6. Traven
“...Mm...”
As Olivier reached the door of the study after passing through the corridor, her ears perked up at the familiar sound. The short noise from inside seemed to quiet down as if aware of her footsteps. The study door was firmly shut. She stood right in front of it and glanced around. There should have been a servant guarding the door to the study, but none of the Traven count family’s employees—who usually bustled through the corridors—were in sight. Figuring they must be short-handed clearing the dinnerware from the banquet, Olivier decided to knock herself.
Knock knock.
After knocking and waiting a moment, the study door opened. Olivier came face-to-face with the source of the familiar sound.
“...Mom.”
Baroness Belpharos’s eyes widened slightly at the sight of Olivier, then she turned her head to glance at Kylie standing deeper inside the study.
“About the incident earlier with Lady Belpharos...”
At Kylie’s brief explanation, Baroness Belpharos nodded in understanding and addressed Olivier.
“You’ve come to express your gratitude to Lady Traven, haven’t you?”
“Yes, Mom.”
“I came to say the same thing myself. Did you enjoy dinner?”
“...It was so-so.”
Olivier felt something off about her mother’s face. Her perfectly applied makeup seemed slightly smudged?
“I’m glad to hear that. Well then.”
The baroness fidgeted with her palms, looking a bit restless, then turned back to Kylie.
“Lady Traven, as I mentioned earlier, please visit our Belpharos barony this summer. I’d like to express our humble gratitude for saving my daughter.”
Kylie smiled brightly.
“Of course. I’d love to visit if my schedule and circumstances allow. It’s a shame I can’t give a firm yes right now, since I’m on vacation myself.”
“Very well, then.”
Baroness Belpharos gave Kylie a warm smile and stepped out of the study. To Olivier, the two seemed overly intimate. Her mother, the youngest daughter of the Ikrit viscountcy, was a woman steeped in the aristocratic art of polite distance. To treat Lady Traven so familiarly after just two days—it was out of character, but considering the major incident that afternoon, it wasn’t incomprehensible. Saving Olivier from mortal danger must have left a deep impression on the baroness too.
“You didn’t eat properly, did you?”
Kylie smiled at Olivier as she entered the study.
“How did you know?”
“It’s simple—by gauging the time. You arrived earlier than expected.”
Her bright expression carried a faint smile at the corners of her brown eyes. Olivier nodded.
“Yeah. After what happened, the Elsk steak was...”
“I see. How thoughtless of me. I’m used to that cut of meat, so I apologize for not considering it.”
With the poise befitting the lady of the count’s household, Kylie pulled a thick yellow cord hanging by the study’s fireplace.
“I should have a servant bring something light.”
A short while later, a servant knocked on the study door and entered. Kylie instructed him to fetch simple snacks and drinks as a meal substitute, then sent him off. Olivier was deeply impressed by her considerate demeanor.
Soon, the quick-footed servant returned with a tray of food, set it on the table in the center of the study, and left. As the door closed again, Kylie gestured for Olivier, who was still standing by the entrance, to take the sofa.
“Let’s see... whipped cream roll, caramel choux éclair, macaron, mille-feuille, crème d’anjou, mont blanc, raspberry buche. These are all light desserts, but if you’d prefer something more substantial...”
“No, this is plenty.”
Olivier quickly voiced her preference, and Kylie lifted a glass bottle of red liquid from the table, pouring it into an empty glass. Thinking it might be wine, Olivier watched as Kylie smiled.
“It’s sangria. A refreshing punch made by mixing wine and soda water. Have you tried it? In our family, we drink it like water in the summer.”
She had just turned fifteen, and until now, alcoholic drinks had been forbidden. Olivier shook her head, and Kylie offered her the half-filled glass.
“The wine’s diluted, flavored with apple and lemon—it should be palatable.”
“Um, alcohol is still...”
Seeing Olivier’s troubled expression and soft voice, Kylie withdrew the glass and downed it in one go.
“...It does have alcohol in it.”
After emptying the red wine-hued sangria, she gazed at Olivier, slowly licking the drink from her lips with her tongue. The sight of her red, moist lips parting slightly as her vivid tongue emerged to lap it up in a circle sent a strange thrill through Olivier, who quickly averted her eyes downward to the snacks on the table.
“You must be hungry. Go ahead and eat.”
At Kylie’s words, Olivier picked up a green macaron. It looked like pistachio or herb-infused from the color. Biting into it, a smooth sweetness spread in her mouth, easing her heightened nerves.
Seeing Olivier’s pleased expression, Kylie sent her a gentle smile. After sampling the snacks one by one, Olivier suddenly felt parched and looked around. Water pitchers were sometimes kept in one corner of the busy study, but she saw nothing suitable. Her eyes fell on the sangria on the table. Noticing, Kylie spoke softly.
“Shall I have a servant bring tea?”
Olivier slowly shook her head.
“No. You said it’s diluted wine—let’s try this today. I should get used to alcohol little by little anyway.”
Taking the glass of red liquid Kylie poured for her, the thirsty Olivier began to drink. The fragrant fruit aroma tickled her nose, and with no harsh alcohol bite, she gulped it like water. Finishing one glass brought no discomfort. She asked for another.
“A bottle this size usually holds about half a bottle of wine, so it’s best not to overdo it at first. Each glass is low-proof, but finishing it equals half a bottle.”
“It’s so fragrant and delicious.”
Olivier brightly finished the rest. Downing two glasses in a row relaxed her mind, subtly altering the sensation in her fingertips and giving a slight floating feeling. Tilting her head at the odd sensation while staring at her hands, Olivier heard Kylie say,
“You should stop with the sangria now.”
“Yeah, I think so. I feel a bit strange.”
As Kylie cleared the empty glass in front of Olivier, the corner of her mouth lifted slightly. For a first-timer, Olivier’s cheeks were faintly flushed, her ruby eyes slightly narrowed and glazed, her expression relaxed from tension. It wasn’t an unpleasant sight.
“It’s low-proof, so your senses should return soon.”
Their eyes met as Kylie spoke tenderly to Olivier. Their gazes collided over the table. For Olivier, it was indescribable. A simple meeting of eyes held nothing, yet in this moment, it seemed to contain everything. Drawn magnetically into Kylie’s steadfast gaze, Olivier faced her with faintly trembling eyes, confused by her own pull.
Was it because she’d saved her today? Kylie seemed reliable, honest, pure, and noble. Suddenly, Kylie’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“About what happened this afternoon, I truly, sincerely thank—”
As Olivier murmured her gratitude, Kylie stood from across the table, leaned forward, and extended her hand to her. The white hand approaching was large, befitting her tall frame—man-sized.
“...”
The long, straight fingers before her eyes were inexplicably, irresistibly alluring, though she couldn’t say why. The pale, slender fingers gently brushed Olivier’s cheek.
In that instant, Olivier felt heat rush to her face.
“There’s a crumb here.”
Kylie murmured lowly. Olivier bowed her head and bit her lip. Her heartbeat thundered in her mind, the heavy air around them tightening in the silence.
“...”
Kylie didn’t withdraw her hand from under Olivier’s chin. The slow-moving hand soon touched her lowered chin. A scorching heat spread from there, like a burn. The fingers on her chin slowly lifted Olivier’s face, which was biting her lip. As her head rose, her eyes met Kylie’s, who was bent at the waist gazing at her.
Kylie stared straight at Olivier. From the moment her hand touched, Olivier had felt her nerves on edge, blood racing, pulse quickening wildly. She glanced down slightly at the hand supporting her chin. Kylie looked down at Olivier, admiring the shy blush blooming on her cheeks, reflecting her pure heart. Olivier was clearly drawn to her. Gazing innocently only at the fingertips under her chin, the passion hidden in those clear ruby eyes stirred an impulse in Kylie—to awaken it.
What would that innocent expression and naive gaze become once awakened to pleasure? A twisted, anticipatory desire overwhelmed her.
“...Olivier.”
At the low call, Olivier’s ruby eyes slowly rose to meet Kylie’s brown ones. The mysterious orange-tinged eyes, filled with longing and yearning, trembled faintly. Kylie gazed deeply at her with soulful eyes and lowered her waist further. Over the moist, soft pink lips, red lips pressed down.
The faint tremble in Olivier’s ruby eyes, locked with Kylie’s, stopped. Kylie’s twisted desire invaded the virgin’s honest face seeking a soul’s guardian—the unadorned serious gaze, the cheerful beautiful lips, the pure anticipation born of ignorance toward sex, the frank and wary innocent life.
A warm, slick tongue slipped from between red lips, wetting the inside of the pink ones as it delved in.
Thank you for reading. That's it for today! Felt like there was no euphoria scene, so I scribbled some weird stuff on the side. No proofreading here—just enjoy.