Athena boldly took the helm and began steering the ship at high speed.
Fire climbed up to the highest deck, declaring that he would stand watch.
Now that they had quickly put distance between themselves and the pursuers, a sense of ease finally returned.
“Whew, this ship is amazing. It even has cabins.”
On the way here, I’d barely cramd myself into a tiny boat. Now I strolled around the spacious ship, speaking with relief.
“This must be Sir Sogno’s cabin. It’s the largest room.”
I peeked into the window of what looked like a rather nice cabin. Then Zahid opened the door himself and said politely,
“If you’re curious, please feel free to enter, Priestess.”
“Oh, co on.”
I laughed, slapping Zahid’s arm.
“Are you sulking because I called you a dog? But thanks to that, we completely threw those people off.”
When the door opened, I saw a desk carved with the Temple’s emblem and a simple bed.
I began rummaging through the docunts on the desk, looking for anything useful.
Zahid, seemingly thinking the sa thing, crouched beside and searched through the desk drawers as well.
“As if a dog would be sulking.”
He checked even the back of the drawers with sharp eyes and deft hands, continuing to speak in a respectful tone.
“It was an honor to be treated as the beloved dog of a high-ranking priestess.”
“I never said you were beloved...”
“But being told to kiss you in front of others because you like muscular n? That was kind of exciting.”
“Wait. I feel like you’re skipping parts and mixing things together...”
We checked all the docunts, but disappointingly, there was nothing useful in Sogno’s desk.
“Nothing much,” I muttered with a sigh, and Zahid closed the drawer, adding,
“Sa over here.”
I thought the teasing had ended earlier, but the formal speech continued.
I gave him a look of disbelief and asked,
“Okay, seriously, what are you doing right now?”
“I’m attending you.”
“...No, you’re sulking.”
He chuckled as he crouched in front of the drawer, then took my hand and pressed his lips to it.
“When you said you’d negotiate the scope of ‘attending’ with another man, yeah, I sulked a little.”
“Well, that was...!”
I was standing, so I had no choice but to look down at him as he held my hand.
Even if it was part of a joke, seeing him like this, with that dangerously obedient expression, sent a strange feeling through .
“You said that even though you know I’ll never leave my master’s side...”
Still smiling wickedly, he slowly stood up and lifted into his arms.
“I’ll take it as a sign that I need to double my efforts within the agreed scope of attendance.”
His tone remained polite, but his attitude was thoroughly arrogant.
“Honestly, it’s easy. I just need to stop holding back. For example—”
“Zahid Dyfenril!”
I shouted, blocking his mouth as I found myself laid out on the simple bed.
“No dirty talk! Sure, we’re no longer kids and are brimming with energy, but still—!”
“Rosie.”
Zahid finally returned to his usual tone and whispered with a low voice.
“That guy... he probably didn’t understand anything when he was young and just kept holding it in. But my fiancée didn’t raise like that...”
“That’s because we didn’t even have the environnt for—”
“See? Thinking ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ about the environnt like that—that’s why he’s so hopeless.”
He chuckled darkly and pressed his lips to my neck.
“Even if it’s soone else’s bed, you should take every chance you get.”
Wherever his touch landed, sensation surged.
My whole body tingled, tension stretching to my toes, and I clenched the sheet tightly in my fists.
The sheet, densely embroidered with the Temple’s emblem, crumpled rcilessly in my hands.
“Don’t you agree?”
He whispered while leaving red marks not only on my foot but all over my body.
“When we get to Arhad, your brothers won’t even let near you.”
That part was probably true—I didn’t deny it and nodded.
We would soon be facing Aietar in Arhad.
It might be the last ti Zahid and I could stay this close together. I was sure he felt the sa.
“When everything’s over, let’s go to the ducal residence.”
Zahid bit my ear gently and whispered,
“We’ll bury ourselves in all the finest things I’ve prepared and stay like this for days on end.”
A moan escaped as pleasure coursed through .
With a trembling voice, he pressed on, whispering,
“In the castle I decorated while imagining only you returning to my side...”
It seed he was still haunted by the fact that we’d never embraced each other in a peaceful, comfortable space.
“Why’d you take such a risk? I’m not a child anymore. I’m strong enough to take care of things on my own.”
Zahid gently scolded as he whispered, and I squird in his arms, pouting.
“Violence is bad. It’s better to resolve things without injuries if possible. More than anything, I hate seeing my man’s pretty body get hurt.”
Zahid gave a soft laugh and buried his face against my shoulder.
“Every ti you say sothing like that, it drives wild... feels like you really are my Master.”
I shook my head slowly and said,
“‘Dog’? ‘Master’...? You really were brainwashed. I was just making stuff up—I didn’t know I had that kind of power.”
Then Zahid hugged tightly and whispered in a sultry voice,
“Then shouldn’t my Master take care of my labor benefits?”
His heated breath lingered on my skin again.
Wrapped in his firm arms, I lted into pleasure and thought:
I want to see the rooms Zahid prepared for at the Dyfenril estate. I want to see all the gifts he picked out one by one since he was a child.
And when that ti ca, I wished—more than anything—that I could be by his side with nothing but happiness on our faces, with no one hurt and no one lost.
I couldn’t bring myself to tell him that I had seen his mories from when he was around fifteen through Fire.
That “accidentally marrying Rosie and raising children in the estate like so many of his ancestors,” as he once said—that kind of future just broke my heart.
‘I’m your Divine Beast’s master now.’
I repeated Yuta’s prophecy in my mind.
‘And I’m Rosie Noart.’
Suppressing my trembling unease and the tears that threatened to fall, I pressed my lips to Zahid’s.
‘I’ve already made all the plans. We can beat Aietar.’
The ship carrying us shot past the border like a bolt of lightning.
And Zahid proved that doubling his effort was, in fact, no challenge for him at all.
* * *
So ti later
A street in the Empire.
“Seriously... I really hate this kind of stuff.”
Ethan grumbled as he walked, robed and drawing unwanted attention from passersby.
“Even if I’m an archmage, being stared at like this is terrifying...”
People on the street were sneaking glances at Ethan. Understandable, considering what he was riding.
“Ugh, Theo... Was this really the best you could do?”
It looked like so kind of carriage—except it had no horse and was moving at an alarming speed.
“It’s from our research team... No normal person can ride it. Only an archmage might be able to handle it.”
“But did it have to be this design? Can’t it at least have a lid?”
“Nope. For the flow of mana, this is optimal.”
The ‘auto-cart’ Theo made certainly had one clear advantage: speed.
Compared to a carriage powered by mana acceleration stones, it wasn’t even close.
But because no one had ever seen a vehicle shaped like this before, it was only natural for it to draw attention.
“If I weren’t coming all the way from the Principality of Arden, I’d never ride this freaky thing...”
Ethan hated everything about the situation—but the distance was too long, and there was no choice.
Plus, the ssage delivered via the Magic Tower had been critical.
Yuta Orgon has been captured. Grab what you prepared before and co to Arhad imdiately.
– Julian Noart
Julian, worried about interception, had left the ssage at the Tower, and Ethan had no choice but to check it.
And now, to reach Arhad, he had to board that damned magical contraption once again.
“Anyway, I’ve gotta hurry...”
Ethan pulled his hood down further and mumbled.
“If things are that serious, Rosie will definitely co too.”
Just as Ethan was cutting swiftly across the street—
KWA-AAAAANG!
A deafening boom erupted, and the ground began to shake.
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