DLMSWSHH Chapter 11

TL: Hua

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Chapter 11: Mysterious Person

Zhong Ming looked at that piece of fabric and forgot to breathe for a moment, his ears buzzing.

What have I done? Under the extreme tension, Zhong Ming felt as if all the blood in his body had frozen; his limbs were so stiff he couldn’t move.

“Zhong Ming!!”

Madam Mary’s voice, sharp to the point of being distorted, came from behind:

“What are you doing?!”

The woman sounded like she was about to explode with rage. She glared at Zhong Ming, who happened to be kneeling[1] by the chair. She completely lost her usual composure and looked panic-stricken at the person sitting behind the chair: “Y-Your Grace, I am truly very sorry—”

Just then, Zhong Ming suddenly felt something cold and hard touch his face.

“It is alright.”

The Duke’s calm voice rang out from above his head.

A pale hand reached over and lightly stroked his hair. During the movement, the gemstone on the ring accidentally brushed against the skin near his temple; Zhong Ming flinched slightly at the icy sensation.

The action was careless, as if it were merely a random gesture, touching him only briefly before withdrawing.

“It is my fault.”

He spoke calmly, his voice still devoid of any inflection.

In the next instant, Zhong Ming felt something wrap around his waist.

The object was soft yet powerful; it tightened around his waist and pulled upward. Zhong Ming immediately felt his body rise as his knees left the ground and his toes touched down, standing firmly on the carpet.

As if wanting to confirm whether he was standing steadily, the thing wrapped around his waist did not let go immediately.

Zhong Ming held his breath and slowly lowered his eyes to look at his waist. A deep blue color clashing with abrupt yellow spots burst into his vision.

It was a thick tentacle, somewhat resembling that of an octopus; the suckers on the inner side were pressed tight against his waist, still writhing ever so slightly.

Zhong Ming’s breathing instantly became erratic. His lips trembled imperceptibly, and his pupils constricted violently; it took every ounce of his strength to keep himself from losing his composure.

Seemingly satisfied that he was standing steady, the tentacle around his waist paused, then slowly loosened, sliding down from Zhong Ming’s waist and retracting along the carpet until it disappeared behind the chair.

Zhong Ming watched as the tentacle retracted like a snake. The fingers hanging at his sides twitched as he suddenly realized what he had stepped on to make him trip earlier. “Xiao Zhong.” Right then, Madam Mary’s cold, hard voice came from behind him. She had calmed down slightly, but her expression was still very unsightly: “Hurry up and apologize to the Duke!”

Zhong Ming took a trembling breath, parted his lips slightly, and said, “…I am deeply sorry, Your Grace.”

Despite his best efforts to suppress it, Zhong Ming still heard a slight, subtle tremor in the tail end of his voice, and he abruptly shut his mouth.

A silence fell over the study. Zhong Ming could hear his own slightly rapid breathing. His expression was calm, but upon closer inspection, the look in his pitch-black eyes was somewhat vacant; he was clearly quite shaken.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhong Ming once again heard a voice coming from behind the chair:

“What happened to your hand?”

Hearing this, Zhong Ming froze, wondering if this Duke had eyes in the back of his head.

Madam Mary glanced at him, stepped forward, and answered, “Your Grace, regarding the matter of Zhong Ming stealing flowers from the rose garden, I have already issued a punishment.”

As her voice fell, Zhong Ming saw the Duke’s right hand, which was resting on the armrest, pause. He turned his head slightly as if in surprise.

Because he was backlit, Zhong Ming could not see his features clearly; he could only see a hint of the jawline emerging from the shadows.

The dim yellow light in the study flickered. Zhong Ming wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but the light in the room seemed to grow a bit dimmer than before.

The Duke said nothing, but Zhong Ming keenly felt a gaze shoot out from the shadows, sweeping over him and coming to rest on Madam Mary behind him.

The deep wrinkles at the corner of the latter’s mouth twitched imperceptibly for an instant.

That gaze appeared for only a brief moment before being withdrawn. A calm voice, devoid of emotion, drifted over:

“I see.”

Only then did Zhong Ming feel the faint, lingering pressure in the air dissipate slightly, and the study lights brightened once more.

Then, Zhong Ming saw that blue-and-yellow-spotted tentacle emerge from behind the chair again, slowly reaching toward him.

This time, Zhong Ming steadied his expression and restrained the urge to retreat. When the cold tentacle wrapped around his wrist, he did not struggle; instead, he submissively raised his hand, letting the soft suckers press gently against the wounds on his palm.

A moment later, the suckers slid off his palm. Zhong Ming lowered his eyes and discovered to his surprise that the two red, swollen welts on his palm had vanished.

Having fulfilled its mission, the tentacle seemed somewhat reluctant to leave, hooking around Zhong Ming’s fingertip once before dropping down and shrinking beneath the carpet out of sight.

While Zhong Ming was still dazed, he heard the voice from behind the chair again:

“You may go.”

The Duke gave a faint command.

Zhong Ming glanced at Madam Mary beside him. Seeing that she remained in place with no intention of leaving, he figured the two must have words to say that he wasn’t meant to hear. He lowered his head, gave a slight nod toward the back of the chair, then turned and walked out of the study.

To his surprise, just as he pulled the door open, he locked eyes with a pair of emerald-green eyes through the crack.

Zhong Ming froze for a moment, then stepped out of the study and closed the door behind him. He looked down at the young boy in front of him and said, “Young Master Albert, good evening.”

Standing outside the door was indeed the young master, Albert. But he was not alone.

A tall, blonde woman stood beside him, holding the boy’s right hand. Seeing Zhong Ming come out, she gave him a slight nod. Then, she bent down and spoke to the awkward-looking Albert beside her: “Young Master Albert.” Her voice was very gentle as she gestured toward Zhong Ming: “Didn’t you want to apologize to Xiao Zhong?”

Hearing this, Zhong Ming’s eyes widened in surprise as he looked at the young boy, who was pursing his lips and looking down, not daring to meet his eyes. He hadn’t expected this brat to realize he was wrong, let alone come to find him to apologize.

Under Joan’s urging, Albert twisted his lips and looked up at Zhong Ming. After staring at him fixedly for a few moments, he finally made up his mind, let go of Joan’s hand, and stepped forward in front of him.

“I’m sorry.”

Albert looked up, his small face tight, even letting out a performative cough: “I was wrong about this matter.” He looked at Zhong Ming and said, “I shouldn’t have made you go to the rose garden to pick flowers.”

Zhong Ming looked down at Albert. To be honest, he felt a bit like he was facing his boss’s son at a company; he didn’t actually want to forgive this brat, but he still lowered his eyes and said softly, “It’s alright, Young Master Albert.”

However, Albert did not notice the reluctance in his attitude. Seeing that Zhong Ming had accepted his apology, his emerald eyes brightened, and he took a step forward, wanting to grab Zhong Ming’s right hand hanging at his side.

But at that moment, Joan suddenly stepped forward half a pace and pressed a hand onto Albert’s shoulder.

“Well done, Young Master.”

Her gentle voice carried a hint of a smile, but her right hand firmly restrained Albert, preventing the boy from stepping forward. Albert’s footsteps halted, and he turned his head to steal a very quick glance at Joan.

A glimmer flashed in Zhong Ming’s eyes; he didn’t miss the fleeting coldness in the boy’s eyes. It seemed the relationship between this teacher and student wasn’t as harmonious as he had imagined, Zhong Ming thought.

At the same time, Joan looked up, her smooth blonde hair sliding down the side of her neck, a small smile playing on her lips:

“Xiao Zhong.” Her tone was soft as she took a step toward him: “I also need to apologize to you. Such a thing happened due to my insufficient education of Albert.”

It was the first time Zhong Ming had seen this cold, dignified woman show an almost soft expression, and he was momentarily dazed. However, in that split second of distraction, his right hand was suddenly grabbed.

“It seems the Duke has already treated your wound.”

Zhong Ming looked at his hand clasped in hers, then raised his eyes in surprise to meet Joan’s pale blue gaze. Joan was undoubtedly beautiful. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she was the most beautiful woman Zhong Ming had ever seen. Being held by such a great beauty, even the usually calm Zhong Ming couldn’t help but feel a slight heat rise to the tips of his ears.

“Yes. It was treated by him.”

Zhong Ming nodded in a brief response and tried to pull his hand back, but it wouldn’t budge.

Joan’s strength was much greater than he had imagined. She lowered her head and deftly flipped Zhong Ming’s hand over, her long fingers pressing against the tenderest part of his palm: “It is indeed healed.”

Zhong Ming’s eyes widened; he felt something strange about the woman’s movements, but before he could think further, Joan had already released his hand and given him a smile:

“It seems the Duke likes you very much.”

The corner of Zhong Ming’s eye twitched, and his brow furrowed slightly. Just then, Albert’s cold voice came: “Miss Joan.”

He stepped forward, the expression on his face having returned to its usual coldness, and looked up at the woman: “Father is still waiting for us.”

Hearing this, Joan withdrew her gaze from Zhong Ming and looked down at Albert, taking the boy’s hand: “Yes, Young Master.”

With that, she looked back at Zhong Ming, her face returning to its usual indifference: “Excuse me, Young Master is waiting for the duke to read him a storybook.”

Only then did Zhong Ming notice that Albert was holding a book in his right hand. It wasn’t colorful like the traditional children’s picture books in his memory; the cover was black, and the pages inside had a slight yellow tint, looking somewhat eerie.

Zhong Ming watched their figures disappear behind the door, narrowing his eyes slightly. No matter how he thought about it, he didn’t think the Duke inside was the type of character who would read storybooks to a child.

In his mind, he couldn’t help but picture the blue-and-yellow-spotted tentacle holding up a book, and he shivered at his own imagination.

The mother is a spider, and the father is an octopus; it’s really a wonder Albert still looks like a normal human.

Zhong Ming thought silently.

It was only now that he finally began to process the fright from earlier, thinking back to that tentacle that had inexplicably tripped him.

It couldn’t have been on purpose, right?

The thought appeared in Zhong Ming’s mind for a second before being quickly dismissed. The big boss of a horror game shouldn’t be the kind of person who would do such a thing. Zhong Ming shook his head, thinking he was indeed too shaken and his brain wasn’t working right.

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[1] The raw above (他正摔在了公爵大人腿上。) said he landed on the Duke’s lap, but it changed to kneeling this chapter. 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️

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