To the Man Destined to Kill Me - Chapter 23

Scarlett left the White mansion late in the evening and returned to the villa. She couldn’t possibly sit down to dinner with them, and when she actually saw John, she was too afraid to face his anger.

Of course, she was worried about Abigail. But before she left, she had made sure to tell them to take precautions against the fever, so she believed the future could change.

Maybe they wouldn’t catch the fever at all, or if they did, it would only be a mild case.

“Marie, call Sophia Loren.”

Still, just in case, Scarlett decided to look for healing magicians who had once been dispatched from Natalia when she was born prematurely.

It cost a huge amount of money, but she was willing to accept that.
Money wasn’t important to her.

By the time she finished everything and arrived at the villa, it was already very late at night. Scarlett dragged her tired body and started flipping through some books.

Thankfully, the next day was a day off from school.

The sound of crickets came through the window. Scarlett moved her heavy body toward the study.

“You’re still awake.”

The study was brightly lit with a magic stone, and Noah was there reading a book. Scarlett rubbed her eyes and yawned.

“Are you okay? I was worried when you left like that.”

“I’m fine.”

“You don’t look so good.”

Even heavier than her tired body was the uneasiness weighing down her heart. She couldn’t bear the thought that she had disappointed John.

“You have my textbook, right?”

“Here it is.”

Noah pulled her textbook out of the bag he had tossed on the study floor.

Scarlett sat diagonally across from him. She yawned again, but she didn’t have time to waste if she wanted to catch up before the test.

Noah couldn’t hide his surprise when he saw Scarlett opening the book on her own.

Seeing his wide eyes, Scarlett frowned and snapped.

“I know how to read.”

“Uh… sorry. It’s just… you never seemed to like our major very much.”

“Of course not. I don’t understand why we have to study boring things like supply and demand. But what choice do I have? If I don’t get good grades, they’ll kick me out of Iodes.”

The worn-out old textbook, already fraying at the edges, got even more crumpled in Scarlett’s hands. She didn’t notice and sighed deeply, glaring at Noah as if blaming him.

“Do you know why grades are important to me? It’s because I’m not healthy enough to study properly.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t say that for you to apologize. I said it so you wouldn’t make that face. Never mind. I don’t even know why I’m saying this. Let’s just study.”

Scarlett grumpily turned the pages of the book. She started reading the table of contents, forcing herself through it, but she already looked completely fed up after just five seconds.

Finding her expression adorable, Noah secretly stole glances at her and held back his laughter.

The way she squirmed in her seat showed just how much she hated studying.

At that moment, Scarlett looked like any normal young lady. Her pouting lips, her frequent sighs every minute, and the way her head tilted to the side.

Scarlett had an interesting habit when she studied: she folded the corners of every page she read.
In just thirty minutes, she had folded every page she touched.

Noah, who treated books like precious treasures, normally couldn’t stand that kind of thing, but somehow, he found it charming.

Because at least in that moment, Scarlett seemed like she was living an ordinary life, far away from her pain.

“This is so boring.”

Scarlett dropped the book and leaned back in her chair. She looked completely exhausted after just forty minutes. She pressed her temples and let out a deep sigh.

“I don’t understand any of this.”

Scarlett had been reading Introduction to Basic Economics, one of the easiest courses in the economics department.

Noah had already bought that textbook from a secondhand bookstore before entering the school and had almost memorized all of it.

“Should I… help you?”

Scarlett quickly weighed her options.

Should she accept Noah’s help or struggle alone?

Should she struggle alone or ask the professor?

Should she ask the professor or ask Aaron?

The answer was simple.

“Fine.”

This wasn’t about pride. She would do anything for the sake of her revenge.

Reading alone didn’t help — nothing was sinking into her head.
Asking the professor was too embarrassing.
Asking Aaron was uncomfortable because of their recent fight.

In the end, Noah was her best choice.
He was already seen as a brilliant student, and if she wanted revenge on him, she needed good grades first.

Even though it was a bit humiliating, she didn’t mind too much, since she had once owed him her life.

“Come here.”

Scarlett pulled out the chair next to her. Noah was about to sit across from her but looked surprised at her choice. Still, thinking it meant they were getting closer, he moved to sit next to her with a light heart.

“Where are you stuck?”

Scarlett answered casually.

“All the pages with the corners folded.”

Noah lost his words.

“A-all of them?”

He had thought it was just a weird habit, but it turned out she hadn’t understood any of it.
Noah opened his mouth helplessly, not sure where to even start.

“Yeah. All of them.”

“So… from the very beginning?”

“I didn’t understand anything, so of course I don’t know it.”

“I’m not blaming you… Um, okay. Let’s start from the first page.”

Noah fumbled to open the book, still flustered because he didn’t know her level at all.

“Um… you know what supply and demand are, right?”

At Noah’s cautious question, Scarlett’s face turned red. She got worked up, and Noah quickly tried to fix his mistake.

“Of course you know! I mean, um… even though some people don’t, you probably—”

But Noah couldn’t finish.

Scarlett, steaming mad, grabbed both of his cheeks and pinched them hard. She shouted.

“Did you just insult me?”

“Mmmm!”

“You’re sorry? That’s all? Say it properly! Do you think someone like me, a White, a shareholder of the White Bank, doesn’t know supply and demand? What I didn’t understand was… not that!”

Scarlett’s pinching got even stronger. Noah groaned in pain, but even while hurting, he let out a soft laugh.

He didn’t push her away, because he was happy just being close to her.

Because it was Scarlett.
Because she made him feel like he wasn’t alone in the world.
Because this closeness between them felt real.

So Noah let her pinch him as much as she wanted.

When Noah laughed, Scarlett’s anger melted away.
Her irritation fizzled out like a deflated balloon.
She sighed, let go of his cheeks, and leaned back tiredly with her arms crossed.

“You’re an idiot.”

“Mmm. Maybe not.”

Noah answered while rubbing his cheek. His eyes folded mischievously, sparkling like half-moons. Scarlett lost her words for a moment, staring at him looking so innocent like a pure boy.

He didn’t look like someone who could kill her.

And in fact, he was like that. Noah didn’t hide his ambition, but he was also diligent, honest, and hardworking.

Not only that, he was polite and kind-hearted, loved by all the professors.

‘How could Noah have killed me?’

Scarlett found it hard to believe that the boy in front of her had killed her. But she didn’t want to trouble herself with that thought. It was easier to just think Noah was a murderer.

“At least you studied. Otherwise, I would’ve had to ask some stranger for help.”

“Wilhelm… is there, you know.”

One of Scarlett’s eyebrows lifted. But Noah didn’t take back his words.

He was bothered by Wilhelm. It stuck like a thorn in his chest, never going away. Because of that, whatever he did, he always felt uncomfortable and out of place.

“Even if my relationship with Wilhelm gets better, now is not the time… I don’t want to study. I hate it so much.”

Scarlett rubbed her heavy eyes and yawned. Noah, not fully aware of what he was trying to ask, glanced at her carefully and asked in a testing tone.

“You’re not pushing yourself because of Wilhelm, right?”

“What do I care about him.”

“He confessed, you know.”

“I just… wanted to own him.”

Her eyelids were so heavy that even blinking was hard. The more she tried to stay awake, the more something under the surface tried to pull her down.

Maybe she could just fall asleep for today. Scarlett gave in like a snake slipping over a wall and closed her eyes. Before she fell asleep completely, Noah hurriedly asked again.

“Why did you want to own him?”

“I was jealous… I’m sleepy.”

Jealous. Could she feel jealous too? What about Wilhelm made her jealous?

Noah stared at Scarlett as she quietly fell asleep, breathing softly. When she slept, she always looked like an innocent girl.

Though she was over 18 and officially an adult, maybe because she had never properly stepped into society, Scarlett sometimes looked more pure and vulnerable than anyone else.

She knew how to use the world but didn’t really know what the world was like. She was an innocent adult.

“Scarlett.”

He called her name quietly. She didn’t answer.

“Scarlett.”

He called again, softly. Noah, not even sure what exactly he was feeling, carefully picked up Scarlett, afraid to wake her.

Her wavy hair fell between his arms. Her shallow breaths made him overly aware, like even her fragile breathing might disappear.

‘You’re so light.’

Noah thought as he laid her on the bed.

She was so light, it felt like she could fly away at any moment. Just as she had suddenly appeared in his life, she could suddenly vanish. That scared him.

He wished she wouldn’t fly away like a dandelion seed. If she must leave, he wished he could become even a bug stuck under the bird’s claw carrying her away.

If he could become a cricket chirping outside the window, could he be close to her? If she bloomed like a flower, he would settle right next to her and live there.

It made him sad that he couldn’t.

Only then did Noah realize.

The feelings he had were not just innocent affection for a younger sister.

They were something deeper, more complicated… love.

“Hey. Just to make it clear, after you cast a simple curse on Scarlett White, you’re getting on the next train and leaving. I’ll be the first to find her, so she won’t suspect I was behind it. Theo Grisham usually meets with the professors first when he comes to school, so now’s the perfect time.”

While Archer Davidson was checking the plan, Scarlett entered an alley between the buildings alone.

What Archer Davidson didn’t know was that Noah had been sticking close to Scarlett all day because she kept asking him questions she didn’t understand.

Noah was following her, but because Scarlett got mad and said economics gave her a headache, he stayed a few steps behind.

Not knowing that, Archer Davidson and the curse magician immediately cast a curse spell at Scarlett when they saw her.

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

At the sound of a piercing scream, Noah rushed over. Scarlett was crouched on the ground, covering her face.

The traces of magic lingering in the air made Noah’s eyes start to glow violet.

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