Once Evan’s breathing had settled into a steady rhythm and his eyes were tightly closed beside the bed, Anna’s eyelids slowly opened.
A sly, triumphant smile formed on her lips.
"????????????! ???? ?????? ?????????????? ?????????? ???????????????????? ???? ??????????!" Anna thought happily. "???? ???????????? ??????????????????! ????’?? ???????????? ???? ?????????????????? ???? ????!"
Anna’s delicate fingers gently caressed Evan’s jaw. "Oh, my Husband... You’re really sweet and adorable when you’re panicking."
With a slow wave of her index finger, a faint red glow silently lifted Evan’s body, placing the man under the blanket on the soft bed. Anna’s smile grew even wider. She slipped under the blanket and tightly hugged Evan around the waist, pressing her cheek against his chest.
"My charming Evan... We can finally cuddle in bed again. This makes me so, so happy~" she whispered cheerfully.
Throughout the entire night, Anna never loosened her embrace even once.
Midnight arrived. The thunderous rumble of lightning woke Evan from his deep sleep. As soon as he opened his eyes, he was confused to find himself lying neatly on the bed.
"Huh? When did I move onto the bed? Was I sleepwalking?" Evan muttered in confusion.
He turned to the side and saw Anna still sleeping soundly while hugging him tightly. Evan pressed the back of his hand against Anna’s forehead. "Her body temperature is starting to go down. I’d better light the fireplace and make some warm water."
Carefully, Evan loosened Anna’s grip and got up, heading toward the kitchen. After struggling for a while with a flint and some firewood, the fireplace finally caught fire, warming the cold room. Evan placed an iron kettle filled with water over the embers.
While waiting for the water to boil, Evan stood beside the wooden window, staring at the darkness of the forest outside. His thoughts returned to the goblin wooden fortress he had encountered yesterday.
"What should I do?" Evan muttered with a long sigh. "The Village Chief is already dead. The villagers probably haven’t even realized that the old man is gone yet. But those kidnapped women..."
Evan’s chest felt tight. "I may be a criminal and a con artist, but I’m not some heartless devil. Just imagining what those women are going through in the hands of those green monsters... it makes me sick."
Bang, bang!
Heavy rain pounded against the wooden roof of their house, accompanied by strong winds whistling through the gaps in the walls.
"Looks like this storm is going to last until morning," Evan muttered. He glanced toward the bathroom. "Next time, I should sew some thicker clothes for Anna. It’s a shame I don’t have any tea leaves or cocoa beans... Ah, in a medieval world like this, things like that must be expensive. Maybe I should look for some cocoa seeds later?"
After rambling to himself, Evan carried the kettle of warm water and two wooden cups back to the bedroom. He sat on the edge of the bed, slowly sipping the warm water while gazing at Anna’s sleeping face.
"Because of your yandere nature, I almost forgot that you’re actually just a lonely woman," Evan whispered softly with a faint smile.
This routine continued for an entire week. Evan diligently took care of Anna, and thanks to the extraordinary resilience of a witch’s body, Anna made a full recovery after seven days.
After buying food at the village market, the two of them sat facing each other at the wooden dining table that afternoon. Evan served two large bowls of thick meat soup cooked with herbs from the forest.
The moment the first spoonful touched Anna’s tongue, the woman’s red eyes immediately sparkled with wonder!
"Sweet heavens! How can you cook soup this delicious?!" Anna exclaimed excitedly, immediately spooning up mouthful after mouthful of soup. "This is the most delicious food I’ve ever tasted in my 200 years of life!"
Evan chuckled proudly, scratching the back of his neck. "Haha, you’re exaggerating. It’s just an ordinary meat soup recipe from... ah, I mean, my own recipe." You are reading on novelping.com, the official source.
As she picked up the last piece of meat from her bowl, Anna looked at Evan expectantly. "Then, please teach me how to cook this soup, my Husband!"
Evan raised one eyebrow. "Sure, whenever I have some free time."
Anna smiled sweetly, her gaze deepening. "You always have plenty of time for me, Evan~"
Evan laughed awkwardly at the tease. However, after clearing away the dirty dishes, his expression became serious again as he stared out the window. Anna, being extremely perceptive, immediately noticed.
"You’re still thinking about that goblin nest, aren’t you?" Anna asked as she moved closer and rested her head on Evan’s shoulder.
Evan let out a heavy breath, watching the leaves sway in the wind. "Yeah. Sooner or later, when their mating season arrives, they’ll slaughter this village and abduct more women. I can’t just sit around and do nothing. I want to wipe them out."
Anna folded her arms across her chest. "Want me to flatten their nest with fire magic right now?"
Evan shook his head and quickly waved his hand. "No! I don’t want you to keep relying on magic. What if you pass out and start bleeding again like yesterday? Besides, if Witch Hunter Knights catch wind of your existence, our lives could become even more chaotic."
Hearing his concern, Anna’s chest warmed. Her eyes sparkled with emotion. "My Husband really is so attentive to me... So, what’s your brilliant plan?"
"I don’t know... If only I could lure them into some kind of massive trap..." A fragment of an idea suddenly flashed through Evan’s clever mind. "Ah! A trench trap! We can dig a spiked trench in the forest!"
With blazing enthusiasm, Evan immediately grabbed a shovel, an axe, and several wooden tools from behind the house. "Come on! Let’s prepare the place right now!"
Anna gave him a warm smile as she followed behind him. "Wait for me, Darling!"
Evan chose a highly strategic location, a sunken patch of ground near a dead tree that crossed the main path through the forest.
"This is the perfect spot! If we dig a trench along this gap, they won’t have any other route!" Evan declared confidently as he began driving his shovel into the ground.
Anna stood beside him, watching Evan work hard, drenched in sweat.
"???? ?????????????? ???? ???????????? ??????????..." Anna thought fondly. "????’?? ?????? ?????????????? ?????? ?????????????? ???? ???????? ?? ???????????? ???????? ???????? ???????? ?????????? ????????, ?????? ????’?? ?????????? ?????????????? ???? ???? ???? ???????? ???? ?????????????? ?????????? ????????????... ???? ?????????? ???? ???????? ???? ?????????? ??????!"
Not only did Evan dig a trench two meters wide, he also sharpened more than a dozen thick wooden stakes to be planted at the bottom as stabbing traps.
When Anna reached out, intending to use earth-moving magic, Evan firmly stopped her. "Remember what I told you, Anna! Don’t use magic for every little thing! If you want to help, use your physical strength!"
Anna pouted. Reluctantly, she picked up a small hoe and began digging alongside him. However, while Evan had his back turned as he drove the stakes into the ground, Anna scooped up a handful of wet soil and then...
SPLAT!
The clump of dirt landed squarely on the back of Evan’s clothes!
Evan was startled and spun around. He saw Anna pretending to whistle while staring up at the sky.
"Oh... So that’s how we’re playing it?" A mischievous smile spread across Evan’s face. He grabbed a clump of black mud and threw it back!
Anna laughed brightly as she ran away. "Hahaha! Missed me, missed me!"
Whoosh! A thin magical barrier automatically appeared, blocking Evan’s mud.
Anna cheekily stuck out her tongue. "There are no rules against magic in a mud war~!"
Their laughter and playful banter broke the silence of the forest. Day after day passed, and their relationship grew much warmer and closer. Even so, Anna’s yandere nature certainly didn’t disappear. She would still often sit motionless beside the bed, staring at Evan’s face throughout the night without blinking.
On the fifth day, their hard work finally paid off. A spiked trench stretching dozens of meters had been perfectly concealed beneath leaves and dry branches.
Evan wiped the sweat from his forehead, breathing a sigh of relief as he looked at his handiwork. "Phew! It’s been a long time since I’ve worked this hard!"
Proudly, Evan raised his fist toward Anna. "High-five!"
Anna tilted her head in confusion. "High-five...? What kind of food is that?"
Evan chuckled, took Anna’s hand, and demonstrated the clapping gesture. "It’s called a high-five! It’s a sign of celebration when we’ve successfully finished a job! Come on, try it!"
Anna blinked, then her face lit up with enthusiasm. "Oh! High-five! High-five! HIGH-FIVE!"
Because she was too excited and forgot to control her physical strength as a witch...
SMACK!!
Anna’s high-five was far too powerful and landed SQUARELY on Evan’s left cheek!
"UWAGHH!"
Evan was sent flying onto the ground, clutching his cheek, which instantly swelled with a bluish bruise.
Anna immediately covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes widening in panic. "E-EVAN! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to!"
Anna sprinted toward the house while shouting in panic, "Wait right there! I’ll get you a wet cloth and some ice water!"
Evan could only lie on the ground with a gloomy expression, staring at the evening sky as it began to darken. "??????????... ?? ??????????’?? ????????-???????? ???????????? ?????????? ???? ????????..."
After Anna bandaged and cooled the bruise on his cheek, the weather outside began to worsen. The cold night wind blew, and thick fog slowly descended.
"Let’s go inside," Evan suggested as he rubbed his still-slightly-sore cheek. "We’ll put the plan to lure those goblins here into action tomorrow morning."
"All right, my Husband," Anna obediently replied.
The two of them went inside and locked the door of their wooden house tightly.
However, just as the door closed... from within the darkness of the dense forest, several pairs of glowing yellow eyes could be seen watching the trench from afar.
The long-nosed green monsters grinned widely, revealing their rusty yellow teeth. They stared at the trap trench, then turned and slipped into the darkness of the night with sinister, cunning smiles.