Chapter 4
Watching his throat move with gulping motions, Sia froze completely. She had only read about lust in books or heard about it; she had never actually experienced it, which made her all the more flustered. And realizing one’s own ignorance always brought a sense of fear.
“Haah…”
With a deep sigh, Yulines set the flask down with a thud on the table.
Sia’s eyes quickly scanned the surroundings.
She was confused. She knew nothing about this medicine or about Yulines.
Was the desire the medicine triggered truly safe? Would it actually bring some balance to his power? And how long would it take for that balance to stabilize?
Her master had left without giving her any hint.
Sia’s eyes, observing Yulines for a moment, flickered anxiously. Was this a dangerous situation? Should she run, fight, or…
Nothing was happening?
The last thought surged into her mind suddenly, bringing an involuntary fear.
If nothing happens, there would be no point in checking the other flasks. Her master would have lied and run off to live alone.
Surely she wouldn’t be left completely alone in this unfamiliar place… Would she suddenly realize she’d been abandoned? A wave of fear washed over her. Maybe it was better to go out now and try to find any trace of her master.
At that moment, Yulines’ deep voice broke the silence.
“This… what is this…?”
Sia, rising ambiguously from her chair, turned to look at him. The first thing she noticed was his cheeks.
Cheeks that had been as white as snow were now tinged with crimson. And his breath—rough, long exhalations—felt so vivid it was as if he were breathing right next to her.
“My body… it’s… hot…”
Yulines jumped up, clutching himself while rubbing the reddened area around his neck. He bent slightly over the back of the chair, seemingly dizzy.
Even without seeing his face, she could see his broad back rise and fall with each rough breath. She could not tell if his unstable movements were accompanied by pain or pleasure.
Her master had said that the effect of the flask was to satisfy desire while bringing waves of pleasure.
Wait—that meant this was the state before the desire was fully satisfied, didn’t it?
Yulines, dissatisfied and unstable before release.
Sia hesitated.
Should she approach to see what was happening, or should she run? It was reassuring that the medicine her master had brought was effective, but she could not tell if it might also become another danger.
After a moment’s pause, Sia cautiously approached him.
“Yulines, are you… okay?”
“Huuu…”
“…?!”
He looked up quietly, meeting her gaze.
The intense sensation that poured over her made her take an instinctive step back. His fevered eyes held a strange, foreign desire. The wild aura that had once seemed like that of a beast—but unlike hunger or dominance—it was something else.
Hot, fierce, and yet unfamiliar heat spread endlessly. Along with it, a tingling sensation crawled through her. Her lower abdomen burned, and her breath grew quick, following his as if in sync.
I’m going to be swept away.
The moment the thought appeared in her mind, her legs moved on their own. This was a sensation she had never known. If she stayed near him, she would inevitably be pulled along.
Each step triggered a warning shouted by her instincts.
“Wait…!”
But before she could even take five steps, Yulines grabbed her hand.
Sia spun around, unable to blink. The thick, oppressive heat of the air, combined with his intense gaze, pressed down on her. She met his sticky stare atop the clear, blue aura.
Despite the distance, her head felt dazed as though hypnotized. The voice of instinct deepened and receded in waves. She could not think of freeing her trapped arm; she was frozen.
Seeing her completely immobilized, Yulines finally spoke.
“I… need you.”
His breath carried more weight than his words. Even though he hadn’t moved, his exhalations were rough and hot.
“W-what… what do you mean…”
Her own voice stumbled out, barely recognizable even to her. It wasn’t fear that had stiffened her tongue—just that her body and mind could not keep up with this overwhelming, impulsive sensation.
Clinging to her faint sense of reason, she tried desperately to pull free. Maybe putting distance between them would change the situation.
But the grip on her wrist was extraordinary. She twisted and turned, but it would not budge.
Perhaps he hadn’t heard her? She said frantically,
“I… don’t have the ability to heal…!”
“…It’s okay.”
“No! It’s not okay! Call a fairy or spirit… just get this hand off me first…!”
In her panic, she blurted out informal speech. As she struggled to pull back, Yulines pursued relentlessly.
His fevered gaze fell on her face. The expression of her biting her lips in distress made her skin tingle.
Every exhalation brushed across her skin, and she shivered uncontrollably. A chaotic mix of desire to help him, curiosity about lust, and fear of an untraveled path filled her.
Am I running, or am I choosing not to run?
“Ugh…”
The truth she did not want to admit sprang up like a carp leaping from a pond. Deep down, she wanted to be drawn to him.
At the same time, it felt like an opportunity. She wanted to see this moment—the moment his clean, white face clung to her. Unlike earlier, when he had greeted her politely, now he seemed unable to handle holding her, and she wanted to accept it.
Instincts that pushed reason aside shouted again and again.
I want to possess Yulines.
Yulines drew a long breath, straightened his body, and simultaneously loosened his grip on her wrist.
Could she run now? She relaxed slightly and turned.
“Ah!”
He grabbed her waist and yanked her back sharply. They were now face to face at a distance she had never imagined.
Ignoring her frozen shock, Yulines’ large hands roamed her waist. His face was so close that their noses almost touched, and his fevered eyes revealed an unbearable thirst.
Again, his heated breath brushed across Sia’s face.
“It’s okay. This doesn’t need healing…”
“What? But you asked for help…? You need medicine, don’t you?”
“….”
“Wait, I’ll go get someone.”
Yulines did not reply.
She tried to turn away, fearing she wouldn’t be able to resist him. For a moment, she wondered if the medicine could counter lust, but there was no time for that. Getting away was her priority.
Otherwise…
Otherwise, she might do something irreversible.
“Ha… it’s okay, just… help me.”
Yulines whispered in her ear, once again turning her to face him. He spoke informally, seemingly lost in his own frenzy.
Her insides burned. Every word he spoke sent hot, tingling sensations coursing through her. The heat seemed to infect her, consume her.
“So I… haah, ugh!”
She tried to push him away in the narrow space, but it was useless.
Yulines lowered his face and pressed his lips to hers, making her shiver uncontrollably. Her mind was a chaotic mess of confusion and panic.
Smack, smack. Alternating between her upper and lower lips, he pulled back slightly and commanded,
“Open your mouth.”
His rough voice didn’t seem like him—it was as if everything about him was someone she had never met.
His fevered eyes burned like blue flames, and despite his fair skin, he was undeniably a solid, masculine body. She couldn’t understand it.
Even after separating from him briefly, Sia could not move. Her rational mind, which urged her to escape, seemed as distant as a voice across a river.
“What? What are you saying…”
Before she could finish, his lips met hers again.
The tingling, chilling sensation made her clutch his clothes tightly. Her body trembled, and her breath grew rough in response to him—or because he interfered with her breathing.
But Sia could no longer follow reason. The situation, the sensations, it was all her first time experiencing, and her mind was blank.
Ah, I’m being swept away completely.
The feeling of him touching her was unfamiliar. No one had ever touched her like this. Hot, precarious, coveting all of her. She knew it was wrong, yet it felt like everything within her would be taken away.
Yulines licked his lips and tilted his head. His hot breath traveled along her jaw and earlobe. His voice, carrying deep sighs, tingled against her skin.
“I feel like I’m going crazy…”
Help me… please.
Squeezing her eyes shut, she opened them again.
The high ceiling above felt as distant as her body felt under his grip. The desire to help him, mixed with fear of an unknown path, pressed her forward.
His lips brushed her earlobe and moved down her neck. Yulines licked her nape like a beast, restraining her body once again.
