Chapter 237
They still couldn’t fully understand each other, and probably never would. Even so, Claude had come to accept that when it came to Rose, he didn’t need to understand everything. He figured she had her own reasons for her actions.
Thus, for some reason unknown to Claude, Rose was lying down again, wrapped in a blanket, using Claude’s torso as a backrest and melting into him as if she had no spine.
Her position looked uncomfortable, so much so that it seemed sitting would be easier, but Claude calmly acted as her backrest.
“How have you been?” he asked, lightly kissing her exposed nape. The guiding flowed into him like clear, refreshing spring water.
He kissed her a few more times, and the flow didn’t stop.
Lately, Rose didn’t even notice this level of guiding. Given how he constantly hugged and touched her, it must have been hard for her to stay aware of it all the time.
After thinking for a moment, Rose answered.
“I didn’t do aaaanything.”
“Really?”
“Without you, everything felt boring. I didn’t feel like doing anything. Oh, but I did get perfect attendance and top grades at the Guide Division every week… Oh, and I earned 1.3 million Berks by helping other Guides with their studies… Oh, and…”
Of course. Claude couldn’t help but laugh. He could easily imagine how active his Guide had been, even without seeing it.
Rose acted like she could melt into any surface at home, but the moment she stepped outside, she was bursting with energy.
Still, he knew she genuinely missed him. The constant guiding that flowed into him whenever they touched conveyed her feelings clearly.
Touched by her sentiment, Claude kissed her nape again.
“How about you, Lord Claude?”
“…”
“What, are you listening or not?”
Did she sprinkle sugar on her skin? How else could it taste so sweet?
Sucking on her soft skin, Claude thought idly. No matter how much he touched or licked her, he never got tired of it.
When he slid his hand inside the blanket covering Rose, she quickly grabbed it.
“You promised… I can’t do it anymore…”
She almost cried as she pleaded.
Claude withdrew his hand easily. He knew she was exhausted from their activities until morning.
So, he ended up twirling strands of her hair around his fingers.
Despite teasing her about never getting enough, he was the one who couldn’t stand not touching her.
“What can I say? It was just hunting… Ah, now that I think about it…”
“What is it? What happened?”
“It was strange. The mutants moved in formations as if they had intelligence. Their numbers were five times higher than expected.”
“But how did you come back so early? If it was that difficult… shouldn’t you have been delayed?”
Claude answered her bewildered question nonchalantly.
“I just killed them all.”
“…What?”
“I only thought about finishing quickly and returning to the Center.”
“…Is that even possible just by thinking about it?”
“You make it possible.”
“?”
Rose still didn’t understand.
“The Center calculated the schedule based on the average time I’ve taken to complete previous missions.”
“…And?”
“What they overlooked is that my condition for this expedition was better than any previous ones.”
“Oh… the guiding…”
Rose finally understood.
Before meeting Rose, Claude had never been in perfect condition for any mission. In fact, people often thought he might die at any given moment due to his uncontrollable powers.
But this time was different. Claude had received plenty of guiding from Rose right up until their parting.
Moreover, he had an urgent reason to return to the Center as soon as possible.
Whether intelligent mutants appeared or not, whether the mission was easy or difficult, he had to finish it no matter what.
Claude kissed Rose’s cheek, who was adorably nestled in his arms.
Where had this beautiful creature been hiding all this time? What would he have done if he hadn’t found her?
Feeling dizzy with these thoughts, he couldn’t stop himself from touching and kissing her constantly.
Discussion
1 CommentReactions
athena