Obsession (5)
Obsession (5)
As time passed, the remaining empty seats filled one by one with cadets.
The lecture hall had large desks spaced apart from one another. The desks were more than spacious enough for two cadets to share comfortably.
There was still time before the lecture began.
In the meantime, some cadets reviewed the previous lecture material, while others chatted with the cadets seated at the same desk.
A few had already activated the magic embedded in their desks, pulled up holograms, and were debating spell formulas among themselves.
"..."
"..."
All the while, plenty of people kept sneaking glances at my desk and whispering quietly to one another.
They thought they were hiding their gazes and lowering their voices. The presence they gave off was subtle enough that most would have missed it—but I felt it very clearly.
Probably because of what I'd done just a moment ago. It nagged at me a little, but not enough to say anything about it, so I ignored it.
— Gently...
...But the gaze persistently clinging to me from right next to me was rather hard to ignore.
I swallowed a sigh and turned my head.
[What is it...?]
"Nothing at all."
The owner of the stare fixed on me from directly beside me was Baek A-rin.
She had her chin propped on one hand, and at my question she gave a shameless shrug.
Nothing at all. That was what Baek A-rin said, but her lukewarm gaze and the corners of her lips, curled into a smirk, remained unchanged. She didn't seem to be trying to hide anything.
It was an awfully difficult face, gaze, and smirk to ignore.
[Then why are you looking at me like that...?]
"Oh, no reason, just... I was thinking, wow, Baek Ha-yul wanted to be with me that badly~"
Baek A-rin's gaze dropped downward. Her waist, thin as an ant's compared to her chest and hips, was wrapped snugly in a blue sash.
"Wearing it like this even outside? What, is this some kind of territory marking? 'He's mine, so don't touch'?"
[D-don't poke it...]
"Hmm~?"
Baek A-rin kept grinning and poked at the sash wrapped around her waist. The subtle sensation that carried over made my shoulders jolt.
I pressed my lips shut.
"Hm."
When I didn't respond, Baek A-rin's eyes curved gently.
An ominous sign. But before I could stop her, Baek A-rin's lips parted first.
"T-today... can't you sit with me... please...?"
[Urgh...]
The sound trembled through Baek A-rin's lips, and a voice came out, pleading and wet with moisture.
I'd heard that tone just a little while ago. She was good at it too—it was like she'd plucked the memory right out and put it on repeat.
A faint shame sent a rush of blood to my face. I tried to control it, but it didn't go well.
My face reddened more and more. In the end, the Sky Wing Feather moved on its own and wrapped around my face, covering it.
"Getting embarrassed now? Over something like this? Last time, your whole body was comple—"
[Baek!]
"Alright, alright, I'll be quiet about this one."
Baek A-rin let out a giggle. Even that laugh embarrassed me, so I buried my face in the desk. A hand came over my head and gently stroked my hair.
"Awww, you really didn't wanna be apart that badly?"
[Stop teasing me...]
"Okay, okay, it's fine. I'll stay right next to you. And you can keep the sash on too, that's fine... okay?"
Baek A-rin's teasing and touch continued until the professor walked in.
...Since Baek A-rin had given permission, I wrapped the winged garment around her even more snugly.
.
.
.
"Today's lecture will begin from page 163."
The professor, who had arrived right on time, proceeded with the lecture without delay.
I hadn't actually attended many of the Practical Workshop Construction classes, but I knew how they operated.
At first, everyone gathered in the lecture hall to go over theory and do simple hands-on practice using the devices installed on the desks.
Normally, the professor would explain basic theory here, then have everyone go down to the underground training ground to construct workshops directly and experiment with them.
There were a few cases where things differed, but this lecture seemed to be following the standard format.
Standing on the podium, the professor pointed at the large hologram floating in the air and explained the deconstructed workshop spell formulas.
Compared to the first lecture, the difficulty's definitely gone up a lot.
I nodded along as I observed the spell formulas displayed on the hologram.
I'd missed a lot of ground while I was away from class. The difficulty had jumped accordingly—the spell configurations were far more complex now.
"Some of you have had to miss lectures here and there due to various circumstances, but if you focus well, you'll catch up quickly."
Mid-lecture, the professor looked the cadets in the eye as he said that. The direction his gaze went included me.
It was true—I'd missed a lot in between and had fallen behind on the material.
Still, it's not hard.
The difficulty had certainly risen compared to the first lecture, but it wasn't hard.
If anything, it felt easier than that first day.
If I just fix formula 3 there, the base and spatial occupation will work. The rest are just completely misconstructed formulas.
Because compared to back then, my magical ability was on a whole different level.
I'd received a full month of painstaking one-on-one instruction from Ariel at the Tower of Knowledge.
Education from the founder of the Magic Council, the Tower Master of Knowledge.
When someone like that had taught me so diligently, if I couldn't solve a problem at this level on the spot, I'd be too ashamed to face Ariel.
"...Hm?"
For a moment, doubt crept into the professor's eyes as he stared at me.
His gaze slowly shifted. Following the winged garment floating behind me, he fixed his eyes on the sash wrapped snugly around Baek A-rin's waist.
— Slither...
"Hm?"
At the professor's gaze, the Sky Wing Feather reflexively bound Baek A-rin's waist even more meticulously.
At the suddenly tightened restraint, Baek A-rin rolled her eyes toward me. Her blinking blue eyes held a hint of puzzlement.
— Is something wrong?
I shook my head lightly at Baek A-rin, who'd mouthed the question at me, and signaled that it was nothing.
"...I'll continue. To unravel this spell formula, you must first address the external..."
The professor fell silent for a moment, then turned his head and continued the lecture as if nothing had happened.
— Staaare...
I could feel Baek A-rin's gaze alternating between my face and the winged garment wrapped around her waist, but I pretended not to notice and kept my head fixed forward.
"Hmmm..."
Then it happened.
Baek A-rin tilted her head and let out an odd little hum. Like before, unease tapped at the back of my mind.
Just as I was about to act instead of letting it slide, Baek A-rin's hand shot out and grabbed my backside firmly.
— Squeeze...!
— Hnk...!
The sensation shot up my spine and into my head, making my whole body jolt hard.
— Thud!
My knee knocked against the desk.
Since the professor was mid-explanation, the sound didn't carry far. And it didn't hurt enough to matter.
"Hm?"
— Gasp...!
The problem was that the cadet in front of me had tilted his head and turned to glance this way.
Startled, I clapped a hand over my trembling lips. And as naturally as I could, I struck a pose that looked like I was just resting my head on my hand.
Very fortunately, from that cadet's angle, Baek A-rin's hand reaching downward was hidden from view by the desk.
"What was...?"
"What's up?"
"Nothing, I thought I heard something."
The cadet tilted his head, then turned his gaze back to the hologram at the front.
A sigh of relief barely escaped me. I hastily tapped at Baek A-rin's hand, which was still gripping my backside.
Even so, the hand didn't come off.
My eyes trembled at the corners. I infused my mana with intent and sent it to Baek A-rin.
It was a technique I'd picked up naturally—Sound Transmission.
— Baek A-rin, please let go...
Perhaps the voice had echoed in her head, because Baek A-rin's eyes widened, and she let out a little snicker, pressing her index finger to her own lips.
— Shh...
A gesture telling me to be quiet, while her hand was still firmly gripping someone else's backside.
As I blinked at her, utterly dumbfounded, Baek A-rin whispered softly.
"You're the one who grabbed me first, Ha-yul."
— What?
What did she mean by that? I tilted my head, and Baek A-rin pointed at her own waistline.
There it was—the Sky Wing Feather, wrapped so thoroughly around her waist that it was encroaching past her pelvis.
Ah.
— Squeeze...!
Hnk...
Baek A-rin smirked playfully, and before I could even react, she kneaded my backside.
It didn't end with one squeeze like before.
Her hand spread wide to fill itself with as much as it could hold, and she worked it over and over like a massage.
The sensation kept scraping at my mind; my body twitched and jerked. Afraid I might knock the desk again, I planted my feet flat against the floor and bit my lip.
The spot where Baek A-rin and I were seated was the very back row, and we were facing the lectern.
As a result, there was no one behind us. Whether that was fortunate or unfortunate, no one could witness this outrageous teasing.
"...So the spell formula that can be unraveled using the method I've just explained is formula 51. Ahem... Cadet Lee Ha-yul?"
[Y-yes, yes!]
"...? Would you like to try solving it?"
That was the moment—after Baek A-rin's playful teasing had gone on for a while—when the professor, who had been continuing his explanation, suddenly tossed a question my way.
Thankfully, Baek A-rin seemed to have no intention of taking the joke that far, and she gently removed her hand.
Only then did the scratching sensation in my head gradually settle. I let out the breath I'd been holding tightly in my mouth and rose from my seat on unsteady legs.
I manipulated the hologram floating above the desk and wrote out the solution and answer.
I'd been teased, but I'd listened to the explanation just fine. I'd also already solved the problem in question beforehand, so I just needed to write down the solution process and the answer.
[The foundational spell formulas that established the base are 46 types. Among them, formula 3 serves as the central axis acting as a barrier. The modified formula begins here...]
— Squeeze...!
[Realignmnk...!]
.
.
.
[Hmph.]
"Ahaha, I'm sorry. I took the joke too far, didn't I?"
After the Practical Workshop Construction lecture ended.
Baek A-rin led me, still sulking, to a private training room.
We'd planned to visit anyway. The purpose was private instruction in the Azure Sea.
Since my use of the Azure Sea had already been discovered and Baek A-rin had offered to teach me personally, I'd accepted without hesitation and had been receiving her guidance from time to time.
And as an added bonus, I periodically melted Baek A-rin's ice for her too.
But before we began, Baek A-rin apparently felt the need to soothe my sulking, because she sat me on her lap and began coaxing and placating me.
— Puff...
But I wasn't going to let myself be placated that easily.
It wasn't just any time—doing that during a lecture was extremely troublesome.
I steeled my resolve and puffed out my cheeks. Baek A-rin let the corners of her eyes droop as if she were sorry.
Then, with a hand imbued with the cold energy of the Azure Sea, she gently stroked the backside she'd been squeezing so firmly.
"I'm sorry... Did it hurt a lot?"
[It feeelt goooood.]
[...It didn't hurt.]
A coolness spread through my backside, which had grown heated from all the kneading. As the warmth subsided, the air I'd been holding tight in my cheeks came out with it.
[It's cool.]
[Nice...]
As my stiffened body melted into softness, I leaned my head against Baek A-rin's chest.
Seeing my puffed-up cheeks deflate, Baek A-rin adjusted her posture so that I was sitting facing her, then patted my backside this time.
Just like before, her touch was full of gentleness.
Her hand rested warmly over my backside, and the sensation of her rhythmic patting gradually made my pouting lips retreat inward.
...Come to think of it, this probably wasn't something worth sulking this much over.
I'd wrapped myself around Baek A-rin too, and normally I kneaded her chest as much as I wanted... Mm...
[I wasn't really angry. I was just flustered.]
"Thank you for accepting my apology."
At my answer, Baek A-rin beamed. Her looks were so striking that I almost felt the whole area brighten.
That was the outer mask. A purely bright and radiant smile—the kind perfectly suited to the public perception of Baek A-rin.
On the inside, she was still nearly expressionless.
If there was a positive change, it was that the inner corners of her lips were ever so slightly upturned now.
As time went on, the interior was becoming far easier to read.
The mask, the Bitter Cold, the curse, the Curse-Lifting Jewel, Calamity Flame...
My sulking subsided, and various thoughts connected to Baek A-rin drifted through my head.
[...Can I touch your chest?]
"Yes, as much as you like."
Even at the sudden request, Baek A-rin shrugged and pushed her chest forward. Her ample chest, wrapped in a dress shirt, pressed firmly against my face.
— Whoosh!
I gathered Calamity Flame into my right hand.
Calamity Flame that was different from the usual—gentle and easy to control.
It was changing to match Baek A-rin's constitution, in the process of Harmonization, so that I could melt her more easily, more safely, and more quickly.
Someday...
So that I wouldn't just melt the outer layer, but safely and cleanly melt away the thing that had wormed itself inside what was mine.
I observed Baek A-rin very carefully and Harmonized the Calamity Flame little by little.
— Squeeze...
"Nnn..."
...
[Soft.]
[Voluptuous.]
* * *
[Player Correction System: Affection]
Lee Ha-yul → Baek A-rin
●●●●●●●○○○(79/100)
｢Cold Energy｣ ｢Coolness｣ ｢Affection｣ ｢Curiosity｣ ｢Dairy Cow?｣ ｢Teasing｣ ｢Water｣
* * *
