What Do You Do on Your Day Off? (3)
Standing behind Rydmila, I grabbed her wrist with one hand and placed the other on her waist, just like that—
'I can't thrust into her.'
This was a test. Rydmila was subtly checking something through me—a kind of trial.
What kind of test? 'She's testing whether I'll pounce on her or not.'
As the Gale, as Rydmila Lionheart, and as a classmate in the special class of the old school building, she was putting me to the test right now.
To put it bluntly—'She's an assassin sent by Ederson Lionheart.'
An assassin dispatched by the Lion King. Calling her a straight-up assassin felt off, but if I had to use an analogy, that's how it fit.
Marriage is the grave of one's life. Heading to the grave means death. An assassin brings death to their target.
In other words, Rydmila had likely received an order that wasn't quite an order. More precisely, regarding this entity called Phoenix, her great-grandfather had 'recommended—not strictly ordered, but she should capture him.'
Why? Asking the reason wasn't sexy. Just thinking about what I'd done for Ederson Lionheart and the academy's male students was enough to make it unsurprising if the Mercenary King saw me as a potential grandson-in-law.
'She came around faster than expected.'
I'd worried her favorability might have tanked from the Turbulence—or 'Wind Fart'—incident, but Rydmila seemed to have sorted her feelings and steeled herself in her own way.
'This works out perfectly for me.'
She was coming on subtly. The way she pressed her hips back and teased me lightly made her intentions crystal clear.
'But I can't touch her now.'
To repeat: this was a test. 'If I pounce, she'll pin me down in this position instantly.'
No need to panic. This was Rydmila's trap.
When does the male gain the upper hand over the female? Not in a position like this, where I'm mounted from behind and occupying her rear—unless the male climbs atop that.
Rydmila would probably open her heart a bit to someone who could force her into this posture against her will—a true 'alpha.'
But from the perspective of Gale, at least, I wasn't that alpha. As the 'supporter' who creates such strong figures, I was a far cry from the dominant male she envisioned.
'Which is why I have to be extra careful.'
I didn't think Ederson had told Rydmila everything he'd seen. But he must have dropped a hint like, 'Be wary of that Phoenix underclassman. A beast lurks within him that we can't even imagine.'
'The Mercenary King respects him, so she'd be curious—but at her level, she can't see it, which frustrates her.'
I could read Rydmila's mind. Maybe Phoenix wasn't just some newbie supporter helping out here and there. Maybe he was S-rank or higher—on par with the White Sword Saint Esta or the Mercenary King Lionheart. Hell, maybe even they couldn't gauge his full power.
If such a powerhouse gave in to a momentary urge and took her, Rydmila would submit to that strength willingly.
'Can't let that happen.'
It would be far too easy to conquer her as the original story's heroine that way. But that wouldn't do.
Looking to the future, I needed to shatter her notion of the ideal man—not just as a male with 'superior seed,' but as a man she'd fall in love with based on genuine affection.
In that sense, Rydmila still fell short. Her favorability toward me allowed this physical contact, even let her take the initiative and rub against me.
But if I asked whether she truly liked me as a romantic partner? That was still up in the air.
I wanted to be her lover, not just a breeding partner. Ideally, in a harem.
"...Haa."
Rydmila let out a deep sigh. While I'd been lost in thought, I'd kept assisting her stretches as instructed, so she sighed heavily and dropped her head.
"...Um, Phoenix."
"Yes, Miss Rydmila."
"I'd like to ask a favor."
Still stretched with her legs straight and upper body bent 90 degrees toward the floor, Rydmila turned her head back to look at me.
"I want to practice that thing once."
"That thing...?"
"What happened in the baking practice room."
"Ah."
Wind Fart.
"Is that okay? Right now?"
"If we don't train at a time like this, when else? But this time, I'll generate it very slowly."
Rydmila steadied herself against the wall.
"Help me channel my mana while staying as close as possible. Very slowly, very discreetly."
"We're already pressed together..."
"This close."
From her hips to her ankles, every part touching my lower body was fully in contact. I half-worried that recklessly triggering Turbulence might blow off everything below my waist—but thankfully, she didn't seem inclined to go that far.
Slipping upward, Rydmila leaned her back against me. At the same time, she guided my hands herself—
And pulled me into a tight embrace from behind.
"Miss Rydmila?"
"Do it like you did for Unia—like in the practice room. This is just technical training."
With an excuse that sounded suspiciously familiar, Rydmila began channeling her mana.
"If I can control Turbulence, I'll definitely advance to the next level."
"How?"
"The moment the mana leaks as wind, I'll shape its path and converge it into one spot."
Rydmila extended both hands forward. I had a rough idea of her plan, so I supported her from behind in a back-hug—as precisely as a trainer gripping a female client to correct her form.
"Hooo..."
Rydmila breathed out long, letting mana flow. Her second core surged violently, and she clenched her legs as her posture nearly buckled.
"No."
"......!!"
I buried my face in her hair, whispering softly into her rabbit ear.
"You can control it, right?"
"Ngh, nghh..."
"Slowly. Focus on the mana. Imagine channeling it along this path."
"!!"
I pressed my index and middle fingers to her pubic bone, then slowly slid them along her body, flush against her skin.
"Wind flows freely, but this isn't mere wind. It's mana shaped like wind."
"Hoo, hoo..."
"Feel it. Guide the mana along the path. Wind is free, but your Gale isn't."
Natural wind follows air currents and nature's laws. But 'wind-attribute mana' doesn't.
"It's wind that flows by your will. If you can't control it, who will control the wind in your body?"
"......."
Rydmila's hands began to move. Her fingers traced slowly upward from below, following my path exactly, until her hand overlapped mine, her fingertips lightly resting on my nails.
Slide.
When I moved first, she followed the trajectory without a millimeter of error. Mana began forming a path along that line, and I shaped it slowly—the quickest, most reliable route for her mana to flow from her body.
Not a straight line, but one that curved up her waist, flowed across her abdomen, followed the lines of her split abs, then wound under her underbust, up along her armpit, in a tortuous path more tangled than a ball of yarn.
I slid my hand along her armpit, guiding the end slowly to her opposite hand's fingertips.
"There."
I transferred my fingertips to her palm, dotting the finish, then cradled her extended hand from below.
"Try it. Very, very slowly."
"......
Turbulence
"
The moment Rydmila's eyes flashed—
Bang!!
Like a fuse igniting to detonate a bomb, pale green mana wind exploded from her hand.
"!!"
"Got the path memorized?"
"Ah, th-that...!"
As I tried to step back, Rydmila shot her hand out, pulling me flush against her again.
"...Since it's my first time, I think I need repeated training."
A lie. An A-rank hunter like Gale wouldn't forget that.
"I see. Well, it's not easy, after all."
But as you know, play along.
"I'll help until you release it properly."
I slowly infused mana along the path I'd etched into her body.
"I'm basically your mana trainer, miss."
Physical contact during a trainer's guidance? Perfectly natural.
* * *
A little later.
Phoenix had left. Exhausted, Rydmila finished her shower and collapsed face-first onto her desk instead of bed.
"........"
That posture mirrored how Phoenix had gripped her from behind.
"...Ngh."
Recalling the intense something she'd felt in that position, Rydmila slowly stirred Turbulence's mana.
One thing she'd kept secret from Phoenix.
"...Ha, haa...!"
Turbulence's mana surged faster and easier once she reached a certain emotional state.
"......!"
Her pupils gradually reddened, her heart racing faster. Imagining something.