Chapter 103
Chapter 103
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 103
Chapter Title: The Weight of Love
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The day after accepting Victoria's confession, I woke up later than usual.
The warm sunlight streaming through the window the moment I opened my eyes, and the bright room even without a light on, clearly indicated it was already mid-morning.
Normally, I had grown accustomed to sleepless nights—either staying up to remove the flowers blooming on Victoria's body or being unable to sleep due to the guilt of having caused the deaths of my hometown people.
"Ah, you're awake? Last night was truly blissful. Though it's a shame we couldn't go all the way... I removed all the flowers from your body, and we confirmed our feelings."
"...It's a bit flustering."
"Isn't hugging a given for lovers who love each other?"
Victoria was currently hugging me, sending a loving gaze as if she felt no shame.
Was this why I slept so well? The softness and warmth I felt where our bodies touched seemed to melt even my heart.
Before, even when we slept in the same bed, we never got this physically close.
- You talk a little in your sleep... I hope he didn't notice I woke up early and kept staring at his face?
Hearing Victoria's inner thoughts, it seemed she had woken up before me and spent a pleasant time admiring me as I slept soundly.
Having this repeated confirmation that Victoria and I had become real lovers made my face feel hot and flushed.
"Hah, your face is all red. You're as cute as a beet."
"Your ears and neck are red too."
"Aren't the marks on my neck and chest from the kiss marks you left? Like you were determined not to let anyone else have me, you were so fervent last night..."
"......"
Victoria said this with a beaming smile, deliberately letting her clothes shift slightly to show the traces of how passionately we had expressed our love the previous night.
Perhaps because there was a certain line we couldn't cross due to the tenets set by the Heavenly God Lumina, leaving some regret, we instead spent a long time physically expressing just how much we loved each other.
"It's because you're so beautiful. Honestly, sometimes I think a man like me doesn't deserve you..."
"There you go with the bad talk again. Why on earth are you worrying about that? Have some confidence. You're a hero who succeeded in vanquishing two of the Demon King's Four Heavenly Kings, and my one-of-a-kind, incredibly handsome lover."
"...I think I look pretty average."
"If you say that out loud, you might get stoned to death by the men of the Empire. Have you forgotten that even the Succubus Queen, who was our enemy, once had her sights on you?"
Victoria's words were hard to refute—they were practically the truth.
Having been popular with girls since childhood, I was actually rather clumsy with emotions like romance and love precisely because of the excessive attention.
Moreover, Victoria wasn't drawn to my looks; she had fallen for the human side of me she saw while living together.
"Besides, you didn't fall for me because I'm handsome, right? In the past, we used to bicker and fight all day long..."
It was an anxiety I hadn't felt during our contract relationship.
Now that it was a real, not fake, relationship, I cherished it more and worried about potential problems more than before.
"...That may be true, but I never thought you were ugly. Though I did dislike seeing you constantly indulging in unhealthy habits like drinking and smoking."
Victoria poked my cheek while scolding me. Perhaps sensing my unease, she didn't release her arm wrapped around my waist but instead hugged me tighter.
"If you're worried I might disappear somewhere..."
Mwah, squeeze.
Victoria furrowed her brow slightly, then planted a long kiss on my neck, leaving a mark.
"...Wouldn't it be enough to show each other we belong to each other like this? Love is an emotion even death cannot part."
"Victoria, the kissing is a bit relentless..."
"If I want to do it in a visible spot, even if hidden by robes, it takes time and effort. You did this to me last night, and now you're feeling shy?"
Victoria's soft, moist lips kept touching my neck, her sweet breath and sighs tickling my skin. I kept trembling slightly, unable to get used to it, but...
Victoria merely continued her actions, smiling with a seductiveness that could almost be mistaken for a succubus.
"Yesterday you were suffering from a fever... Are you still not done? Are you trying to satisfy all the cravings you couldn't before?"
"Just a little more. Honestly, did you know the kisses you gave me yesterday were incredibly intense too? They were so ticklish and stimulating I could barely stand it, and even when I begged you to stop, you kept targeting my weak spots..."
"...Sorry about that."
A memory flashed by—Victoria had been so adorable, even wearing that cow-patterned outfit for me, that I lost my self-control and went wild.
"Or perhaps, next time I should wear a bell around my neck or a headband to show I'm your vulgar little milk cow every time my body shakes, so you won't worry?"
"......"
"Ah, come to think of it, we didn't use magic. Using invisibility magic to brand me as your possession in front of others, making me a body no other man could ever satisfy..."
"That would ruin both our reputations and status from the start. We're a mage called the successor to the Blue Tower Master and a nation's Saint..."
"That's exactly the point. If we become beings no one else could love, doesn't that mean you could never run away from my side?"
After covering my neck, shoulders, and other visible areas with red marks, she finally wore a satisfied expression, licking her lips as she spoke.
The starlit-sea gleam in Victoria's eyes momentarily lost its spark, replaced by a cold gaze directed at me.
"If we're hated and scorned by everyone, driven to the ends of the earth, licking each other's wounds like injured puppies, becoming each other's sole support... then you wouldn't need to worry about me being taken by someone else, would you?"
"...Love feels too heavy, Victoria."
I honestly confessed to Victoria that her loving feelings for me felt overwhelmingly heavy.
Victoria was currently considering various scenarios, preparing for any potential problems, even contemplating kidnapping or confining me.
- Ah, even if I made you drink a silencing potion, it's a shame you're a mage who can cast spells without incantations. I wish I could show you firsthand that your worries are pointless...
This voice, audible only to me, was proof.
Ever since the day Victoria and I entered our contract relationship, I had gained the ability to read her inner thoughts.
"Why do you say that? Isn't love supposed to be thicker than blood and heavier than steel? Just imagining a world without you makes me feel like my body is being torn apart, like I'll die..."
"I know I often have negative thoughts and extreme tendencies... but I wish my girlfriend wouldn't do the same."
Having succeeded in dating me, Victoria was showing this strong obsessive side, determined never to separate or break up.
"...Our future child might see and learn from it."
To soothe Victoria's obsession and worries, I had no choice but to honestly express that we needed to rid ourselves of these flaws.
Frankly, if both mother and father show such insecure behavior, it couldn't possibly be good for a child growing up watching them.
"......!!!"
At that, Victoria's eyes widened dramatically, the spark returning to her starlit-sea pupils.
"...I see. Hehehe, so you're also thinking about the adorable child that will come from you and me."
Victoria, who had already decided on her grandson's name as Sirius and granddaughter's as Merak, seemed unbearably delighted by my words, rubbing her face against my chest happily.
"As always, you are a hundred times right. Parents must set an example in all things."
Would we be able to date well going forward?
Even though we'd only been together for a day, seeing this intensely obsessive side of Victoria made me feel afraid of her for the first time.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ It was only by the time of a late lunch that Victoria finally released her hug, allowing us to leave the inn.
"What on earth did you two do last night to sleep in so late? And what's with your appearances... never mind. Fine. Whatever."
Kyle let out a deep sigh as he watched Victoria and me, who had emerged from our room later than usual, awkwardly avoiding eye contact and merely holding hands tightly without even offering an excuse.
He seemed to have noticed the marks on my neck and realized our relationship had deepened a step further.
"Some of us have been researching how to use a corrupted Holy Sword without even getting to see our girlfriends... I'm a bit jealous of you guys."
"I, too, was waiting day and night, apologizing to Anima, in order to teach Lord Astal the Druid Transformation magic..."
Taryon also offered a slightly reproachful comment, looking at Kyle.
He was the one who had been minimizing displays of affection even with his lover Anima to survive in the Demon Realm overflowing with demons and monsters.
"What's with everyone! Isn't it good that Victoria and Astal are dating now? He quit smoking and drinking, and they don't fight anymore!"
Only the pure Anima, unaware of the seriousness entangled in this situation, made a fuss, happily commenting on how Victoria and I seemed to get along well.