III.

Chapter 10

The door was gone now. Its energy had dissipated, and only dense ether filled the room. Larissa trembled and sobbed. Lukenian brushed her cheek and the corners of her eyes with his index finger.

“Why?”

His tone demanded an answer. But Larissa didn’t know the reason herself, so she couldn’t give one. Maybe it was the flood of stimulation overloading her mana circuits and brain cells. Or maybe it was because she felt like she’d lost magic itself.

Or maybe it was because she’d realized this man was an entirely different kind of being from her. Not in terms of accumulated mana or knowledge—things time could replenish. His sensory organs themselves were fundamentally different.

There was nothing sad about that. She’d always known he was out of reach. But whenever she fell in love, she always wanted to know the other person. And now she understood it was impossible from the source.

Her brain, half-dissolved in Lukenian’s magic, couldn’t string thoughts together properly. She didn’t even realize she should be putting strength into her legs and standing up on her own.

It was only when her back touched the floor that she realized she’d been laid down. Their lips met again. Lukenian’s lips and tongue drew her tears into his mouth, and the saltiness spread across her tongue.

Larissa gasped and clutched his shoulders with both hands. Her body, still intoxicated with euphoria, shuddered. A shiver swept across her skin.

“Luke… nian…”

Each time their lips met and parted, she barely managed to call his name between ragged breaths. Lukenian looked down at her, then lowered his head again and kissed her. His hair brushed and tickled her forehead. His long fingers played teasingly with the hem of her nightgown, slowly pushing it up. Then his whole palm gripped her thigh.

Even without the exchange of mana, his palm was searing. Every brush against her skin left a trace like a burn. Larissa coiled her tongue around his as it moved over her lips, as if tracing letters. Her hands, which had been twisting the fabric of his clothes just to hold on as the floor gave way beneath her, were now gripping his shoulders and neck, pulling him tight against her.

“Nnh, ah.”

A moan slipped from her throat.

Lukenian lifted her thigh and wrapped it around him, pressing his own thigh against her center. Larissa’s eyes flew open. Her body, already wound taut long before the door had vanished, was now racing toward the peak of sensation. She couldn’t tell anymore. Was it the magic? Or was it because he’d been kissing her since then?

The contact meant to take hold of her mana circuits probably wasn’t the same as a kiss in the true sense. But here they were, tangled together on the floor. No reason to distinguish between the two. No way to, either.

“Nnh, haah, nngh…!”

Larissa felt her underwear, soaked and drenched as if warm water had been poured over it. And then more slickness spilled over, spreading past the fabric that could no longer absorb it. She’d probably been wet since the moment he’d stroked the door and pulled her hand free. She’d felt like the deepest places inside her had been touched since then.

He had already invaded her body down to its depths with his mana. Compared to that, the warmth of his body heat seeping under her skin was nothing. Her body, already pushed to its limit, climbed easily to its peak.

“Haaang!”

Lukenian, who had been swallowing every sound into his own mouth, suddenly pulled his lips away. The noise that escaped was embarrassingly loud.

Larissa half-sobbed, trembling in his arms. His arm slid under her arched lower back and pulled her body tight against him. She thrashed, feeling like the floor was crumbling away beneath her head. He held her close, his hand moving down to her hip, sliding her underwear off as he stroked her backside. Even that was too much stimulation. She couldn’t take it. Whimpering, she wound her legs around his. Without that anchor, she felt like she would plummet straight down.

“Larissa. Spread your legs.”

Lukenian’s voice was even lower than usual.

“If you cling like that, I can’t take these off.”

“Ah, nh.”

“Does it feel good?”

Larissa shut her eyes, dizzy, and shook her head. It wasn’t a no. But could she call this good? It didn’t feel good. It felt like she was losing her mind.