Chapter 55
“Put me down! I have to clean that up before we sleep!”
Fay pounded Alnazir’s back with the fist holding the rag. The more she struggled, the deeper the crease between his brows became.
“Quiet.”
What did it matter if the floor was wet?
He clicked his tongue and extended a tentacle toward the ground. With a soft shluurp, the water was sucked up in an instant—far faster than wiping it over and over with a cloth.
When the floor was dry again, Fay finally stopped hitting him. Only then did a belated sense of fear creep in. The air around him felt… dangerous.
“Alnazir, are you… angry?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he tossed her onto the bed. Before she could even recover from the impact, he climbed on top of her and reached for his waistband. Realizing exactly what he was about to do, Fay thrashed in panic.
“Why are you taking it out on me?! What was so wrong about the hot-water bottle?!”
“That wasn’t you.”
Fay froze as she tried to pull his pants back up.
“Th-that’s unfair. Saying it like that makes it sound like…”
Like you might actually like me. She swallowed the words that hovered at the back of her throat.
“What exactly did you think it meant?”
“N-nothing! Forget it! I misspoke! More importantly, why are you trying to jump me just because you’re mad?”
“You’ve got it backward. I’m not doing this because I’m angry, I realized I didn’t need to keep holding back out of consideration for you.”
“…You were holding back? On purpose?”
“Yes.”
Her emotions threatened to spill over at that blunt reply. She forced herself to breathe slowly, trying to calm her racing heart—even though the rise and fall of her chest gave her away.
After a few steady breaths, she asked in a small voice,
“Th-then why were you trying so hard to hold back in the first place?”
“I’m in a human man’s body right now.”
“…What does that mean?”
Something about it felt ominous.
“I know that humans go through heat for their entire lives. Men especially.”
He said it with confidence, as if it were long-confirmed fact.
Fay stared at him, mouth slowly falling open.
“So you mean… this is just human instinct? Lust? Not because you actually feel anything?”
“Feel what?”
“…Nothing.”
“Was there some other answer you were hoping for?”
His question made her flinch.
“I said it’s nothing!”
She pouted, but the disappointment on her face was obvious.
Whatever the case, Alnazir had decided that Fay deserved punishment for telling him to sleep hugging a water bag instead of her. Not out of anger. Not because he’d been holding back just for today.
It was simply his duty. A hundred percent duty.
With a faint smile hidden behind his stern expression, Alnazir ran his tongue slowly across her lips.
* * *
“Are you going out to help again today?”
He had thought yesterday would be the end of that, so watching Fay bustle around from early morning made him ask.
As she got dressed, the colorful marks he’d left on her skin peeked through, putting him in a good mood. If he knew any human songs, he would’ve been humming.
“No. A friend asked me to talk for a bit today.”
Alnazir froze.
A friend?
One face immediately came to mind, the witch who kept a snake. The memory of Fay smiling so comfortably beside that witch made something twist inside him.
“You mean that witch who walks around with a snake?”
Fay nodded without hesitation.
That was enough. Alnazir rose from his seat. He didn’t like how readily she went running when called. And the fact that she was getting ready alone meant she’d been planning to leave him behind.
He stepped away from the table and came to stand beside her, staring her down in silence.
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