~Chapter 94~
‘Huh?’
The tips of Damien’s ears turned red with surprise.
‘Is this… really okay?’
Just then, Rubiana pulled her lips away.
But—
Smack.
This time, her kiss didn’t land on his lips, but on his forehead.
Then on his cheek. His nose. His hair.
She kept planting kisses one after another.
Damien sat frozen, his mind in turmoil as Rubiana’s soft lips kept brushing him.
‘I mean, I like this, but… no, that’s not the point.’
The reason he was so flustered was because this wasn’t the Devourer’s influence taking over her body.
No—this was Rubiana herself.
Her appearance had changed slightly from the curse’s power, but thanks to their soul contract, Damien could clearly feel that this was his Ruby.
‘But… should this be happening?’
He wondered if, the next day, Rubiana would even remember that she had kissed him first—again and again.
Still, one thought gave him a flicker of relief.
‘At least if she kissed me first… maybe she doesn’t hate me after all.’
Damien hesitated. Should he indulge in this chance with the woman he loved but had never confessed to?
‘I’ll think about it later.’
In the end, he gave in.
“More… more…”
Her voice was soft, weak, almost pleading. Her crimson eyes were dazed, but they still begged.
She clung to his neck, her small voice whimpering for more.
To Damien, she looked like a baby rabbit begging to be fed.
“Alright. Have a little more.”
He passed more curse fragments into her.
The more he gave, the tighter she clung, pressing her body to his chest.
Seeing this side of her—so unlike her usual self—brought a lazy smile to Damien’s lips.
“Yes… have a bit more. I’ll give you more.”
He fed her until he reached the limit he had set for safety.
At that point, Damien carefully pushed her back.
“That’s enough for now.”
Feeding her curse fragments regularly helped keep the Devourer under control.
But giving too much at once would risk letting the Devourer seize control of Rubiana’s body entirely.
Even if he wanted to give her more, he had to stop.
Rubiana simply stared blankly at him.
For a brief moment, Damien worried she might suddenly lash out as the Devourer.
But she nodded gently instead.
“…Alright.”
Her eyelids drooped, and she soon fell asleep.
Holding her, Damien gazed down at her face bathed in moonlight.
Her hair returned to its normal color as the feeding stopped.
‘That really was Ruby.’
As he laid her on the bed, he thought to himself:
She had accepted his words immediately. She still used her usual polite speech. That was the Ruby he knew.
But he couldn’t forget the image of her leaning forward first, placing her lips on his.
Quietly, he touched the spot she had kissed.
“I hope she remembers tomorrow.”
Whispering his wish to the moonlight, he bid her goodnight and left for his own room.
* * *
The next morning.
“Ah, Damien!”
I waved happily as Damien entered the dining room.
“You woke up a little late today, didn’t you?”
He stared at me silently.
Usually, he would smile right away and answer, but this time, nothing.
‘Huh? What’s with him?’
Finally, he tilted his head slightly and spoke.
“Yes. I went to bed a little late.”
“Oh, was it because you transferred the curse to me last night?”
Whenever I received a curse from him, my memories often became hazy or even disappeared completely.
I couldn’t be sure why.
But looking at the dates, yesterday had been feeding day.
And my last memory was Damien telling me news about the haunted house curses.
So I guessed he must have given me the curse after that.
“Thanks for carrying me to bed. I slept warmly without catching a cold.”
“…It’s nothing.”
Strangely, his voice sounded flat and drained.
‘Weird.’
He looked downcast, even listless.
Even while cutting bacon and lettuce, his hands looked powerless.
Unable to ignore it any longer, I asked carefully:
“Damien… did something happen?”
His knife froze mid-slice.
His purple eyes fixed on me—sad, but also almost sulking.
“Ruby… don’t you…”
His voice carried disappointment.
“…don’t you remember what happened last night at all?”
“Last night?”
I searched my memory desperately, but no matter how hard I tried, everything after the haunted house curses’ news was gone.
Panic crept in.
“D-did I do something last night?”
Damien’s expression darkened even more.
‘What the heck did I do?!’
Inside, I screamed.
“…So you really don’t remember.”
He rose weakly from his seat.
“I’ll be going now.”
He left half his meal untouched and staggered out of the dining room.
“W-wait, Damien!”
I called after him, but he didn’t seem to hear, leaving without looking back.
Staring at the open door, I thought—
‘He’s… sulking?’
* * *
Back in my room, I tugged at my hair in frustration.
“What the heck did I do last night?!”
I hit my head with my fists, but of course nothing came back.
‘What on earth did I do to make Damien sulk like that?’
He wasn’t the type to get angry over small things.
He wasn’t petty, either.
So for him to react like that—whatever I did must’ve been huge.
‘No! I can’t get divorced yet!’
He was my fated partner, my horror-loving friend!
We hadn’t even tried the new 24-hour haunted house together yet!
As I racked my brain for memories, a voice suddenly rang inside my head.
[Hey.]
I frowned. It was her again.
“Don’t talk to me. I’m busy.”
[I’m trying to help you, idiot.]
“What? Idiot?!”
I opened my eyes—and there she was, standing cockily, one leg propped up like some punk.
[You wanna know why that dark guy’s sulking?]
“…How would you know?”
[I watched. It was hilarious, too.]
She snickered.
[I didn’t even have to interfere—you went and made your own embarrassing memory.]
“…What?”
Embarrassing… memory?
My mind went blank.
[Since you gave me such a good laugh, I’ll tell you.]
Leaning in, she whispered what had happened last night.
When I heard it, my brain froze.
“W-what…?”
Me.
I had…
I had slammed my lips onto my contract husband’s lips—first.
