* * *
The nurse who entered the hospital room looked down at Cynthia, who was in a deep sleep.
Masera, sitting beside the bed, was slumped over, asleep while holding her hand.
“Ahem.”
She cleared her throat, but there was no reaction.
‘An opportunity to kill the man who destroyed my homeland and his wife.’
The nurse was a spy from the Defeated Empire. She had come over, hiding her identity, and ended up settling here after the Empire’s defeat.
She was tired of hearing how lucky Cynthia was, but it seemed her luck was finally running out.
Just as she raised a syringe filled with poison, a bitter smile on her face…
Thump!
“Ugh.”
The medical cart suddenly fell over, startling her and causing her to drop the syringe.
‘Damn it, she’s going to wake up.’
Deciding to grab the syringe and run, the spy reached out to pick it up, but a chilling sensation made her look up.
Flicker, flicker.
The hospital room lights flickered on and off erratically, and someone’s silhouette wavered.
An immense fear washed over her, and the back of her neck grew cold.
“……!”
Three women stood side by side, looking down at the spy with cold faces.
Floating in the air, no less.
“Aaaah! G, ghosts!”
The terrified spy fell on her rear.
One of the women silently pointed at the spy, then mimed slitting her throat as a warning.
“I’m sorry!”
The spy tried to run away, consumed by extreme fear.
Crash!
Suddenly, a large light fixture fell, striking the spy’s head.
The last thing the spy saw was the three ghosts high-fiving and turning away.
One of the ghosts smiled brightly and raised a clenched fist.
‘Mess with our kids, and you die.’
Were they their mothers? But why three?
Hearing a voice that seemed to be forcibly etched into her mind, the spy fainted on the spot.
* * *
Awakened by the sudden commotion, Masera looked puzzled at the unconscious nurse.
He picked up the syringe that had fallen on the floor and stared at it for a long time before calling Captain Carlton.
Captain Carlton, who glared at the syringe as if to pierce it, said,
“If I could analyze it with my eyes, I wouldn’t be here. And I’m a pediatrician, remember?”
“Is there anything wrong? She might have injected her with poison.”
At Masera’s question, Captain Carlton examined Cynthia.
“She’s sound asleep.”
He shrugged and was about to take the syringe out for analysis when Dahlia and Diego, who had followed him in, widened their eyes at something.
The Captain, turning around, also widened his eyes and retracted his words.
“Never mind, she’s not anymore?”
Alarmed, Masera hurriedly looked at Cynthia. His eyes widened for a moment, and a gap appeared in his usually tightly closed lips.
“Yawn, I slept well.”
Cynthia, who had somehow woken up, was stretching languidly.
Masera stood frozen as if broken, just staring at her, then slowly raised his hand and placed it on her cheek.
Feeling the warmth on his fingertips, Masera’s shoulders twitched slightly.
“…Did you have a good trip?”
At Masera’s question, Cynthia placed her hand over his and smiled brightly.
“Yes.”
Captain Carlton, understanding the situation, left the room and ordered Dahlia and Diego to retreat.
In the hospital room, now empty except for the two of them, Masera carefully read her expression.
Her slowly blinking red eyes curved beautifully.
When he had briefly fallen asleep without realizing it, he seemed to have seen her in a dream. He didn’t remember the details, but he was left with the feeling that she was the only person and family he would have for the rest of his life.
“Will you tell me about it? The story of meeting your family.”
He felt uneasy without Cynthia’s chatter. While he had been far away and while she had been asleep, he had even heard her babbling in his ears.
The talkative Cynthia nodded with an excited face.
“Do you believe in past lives? I’ll tell you how wonderfully I died. You’ll probably be surprised when you hear it, right?”
Now she could talk about sad memories with a smile.
* * *
After taking a bath with Dahlia’s help, Cynthia chattered non-stop, as if catching up on a backlog of homework.
That she had lived in an era when world wars broke out, that air raids were as common as meals, that she had worked as a rescue worker and died.
After that, she emphasized several times about what happened in the Organization, and the Village Chief story, and how much she missed him.
“Do you understand? I missed you and thought about you every moment, okay?”
Masera, who was sitting side by side on the hospital bed, listening intently to her story, let out a shallow sigh.
Leaning towards her, he lowered his eyes and whispered.
“Do you think I didn’t? Beyond wanting to see you, I felt like I was going crazy.”
His eyes, which had briefly looked up, were fixed on Cynthia again.
“I might already be out of my mind.”
Beneath the slightly swaying platinum blonde hair, the eyes, like the meeting of the sky and the sea, contained both passion and tranquility.
The gaze and silence created a strange atmosphere.
Something, whether it was the tension just before being hunted or a sense of excitement, began to tighten her chest.
“How are you going to take responsibility?”
At his languid voice, Cynthia swallowed hard and quickly racked her brains.
Was he asking her to bring him back to his senses?
But her thoughts just spun around in vain, and no answer came to mind.
With each blink, his face came closer, and his breath brushed against her cheek.
Gazing into the mysterious eyes that were gradually filling her vision, she slowly closed her eyes as a sign of permission.
A sigh escaped from him, and their lips met at once.
The moment their hearts aligned, a ripple occurred as if a small stone had been thrown.
The sensation of their lips touching spread throughout her body.
Their breaths intertwined and slowly merged into one. It was as if she was entrusting herself to the oncoming waves and sinking into a mint-scented sea.
Unlike before, when they had kissed lightly, showing off, impulsively, or plainly, a dense current flowed.
His hand wrapped around her waist, pressing her close without a gap. It was restrained and cautious, but there was a sense of urgency.
In response, Cynthia cupped his cheeks with her hands.
‘Warm.’
Was first love originally this warm and sweet?
A longing arose as if she had found the warmth she had long desired.
Her whole body seemed to melt in his warm body temperature and scent.
She put her arms around his neck and willingly accepted this moment.
* * *
How much time had passed?
“S, stop…….”
I ended up uttering the cliché line of feeling my limits and surrendering.
Masera, with a languid look in his eyes, ran his finger over his lips, then pounced on me again as if to devour me.
I hurriedly blocked his mouth, and he tilted his head.
“Do you dislike it?”
“It’s not that…….”
“It’s not like I’m devouring you. Are you struggling with just a kiss?”
Whether he melts me or devours me…….
I never thought I would say the line ‘I can’t do it anymore!’ during a kiss.
But at this rate, my lips would wear away to the point where I couldn’t even eat.
“If it’s hard, you can entrust your body to me and stay still.”
That’s not a line to use right now!
“I’ll take care of the weak Princess.”
Seeing Masera’s lips with a slight sneer, a competitive spirit suddenly surged.
“Are you showing off with just the preliminaries? Let’s see how well you do in the finals…….”
Ah.
That was too inappropriate a remark. I immediately offered a silent prayer and pretended that I didn’t have such thoughts, that I didn’t mean it that way.
Masera looked at me with bewildered eyes. The area around his eyes was tinged with red.
“……It’s difficult here.”
He seemed to have understood my words too well and refused cautiously.
Is a grown-up kiss okay? Before I could retort, his large hand cupped my cheek.
“Instead, I would be grateful if you would allow me one last time.”
His tone was very polite, but his eyes were slightly out of it.
“Really the last one.”
I closed my eyes and nodded.
My jaw was stiff and my mouth hurt, but I actually liked it too.
As I was once again intoxicated by the atmosphere and sensations, I suddenly felt a stinging sensation on my lips.
“Ouch.”
Masera hurriedly took his lips away.
He looked more surprised and flustered than when he had heard the inappropriate remark.
……Did he bite me just now?
A little blood smeared on my finger as I rubbed my lips.
Looking at him with disbelieving eyes, I remembered something and flinched.
I remembered the words that the male lead would turn into a ‘rough, vulgar, and savage beast’ every night, which was a delicacy to my sister but a culinary nightmare for me.
“The female lead is always bitten. There are never any days when there aren’t bite marks.”
Could it be…… no way?
XD
I’m dying. That’s hilarious.