Before I could answer, her eyes turned red again. She bit her lip hard, clearly fighting back tears.
"So... when you said you would marry ... You were lying to the whole ti, right?" Her voice cracked with pain and accusation. "You just said it to calm down so I would let you treat ... You already have a girlfriend... a whole family even. Was I just a pathetic dying girl you felt sorry for?"
She clenched her fists tightly at her sides, her entire body trembling with a mix of rage, hurt, and embarrassnt.
"You... you idiot! I actually started believing you for a mont. I even cried like a fool thinking about it last night after you left. But seeing you here happily shopping with your real won... I feel so stupid. So you were just playing hero, huh? Just another rich guy who says whatever he wants to get what he needs in the mont."
Tachibana turned her face sharply away, but I could clearly see the tears threatening to spill over.
"If you were going to lie... You shouldn’t have said it so convincingly. I hate you... I really hate you right now, Jack."
Her voice grew quieter at the end, filled with raw hurt and embarrassnt.
Without hesitation, I stepped forward and pulled her into a tight embrace, wrapping my arms firmly around her smaller fra.
Tachibana stiffened instantly. "Let go...! Let go, you bastard!" She began struggling violently in my arms, pushing against my chest. Her voice grew louder and louder, echoing through the mall corridor. "I said, let go of !!"
Her shouting quickly drew the attention of several passersby. A few n, seeing a beautiful young woman seemingly in distress, imdiately stepped forward with righteous anger.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing?! Let go of her right now!" one muscular man shouted.
"Soone call security!" another yelled.
Before I could even release her, two aggressive-looking n rushed over. The first one didn’t hesitate — he lifted his leg and delivered a hard kick straight into my ribs.
Thud!
The impact was sharp and powerful. Pain exploded in my side as the force sent stumbling backward. I deliberately didn’t resist, allowing myself to crash dramatically onto the cold tiled floor of the mall. I let out a pained grunt as I hit the ground, clutching my side.
The second man followed up with another kick aid at my back, though it was lighter. "You piece of shit! Beating a girl in public?! Scum like you deserve to be beaten!"
Tachibana’s eyes widened in pure shock and fury. The mont she saw on the ground, sothing inside her snapped.
"STOP IT!!" she scread at the top of her lungs, her voice cracking with rage. Tears stread down her flushed cheeks as she glared at the two n with murderous intent. "Don’t you dare touch him again!! I’ll kill you—! I’ll fucking kill both of you!!"
Her usual cold assassin deanor completely vanished, replaced by raw, protective anger. She looked ready to tear them apart with her bare hands. Her body trembled violently, not from fear, but from pure fury.
She dropped to her knees beside instantly, her hands hovering over my body. "Jack...! Are you okay?! Did they hurt you badly?!" Her voice was shaking as she turned her furious gaze back to the two n. "You bastards... You dared to kick my husband?! I’ll make you regret being born!"
The crowd gasped at her words.
I quickly grabbed Tachibana’s hand to stop her from launching herself at the n. Still on the floor, I raised my other hand toward the gathering crowd and forced a weak, apologetic smile.
"Sorry, everyone... My wife was a bit angry at . We had a small fight. It’s completely my fault. Please don’t worry about it."
The two n who had kicked froze, looking embarrassed now that the situation was revealed.
"W-Wife...? This is a lovers’ quarrel?"
"Shit... we misunderstood..."
The surrounding crowd began murmuring:
"Hah, another dostic fight in public..."
"Young people these days have no sha..."
"Keep your argunts at ho, damn it."
The two n awkwardly muttered apologies and quickly retreated into the crowd, disappearing as fast as they had appeared.
Once they were gone, Tachibana stayed kneeling beside . Her eyes were still red and swollen with tears as she gently wiped the dirty shoe marks off my clothes with her hands. Her touch was surprisingly soft and careful, completely contrasting her earlier rage.
"You idiot..." she whispered, her voice hoarse. "Why didn’t you dodge? Why did you let them kick you? Are you hurt? Does it hurt a lot...?"
I looked up at her tear-streaked face and asked softly, "Don’t you hate ?"
Tachibana froze. Her hands stopped moving on my shirt. She bit her lip so hard it turned white, fresh tears dripping onto my clothes.
"Just shut up..." she muttered, refusing to et my eyes. "You’re really the worst person I’ve ever t... Saying you’ll marry , then appearing here happily with other won the very next morning. What was I supposed to think?"
She continued gently brushing the dirt off my clothes, almost tenderly. "I waited, worrying about you. Then Master told you left... I thought maybe you really ant those words. But then I saw you laughing and shopping with them... I felt like the biggest idiot in the world."
She punched my chest lightly with her small fist. "If you were going to have girlfriends... You shouldn’t have made believe you. You made ... You made hope, you stupid bastard."
Tachibana looked up at , her eyes still watery but filled with a storm of complicated emotions — anger, pain, embarrassnt, and a fragile trace of longing.
"...Were you really serious when you said you’d marry ?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "Or was that just a lie to save my life? Tell honestly, Jack."
I looked straight into her teary eyes and nodded without hesitation.
"I am still serious," I said calmly and sincerely. "I really ant it when I said I would marry you. I wasn’t lying."
Tachibana’s breath hitched. Before she could respond, I added with a small smile, "Didn’t you just call your husband a minute ago in front of all those people?"
The mont the words left my mouth, Tachibana’s face turned bright crimson. She froze completely, rembering how she had scread "He is my husband!" in a panic to stop the n from attacking .
"Th-That...!" she stamred, her cheeks burning red. "I-I was just trying to save you! I didn’t an it like that! It was an ergency! I had to say sothing so those idiots would stop kicking you!"
She looked extrely flustered, her hands fidgeting nervously on my chest as she tried to explain herself. The tough, sharp-tongued assassin was nowhere to be seen — only an embarrassed young woman blushing furiously.
"You... you’re shaless!" she hissed, though her voice lacked any real venom. "Taking advantage of the situation like that... I only said it because I didn’t want them to hurt you more. Don’t get any weird ideas!"
Despite her denial, she didn’t move away from . She was still kneeling close, one hand resting on my shirt, her face only inches from mine. Her ears were also bright red, and she kept avoiding direct eye contact.
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