He was wearing silk pants underneath, but they weren’t sturdy enough to prevent the bulge at the center from showing.
Iris’s eyes widened at Johannes’s sudden action to prevent an unexpected situation.
‘What’s wrong with him? Why is he acting like this?’
Contrary to her timid nature, she had expected him to just stand there blankly, but the moment she grabbed his arm, Johannes shook it off.
This made it impossible for her to check his Status Panel.
Normally, he would have awkwardly withdrawn his hand right away, but this time was different.
Johannes was a villain, and Iris needed to see the villain’s Status Panel.
Her eyes sparkled as she reached out her hand again, her honey-colored gaze filled with determination to see the insolent villain’s Status Panel.
“Is there something on you?”
“Uh, Iris…”
Despite his words, he didn’t even pretend to pat it off. She firmly grabbed Johannes’s arm with both hands and tried to meet his eyes.
Seeing him try to avoid her gaze only fueled her resolve, and she wanted to make eye contact with Johannes while she had the chance.
But Johannes avoided her eyes from side to side and, when it became difficult, he squeezed his eyes shut, rendering her efforts futile.
Thankfully, he didn’t shake off her hands, so she managed to accomplish her goal.
[Search Results]
Johannes LV.??
[Skills Owned]
Ultra-Fast Sprint LV.10
Transparent Hand LV.30
Quadruple Flying Kick LV.25
Quadruple Spinning Kick LV.30
Stealth LV.40
??
??
??
[Mental-type Skills]
Mind Reading LV.20
??
??
[Status]
Excited / Confused / Sprained Ankle
‘Finally, I’m seeing Johannes’s Status Panel. I should’ve done this a long time ago…’
She lamented why she had waited so long when there had been so many opportunities to touch him.
Iris’s eyes gleamed as she quickly scanned the Status Panel. Johannes’s level was too high to fully view it, just like Laika’s.
His Ultra-Fast Sprint level was noticeably lower than Laika’s, possibly because he was younger and hadn’t trained as much, or maybe because he wasn’t naturally inclined to run fast, so his skill level increased slowly.
Surprisingly, he had close-range combat skills.
She had expected the church leader’s son to be filled with only dark magic, but that wasn’t the case.
Another peculiar detail was that his Stealth skill was an astonishing level 40.
That meant he had been hiding an incredible amount.
‘That’s so Johannes. At this level, he’s like a master of Stealth.’
Swallowing a smile, Iris checked his mental-type skills. The coveted Mind Reading sat at the top.
He apparently had other mental skills, but unfortunately, they were still inaccessible.
‘I want to steal Mind Reading. That would mean I could bring down the Enraka Sect immediately.’
According to the story, the Enraka Sect used Johannes’s Mind Reading to win over the hearts of the political and financial elites of Gyodam City.
Having the next sect leader wield Mind Reading was perfect for attracting fanatics.
Johannes had played a crucial role in expanding the Enraka Sect’s influence.
But to steal that skill, she’d have to seduce Johannes and sleep with him. The thought made Iris’s expression awkward.
‘That won’t be easy. He’s had a crush on someone for a long time. Besides… what if I succeed? I don’t think I could handle the aftermath. I’m hesitant.’
Not only was it hard to get to that point, but even if she succeeded, what would she do afterward?
Fourteen years of watching him—it was a familiar story.
Though they weren’t close, they had always been aware of each other.
Even for the peace of Gyodam City, she couldn’t bring herself to sleep with Johannes. It felt like betraying a childhood friend.
While Iris was pondering over the Status Panel, a trembling voice sounded above her head.
“I… Iris. What are you… doing?”
“Just a moment. I still haven’t let go…”
Iris quickly muttered a feeble excuse and hurriedly withdrew her hand.
Normally, such a lame excuse wouldn’t work on anyone, but Johannes was fooled by her clumsy act of not even pretending to brush it off.
Or rather, it wasn’t so much that he was fooled, but he just liked being with her no matter what.
He liked being so close, almost nose to nose. He liked her small, delicate hands touching his body. He liked everything.
Iris hurriedly hid her hand behind her back and replayed the last part of the vanished Status Panel in her mind. Excited? Surely not sexual excitement?
Confusion was strange, too. Why was he confused? Did he find her actions suspicious?
‘I guess I held on too long, so it must have looked strange. I was just distracted by the Status Panel.’
What if he thought she was coming on to him? She was still debating whether to make a move, but it would be awful if he misunderstood before she even tried. That would ruin her mood.
At that moment, Johannes uttered a trembling voice, like a goat bleating. The trembling was so severe that even Iris noticed it.
“…You’re not letting go? Okay. I’ll stay still…”
“Huh? Uh…”
Why was he shaking like this? Iris raised her head and opened her mouth in surprise. Johannes’s eyes were tightly shut, but his long eyelashes trembled clearly. His pale face was flushed bright red like a ripe apple.
Iris suddenly realized it was the first time she had ever looked closely at Johannes’s face like this.
They were so close she could see the fine hairs on his skin.
He always kept his head down and pulled his hood strings tight to hide his face, so she’d never had the chance to look in detail.
Even from a distance, he was handsome, but up close, even more so. His flawless skin was silky smooth, his nose sharp, and his deep eyes perfect. There were faint dark circles under his eyes, but they only enhanced his handsomeness. There was a faintly sorrowful beauty, as if there was an untold story behind it.
‘Why does he keep his eyes closed? Why doesn’t he ask what I’m doing when I’m doing nothing?’
Suddenly, a question popped into her head. Was it because of his shy nature?
But he had looked people in the eye when talking with the priest earlier. And the driver last time too……
Considering that, it felt strange that he kept his eyes closed.
It felt like he was silently asking for a kiss, even though that couldn’t be true.
Wanting to resolve the question swirling in her head, Iris impulsively spoke.
“Johannes. You have a girl you like, right?”
“Huh? Uh… uh, why? How did you know that?”
How could she not know? It was obvious from his Profile. Iris awkwardly smiled as she recalled Johannes’s various embarrassing moments.
It was impossible, really impossible, but she suddenly wondered if the girl Johannes liked was not her.
But when she tried to say it aloud, it felt absurd, and her face flushed.
Johannes cautiously opened his eyes and quickly turned his head to the side.
Not only his pale face but his earlobes also turned red.
Iris fidgeted with her mouth before carefully saying, “Ah… I looked at your Profile. It said you seem to have a girl you like… is that right?”
“…Yeah. I do… why?”
Johannes sighed deeply while desperately avoiding her gaze. He was scared his feelings would be shamelessly exposed to Iris.
Where had he given it away? He thought he had approached her naturally enough.
What Iris didn’t know was that beneath the surface, his emotions churned like a swan paddling frantically underwater, but to outsiders, he looked perfectly normal.
Johannes actually didn’t live in Iris’s neighborhood but pushed James every dawn to drive two hours by car to see her.
Even knowing he might not get to meet her, he still made morning calls every day. But Iris could never know the truth.
He had purposely made it obvious on his Profile because he wanted her to notice.
But at the same time, he really didn’t want her to find out, certainly not so suddenly. His feelings were tangled and confusing.
‘Why? Because it has nothing to do with me? Ugh, my face is burning.’
When Iris asked why repeatedly, she had no answer. So it was nothing. He must have been firmly struck by the Prophet’s Disease.
If Johannes had been interested, wouldn’t he have wooed her back in school?
Iris had been single throughout her school years—and even now. Though she had spent a passionate night with Laika, officially, she was still single.
It made no sense that he would never approach a girl he liked. So Johannes’s crush was not her.
That was the obvious truth, but suddenly she had a ridiculous misconception and couldn’t help asking.
It was a relief she hadn’t been more blunt.
Iris trembled at the corners of her mouth and hurriedly shook her hands.
Feeling like she showed symptoms of the Prophet’s Disease was embarrassing, and disorganized words spilled from her lips.
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