How to Stop the Villain from Going Crazy
Translator: Fuyu
Chapter 10 - Remember how the female protagonist subdued him in the original work? (2)
Erik was looking back at her, and he slightly tilted his head. It didn't look like he was questioning her behavior. It was more like a beast locking in on its prey by adjusting its field of vision or pinpointing the source of a sound.
Thinking that he might pull a dagger out and stab her throat, Bo Li felt weakness in her legs. It felt like her stomach was stuffed with stones. She felt cold and heavy.
She pulled herself together and continued forward. One step, another step.
When she reached him, the air seemed to become thick, sticky, and stagnant. It felt so hard to breathe.
Erik continued to stare at her. His eyes gradually became a bit wary.
His gaze was like a hand that held her in place.
Under his gaze, her body turned stiff. She felt like she had turned into stone. Her voice came out a bit wobbly. "Are you feeling better?"
Erik didn't speak. His eyes remained somewhat cold and guarded.
Bo Li thought; if only he really was a wild animal. At the least, she could extend a finger to let him get familiar with her scent. Instead, she could only awkwardly stand here while he kept looking her over.
The band's music was very loud. People had already started waltzing. There were more men than women in the circus. Some men couldn't find a partner and could only partner up with the bearded guards.
Everyone was laughing together as if they were in another world.
Bo Li mentally prepared herself again and finally mustered up the courage to say, "Guess what I saw in the warehouse today?"
No response.
"Emily's child. It was made into a specimen."
Still no response.
There was no change in Erik's eyes. He seemed utterly indifferent to the death of Emily's child.
Bo Li knew very well that he wouldn't care. She only said that to lead to the next topic.
“The manager even committed the serious crime of abortion just for a little bit of profit. Do you think that with his character he'll let Emily or any of us leave here?"
Erik remained indifferent.
Bo Li didn't give up. She pursed her lips and continued to try to win him over.
"If I guessed correctly, Emily's brother is most likely a freak hunter. A middleman that specializes in buying and selling people like us."
The word "freak" finally caused a slight change in his gaze.
He lowered his gaze. It felt like a cold, hard, rough stone was pressing down on her face and rubbing it raw.
His stare made her scalp feel numb. She felt a sharp painful heat on her cheeks. She tried her best to remain calm and continued to say, "The manager made Emily's child into a specimen. Perhaps, having enjoyed the monetary benefit of that, he also wants to make Emily into a specimen. Have you ever considered what he would do if he found out that Emily as a specimen is more valuable than Emily as a person?"
Bo Li took a deep breath, raised her head, and looked into his eyes without hesitation. "You, me, we'll all become specimens, specimens in an exhibition hall."
For a moment, his gaze was so cold that it seemed like it could tear her skin apart.
She was about to succeed in convincing him. This was a risky move, but she had more than one trump card.
Bo Li heard the quickening in her breathing and the buzzing in her ears as well as feeling the heat in her cheeks. She couldn't tell if she was feeling fear or excitement, the excitement of being on the verge of going all in.
"Think about it, if your mask is taken off-"
Before she could finish speaking, a shadow already covered her.
Erik had leaned over. The eyes behind his mask were no longer cold and blank. Instead, they were filled with a terrifying fury.
Behind the mask, his breathing was muffled and heavy. It was like a snake hissing after it had been threatened.
He grabbed her neck to stop her from speaking.
Bo Li's heart beat faster. A strong sense of danger hit her. Her vision blacked out for a moment, and cold sweat ran down her back.
However, she had to continue to speak. "Picture it. Your mask is taken off and your head is sealed in a specimen jar and placed in an exhibition hall. Everyone is looking at you, at your face without a mask-"
Before she finished speaking, he suddenly forcefully squeezed her neck.
Bo Li felt like she could hear the cracking of her bones under the unbearable pressure.
His breathing had also become heavier. It was like a raging storm repeatedly beating against the white mask.
"I know you don't want to see such a scene." She couldn't get enough air and tried her best to speak clearly. "I don't want to see that either. You're the most talented person I've ever met… I've never been jealous of other people's talents. You're the first person who made me feel jealous… I don't want to see you become a specimen… I want people to hear your talent…"
However, Erik still didn't loosen his grip on her neck.
He coldly stared at her. He didn't believe anything she said.
Even though she knew he wasn't easy to fool, she still felt chills when he stared at her.
Bo Li was sure that he would snap her neck if she continued to describe the scene of him being exhibited.
Fortunately, she had another trick up her sleeve.
"Actually, I'm the same as you…" She fought back her dizziness and continued to say while gasping. "My mother hates that I'm not a boy. She almost stuck a pen into my eye."
She made up a story based on what the manager had said.
"She wouldn't allow me to wear dresses or live like a girl. She shaved my hair off like I was a dog… Sometimes, I would think that if I was you, a talented boy… Would she love me then…"
The grip on her neck suddenly disappeared.
She won the bet.
A large amount of air rushed into her lungs. She violently coughed like a person who had been rescued from drowning.
But, this still wasn't enough. She wanted to win him over, not just let her off.
"Cooperate with me… Let's leave here and form another circus." She raised her hand and wiped the sweat and tears on her face. "You're so talented. You know everything… Why do you stay here to be bullied?"
Still no response.
He stood in place, unmoving. He seemed to have returned to his indifferent and lifeless state.
Fortunately, she still had another trick.
Bo Li took a step forward, stood on her tiptoes with difficulty, and kissed his mask under his confused, rejecting, and alarmed gaze.
For a few seconds, he lost his aggression and seemed like a dog that had been whipped. His gaze almost looked baffled.
It was also at this moment that Bo Li realized that he was also a living person like herself. He wasn't a shadow, a danger, a dagger that could be used at any time.
She opened and closed her mouth. She wanted to say something, but when she looked up, he had already disappeared.
T/N: Next part will be posted on August 14th at 11:15 AM EST.