Chapter 119
It was the fastest and most accurate way to find the answer to Rien’s question.
But for some reason, he simply stood there as if rooted to the spot, silently staring at me with my arms spread wide.
“Aren’t you going to do it?”
“…I won’t.”
Once again, his answer came two beats too late.
“Why not? You said you were curious. Just try it once.”
“…No. I’m not curious anymore.”
“So suddenly?”
“Yes.”
Rien replied firmly.
As if to prove his words, he turned his head away from me and walked over to the desk cluttered with medical instruments and herbs.
But I couldn’t just back off with an “I see” this time.
‘Now I’m the one who’s curious.’
Why is it that, unlike with other people, I can’t even imagine hugging Rien? What would it feel like if I did?
I was someone with very clear preferences.
If I liked something, I liked it. If I didn’t, I didn’t.
This was the first time I couldn’t tell how I felt about something at all.
‘If Rien won’t hug me, then I’ll just hug him myself.’
With that thought, I hugged Rien from behind.
I wrapped both arms around his waist and pressed my body close. The man who had been busily tidying the desk stiffened like a wooden soldier doll.
“Right now… what on earth…?”
Rien muttered in confusion as he tried to twist away.
“Stay still. If you move, I can’t tell.”
I tightened my arms around his waist, firmly blocking his escape.
“Now I’m the one who’s curious. Since you’re the one who made me curious, cooperate willingly.”
When I closed my eyes and pressed my cheek against his back, I could feel his entire body tense up.
‘This is fascinating. Being this close lets me feel things like this.’
In my past life, I had been very close to Rien, but that was in terms of our relationship.
We had never been physically this close.
‘More than I expected…’
Rien’s body was firm. Even through his clothes, I could feel it clearly.
‘He’s not even that muscular. Are all men like this?’
Barateon or Hedin, maybe—but I couldn’t imagine Sishena or Lucas being like this.
‘It’s strange. It feels like touching a rock.’
As I absentmindedly slid my hand along his side, the rigid Rien flinched—and in an instant, my arms were seized and my body spun around.
‘W-wait—?!’
It all happened so fast that I couldn’t properly grasp what had just occurred.
Before I knew it, my back was against the desk, and Rien was looming over me, gripping my shoulders.
Perhaps because of the suddenness of it all, my heart began pounding violently.
The beat that started in my chest felt like it was reverberating through my entire body.
“Did you also become curious about how it would feel to touch someone like this?”
‘Is he angry?’
Seeing Rien biting down hard on his lip as if suppressing something made my shoulders shrink instinctively.
“Uh… that just happened without me thinking… my hands moved on their own…”
No. That excuse didn’t work.
‘You can’t just touch someone’s body without permission.’
I quickly reflected on my actions and lowered my head.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For touching you without permission…”
“Would you do this to other people too?”
“No! How could I do this to someone else? It was just because it was you, Rien, that I didn’t even realize…”
I snapped my head up as I blurted out my excuse. Rien slightly furrowed his brow.
“So you can’t touch other people, but you can touch me without thinking?”
He murmured quietly while lowering his gaze, then looked back into my eyes.
“That doesn’t exactly sit well with me either.”
“I won’t do it again.”
“Do what?”
“Well… anything.”
As I trailed off, feeling dejected at my mistake, Rien—who had been silently watching me—spoke.
“Go ahead.”
“…What?”
“If you feel like testing something, do it to me, not someone else.”
“Weren’t you angry? Because I touched you however I wanted?”
“Oh. But when I imagined you doing that to some other guy, it annoyed me even more.”
As I asked in a daze, Rien slightly curved his lips and tucked my hair behind my ear.
“So just do it to me. And if you ever get curious about something, come to me first. Understood?”
Still feeling bewildered, I nodded and asked him,
“Then there’s something I’m curious about right now.”
“Yes.”
“Where did Blanche go?”
“……”
At my question, Rien fell silent.
<Heeuuuh…>
The Archmage inside the necklace let out a deep sigh.
‘No, why? You told me to ask if I was curious…’
I felt deeply wronged.
* * *
Blanche was apparently scouting the Winter Estate.
Since demons understood demons best, Rien had ordered Blanche to assess the situation in advance.
“It’s better to grasp the situation before confronting the enemy. She’ll be back before night fully falls.”
The opponent was a demon skilled in cunning schemes, so caution never hurt.
Thanks to that, dealing with the suspicious demon lurking in the Winter Estate was postponed until Blanche returned from reconnaissance.
Even so, it would all be settled by tonight.
There was still time before sunset.
I headed to the training grounds to see Barateon, who had been swinging his sword since early morning.
Normally, the place would be bustling with trainees, but today Barateon was alone.
Most of the troops had left to deal with the magical beasts at the Eastern Gate, but it was also because everyone had tactfully kept their distance to avoid upsetting Barateon, who had suffered a serious injury.
I didn’t want to interrupt his training either.
I carefully took a seat in a corner of the vast training grounds and watched him wield his sword.
Perhaps because of his badly injured leg, his movements were rougher and duller than I remembered.
‘Still, his recovery really is impressive. Aside from that, he looks fine.’
No sooner had I thought that than Barateon—who had been swinging his sword expressionlessly—let out a sigh and tossed the sword to the ground.
Unfortunately, the sword he threw flew in my direction, revealing my quiet presence.
“Danae?”
Barateon’s eyes widened. Since I’d already been caught, there was no point staying seated.
“I came to see if you were okay. I went to the infirmary first, but they said you’d gone to train.”
“Oh….”
Barateon approached me with an awkward smile. He wasn’t his usual playful, energetic self.
“Are you mad because you got hurt because of me?”
“What? Not at all!”
Barateon, who had been subdued, suddenly jumped up and waved his hands frantically.
“It’s just that… I couldn’t protect you. All I know how to do is swing a sword, and even that I messed up and got injured…”
Rambling, Barateon ran a hand through his hair and sighed in frustration.
“Anyway, I’m just angry at myself. For being pathetic.”
“You got hurt trying to help someone else. Why would you blame yourself? Besides, I’m perfectly fine. That means you protected me properly.”
“I heard you gained the Archmage’s power. That’s probably why you weren’t hurt. But if you hadn’t had that power…”
“Are you stupid?”
I let out a dry laugh at the self-blaming Barateon, picked up the fallen sword, and handed it to him.
“If I didn’t have that power, I wouldn’t have even appeared at the Eastern Gate. I wouldn’t have been in danger in the first place.”
“But…”
This kind of comfort didn’t seem very effective. I decided to change my approach.
“Teon. If I got hurt trying to protect you, would you think I was pathetic and useless?”
“What are you talking about? Of course not!”
The moment I reversed the situation, Barateon shouted loudly.
After blinking for a moment at his own unfiltered reaction, he seemed to realize the meaning of my question and laughed awkwardly.
“See? That’s exactly how I feel right now. I’d much rather have you boast and say, ‘Wasn’t I awesome back then?’”
When I grinned and shrugged, he took the sword with an embarrassed expression and tried his best to puff himself up.
“Hey. Wasn’t I awesome back then?”
“No. Not really.”
At my short, immediate answer, Barateon’s smiling face crumpled in dissatisfaction.
“What? You told me to boast!”
“I told you to boast. I never said I thought you were awesome.”
“Well… that’s true.”
“Exactly.”
“…You’re right, but somehow that still feels unfair.”
Behind Barateon, who tilted his head in confusion, the sun was slowly setting.
‘Blanche will be back soon.’
It was almost time to deal with the suspicious demon who had injured Barateon.
