Chapter 26: CH 25

Eeeek. My ankles, my only two ankles!

Yul was startled and looked down at his short legs, not knowing where the ankles were and where the calves were. The plump, apricot-colored skin that came out between the wine-colored pants and the white socks… Yul, who was looking down with tears of cloth, sniffled his nose and looked up at Mikael.

The moment he saw Mikael’s face looking down at him with an expressionless face, Yul realized anew.

Yep, this jerk was a gwanggong. A crazy gong. A crazy gong with thoughts and emotions that the average person can’t even imagine!

If so, what should he do? Yul quickly shook his head and recalled the contents of his original “Red Prison”. Every time Levi did something, he was busy thinking about how Mikael had gone mad.

Of course, he was not Levi, but at least if he knew what made him angry, he could do the opposite.

The first thing that came to mind was that Mikael blackened when Levi refused to say anything. Like a person with a temper button pressed. Then… !

“Keu, uh, yes, yes! C- cut it! My two legs! Even though they’re’ small! I only have two ankles! Without this, I have to crawl! Heuheu, if Mikael wants to cut it, sob sob, sob, hic-!”

After a short deliberation, Yul closed his eyes and cried out. Although he reluctantly agreed to it because he didn’t want to refuse him, he couldn’t be comfortable telling him to cut off his ankle on his own. There was a sound of pain in between his words.

“… What?”

Yul slowly opened his tightly closed eyes at the baffled voice.

Mikael was looking at Yul with a stunned expression. Compared to his previous appearance, where he acted coldly like a person with no emotions, it was a major development.

Now was the chance. As a matter of fact, you have to row when the water comes in, and shoot an anesthetic gun and put it to sleep when the gwanggong becomes calm.

Yul quickly tried to recall the second factor, when Mikael would get angry.

Second, the second… Oh, yes!

Pa—.

Yul flung himself into Mikael’s arms. The second time that came to Yul’s mind was when Levi refused Mikael’s touch. Then he had to cling to him and stick to him, yes, indeed!

“This… What are you doing?”

“Hhng, I want to stick to Mikael. I won’t fall. Of course, if Mikael tells me to fall, I’ll think about it and say no, but if you tell me to fall again, I’ll think about it one more time and say no again, and if you finally say that you will kill me if I don’t fall, then I’ll fall quietly.”

The blabbering voice trembled with fear, but Yul did everything he could think of.

Yul tightened his arms, which kept slipping because of his chains, and clung to Mikael’s chest.

“…”

Michael said nothing.

Yul was stuck in his arms like a cicada, so he couldn’t see his face, so he didn’t know what condition he was in, but he took comfort in knowing that he didn’t throw him right away and not cut his ankle.

“Then why don’t we cut off the ankle? …Of course, if Mikael really wants to cut it, sob, I wouldn’t dare reject Mikael’s words but, sob, if, if you don’t have to cut it, why don’t we leave it alone…?”

Yul took advantage of his silence and chattered, properly mixing his urgency with his true intentions and the lies he was forced to tell. Then, he felt a slight breeze over his head. Mikael let out a low sigh.

“Yuri, you’re really… I don’t understand.”

It was definitely a soft voice. Yul, feeling hopeful, writhed and burrowed into Mikael’s arms. Then Mikael grabbed Yul and pulled him out of my arms. Yul, who suddenly escaped from his arms, looked at Mikael with the most pitiful and innocent expression he could build.

“I was wrong, Mikael…”

He begged for forgiveness with a face that looked like he was about to cry at any moment. Instead of giving any answer, Mikael just stared at Yul.

Although he didn’t say anything, Yul could feel his attitude different from before.

He succeeded. He defended these two little little ankles.

Yul was relieved and made up his mind at the same time. That things somehow had to go differently from the original.

***

Oftentimes, Yul approached Lucky with short legs. Lucky, who was curled up and sleeping over his fence, felt a presence and slowly opened his closed eyes.

[Bii-]

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Lucky found Yul and ran towards the fence where Yul was, crying out excitedly with the mouth wide open.

“That’s not it! You little!”

Whenever he had free time, he thought that teaching him not to eat would have some effect, so he approached Lucky three or four times a day first. He failed this time too.

Yul looked at Lucky with a complicated gaze, who kept trying to bite him.

Yul, who grew pale, sat a little away from his fence, laying on his back. A couple of dust rose as his body, a wad of cotton, pressed hard against the carpet.

Mikael, who was examining the documents, looked at Yul quietly. His little face was full of disappointment, it was both pitiful and funny.

Yul felt the gaze staring at him, so he turned to Mikael. When his eyes met, Yul smiled softly, folding his eyes in half that sparkled like jewel candy.

Then Yul got up with a little body and ran to Mikael, dadada.

The warm thing was felt thanks to Yul clinging to his feet. Mikael almost burst out of laughter at that small, soft touch.

Making eye contact, smiling brightly, and occasionally sticking to him were all ways of surviving against the gwanggong, but Mikael, unaware of this, stretched his lips to Yul, who was holding onto his ankle.

‘It’s hard to live well with your limbs intact…’

Unlike his inner heart, which lamented his life, Yul smiled like an unspoiled child on his face.

He couldn’t wait to see this crazy gong go crazy for Levi. That way, Mikael would stop paying attention to him.

Fortunately, Mikael freed the chain from Yul’s wrist. It was so tightly tied that his wrists trembled as the cotton clumps inside.

Anyway, fortunately, the restraints of his body were gone. However, locks were attached to the windows, the balcony door, and the door even to the door. Windows and balcony doors were added with tight iron bars like a prison.

According to what Caleb and Levi had to say, the people of the Archduke’s mansion thought that it was to prevent Lucky from escaping, but Yul knew it was all because of him.

He resented Mikael for needing to do all that for a palm-sized doll and also resented even more himself for accommodating to the gwanggong’s behaviour.

“Yuri, come here.”

“Yes!”

Yul reflexively answered Mikael’s call, who was suddenly in front of the mirror. Then, he headed towards him, with legs that seemed to have been there.

“Which one is better?”

“Eh…?”

Mikael asked with both hands full of Yul’s clothes. These were the clothes he bought a few days ago. White, pink, sky blue, blue, navy.

Yul tilted his head, wondering why this human was doing this, but he couldn’t ignore his question, so he just pointed at something.

“This one.”

“Hmm… it’s navy. Not white, but navy.”

“Now that I think about it, the white one looks like a fairy. No, an angel.”

Hearing the man mutter, Yul quickly changed his stance. He even showed the sincerity of correcting himself, calling it an angel in case he didn’t know the oriental character, a fairy. Mikael didn’t seem to mind, though.

“Yeah, I think white would be better.”

“Good. It’s an excellent choice. But why?”

Yul first agreed enthusiastically as if waiting for his words, then asked why he was suddenly choosing my clothes. Up until this point, Yul had no idea.

“I’m choosing clothes to wear to the banquet.”

“… A banquet? What ban… no way.”

Yul, who had been scratching his cheek carelessly, suddenly became aware at the thought that suddenly came to mind.

Levi came in and out every day, but he only talked about the banquet once. This is a banquet held by the mad Duke of Esirene.

Don’t tell me he was taking me to the banquet.

Is there a madman who would carry a doll to a banquet held by a political rival?!

That crazy guy is right in front of me?!

Perhaps Mikael… You?!

“The invitation to the banquet came from the Duke of Esirene. Since I’m attending, of course Yuri, you should go too. Isn’t that right?”