Chapter 164
Chapter 164
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 164
Chapter Title: Their Possessiveness is Strong
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“...Hah!”
I bolted awake with a shout.
I barely managed to get up. A little longer, and it would've been a disaster.
The dream had cut off right at the moment when Pine—her hair black—gracefully lifted the hem of her black dress with both hands and walked toward me with haughty poise.
The sight in the dream of rose vines twisting together to form a wolf was breathtakingly beautiful... yet utterly chilling at the same time.
My whole body felt sticky. The bedsheets were drenched in sweat.
But why is she unbuttoning my shirt?
“Pine... what are you... doing...?”
Her face was beet red, frozen in place.
Her wolf tail and ears drooped flat.
“Ah, uh... it's... Licht.”
A double-sized bed. My necktie undone. My shirt already half-torn open, completely exposed.
All of this... it couldn't mean what I thought it did, could it?
“...Pine?”
“Don't get up... Licht.”
As I tried to prop myself up, Pine gently pressed down on my shoulders to stop me.
The irresistible strength of a wolf. Her breath trembled faintly against me.
“I-I can explain everything.”
Pine stared at the floor, unable to meet my eyes. Her flushed face peeked slightly through strands of white hair.
Today must be my execution day.
Right then, the status window popped up before my eyes again.
The tiny pictogram tucked beside it blatantly depicted our current position.
Move aside—you're blocking Pine's face.
“Licht, you... you seemed to be having a nightmare, so...”
Seemed like it, so what were you planning to do?
Pine's voice grew quieter by the syllable.
Her shrinking posture was adorable.
She didn't look like a wolf at all—more like a hamster. I could probably just pocket her and carry her around like this.
“You couldn't breathe, so...”
Ah, so I misunderstood.
Pine's eyes were rimmed red.
If she'd really intended something shady even by the slightest chance, she wouldn't look like that.
“...”
A brief silence settled in.
We stayed frozen, neither able to meet the other's gaze.
Our body heat mingled, the warmth spreading vividly like ink blooming in water.
“S-Sorry for worrying you... I passed out right after perfecting that sword technique...”
I broke the silence first. After all, I was the one responsible for things escalating this far.
Pine must have carried me all the way here on her back.
A faint memory lingered of a strange rose scent wafting after I collapsed from the Demon King Slayer backlash.
“No... How's your body feeling? You okay?”
“Thanks to you, I think I'll live.”
Honestly, breathing felt easier now. Even though my shirt was soaked through from the ordeal.
“...Good.”
Pine let out a relieved sigh, hand over her chest. How worried must she have been?
Last time, Kainel barely held it off too. A nightmare that only lifts once the holy sword activates.
The Black Rose Pine only appears in my dreams. From what the Tar Dune messenger said, she sounds incredibly dangerous...
‘...But she hasn't actually threatened me yet.’
She could enter the Library of Truth and even my dreams, but still.
There's a difference between being able to do something but choosing not to, and being unable to.
“Licht...?”
“Pine, ever thought about dyeing your hair black?”
I dropped my hand from my chin.
Pine's hair was currently white. If the route branched to black hair...
The most likely scenario was a world line where Empress Bellin survived.
“Why? Don't tell me you prefer white hair...?”
Pine immediately ran her fingers through her locks. My words had backfired the moment they left my mouth.
“...No, I like white hair.”
Water under the bridge now. Time to salvage it. What should I say?
“Really...?”
Her snowy white wolf tail swished grandly side to side. The fluffy fur gleamed invitingly.
“White hair sparkles in the sunlight—it's pretty.”
“Ah...”
Pine's eyes widened, her tail starting to wag like a motor.
“You're serious... Licht.”
Her cheeks flushed as she beamed with joy. Her pristine white ears perked straight up.
“In the dream... you had black hair, so I got worried.”
“...You scared me.”
She smiled brightly, glancing at her wrist.
“Um, Pine. Could you get off me now...?”
I asked her to move. She was light, but still.
“Ah, s-sorry...!”
This time, the position was all wrong. Pine was an innocent girl who knew nothing.
I'm the messed-up adult here. Get off quick. Please.
The moment Pine returned to the palace, she pulled out something encased in ice magic.
“Ah, found it...”
The Cyclops-sized chocolate Licht had gifted her.
The familiar red rose wrapping screamed [Valentine's Day is Always Today!]
Click. She speared a few pieces with a fork and paired them with warm milk—the bitterness mellowed out.
“...A little sweet.”
The smooth flavor melted on her tongue. It was the work of the patisserie she frequented like a regular.
“Licht said it was pretty...”
Pine fiddled with the blue rose ornament as she replayed his words.
He knew her hair had gone white from stress.
Just hearing he liked it made her content.
“...Hee hee.”
A lot had happened at Tar Dune's temple.
Magic Hat's shadow creeping closer again. And Licht's past.
She knew he'd come from another world, but not that he'd lost his parents like her.
No, it was different. In the end, Licht had saved her from Magic Hat's card, opening up possibilities.
‘Soo-hyun.’
The boy with black hair and brown eyes. He looked so innocent as a child.
But the fire had taken everything from him.
“...Bitter.”
The chocolate tasted more bitter than ever. It hadn't been like this moments ago.
Clink. A sharp pain stabbed her chest; she set down the fork and stared at the half-eaten chocolate.
‘Is there anything I can do for him...?’
No. She was even losing ground to this Nameless Saintess. She couldn't keep doing this.
“...”
She bit her lower lip hard.
It was just his unrequited first love. Yet she often wished she could have been that person.
At least then, she could've hugged him tight and told him he did well. Vanishing without a word was cruel.
Before coming here, they'd been lovers... No. Thinking about it only felt like a thorn in her throat.
Why? It had nothing to do with her.
“Dijur.”
Pine summoned the butler waiting outside her door.
“Yes, Lady Pine.”
As a high-ranking Imperial Guard, he served the imperial princess Pine Granasia.
“...Is there any way I can help the knight?”
Her gaze dropped.
She couldn't think of a solution herself, so she sought wisdom from another.
She'd just fretted over Licht's nightmare.
Just imagining him fighting the Demon King and getting hurt made her feel like her feet were on fire.
“The knight, milady...?”
Dijur tilted his head at the unfamiliar term.
The Imperial Guard and knights were that sort, but his lady seemed to mean someone else.
“You mean... Sir Licht, perhaps?”
The man in the Black Knight helm. There was only one man the Granasia Empire's princess would fuss over.
“Ah, yes. Licht...”
She didn't know his pet name for Licht. Pine realized her slip too late.
“What sort of help do you seek?”
Dijur noted her change, surprise etching his face.
“...I'm scared of Licht getting hurt or in danger when I'm not there.”
She fidgeted with her fingers as she confessed her raw truth.
“Then... why not stay by his side?”
The butler offered a swift solution.
As princess, being nearby would reduce risks. Power and guards could preempt issues.
“Not enough...”
Pine shook her head. She already spent most of her academy time with him.
“I want to... be there for him even more...”
But it wasn't sufficient. What if he collapsed again like this time?
The mere possibility of him getting hurt away from her terrified even an imperial princess.
“Hm. How about living together in the palace?”
Dijur ran through every option. Pine Granasia wouldn't be swayed by warnings anyway.
“...Father won't allow it.”
Leaning back in her chair, Pine sighed.
Last time, the Wolf King had brandished an axe at Licht.
She disliked how her father treated her precious person so roughly.
What was wrong with Licht? Was it his unfairly handsome face that drew women?
“Then the dormitories are your only option.”
He'd already dug up Licht's full background. No flaws allowed for someone close to the princess.
“The academy dorms would let you reach that man, Licht, even in emergencies.”
They already shared heartbeats, after all.
“...Men's dorm?”
Pine's eyes sparkled with eager anticipation.
“No, to avoid issues, the women's dorm.”
Getting caught by Emperor Locke could level half the academy.
“Got it.”
The white-haired girl clenched her fists, resolve burning.
“Then, I'll handle all the necessary procedures in advance, Lady Pine.”
“Thanks.”
Dijur bowed and exited.
Alone now, Pine opened her palm and conjured a magic circle.
“...I can be with Licht.”
After drinking the moon's elixir, her glass magic had grown even more precise.
“My very own knight...”
She placed a tiny new statue on the table and smiled to herself.