I won't fall for the queen who burned my world-Chapter 138: Let’s go on a date

Elysia stared at Malvoria's outstretched hand like it was some kind of trick.

She narrowed her eyes, suspicious.

Malvoria, however, only smirked, fingers flexing slightly in an invitation. "What's wrong, princess? Afraid to shake hands with your old wife?"

Elysia scowled, but the insult didn't have the usual bite. Mostly because she was too busy trying to understand what was happening.

What was Malvoria doing?

She was acting so strange. One moment, she was pinning Elysia against a wall, her voice low, her gaze dark, her words dripping with barely restrained hunger. And now she wanted introductions?

Elysia's head was spinning.

"Are you serious?" she asked, arms still crossed, not taking Malvoria's hand.

Malvoria raised a brow. "Of course."

"You—you just flipped our entire dynamic in less than a minute, and now you want me to shake hands with you like we're at a business meeting?"

Malvoria hummed. "You say that like it isn't fitting. We did get married for business, after all."

Elysia gawked. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Perhaps," Malvoria said, unconcerned. "But at least I'm polite."

Elysia wanted to throw something at her.

She inhaled sharply through her nose, trying to find patience somewhere deep in her soul, but—no. No, she had none left.

"You are impossible," she muttered.

Malvoria smirked. "And yet you're still here."

That—

That was—

Damn it.

Elysia hated that she was right.

Her fingers twitched at her sides. She didn't want to play this game. She didn't want to let Malvoria control the flow of this conversation when she was the one who had initiated this tension in the first place.

But also...

Elysia exhaled slowly.

Malvoria had been avoiding her. For an entire week.

And now she was standing here, teasing her, talking to her, looking at her like she mattered.

Elysia shouldn't care.

But she did.

And maybe, just maybe, shaking her hand was a way to make Malvoria stay just a little longer.

So with an exaggerated sigh, Elysia finally—finally—uncrossed her arms and reached forward, clasping Malvoria's hand.

The moment their fingers touched, something shivered down Elysia's spine.

She ignored it.

Mostly.

"Nice to meet you," she muttered, rolling her eyes.

New n𝙤vel chapters are published on novelbuddy.cσ๓.

Malvoria's grip was firm, warm, confident, and entirely too self-satisfied as she gave Elysia's hand a slow shake.

"Likewise, wife."

Elysia snatched her hand back. "Don't push it."

Malvoria chuckled.

And just like that, the tension between them eased just a fraction.

Elysia exhaled, letting her shoulders drop. She hated that Malvoria could do this—could make her shift between anger and amusement in an instant.

It was dangerous.

But at least Malvoria was here.

For now.

Silence settled between them for a moment. Not awkward, exactly, but... expectant. Like something needed to be said, but neither of them knew what.

Malvoria's gaze flickered over Elysia's face, something unreadable behind those storm-gray eyes.

Elysia shifted on her feet.

And then—

"I have an idea," Malvoria said, tilting her head slightly.

Elysia frowned. "...That sounds dangerous."

Malvoria smirked. "It might be."

"Then I don't like it."

"You don't even know what it is."

"I know you, and that's enough."

Malvoria laughed. A real laugh. Deep, warm, unrestrained.

Elysia hated how much she liked the sound.

"Well, too bad," Malvoria said. "Because we're doing it."

Elysia narrowed her eyes. "That depends. What are we doing?"

Malvoria's smirk widened, and she took a step closer, leaning down ever so slightly—just enough to make Elysia aware of exactly how close they were, how little space existed between them.

And then, in a voice smooth as silk, Malvoria murmured—

"Let's go on a date."

Elysia blinked, her brain stuttering for a moment.

A... date?

She stared at Malvoria, waiting for some kind of follow-up—some smug remark, some teasing twist, something that would reveal this for what it actually was.

But Malvoria just stood there, watching her expectantly, like this was a perfectly normal thing to say.

Like it wasn't a trap.

Which, of course, meant it was a trap.

Elysia narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms as she took a step back, trying to create some space between them, trying to think.

"Why?" she asked suspiciously.

Malvoria raised an eyebrow. "Why what?"

"Why do you suddenly want to go on a date?" Elysia demanded.

"You're acting like this is something normal, like we haven't spent months throwing insults at each other, like we didn't get married purely out of obligation, like you haven't been avoiding me for an entire week—"

Malvoria exhaled, rolling her eyes. "You overthink too much."

Elysia gawked at her. "And you don't think enough."

Malvoria grinned. "That's why we balance each other out, wife."

Elysia groaned, dragging a hand down her face.

Okay.

Okay, this was ridiculous.

But also...

Elysia frowned, her fingers twitching against her arm.

It couldn't be that bad, right?

Malvoria was clearly in a mood—probably still riding whatever strange shift had happened between them at the lake. She was unpredictable, prone to whims, to moments of reckless decision-making, but... this?

This was different.

This wasn't about power.

This wasn't about control.

This wasn't about proving anything.

This was—

Elysia swallowed.

This was Malvoria asking her to spend time together.

No ulterior motive. No grand strategy. Just... a date.

Which meant—

Elysia stiffened.

Malvoria had feelings for her.

That was the only logical explanation.

Elysia felt her stomach twist, her heart hammering before she could even try to control it.

Because if Malvoria had feelings for her...

Then what did that mean?

What did it mean for her?

Because Elysia—Elysia had already been fighting against the feelings that clawed at her insides, the butterflies that kept escaping no matter how hard she tried to shove them back into their damn cage.

And if Malvoria...

If Malvoria felt the same way—

No.

No, that was dangerous.

That was stupid.

She couldn't let herself fall into this trap.

Couldn't let herself forget who Malvoria was, what she had done, what she was still capable of doing.

This was just—

This was just a game.

It had to be.

Elysia squared her shoulders, forcing herself to breathe evenly, forcing herself to push down whatever wild emotions were clawing at her chest.

Fine.

Fine, if Malvoria wanted to play this game, then Elysia would play along.

She just had to make sure she didn't lose.

"...Fine," she finally said, tilting her chin up defiantly. "I'll go on your date."

Malvoria's smirk widened.

"Good."