A Night Together
A Night Together
It was early autumn, a time when the biting cold winds of the north began to blow.
The cold air flowing down from the snowy mountains brushed over the plains, spreading like a thin breath, and the training grounds adjacent to the Main Castle were wrapped in a quiet tension from early morning.
To prepare for the upcoming full-scale war with the Northern Barbarians, Iden was immersing himself in training that was more systematic and in-depth than before.
And the one leading that training was Erwin Vermir.
It was training to endure the battlefield using only Instant-cast Magic, without relying on summons or prior deployment.
"There is no time to prepare every single time in a full-scale war."
Erwin said firmly, her hands on her hips.
"The enemy is charging, and arrows are already flying. If you think and then draw, it's too late. Instinctive reactions must come first."
Iden nodded.
The first training was to shorten the speed of mana condensation.
Erwin swung her hand without any warning. The air compressed instantaneously, and an invisible shockwave pushed toward Iden's chest.
Iden raised his left hand without a moment to think. Mana solidified instantly on the surface of his skin, forming a thin film.
Kung.
A dull sound echoed as the impact collided. It was a timing where his balance would have crumbled if he had been even half a beat late.
"Slow."
Along with Erwin's words, a second wave flew in. This time, she aimed low. Iden put strength into his ankle muscles and emitted mana as if kicking the ground.
Thanks to the relentless training, Iden was now able to use magic not just with his fingertips, but with his toes as well.
His body weight lightened momentarily, lifting him slightly, and the impact scraped past the floor.
"Don't just defend; counterattack in a single breath."
Iden didn't catch his breath. He scattered the mana condensed in his right hand as if exploding it from his fingertips. The air split sharply, and linear pressure rushed toward Erwin. She lightly tilted her head to avoid it, but the ground was gouged deeply.
Kwa-ang!
"Good. But there is still a lot of mana leakage."
The training immediately moved to the next stage.
This time, it was continuous activation. Erwin poured out attacks without a regular interval. Cutting waves made by twisting the wind, vibrations that shook the ground, scorching flames, flashes that disturbed the vision—they were attacks without rules or warnings.
Iden read the minute vibrations of mana, the changes in air density, and the pressure differences brushing against his skin through his senses.
The hem of his clothes was torn by a cutting wave that narrowly brushed past his waist.
"That is real combat."
Erwin said coldly.
Iden grit his teeth. He didn't pull up a large amount of mana; instead, he focused on the sensation of splitting it into minimum units.
Three precise strikes are more efficient than one giant explosion.
"Here I come again."
Erwin intentionally shook the surrounding mana, making it unstable.
With his eyes half-closed, Iden focused on his interior rather than the exterior. He synchronized his heartbeat with the waves of mana.
So that even if the outside shook, his center would not.
So that the moment he raised his hand, activation would occur without delay.
A short spark of lightning flickered from his fingertips.
Following that, a shockwave brushing the floor spread out in a circle. Even within the unstable flow, the shaking was decreasing.
Pajijik-!
After pouring out dozens of attacks like that, Erwin caught her breath and withdrew her mana.
"Are you starting to get the hang of it now?"
Erwin asked.
Iden panted and laughed.
"You're pushing me to the brink of death."
"That's how you stay alive."
The final training was close-quarters response.
The Northern Barbarians do not only use magic. Charges, throws, close-range brawls. In all those situations, one must create openings with Instant-cast Magic.
The two's magic began to clash again, even closer this time.
**
The air in the training ground was already heated up from several collisions. The lingering scent of mana floated faintly, and the trampled dirt floor was cracked in places.
The sun began to set, but the movements of the two did not slow down in the slightest.
"One more time."
As soon as Erwin spoke briefly, her toes kicked off the ground.
Iden reflexively raised his right arm. A short pressure wave bursting from his fingertips twisted Erwin's angle of approach, but she pushed through regardless.
The distance was so close that their breaths mingled in the close-quarters combat.
Erwin twisted her waist and dug in with a low posture. Iden stepped hard on the ground with his heel to create a short vibration, using that recoil to turn his body.
For a moment, their centers of gravity crossed.
It was then.
Erwin's foot slipped slightly on the haphazardly gouged soil. In the moment her balance broke, her hand instinctively grabbed Iden's arm.
"Uh—"
A short breath mingled between them.
Iden was pulled in an unexpected direction. Without a chance to plant their feet, both of their balances completely collapsed, and with a cloud of dust, the two fell onto the ground together.
A dull impact.
Iden hit his back first, and Erwin's body landed on top of him as if overlapping. To handle the impact, Iden's arm reflexively wrapped around her waist, and Erwin's hand was also placed on his chest.
Wait.
As if the noise of the training ground had vanished, silence seeped in.
Their breaths touched right in front of each other.
Erwin's blonde hair scattered and brushed against Iden's chin, and the body heat heated by the training was transmitted directly.
At a distance close enough for their chests to touch, their irregular breaths intertwined.
Iden's hand was still on her waist. The sensation of firm muscles and the subtle body heat transmitted beneath them traveled up his palm.
Erwin's eyes blinked slowly.
"......Are, are you okay?"
Iden asked.
"...Mhm."
Erwin's voice was a tone lower than usual. Because their breaths were close, the end of her words mingled subtly.
A moment of silence.
The residual waves of mana heightened by the training still remained in the air, making the sensation of skin brushing against skin sensitive.
In such a state, the physical contact felt much clearer than usual.
Erwin's gaze brushed Iden's eyes, then unconsciously went down to his lips before coming back up.
"The ground wasn't even."
She said with a slight smile, but she didn't lower the hand she had placed on his chest.
Iden turned his head slightly as if coming to his senses late.
"You didn't grab me on purpose, did you?"
The fall was somewhat unnatural, and the force—whether it was to support herself or pull him—was ambiguous.
Though the answer that followed was even more ambiguous.
"I wonder?"
Erwin wore a seductive smile that was unlike her usual self.
Her knee was touching Iden's thigh, and her weight was fully supported by him. A distance where their faces would brush if she tilted just a little more.
An erotic sensation bloomed from their touching chests.
A tingling current burst from where their lower bodies met.
The wind blew once, scattering the dust.
Only then did Erwin slowly raise her body. Even in the process of pushing off with her hands to stand up, she pressed against Iden's chest once more, whether intentionally or not.
"Shall we continue?"
It was a tone no different from usual, but the tips of her ears were very faintly red.
Iden sat up and let out a short breath.
"Sounds good."
**
After training ended, Iden returned straight to his room. Since he had washed up and even enjoyed the evening banquet, tonight was scheduled to be filled with nothing but ordinary rest.
With the window half-open, he took off his coat and hung it on a chair, exhaling deeply as if to cool the remaining heat in his muscles.
The mana he had pulled up while repeating Instant-cast Magic all day was only now slowly settling down. When he opened and closed his hands, a fine tremor remained. Since it was training for a full-scale war, the intensity was high, and the mental exhaustion was just as great.
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in."
The door opened, and Erwin appeared.
Instead of her training uniform, she was wearing a thin dress made of soft fabric. The neckline wasn't excessively deep, but her collarbone and shoulder line were naturally revealed, and the silhouette that softly wrapped around her waist emphasized her figure subtly.
It was a precarious outfit where, if one focused with strength in their brow, it felt as if the skin color beyond the thin fabric might be visible.
As if she had just finished washing up, her hair was half-dry, and the moisture-laden strands flowed down her back.
In one hand, she held a bottle of wine and two glasses.
"I'd like to have a drink; would that be okay?"
It was a plain tone as usual, but somehow relaxed.
A feeling as if she had already had a glass.
Iden blinked once.
"Suddenly?"
"Not exactly suddenly... just because. We've been busy lately."
She naturally walked inside and set the wine and glasses down on the small table. Her hand movements to uncork the bottle were practiced. With a clear sound, the cork came out, and a thick grape scent spread subtly.
Iden hesitated for a moment before leaning back in his chair.
"Sure. I suppose tonight is fine."
Even though quite some time had passed, Count Rivan hadn't shown so much as a shadow, and Endermit also seemed to have entered a stagnant phase, showing no signs of activity.
Having surpassed the boundaries of the unconscious, he was now able to maintain a Summoning Circle even while sleeping.
It should be no problem to let his guard down for a day.
The red liquid slowly filled the glass. The color, shining darkly under the light, was strangely quiet.
The first glasses clinked.
Jjan-
"Good work today, Erwin-ssi."
"You too."
It was a short exchange, but the past few weeks were contained within it.
The wine traveled down his throat, warming his insides. He felt the shoulder muscles that had been stiff with tension gradually loosening.
Erwin leaned back on the sofa and naturally crossed her legs. The hem of her dress slid slightly, revealing her smooth legs. Rather than being intentional, it was just a comfortable sitting posture, but it was enough for the eroticism of the moonlit night to linger for a moment.
"Now that I think about it."
She continued, swirling her glass.
"We've hardly ever spent time alone like this, have we?"
Iden thought for a moment and then nodded.
"Now that you mention it, that's true. There were a lot of incidents and accidents."
"We were incredibly busy. It was a series of missions."
Erwin laughed.
"Is that a complaint?"
"No. Just saying."
Erwin's glass stopped for a moment.
"I just thought that spending time like this isn't so bad."
Erwin took a sip of wine and subtly gauged Iden's reaction.
For her, this was a situation prepared with great courage.
It was the first time she was having drinks in the moonlight with the man she admired and adored, and as a mature woman, it was quite a bold decision.
After all, she had barged into(?) a grown man's private space late at night.
That was why.
She hoped he would enjoy this time as well.
"You're right. Ending the day like this isn't bad at all."
"...."
She smiled and emptied her glass.
Immediately, the second glass was filled.
The conversation became a bit more relaxed. Reflections on past events, the installation status of the Resonance Devices, minor happenings at the Main Castle. And even jokes about the 'mistake' during training.
"Earlier, you really didn't grab me on purpose, did you?"
Iden asked playfully, as if tossing it out.
Erwin looked at him in silence for a moment, took a sip with the glass to her lips, and then answered.
"I wonder?"
A short silence followed.
The wind blew in from the window, swaying the curtains. The candle in the room flickered, stretching the shadows long.
"And if I did, what are you going to do about it?"
A bold provocation.
Erwin's heart began to throb strangely.
It fizzed like the carbonation in a freshly poured beer.
Though it ended up losing its fizz quickly, like a poorly brewed beer.
While she couldn't define what kind of expectation she had when throwing that provocation, the answer Iden spat out made even that unknown something turn cold.
"Well... it's not like I'm going to do anything in particular."
Tsk.
How dull.
As they moved on to the third glass of wine, the atmosphere that had been stiff with tension completely loosened. Erwin leaned further into the back of the sofa and tilted her head.
"You, you're overdoing it lately."
"Because I have to."
"Even so, you should rest occasionally."
Her voice was soft. The firmness from the training ground had vanished, replaced by a low-settled warmth.
Iden set his glass down and let out a long breath.
"I am resting like this, aren't I?"
Erwin's gaze slowly scanned his face. Not the expression seen only in battlefields and missions, but a face that was a bit more relaxed, with less of an edge.
It truly was a handsome face.
"Right. There should be days like this."
The night grew deeper.
The light became even softer, and the scent of wine and subtle breaths mingled in the room. A time when a day full of tension slowly unraveled, and each other's presence naturally drew closer.
The glasses clinked lightly once more.