Chapter 34: Return(1)
Chapter 34: Return(1)
When I returned to the forest from the witch’s bedroom, the giant leopard was gone.
It probably got confused and went on its way. I started wandering through the forest, searching for medicinal herbs.
In a forest this large, there had to be herbs that were good for injuries.
“Found them!”
It didn’t take long to find what I was looking for. This should help Victoria’s ankle heal. To keep it from getting infected, it’d be better to refrain from sex… but was that even possible?
Victoria, having just awakened to her sexuality, knew nothing of restraint. It couldn’t be helped. We’d just have to find positions that didn’t put pressure on her ankle.
I carefully scanned my surroundings as I made my way back to the cave. Luckily, I didn’t run into any monsters.
“Kerry! You’re back. I was getting worried since you were taking so long.”
“The herbs were pretty deep in the forest. But I gathered plenty. Your ankle should heal in no time.”
“Thank you… I feel like I’m always relying on you.”
I’m the one who’s indebted to you. You’re the one letting me enjoy this daily sex life.
I did as I had learned, grinding the herbs into a fine paste and applying it to Victoria’s ankle. Then I wrapped her ankle with a large leaf and added a splint. I hoped it would heal well.
“You’ll need to apply the herbs once a day. And to keep it from getting infected… sex should be…”
“You want to cut back? That’s impossible. I’d rather it heal a little slower. Besides, I’ve grown quite fond of this place. I feel like it wouldn’t matter if I got home a little late.”
“I knew you’d say that. I was just going to suggest we stick to positions that don’t strain your ankle.”
“Oh, was that it? Well, that’s fine, then.”
The moment I mentioned sex, Victoria seemed to get turned on, giving me a suggestive look. But I was tired from just getting back.
“…Kerry.”
When I pretended not to notice, Victoria began to tempt me with a seductive voice.
She was still too shy to ask for sex directly.
So when I tried to avoid it like this, she had her own way of communicating her desire.
She’d make a circle with the fingers of one hand and make a lewd thrusting motion with a finger from the other. The sight was so cute that I couldn’t help but pull her into a fierce hug.
“You’ll do it for me, right?”
“Of course.”
“Your thing is truly the best, Kerry.”
And so began my happy sex life with Victoria. With each passing day, she became more and more forward with her desires.
How did someone this horny manage to stay a virgin for so long?
“Because I am the eldest daughter of the Belarus family. If a noble were to carelessly sleep around, it would bring an indelible shame upon the family. Besides, there are far too many watchful eyes in the castle. I spent all day with my handmaidens, so I rarely had a moment to even think about such naughty things.”
“But it turns out you were a huge pervert all along.”
“I-I’m not a pervert! It’s just… thinking about how I missed out on something this good for so long feels so unfair, so I’m just letting it all out… Besides! You enjoyed it with me, so why are you making me out to be the only pervert?”
Victoria grumbled, but she kept sucking my dick. She sucked hard, her cheeks hollowing with each slurp.
“Ngh. That feels good. Please, swirl your tongue while you suck.”
“Like this?”
“Wow. You’re a fast learner.”
“Hee hee. That’s because I have a good teacher.”
A week passed. Victoria’s ankle, which had already been healing to some extent, began to recover rapidly.
Soon, she could not only walk but also run without any problem. The herbs worked wonders.
But strangely, the better her ankle got, the more often Victoria seemed to look depressed.
Even now, she was crouched in the cave, staring blankly at the little space we had made for ourselves. How did a noble lady end up falling in love with a cave?
“Kerry… do we really have to leave? And leave all of this behind?”
“How do you propose we carry any of it?”
“…Can’t we at least take the bowls?”
“Leave them. You have much nicer bowls at the castle, don’t you?”
“This is different! Aren’t these the bowls you and I made together? And it’s not just the bowls. That bed we made of straw, the furniture you carved from wood. Aren’t all these things filled with our memories? Are you really… okay with leaving all of this behind?”
“…”
It sounded ridiculous, but it wasn’t as if I hadn’t grown attached to this place myself. I had fond memories of us jumping up and down on the straw bed after we finished making it.
I remembered how Victoria had pouted and refused to speak to me for half a day just because I’d accidentally broken one of our crude clay bowls.
But none of it was practical to carry.
“…Can’t we stay here for just one more week before we leave?”
Victoria asked, her expression melancholic. The words “okay, let’s do that” nearly escaped my lips, but I swallowed them. Our schedule was already delayed by several days.
The jungle sex life ended here. It couldn’t be helped.
“Why are you so reluctant to go back, Victoria? The castle has delicious food and handmaidens. You have a clean room.”
“Being here with you was more fun than any of those things. Playing when I wanted to play, sleeping when I wanted to sleep. And… doing it with you whenever I wanted to!”
“But if I go back to the castle… I have to become a solemn and perfect noble again. I have to be mindful of every little word and action so that no one looks down on me, so that I never show any weakness. You have no idea how suffocating that is.”
“Victoria…”
She seemed like a natural-born noble, so I never imagined she had such troubles.
I opened my arms wide, as if to offer her a hug. Just as Victoria ran toward me to jump into my arms…
I flicked her right on the forehead.
“Ah! Why did you hit me! To strike a noble!”
“Now you’re pulling the noble card? Victoria, I understand that being a noble has its hardships. But you’re complaining with a full stomach. There are many commoners who worry about where their next loaf of bread will come from.”
“…”
Victoria, who took a great interest in the common folk, would know that well. The fact that she was still complaining just showed how much she didn’t want to go back to the castle.
“…In that case.”
“In that case?”
“When we get back to the castle… will you still be my friend?”
“Of course. We’ll be friends no matter where we are.”
At my words, Victoria smiled brightly, as if relieved. Then, with a mischievous look, she made a circle with her fingers and made a thrusting motion.
It was her signal for when she wanted to have sex. We just did it…
“Since we’re friends… you can do this for me often, right?”
The technical term ‘sex partner’ seemed more fitting than ‘friend’ for what Victoria wanted, but I didn’t bother explaining it.
“Yes. Of course.”
Only then did Victoria finally get up and start packing her things. I saw her secretly tucking away the bowl she cherished, but I pretended not to notice.
We were finally leaving the place we’d grown so fond of. Victoria glanced back at the receding cave a few times with a look of longing, but she didn’t stop walking.
*
As we walked, I realized there was something that made returning a bit awkward for me, too.
I had grown considerably closer to Victoria, and I was worried about how Natasha would react when she saw us.
Wait. It’s not like I cheated on her. Why do I have to worry about that?
In truth, Natasha only called me her husband; she wasn’t my actual wife.
But somewhere along the line, I had started to worry about what would happen next, as if I had actually cheated. Was this the effect Natasha had been aiming for all along?
If so, it was a plan I had to admit was perfectly designed.
Just then, as if sensing my worries, Victoria spoke.
“When we get back… I won’t tell anyone what happened here.”
“…”
“I am a noble, and I have my dignity to consider. So you need not worry. Your wife will never find out about us.”
“My wife?”
“That red-haired woman… Natasha, was it? Isn’t she your wife? I saw her clinging to you every day, calling you her husband. I already know, so you don’t have to play dumb.”
This again?
“…Natasha is not my wife. It’s complicated, but certain circumstances led to her calling me her husband. Anyway, that’s how it is.”
“!”
Victoria’s face was a mask of shock, as if she’d just heard the most unbelievable story.
“I… I had no idea… all this time… I thought I was stealing a married man… How could this be…”
“Pfft!”
I burst out laughing at her ridiculous misunderstanding. So she’d been feeling guilty, thinking she was seducing a married man.
Seeing me cackling with laughter, Victoria got annoyed and punched my arm. Of course, it didn’t hurt at all.
“You’re such a tease. More importantly, do you even know the way back?”
“Victoria, make that shocked face again. It was hilarious…”
“I asked if you know the way back!”
Victoria forcefully changed the subject. Her face was bright red with embarrassment, so I decided to stop teasing her.
“I was thinking we could follow the river where we fell in. We don’t know which direction to go, and if we move carelessly, we might end up in an even more remote area.”
“You mean we can avoid remote places by following the river?”
“Yes. There are usually many villages along rivers. If we find a village, we can get help or at least ask for directions.”
“Kerry. You’re not a noble, yet you know so much.”
Victoria and I found the river we had first fallen into. Then we started walking upstream, in the opposite direction from which we had been carried.
It was a long walk, but I was used to hardship, and with Victoria’s ankle healed, there were no problems.
I was walking, my body feeling a little heavy, when Victoria playfully splashed water on me.
“That’s cold.”
“You look so miserable, it’s taking all the fun out of this trip!”
“Well, this is less of a trip and more of a survival situation!”
“To lighten the mood… how about it?”
Victoria sent me the signal again with that lewd hand gesture. This woman was a complete sex addict!
“Once we get to the castle, we won’t be able to do it as often as we do now. Shouldn’t we get it in while we can?”
“So that was your plan…”
But I looked up at the sky and shook my head. The sun was already beginning to set.
Dangerous monsters were more active at night. We had prepared food and water in advance, so finding a safe place to sleep was our top priority.
“Look… I see a house over there?”
“What? There’s no way a house would be in a dangerous forest like this…”
Victoria was right. Of course, it wasn’t an ordinary house, but one built of wooden planks atop a giant, ancient tree.
A place like that seemed like it would be reasonably safe for the night.
“There’s even a ladder leading up to it… Someone definitely lives there.”
“But will it be okay? It’s not easy to let complete strangers spend the night.”
“Hee hee. Leave that to me. I don’t know where this is, but surely they will know the name of the Belarus family. Watch and learn the prestige of my family name.”
Victoria took a deep breath and shouted.
“Is anyone there! I am Victoria, the eldest daughter of the Belarus family. If someone is there, would you not come down and speak with us? I promise we mean you no harm.”
It wasn’t long after Victoria shouted. A window in the house atop the ancient tree flew open.
Then, an old man poked his head out.
“Huh? Belarus? What’s that? Something to eat?”
Victoria’s confident face flushed bright red.