Chapter 156: A Lucky Twist of Fate

Anyway, this time, I didn’t want that damn guy to get in my way.

To prevent a repeat of the previous tragedy, I planned to do something indecent with Iris in my room, which was off to one side of the Lab Director’s Office.

As soon as I recalled Iris’s alluring body from last time, I felt myself react.

Abellus swallowed the saliva that had pooled in his mouth and tried to calm the rising heat.

Then, putting on a fake smile, he continued to speak.

“Who… Ah, that person. Hm, they’re not planning to come today. Of course, last time, they barged in without any notice. That guy—no, that person doesn’t have much sense, you see.”

“Ah… I see. Well, I’ll take good care of the puppy on our walk.”

Iris, thinking to herself that it was just like Laika to show up unannounced, gave a bitter smile.

Part of her was relieved that he wouldn’t be coming, but another part of her was curious about how Laika was doing now that he must have realized the ring had lost its power.

They shouldn’t be in a situation to care anymore, and yet she couldn’t help herself.

Abellus gave Iris a nod and then headed toward the researcher.

It seemed that today, he was studying a small bear-like monster in the backyard.

Raising a regular puppy in a place where monsters were kept—suspicious, as expected.

Facing the puppy with its bright, sparkling eyes, which didn’t look harmful at all, Iris frowned.

“Hah, this seems suspicious.”

“Woof!”

“Tch, it looks fine on the outside. Well, let’s take a walk anyway.”

She’d agreed to the job, so she had to work.

With a doubtful expression, Iris began the walk.

The puppy happily ran about and seemed normal for the most part.

Chasing after the puppy led her down the path in the backyard.

Tall trees grew densely, giving the area a cool, shady feeling.

Given that this was the backyard of a laboratory where evil things happened, she was a bit scared that some strange creature might pop out at any moment.

Thinking in an utterly ordinary way, Iris suddenly remembered that she herself had special abilities and swallowed nervously.

After surviving two brushes with death, she’d apparently become more cautious.

Watching the puppy with suspicious eyes, Iris squatted down.

Then, as the puppy scratched its head with a hind leg, she cautiously pinched it.

She wondered if the monster disguised as a puppy would reveal its true nature if it was attacked unexpectedly.

When there was no reaction from the light pinch, she firmly grabbed and twisted a fold of skin with two fingers.

“Yelp!”

“Tch, what’s this. No transformation…? Teeth are normal, too? Geez, I’m just turning into an animal abuser for no reason.”

The puppy whimpered and squirmed.

After checking the puppy’s mouth and confirming there was nothing odd, Iris scratched the back of her neck.

It really did seem to be a normal puppy.

Just then, as soon as Iris let go of the collar, the puppy, still upset from being pinched, started to bark and ran deeper into the path.

“Woof!”

“Oh, sorry. If you go there—Ah!”

Beyond the bushes, she could see a small pond.

I shouldn’t let it go in there.

Worried, Iris quickly chased after the puppy and caught it in her arms just as—

“Ah!”

Her ankle twisted on the slope, and Iris tumbled straight into the pond with a splash.

It happened in an instant, so she didn’t even have time to react with her skills.

Struggling in the shallow water that reached her waist, she chased after the puppy and grabbed the collar.

By the time she emerged from the pond, her whole body was soaking wet.

Holding the puppy, Iris looked down at her dripping dress and sighed.

“Whew, now my clothes are completely drenched.”

“Woof! Woof woof!”

“Sorry. I really didn’t think you were just a regular puppy… Jeez.”

She set the puppy down, slipped the collar over her wrist, and wrung some of the water from her dress before trudging back out of the path.

It hadn’t even been a few minutes since she started this dog-walking job, and she’d already made a mess of things.

The puppy may have been the one to jump in the pond, but she was the one who failed to hold onto the collar.

Wondering what she should say, Iris hesitantly made her way back into the backyard.

Abellus, who’d been examining the monster, narrowed his eyes when he saw her soaked through.

His look clearly said, ‘What happened to you?’

Scanning her up and down, Abellus finally pretended to be concerned and spoke up.

“…Miss Iris, what happened?”

“Ah, well… While I wasn’t holding the collar, the puppy jumped into the pond. Trying to rescue it, I ended up… Well, as you can see… Sorry.”

Bowing her head, Iris apologized.

She stared at Abellus’s shoes, and when he didn’t answer, she glanced up curiously.

Abellus, with his eyes lowered, stared at her intently, then, sensing her gaze, widened his eyes.

‘It’s hard to hold back.’

The green dress, wet and clinging to her, revealed the body hidden beneath.

On top of that, the thin fabric left even her underwear faintly visible.

Perhaps because he’d touched that chest before, it felt even more enticing now.

Abellus’s throat bobbed as he stared, captivated by Iris’s figure.

He’d planned to come up with an excuse to take Iris to his room for some intimate time after the dog walk, but the heavens—or rather, the puppy—had helped him out.

That rescuing the puppy had left Iris soaking wet was a miracle.

Abellus pulled his lab coat tightly around himself to hide his excitement.

He was nearly losing his mind with the urge to hold Iris right now.

Just then, the Assistant who’d approached nearby cut in.

“Oh, there’s a small pond further in. Looks like you fell in. Well, this won’t do, so let me guide you to the staff shower room… Kgh.”

But he didn’t get to finish his sentence; he winced as Abellus stomped hard on his foot.

Wilting under Abellus’s icy glare, the Assistant hunched his shoulders.

“Is now the time for chit-chat? Go finish filling out the monster research log.”

“Yes, understood.”

The Assistant replied, barely holding in his pain, and Abellus turned away.

He didn’t want the Assistant looking at Iris’s body, so he unconsciously moved to shield her, wrapping an arm protectively around her shoulders.

Then, with a low, husky voice, he said,

“Miss Iris, please follow me. Leave the mongr—leave the dog here.”

“The puppy should probably get washed too.”

Abellus looked down at the puppy with a cold gaze.

He seemed to have forgotten how he’d just been scratching its chin affectionately, now looking at it like an annoying obstacle.

He didn’t even have the composure to fake a pleasant smile.

His mind was filled with nothing but the urge to hold Iris in his arms.

Feeling himself growing harder, Abellus hurriedly slipped the collar from Iris’s wrist and tossed it aside without even handing it to the Assistant.

Iris, surprised, looked down at the discarded collar, but Abellus paid it no mind.

There was only one thing on his mind.

To sleep with Iris, the woman who made his scalp tingle with excitement.

“If you just leave the puppy, it’ll dry off on its own. Humans come first, always. Let’s go.”

“Whimper…”

“Oh, poor thing.”

“The weather’s warm. It’ll be fine. Let’s go.”

As the puppy shook off water and whimpered, Iris clicked her tongue sympathetically.

Regardless, Abellus’s temple throbbed as he led Iris toward the Lab Director’s Office.

“Um, Director…”

The Assistant called out to Abellus in a crawling voice.

When Abellus turned around with a deadly look, the Assistant flinched and spoke.

“Um, when should I finish the research log…?”

“By the end of the day. And there’s no need to come up to the Director’s Office to report. Just leave when you’re done.”

“Yes. Understood.”

The Assistant, who’d looked gloomy at the prospect of working until the end of the day, brightened immediately at the news that he didn’t have to come up to report.

Iris, still worried about the puppy, was relieved to see the Assistant taking it by the collar, and followed after Abellus.

‘His arm is so hot. Is it just because my clothes are wet? It feels weird.’

She’d noticed it before, when he applied ointment to her injured arm, but for a man who’d spent his days cooped up in a laboratory, Abellus’s skin was pale while his body was as solid as if he worked out every day.

Just like Laika and Johannes.

She didn’t know if all villains were like that, or if it was just the ones she’d met.

Either way, it was a good thing.

If she was going to get involved anyway, it was better if the villain not only had a decent face, but a nice body too.

At last, they arrived at the Lab Director’s Office.

Abellus flung the door open and slammed it shut with a loud bang.

It was a completely different attitude from his usual leisurely self.

As Abellus pulled her inside by the wrist, Iris’s gaze was drawn to the corner, where the Statue of the Knight still stood in its armor.