The air around them froze for a moment at Ivy Shen's words.
Gavin Wang stared at Ivy in shock. His expression was so startled, it was almost terrifying.
"You don't know, after spending all this time with the Crown Prince, I gradually started to like you. But since he's the Crown Prince, I didn't dare act on it. So I begged Noble Lady Lana for help. I never knew why Lana would help me, but later I found out she secretly hates the Crown Prince. That's why she agreed to help me."
"Ever since then, I've been hiding in the Cold Palace. I wanted to find you, but I didn't know where you were. I was scared, afraid of being discovered. But I couldn't stand missing you, so I snuck around the palace, overheard people saying you often deliver food here, and that's why I came." She added softly, "I've been hiding in the water for hours now."
"What?" Gavin was shaken by her words. Seeing her drenched and miserable, his heart ached so much he could barely breathe. How could someone like him ever deserve her love?
"You're not going to send me back to the Crown Prince, are you?" she asked worriedly, looking at him. The next second, she reached out and gently touched his cheek. Instantly, Gavin caught a whiff of an enchanting fragrance.
It was something like modern perfume. Before coming, Ivy had gotten it from Madam Yun. The scent was unusually seductive, but Madam Yun kept it as her private stash. She'd said that as long as the target already liked you, this stuff would give you an extra boost and let that affection come pouring out.
The key point was, as long as he liked you, he'd listen to whatever you said. That was the magic of Lover's Charm.
She'd planned to meet Jude Song and stir up trouble between him and his mother, so she'd brought both a human-skin mask and this 'perfume.' Turns out, neither went to waste.
"It smells amazing!" Gavin grabbed Ivy's hand and brought it to his nose for another sniff. The scent relaxed his soul—he felt like he was about to float away.
"Gavin, are you actually gonna hand me over to the Crown Prince?" Ivy asked again, giving him the most lovesick puppy eyes ever.
"No way!" Gavin's eyes popped open. "Sherry, real talk—I liked you from the second I laid eyes on you. But then the Crown Prince got interested, and dude, I couldn't even compete. When you left, my heart totally shattered. But low-key? I was kinda glad, because at least you didn't have to put up with his creepy stuff." Gavin blurted out, skipping over the Crown Prince's freaky bedroom habits.
Ivy jumped in, "Then let's just bounce! I like you, and this place is seriously giving me the creeps."
"Nope, can't do it. The palace is basically Fort Knox right now—no way we're getting out," Gavin said, but honestly? His heart was already halfway to cloud nine just looking at her.
"So what now? I can't go back—the place is crawling with guards, and I can't even hide during the day," Ivy said, her delicate fingers brushing his cheek again. That scent hit him like a truck. Girl was totally baiting him.
"Sherry..." Gavin's body reacted, and his heart went full turbo—he was basically vibrating.
Way off in the distance, Xiska Mon was dying inside. Seriously, what kind of circus act was this woman pulling?! He kinda got the gist, but watching it? Yikes. Thank goodness those seven idiots weren't here—otherwise, there'd be blood on the floor for sure.
"So, you deliver food to that creepy Demon-Sealing Cell every day, huh? What's the deal with that place?"
"Uh? Yeah, that's the place," Gavin mumbled, so dazed he probably forgot his own name.
"Wait, are you like, the only VIP allowed in there?"
"Of course."
"The Crown Prince and Empress? Nah, they basically never go in."
"Like, almost never—seriously, it's super rare." Gavin was so dazzled by her face, his brain was basically in airplane mode.
"Okay, hear me out: Hide me in there! That way, when you bring food every day, we can... you know..." She bit her lip and tossed him a flirty look. Gavin? Immediate nosebleed vibes.
"But... the prisoner in there is super important."
"But isn't the most dangerous place also the safest? Seriously, where else are you gonna stash me? Even if you sneak me back to the Cold Palace, you don't have time to visit during the day. Do you even know how long it's been since I ate anything?" She hung her head, pinched her thigh hard (tears, activate!), then looked up, eyes all watery. "You come here every day to deliver food, so we could see each other—and I could finally eat. I don't care where I am, as long as I get to see you every day."
"Sherry..." Gavin saw her doing the whole pear-blossom-in-the-rain thing, and boom—his heart exploded. This hurt worse than getting rekt in a duel.
"Whatever, just hand me over to the Crown Prince." She turned away, muttering inside, 'Bro, you are seriously the king of slow!'
"Okay, fine! I'll sneak you in." Just hearing her talk about going back to the Crown Prince made Gavin panic. "It's dangerous in there, but I'll show you the safe spots. I'll take you myself." Dude was grinning like he'd just won the lottery—he could see her every day now!
"But... there's like, a million guards! How are we even getting in? You can't just walk me through the front door, right?" Ivy tossed him the problem—because let's be real, once a guy's got a crush, he'll invent a way out of thin air.
"I've got a plan! You just do this: I'll open the gate, then yell that something's moving on the right. I'll lead everyone a hundred meters away to 'check it out,' and you sneak inside, quick as you can. Sound good?" Gavin's eyes sparkled with puppy love as he looked at her—he knew the guards could only leave their posts for a minute, tops, or people would start getting suspicious. No way they'd risk their jobs for long.
"Gavin, I know a little martial arts, but nothing fancy. Still, for you, I'm totally willing to risk it!" She dropped the line, then purposely wrapped her arms around his neck in a sneaky hug—obviously to hype him up. "Just promise you'll come see me more once I'm inside, okay? I've got sooo many secrets to whisper to you!"
For a split second, Gavin's brain short-circuited. Oh, he got it, all right. Her scent, her hug—he suddenly felt like a Real Man, the kind who could actually protect a girl. For her, he'd risk death. Heck, he'd risk anything!
Gavin threw his coat back on, puffed up his chest, and strutted off like he owned the place.
As soon as Gavin left, Xiska Mon zipped over to Ivy's side. "Wow, your beauty trap is savage."
"Less talk, more action! We've got, like, a split second of chaos to rush in—so move it!" Ivy dropped the sweet act and switched back to boss mode, cool as ice. The contrast was, honestly, wild.
CLANG! Gavin unlocked the gate like clockwork, then suddenly yelled, "Who's there?!"
He darted off to the right, and the whole squad of guards freaked out—must be an assassin! Everybody bolted after him. Ivy and Xiska? One leap, and they zoomed inside like ninja pros.
With that move, nobody suspected a thing. The gate opened, Gavin was totally chill—no way anyone would get suspicious.
"Guard Wang, what happened?" The other guards crowded around, all curious.
"Chill, it's nothing. Just a stray cat. Go back to your posts, quick!" Gavin waved them off, then casually added, "Oh, and the Crown Prince ordered me to interrogate the prisoner tonight, so I'll be in there a while. Nobody comes in unless I say so, got it?" He sounded all cold and official, but inside? The dude was straight-up panicking.
Honestly, men are all the same—one whiff of perfume and they're toast!
The guards nodded, got the memo, and shuffled off. Gavin slipped inside and shut the door behind him.
"Sherry? Sherry?" Gavin called out softly as he walked in.
"Gavin!" Ivy popped out, while Xiska Mon melted into a shadowy corner, totally invisible.
"Hey, I brought you some food. It's kinda basic tonight since I didn't know you'd be here, but tomorrow I'll hook you up with something way better!" Gavin offered it up like a treasure, while Ivy just glanced around, checking out the place.
"Sherry can't go in there!" Gavin blurted, grabbing Ivy's hand as she tried to walk forward.
"Huh? Who's locked up in there, anyway? Can't I just take a peek?" Ivy raised her brows, acting like a super-cute little wife.
"It's not that I won't let you—it's just, there are traps everywhere. One wrong step and boom, it's game over." Gavin warned, all dramatic.
"But you know where all the traps are, right? So you can just take me!" Ivy teased, full of fake innocence.
"Sherry..." Gavin sighed, still holding her hand. "It's seriously dangerous in there, not that I don't want you to go."
"Don't you trust me?" Ivy turned away, fuming inside. Ugh, this guy was so slow! But with his help, she'd save a ton of trouble.
"Sherry, okay, but listen—I'm not saying I won't take you. It's just... after last time, the Empress came down and personally 'reviewed' the prisoner. Trust me, what you'll see is nightmare fuel. Anyone would freak out, especially someone as soft and sweet as you." Gavin sighed, full of drama.
"I'm not scared. If I'm gonna be hiding here waiting for you, I might as well get used to it! Gavin, take me to see!" She said it, then, just to totally wreck his resolve, Ivy tiptoed up and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. Gavin nearly forgot how to breathe.
"Okay, I'll take you," Gavin blurted out before he could stop himself. Somewhere in the shadows, Xiska Mon's eyebrow twitched—this woman, he couldn't even find words for her tactics.
Anyway, for modern Ivy, a quick kiss is no big deal—foreigners do cheek kisses all the time. If she can skip all the drama and muscle her way straight to the prisoner with a couple hugs and smooches, then heck yeah, it's worth it!