Tales Of Hearts | Liskook

Chapter 13

Lisa felt the heat from Jungkook’s body, his chin making contact with her unruly hair as he locked an arm around her neck. She had the strangest inkling: thinking he did it because he thought she was cold, and peeked at him from beneath her eyelashes, at a loss what to do.

True to his words, no one paid attention to their closeness; perhaps they pretended not to. Still, Lisa wasn’t thick-faced enough to be so close to a man… even if it were her husband.

Her tongue mustered the proper words to say, wary of his possible ire. “I-I’m okay. I, I mean… ju-just be a little further away…”

“You’re troubling her. Please be considerate.”

Lisa raised her head at the sudden voice that interrupted them. Not only was it an ordinary disruption, but a subordinate berating Jungkook, their supposed captain. She found that it came from a slender young man, appearing to be in his early twenties, standing three or four steps away with a small lamp in his hand.

“Don’t be nosy, Dokyeom. Leave.” Jungkook sighed, almost impatiently.

Unfazed by his cold reception, Dokyeom managed to reply coolly. “How long are you going to keep growling like a barbarian. I’m not going to bother you, so you can cease doing that.”

At such brazen words, Lisa’s eyes opened wide in surprise. The man who relentlessly engaged in speaking against Jungkook caught sight of her gaze, and this time his sights turned towards her. Feeling as if he had seen her doing something discourteous, Lisa stood up in a hurry.

As if held by a string, Jungkook followed after her, sitting up reluctantly. “…what’s your business?” he finally said, his tone a tad milder than before.

“I brought it,” he raised the glowing light, “because I thought you’d be cold.” Although the ‘you’ in question was left unspoken, it was obvious it was Lisa he was referring.

His hands then dived for the pockets in his sides, rummaging for quite some time before taking it out again. Tiny pebbles that emitted soft lights lit the man’s palm. Upon seeing it, Lisa felt tranquility wrap around her.

The lights grew nearer with the man’s steps. “The Manastone of Fire. It’s a spell to keep you warm. Here, take it and keep it close to you,” he said.

Lisa instantly felt flustered, “M-me… Sir, this is for me?”

She couldn’t keep off the surprise from showing at the unexpected kindness, making the man’s eyebrows raise in turn.

“Who else? The people gathered here are strong men who can even stay naked under the resilient frost,” he spat out with a careless attitude, not caring one bit if it were a woman on the receiving end of his words.

He then continued explaining, “But you’re different. It looks like you don’t have much stamina either… In any case, it’ll be my responsibility if you catch a cold here. Think of it as a preventive measure.”

Upon hearing she could be a burden, Lisa accepted it into her hands without another word. Warm air gently enveloped her whole body as soon as the stone was in her hands, just as he had explained. For a moment when she was merely staring at the stone in wonder, she soon realized that she had not yet thanked him for his generosity.

Her head raised in panic. “Th-thank you… S-sir, sir Dokyeom.”

The man’s taciturn countenance softened at her mumbled gratitude. “I am not a knight but a wizard. You may call me Dokyeom,” he said.

The man then turned and went back to his seat on the other side, as if finished with whatever purpose he had. Jungkook, who had been watching their exchange in silence, laid back down and pulled her with him. Lisa could feel the tremor in his touch and the nervousness that came with it.