Welcome to the Demon’s Cabin - Chapter 57

She seemed quite delighted to have driven him to such a state of madness. Her wide smile was more than bright; it was radiant. Today, her large red eyes sparkled with a particularly brilliant and dazzling light.

Idris unwittingly fixed his gaze upon Irene.

He felt it often, but she truly was disgustingly pretty.

Being soaked in water made her already beautiful face appear twice as lovely. Her wheat-colored hair, clinging tightly after absorbing so much water, and her red lips moving along with her fine voice constantly captured his sight.

“…….”

Men who get possessed by Sirens without even hearing their song must be possessed exactly like this; he understood well.

Idris, letting out another sigh, reflexively lowered his head, but quickly jerked it back up at the feast of flesh shimmering through the transparent water.

A pair of large, eerie red pupils and wheat-colored hair had never been so welcome. The sight he had just seen, filled entirely with a single color, was truly……. Even while submerged in cold water, his face burned red.

‘Does this woman have no sense of shame?’

Irene occasionally displayed a twisted sensibility, but this was the first time it felt so burdensome.

He found himself missing the days when she would suggest smashing a mole’s head instead. At least then, he had some idea of how to soothe her.

“……I am only capable of floating. Furthermore, swimming in this cold lake seems to be beyond my strength. Therefore, this weak Imperial shall take his leave.”

Idris, who was slowly backing away, placed his elbow on the ground. However, as soon as he turned to pull himself out, arms coiled around his neck with the fluid, inescapable pressure of a snake, and he plummeted into the water once again.

“Ahaha! Where do you think you are going! I can tell just by looking that you know how to swim, so do not lie.”

“Kh-hk! Cough! No, when the person involved says he cannot, he cannot!”

Irene’s right arm, wrapped from behind, applied light pressure to Idris’s neck. He could feel soft flesh pressing firmly against his back. It was a maddening situation. His entire body grew hot and flushed to the point where he could not perceive the cold water temperature. Idris managed to find an excuse.

“The clothes will get all wet. You would not even let me give you my coat because you feared it would get wet……!”

“Oh, now that I hear it, you are right. But it is already wet, so it is too late, is it not? Since it has turned out this way, let us play together. It would be unfair to ruin your clothes and not even get to play.”

“I understand. I understand everything, so please, Miss Irene, put on some clothes. If that is not possible, then at least your undergarments, please.”

“I refuse. Who wears clothes while swimming?”

It was ridiculous; it was not as if wearing clothes would make her sink. He wanted to demand why she had pulled him in then, but he was afraid of a response like, ‘Is that so. Then you should take yours off too, Mr. Idris!’

Idris floundered, trying to distance himself from Irene somehow, but the slender arms did not budge. She had no muscle and seemed to be holding him lightly, yet how could she be this strong? It felt as though he would have to use his entire strength to pull them away.

“Or surely there must be clothes enchanted with magic to prevent them from getting wet.”

Idris finally brought up the topic of magic, which he had been tactfully avoiding.

‘Damn it, I do not care. If she gets offended and I die, then I die. It is better than staying submerged in the water like this anyway.’

If they stayed attached just a little longer, it felt as if his dignity would be destroyed and the gates of hell would open. Even now, he was at his limit. The blood was circulating through his body far too quickly.

“Where would a commoner like me get such a thing? Just hearing about it makes it sound like high-level magic. To begin with, would it even be possible to imbue clothes with such a function?”

Insane. Is this really the time to be calmly fanning the flames of academic inquiry?

And to call herself a commoner; she talked nonsense for someone who wore all sorts of expensive accessories, even if she avoided noble attire.

The most horrifying thing was her steady, calm voice. It seemed his desperation was truly nothing to her.

In his heart, he wanted to strike Irene’s face with his elbow and flee, but he knew the value of his own life.

Irene laughed loudly as she watched Idris struggling in her arms. His reaction, flailing about in utter loathing, reminded her of her old friends when she played mischievous pranks on them, so there was a certain pleasure in teasing him.

It was behavior unlike the Irene who had lived relatively quietly, but the sense of intimacy built over time, the exhilaration from the white owl, and the special environment of being in the water allowed for such a bold prank.