Time for my Interrogation

Adrian had reclined on his chair, his back comfortably resting, and he was dressed in a white shirt with the top two buttons casually undone, revealing a glimpse of his chest.

His appearance was nothing short of captivating. It was at that moment that I comprehended why the writer had referred to him as the god of seduction.

The moment i stood opposite him, Adrian promptly adjusted his posture, sitting upright with rapt attention.

His gaze remained fixed on me, and it felt as if he were meticulously scrutinising my entire appearance.

I couldn't help but feel a pang of self-consciousness, fully aware of the less-than-ideal situation I found myself in.

But i had to start somewhere,

"Mr. Duke, I... extend my...my heartfelt apo....ologies for the unfortunate si...situation we've en...countered," I express...ed my...myself with ge..nuine con...cern.

“I...I must ad..mit tha...at I..I am deeply em....embarrassed by the entire si...situation. I genuinely wish for you to beli...eve that n...none of this was in...tended, and I am as per..plexed as you are about how thi...things have unfolded this way.” 'What am i speaking?'

I had hoped for mercy from Adrian after my heartfelt apologies, but I knew him too well. Stepping into his castle without his permission, and not just any part, but his bedroom, his private sanctuary.

I gazed out towards the sky, silently lamenting, 'Couldn't fate find any other place to put me other than his bed?'

I looked backed at Adrian and I observed as one of his eyebrows arched slightly higher than the other before he spoke.


"Your apologies may sound refined, but your conduct contradicts them. And I must say, your attire was rather unconventional. Are you here to seduce me?"

I couldn't comprehend his words at first. Actually, I didn't want to believe what he had just said.

"Seduce you?" My expression were not hidden by my shock. He could see how taken aback I was by that statement.

'How can he say that I tried to make him like me? I've never even held a guy hand, and he's saying I tried to seduce him? Though i can undstand what made him think like that.'

I looked back at sky again, cursing the god or the angel or somebody or anybody, who placed me on his bed out of all the places in the palace, it had to be his bed.'

'My ancestors would have been immensily disappointed for hearing such things about me. 'I'm sorry, ancestors, for this trouble. You had to hear such aweful thing.' I was silently speaking in my mind.

"As for this strange device, it looks entirely unfamiliar." He was tossing around my phone like a ball.

My attention were immediately drawn onto my phone now, which he was playing around, just as I was about to utter a word.


"How did you succeed in infiltrating the Wismar palace compound, and furthermore, my private chambers?"


My eyes started to wandered around the room, I took a mintue to think, my biggest problem was, how am i suppose to explain him, how i got here, when i, myself is clueless like him and second problem was my beloved phone was getting tossed by him.

I nervously bit my lower lip, grappling with the daunting realisation that I had no clear answers to his barrage of questions.

So I decided to address the questions for which I did have some semblance of an answer.

I stuttered as I replied to the Duke, unable to hide the tremble in my body, which betrayed my lack of control over my emotions.

"My.. my ..name is Sirin Syrvoski, i am 18 years... old and I.. I am not sure h...how i en...ended up here, i think i am l....lost."

I was scared and embarrassed at the same time. I had never spoken to a man who wasn't family before. Yes! Yes! Apart from the terrace guy with whom I had shared my name. But this situation is compeltely different.

I found myself in a paradoxical role, both perpetrator and victim. The truth, however, was that I more like a victim than anything else.

Adrian's eyebrows furrowed as my statement reached his ears, and Juli looked slightly puzzled too.

In a tone laced with skepticism, Adrian questioned,

"Lost, you claim? Were you placed here by someone," 'Yup, you are absolutely right.' I was answering him in my head "or do you make a habit of sleepwalking?" His voice dripped with sarcasm. 'Nope no such habit.'

But words which came out was different, "I... I do not know. B...but i assure you, the mo..ment I find my an....swer, you.. you will be the.. the first to know, Mr. Duke."

But he didn't stop there with his questioning. I stood before him, with my head bowed, feeling like a criminal brought to court for a hearing.

With an icy edge to his voice, he inquired, "Where are you from?" The chilliness in his voice clearly indicated that his patience was running thin.

Caught in a web of uncertainty, I hesitated, my heart pounding as I mustered the courage to speak. "I... I live in Korea," the words slipped out, I was not even sure if such place existed in this place.

"When did you travel from Korea to here?" he interrogated with another pointed question.

'Such place does exit in this place. Perhaps i am in parallel universe, where the characters of the novel exist.'

"To....today morning if not th...th..then yesterday night i...i think." my voice was tinged with confusion and I continued to stammer.

I silently pleaded, desperately clutching onto a glimmer of hope that another wave of unconsciousness might mercifully offer me respite from his relentless interrogation.

"You think?" Adrian remained steadfast, his voice was as cold it could be, while I stood before him, felt like, i am awaiting my judgment.

Meanwhile, Juli was observing the unfolding scene right infront of her.

In an effort to shift the conversation, I murmured, "My phone, please give it back."

Adrian's cold gaze shifted from me to the device in his hand, a surprised expression crossed his face. "This is a phone?" He asked. "You mean, a telephone?" He stressed on the word.

I lamented silently, another question adding to my distress. "Yeah " I replied in a hushed tone.

"You must think of me a fool Ms. Syrvoski"

He rose from his chair, his voice was carrying a tone that suggested dire consequences if I failed to respond adequately.


“You should know that I have the power to end your existence right here and now for trespassing into my private domain like a thief.”

'Did he just threatend me?' I looked at him with my trembling eyes. I couldn't fathom the gravity of the situation I found myself in. I mustered the courage to lock my eyes with him, searching for any hint of sincerity. ' Will he really kill me?'

His gaze remained devoid of any expression for me to guess, leaving me in an unsettling abyss of uncertainty.

'I cannot remain here,' I mustered up my all the courage i could and addressed him again, "I completely understand your apprehension."

I bowed before him. I adhered to the customary Korean gesture, a profound sign of respect for our elders and superiors.

"P..p.please trust me when I...I say this; I har..bor no ill in...intentions to...towards you or yo..your mistress."

I continued, "I...i will lea...ve imm...edia..tely ri..ght away, may I kindly requ..est the re...return of my phone?" With a graceful stretch of my arm, I gestured toward Mr. Duke, silently indicating that he could place the phone in my waiting palms.

'If he handed me my phone, perhaps I could make a quick escape or try to contact my parents. On the other hand, if he remained unconvinced, I contemplated showing him a picture of my family to prove that I was no thief. Then he might spare my life.' The weight of uncertainty hung in the air as my mind raced with these thoughts.


"Is that so?"

"Yes" and I closed and opened my palm twice, a clear gesture indicating that he should place the mobile onto my hand.

I peered through one eye, wordlessly observing as he carried my phone towards the window. The window itself was expansive, revealing a cozy nook nestled within its frame.


Adrian gracefully settled into this nook, his left foot firmly on the floor and his right foot slightly elevated. In his right hand, he held my phone, extending it beyond the window's frame with deliberate intent.

I straightened my posture, my eyes locking onto my phone which was hanging precariously from his hand outside the window. The Uncertainty flickered in my gaze. "What are you doing, Adrian?" I asked, my voice trembling with timidity, a knot of anxiety tightening in my stomach.


Duke wore a sly smirk as he inquired, "Tell me precisely how and with what intention you managed to enter my room or I am setting off this curious device of yours."

I did something unimaginable once more, breaking the holy syrvoski's rule.

The gravity of the situation hit me like a ton of bricks, jolting my body into instinctual motion that outpaced my rational thought.

Like a wild cat pouncing on its prey, I moved with determined swiftness towards my precious phone. In a fluid motion, I lunged towards Adrian, intent on reclaiming my lifeline to the outside world.

In my haste, I managed to seize my phone, a heaving a sigh of relief escaped my breath and when I looked towards Adrian, he looked visibly irritated.

In the whirlwind of the moment, I hadn't initially realized that I held his left hand within my own. I found myself perched on his lap, my legs folded with each knee nestled beside his hips—an unconventional position that intensified the unusual circumstances of our encounter.


His face was mere inches from mine, his breath was warming my skin. The proximity added an unexpected layer to our interaction, leaving an electrifying tension around us.

Chapter end