neck and leaving his mark.

…Why?

Once again, blood began to rush downwards as it had at the boutique.

Along with that strange feeling, his heart pounded violently. A heat, from who knows where, enveloped his entire body.

“…Crazy.”

Then, realizing something, Tan covered his flushed face with one hand, looking at Celonia, who was still in his arms.

Because the impulse and symptoms he was feeling now were exactly the same as those of the crazy bastards in the book he had read today.