The Extra Villain: I Made a Contract With The Dragon Empress!

"Hah... hah... hah..." Margaret panted, wiping the sweat from her neck. "Can we stop for a while? I'm really tired of running all the time."

It had been more than ten minutes since they escaped from the wooden house, and during that time, they had been running as fast as they could toward the depths of the forest.

For Margaret, who rarely ran, this was definitely a challenge. Her body felt exhausted, and her legs were starting to cramp.

Merlin stopped without protest. "Alright, let's rest for a bit. I happen to hear the sound of a stream nearby. You can sit and drink some water first."

With that, he led Margaret to the right side of the forest. Just as he said, about a hundred meters ahead, they came across a small stream.

The water was clear and not too deep—only about half a meter. Rough rocks lined its banks, enough to serve as seats.

Margaret hesitated. The stream was unfamiliar to her, and she feared some animal or monster might attack if she got too close.

However, Merlin walked casually to the bank, crouched down, and scooped up water with both hands.

Splash!

He splashed it on his face, and the refreshing sensation instantly brought a satisfied smile.

"The water's clear and cold—just right to ease fatigue," he murmured.

He took another handful to drink, and his thirst was quickly quenched.

Seeing that, Margaret's hesitation slowly faded. She walked over and crouched beside him.

Just as she was about to scoop the water with both hands, she remembered the mask she was wearing.

In the end, she stayed still and simply waited for Merlin to finish. Noticing that, Merlin gave a faint smile, then stood up and walked toward a large rock to take a seat.

Margaret let out a quiet sigh of relief, then slowly removed her mask. The clear water, touched by the moonlight filtering through the thick leaves, reflected her face.

What appeared was the face of an extraordinarily beautiful young girl. Her golden eyes shone, her small nose was delicate, and her pink lips were lovely.

Unfortunately, that beauty was marred by a red mark covering almost her entire face. It resembled roots, stretching from her right ear to her left.

Worse still, the scabs on both cheeks made her look hideous and frightening.

"What an ugly face," she muttered with a wry smile.

The thing she hated most in this world was her own face. It might sound strange, but it was the truth. The curse etched onto her features had filled her life with misery.

Although she was born into a wealthy family, that didn't make her happy. Many people avoided her simply because of her appearance.

Even those who once said, "I don't care about your looks—friendship is sacred," eventually left her too.

The reason was simple—they feared the curse might be contagious. But that was impossible. The curse had been with her since birth and could never spread to anyone else.

Unfortunately, the stereotype was so deeply ingrained in everyone's minds that it seemed almost impossible to change.

'Could he think the same if he saw her face?'

The thought sent a flash of fear through her. In the past, she might not have cared about what others thought.

But now, for some reason, she felt deeply uneasy. And the cause was clear—that boy, whom she hadn't even known for a full day.

Yet even in such a short time, he had already left a deep impression on her.

"Why are you just crouching there? Come on, I've got the rest of the buns we ate in the underground prison," Merlin called from behind her.

Margaret hurriedly washed her face. Sure enough, it felt fresh and revitalized. She even drank some water, and it surprisingly cooled and soothed her throat.

When she was done, she put her mask back on and walked toward Merlin.

"Here, I have strawberry flavor," he said, handing her a piece of the same bun as last time.

Margaret took it and whispered, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Merlin replied casually. "Eat it quickly. We have to leave soon, or they'll catch up with us. That would be very dangerous."

He knew those men were no fools. The fact that they could kidnap children so easily showed they were skilled and experienced. By now, they had probably noticed he and Margaret had left.

Margaret unwrapped her bun and was about to take a bite when she remembered her mask.

Noticing this, Merlin immediately turned and said apologetically, "I'm sorry. You can eat it."

Before he could fully turn, Margaret's low voice came from behind him.

"Aren't you curious why I wear a mask?"

In the past, whenever children played with her, they would always ask why she wore it.

Back then, she was completely innocent and showed them her face. The children were scared and ran away.

They even gave her the nickname "monster," a name that still hurts her to this day.

But strangely, the boy in front of her had never asked—and this both puzzled and astonished her.

Merlin glanced at her golden eyes, which held a mixture of fear, nervousness, and self-consciousness.

A faint smile appeared on his lips as he said, "To be honest, I am curious. But we don't know each other very well yet, so it would be inappropriate to ask. Does that answer satisfy you?"

Margaret remained silent for a moment, her gaze downcast as if lost in thought.

Suddenly, she took a deep breath and looked at him with a stern expression.

"Will you look at my face?"

The question stunned Merlin. His heart raced, and his eyes widened slightly.

He stared at Margaret in surprise and disbelief.

"Are you… sure?"

It should be noted that Margaret had never removed her mask to show anyone, not even Abel.

But that was only natural, given the bullying she had endured in the past, both direct and indirect.

Margaret had only ever told Abel that she had suffered from a curse since childhood. In response, Abel had worked tirelessly to find a cure.

Eventually, he succeeded, and the curse on Margaret completely disappeared.

And now, Margaret was suddenly offering to show her face—her greatest vulnerability—to him.

"System, what is Margaret's level of affection for me?" Merlin asked.

"[Ding! The heroine Margaret's affection has reached 50 points, Master,]" the system replied.

"Fifty points?" Merlin said in surprise. He remembered it being only forty—why had it jumped by ten?

"[That's because you gave her your cloak, Master. Her affection increases gradually,]" the system explained, and Merlin finally understood.

"So that's why…" He nodded slowly.

"Why are you silent? Don't you… want to see it?" Margaret's soft, sorrowful voice came from in front of him.

"[Ding! The heroine Margaret's affection decreased by 5 points!]"

"[Ding! The heroine Margaret's affection decreased by 5 points!]"

Merlin was dumbfounded. He quickly blurted out, "Don't get me wrong! I didn't mean that. I'm just afraid you're pushing yourself!"

Panic was clear in his voice, and cold sweat ran down his back.

He hadn't expected her affection to drop, and it made him realize he needed to be more careful from now on.

"Really?" Margaret looked at him doubtfully.

"Of course." Merlin nodded reassuringly. "I don't know what happened to you, but I will never force you to show your face. Like I said earlier, I respect you. So don't push yourself. After all… we're friends, aren't we?"

"Friends?" The moment those words left Merlin's lips, Margaret froze, her eyes widening.

She had never heard words like that before. All she had known were hypocritical promises from people who pretended to be her friends.

Then, a smile slowly spread across her face, and she lowered her head in shame.

"You're right… we are… friends."

"[Ding! The heroine Margaret's affection increased by 20 points! Affection now: 60 points!]"