The Bonds of Friendship Choke Me (1)
I let out a pathetic, shattered laugh as I writhed my bound waist with frantic movements. It was as if I were desperately trying to stimulate that secret place between my legs. Then, realizing my body was burning too hot to endure any longer, I opened my mouth.
Watching Kaira speak such utterly bleak words in that seductive voice, a wave of sorrow crashed over me.
The girl I once loved had been broken this badly. Was it me who destroyed her? Or had she always been fractured inside?
For a long moment, I stared at the girl tied to the bed—my first love—with trembling eyes before I finally forced out an answer.
Kaira, who had to be violated even on the eve of her death, filled me with pity. My own body wasn't in great shape either. Yet the sight of her, terrified and yet begging to be taken, was so unbearably lovely that it changed my mind.
Since I'd already removed her gag, I thought about talking a little more, but I stopped myself. When the woman who had been my first love asked for something like this, I had to give it to her first.
I lowered my face between Kaira's still-bound thighs. Then, parting my lips slightly, I pressed them against her most precious place—slick and dripping—right onto the small pink pearl that rose faintly above her nearly hairless folds.
Slurp…
It was a little tart, faintly salty… and blended with that strangely wonderful scent of freshly baked bread that had always emanated from Kaira's body since we were children. Considering she'd been tied to the bed for days and forced to relieve herself there multiple times, it was bizarre how there was almost no foul taste or stench.
The moment I sucked gently, Kaira's slender body convulsed violently.
Already, ecstatic murmurs were spilling from the girl's lips. She looked like someone who had given up on everything. As if she wanted to burn it all away on this final night with me and die as nothing more than an empty shell that had lost it all.
The space between Kaira's legs grew even wetter. The lewd nectar of my childhood friend—who still looked as pure as a child—coated my lips. That endlessly sweet honey… I drank it in with mindless hunger. Because this would be the last time.
Slurp… suck… mmm… lick… slurp…
Whether she'd already surrendered completely to pleasure, Kaira trembled all over and let out cries of ecstasy. At the same time, in a voice so shaky it was hard to tell if it was a moan or words, she begged me.
Kaira's hips jerked wildly. Even if I stopped moving my mouth, she would simply grind her most precious place—her pussy, her clit—against my lips. The guilt of having ruined her like this weighed on me, but the perverse thrill that came with that guilt raced up my spine…
Suddenly, I felt something and pulled my lips away from Kaira's folds.
…That excitement, that lust I should have felt, simply wouldn't rise.
The reason was obvious.
I didn't want to lose her. My dear first love… my precious friend. The proof that those faint, nostalgic memories of childhood had truly existed in this world.
Even in the dark room, I could clearly see the confusion written across her face. I pulled her into a fierce embrace.
At first her face had been full of dissatisfaction because I'd teased her so desperately without properly touching or taking her, but soon a tired smile spread across Kaira's lips.
Aah… Yes. This was it.
This was the smile I had wanted to see—the one from our childhood—not the face of Kaira sobbing madly with a man's cock buried inside her, wearing only the expression of a beast lost in pleasure.
As I spoke, I reached to loosen the leather strap around her wrist, but Kaira shook her head in refusal. Her slender fingers gripped the leather cord tightly.
The well-tanned leather suddenly reverted to raw hide, then transformed into a thin, blood-soaked membrane. Unable to withstand even Kaira's delicate arm, it snapped with a weak crack.
I could only stare at the sight—something that defied the laws of nature—with my mouth hanging open, utterly dumbfounded.
I couldn't continue. No more words would come.
Before me, silent and motionless, Kaira performed something like magic—no, a miracle no mage could achieve—and restored the clothes I had torn and defiled to look brand new.
…Calling this mess "giving me a place to sleep." So like her.
I held her painfully thin body tightly in my arms.
My legs had lost all strength. In front of her—someone a full head shorter than me—I collapsed completely, falling to my knees. The arms that had been around her shoulders now clung desperately to her calves.
My first love looked down at me with that same pitiful smile, then spoke with a strange confidence.
As Kaira—now fully dressed and carrying a backpack nearly as big as her torso—turned to leave, I spoke softly to her back.
The girl turned toward me. Her red eyes blinked several times. There wasn't a trace of anger or resentment on her face. Then she smiled brightly.
What kind of reaction could I possibly give to a bright, kind girl like her after doing something so horrible? All I could do was hold her tightly one last time, let her go, and pray for her safety.
***
"Why… just why…"
Northern Imperial Capital, the vast central plaza where the imperial palace loomed in the distance. I stood among the crowd that had gathered like clouds. Like everyone else here, I had only one purpose.
To watch the witch's execution.
Muttering to myself, I pushed through the dense crowd, step by step, drawing closer to the gallows. Deep down, I was hoping desperately. That they had caught some innocent person instead. It would be terrible for that innocent soul, but if she died here, Kaira wouldn't have to be hunted anymore.
Suddenly I realized I was muttering like a madman, loud enough for others to hear.
That the witch visible in the distance couldn't possibly be Kaira. Her hair color was definitely the same, but it couldn't be her.
Of course, with every step I took, my wish shattered and scattered on the wind. The last shred of hope was completely crushed the moment the witch—standing with a noose around her neck, slowly scanning the spectators—locked eyes with me.
"Ah…"
Those red eyes… those eyes red as blood flowing through veins…
It was Kaira. It really was… my precious friend, Kaira.