A Slow, Exquisite Rhythm
Yeongso had something to tell Banya, who was eager to move on to the next step. "There is a condition, however. I can move as I please, but you must move slowly."
"What kind of bullshit is that?"
"It was written that this is the core of the technique... If you doubt my words, you can untie your blindfold and check the manual yourself."
Banya let out a long sigh. It was a sigh thick with obvious irritation.
"Forget it. As if you would lie about something like this."
He told her he understood, so she should just hurry up and get on top. Yeongso gripped Banya's broad shoulders and carefully parted her legs, straddling him. Sitting directly over his rigidly erect member made her feel intensely self-conscious.
Of all things, our most private parts are pressed right against each other...
She couldn't tell if it was intentional or if he was simply adjusting his posture. As Banya arched his hips slightly, his thick shaft pressed firmly into her soft cleft. Yeongso involuntarily held her breath.
"It is rather slick."
Amusement laced the end of Banya's voice. "Did a mere kiss get you this aroused?"
You were hard before we even took our clothes off, Yeongso retorted silently. She slid her hand up the nape of his neck. To kiss him while he was blindfolded, she had no choice but to feel her way like this. As she did, she felt the muscles in Banya's neck twitch and tighten.
Why is he reacting like this?
The muscles rippled precisely along the path her fingers traced. Wondering at this, Yeongso lowered her lips. Since the manual specified a kiss involving the tongue, she figured she could use both her lips and tongue at the same time. Her soft tongue gently brushed against Banya's lower lip. Instantly, his shaft hardened further. The thick pillar of flesh twitched, pressing lightly against her plump, swollen folds. A dull, throbbing pleasure spread throughout her lower body.
"Ah..."
Yeongso let out an involuntary whimper and pressed her body flush against his. Her full, milky-white breasts flattened against his solid chest. Her pale pink nipples were crushed between them, sending a sharp, sweet ache straight to her chest. The kiss instantly turned deep and passionate.
"Mmm..."
Before Yeongso could even slide her tongue into his mouth, Banya thrust his own forward, tangling it with hers. It was impossible to tell who had started it, but before they knew it, both of them were shifting their hips, grinding their lower bodies together.
"Next... Hurry, the next step," Banya managed to gasp out between their tangled tongues.
"Next, you have to... stroke my back."
"Ah, I remember."
"Slowly."
Yet even as she said it, Yeongso didn't actually want to take things slowly. The feather-light sensations that had been building since they first touched each other's faces were rapidly swelling into an overwhelming wave of pleasure. Just then, Banya's large, calloused palm cupped the back of her neck. He slowly slid his hand down the delicate curve of her spine.
"Ah...!"
It was merely a hand sliding over her bare skin, but the sensation it evoked was far beyond anything she could have imagined. Every fine hair on her body stood on end as an indescribably exquisite pleasure rippled across her back.
The manual said to warm up the body slowly...
Banya's neatly trimmed fingernails lightly scraped the small of her back, just above her hips. Yeongso let out a breathless moan against his lips.
I don't even know what 'slowly' means anymore. Everything is so different from our usual lovemaking... My senses have never been this exquisitely sharp...
Banya gently cupped her buttocks with both hands. Her intimate area was pulled back slightly before returning to its original position, sending a strange, thrilling sensation through her.
"Dear..."
"Surely by now..."
"Yes."
"...this is enough?"
Yeongso was of the exact same mind. If they went any slower, she felt she would die of sheer frustration. Sucking on her husband's hot, thick tongue as if it were the sweetest nectar, Yeongso lifted her hips slightly. Then, with a long, shaky breath, she began to slide down, swallowing him whole.
Once she had taken in his thick head, she paused, taking a deep breath without lowering herself any further. Even though her inner walls had softened and relaxed completely, Banya was simply too large to take in all at once.
"Wife, right now..."
Banya's voice was low and raspy. A low, growling sound vibrated deep in his throat.
As Yeongso sank down a fraction of an inch at a time, Banya's breathing grew increasingly ragged. Finally, having taken him in to the very hilt, she let out a ragged breath, overwhelmed by the sheer fullness stretching her lower abdomen.
"I will... go first..."
As they took turns, the couple quickly realized the fatal flaw of this first stage of training. No matter how fast Yeongso moved, the moment it was Banya's turn, his forced slowness cooled them down, making it nearly impossible for either of them to reach a climax.
"Was there really no instruction on what to do next? This... can't be all there is. At this rate, I'm going to... die..."
Having been cut off right on the brink of release multiple times, Banya's patience was hanging by a thread. Yeongso threw her head back with a soft groan, barely managing to recall the final passage of the manual.
"Once we have each held back... our climax five times... we must draw up our pure qi, press our lips together... ah, and share it through our breath... before we can finish."
Just when she felt as though her melting inner walls were about to fuse completely with Banya, a slow, deep climax finally washed over Yeongso like a rising tide.
After finishing their training, the couple lay side by side in bed. A warm, languid satisfaction seemed to seep into every corner of their bodies. It was the first time they had ever felt this way. Usually, Banya would take the initiative and drive Yeongso at his own pace, leaving her utterly exhausted by the end. There had never been any room for this peaceful, lazy afterglow where they could simply listen to each other's breathing.
"...I suddenly have something I'm curious about. May I ask?"
It was rare for Yeongso to ask a question first. Banya doubted his ears for a moment. He glanced sideways at his wife lying beside him. Surely she hadn't been swapped with someone else mid-cultivation?
"Go ahead."
"Why did you choose a fan as your weapon?"
Dokgo Mimi used a sword. Normally, a disciple would adopt their master's weapon of choice. Yet Banya, strangely enough, went around wielding a fan.
"Because it looks cool."
"..."
"It makes me look like a man of refined taste, and it has a certain elegance to it."
"..."
Yeongso's delicate brow furrowed. Surely that couldn't be the only reason. It was amusing to see her looking at her husband with such blatant skepticism.
"To be honest, it was because of my master. That crazy woman, Dokgo Mimi, told me: 'How dare a mere man think of holding a sword?'"
When he explained that she had laid out a rusty iron skewer, a half-bald calligraphy brush, and a fan on the verge of snapping, telling him to pick one, Yeongso's expression became quite a sight.
"Why did you end up using a needle and thread instead of a sword, Wife? Was it simply because they are easy to conceal?"
"That was the main reason, yes."
"Is there a minor reason as well?"
Yeongso gave a bitter smile.
"As soon as my health recovered, the elders told me: 'Since you are so beautiful, you should just learn embroidery and marry into a prestigious family.' The moment I heard those words, something inside me snapped."
Banya laughed so hard his shoulders shook.
"I see now that you don't have an ordinary temperament either, Wife."
"...Brother Yeong-hyeok said the exact same thing."
"I don't care what your brother thinks, but I quite like it," Banya said, a lingering smile playing on his lips. "I want you to live your life throwing tantrums whenever you feel like it."
What was the big deal about learning martial arts from someone of the Sapa? Why did she have to keep it a secret even while being tortured and dying at his hands in her past lives? Hiding, concealing, worrying, and pretending not to know. Baekri Yeongso must have lived her entire life like that just to avoid bringing shame upon her mother and her clan. But now that he knew her circumstances, he could not let her continue living that way. The wife of Hwa Banya should never have to walk on eggshells around anyone.
He had spoken with those thoughts in mind, but for some reason, Yeongso's expression shifted strangely. At a glance, she looked as if she might cry. Or was she just shocked?
By the way, I wonder when we'll both be able to pick up proper swords and spar.
Utterly oblivious to the impact of his own words, Banya imagined his wife holding a sword. The mere thought sent a thrilling shiver straight up his spine to the crown of his head.