Chapter 10
There was an indescribable pain—she couldn’t hear or see anything.
Everything around her was pitch-black, and the rushing water strangled her breath. In that moment, when she couldn’t regain her senses as if her soul had been stolen, strong arms wrapped around her waist and lifted her up. As she clung tightly to the warmth of someone else’s body, before long the two of them were able to break the surface of the water.
“Puh—!”
Ezra gulped in air with a loud gasp, coughing violently as water poured from her mouth. Her nose and throat burned and stung. Because her ears were ringing, she couldn’t hear anything at all. Ezra wrapped both arms around the man who had saved her, clinging to his neck, and cried loudly like a child.
“It’s okay, Princess. You’re okay now…”
Hippolytus patted her back reassuringly while holding her close, swimming calmly across the water. Sensing his composure, Ezra soon let herself relax into his arms. Tears streamed down her soaking-wet face, hot against her skin. As she blinked again and again, her eyelashes heavy with droplets, they reached the shore before she realized it.
“Hup.”
He looked as though he had expected this all along, his expression unchanged. After helping Ezra onto land first, Hippolytus even swam around a little more nearby. Ezra, who had been wiping her tears frantically, stopped crying in disbelief.
“That’s so mean! I—I was so scared—!”
“You thought you were going to die?”
He shouted cheerfully, brushing his silver hair back. His carefree 모습 made her laugh for reasons she couldn’t explain. She hadn’t known he could be so playful. After staying underwater for a long time, he only surfaced after she had jumped up and called his name several times, popping up with an open, mischievous grin.
“Don’t joke around!”
“But it’s cute how you fall for it every time.”
Cute?
At that one word, Ezra quickly covered her reddening face. Her heart had no chance to calm down with a man who teased her nonstop.
When her shoulders trembled slightly in the breeze, Hippolytus noticed at once and approached her without hesitation.
“You must be cold. I’m sorry.”
“I’m not cold. It’s just the wind for a moment.”
When Ezra shook her head, the droplets clinging to the tips of her black hair splashed all over Hippolytus’s face. Looking like a soaking-wet puppy, he wiped his face with the back of his hand and chuckled.
“Kakos!”
At Hippolytus’s call, the man who had been watching them from behind a tree ran over at once and offered a cloak and a thick piece of cloth. Taking them, Hippolytus draped the cloak over Ezra’s shoulders and covered her head with the cloth.
“Y-you don’t have to do this… I can do it myself.”
“I want to do it for you.”
“Ah!”
As if drying a man’s hair, he vigorously shook her long hair. Watching her small head sway back and forth, he found her so adorable that, without thinking, he pressed a quick kiss to her round forehead.
“Oh—”
“I’m sorry. You just suddenly looked so cute.”
The woman, who had frozen stiff for a moment, blinked her large eyes twice from beneath her tousled black hair. As the man looked down at her moist, cherry-colored lips, he gently lifted her face with his hands.
Before she could even respond, his wet lips brushed against hers, leaving behind a soft trace of moisture before pulling away. Only then did Ezra realize what had happened. She startled, trembling as she tried to pull away from him—but failed.
“Ah—!”
Strong arms wrapped gently around her slender neck, pulling her close. As their breaths drew dangerously near, he softly sucked at her tender skin, tilting his head and pressing his lips down slowly. Their mingling, humid breaths were warm. Her hands, resting against his chest, trembled but couldn’t muster any strength.
When Ezra finally came to her senses and pushed him away with effort, a wet, obscene sound echoed as they separated.
The strange sensation made even her fingertips feel flushed. Lips touching lips—so completely different from merely holding hands. She stood there, stunned and speechless, while the handsome man licked his lips with a grin.
“Th-this… just now…”
What did something like that even mean?
Unable to finish her thought, Ezra covered her lips with the back of her hand, then slowly lowered it to face him. His eyes curved softly, clearly satisfied. His ears were faintly red, and her fingers were burning crimson.
Even though he was completely soaked, he was unbelievably beautiful. Hair shining like silver beads, droplets tracing the masculine line of his jaw and nose… and those red eyes, warmer than the sun overhead.
“Can we do it one more time?”
When she remained mute like a statue, he closed the distance without hesitation. The man pressed his forehead against hers, staring straight into her eyes. In a voice so quiet that no one else could hear—only her—he whispered,
“I’m blatantly seducing you right now, Princess.”
“I wish you’d blatantly fall for it.”
Again, she had no chance to answer. His lips—unspeakably warm and soft—gently sucked at her lower lip. After drawing in her upper lip as well, he pulled back and smiled brightly.
Then, his expression suddenly turned serious as he pressed his lips to hers once more, impatiently. Slipping between her slightly parted lips, his kiss was scalding and sweet. As his heat pushed her body backward, he reached out, wrapped an arm around her waist, and lightly gripped the back of her head.
Unable to move, she tangled tongues with him. His kiss, teasing and coaxing as it enveloped her clumsy tongue, continued for so long she lost all sense of time.
“Mmm…”
Only after she tapped his shoulder several times, gasping for air, did he finally pull away from her lips. “Puh—.” Breathing heavily from the unfamiliar intimacy, she touched her swollen lips, while he lifted the corner of his mouth like a satisfied predator.
“You know that sound you just made was really indecent, right?”
“S-stop teasing me!”
“Oh, right.”
Even when she tried to threaten him not to tease her, he didn’t bat an eye. Rising to his feet, he picked something up beneath a weeping willow tree.
When she turned her head, what he carried in his arms caught her gaze. Wildflowers she had never seen before were gathered together into a small bouquet.
“…I wanted to fill it with gorgeous blossoms, but there were only wildflowers around here.”
“…Is it for me?”
At her foolish question, he bent his knees and tidied her hair. As he placed the bouquet of wildflowers into her arms, he averted his gaze, embarrassment creeping in.
“Of course. And just so you know, I picked every single one. So if you don’t accept it, I might get really upset and cry.”
The man smiled shyly as he said he might cry. Everything felt like a dream—and that frightened her. Before she could even register the tears welling up, they spilled silently down her cheeks. Seeing Ezra cry without a sound, Hippolytus startled and pulled her into his arms.
“Wh-why are you crying all of a sudden?”
It was the first time he had ever stumbled over his words. Sensing his confusion, Ezra sniffled even more. Tears of joy tasted just as salty as tears of despair, yet somehow they were different.
“It’s strange… My chest hurts so much…”
It hurts.
At those words, Hippolytus’s face stiffened frighteningly. The pain she spoke of—was it truly pain, if this was what she had longed to feel?
“I can’t breathe, and something feels heavy… It’s suffocating, and it makes me cry.”
Something prepared while thinking only of her—something meant just for her. The moment she held something that was truly hers for the first time, her fear of his warmth melted away like snow.
The hand patting her back paused briefly, then pulled her shoulders tightly into his chest. Being held so fully in another’s embrace felt as reassuring as owning the entire world. When she nuzzled her face against his chest, he spoke in a deliberately stern tone.
“…I know you’re wiping your nose on me.”
“That’s not true!”
“I suppose I wasn’t being considerate. I’ll choose to believe you.”
She pushed him away in indignation, but he didn’t budge. After squirming a few times, she finally found complete comfort in the arms of the man who pressed a kiss to her ear.
Amid all the blessings of creation, they alone were acting out love.
—
The ceiling of the royal palace library near Labyrinthos was rounded. Through the transparent dome, dry, bright sunlight filled the space by day, and countless stars by night. Though books were one reason it was often visited, the scenery was what people truly loved.
But today, instead of books, Glossia was gazing upon a scene like a painting. Of all the sights, the most striking was perhaps the two people kissing while drenched to the bone. Trying to suppress the emotions surging within her, Glossia let out a long breath.
Even so, the hand braced against the window frame bulged with veins. Slowly closing and opening her eyes, Glossia turned away, the hem of her chiton embroidered with lavish patterns fluttering. Unlike her heart, rotten and burned to ash, her face remained stiff like a wax doll.
“Follow me. There’s somewhere we’re going.”
“Yes.”
Accompanied by maids with crisp, efficient movements, she headed to the bedchamber of her third younger sister, Skene. Casting a displeased glance at the wide-open golden doors, Glossia stepped into the excessively ornate room, gaudy to the point of vulgarity.
“Throw this away. It’s old.”
“Yes, Princess.”
“Oh, right! The thing I told you to get—did you bring it?”
Clattering sounds rang out as if someone was rummaging around. Glossia’s maids cleared away jewels and accessories scattered messily across the pale floor, creating a path.
Even a street courtesan wouldn’t behave this shamelessly. Biting her lip hard, Glossia stood behind Skene, who was digging through dozens of jewelry boxes.
“Um… Lady Skene. Princess Glossia has arrived.”
“What?”
The maid holding a jewelry box glanced nervously at Glossia and stepped back. Startled, Skene immediately turned around.
“You scared me! What brings you here all of a sudden?”
Skene clutched her chest when she saw Glossia standing so close behind her. Glossia’s expression remained blank, but her brow slowly furrowed.
“What is it? Is it really okay for our refined older sister to behave so rudely?”
“What’s rude is your room, which looks like a pigsty.”
Glossia coldly snapped, kicking aside a sapphire rolling near her feet.
“What? A pigsty?”
Skene placed her hands on her hips and let out a hollow laugh. For the sister who never even uttered harsh words to barge in unannounced and hurl biting insults—it was utterly absurd.
“Are you insane? It’s not enough that you storm in without warning—why are you ordering me around too?”
“That’s enough. Stop nitpicking. I came because I have something to say to you.”
