Chapter 11

Can I trust him?

Though modest in demeanor and not as flamboyant as Ulysses, Lambert is perfect in every detail. His shirts are always buttoned to the top, with understated yet rare black diamond cufflinks. He only wears dark colors, seemingly not wanting to attract attention, but those close to him know that his clothes are exquisitely tailored.

Such a noble and rational man, can I believe his words?

I suddenly didn’t want to think deeply about it, turned my head, and pretended to be very sleepy: “I’m so tired, I want to sleep for a while… can you leave?”

He didn’t answer. Probably angry.

Anger is normal. After hearing such straightforward words after the sweet talk, any man would feel displeased, especially someone who was once powerful; he might think I am ungrateful.

My shoulder warmed as he covered me with a blanket. I turned to look at him. His gold-framed glasses reflected light, hiding his eyes and making him seem mysterious and distant.

“Rest well.” He turned to leave, his tone returning to its usual coldness, “See you tomorrow.”

See you tomorrow?

Yes, I can only see Beast Lambert at night.

I softly responded, closed my eyes, and tried to force myself to sleep, but couldn’t until the afternoon. Liking someone is so troubling. Every word he says, every action he takes, even the smallest details, makes me ponder endlessly.

I remember when I was a teenager. I had a crush on the most handsome man in town. It wasn’t really a crush, just a feeling of a racing heart. His features were deep and defined, and he had thick black hair, was tall and strong, and was admired by many girls. I saw him once while shopping in town, and he indeed had a charming allure. After returning home, I wondered if I liked him. But this feeling came and went quickly. A few days later, when I saw him again, I felt nothing.

And now?

Just the thought that “he might never have liked me” makes me lose my appetite. Even though my body is exhausted, I can’t sleep, and my mind is filled with his words and actions; it’s like being sick.

After tossing and turning for a long time, I finally fell asleep and had a dream. In the dream, I went to town to buy things and happened to see hunters returning with their catch. Leading them was the man who once made my heart race. He laughed roughly, carrying a dead deer with one hand, his sleeves rolled up to show his strong muscles. The girls around sighed in admiration. I wondered how I ever found such a man attractive. Now, he seemed like a foul-smelling stallion. I stepped back, trying to escape the crowd, but bumped into someone. Turning around, I saw Lambert. He stood there, in stark contrast to the people around him, like a white pearl thrown into a pile of fish eyes. He grabbed my wrist, lowered his head, and stared into my eyes, asking coldly, “You’d rather look at him than at me?”

The feeling in the dream was uncontrollable. My heart was beating so fast it almost jumped out of my throat. “Why are you here?”

He stepped closer, his beautifully shaped nose almost touching mine. “You haven’t answered my previous question.”

“…What question?”

“When you know that I am very jealous of ‘it,’ how do you feel?”

How could I feel? Of course, blushing and heart racing.

I unconsciously clenched the hem of my clothes, just about to answer, but I was awakened by a loud noise. I didn’t know what was happening in the hall; the noise was even louder than when Ulysses came over. It seemed that a huge object was hitting the castle gate.

I opened my eyes, dazed for a while, then realized something was wrong. I picked up my cloak and walked out of the room. All the furniture in the castle was piled up at the castle gate, trying to resist the impact from outside.

I was a bit confused, holding the railing, and asked loudly, “What’s happening?”

Mrs. Teapot saw me and sighed in relief, “You finally woke up, Miss Rosa! Master lost his mind half an hour ago, and now we don’t know where he is!”

I was stunned, “Is it him hitting the door?”

“Of course not!” The clock, at the bottom of the pile of furniture, swayed with each impact. “Master hasn’t gone mad to that extent. It’s Ulysses’ doing. He hired people to spread rumors everywhere, saying that Master was the giant snake that hurt people. Now, the outside is full of angry villagers here to kill the snake!”

“Miss Rosa, quickly take Master to the basement! He only listens to you. We’ll handle things here!”

I frowned, “I’ve seen that giant snake, and it looks very different from Lambert… Should I go out and help clarify?”

“Bad idea!” The clock immediately rejected, “How do you know if they want to kill the snake or just loot and rob? You can’t reason with a mob. Listen to us, quickly take Master to the basement, we’ll handle things here!”

But if we don’t clarify, wouldn’t that confirm the rumor that Lambert is the giant snake? I was about to persuade them when something suddenly knocked me to the ground. My back hit the floor, pain spreading all over my body, and cold sweat immediately broke out. I gasped, curling up for a long time before gradually recovering. Looking up, I saw Lambert lying on top of me, staring at me coldly.

I was stunned. What’s going on? During the day, his beast transformation had subsided a lot. Why did it become so severe by evening?

His hand was abnormally large, almost covering my entire face, and his breath was like scorching flames. Just lying on top of me and breathing gave me the illusion of being burned. He hooked my collar with his curved, sharp nails, seemingly wanting to lift me up.

I quickly shook my head, “No, Lambert, this won’t work… the clothes can’t support my weight!”

He stared at me coldly and violently. Although there was no verbal communication, I understood his meaning: If this doesn’t work, then what does?

Being pressed on the floor by him made me feel very insecure. I tried to prop up my upper body, but before my back completely left the ground, his eyes became instantly alert, and a low, fierce sound came from his throat. I had to lie back down, holding his; well, it could no longer be called a “hand.” It should be a giant claw.

“I know you want to take me away…” I tried to soften my voice, “but lifting by the collar is unsafe and uncomfortable. Can you let me stand up and follow you?”

He stared at me motionlessly, his eyes still so vigilant. For some reason, compared to last night, his attitude today was terrible, as if I had offended him.

He didn’t understand what I was saying. I raised my hand, trying to gesture. He thought I was going to attack him. His ears perked up. He took two steps back and let out a threatening growl. I had to give up.

What should I do?

Some experienced hunters in town, when encountering unbeatable beasts in the wild, will do their best to convince the beast that they pose no threat. The first thing to do is to drop their weapons. Then, they lie on their backs, exposing their most vulnerable parts and adopting a submissive posture. They must never run away or turn their backs on the beast. This way, the beast will lose its desire to attack, sniff around, or simply turn away.

I placed my hand where he could see it, slowly extending it to his nose. He suspiciously sniffed my fingertips, seeing that I had no intention of attacking him, and rubbed his head against my palm. This was a good start. I took a deep breath and held his paw. In the morning, his hands were still slender and elegant, but by the afternoon, they had become as terrifying and ugly as a lizard’s. He stared intently at my actions, his pupils dilating and contracting, not knowing what he was thinking. I placed his hand on my stomach, trying to convey goodwill.

Doing this made me very nervous: his nails were too sharp, and now he was in an uncontrolled state. If he was even slightly rough, I would be disemboweled.

Fortunately, even beasts have a sense of restraint. He looked down at his paw, then at my stomach, his ears returning to their normal position and his throat no longer emitting low growls. He understood my intention. That’s good.

This time, I propped myself up on the floor and stood up. He was no longer as vigilant and resistant as before, but his eyes never left my hands and feet, as if he would pounce on me at any moment.

I pointed to the stairs, “We…” then pointed to him, “Together, to the basement, okay?”

As I spoke, I tentatively walked towards the stairs. He should understand what I was trying to convey. The people outside kept banging on the castle gate, the noise like thunder. I didn’t know how many people had come nor what they were using to hit the gate, but even the stained glass windows inside the castle were trembling.

There was no time to lose. I had to take Lambert to the basement before those people broke in—if it were the Lambert from the morning, I might have been able to explain to them that he wasn’t the giant snake that hurt people; but in his current state, I doubted they would believe Lambert wasn’t the snake, no matter how much I explained.

Lambert followed behind me, occasionally lowering his head to sniff the back of my neck. He squinted his eyes and flicked his snake-like tongue uncontrollably, showing a thoughtful expression. When I turned back and saw this, I was puzzled. Could he actually be thinking?

When our eyes met, his ears perked up again. I thought I had triggered his vigilance once more, but to my surprise, a faint blush gradually appeared on his face.

“…”

If possible…

I really want to know what this person… this beast is thinking.

The journey from the castle’s third floor to the basement only took a few minutes, but because I had to guide the beastly Lambert, it was extended to over ten minutes. Fortunately, the villagers had not yet broken through the castle gate when we reached the basement.

The space suddenly became cramped and dark, which he was very unaccustomed to. His golden pupils dilated and turned completely black. I found a candlestick in a wall niche, dispelling the thick darkness around us. Compared to a typical damp and dirty basement, this one was more spacious than the most luxurious hotel I had ever seen, with soft carpets on the floor, a sofa, a table, and even a large bed.

I placed the candlestick on the table and sat on the sofa. I wondered how the castle’s furniture would deal with those villagers and how the villagers would treat the castle.

I was a bit lost in thought when suddenly, my earlobe felt warm and wet.

I covered my ear and turned around, only to see Lambert’s snake-like tongue retracting. He was sitting beside me, his gaze fixed on my lips, his eyes burning with a somewhat intense look.

This time, I finally understood what he was thinking and quickly shook my head, “No.”

His expression instantly became very disappointed. His Adam’s apple moved, and he let out a low “gurgle” sound, which could be mistaken for a very discouraged sigh if not listened to carefully.

“…” I moved to sit further away.

He followed, lowering his head to sniff the bandage on my shoulder, continuing to look at me with that burning gaze. I understood his thoughts again and continued to shake my head, “No.”

He frowned and opened his mouth, revealing sharp, bright teeth. This level of intimidation didn’t scare me at all. “No means no.”

As soon as I finished speaking, he suddenly pressed me onto the sofa, his expression fierce and irritable. My heart skipped a beat, thinking I had angered him, but the next moment, he rolled his eyes and rubbed his head against my cheek, licking my cheek in a placating manner. The threatening growl in his throat turned into a soft, whining sound.

…

Is this Lambert’s instinct?

How can he be this cute?

I was almost about to nod and agree when suddenly, footsteps sounded not far away, and a young man’s voice rang out, “Here, there’s a tunnel here! Do you think the giant snake might be hiding in here?”