<h4>Chapter 101: Viin Simtor, Ch 100</h4>


    <i>Disguising takeout as her own cooking—what exactly is Alice''s goal here?</i> Lucas wondered. <i>Could it be... that she poisoned it?</i>


    Just as he debated whether to test the food for poison, Alice set down the final dish with a smile. "It''s just some simple dishes, please don''t mind them."


    "These are already quitevish," Lucas replied, masking his suspicions with ttery. "Miss Alice, you truly are a virtuous woman."


    Thest dish was a vegetable sd, but it was haphazardly prepared. Among the other dishes, it looked as out of ce as a dead frog tossed into a fishbowl. Even so, Alice shamelessly wiped imaginary sweat from her brow. "To me, these are trivial matters. I invited you here, so of course, I wanted to treat you well."


    "Having dinner with Miss Alice," Lucas responded lightly, "is my honor."


    Alice tilted her head while taking a seat across from him. "I hope you don''t mind me asking, but wouldn''t it be ufortable to eat while wearing a mask?"


    "I''m used to it," Lucas replied, touching the mask on his face. "The other half of my face is quite ugly. Taking off the mask at the dinner table might affect your appetite."


    "I don''t mind," Alice replied, shaking her head with an unexpected softness. "I''m not someone who cares about appearances. For a man capable of raising such a well-behaved child like Klee, you must have a heart of gold."


    Lucas nearly choked on his bite of sweet flower wine chicken. <i>A well-behaved child? Are you referring to Klee, who personally blew up two-thirds of the Knights of Favonius and whose thefts have exceeded 350 million Mora?</i>


    "Since Miss Alice insists, I suppose I''ll be rude," he said, slowly removing his mask to reveal his scarred cheek. "But I''m still curious—why did you suddenly invite me here? Did Klee cause any trouble?"


    "No, no! Klee is an excellent child!" Alice assured, waving her hand. "She''s like the queen of the school, getting along easily with the other children."


    "That''s good to hear..." Lucas sighed with relief.


    "Well, she does asionally beat up a few ssmates and leave them injured," Alice added with a yful shrug.


    <i>Is this her idea of getting along?</i> Lucas''s expression shifted, and Aliceughed.


    "Just kidding. As the principal, I ensure the safety of every student," she said with a wink.


    "But the reason I invited you here today..." Alice''s tone softened as she lowered her gaze, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. "I remember Klee''s father... you''re a single parent, right?"


    "Yeah," Lucas replied, frowning slightly. "My wife passed away over a decade ago in an ident."


    "I''m very sorry to hear that. She must have been a wonderful wife," Alice said, adding, "and surely a great mother."


    <i>She would have been,</i> Lucas thought to himself. <i>If it weren''t for the mistakes you made.</i>


    He silently tightened his grip on his knife, the impulse to plunge it into Alice''s heart surging briefly within him.


    "I told you before—one should look forward, not dwell on the past," Alice said, reaching out to ce her hand on Lucas''s. "Maybe it''s time for you to find a new wife. And Klee... she needs a mother."


    Lucas instinctively pulled his hand away, careful not to reveal the synthetic nature of his arm. <i>So that''s her n,</i> he realized.


    It was clear now—Alice wasn''t interested in him personally. She hardly knew him, and their encounters were so few he could count them on one hand. No, her motive was to be Klee''s stepmother, a move that would seamlessly allow her to im Klee as her own. With Lucas alive, she couldn''t treat Klee as an adopted daughter; the only legitimate path was through marriage.


    <i>For the sake of bing Klee''s mother, Alice, could you really go this far?</i>


    ---


    Lucas''s reaction surprised Alice. With her looks, status, and wealth, she was ustomed to getting what she wanted. In her mind, an ordinary single father like Lucas should be overwhelmed with gratitude and affection by now, eager to pour his heart out. Instead, Lucas remained calm, almost resistant.


    "Miss Alice, I have considered remarrying," Lucas sighed. "But my face has scared off quite a few women."


    "I''ve told you—I don''t care about appearances," Alice insisted. "From the first time I met you, I was captivated by the depth of your character."


    For a seasoned maniptor like Lucas, her ttery felt almostughable. <i>All this effort, just to be Klee''s mother?</i> he thought, coldly amused. <i>How should I respond to this?</i>


    Then, he recalled Sucrose''s advice: <i>This dinner might be an opportunity to redesign your revenge n.</i> Alice was gradually emerging from her sorrow, finding a new purpose—exactly what Lucas didn''t want. The best way to destroy someone is to first give them hope. If he agreed to Alice''s proposal, allowing her to step into the role of Klee''s mother and experience happiness again, he couldter shatter that illusion when she least expected it.


    The thought of it made Lucas''s body tremble slightly with anticipation.


    To Alice, his reaction looked like hesitation. She leaned against his shoulder, allowing him to feel her warmth. "Haven''t you felt lonely all these years?" she whispered, her voice more seductive than before.


    Lucas''s response wasn''t verbal. Instead, he pulled her into a deep kiss. At first, Alice was surprised, instinctively pushing him away, but she quickly rxed. After all, this was precisely the oue she had hoped for.


    As Lucas had suspected, she didn''t love him; at best, she could say she "didn''t dislike" him.


    To Alice, humans were no different than Hilichurls. Even though she could face them as equals, she had never truly seen them as her peers. It was like how a person might love their dog but could never consider marrying it. That was why, years ago, when faced with the mudslide, Alice could blow up the mountainside without hesitation, sacrificing a few lives to save many without any psychological burden. In her mind, human life wasn''t priceless.


    So, for Alice, being kissed forcefully by a human felt like being kissed by a Hilichurl. Instinctively, she felt difort, but to gain Lucas''s trust, she forced herself to ept it. However, despite her vast knowledge, Alice was inexperienced in this area and could only respond awkwardly.


    <i>Is this what a kiss feels like?</i> she wondered, feeling a wave of confusion. <i>Aren''t kisses supposed to be gentle and sweet?</i> But Lucas''s kiss was rough, as if he wanted to consume her whole.


    Lucas''s emotions were even moreplicated. Kissing his enemy was no easy feat. A kiss between lovers should express love, but for Lucas, it was a channel for his suppressed hatred. The more passionate the kiss, the stronger his anger and resentment became.


    "Excuse me," Lucas finally muttered as he pulled away after what felt like an eternity.


    Alice was left dazed. "I just... didn''t expect you to be so forward."


    <i>Damn it, that was my first kiss!</i> she thought, but quickly reassured herself. <i>It''s worth it if it means bing Klee''s mother.</i>


    "So," Lucas said bluntly, "Miss Alice, do you want to marry me?"


    "Y-yes," Alice stammered, her face flushed with a hint of shyness.


    "Don''t you think this is moving a bit too fast?"


    "Not at all. We''re not young anymore, no need to be so shy," Lucas replied with a confident grin. "Actually, I really like Miss Alice, but there are certain difficulties I can''t share. That''s why I haven''t remarried all these years."


    "It''s okay!" Alice said earnestly. "Even if you have issues in that area, I wouldn''t mind at all."


    In fact, she thought it might be better if he did have issues in that regard. Kissing a human was already her limit; she doubted whether she could truly ept anything beyond that. Although she had prepared herself mentally for such possibilities, it still felt daunting.


    "It''s not that I can''t; rather... it''s too much," Lucas replied, his eyes suddenly turning seductive. "Ordinary women would probably find it hard to ept."


    Lucas''s tone shifted, abandoning the polite facade he''d maintained.


    "I... I think I can handle it," Alice forced a smile. "It''s normal for couples to be intimate, right?"


    "Why don''t we try it out now?" Lucas suggested, picking up an oyster from the hunter''s tter. He pried open the shell, revealing the juicy meat inside, and slurped it into his mouth. "We''re adults, after all. Before getting married, it''s wise to see if we''repatible. It''d be a shame to find out we aren''t after the wedding, wouldn''t it?"


    Mondstadt was an open country, and its liberal culture extended to rtionships. It wasn''t unusual for couples to be intimate before marriage. While Lucas and Alice both appeared young, Lucas was approaching middle age, and Alice''s true age was beyond anyone''s guess. His suggestion, given the context, wasn''t entirely unreasonable—especially since Alice had been the one to bring up marriage.


    But Lucas''s intentions were far from pure. He didn''t desire Alice; instead, he wanted to humiliate her. He knew she didn''t love him and likely looked down on him. Forcing her into this situation was his way of exacting revenge—both physically and psychologically.


    "I... I understand," Alice said after a moment of hesitation. "I''ll prove my sincerity. Please wait for me in the bedroom. I... I want to take a shower first."


    <i>She actually... agreed?</i>


    Though Lucas had entertained the idea, her eptance caught him off guard. Now that the opportunity was real, he felt a flicker of nervousness himself.


    ---


    ...When Lucas came to his senses, he found himself sitting in Alice''s bedroom. The soft purple sheets carried a faint floral fragrance, and the dim, warm lighting created an atmosphere that felt oddly intimate.


    "I''m sorry to keep you waiting," Alice said as she entered, wrapped in a towel.


    For a brief moment, Lucas thought he saw a hint of innocence in the woman who had once given birth to a child. <i>No, it must be an illusion,</i> he told himself, clenching his fists. <i>This is all an act; I can''t afford to feel pity for her.</i>


    <i>I need to break her spirit in the most brutal way possible.</i>


    "It wasn''t that long," Lucas replied, his face partially obscured by the dim light, making it hard to read his expression. "Sometimes, waiting can be a joy in itself."


    "You''re very gentle," Alice murmured, mistaking his words forfort. "Actually, I''m still..."


    "No, I''m not gentle at all," Lucas cut her off, his tone darkening as he pushed her down andunched himself at her like a beast.


    "You''ll find out soon enough."