When I Finished Playing the Terminally-Ill Villainous Omega C18

Chapter 18

The heat that had surged from deep within shot upward all at once, striking my head as if with a blunt blow. I kissed Locke.

For a moment, even the air inside the prison felt unbearably heavy. Awkward. Stifling. I shifted back slightly, my gaze flickering restlessly—yet there was no escaping the truth that I had, in fact, exchanged a kiss with him.

“If you become this awkward over a mere kiss, I doubt I’ll be able to treat you comfortably,”

Locke remarked.

Flustered—of course I was. In all two of my lives combined, that had been my first kiss. And never, not even in a dream, had I imagined my first would be with a man.

But Locke had a point.

In this world, same-sex intimacy wasn’t considered improper. Even those without affection could end up locked together in a cycle, losing themselves to instinct—alpha and omega alike. Having lived one life already, I understood this well. My embarrassment was pointless.

More importantly, if I acted embarrassed, what would that make of Locke, who had helped me so earnestly? The least I could do was pretend composure—act unfazed for his sake.

“It’s not awkward. Not at all.”

“It is awkward.”

“Absolutely not. And… thanks for that night. If it weren’t for you, I would’ve been burning with fever in the rain and died there.”

“…Strange.”

Locke tilted his head again.

“What is?”

“I don’t recall you being like this when speaking with him.”

“…Him?”

“That preening peacock eager for marriage.”

A peacock eager for marriage?

I mentally sifted through the short list of faces I knew—and one suddenly dawned on me.

“Don’t tell me… you mean Brother Aiden…?”

I asked him to treat me like a friend, and now he seemed ready to treat every noble under the sun as one too. He had just called the viscount’s son that man. I stared at him, mouth agape.

“Yes, him. Isn’t he a friend too? You seemed to laugh rather often when speaking with him.”

“Aiden isn’t a friend, he’s—well—brother. A relationship much harder than a friendship…”

He had called him that man three times now. Stunned, I blinked rapidly, and Locke waved a dismissive hand.

“Enough of that. How’s your body?”

“Ah—um… I’m fine now. Thank you again… really.”

“I’ll help from time to time. As a friend.”

Standing close beside me, he murmured the last words into my ear before leaning away. Before the tingling on my lips even faded, his breath against my ear made my neck reflexively shrink.

Locke kept a blank expression for several seconds—then suddenly burst out laughing and stepped back fully.

We were definitely getting closer… yet something about this new version of him felt oddly distant.

When did he become so sly?

I watched his expression carefully. Our gazes met. I tried a weak, awkward smile and shrugged as if nothing were amiss. His once-straight brows then knit together ever so slightly.

Now what?

His golden eyes sharpened, and even though I’d done nothing wrong, my heart stuttered in my chest. I was just about to avert my gaze when he grabbed my wrist and yanked me sharply toward him.

My heart nearly launched itself out of my chest.

“Ghk!”

I almost screamed. If I did, the knight outside would think Locke was attacking me and rush in with his sword.

I swallowed the sound with desperate force.

Locke stared at my blood-smeared palm and asked quietly,

“Where did this come from?”

“Oh—this? It’s just a little accident—”

“A little accident? From someone who’s never swung a sword?”

“Who says I haven’t swung a sword? That monster the other day got—”

“It looks very recent. And since you haven’t treated it, I assume you hurt yourself on the way here. Correct?”

He brushed his thumb across the blood, his lips pressing together.

I pulled away and put some distance between us.

I was the one who’d asked for a friendly relationship, but ever since the heat incident, Locke’s easy proximity was impossible to handle with a clear mind.

“Kane, shift change.”

Voices came from outside just in time.

Cassian suddenly flashed through my thoughts. How long had I been here?

I needed to hide Locke before Cassian returned, then find witnesses and clues to clear his name.

I hurried to undo the restraints binding Locke’s wrists and ankles.

But just as he rose to his feet, my eyes caught sight of something: his shoes—mud-stained and filthy.

Wait…

A chilling memory shot through my mind.

Instinctively, I checked my shoes again—also covered in dried mud from running everywhere in search of him.

A cold ripple ran down my spine.

As expected, a horrifying system window flickered before my eyes:

[ MISSION: Publicly shove your servant Locke in a place where people are gathered.

As if to humiliate him, wipe the dirt from your shoe onto his thigh as he lies fallen, saying one of the following lines:

1. I was trying to wipe off the dirt, but what is this? It feels like I’m smearing filth onto filth.

2. Remember your place—flat on the ground like a rag to clean my shoes. ]

My stomach dropped. I squeezed my eyes shut and bit my lip.

The prison door was slightly open—meaning the cell and corridor now counted as a single space. My shoes were dirty. Another person—the second knight—had just appeared.

A “place where people are gathered” didn’t require a public audience—just plurality. And that condition had just been fulfilled.

Damn system window. It’s been too quiet—of course it was saving this for now.

Every time I tried to mend things with Locke, a mission condition triggered—as if some invisible force insisted villains and protagonists must never truly reconcile.

[ ♥ ]

Only one heart remained.

Failure was not an option.

My pulse hammered violently as I combed through every word of the mission.

“Requesting permission for criminal visitation from Young Master Cedric. No other reports. Handover complete.”

“From the young master? Understood. Taking over.”

Footsteps—moving away.

If the door connecting the basement to the first floor closed, the “shared space” condition would vanish. So would the “people present” requirement.

Then the mission would fail.

My heart constricted. I had to execute the scenario before the knight left.

I glanced sideways at Locke, who was still staring at my injured palm.

The mission did not require him to hear my line—only that I say it.

No more time to think.

I grabbed his face with both hands and muttered a brief “sorry—just a second” before shoving him backward.

It was the setup needed for the next stage of the mission.

Even with my full weight behind it, Locke’s build should have allowed him to remain standing—so I exploited his momentary lack of balance.

It worked. He fell far too easily.

His black hair spilled across the cold stone floor, the strands sliding like ink. His eyes—usually half-hidden beneath his fringe—were fully revealed, blazing brilliantly as they fixed on me.

Below his sharp nose, his lips parted slightly.

“What might this be?”

A feather could have brushed my heart with no gentler touch.

Even if he was someone I should never be attracted to, a man with a face like that—paired with a voice like warm honey—could steal anyone’s soul.

The knight’s footsteps grew fainter.

My mind snapped back.

Now!

I pressed harder against Locke’s ears with my palms before he could resist, leaning over him. At the same moment, I lightly tapped his thigh with the tip of my shoe—a fleeting brush, yet I felt the small twitch of muscle through the leather.

Steeling myself, I whispered words no louder than a droplet falling from the ceiling:

“I tried wiping off the dirt… but somehow, it feels like I’m smearing filth onto filth.”

Locke said nothing. His long lashes merely fluttered lazily.

He hadn’t heard me. Thank goodness.

He’s going to ask why I pushed him. What excuse do I use…?

Sweat gathered in my palms—proof of my nerves.

I removed my hands from his ears, relieved that the final task was complete.

I waited for the system to respond—for the heart to appear.

Instead—

Locke’s hand shot up and grabbed my shoulder, yanking me down sharply.

Our faces drew close—far too close—and in a low voice that brushed the inside of my ear, he murmured:

“I was waiting eagerly. Why get up so soon?”