KNIGHT LOOKED for SM when he woke up and found that she wasn't next to him. When he was about to walk into the kitchen, he accidentally heard Cloud ask her, "Weren't you scared? I know that it must be terrifying to see my lord like that—dripping with someone's blood... but please don't leave him."

Knight stiffened. Hearing Cloud beg for him... it warmed his heart, but it scared him at the same time. Scared of what SM would say.

He wanted to step back to avoid hearing SM's reply, but he couldn't. He was rooted in place. Maybe, deep inside him, he wanted to hear what she was going to say. He could vividly remember how he shouted at her last night. He felt so guilty and ashamed. He didn't want her to see him like that—it scared him.

"Leave him?" SM's soft voice filled his ears, making his heart beat faster. "I don't think I can do that to him. Seeing him wounded scared me more than what I witnessed last night. When I saw his state, I recalled the time I first met him outside my café—bleeding and near death. That's what's terrifying, Cloud. I don't want to see him like that ever again."

Knight leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen while a hand cupped his face.

SM... She always understood and accepted him. She always showed him that she wouldn't ever leave him. Even after what happened last night, she still wanted to be with him.

"If that didn't scare you, then does that mean you can accept my lord wholeheartedly?" Cloud asked SM once again, his voice clearly expressing hope for a positive answer from her. "I mean... Do you have an idea about what he did last night?"

"I don't want to assume—"

"He killed someone," Cloud interjected, causing SM to freeze in place. "I'm sure he has no strength to admit that to you, but I'm also sure that it has been running through your mind. You're smart, Lady SM. I know you know that much. So, if you can't accept him now, just leave him. He will lose his mind, but he'll recover. Because if you prolong this but you will leave him in the end, he will not just lose his mind but his life as well."

Knight forced himself to move his feet and walk back to his room. He did not want to hear what SM would reply to Cloud. Every woman in their right mind would leave him after knowing that he killed someone. No sane woman would stay by his side after knowing that side of him. He wanted to get angry at Cloud for revealing the truth to SM, but a part of him wanted to thank him too.

Because he didn't have the courage to confess to SM that he was a monster.

He had to prepare himself that SM would leave him soon. But how? He was already falling too deep that even if he readied himself, it was no use.

He would still lose his mind since his body could no longer tolerate SM's absence.

His thoughts were interrupted when the door of his room opened and then SM walked in.

"Good morning!" She had a bright smile on her lips. "Did my baby sleep well?"

He had no words... no words to explain how her bright smile lightened his mood at that very moment.

She approached Knight, who was seated at the edge of the bed, with a smile on her lips. "It's been a long time since I baked. Would you want me to bake you a cake for lunch later? I'll make it delicious, I promise. Would you like that?"

Knight was confused, bewildered as he looked at SM.

Why was she pretending that nothing happened last night? Why was she not asking? She was talking to Cloud about it just earlier!

He knew that she didn't like prying into other people's business, but... he was her boyfriend. Wasn't she curious at all? Didn't she care?

Fuck! he frustratingly thought. What am I, a girl?! Whining like this!

"Ask me anything," he told SM, which made her stop in her tracks. He had to face this, and he needed to stop whining like a bitch. "Please... ask me."

"Are you not comfortable telling me willingly what I have to know?" she asked as she sat on his lap, facing him, without fear or hesitation. "I'll be patient."

He buried his face into her neck. "Why?"

"Why else? I treasure you, of course."

He raised his gaze at SM, who smiled at him in return.

Her smile... her smile never changed, especially when the smile was for him. She always smiled brightly, sweetly, and happily at him.

"Knight, are you scared?"

He nodded. "That you might leave me? Yes."

"Don't be."

"How? Any person who's in their right mind would leave me after... after..." He couldn't even say it.

"I'm sure I'm not crazy." She cupped his face, stared at him, and smiled at him sweetly. "Hmm... maybe it's because I'm crazy about you?"

He bitterly laughed. "Don't joke."

"I'm not." She kissed his forehead. Contentment washed through him.

How could a simple kiss make him feel content? Only SM could do that to him. His desire to keep SM by his side had never been this strong. And to keep her, for her to be fully his, without doubt and fear that she might leave him once she would find out anything monstrous about him... he should start opening up to her.

She would understand and accept him, right? Because she treasures me. She said so herself.

"Knight—"

"I killed someone last night," Knight blurted out before cowardice got the better of him. "Not just one, not two, but many. My f-father asked me to do it, so I did. Not because I want to, but because I have to... I have to do it. It's my job. It's who I am. I, uhm, I h-have done it a lot of times already. I couldn't count how many lives... I have ended."

With fear, he thought, Is she staring at me right now with fear? Maybe disgust? With loathing? With hate? With judgment? Fuck! But he knew he had to look SM in the eyes to see her reaction. He had to see for himself.

He clenched his fists and forced himself to lift his gaze, only to be surprised that none of the emotions he expected was in SM's face at that moment.

There was no fear, no disgust, no loathing or hate in her eyes or face.

She was just looking at him... like how a girlfriend would look at her boyfriend... lovingly.

"Any normal person would be running away from me, not looking at me... so softly," he whispered to SM.

Of all the responses he thought SM would have after what he said, a smile was not one of them. Yet here she was, still comfortably sitting on his lap, smiling softly at him.

"Aren't you scared of me?" he asked, puzzled. "You should be running away from me."

"Do you want me to run away?"

He tightened his grip on her arm. "No. Don't."

"Then I won't."

"Why? I kill people, SM. I kill them with these hands!" he asked, baffled, as he held out his hands to her. "Do you understand what kind of human I am? No, I don't even consider myself a human anymore. I'm a monster, SM. Is that okay with you? Would you still treasure me even though I'm a bad person? Would you still care for me, accept me, and understand me after knowing how monstrous I am—"

But SM just held his hands and kissed them, making him freeze in shock.

The hands that he used to end lives, SM... kissed them. As if they were precious. As if he were a treasure.

"Honestly," SM whispered. She bit her lower lip before continuing, "You saying you killed people is scaring the shit out of me. I'm actually shaking inside right now."

It was true. Her hands were cold.

"But... if I run away from you... you might not show yourself to me again, or I might not see you again. That's much scarier for me, Knight. So, here I am—being brave, facing you—because I want to keep you. Insane but, hell, I don't want to lose you, so I will do my hardest to understand you and accept all of you. The good and the bad. Give it all to me. I promise that I'll be by your side, and I don't intend to break that promise."

His heart throbbed, his world changing its course. "Sweet Monday..." After hearing SM say that, the center of his world changed.

"If I were still a policewoman, I would have already broken the law." SM lifted her hand to caress his face tenderly. "What you just told me is a crime, but I don't have the strength to put you behind bars if I were still in the force. Good thing I'm not a police officer anymore, huh?"

He stared at his girlfriend. There it was—in her eyes was a faint glimmer of fear, but she was really doing her best to win against it. For him. Because she didn't want to lose him.

"Will I be enough for you, Sweet Monday?" he asked, feeling a little insecure.

She chuckled softly, as if his question were a joke. "Knight, you just told me something big, but I'm still here. Do you have to ask that?"

"Just answer me," Knight insisted.

SM breathed deeply before saying, "Since the moment I realize that I like you, you've been enough for me."

That put a smile on his face, melting away his fear and nervousness. "That's all I want to hear. To be enough for you. I'm sorry for being a bad person. I can't say no to my father. He will hurt Midnight if I refuse. I don't want my brother to suffer. He'd been through too much already."

SM nodded before asking, "So, every bad thing you did was your father's order?"

He shook his head. "I decided on others by myself. I have a motto, you see. If someone hurt the people I cherish, I will hurt them back a million times more painfully. I did a lot of bad things to keep the people I care about safe, and I will not stop doing it to protect them. So, if someone hurts you, expect that I'll be a monster, even if I had to do it in front of you. I will not let anyone hurt you. I'll kill them all, Sweet Monday. Be it a heinous crime, I don't give a fuck. No one is hurting my beloved."

A tear escaped from SM's eyes. "To be cherished like this..." She smiled sweetly at him as tears started to well up in her eyes. "Thank you, Knight."

He dried her tears and then intertwined their hands. "I still have so much to tell you, but I can't right now. I don't want to scare you any more than you already—"

"It's okay," she cut him off with a soft chuckle. "Your secrets, tell them to me when you're already comfortable talking about them."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing." She kissed Knight on the forehead, calming him. "I have accepted everything I have learned about you, and I am responsible to face them."

"But still... I know you're having a hard time accepting what I did. Your hands are still cold."

"That's normal after learning about everything I now know." She softly laughed before looking him in the eyes. "But don't worry. I'm not afraid of you. I trust you that you won't hurt me. You treasure me too much. I'm your beloved, you said it yourself, right?"

With a smile, Knight nodded. "Yes, you are."

SM smiled before wrapping her arms around his body and hugging him tightly.

"SM?"

"Hmm?" she asked, still hugging him.

He hugged her back and tightened his hold around her waist. "I know I'm asking a lot, but please, hold on to me tight. Don't ever let me go because I won't either, even if you have to get mad at me."

SM caressed his hair. "Don't worry, I don't intend on letting you go."

"I'll hold on to that." His embrace tightened even more. "And I'm sorry about last night. When I shouted at you to leave me, I was scared to see your reaction. I didn't want you to see me like that because I was scared that you would leave me if you learned about the truth. I'm sorry I shouted at you. I won't do it again. I was just terrified."

"I know, you don't have to explain for yourself." She kissed his forehead. The feeling of her soft lips made him calm. "But don't shout at me next time. I didn't like that, so don't do it again, is that alright? I might shout back at you."

Knight cupped her face and stared at her. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen you get mad. I mean, irritated, yes, but angry? When will I see it?"

His face wrinkled when SM flicked the tip of his nose. "You wouldn't want to see that," she seriously replied.

And now he was curious to see it. He wanted to see every expression that her face could make. From happy to sad to angry.

Knight wrapped his arms around her waist before he carried and laid her down on the bed. SM let out a small gasp for moving her so suddenly, then she smiled when his lips claimed hers.

Her lips felt so good... They were addictive, especially when she kissed him back with the same ferocity. It made him forget that she needed to rest for a couple more days.

Fuck!

He tried to distance his lips from hers. "I should go downstairs." He had to control himself because she needed to rest. "I have to calm down—"

"You're at your limit again?"

He froze on top of SM while staring at her. "Yes."

"Want me to help?"

He gulped. "Like before? Lending me a hand?"

She gave him a teasing smile before gliding her index finger along her lips. "Here this time..."

He stared at her lips. There? Does she mean... she will... holy fuck!

He could feel his pants tighten, his length hardening and throbbing. Her lips... she will use her mouth this time?

Erotic images were running through his mind, making him pant. Fuck! I'm horny as fuck!

"Y-you would really... s-suck me?" He was hopeful. Fuck! He wanted it now.

Self-control, Knight! he told himself. You don't want to scare SM away.

Yes. Self-control. Fuck! Why was it so hard to control himself when it was SM? Now it seemed pointless to have learned how to control the emotions on his face and in his eyes, as well as to manipulate his decisions so he wouldn't be affected by his feelings.

He was so used to pretending, concealing his true emotions and thoughts, holding on tightly to the mask he wore to control the people around him. It was as if it were his second skin. But in front of SM, his mask always fell unknowingly.

And he liked it. He liked the feeling of not hiding everything about him from SM.

It was an addictive feeling.

"Well? Would you want me to?" SM asked, interrupting his thoughts.

He swallowed hard. "If it's okay with you..."

SM smiled. "It's okay. I've been thinking of doing it to you anyway. I want to see your reaction as I do it—"

But SM wasn't able to finish her sentence, as Knight had crashed his lips on hers, kissing her deeply and hungrily.

Fuck self-control. I can't control it anymore.

SM RESTRAINED Knight's hands, which were already caressing her thighs. She was sure that the moments ahead would soon become pleasurable, and she might lose herself and let him undress her. They couldn't. She was still in recovery mode, after all. She didn't want her lady parts to experience the pain again.

"SM—"

With all her strength, she rolled them over on the bed until she was on top of him.

"Just lie down and let me make you happy..." she said with a smile before taking his shirt off. She kissed him, from his jaw down to his neck and chest, encircling her tongue around his taut nipples.

SM felt Knight shudder. He likes it. That's good. She thoroughly studied the articles she had read for Knight. She, after all, wanted him to fall deeply for her.

Maybe it was the manipulative side of her that she wanted to suppress so much, but with Knight, it always came out unknowingly.

SM bit Knight's nipple before her lips traveled down to his abdomen, licking each pack of abs he had. He really had a great body—that's why she wondered if she was his first girlfriend.

For her, Knight was a keeper.

Her hands caressed the side of his body as her kisses trailed down his lower abdomen. She let her tongue wander around it, licking and kissing until her hands found its way to his buckle.

Once she had unbuttoned his pants, she immediately put her hand inside to pull out his manhood. She was planning to do what she had learned in the article, but... when she saw his length, she knew it would be impossible.

This... will not fit in my mouth. It's too big.

She swallowed hard as she stared at his manhood. It was hard and fully erect. The tip was red, and it looked as if it were begging to be licked. She gulped again.

This was the first time she had seen his length in all its glory, right in front of her. When she undressed him last night, she didn't look at it.

"Damn..." No wonder she got hurt.

SM wrapped her hand around his sex before she kissed the tip.

"Fuck!" Knight hissed.

She raised her gaze to Knight. "It was just a kiss..."

But Knight was panting already. "Still... feels good." He closed his eyes, letting his head fall on the bed.

What he said put a smile on her lips.

Well then... let's start.

She opened her mouth and pushed half of Knight's manhood inside. That was all she could handle. She let her hand take care of the rest.

"Fuck..." Knight groaned.

SM was careful not to scrape her teeth on Knight's sex as she sucked him, her tongue twirling around his length, earning a groan from Knight.

Knight's moans of pleasure got her going. She wanted to hear more... more of his moans because of her. The sound he made was because of her, and she liked the feeling of satisfying Knight, making him happy.

This was the reason she didn't run away after knowing some truth about him. She wanted to make him happy. She wanted to see him smiling and laughing. She didn't want to see the sad sparkle in his eyes whenever he was alone, thinking no was looking at him. She wanted to melt the sadness away and replace it with joy.

That was why... she's doing this.

Pleasuring him, licking him, and sucking his length, her hand moving up and down his sex while her tongue played with it.

SM moaned when she tasted his precum before putting his penis inside her mouth again. Her head spun as she moved it up and down along with her hand, her tongue swirling and licking his manhood. Her lips and her hands met every time she shoved his length inside her mouth. She could taste the mixture of her saliva and precum on Knight's erect sex, making her body burn with insatiable hunger—hunger for Knight.

"Ohh... Fuck!" Knight was panting, his hips thrusting up. "Uhmm... oh!"

She released his penis from her mouth and went down to suck his balls. Her tongue licked them as she jacked him off. She ran her tongue between his testicles before pushing one inside her mouth.

"More, baby... more..." he pleaded.

She went back to her penis, maximizing its length inside her mouth as her head oscillated back and forth, but no matter how hard she tried, she could only take most—but not all—of its length. Her mouth was so full already, and it was not even all of him.

SM could feel his hands gripping a handful of her hair in a tight fist. She could hear his panting breaths, his moans of pleasure, his pleas for her to suck faster and lick harder.

"Uhmm... SM... fuck!"

She sucked him deeper and faster.

"Uhmm... fu-fuck—I'm c-coming..." He thrust his hips as she buried his sex into her mouth. "Fuck! Stop—fuck! Let go, SM. I'm coming—fuck!"

Knight was already pushing him away, but SM pushed his penis deeper into her throat and moved her head faster until his warm cum filled her mouth.

"Fuck..." Knight's breathing was ragged and heavy. "Th-that was so good..."

She just hummed before running toward the bathroom. She spat Knight's cum and gargled before returning to Knight's side.

"I'm sorry," Knight said. He remained lying on the bed, topless, though his pants were already on. "I shouldn't have come inside you."

"That's okay." SM sat beside him on the bed and caressed his hair. "Are you going to the café? Do you want me to call Monet and ask her to take charge?"

"Is it okay if I don't go to work today?" he asked before moving to rest his head on her lap and wrap his arm around her waist. "I don't feel like working today."

SM smiled. She knew Knight just wanted to cuddle. "It's fine. Do you want to take a walk—oh, wait. Is the spy who your father sent still here? Can I go out now?"

Knight let out a loud sigh. "That bastard is still here. I'm sorry."

That's too bad. "It's alright. Anyways, I saw a chessboard inside your closet. Wanna pass the time and play?"

His eyes seemed to sparkle as he got up and looked at her. "You know how to play chess?"

She nodded. "A little."

"Then I will go easy on you." Knight excitedly took the chessboard out of his closet and then went back to the bed. "Come on... let's play."

She smiled when she saw the excitement in Knight's face. He seemed to be fond of playing the game.

"You really like chess, huh?"

Knight grinned. "A master in chess, a friend of my mom, taught me when I was a kid."

"Speaking of which, does your mother know what your father is ordering you to do?"

In an instant, his face went blank. "She already passed away."

"Oh."

"I was still young when she passed away." He sighed heavily. "And then Father brought home another woman after that, and they had a baby. My sister. We're pretty close. I'm the only sibling she knew, so we bonded quite a lot. We always played together, and she was always with me. But after several years, she and her mother vanished. And since then, I've been looking for my little sister, but... my father is blocking every move I make to find her."

What kind of father does he have? "Wait, you told me you were the only sibling she knew. How about Midnight? Is Midnight the youngest?"

He tightened his grip on the pawn he was holding. "There are only a few people who know about Midnight's existence. And a few means less than fifteen. For everyone outside the palace, my father Kelleon Velasquez has only one son, and that's me. Midnight... because we look a lot like each other, our father tells him to act as if he were me whenever my presence is required in risky gatherings. Basically, he's my shield."

SM covered her mouth. So, that was the reason he didn't admit that he had a brother when she first met Midnight.

A human shield. How cruel, she thought. No wonder Knight didn't want anything bad to happen to Midnight. These two... had been really through too much.

"Anyways..." Knight smiled. "Let's play."

SM nodded. And after a few minutes of playing chess, she was checkmated by Knight.

"Woah... that was beautifully executed," SM said, astonished.

Amused, Knight looked at her. "What?"

"That was a Siberian Trap, right?"

He blinked at his girlfriend. "You knew?"

"My dad taught me."

"So, you're not just a normal player." His gaze pierced hers. "For you to know that trap, you must be good."

"I don't think so."

"Let's play again?"

Feigning a grin, SM nodded. "Alright. Please go easy on me."

Knight smiled back before they started. But as the game progressed, his smile gradually faded, forcing him to focus all his attention on playing chess.

Because if there was one thing SM got from her father from playing the sport, it was her hatred for losing.

"CHECKMATE," SM said with a smile, while Knight couldn't believe his eyes. That was five times in a row that he was checkmated.

"Thank you for going easy on me, baby," SM said while smiling sweetly at him.

Knight forced back a smile.

Going easy on her? Hell no! He was working his ass to defeat her! He was not going easy on her! Every round, her movement would change. She used different openings and unusual traps, even mixing two opening traps, confusing the fuck out of him.

He couldn't read her next moves. Usually, he could read his opponent's moves after two to three games, but SM's movements were unreadable.

He only knew one person who played using this style, but this person had been dead for a long time.

SM even mentioned that she knew only "a little" about the game. Is she freaking kidding me? People who knew "little" about chess wouldn't play like this!

This was the first time he lost while playing seriously.

"Fuck..."

"What's that?" SM asked as she looked up at him, checking if she heard him right.

Knight shook his head. "N-nothing."

"You sure?"

He nodded.

SM smiled. "Then let's start."

Knight quietly nodded once again before they started. He was very aware of what chess piece she had moved, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't read her next steps. Minutes later, he got checkmated again.

"Th-that was... the Englund Gambit Trap, right?" he asked, baffled. "But there was something different. That wasn't the usual Englund Gambit Trap. Did you change some movements somehow?"

SM knelt down, her hand rested her hands on the mattress, and then leaned her face closer to him. She kissed his forehead before whispering, "I hate losing in chess."

Knight blinked a few times before softly chuckling and shaking his head. "You got me good. You're amazing."

SM smiled and kissed him again. He kissed her back, his tongue sucking and licking hers.

"Are you mad because I beat you?" SM finally managed to ask when their lips got separated. She intently stared at him and waited for his answer.

"I feel a little off," Knight admitted, meeting her gaze. "I also hate losing in chess, but... you challenged me to improve. I like it, and I'm proud that my girlfriend is a badass in chess."

SM joyfully wrapped her arms around him. They both fell on the bed, with their lips locked onto each other. Their kisses were already getting fiercer and bolder when SM's phone rang.

He groaned when SM answered the call.

"Aunt, you called—" SM's bright face changed in a split second and was filled with worry. "What?! Tell me what happened, Aunt."

Because SM looked like she needed privacy, Knight got up and kissed her cheek. "I'll go downstairs. Come find me when you two are done talking, okay?" he whispered.

SM nodded before giving all her attention to the person on the other end of the line. Meanwhile, Knight went out of the room and headed to the kitchen, where Cloud was sipping coffee.

Cloud immediately served his favorites—a bottle of beer and two slices of chocolate cake.

"Cloud?"

"Yes, my lord?"

"SM beat me in chess."

"Oh. Looks like you have gone easy on her. Oh, the things that love can do—"

"I didn't."

Cloud paused drinking his coffee when he heard his master say that before he looked at Knight with widened eyes. "The fuck? You didn't? How could that happen? You are one of the top chess players! How did she beat you?"

Knight stared at his hands, amused. "She was amazing, beautifully executing those openings and traps. This is the second time I have seen a play style like hers."

Cloud's face was filled with astonishment. "Wow. For you to get beaten. How's the ego doing?"

A smile grazed his lips. "Oddly, I feel fine. Actually, I feel happy that my girlfriend is a badass in chess. I feel proud of her." She beamed with a wider smile. "Fuck. I have an awesome girlfriend. How lucky can I get?"

Cloud just shook his head. "Why do I even worry now? I've forgotten you're weird."

Knight was laughing when he was about to drink from the bottle of beer when SM staggered into the kitchen, gasping for air.

"What is it?" Knight immediately asked.

"Help me..." She was panting, fear and worry on her face. "Eli was kidnapped!"