Vicious Darling

[20]

Chris realized why this man had been acting like a mischievous cat at those words.

He was so dumbfounded that the tension in his body completely dissipated.

“Your story.”

“What?”

At those words, Chase’s face visibly brightened.

“She told me not to carelessly choke her only brother’s neck.”

Though he omitted the important parts, that was the entirety of the conversation with Gwen.

This might tire Gwen out, but it was better than causing unnecessary misunderstandings with Chase.

While Chase behaved somewhat docilely towards Gwen, he was truly troublesome and reckless when dealing with Chris.

“Ha. I thought it was something else. Gwen is really too kind. Going to warn an S-class Esper because of her brother.”

Chris slightly furrowed his brow at the yellow eyes filled with dreamy ecstasy.

Chase’s excessive happiness was irritating in its own way.

‘Looks like Gwen will have a hard time.’

He felt a little sorry. Just a little.

“Just imagining that tiny thing yapping at you makes me so excited.”

Chase, excitedly wondering if there were surveillance cameras installed in front of the conference room, was already lost in his own world.

Chris swallowed a sigh.

It was foolish to seriously react to someone like him.

“The handover seems to be complete, so I’ll be leaving now.”

Chase finally gave him some attention.

“Are you departing right away?”

“No.”

Chris shook his head stoically.

“There’s someone I need to meet one last time before moving to the Spring Continent.”

He was now going to meet Anastasia.

***

In the middle of the snow field, there was a log cabin. Seeing smoke rising from the chimney, Chris strode forward.

Before knocking on the door, he went through three scans.

‘For a place that doesn’t even exist on maps, and with transportation means nearly impossible to find, the surveillance is thorough.’

Moreover, the person beyond was an Esper with sealed abilities.

But Yuri’s paranoid suspicions were usually correct.

“Come in.”

While Chris was momentarily lost in thought, an indifferent woman’s voice was heard from inside.

As he turned the doorknob, the interior came into view with a click.

In front of the fireplace emitting hot air, a colorful carpet made of knitting was spread out.

A woman with a huge quilt blanket on her knees was busily moving her hands without even turning to look at her visitor.

“It’s been a while.”

“Indeed. The last time we met was ninety-eight days and five hours ago.”

Anastasia.

Also known as the witch of the Winter Continent, she was an Esper.

Chris recalled when he first met Anastasia.

She was knitting then too. However, unlike now, she was in the form of an old woman at that time.

That Anastasia was the protagonist who created half of the ghost stories circulating in the Winter Continent.

Her ability was very special.

Anastasia could take away the ability and life force from certain Espers, and overlay the acquired abilities onto others.

Anastasia called this “reincarnation.”

It was no different from being reborn.

Based on this ability, Anastasia had roamed the winters for a very long time, receiving parts of life force and abilities from other Espers.

“You have a good memory.”

Though he said it as if it were a compliment, Chris’s voice was indifferent.

“I know because that much of my lifespan has worn away.”

Anastasia smirked.

“Want to take a scarf? I have some extras.”

She picked up the pile of knitting stacked on the sofa beside her and threw it at Chris’s feet.

Faced with the parade of various scarves rolling towards him, Chris asked, somewhat taken aback,

“Was knitting really your hobby?”

“Not at first. I learned out of necessity. People tend to think you’re gentle and harmless if you have hobbies like knitting or embroidery.”

“…Hmm. Is there really a need for that?”

“Various methods are necessary when dealing with drug addicts who come for medicine.”

Anastasia said as she wiggled her knitting needles.

“When a guy threatening me for drugs lets his guard down, if I stab this in his eye… the reaction is quite interesting.”

The expression drawn by her slightly raised corner of the mouth made the observer feel chilly.

“Now I do it as a pastime because I have nothing else to do.”

Anastasia added in a calm voice, as if she hadn’t just flashed her eyes menacingly.

Although she clearly wasn’t a sane person, Chris sat down across from the woman who was knitting calmly.

The logs in the fireplace crackled as they burned.

It was an incredibly cozy environment, but the air flowing between the two Espers was tense.

In the past, before the incident where Chris lost his memories. While searching for a way to infiltrate Northern Light, Chris heard rumors about Anastasia and began looking for her.

He had a vague intuition that she might actually exist.

Then he discovered a dealer distributing drugs that Yuri had strictly forbidden, and coincidentally, that dealer was Anastasia.

Postponing her arrest, Chris persuaded Anastasia and succeeded in making a deal.

The content was to receive a new ability in exchange for his lifespan.

Normally, an Esper cannot have more than one ability. If it had been before meeting Anastasia, the same would have been true for Chris.

Moreover, it was widely known that Yuri’s dog, Chris Northlight, possessed telekinesis. So he judged that if he approached the Esper Union with a completely different ability, he could pass as someone else.

For Chris, who was an executive of Baekya, manipulating his identity was no big deal.

After completing all preparations, Chris met Anastasia before she was arrested and received the ability from her.

‘Who would have thought I’d lose my memories as a side effect of the reincarnation ability…’

Forgetting his purpose and past, he became Chris Northlight and joined the Esper Union. He made considerable achievements and caught attention, leading to his dispatch to the Winter Continent.

To track down and eliminate Yuri Sobolev, the master of Baekya.

He had returned as a blind sword to stab his master.

But Chris fell for Yuri, who was posing as a bookstore owner, and by the time he realized he was a mafia boss, he was captivated.

He unknowingly pressed his chest tightly. The hot sensation he felt when Yuri’s gun barrel spat fire suddenly returned.

‘It’s okay. I didn’t harm Yuri.’

On the day the master of Baekya and the agent of Northern Light encountered each other, even if Chris had died, Yuri would have survived.

The pain Chris was feeling now was not so agonizing because it was made of relief and fear.

“I came with a request.”

“A request?”

Anastasia licked her lips, putting down her knitting needles as if intrigued.

“I need to pose as an Esper, but telekinesis is too noticeable.”

There wasn’t even a single Esper with telekinesis as strong and precise as Chris’s across all twelve continents.

Although classified as S-class, he was essentially an existence outside the standards.

“Ah. Has the master’s good dog come looking for work again?”

Anastasia scratched her chin as if interested, then leaned back, sinking into the armchair.

“But there’s no way I can help, you know? As you’re aware, my ability is sealed.”

She wiggled her knitting needles.

When Yuri heard that Chris had risked his life to live a different life, he immediately captured Anastasia.

Using some means to threaten Anastasia, Yuri retrieved Chris’s life force and confined her semi-permanently.

Given her dangerous ability, Chris understood his choice.

He just felt a little sorry for not properly paying the price for the deal.

‘But because of that side effect, I almost hurt Yuri…’

Chris quickly shook off his heavy heart.

“We’ll temporarily release it.”

“You think I’ll say ‘Oh thank you’ and lend you my power? What if I get spiteful and just take your life force?”

Anastasia asked as if testing him.

“I know you have your own principles. You’ll deal properly.”

At Chris’s answer, Anastasia snorted.

“It’s not a deal if I can’t take something.”

“What do you want?”

Her eyes gleamed.

“I want your ability.”

This was the second deal with Chris.

But the first deal had completely fallen through due to the intervention of a third party, Yuri.

The captured Anastasia had to return Chris’s lifespan and had her ability sealed by a mental Esper.

Wasn’t she trapped in the middle of this snow field with nothing to do but knit?

‘I’m quite ethical in my own way, this is too much.’

“My ability?”

Chris asked again and then readily nodded.

“I don’t mind… if you take it.”

“…Don’t you have any greed?”

“No. Because I remember that you wanted both my power and life in our previous deal.”

His blue eyes were calm.

“Anastasia, you failed then, didn’t you? That’s why you said you’d only take my life… Isn’t that right?”

“So saying you’d give me your power if I wanted was just a bluff.”

She slumped her shoulders.

Chris was right. Until now, she had tried to provide her power in exchange for a certain amount of ability and life force.

But she failed when it came to Chris Danil.

She had tried to take his telekinesis, but her body nearly burst, unable to handle it.

So she had only taken his life force while acting generous, but it seemed Chris had already noticed the reason.

“Rosenhauser’s remnants remain. I need to protect Yuri, so I can’t give up my power yet.”

Chris added in a definitive tone.

“Anyway… whatever I give you, Yuri will make me take it back.”

“…What a terrible master-servant relationship.”

Feeling a hot flame rising inside her, Anastasia flopped down.

“I won’t do it. I won’t help. Go look somewhere else.”

Looking down at Anastasia, Chris spoke.

“If there’s no price you want… let me make a proposal first.”

Though pretending not to be an Esper while looking out the window, her ears perked up towards Chris.

“How about freedom?”