Whispers of Ancient Ruins and Hidden Desires
It hadn't even been a full day since they left the Earth village. The first evening arrived, and it was the usual overnight camp. The only change was that the quality of dinner had improved slightly. The caravan was covering some of the mercenaries' food supplies as part of the employment contract. For that alone, the mercenaries felt they'd made the right choice in taking the escort job.
The next day was a bit different from the previous one. The caravan, including the mercenaries, picked up the pace considerably.
"A new ruin has really been discovered?"
"Yes. And it seems like a pretty big one."
"You should have mentioned that first!"
"I thought you already knew, of course..."
While Janet relentlessly grilled the merchant for information, something useful finally came up. According to him, a new ruin had been found not long ago. Built underground, its scale couldn't be gauged from the outside.
"So, what were the results of the first exploration?"
"Well... a small mercenary group only checked near the entrance. They said even a day or two wasn't enough to explore it all—it's that massive."
"Oh ho... What kind of ruin is it? A tomb? A mage's lab? A forgotten god's temple?"
"Nothing's been revealed yet. No items from inside, either. They just peeked into the entryway and came back out..."
"Hmm... That's ambiguous."
"Ah! There was a warning inscription at the entrance. I don't remember exactly, but it was something like 'enter without permission at your own peril.' That's why even the small mercenary group didn't go deep."
"A warning inscription? That raises the odds it's a tomb! A very, very large tomb... I smell money."
Of course, getting caught raiding a royal tomb would mean no mercy. You'd experience every torture this world had to offer. But archaeology wasn't advanced enough here to criminalize digging up tombs of unnamed figures from history books. No one cared if ownerless graves were desecrated. Everyone, from royals to nobles, just coveted the gold inside.
"So they're recruiting a large-scale exploration team from the Capital."
"...You're kidding? You knew this and only tell us now?"
"I assumed White Whale knew about it, which is why the Capital was our destination..."
"Ugh... Can you really be blamed for misunderstanding?"
One odd thing stood out, though. The ruin was discovered right near the Capital—a place that should have fewer dangers than anywhere else, thanks to the Royal Palace.
'They must have scoured the area decades ago for threats or hazards.'
Yet this ruin had evaded detection until now. That's why most Capital residents were fixated on the discovery.
"Whoa... Gives me chills. A ruin right next to the palace..."
"And it went undiscovered until now? That's weird."
"Right? Lucky it was undeveloped land. If houses had been built on top..."
"An earthquake could've collapsed the ground entirely."
"That's why the royals are hiring mercenaries. The pay must be huge."
Unfortunately, Park Chanyoung had no idea why the ruin had only just been found. The novel had gone on hiatus before that reveal. All he knew from the background was that the land with the entrance had no owner—it had reverted to the crown after the owner's death, and customs officials discovered the ruin during their survey. Useless trivia.
But he wasn't completely in the dark. The entrance warning wasn't empty words. There were enemies inside, and he had some intel on them. Plus other details.
For those reasons, their pace toward the Capital quickened. The recruitment period for the exploration team was generous, but arriving early couldn't hurt.
*
Thanks to the caravan, the mercenaries' food quality had improved. But that didn't make it tasty for Park Chanyoung and Chris. Bland stew was still bland stew, whether barely edible or just tolerable... They took only a token portion to sample, handling main meals on Earth.
The mercenaries didn't bat an eye. It was well-known that Capital dwellers ate lightly, and Chris was his lover, so they used that as cover for sharing meals. In reality, they enjoyed fresh meat dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Balanced nutrition prevented muscle loss.
*Nom nom!*
Chris sat across from him, blissfully savoring her food. Meal times always seemed joyful for her. Her tastes were adapting to his cooking, and objectively, his skills weren't bad.
But for him, meals weren't ordinary anymore. Starting a few days ago... Anzelli began visiting whenever he ate with Chris.
*Creak... thunk.*
"Chanyoung? Eating...?"
Today was no different. Still shy, Anzelli approached hesitantly. No immediate skinship this time. A glance at the clock explained it—Earth evening. Mealtime for Anzelli, who lived only on Earth.
"I, I was gonna have dinner too..."
*Scrape... plop.*
It was fascinating how Chris remained oblivious to Anzelli's actions. No reaction to the chair dragging or her sitting. He finger-wrote on the table to avoid alerting Chris. Anzelli easily read his intent—they'd grown used to this silent communication.
-Your junior?
"Her schedule's messed up... She was scavenging the side dishes you prepped at dawn?"
He'd noticed food vanishing by morning. Mystery solved.
-But you said dinner? Where's your bowl?
"Uh..."
He couldn't fetch it for her. Perception interference wasn't omnipotent—it couldn't fully mask his actions toward her.
She pondered his question briefly.
"Today's side dish is spicy?"
-Not really. Looks redder than it is.
Anzelli hesitated. He didn't get why. She'd grown accustomed to his company and could handle spice now. She'd loved this spicy chicken stew before—no reason to balk.
"...Eating spicy stuff might... h,hurt?"
-Smooth!*
"Wh-what...!"
He couldn't stifle his startled outburst. She'd ducked under the table, her snowy wings brushing the edge out of sight. A presence definitely settled near his legs.
"Chanyoung? What's wrong?"
"N-nothing."
He hastily brushed it off to Chris. Real confusion hit for the first time in ages. Natural Healing swiftly calmed his rattled mind. Then it clicked—why she'd avoided the spicy food.
'No way... No way?'
The "no way" proved true. Her small hand began softly stroking his leg. Unmistakably seductive, teasing.
He wore loose sweats for comfort at home, so the touch registered clearly.
"Y-you don't... h,hate it, right...?"
Her squeezed whisper came from below. She was pushing past her shyness. With Chris present, skinship had maxed at kisses. More overwhelmed her with shame. It started with cheek pecks, progressed to French kisses... but no further.
Today, though, Anzelli aimed to advance—right in front of Chris.
'Th-thinking about it, from her view, it's been less than 30 minutes since Chris and I last did it...?'
Trips to Earth weren't just for meals or rest. They came whenever desire struck. He'd only slept with Chris sporadically, but Anzelli likely perceived it as multiple times daily. Enough to feel urgency.
By sheer frequency, he'd bedded Anzelli over five times more than Chris.
"...Huh? Chanyoung? Th-this feels a bit... hard?"
"..."
Anzelli's surprised murmur followed. Loose pants made his half-erection obvious.
His healthy body anticipated, blood already rushing. Despite no direct touch on the key spot.
"...S-so... you don't hate it... got it?"
With Chris across, he couldn't reply. Would perception interference keep it hidden? Or half-work? He had to trust Anzelli's judgment.
'...Gotta manage my expression so Chris senses nothing off...'
A half-fail would leave him exposed as a pervert pantsless mid-meal.
He wouldn't stop her. For someone so bashful to initiate meant burning desire she couldn't voice. Rejecting now eliminated misunderstandings with Chris—but it'd wound Anzelli deeply.
...Truth was, those were excuses. Success odds were high. He was confident in facades and deception. Above all, the situation thrilled him. His promiscuous life had seen variety, but never this. Service from his lover under the table, face-to-face with another? Taboo twisted into arousal, his erection stiffening faster.
*Stroke...*
Her hand moved earnestly. Fingers tickling inner thigh climbed, soon brushing the bulge tenting his pants. She startled at contact—fingers twitching.
Obviously, he couldn't peek below. Too suspicious with Chris there. Lack of sight heightened it—touch hypersensitive.
"Sh-should I... pull down your pants...?"
Dim under the table, but irrelevant for her halo's glow. She gripped his waistband without fumbling, tugging down.
*Whoosh!*
Loose sweats slid easily—he'd lifted obligingly. His full erection snagged briefly; she gently pressed it aside to free them.
"Th-then... this too..."
Hesitant fingers stripped his underwear. Now fully exposed before her.
Anzelli silently inspected close-up. Her warm breath confirmed it—teasing air alone sparked faint pleasure on his sensitized skin.
"W-wow... it twitched..."
Instinctual flex at pleasure was beyond control. Novel to her after mere visual study.
No intent to tease, but it felt like edging. Briefly... then hot, wet warmth enveloped his glans.
"Ha, ah..."