Chapter 193
Chapter 193
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 193
Chapter Title: 56-1. David and Goliath.
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Pine Granasia was utterly confused.
When she came to, Licht was taking off his shirt.
And as if to match, his helmet and masterpiece armor lay discarded nearby.
'...What the hell happened while I was out cold?'
No matter how much she trusted Licht, only he himself could remove his helmet.
So how?
She stared blankly at Licht.
His solid muscles looked like they'd been meticulously sculpted by a master artisan, stitch by stitch.
The veins bulging on the back of his hand felt almost indecently alluring.
Gulp. Pine found herself entertaining wicked thoughts.
Could he have taken advantage of her while she was drowning, trying to mate with her or something?
Her fantasies made her breath hitch for a moment.
Her fingertips trembled, and her lips quivered, struggling to form words.
"L... Licht...?"
In truth, things had gone exactly as Pine wished.
If he'd really laid hands on the princess of the Granasia Empire...
She'd have the perfect excuse to bind him to her, preventing him from ever returning to his original world.
So why did it feel so embarrassingly thrilling?
Back in the North, she hadn't felt a thing like this.
Actually, this kind of honey trap was straight out of the strategy books she'd studied for imperial studies.
To claim someone as her own, she'd use money, power—whatever it took to monopolize them.
That had been Pine Granasia's policy as a princess.
But now, the food chain had flipped.
The hunter and the hunted had switched places.
"..."
She'd always thought of him as just a wolf.
But now it felt like a serpent had coiled around her, squeezing tight.
Pine's heart pounded faster than usual, accompanied by a ticklish sensation.
Thump, thump.
Her accelerating pulse and wandering gaze tormented her.
Even when she squeezed her eyes shut, visions of his naked body from the North flooded back.
'No... no way...?'
When she opened her eyes again, Licht was approaching to check on her.
Right now, she both wanted him to come closer and prayed he wouldn't—a contradictory mess of emotions.
No matter how hard she bit her innocent lips, her judgment clouded.
The most she could muster by way of resistance was clawing at the ground with her hands.
Then something brushed her fingers.
A white dress shirt.
Folded so the cleanest part faced up.
'...Did Licht save my life again?'
Finally snapping to her senses, she pieced together the situation.
She remembered feeling as heavy as a boulder after some attack hit her.
Then, trying to help Licht as he rushed to save the students...
She'd been swept away by the swollen ravine. After that, her memory blanked.
Having coughed up all the water, a wave of shame crashed over her.
Misjudging her lifesaver made her want to crawl into a hole.
"Hic."
Pine hated the hiccups that kept coming no matter how hard she held her breath.
The downpour had ended, leaving the waterfall calm.
He grabbed her hand and cast a healing spell.
"Don't move yet, Pine."
A warm, gentle glow gathered and settled over her.
Saved by him again. But instead of relief, a corner of her heart felt unsettled.
'...Huh?'
Something was off about Licht's reaction.
His head hung low toward the ground, avoiding her eyes.
He was desperately trying not to stare at her swimsuit-clad body.
There was no reason for the bold man who'd approached her moments ago to act so strangely...
"What... the hell... did you do...?"
The outfit she wore now was precarious.
The skimpy fabric and strings screamed for mercy.
The drenched black bikini clung to her skin, digging in painfully.
"Hic, pervert... puppy... sniff... ugh."
Every movement required her to adjust it with her fingers.
But even covering with both arms wasn't enough.
Water droplets kept trickling down her delicate curves.
The bikini hadn't fit her figure perfectly to begin with, and now it was at its limit.
Plain, neither flashy nor cute.
That's why she'd hesitated to show it to Licht.
Its primness contrasting her fierce physique was like a wild beast sheathing its claws.
It stirred men's hearts all the more easily.
"Licht... did you touch my body?"
Finally realizing the key point, she questioned him.
"I had no choice if I wanted to save you! Your heart had stopped, so I..."
Licht shouted, his face and neck flushed beet red.
He was so flustered that cold sweat beaded on his skin.
He hadn't seemed this rattled even during their mixed bath in the North.
Pine's bikini look was outrageously provocative.
Her wasp-waisted curves made it more captivating than on anyone else, stealing gazes effortlessly.
The blend of flesh tones and black hit me harder than anything.
It's just a normal swimsuit.
So why did it look so indecent on her?
I'd never seen anything like it in the game.
Showing something that risqué would've gotten it slapped with a mature rating ban right away.
It'd been bearable before. Now my face burned so hot I felt like I was going mad.
"...Pine, could you come over here instead?"
I had to endure. Come on, Lee Soo-hyun.
I took deep breaths, trying to regain composure.
There was still work to do.
Healing spells fixed her damaged organs, but her low body temperature was still dangerous.
Her lips had turned blue just looking at her face.
The sealed cave offered no way to light a fire.
"No... hate it... embarrassing... sniff..."
Her body began shivering like a leaf, her flushed cheeks draining to pale.
Pine Granasia could barely speak now.
This was critical.
I tried grabbing her hand for another spell, but it failed.
Her fading consciousness disrupted the mana circuits; they wouldn't hold.
No time to waste.
"Just stay like this for a bit. We need to raise your temperature, Pine."
I hugged her from behind, thawing her with my body heat.
Small compared to my large frame, she fit perfectly in my arms.
Unlike before, her waterlogged wolf tail felt thinner, intriguing.
Not slippery now, but sticky against me.
The sensation through that single layer of black fabric was soft,
and the ravine's water made our skin cling even tighter.
How did things between us end up like this?
Pine squirmed a little before surrendering to my hold.
Even trying to wrap my arms around her waist, I feared brushing somewhere wrong, so I settled for her navel area.
That's when it happened—the ill-fitting bikini bunched up between her breasts.
Lukewarm water, warmed by her body, sloshed in a handful's worth.
"..."
And spilled.
Drip by drip, the tepid stream ran down my arm.
"Heat Warm."
My mind snapped alert; I chanted the spell immediately.
Warmth spread instantly, enveloping us in coziness.
Not wanting to trouble her further, I released her the moment her temperature normalized.
"Licht, aren't you... cold?"
Yet she leaned back against me, unmoving.
Her temperature should've returned to normal. Was she doing this on purpose?
"I'm fine. A few scratches like this are nothing..."
In saving her from the rapids, I'd been battered by branches and debris—my body was covered in wounds.
"Liar. You're scraped up bad."
Pine weakly swatted my arm. Splash, from the lingering moisture.
Guess I can't lie after all. Honestly, the water stung the cuts.
Still, wasn't this a pretty good trade?
"Think about the people watching..."
"But others come before my own body."
Pine cast a healing spell on me too.
Her hands clasped like in prayer, forming an invisible magic circle.
Times like this, I noticed our similarities.
Why hadn't I realized sooner? I lamented my abysmal perceptiveness.
"...So, what'd you think of my swimsuit?"
Her fingers teasingly traced my arm like a spider crawling, as she asked.
It tickled. Good to see her color fully returned, looking lively.
"It looks amazing on you."
"...That's it? That's all you've got?"
How should I put this?
I stood abruptly and knelt before her.
"At first, I was disappointed seeing something so out of place in the ravine on you."
I met her eyes steadily as I spoke calmly.
Pine's eyes widened, hot breath escaping her parted lips.
Like she wanted more praise or something.
"...!"
As I placed a hand on the wall beside her, Pine's back naturally pressed against the cave wall.
Her retreat foiled.
"I couldn't fathom what you'd hidden underneath."
Pine bowed her head.
Avoiding my gaze, her tail drooping too.
"......Now it's enough to give me bad ideas."
I didn't know what answer she wanted, but I was honest.
I couldn't claim I harbored no dark thoughts.
Better a honest wolf than a lying shepherd boy.
As I moved to stand and give her space, lest she get startled—
Rumble—
The wall section I'd touched crumbled, revealing something.
A ruby-red potion glimmered, hidden in the cave's inner wall.