The Teddy Bear Sends the Insomniac Villain to Dreamland - Chapter 48

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 48
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These past few days, Blake’s gaze upon me has been peculiar. He glances at me intermittently, his brow furrowing in irritation, and he exhales soft sighs.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
“How dull.”
Feeling the weight of his stare, I turned my head, but Blake denied it and adjusted his glasses before returning his focus to the documents.
I wondered what was troubling him, but I didn’t dwell on it deeply.
Blake occasionally observed me with quiet intensity, and I was always willing to indulge his scrutiny.
Seated at the expansive desk in the Study Room, I turned my gaze toward the window once more.
Hmm. The Garden seems brighter than when I first saw it.
The Apple Garden behind the Mansion had always been beautiful, blessed with a shimmering lake and an open vista of sky stretching endlessly above.
‘But from the gates of the Leblanc Mansion to the entrance hall—the aesthetic was rather lacking before.’
What’s suddenly changed?
I propped my chin up with my small hands, leaning forward.
Outside, Ronald and the servants bustled about tending the Garden in preparation for summer, their movements purposeful and energetic.
“Blake. The Garden seems to have become quite beautiful.”
“Does it?”
“Everyone’s working so hard planting things. Is that sunflowers?”
I chattered on, watching the servants strain under the weight of fertilizer and seedlings they dragged along, when Blake asked quietly.
“What did you originally look like?”
What kind of question is that?
My eyes widened as I whipped my head around to face him.
Blake continued reading his documents with apparent indifference.
The question seemed odd coming from someone so disinterested, so I studied him carefully, but he didn’t glance back at me.
“I was incredibly beautiful.”
So I told him the truth, but Blake’s reaction was underwhelming.
“Objectively speaking.”
“Objectively, I was incredibly beautiful! Why? Did someone call me an ugly, grimy teddy bear again?”
I have trauma from that.
Stung by the endless remarks about being grimy since arriving here, I placed my hands on my hips and narrowed my eyes sharply.
At my reaction, Blake clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“Not when you were a teddy bear. I’m asking about your real form. I’m curious about what you actually look like.”
Curious. Curious…
The words echoed in my ears like a refrain. I blinked slowly, opening and closing my eyes in measured rhythm.
The Leblanc Mansion’s Garden is becoming radiant, and Blake poses questions whose intent I cannot fathom.
Am I dreaming right now?
Growing impatient at my silence, Blake asked again.
“Your hair color, for instance. Your eye color. Things like that. Tell me your true appearance—the real you when you were the formidable Western Territory witch.”
“…Blake. Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”
It was a reasonable suspicion. After all, he had never shown the slightest interest in my appearance in the Demon Realm.
Whenever I recounted those perilous and captivating experiences from the Demon Realm, Blake would merely respond with an indifferent gaze, repeating “Oh, I see” over and over.
So what wind had suddenly shifted his attention?
Still, being noticed was always pleasant. Especially when it came from Blake doing something so uncharacteristic—it was irresistibly appealing.
“Do you like pomelo?”
Watching him stare blankly at me, I made a theatrical gesture of sweeping back hair that wasn’t there.
“My hair is pomelo-colored. A perfectly ripened pomelo hue kissed by summer sunlight—brilliant and golden. My eyes are exactly the same as they are now.”
“…So it really was you back then.”
“Why the sudden curiosity?”
My attention, which had been directed toward the window, now focused entirely on Blake. I hopped down and perched myself on the edge of his desk.
He watched my legs swing lazily back and forth before slowly parting his lips.
“Can you transform back to your original form whenever you want?”
I nodded without hesitation.
“Thanks to the Arcanum you gave me. I tried it a few times and it worked.”
“Have you shown anyone?”
At his sharp question, I hesitated, wondering whether I should mention my encounters with Eren and Edwin.
My meeting with Edwin had been brief, but with Eren, I had even pretended to be a guardian angel.
I worried Blake might disapprove of me meeting them without permission.
But then again, Eren, who adored his brother, might have already told Blake about our encounter.
And besides, I didn’t particularly want to lie to Blake.
I answered lightly.
“Yes. But don’t worry. My identity wasn’t exposed.”
Blake, unsurprised as if he’d expected this, set down his pen and leaned back in his chair.
For some reason, his gaze was pointed.
“To whom.”
“…Um. Can you promise not to get angry first?”
“That statement alone makes me angry.”
Blake, who had ignored my words day after day, had become surprisingly responsive to my answers. Was that a good thing or not?
I folded my knees and wrapped my arms around them, exhaling a long sigh.
“Fine. I’ll tell you honestly.”
“Don’t even think about lying. I already know everything—I’m just asking to hear it from you.”
“Okay. I actually met Eren.”
“The guardian angel act—that was you?”
“Yes. I had promised Eren. I said I’d help you sleep.”
That small child had wished so earnestly, so precisely.
I felt like I’d be worthless if I didn’t make his wish come true.
A brief silence fell. Blake lifted his eyes from the documents and gazed at me quietly.
His expression was unreadable.
His stare felt sharp. I glanced away slightly. We used to meet each other’s eyes so easily, but lately it had become increasingly difficult. I hoped it was just my imagination.
He slowly moved his lips.
“You kept your promise and let Eren fall asleep. What’s your real reason for being so kind to us?”
“Did Eren tell you everything?”
“…Yes. Every single detail.”
Even the unnecessary information.
His sharp brows twitched briefly before relaxing, repeating the cycle.
Hmm. Was he angry or pleased?
It was impossible to read his true feelings.
When something’s impossible to understand, why bother trying?
I decided to be honest instead. There was no grand reason behind helping Eren.
“Because I support you brothers. I hope you’ll both find happiness going forward.”
“You offer help without any reward for such a simple reason.”
“Yes. I told you before. That’s why I’m strong.”
“…You really are a strange witch, you know that?”
At his words, I glared at him fiercely. Yet Blake’s gaze remained fixed on the floor.
After a long silence, something unexpected escaped from between his crimson lips.
“Show me too.”
“Show you what, all of a sudden?”
“Your true form. I want to see it.”
“…What?”
“I’m curious. How your hair is grapefruit-colored. What light shines in your eyes.”
It was a surprise attack. I stared at him blankly, speechless.
He’d just uttered something incredibly sweet, yet sat there with an expressionless face, blinking calmly.
No emotion could be read from his blank countenance.
I felt my face grow hot, but fortunately, I was currently in the form of a bear doll, so there was no risk of being discovered.
‘…What is this? Getting flustered over a young human!’
I’d spent countless days saying he was beautiful, handsome, the most perfect man—until my mouth ached—but I’d never truly felt excitement.
That made sense. Given my circumstances, and the fact that Blake and I weren’t the type to share such an atmosphere.
But his words just now felt ambiguous.
My large eyes were rolling around when Blake raised one eyebrow slightly.
It was a glance asking if I wouldn’t show him.
“Fine. Wait a moment.”
I’m really foolish, truly.
I pressed down on my rapidly beating heart and took a short, deep breath.
Mana leaked from Arcanum, and my body grew warm. The unpleasant sensation I always felt vanished.
My legs, which had been dangling from the edge of the desk, barely grazed the floor precariously.
My bare feet scraped softly against the ground that hadn’t reached before, and I turned my head to the side to call Blake.
“There, Blake. Now it’s…”
I was about to ask if it was done.
Blake’s pupils were trembling faintly.
He seemed both startled and flustered, so I scratched my cheek awkwardly.
I hadn’t anticipated this kind of reaction.
If I tried to imagine Blake’s response in his typical manner, I expected something along the lines of “Well, it’s better than I thought” or “My expectations were high, so the disappointment is equally great.”
I hopped down from the desk first, and as I approached his side with newfound freedom, Blake subtly pushed his chair backward.
Why does he always have to be like this!
“What’s wrong with you? You asked me to show you, and I finally did!”
“….”
“Don’t even try the excuse that you were so startled by how beautiful it is. I’ve heard that line for three hundred years—it doesn’t move me anymore.”
“…Yes.”
“Though I must admit, being called fairy-like does sound rather nice. Oh, and guardian angel too.”
I swept the bothersome strands of hair behind my head with a flourish and smiled brightly. At that moment, his vacant gaze finally found focus, and he finally met my eyes.
“Well? Do I look like the guardian angel Eren described?”
Even without wings, that is.
Blake fell silent at my words, infuriatingly so, and promptly turned his head away.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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