Chapter 13
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Kaen von Dandelrion (3)
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"What are you doing here?"
Suddenly, Kaen appeared right behind me.
All sorts of thoughts tangled up in my head the moment I saw her right in front of me.
Why are you here at a time like this?
Should I drop to the ground and beg for forgiveness right now?
How did she sneak up behind me without making a sound?
Should I point out that a button on her uniform is done up wrong?
Those random thoughts bounced around like fireworks until, at one point, they neatly sorted themselves out.
The pitch-black scabbard hanging from Kaen's waist.
The moment I saw the sword hilt properly attached to its end.
Nothing else mattered right now.
If I wanted to walk out of here with all my limbs intact, the right move was to apologize for last night first and beg for my life.
Conveniently, there wasn't even a single small pebble underfoot.
At least, until just a moment ago.
"...?"
Now, two adorable little feet were peeking into the edge of my vision, right in front of mine.
Kaen's petite chest, hidden inside that tight navy uniform, was barely hanging on at the edge of my gaze, along with her cute boots.
I lifted my eyes a bit from the ground.
There she was—Kaen, rolling her eyes sideways, pretending not to notice.
Why is she suddenly acting like this?
I couldn't figure it out.
"Kaen-nim?"
"......"
"Kaen-nim."
No response, so I called again, but it was the same.
I couldn't exactly nag her to answer me, so it felt a little frustrating.
And telling her to step back so I could bow my head? No way.
For now, maybe I should just take a step back myself.
I glanced at Kaen and retreated one step, but a small foot covered the faint footprint left on the ground.
A dainty foot wrapped in glossy black boots.
I didn't need to look up to know whose it was.
Kaen's.
This created an ambiguous distance between us—close if you wanted it to be, far if not.
Close enough that, if I felt like it, I could reach out and ruffle her hair like crazy.
Not that I had even the tiniest intention of doing so, of course.
Anyway, that was the distance.
Dodging like this wouldn't work.
I'd have to bow my head after all.
I let out a breath and started to lower my head when Kaen's voice suddenly rang out.
"We-Were you cleaning or something? It's pretty tidy around here."
Kaen glanced around with weary eyes, forcing herself to look, then slowly lifted her gaze to my face.
Her pale purple eyes peeked softly through her long bangs that brushed her eyelashes.
Dull, hazy eyes.
"Yes. It was something I should've done yesterday, but circumstances got in the way."
"Yesterday? Why? You don't usually put off stuff like th—"
Kaen trailed off.
She blinked, then spun her gaze around in a full circle.
At the same time, I noticed her finger, pointed at me, slowly curling in. I could roughly guess what she was thinking.
She must have remembered last night, and it choked her words.
Last night, when she was meticulously licking my dick and nearly had it forced into her mouth.
"S-Something must've come up."
"Pardon?"
But her response was strangely off.
As if she knew nothing.
"I mean, I know you work hard... So maybe you weren't feeling well yesterday?"
"...Yes?"
There's no way she doesn't know.
"Or were you too tired and fell asleep?"
"...Ah."
I tilted my head at her odd conclusion, and that's when I finally pieced together why she was blocking my path.
She didn't want an apology.
More precisely, she wanted to erase the whole incident from last night.
Accepting an apology would mean acknowledging what happened.
She wanted to pretend nothing occurred.
Go back to how things were.
That must be what Kaen wanted to say.
Makes sense. For a noble like her to suffer that humiliation from someone like me—she'd pay billions to wipe it from her memory.
She could bury the incident perfectly by eliminating me, but I was grateful she hadn't chosen that route.
"Yes. I was cleaning the library all night the day before, so I was too sleepy."
"I... see. Haha..."
Kaen laughed awkwardly.
An even more awkward smile crooked across her lips.
I've always thought this, but she had no talent for lying.
"Then, Kaen-nim."
"Y-Yeah?"
"Is it okay if I go ahead? There's still a lot of cleaning to do."
I scratched the back of my neck as I spoke.
In truth, the only place left was in front of her mansion, but I didn't mention it.
Even if Kaen graciously let it slide, whether we could go back to how things were was another matter.
If we ended up alone like this, memories of last night would trail us like a bookmark.
I might be fine with it, but for Kaen, it'd be an irritating reminder.
Best to avoid places where she might be from now on.
"Already? You're that busy?"
"Yes. After this, I have to tidy Professor Yaktoon's private room, and stop by Yuzu-nim's lab too."
"Oh right, she mentioned some experiment."
"Something about how men can wield mana. That's the gist, I think. Not sure on the details myself."
I tried to chat like normal, but as expected, an awkward vibe seeped in.
The problem started with Kaen's voice.
The usual playfulness and mischief had sunk below the surface, nowhere to be seen.
She used to cling to me annoyingly whenever we crossed paths, but I never hated it.
I had ruined our relationship myself, so there was no helping it.
"Well, I'll be going then."
"Huh?"
I gave a natural wry smile, but Kaen looked like she'd just realized something disastrous.
I had no idea why.
Usually, I'd just nod and say goodbye, but today I bowed deeply from the waist.
A sort of apology for last night.
Better to end things cleanly.
But Kaen said nothing.
The two adorable feet that had approached right up to me stayed planted in place.
Then, a small voice popped out.
"Pe-Pervert."
"Yes, Kaen-nim."
"You're really that busy? Not even 30 minutes?"
I slowly raised my head and met her gaze.
30 minutes.
Was she planning to lecture me about proper sex like Baekya?
No.
She seemed like she wanted to pretend it never happened, so probably not.
Then why 30 minutes? I had no clue.
With nothing coming to mind, I had to ask her directly.
"Could I ask the reason?"
"Of course it's..."
"...?"
"You..."
"......"
"You first... You, first..."
Kaen repeated herself, hesitating for a long while.
Looking up at me, then averting her eyes, biting her lower lip.
A moment later.
"You touched my body however you wanted... You bad jerk..."
Her voice leaked out like steam from a boiling kettle, echoing between us.
"Don't come in. For 30 minutes. Nothing will happen like you think, Kiara, so don't get nosy, don't prepare any tea, and don't grin like you know everything. Just wait quietly on the first floor. Quietly. Please."
Kaen had dragged me up to a room on the second floor and rattled that off to the maid like a machine gun before slamming the door.
I hadn't thought the mansion looked that big from outside, and sure enough, the inside was the same.
How to describe it? Like a villa?
Not that I'd ever owned one, but nothing fit better.
From the entrance to the stairs and hallway, it strongly felt like a temporary place to crash while studying at the academy.
I'd assumed nobles hung portraits and family crests all over the walls.
It was more ordinary than expected.
Well, more ordinary than I'd thought.
Kaen's room wasn't much different.
A large space surrounded by slightly muted white walls.
In one corner sat a bed big enough for three people to sleep comfortably.
"Phew... This should be fine... Just try coming in."
There was a desk, a full-length mirror, various furniture nicely arranged, but my attention went straight to the bed.
Is she really going to do it?
I'd heard her out at the mansion entrance, but I was starting to doubt my own ears.
"Pervert. Sit here."
Kaen sat on the edge of the bed first and patted the spot next to her. Tok, tok.
I was covered in dust and sand from cleaning, but she didn't seem to care.
The maid would handle it anyway.
I'd been standing awkwardly by the door, but I approached quietly and sat beside her.
"Scoot in more. No room like this."
"Are you... really going to do this?"
"Yeah. Unless you want to face judgment under the law?"
"...No."
"Just do what I say. This'll make up for yesterday, right? Good for you too."
I nodded and slid my butt back until my calves touched the bed's edge.
When I ran into Kaen earlier, I'd thought she was pretending last night never happened.
Apparently not.
The Kaen in front of me now was bringing it up to threaten me.
Like, if I didn't obey nicely, she'd drag me to court.
Had her feelings changed in that short time?
No way for me to know.
"Spread your legs more."
"Arms too. Shoulder-width."
"Back straight. Can lean forward a bit if needed."
Kaen stuck right by my side, issuing orders left and right.
Following each one left me in a weird pose.
If I'd been against a wall, it might've resembled some exercise form.
But sitting on a bed like this, I could only wonder what her intention was.
"Kaen-nim. Mind if I ask one thing?"
"What're you curious about?"
"Earlier, at the mansion entrance. You said since I messed up first, you'd handle my body however you want."
"Yeah."
"I'm just wondering... Is this really all? Will it end here?"
Truth be told, when she dragged me to the bedroom, I'd harbored a sliver of hope.
Even if she wasn't a writer, maybe last night awakened some tastes that way.
Maybe she wanted to force herself on me again.
But judging by my current pose, disappointingly, that wasn't it.
"Not yet. Wait. Take a deep breath."
That looked just like how she breathed deeply before coming to my room for the fellatio.
What the hell is she planning...?
"Phew... Okay. Let's start."
Right after saying that, Kaen jumped up from beside me.
My questions were brief. She stood in front of me, turned around with a swish, and wagged her tail.
Looking up from below, maybe? Despite her small stature, Kaen's hips held up well against any other woman.
In this position, I could grab them tight if I reached out.
Borrowing a phrase from some erotic novel, I could pound down like animals mating. Pfuk, pfuk.
Not that I could ever do that unless I had two lives.
My thoughts reached that point when Kaen's ash-gray tail swooshed across my vision.
A faint, nutty aroma brushed my nose.
At the same time, a soft, warm sensation pressed between my thighs.
Definitely part of a human body.
"K-Kaen-nim?"
"Wait. Figuring out what to order first. Gotta make good use of 30 minutes..."
"It's just... your tail's blocking my view."
"...Oh. Sorry. Doesn't feel much unless you grip it tight."
Kaen had been rubbing her tail softly against my face but quickly moved it to the left.
Now in front of me was...
A neatly tied long ponytail.
Jet-black wolf ears I'd never seen this close.
A pale, alluring nape.
Contrasting deeply navy uniform.
"Pet my head first?"
"Pardon?"
"Pet it. My head."
With that, Kaen wrapped her tail around my waist softly.
To keep me from escaping backward.
Naturally, her ass pressed tight against my crotch.
Her glutes tensed briefly, but only for an instant.
Was it my imagination that she then pressed down firmly like it was nothing?
In this situation where one wrong move could spell disaster, Kaen's voice rang out again.
"Hurry up. Gotta try everything one by one."