Chapter 174 I lift my skirt to show you with a cold face - Stop Hypnotizing Me, Villainous Princess!

"Shut up! Don't say another word! You deceitful liar with your nonsensical tales!" Staring at the black-haired young man gasping for breath, Tia instinctively clenched her pale, slender fingers. Her emerald eyes brimmed with uncertainty. She bit her silver tooth hard, trying to tell herself cold and ruthless words in an attempt to drive away that strange feeling of guilt deep within her heart. Where did this guilt come from? Even Tia herself couldn’t understand. Perhaps, subconsciously, she believed something significant had happened between her and Lynn in the past twelve years, making it impossible to face him, now harmed by her doing. At this moment, disregarding the dust on the ground, Tia kneeled, her small, rounded bottom resting gently on her short boots. She leaned over, hands on her knees, and continued to silently gaze at Lynn. His swollen face made him look oddly ridiculous. Yet, Tia felt no urge to mock this former enemy. She was engulfed in unprecedented conflict and confusion. Because of the curse on her, in her short memory, Sia was the only male she was close to. Hence, she was utterly inexperienced with dealing with men. Fortunately, after uttering two broken sentences, Lynn seemed to have slipped into unconsciousness, making no further sounds, his slightly rising chest the only sign he might still be salvageable. Seeing this, Tia hesitated for a moment before deciding to cast aside those chaotic, annoying thoughts. At the very least, she couldn’t allow him to die during her interrogation. That was all there was to it. With that thought, Tia furrowed her brows, slowly reaching out and removing the small vial hanging around Lynn’s neck. Simultaneously, she instinctively prepared to fight against the sensation of rejection spreading throughout her body. But then she suddenly recalled that with this guy in front of her, she didn’t have to endure like she usually did. Realizing this made her mood even worse. "Get up and drink the medicine." She uncorked the vial and spoke in a cold voice. Lynn lay like a dead fish on the ground, motionless. Only now did Tia notice that his hands had been beaten to a fold, likely fractured. She instinctively thought the blow was too heavy, but recalling that her brother Sia was the culprit, she quickly shook her head. So, she gently leaned down, trying to feed the medicine to Lynn as distantly as possible by bringing the vial to his lips. However, Lynn lay with his head too low, and the vial's shallow mouth made spillage easy. After several attempts, she was at a loss. Moreover, everyone knew it was impossible to drink liquid lying down—it’d easily go down the wrong pipe. It wasn't out of concern for him, just the intrinsic value of the Elixir of Moonlight that made her unwilling to waste a drop. Considering this, Tia decided to try a different method of getting him to drink it. Watching the weakened young man, Tia took a deep breath. Right now, if she could just not think of her brother Sia's image, the sense of betrayal and guilt might lessen. She had never been in such a position, not even with her brother Sia. Thinking this, she suppressed her wildly pounding heart from nerves, gently cradled Lynn's neck with her left hand, and carefully lifted his arm with her right, bringing his body closer to hers as steadily as possible. There was no feeling of disgust. A wholly unpleasant realization. Tia noted the signals her body sent—besides the tension borne from nervousness, there was nothing else amiss. At this moment, Lynn lay in her slender embrace, part of his body softly against Tia’s warm, supple physique. Even through the layer of her moon-white robe, traces of an unfamiliar sensation were palpable. Too close. Tia gritted her silver tooth, feeling a slight discomfort—not rejection, per se. Desperate to end this distressing ordeal quickly, she brought the medicine bottle to Lynn’s lips again. "Open your mouth," she commanded coldly. Perhaps because he was unconscious, Lynn did not respond but mumbled something inarticulately. "Mom…" he murmured. His voice soft and pitiful, like an abandoned, mistreated puppy, utterly defenseless, sadly whimpering to someone. One couldn’t imagine if Evester saw this scene, what would happen. Aside from fury, her heart might shatter. Fortunately, Her Royal Highness wasn’t in the interrogation chamber now. As the person present, hearing the word from Lynn’s mouth left Tia momentarily stunned. Was he dreaming of his mother? She went silent, recalling her days practicing in the monastery where, during bouts of fever and vulnerability, she would lie in bed, holding the nun’s hand, and pout. She always thought only women did these things. Unexpectedly, men could show such expressions at their weakest too. For a moment, Tia felt she had inadvertently unveiled another mysterious layer beneath Lynn’s exterior, seeing him in a different light than usual. An almost imperceptible softness surfaced in her eyes. Trying to recall how the nun had coaxed her into drinking medicine, something came to her. Her expression turned bleak, indicating some unspoken difficulty. Nonetheless, the young man’s dire state seemed too serious to ignore. Without treatment, his life could be at risk. This was simply for the sake of my plan. For that plan, he could not die now. At this moment, Tia had completely forgotten the grand words she left behind during their last meeting, claiming she’d kill Lynn next time. Once more, she held the vial to Lynn’s lips, hesitated briefly, and then softly spoke, in a voice audible to only the two of them, "Be good and drink your medicine." Those words bore a peculiar magic, like a spell opening the doors of an enchantment. At that moment, Lynn slightly parted his lips. Seeing this, Tia promptly tilted the medicine vial. As the pale silver Elixir of Moonlight slowly dripped into Lynn’s mouth, a faint moment later, his entire body seemed enveloped by bright, moonlit essence. The sacred potion from the Silent Church silently fulfilled its purpose. Its effects faded as swiftly as they came. Moments later, Tia beheld the youth’s slender, graceful form once more, now fully healed from the injuries Sia inflicted. The boy's eyelids fluttered, his glacial blue eyes meeting hers with a hint of bewilderment and confusion. Realizing their proximity, Tia’s demeanor instantly cooled, and she pushed him away abruptly. "Thunk!" His head hit the ground audibly. This was tantamount to spousal betrayal. In his heart, Lynn mused lightly, while nursing the back of his head. He gingerly propped himself half upright, seemingly waking from a dream, his eyes scanning around until they locked onto Tia. Within those icy blue depths, Tia saw a mixture of delight and disbelief, as if he couldn’t fathom if he was dreaming. Lynn instinctively tried to stand. But what greeted him was the Moonlight Staff in Tia’s hands. The cold staff lightly touched his throat, hinting that a single pace closer would lead to his execution. Unfortunately, she seemed to forget this was the Substitute Executioner’s Prison, devoid of all supernatural phenomena. There we go. Surely he should have prepared for this. Tia inhaled deeply, feeling absurd and hesitant about the imminent action she must undertake. Without comprehending the backstory, one might consider her a woman of lax morals. Not only that, but when she finally faced him, Tia realized things were not as straightforward as she had imagined. Even so, to resolve the turmoil in her heart, she had no choice but to proceed. People's hearts are ugly, especially those of men filled with lascivious thoughts. At this moment, her eyes were clouded by guilt, preventing her from making calm and rational judgments, causing her actions to diverge from her usual demeanor. If she could hypnotize him, learn about the dark recesses of his thoughts, she could finally put her restlessness to ease, severing this strange and baseless connection. This guy was just a liar after all. Yes, that's right. Tia took a deep breath. Seeing the girl fall into silence before him, Lynn thought she was unsure of how to face him and instinctively started to speak, "Weiya, I..." "Shut up!" The staff shifted half an inch, pressing against his lips. At this moment, Tia's expression was cold and enraged. Yet, if observed closely, one might notice a faint blush spreading across the elfin ears peeking through her hair, adding an unexpected allure to her demeanor. Even Lynn was slightly confused by this unexpected development. It seemed this woman had suddenly pulled out some kind of imposing aura. What exactly was she planning to do? Lynn looked at her with questioning eyes. But Tia ignored his gaze entirely. As if encouraging herself, she muttered under her breath. "It's just hypnosis...he’ll forget everything afterward…that’s right." Hypnosis? Upon faintly hearing that term, Lynn thought he might have misheard. However, in the next moment, shock erupted within him, as a scene unfolded that seemed both absurd and undeniable. Lynn had assumed he was far from reaching this stage. After all, Tia was nowhere near opening her heart to him—forget about falling for him. The connection between them was sustained solely by lies and guilt. Consequently, unlocking any private matters was a notion Lynn never daringly imagined. Yet in that instant, in the secluded interrogation chamber of the Substitute Executioner, Lynn witnessed a scene he could never erase from memory. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the staff in the girl's hand vanished. Then, she gently grasped the hem of her robe, biting her lip, her eyes darting as if overwhelmed by the embarrassment of her impending action, a subtle mist of tears forming in them. "If you dare to make a sound, I'll kill you," Tia tried to maintain an icy facade, her voice barely concealing its tremor. The following moment was accompanied by a soft rustle; the fabric of the robe was slowly lifted by an unseen force. There, a brilliant green sigil—the mark of a Mind’s Eye—appeared before him. Oh wow. Lynn was inwardly amazed.