Chapter 86
The moment Eki opened the window, a cool breeze swept between them. As the feverish tension dispersed, Cassius let out a low sigh. He placed a pipe between his lips and rubbed his brow.
“Venta.”
【 Venta? 】
“Nothing else comes to mind. Use that.”
【 Venta. It has a nice ring to it. I like it! I’m Venta now! 】
The fairy, thrilled, zoomed around the workshop in several loops, then even flew outside the window, laughing and cheering. It was such a cute sight that Eki let out a small, deflated laugh.
Then she cautiously watched Cassius’s reaction as she approached him.
His back stiffened, but thankfully he didn’t move away from her. Perhaps he realized there was no point in trying. The two of them had to stay within a fixed distance because of the transparent chain anyway.
“Master, what does Venta mean?”
Judging by the feeling, it seemed like an ancient word. But it wasn’t something she had ever heard before, probably a mundane term unrelated to magic.
Cassius glanced at Eki’s bright, innocent eyes, then answered bluntly.
“Fluff.”
“Ah.”
Eki covered her mouth and snickered.
“What. So it’s basically the same as mine.”
“It’s not the same. I suggested something that could actually be used as a name.”
“But it still means fluff.”
She burst into laughter again. At her clear laughter, Cassius’s lips twitched faintly upward.
“Don’t tell the fairy.”
“What if it reads my mind?”
“Then don’t think about fluff. Think about something else.”
“Hmm, like thinking about you, Master?”
Cassius froze mid-motion, the flask in his hand stopping. He bit his lip slowly. She could see the back of his neck flushing warm.
“Stop saying nonsense… If you have time to spare, imbue magic into the matured potions.”
But Eki still stood by him.
As Cassius tried to focus on the potion amid the heated silence, he finally gave up and turned sharply toward her to scold her. Yet Eki beat him to it, her eyes glinting with temptation.
“Master, it’s just the two of us now.”
“……”
“What do you think about what Venta said earlier?”
“What comment.”
“About how a deep kiss might be better than little pecks.”
Cassius’s throat bobbed sharply like a wave. His shaking gaze darted between Eki’s bright golden eyes and her smooth lips.
Soon he tugged at the collar of his black turtleneck as if he felt hot, avoiding her eyes.
“Stop saying weird things.”
“You know the difference between the two, right?”
“Do you take me for a child?”
He snapped irritably, frowning. Eki only gave a small laugh.
“You keep running away even though we only did pecks.”
“……”
“If you say you don’t want it, I won’t do anything.”
As always, Cassius chose silence. Eki’s cheeks flushed. Honestly, instead of lying, this stubborn silence of his was practically a loud yes, though he didn’t seem to realize it.
Eki approached him carefully. With each step she took, Cassius retreated, but eventually he hit the wall and had nowhere left to go. Somehow he’d ended up cornered by his one and only disciple.
“Eki, stop…”
“I haven’t done anything yet.”
“You’re about to!”
“I said if you say no, I won’t.”
Cassius’s long lashes fluttered rapidly. He desperately searched for a way to escape, but when Eki’s hand touched his shoulder, he froze like stone.
Eki gently closed her eyes. Then she pulled down on his shoulder and rose onto her toes. Cassius’s green eyes widened.
He was panicked, but he didn’t stop her. It was more accurate to say he couldn’t. This man, who had no choice but to part with the disciple he adored, simply couldn’t resist her.
The closer Eki leaned in, the more Cassius wanted to pretend he didn’t know anything and just let himself be carried away. Even though he knew he shouldn’t.
At last, he shut his eyes tight as if running away.
And just when the silhouettes of the two were about to overlap…
“Oh.”
A familiar voice sounded.
Cassius and Eki both jerked their eyes open. They turned their heads at the same time and met the gaze of Ikelid, perched casually on a round magical device outside the window, watching with great interest. In one hand, he held Venta, dangling pitifully.
【 Sorry. I got grabbed by a human I don’t know… 】
Venta apologized, but Eki couldn’t hear a thing. She leapt up and shrieked.
“A-Association Head?!”
“How have you two been? Looks like I picked a bad time. Hahaha!”
Cassius looked just as mortified as Eki, whose face flushed bright red. He covered his face with a large hand and let out a breath thick with fury.
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