I Raised A Black Dragon

It was after Kyle had patiently waited for a few seconds that Noah spoke again. Her confident and domineering attitude suddenly vanished into thin air. Noah glanced at him briefly and vaguely mumbled, "You think I'm always thinking about nothing, but I'm not. My mind is occupied with relevant thoughts, too."

"Relevant thoughts? Such as? I know you get easily scared more than I thought, but I don't know if you're just sensitive or…”

"If you keep talking nonsense, I will pinch your sides. Oh, no. I'm going to hit your stomach with my elbow.” Noah frowned, averting her gaze from Kyle, and turned around. In the end, she couldn’t utter a word of explanation for the days she had been avoiding him. Still, she cared about him in her own way.

Noah went to Muell, who was watching them from the bed, and turned the topic around, feigning nonchalance. "So when are you going to Noviscosha?"

"…Maybe I'll be leaving tomorrow afternoon or the day after tomorrow morning."

"Goodbye. Don't get hurt."

Perhaps what would follow was a wave of her hand or a friendly salute, but Kyle's prediction was wrong. Noah, who was stretching Muell's cheek, glanced up at him. "…Are you going with her?"

"What?" Kyle asked, furrowing his brows.

"Noviscosha. You're not going alone. Are you… going with Lady Romil?"

"You mean Penelope? When did you know her last name?"

"Don't change the subject. Are you coming with her or not?"

"Well…" Penelope Romil was one of his most trusted investigators, so he always retained his subordinates from the Tezeba branch when he went on business trips.

"Maybe this time… Miss Noah. Why, again?" Kyle answered thoughtlessly. At Noah’s glare, a sigh escaped from his lips. "I told you to tell me if you have any complaints."

"I have no complaints,” Noah quickly interjected.

"Then, you can glare at me to your heart’s content. I won't deal with silent demonstrations."

Noah, furious at Kyle’s words, gave more intensity to her gaze and pursed her lips into a thin line. She pretended as if she gave no ounce of care and said, "I'm not really interested, but since I thought of it, I'll ask."

"Is your ideal type a woman like Lord Romil?" she repeated.

"I don't know why you're curious about that…”

"Can't I be curious?" Noah retorted sullenly. Not long after, she realized that her ‘indifference’ had collapsed and she composed herself. "I'm not really curious about that. It’s just that I suddenly remembered that you two looked pretty close, so I asked."

"We're not close, but we're almost always together because we're one of the best investigators at the headquarters. She hadn’t been my subordinate for long, but she’s a trustworthy person. She’s quick-witted and has a good sense."

"Is she pretty?"

"…Why in the world would you wonder?" Kyle's eyes narrowed. Noah was strangely avoiding his gaze, though she still wore a brazen expression.

"I was just wondering what could sway a cold-blooded investigator when Eleonora, who is right in front of him, couldn’t even make him bat an eye.”

“So, why are you curious about that?” Kyle straightened his posture against the window and walked off to the bed she sat on. As soon as he saw Noah stealthily hiding herself under the covers, he pulled the sheets down.

"Why, why? Why not?" Noah managed to put on an unconcerned look although she was nearly stuttering. Meanwhile, Kyle suppressed a chuckle as he looked at the woman across him, who seemed so adorable in her clumsiness.

"My taste… I don't know. I've never really thought about it. Someone who is diligent and clean, so to speak?"

"No, not like that."

"Then, someone who gets up well in the morning and can eat three meals a day on her own."

“…….”

"Someone who won’t catch a cold or have aches often. I also hope that she won’t talk back to me.”

"You're not talking about what you want from me, are you?" Noah's eyes narrowed at him again. This time, her nonchalant facade had disappeared and a glum expression took over. Kyle shrugged his shoulders. "I just said it because you asked for my taste."

"It seems like you’re implying."

"I never said that. Do you want to suit my taste?"

"I never said that either."

"I think I'm doing pretty well. It's a life-long contract, so who's to be next to you for the rest of your life?” Noah asked daringly and bit her bottom lip.