Chapter 32
You idiot.
It was one thing to run away and then be caught and pulled back up. But why was it that he had completely lost his wits until she grabbed him in the first place?
With a Transcendent’s physical abilities, he should have been able to seat Ephinia somewhere safe and still escape.
“Your Highness?”
“L-Let go of me.”
“I don’t want to. You haven’t received guiding for three days. Look. Your numbers went up while I wasn’t seeing you.”
She glanced at the magic tool on his wrist as she spoke. With Ephinia chattering away while tightly holding his arm, it felt like heat was rising to his face. Kasselard shot her a glare.
“And you can say that when I look like this?”
“If you’re going to receive guiding, you have to take your clothes off anyway.”
When she deliberately answered shamelessly at Kasselard’s reproachful question, his eyes narrowed. So that’s how you’re going to play it.
“That isn’t very efficient.”
When Kasselard pointed that out, Ephinia flinched and looked at him with wary eyes.
“W-We both agreed we’re not doing deep contact guiding.”
“Other than deep contact guiding… does it really have to be my body that gets touched? If I get too excited, you’ll be in danger too. So choose.”
He cast an openly lewd gaze at Ephinia’s chest and lower body, hoping she would run away.
“Top or bottom, which one are you going to take off?”
* * *
Ephinia froze because she hadn’t expected Kasselard to come at her like this. She checked to see if he was joking, but he was completely serious. Even while tense, she didn’t let go of his arm. Perhaps because he was a Transcendent, he didn’t seem to be thinking of shaking her hand off.
“I think I told you before? I can justify touching Your Highness as me attending to you, but if Your Highness touches me, it could cause misunderstandings…”
“Ah… I don’t care about that. I can’t be the only one feeling embarrassed. If you don’t take something off, I’m not receiving any guiding.”
So, are you taking it off, or are you just leaving?
When he said that with an easygoing expression, Ephinia looked at him as if troubled. Kasselard swallowed his dry saliva and tensed internally.
‘Go. Run away.’
After pushing things this far, she would give up on guiding and leave. It was truly regretful to the point of tears, but it couldn’t be helped. Ephinia glared at him fiercely, then spoke.
“The top. I-I’ll take it off.”
“What?!”
When his voice rose without him realizing it, Ephinia flinched and looked at him. Kasselard’s face was turning red rapidly.
“What kind of nonsense…”
“You told me to take it off if I wanted to guide you. You said you didn’t want to be the only one embarrassed first.”
“That… ah, anyway, don’t take it off!”
He had said it thinking she would refuse, but when Ephinia said she would do it, his heart started pounding wildly. He had a hunch that if he saw that chest from his dream in real life, there would be no turning back.
“Then are you going to receive guiding?”
Damn it. Realizing he had forgotten that, Kasselard went blank.
Either way was a trap. No matter what he chose, it felt like he wouldn’t be able to escape the mire. Kasselard decided to stubbornly push back for now.
“Then let’s kiss.”
“We said we weren’t doing deep contact guiding!”
“I don’t know. When I’m receiving guiding from you, I end up wanting to. What do you want me to do?”
“…Why do you end up wanting to kiss me?”
When Ephinia pressed him again like that, Kasselard’s face flushed all the way to the top of his head.
“Are you an idiot! It’s not a kiss, it’s guiding! It’s because it’s guiding that I want to do it!”
“Don’t act like a child! We promised from the start! I don’t want to marry you or date you, so kissing is something I absolutely, ABSOLUTELY won’t do with Your Highness! So just receive guiding!”
“No!!”
He had said it knowing she would refuse, but her words that she wouldn’t even kiss him, let alone marry or date him, hurt deeply. The words stabbed painfully at his chest, and it felt like blood was flowing from his heart.
He had thought that at least a kiss would be fine, so Ephinia’s refusal hurt even more. It felt like she really hated him that much.
“You’re really cruel.”
“Your Highness is acting like a child.”
At the words that slipped out, Ephinia realized her mistake. Kasselard’s gaze also turned fierce, but Ephinia deliberately pretended not to notice.
“This outfit is Your Highness’s taste, right?”
“N-No it’s not?”
Of all things, a man with a maid outfit fantasy. And yet he scolded her for having worked as a maid? When Ephinia glared at him with a look full of implications, Kasselard avoided her eyes.
“Why. What… I didn’t pick it, okay?!”
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