Chapter 65
That night, I knocked on Rufian’s door. Since he usually handled everything on his own, there were neither maids nor attendants in his room. He turned to look at me, his shirt half-unbuttoned—I couldn’t tell if he was in the middle of undressing or dressing. I carefully closed the door behind me, forcing my eyes away from his statue-like, firm body.
“Ellie?”
When he turned his back again, I saw his hand frozen on the buttons. Thinking he had been undressing, I considered leaving, but instead, I opened the wardrobe, pulled out a fresh shirt, and handed it to him. Rufian leisurely unfastened the rest of his buttons. I caught sight of his shirt slowly opening and quickly raised my gaze. I had tried to enter nonchalantly, but honestly, the situation was excruciatingly awkward.
Don’t swallow, Ellie. You’ll look like a pervert. I muttered to myself, but there was no stopping my cheeks from heating.
He asked,
“What brings you here at this hour?”
“You said we should be happy. I came to be happy.”
“How cute.”
With his shirt now fully unbuttoned, he extended his hand to me. I placed the neatly spread shirt on it, but then Rufian leisurely grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer. It wasn’t forceful—I had every chance to resist his touch. Yet his gaze bound me as if in chains. Truthfully, I had no reason to resist.
Our eyes, the same shade, became entangled. He slowly lowered his head. Dazzled, I watched his eyelashes glimmer under the chandelier’s light like gems. His hot breath brushed my cheek, and then, with our noses nearly touching, he stopped.
“You’re making things difficult by being this cute.”
“Why?”
“Because I might not be able to let you go.”
He pulled me by the waist, whispering in a low voice,
“Close your eyes.”
As my trembling eyelids shut, he pressed hard against my lower lip. Finding my hands floundering without support, Rufian seized them and guided them around his neck. His tongue slid between my slightly parted lips, moving with heat. Though his body was usually cool, strangely, his lips and the wet tangle of our tongues burned fiercely.
Perhaps sensing my fear, how stiffly I trembled, his movements were teasingly slow, leaving me quivering each time. When his tongue brushed my palate after tracing along my teeth, I clung to him more desperately. He only touched the most sensitive spots, melting my body until, at last, he sucked my tongue deep, down to the root.
“Ah—!”
A muffled moan slipped out, one I’d been holding back at the tip of my nose. My breath faltered, and his increasingly rough pace overwhelmed me. He tilted his head again, sealing every gap in our kiss, devouring me whole. As I staggered backward, I was trapped against the table. Then, with ease, he lifted me onto it.
Finally able to catch a little breath, my eyes shot open. His face, far more seductive than usual, sent my heart racing; my flushed cheeks burned beneath the long silver strands falling around us. To block him, I pressed my hands to my lips. Rufian paused, narrowed his eyes, and his violet irises flashed dangerously.
He gave up on my lips, instead kissing my cheek—sucking lightly, licking as he went lower, along my jaw, past my neck, and downward…
“W-wait!”
I had always rushed to prove I wasn’t a child, but now I wondered if such worry had been needless. No matter how much I defended my lips, it wasn’t enough. As I leaned back to avoid his mouth grazing my collarbone, his hands pressed on either side of me, bearing his weight as he leaned in closer.
I swallowed hard, realizing just how dangerous this was. He chuckled softly, face relaxed in a languid smile.
“Ru?”
He whispered in a low, husky voice,
“An intruder.”
No sooner had he spoken than faint hoofbeats echoed toward the duke’s castle. At such a late hour, there could only be one visitor. Haula—the one rumored to have broken an upperclassman’s leg and been placed under probation—was approaching. Rufian glanced at the window, then back at me.
He straightened my disheveled hair and clothing as if nothing had happened. If not for his saliva shining on his lips and the lingering sting inside my mouth, I might have dismissed the whole thing as a dream. He picked up the fallen shirt and put it on with practiced ease.
I touched my lips with trembling fingers, still covering my mouth. My body remembered everything, but the words that escaped sounded foolish.
“W-we… kissed?”
It was a stupid mutter. This kiss was stickier, deeper than the one before—it left me dazed, like hearing sound underwater. He, now neatly dressed, lifted me down from the table. With a final gesture, he tucked my loose hair behind my ear and said,
“I knew it was better not to start, since I lack restraint…”
“…”
“But I don’t dislike this impatience of yours.”
His calm, gentle voice softly filled the silent room.
“Letting things drift by is like time dead to me. But waiting—it makes me feel alive.”
“…Waiting makes you alive, Ru?”
“No. You do.”
Me?
“You’ve saved me from the eternal cycle.”
Outside, the carriage carrying Haula stopped. The horses snorted and pawed at the ground. I stared blankly at Rufian. For all the times he’d apologized or thanked me for little things, this time he offered neither excuse nor apology. Standing a step away, he gazed into the distance through the window, then closed his eyes. The heat of his flushed eyelids showed beneath.
“Me too… I feel the same.”
I stammered, my heart suddenly throbbing.
Saved. Could I really be salvation to the one who had opened a new world to me? The thought filled me with joy. I remembered all the times I had doubted what I meant to him, though Rufian had told me countless times: You’re special. I’m grateful I met you.
“Thank you.”
He turned back to me, his words flowing like the wind.
“I want you to be happy. That’s why I’ve lived.”
I froze, struck dumb. It felt as though I held the leash of a free, unbound demon.
Author’s Note
Kkugh 8ㅂ8 I’ll be back tomorrow. Thank you for waiting.
- Thank you, 달걀먹고뿡, for the support coupon!
- Setting a release schedule feels pointless, lol. 8ㅂ8 Group projects… the bane of existence! Seems group project hell is universal. Well, people are the same everywhere ^-^… kukuk…
- This episode was… hmm… ‘-‘* I love you all ♡
- Oh, and yes, Hankkul has signed a print book contract. It’s not self-published, so you’ll be able to buy it more cheaply. ‘-‘*
- Thanks to everyone for advance votes and recommendations!
