The Male Leads Are Trapped in My House

Eden lifted his shoe and pressed it firmly against the man’s palm.

“Ah!”

“You will be turned over to the Benton Police Station anyway. If you cooperate here, I guarantee there won’t be any torture.”

He didn’t say there wouldn’t be violence during interrogation, though.

The man groaned as if contemplating, struggling to speak. Eden calmly waited for him to open his mouth.

Finally, the man spoke.

“I’ve only heard that Cherry Sinclair left for Brunel today. It’s true.”

‘She left today? I missed her.’

But it’s okay. He will personally go and find her.

“Where is Brunel?”

“I-I don’t know. It’s just a small town with no train station…”

No matter how much he threatened and tortured the man, he couldn’t extract any further information. It seemed like there was genuinely nothing more he knew.

Helplessly, Eden handed him over to the police station and prepared to leave for Brunel himself.

‘Why would that Cherry Sinclair go to a small countryside town with no train station? It’s suspicious.’

Recently, Eden’s entire attention was focused on ‘The Monster of 61st Notium Street’, ‘The owner of C.S. Brooch’, ‘Illegal Gun Smuggling’, and especially ‘Cherry Sinclair’.

Especially Cherry Sinclair’s recent activities were too suspicious, capturing his interest even more.

Until then, Eden didn’t know that all the incidents he was concerned about were intertwined with Cherry Sinclair. He only thought that he needed to confirm everything directly with Cherry herself to satisfy his curiosity about this case.

***

Remaining time until the apocalypse: 19 days.

The only restaurant in Brunel Village.

Sitting on the terrace, I unfolded yesterday’s newspaper that I had obtained from the neighboring town (they say people in Brunel Village don’t read newspapers very much, but I liked it).

[Exclusive Report! Heiress Cherry Sinclair Borrowed 100 Million Gold under the Pretext of Overseas Business Funding! What is this Phantom Overseas Business…?!]

As expected, my story was featured prominently in the newspaper this time as well. Everyone seems to be curious and going crazy about why I would borrow such a large sum of 100 million gold.

[Exclusive Report! Cherry Sinclair’s Absence! Where is she now…? Investigating whether it’s an escape or a disappearance…]

‘Hmm, more like an escape than a disappearance.’

Since I haven’t been attending parties lately, it seems like the newspaper companies were bored. But now there won’t be any more of that.

Talk as much as you want! Once the world is destroyed, you won’t be able to have that much fun playing with your pen anymore.

Rather than that, just thinking about Harrison finding out about the loan made my head hurt already. I folded the newspaper and looked outside while sipping my coffee.

I had been waiting to see when Vanilla would arrive, but instead, I spotted a man wearing a police uniform. It was in front of the Brunel police station, across from the restaurant.

The man, who was having a conversation with another middle-aged policeman, swiftly turned around.

The first thing that caught my eye was the beautiful golden hair that seemed woven from threads of gold.

Next came the cold blue eyes, resembling a winter lake. Under a sharp nose and beneath red lips, I glimpsed the collar of the uniform tightly encasing a suffocating neck.

He was a man who looked sexy in an ultramarine blue angular police uniform.

‘Crazy. Handsome. Totally my type…’

The face was not unfamiliar. It was strange.

Then, a flash of memory struck me. It was the police officer I had seen in front of the Notium Mansion on 61st Notium Street.

Aurora’s brother, Eden Duncan Lancaster!

‘Why is he here?!’

I recalled that he had been constantly calling the Sinclair Mansion. Could it be that he somehow found out that Cherry Sinclair was the one who killed the monster that day?

‘No wonder I had a constant sense of foreboding yesterday!’

Startled, I instinctively lowered my head and pondered fiercely about why Eden was here. As I was lost in my thoughts, I saw him slowly walking towards this direction.

He entered the restaurant and headed straight towards me, who was sitting on the terrace.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes, yes?”

I replied with a question, not expecting him to approach me, and Eden smirked while looking at my face.

“There are no available seats. Can I join you?”

Regaining my composure after Eden’s question, I nodded my head with a puzzled face.

“Yes? Oh, yes, sure…”

When I entered, it was definitely quiet, but when did it suddenly become so crowded with people?

I turned around, but just like when I first entered, there were no people in the restaurant.

‘What’s going on? Is this some kind of hidden camera prank? Can’t anyone else see these people?’

I couldn’t take back my permission for him to sit, and I let out a sigh.

‘Calm down, Cherry.’

Eden sat down on the opposite seat. Then he crossed his legs in a casual manner and gave me a sly smile. Ominously.

“I’ve been wanting to meet you for a long time, but I didn’t expect to find you here.”

Eden, who ordered a cup of espresso, looked at me and spoke.

“Do you know me?”

“Cherry Sinclair, aren’t you famous? There isn’t a day that your story doesn’t appear in the newspapers.”

Brunel Village residents don’t read newspapers regularly, so they wouldn’t recognize me. Besides, my picture doesn’t appear in the newspapers every time.

“…Yes. I’m kind of famous.”

If this guy spreads the word that I’m here, it’s going to be quite troublesome.

‘Should I find another village even now?’

But I didn’t have much time left for that.

Eden, who had been looking at my face intently, suddenly extended his hand and introduced himself.

“I apologize for the late introduction, Lady. I am Eden Duncan Lancaster, an investigative agent with the Benton Police Department.”

Yes, I know him very well.

He has a tenacious nature and once he gets fixated on something, he doesn’t let go. There’s even a saying in Benton that no criminal escapes him unscathed. That’s why he earned the nickname ‘Benton’s Mad Dog.’

Could it be that his tenacity has been activated towards me?

Did he perhaps realize that I’m the owner of the brooch?

“Wow, this is interesting. Eden Duncan Lancaster? The one I know? He often appears in the newspapers.”

I tried my best to appear nonchalant as I placed my hand on top of his extended hand. I thought he would perform a noble gesture and kiss the back of my hand, but instead, Eden shook my hand up and down, clasping it firmly.

Although I showed a hint of surprise, Eden didn’t seem to care.

It was truly unfortunate for me, but he had a rather unpleasant personality. Even in the original work, he was described as having a dirty personality, making him easily disliked by people. Not to mention, he excelled in survival and had high combat skills, saving many lives.

“I’m curious about what brings the famous Sir Eden here.”

“Compared to Lady Sinclair’s reputation, I am nothing. But Lady, what brings you to such a countryside village?”

Eden smoothly redirected the question to me. I quickly turned my thoughts.

“I’m looking for a vacation house.”

And I offered a suitable excuse in response.

Eden’s eyebrows twitched. It must have seemed out of place to say that I was looking for a vacation house in such a place with nothing. As expected, he looked at me with a slightly perplexed gaze.

“Then you should explain why Sir Eden is here.”

“I received a transfer.”

“What? A transfer? To this countryside village?”

I was taken aback and couldn’t manage my expression. After all, my excuse was even more pathetic than his.

“Sir Eden is a member of the Lancaster family. Someone who was on a solid elite course to become the Chief of Police, why would they transfer you to a remote countryside village? What’s wrong with the people at the Police Department?”

If true, that’s a big deal. Doesn’t that mean I might have to stay with him in this town until destruction!

‘Surely there was no such content in the novel?!’

Eden had to stay calm next to Aurora in the capital and face destruction. You have to be by Aurora’s side, the main character of the novel, to safely save her life and make a cure.

‘Ah, did it happen because I took a different course from the original?’

If that was the case, I was responsible for sending Eden back to the capital. Or I’ll protect him myself until the scientist man shows up.

‘Oh, wait a minute. Cherry, are you crazy? The latter option is definitely not true. Protecting Eden Lancaster? How can you imagine such a terrible thing?’

I can’t possibly involve myself in the inconvenience of protecting Eden until I find Ezra, the scientist protagonist. Let’s not even entertain the thought of protecting Eden.

I slapped my cheek hard. In response, Eden widened his eyes in surprise and looked at me.

“You must have been very surprised.”

I coughed awkwardly and replied.

“Ahem, anyway, it’s strange. The fact that you’re here.”

“Isn’t it less strange than Lady Cherry Sinclair coming to a rural village instead of a resort city?”

His words made sense, so I had nothing to say. Still, I tried my best to maintain a composed expression and retorted.

“But you haven’t answered my question. Why did you receive a transfer here?”

“I wanted to build up some achievements.”

“In this small village? Where there doesn’t seem to be any noteworthy incidents.”

Is he in a situation like the chairman’s son, who wanted to learn from the bottom up and joined the company by parachute?

“Only by waiting will we know if there really are no incidents. I have patience. I’m good at waiting.”

As he spoke, Eden stared at me intently.

Damn, I don’t know if it’s because I’m sensitive to his comments, but each of his remarks felt like a bone-shaking experience. It’s as if he knows something and is speaking with that knowledge. I can’t seem to figure out what’s going on in his head.

‘…Well, let’s not panic too much. In any case, I’ll return to the capital before the destruction. Aurora is still there.’

Even after making such tentative conclusions, I am still looking at him with a puzzled face, when someone approached us.

“You’re the one who purchased the mansion on the hill, right?”