Chapter 62
Chapter 62
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Absent for a While (3)
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Why don't students these days listen? No, do they only listen when you get mad?
It was a thought that crossed my mind as I pressed down firmly on Liv's squirming belly.
"Ah... hngh! Boss! J-just... a moment...!"
Watching our baroness constantly trying to dash off to some dangerous place, my feelings were like those of a mother cat chasing after her curious kitten.
Just as a cat grabs her kitten by the scruff to calm it down, I had to press on Liv's belly. Out of necessity, of course.
I slipped my hand inside the apron tied around her waist, pulling her slender frame toward me. Naturally, the thin fabric and the soft sensation beneath sent a thrilling tingle through my fingertips.
"N-no! Not the belly... ahn!"
"Then you promise not to go to Alkaid Magic Tower?"
"...I dunno."
When she got this stubborn, there was nothing I could do. I pressed harder on her lower belly with my index and middle fingers.
Even though vital organs and muscles gathered there, I couldn't erase the uniquely soft feel of a woman's body. Like pressing freshly steamed rice cake, her clothes and flesh sank in deeply, and Liv started gasping for breath.
Press, push, preeeess—!
I wondered if it hurt, if it'd bruise, so I adjusted my strength while observing her reactions. Her cheeks flushed bright red, and even her ears peeked out red beneath her black hair as she trembled each time I pressed her lower belly, like she was holding something back.
That sight was irresistibly erotic, making even me feel a bit embarrassed.
"Ahhngh...! Hnngh! Hnng...!"
Her voice, which I already thought was lovely, now carried a seductive hue as it rang in my ears. I carefully circled my fingers, pushing to the limit, and her black eyes widened as her trembling intensified.
——Teacher.
——Teacher?
Adella's calls felt so distant now.
The more I touched, the more addictive the soft, squishy belly became. Even bent over as she sat, it was sleek and perfectly firm without an ounce of excess fat.
If anything protruded slightly, it was the spot just below her navel, softer than anywhere else.
It was also the weakest point where Liv reacted most intensely. That's why I kept targeting it.
Of course, I didn't forget to check her resolve midway.
"Say you won't go to that magic tower."
"Hnngh...!"
"Promise me."
"Ahngh! Hic...! J-just... stop... lingering there...!"
Even the stubborn Liv couldn't hold out once I rubbed persistently with the first knuckle of my finger instead of the tip. She grabbed my arms with both hands.
With our bodies pressed close, I could see tiny beads of sweat forming on her forehead.
She's exhausted. But why insist on going?
"You won't go, right?"
"Ungh...!"
Liv, on the verge of nodding weakly. But suddenly, she lifted her head and stared piercingly somewhere.
What's there? From my angle, I only saw the half-open door.
She glanced back and forth between my hand pressing her lower belly and the door, her shoulders twitching, then shook her head slightly on her own.
And then—
"N-no. I hate it."
Looking up at me with teary eyes, she bit her lip.
"I'm going."
Fine. Then I had no reason to hold back anymore. Even if she found it shameful, even if she despised me, I'd endure it for her future.
I slipped my hand under her crumpled top.
"Kyaa!?"
Ignoring her expected scream, I placed my hand on her bare skin—supremely soft, flushed without needing to look.
Extremely careful not to let my hand slip lower or graze her underwear, I began the "education" in earnest.
It was just a bit of an odd atmosphere; nothing lewd about it.
"Kyaha! Hnggk...! Ah, haa, ahnng...!!"
After that, Liv's melting moans echoed endlessly through the canteen.
I lost track of time, but when I snapped out of it, the sun was already setting. I should've packed up and prepared to leave the academy tomorrow... How long had we been at this?
Seeing her, usually so prim, with a single clear drop of saliva dangling from her lips, I realized something was wrong. Who knew it could be this addictive, like a drug... It felt just like playing with slimes as a kid.
But in the end, I got her proper surrender. Her pronunciation was close to "I won' gooo..." but it meant my sincerity got through.
Sincere persuasion always pays off.
The next day.
"Don't cause any trouble. Make sure to feed the guard dogs properly."
"Yes, safe travels, Boss."
"...".
"Adella?"
"...Safe travels."
Leaving behind a blushing Liv waving her hand and a somehow downcast Adella, I set off for Sandalphonia with Lehel.
The current continent is divided into nations like Penheim, Monarch, Bachran, Sakel, and others, but in the past, a single vast empire ruled it all.
The Holy Asetaria Empire.
Traces of the empire had mostly vanished after ages, but some secrets still passed whisperingly among adventurers.
One was the Four Hidden Realms (??). Dreamlike places said to hide the old empire's legacies.
The Sacrear Dragon's Nest, piled with the world's treasures.
The Uzet Great Library, storing tomes of vast knowledge.
The Rubie Shrine, where one could hear the voice of god.
And finally, the Sandalphonia Observatory, built to divine the stars' fates.
I knew all these not out of interest in this world's history, obviously.
It was because one of them—the Great Library—was where a grimoire summoning beings from other dimensions was found, the reason I came here.
According to Terra, all other books burned, leaving just that one.
'Fucking bastards... If you're gonna burn books, at least check if they're all gone.'
The Uzet Library had burned down ages ago, and the Rubie Shrine was now Monarch's capital, the Holy City.
Sacrear and Sandalphonia's exact locations remained unknown, but vast regions bore their names based on ancient markers.
The presumed site of the observatory was the Sandalphonia Sand Gorge. It lived up to the name—a harsh, barren land.
Scorching hot winds howled through the gorge, where neither man nor plant could survive easily. Beyond lay a massive desert stretching to the horizon.
Countless who ventured into that desert seeking imperial legacies or to divine their fates never returned.
It was only natural Lehel's hands trembled at the thought of going there herself.
"What're you doing? The sun's gonna set."
"W-wait. I need to mentally prepare..."
"Keep preparing. I'll go smash the magic tower and come back."
"Aaaah! Fine! Let's go, let's go!"
Thanks to her, travel was smooth, but soon a massive sandstorm battered our eyes. Lehel used her small stature to stick right behind me, rustling along.
"Let's see... Nearest village from here..."
"Aigoo~! I'm dying!! *Cough, cough*!"
"Quit whining. Back off a bit. Hard to walk."
Resisting the winds crossing the gorge, we advanced slowly. After some time, large lumps like clumped dirt entered our view sporadically.
Typical small nomadic villages of the Sandalphonia region.
The entrances gaped open, people long gone. Locals hunkered inside, sealing entrances until storms passed—that was life here.
I entered an empty hut with Lehel.
"We'll rest here till it calms."
Just a short walk, and thick sand poured off us. As I casually dug out rations left under the central hearth for future travelers, Lehel approached curiously.
"Boss, you've been here before?"
"Yeah. I have."
"For real? You met the Moirae sisters?"
"Yep."
"What'd they tell you?"
"Well..."
As I trailed off, Lehel looked up from dusting her hat. After hesitating, I told the truth.
"They told me to go to Pharenchia."
"What?"
Yeah. I'd come to Sandalphonia after defeating the Demon King.
"I asked where to go next, and they said Pharenchia."
With Eris.
After a night, the storm cleared, and we moved on. Half a day threading the gorge, we met nomads with merchants.
Lehel grinned wide, ready to trade even her rosary, buying massive amounts of food and water.
She floated a backpack taller than herself with magic and even rummaged my pockets.
She ranted we had to stockpile maximally to survive.
"Boss, how long did it take you last time?"
"Oh, that? About two days?"
"That was pure luck. The desert beyond that gorge is notoriously brutal. Know why this is a hidden realm? No one knows the Sandalphonia Observatory's location."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. It's not just hidden—it doesn't even appear."
Passing a souvenir stall, Lehel grabbed a stone tablet with strange script and held it up to explain.
"'To glimpse fate, one needs worthy qualifications.' An ancient saying from this region. Reaching the observatory in old texts requires immense trials."
"Hmm~."
"It's true! So many wizards risk life and limb for magic paths—how many do you think made it?"
"Oh, wrap the jerky and ice cream. It's a gift."
"Sure thing! Thank you!"
"Are you listening!? Even if we eat it all, it'll run out! Without prep, we'll shock out from starvation and dehydration in the desert!"
Lehel, usually too lazy for anything but watching Monster King sagas in the chairman's office, was dead serious about her own life.
She even bought goggles and a mask, nagging till departure.
And an hour into the desert.
"There it is."
"Huh?"
The observatory jutted out at the horizon's end.