Odalisque - Side Story 16

When Liv arrived, worried about what she might find, she was greeted by Dimus sitting with his legs crossed, looking completely unbothered. Behind him, an officer whose face was so swollen it was almost unrecognizable was gesturing angrily. Roman approached, whispered a few words, and the officer quickly backed down.

“Honestly, I’m amazed you’re here at the police station so willingly.”

“Well…”

Dimus tilted his head slightly. The officer, who had been hunched in his chair, flinched when he caught Dimus’ gaze.

“Targeting a vital point is cleaner than a bothersome fistfight.”

It looked like there had already been some troublesome fighting, though. Or rather, it seemed more like Dimus had dealt the blows unilaterally.

Following Dimus’ gaze, Liv turned her head. When the officer, his face a patchwork of bruises, spotted her, his eyes widened. He looked at her with fervent desperation, clearly wanting to say something but unable to approach, scared of Dimus.

Wait a second—something about his face looked familiar.

Just as Liv tilted her head, trying to remember, Dimus suddenly pulled her hand, causing her to fall onto his lap. Twisting his body, he blocked her view of the officer entirely.

In that instant, every gaze in the police station turned towards them. Though those who met Dimus’ fierce glare quickly averted their eyes, it was enough to make Liv feel utterly embarrassed.

“…Just say it instead.”

“Say what?”

“Even children don’t get jealous like this.”

When Liv pointed out his childish behavior, Dimus responded with a cynical smile.

“Jealous? Me? Over that guy? Impossible. I just wanted to hold my lover on my lap, that’s all.”

What could she do if he insisted on that? After trying to squirm off his lap a few times, Liv realized that his arm wrapped around her waist was quite firm. It seemed she would have to stay in this awkward position until all issues at the police station were resolved.

Well, knowing Dimus’ separation anxiety, this level of fuss was quite mild.

Liv resigned herself and asked the question that had been on her mind all this time.

“What happened that led to an altercation with an officer?”

On the way here, she had been shocked to learn whom Dimus had gotten into a fight with. Liv had imagined he might have clashed with a passerby—just someone brushing against his shoulder—but it seemed her imagination had been rather lacking.

At Liv’s question, Dimus frowned deeply and answered seriously, “That man isn’t just an officer—he’s a deranged stalker. It’s a serious problem when someone like him is responsible for the city’s safety. I went through the trouble of coming here for the city’s sake. The police chief should be thanking me.”

Liv listened quietly, then looked at him, puzzled.

“A stalker?”

This was surely their first meeting, so how could Dimus know the officer was a stalker? Had he witnessed the officer secretly following someone and caught him in the act?

…But Dimus wasn’t the type to be kind and just, helping out with other people’s stalking issues.

As Liv’s face showed her confusion, Dimus answered proudly, his voice laced with irritation.

“Yes, your stalker.”

“…Whose stalker?”

“That guy knew your lodging address and contact information. He even stole your mask, using the excuse of returning it to approach you. How did you even lose your mask?”

Only after hearing this did Liv realize why the officer’s bruised face looked so familiar. He was the very same officer from the temporary patrol station she had approached for help with Noah.

“When I questioned him, he spouted nonsense, claiming you left it on purpose. He even went so far as to impersonate an acquaintance, saying he knew you.”

Dimus brazenly concluded that his actions were justified because he’d stopped a dangerous individual before he could cause harm. Judging by Roman’s expression as he spoke to the officer in Dimus’ place, they might just succeed in getting the police chief to issue a commendation.

Was it really okay to tell Dimus the truth, given how convinced he was that he had acted heroically?

Feeling overwhelmed, Liv hesitated before cautiously speaking up.

“He really does know me. I think he misunderstood when I accidentally dropped the mask.”

Dimus tilted his head slightly, his narrowed eyes glinting with a cold light.

“So you’re saying his advances were genuine?”

“Advances? No! It wasn’t like that. I just briefly asked for his help in the plaza!”

When Liv quickly corrected him, Dimus nodded indifferently.

“Of course, you wouldn’t entertain advances from someone like that with me by your side.”

“…Ha.”

Just a few sentences in, and she already felt drained. How was she going to explain about Noah, who was currently sleeping peacefully at her lodging?

Liv, her head pounding, eventually decided it didn’t matter. Dimus had always been this kind of man, and she had chosen him despite it all. There was no use getting worked up over it now. She knew from the beginning that he was merciless to everything except her…

If she gently coaxed him with a look, he’d reluctantly agree.

Liv knew this well. Once again, he would give in to her.

***

The sound of a crying child could be heard outside the lodging.

Recognizing the source of the crying, Liv hurried to enter, but Dimus beat her to it, striding in first. The loud wailing that had echoed from inside abruptly stopped. It seemed they were startled.

But that didn’t last long. A sharper, even louder wail erupted almost immediately. No matter how she looked at it, Dimus’ presence was making the crying worse.

It had only been five minutes since she had asked Dimus not to startle or threaten the child. She had emphasized it repeatedly on the carriage ride back, and he had said he understood. But from the start, everything had gone wrong.

“Waaaaah!”

Liv rushed into the room as the child wailed as if their breath might give out at any moment.

The room was a mess. Noah, who seemed to have been woken from sleep, sat in the middle of the bed, surrounded by several large men who were sweating nervously. Blankets that Noah had likely kicked away were strewn across the floor, and small ornaments that had been on the bedside table lay scattered.

Amidst all this, Noah continued crying, his face flushed red. It looked like he’d been crying for quite some time—his eyelids were puffy.

The men, who had been glancing nervously at Dimus, turned to Liv as she entered, their expressions apologetic.

“We tried to calm him down, but since it’s an unfamiliar place, he wouldn’t settle…”

It wasn’t so much the unfamiliar place, Liv thought, as it was these large men surrounding the bed that was the problem.

It had been a mistake to leave Noah with Roman’s men in her rush. She should have asked the lodging staff for a female attendant’s help.

“Tsk. Can’t even manage a child…”

Clicking his tongue in frustration, Dimus approached the bed. Noah, his eyes brimming with tears, recoiled further and wailed even louder.

“Waaaah! I don’t like this bad man! Don’t take me away!”

Dimus, now standing by the bed like the other men, wore an irritated expression.

“They say children like beautiful people.”

So was he questioning why Noah wasn’t stopping his tears at the sight of his handsome face?

Dimus was indeed attractive, but his cold, sharp features, full of irritation, likely looked quite threatening to a child.

“I’ll calm him down. Please step outside.”

Seeing that Noah’s cries were only intensifying, Liv intervened. The men surrounding the bed withdrew immediately, but Dimus showed no intention of leaving.

Liv spoke firmly to Dimus, who stared at Noah with disdain, “Dimus, I don’t think you’re helping right now.”

“Ha!”

The Marquis Dietrion, an elite retired officer who had never once heard he wasn’t helpful, scoffed. But he could hardly ignore the fact that Noah, who had almost stopped crying, began wailing harder every time he saw him.

Reluctantly, Dimus stepped back, still glaring disapprovingly at Noah. Only then did Noah, face flushed, manage to spot Liv.

“Angel… This bad man came to take me away!”

“Noah, calm down. It’s not like that.”

Having learned earlier just how terrifying “bad man” was to Noah, Liv quickly reassured him.

And as she did, she thought to herself.

Dimus being called a “bad man” actually suited him quite well, surprisingly.