WMEEM Ch 23
Terkan, Stop!
[Terkan] "It felt suffocating."
He unbuttoned his coat, then loosened the shirt beneath it.
Click. Click.
The sound of buttons coming undone echoed with unusual clarity in the quiet room.
He kept his gaze locked on me the entire time. It was entirely different from the glare he gave me at the observatory yesterday morning. This look held something far stranger, far deeper.
Facing his unmasked, intense gaze made my heart race wildly, but I forced my expression to remain calm.
Terkan shook his head slowly from side to side, a soft chuckle escaping his lips.
His hands paused on his shirt. Bare skin showed through the parted fabric, and I suddenly didn't know where to look.
[Terkan] "You are nervous."
He had caught me, and trying to hide something so obvious only made his amusement understandable.
[Terkan] "Shall I stop?"
I let out a soft breath and shook my head.
[Celeste] "You said it is something that must be done regardless."
[Terkan] "That is true."
He reached out and touched my hair. A peculiar sensation rippled through me. Was it because of the tea I drank earlier? Where his fingers brushed my hair, a strange warmth spread across my entire body.
[Celeste] "I feel strange. Is it because of the tea?"
[Terkan] "As I noted, it is a tea to elevate your mood."
His hand moved from my hair and brushed against my cheek. He pulled back slightly, bending the arm resting on the sofa back so he could lean his chin against his hand.
He stared down at me with an unreadable expression, making it difficult for me to breathe smoothly. It was the look he gave me when he saw me as a subordinate—similar to our first meeting—yet subtly different.
It was like someone looking at a young child. Ah, yes. The kind of look given to a cherished, adorable creature.
I didn't think Terkan held any romantic affection for me. Rather, he looked at me the way someone might look at a small, endearing animal. A kitten, or a puppy.
[Celeste] "Don't look at me like that."
[Terkan] "How am I looking at you?"
[Celeste] "Like a pet trapped in your hand."
[Terkan] "I held no such intent, but if you feel that way... How then should I look at you?"
[Celeste] "Just begin already."
Dragging this out only heightened my tension, making me hyper-aware of his every movement and glance. Above all, I hated this suffocating silence.
Terkan leaned toward me, preparing to begin here on the sofa rather than moving to the bed.
As he closed the distance, I instinctively leaned back. I ended up reclining against the cushions, and he looked down at me from above.
[Terkan] "We shall begin with a kiss."
[Celeste] "Again?"
[Terkan] "Again? The beginning is always the same."
[Celeste] "...Very well."
I closed my eyes as instructed, but a low chuckle echoed above me.
[Terkan] "It is not time to close your eyes yet."
I opened my eyes and frowned at him.
[Celeste] "Yesterday you told me to close my eyes."
[Terkan] "That was right before our lips met."
[Celeste] "Understood."
[Terkan] "Wrap your arms around my neck."
I hesitated before raising my arms, draping them loosely around his neck. Though it was more resting them there than wrapping them.
[Terkan] "Relax your arms."
[Celeste] "I want to, but I can't."
[Terkan] "Wrap just one arm around my neck and place your other hand on my face."
I did as he asked, unclasped one arm, and gently rested my palm against his cheek. While his face remained calm, his skin radiated intense heat. I wondered if human skin temperature could rise this high.
[Celeste] "You are hot."
[Terkan] "My body temperature is naturally high."
He tilted his head and slowly lowered his face toward mine.
Long eyelashes cast dark shadows beneath his eyes, which shone with black and crimson depth tonight. His hot breath seeped through his slightly parted lips, brushing over my skin.
I closed my eyes just before our lips met. Then he kissed me. His lips burned hot, making my own body heat rise. Yet this kiss was different from yesterday's. It was far more than a simple touch.
My eyes snapped open instantly. Ignoring my panic, Terkan offered a low, quiet command.
[Terkan] "Part your lips."
[Celeste] "Is... is it normally done like this?"
[Terkan] "Yes. Now part your lips."
[Celeste] "B-But..."
Terkan didn't address my stammering with words. He cupped my cheek and used his thumb to gently nudge my chin down. As my lips parted, he pressed his mouth against mine again.
What on earth is happening?
I couldn't even close my eyes. I wanted to object, but my mouth was filled, leaving me able to make only muffled sounds.
He deepened the kiss, his tongue claiming every inch as if taking possession of me. It felt like a sudden, rushing storm. My fingers dug desperately into his hair, holding on for support.
The wild tempest settled after a moment, but it didn't stop. The kiss shifted, becoming soft and smooth—slow and seductive—drawing my body deeper into a haze that offered a strange comfort. My eyes fluttered shut on their own.
His breathing grew rough, and he slowly pulled his lips away with a quiet, lingering sound.
Hearing that clear proof of what we had just done made heat flood my face instantly.
[Terkan] "It is not over yet."
Terkan whispered, his mouth hovering right against the corner of mine. I looked away, feeling the faint vibration of his voice against my skin.
[Celeste] "U-Um..."
I didn't know what to say. I couldn't bring myself to tell him to stop, but I was not sure I could handle going any further. This was a completely unknown side of intimacy between a man and a woman.
[Terkan] "Did it feel unpleasant?"
I almost wished it had felt unpleasant. Instead, a wave of confusion and anxiety swept over me.
[Celeste] "...Just keep going."
He pressed his lips to mine once more before pulling back, his fingers tracing the curve of my face. I turned my head away, unable to hide the frantic beat of my heart.
His hand slid down my jawline and rested on my neck.
[Terkan] "Here."
He pressed his fingertip lightly against a spot on my neck.
[Terkan] "A vital point. An injury here brings death in seconds."
I didn't understand why he was explaining something like that right now. My mind was too cluttered to make sense of it.
Thump. Thump.
He lowered his voice to a whisper.
[Terkan] "It beats rapidly to show it is there, yet it stays hidden. Because it is such a critical spot, it is remarkably sensitive."
Then he suddenly pressed his lips against that exact spot. My breath caught in my throat, and my fingers tightened in his hair.
As his warm lips brushed against my bare skin, I could only blink in stunned silence.
[Terkan] "Hold my head."
Even now, he was still giving instructions, and I obeyed automatically.
His hand slid down to rest on the curve of my waist. A strange, tingling shiver traced down my spine all the way to my toes.
An instinctual sense of danger flared inside me, and I called out his name.
[Celeste] "Terkan!"
Terkan raised his head and looked down at me.
His ruby eyes were hazy. His lips were stained a deep, vivid red. His breathing was low and uneven. He looked like a completely different person from the Terkan I knew.
Despite his sharp, striking appearance, his words and actions had always been composed and gentlemanly. But right now, there was nothing gentlemanly about his expression.
The man whose fairy blood gave him such otherworldly beauty now looked like a demon trying to claim a human soul.
Staring into those hazy eyes, my mind went blank, as if I had been hypnotized.
I watched helplessly as his face leaned in again. His warm breath against my ear sounded like a dangerous spell.
Two instincts clashed inside me. The urge to push him away against the strange desire to let him continue.
In the end, fear won out. I turned my face away from his lips and pressed my hands against his shoulders.
[Celeste] "Terkan, stop for a moment."
[Terkan] "..."
[Celeste] "Terkan!"
I raised my voice with everything I had, and he finally froze.
The haze cleared from his eyes in an instant. He stared down at me slowly as realization struck him, his face flushing with visible embarrassment before he pulled back and sat upright.
I sat up as well, running a hand through my hair to hide my own awkwardness.
He watched me in silence while his fingers worked quickly to button his shirt.
I let go of my hair and looked at him.
He is not the kind of man who would ever harm me, so why did I feel so threatened?
What made me so afraid of going further?
[Celeste] "Let us stop here for today."
His hands paused for a split second, then resumed as if nothing had happened, fastening every button on his collar.
[Terkan] "Understood. I shall see you tomorrow."
He offered a formal bow and left the room.
I stared blankly at the closed door, my fingers drifting to the spot on my neck where his lips had lingered.
Perhaps because the skin there was sensitive, just as he had said, a sharp heat burned against my palm, making me pull my hand back quickly.
[Celeste] "What was that?"
Even after I dropped my hand, the skin kept burning.
Terkan stepped out of Celeste's room and walked blindly through the freezing night air.
Dammit.
He gritted his teeth and swallowed a curse.
He couldn't believe how he had acted. He shouldn't have reacted that way, nor could he afford to lose control like that.
He was a man who never lost his breath, even after running for miles. Under no circumstances had he ever lost his composure or his focus. Beyond that, physical desire had never been something he felt for anyone.
Yet tonight, in front of Celeste, all three had broken down at once.
Even though he wanted to push the moment out of his mind, the sweet scent of her skin still lingered at the tip of his nose.
The memory of her touch remained vivid. Her arms resting around his neck, the look in her eyes, the feeling of her fingers tangled in his hair. It was all crystal clear. And her lips were sweeter than any confection.
Worse still, he couldn't stop replaying his own reactions.
His breathing had turned rough from sheer excitement, and his self-control had slipped away completely. Leaving a mark on Celeste's neck was supposed to be the entire extent of his plan tonight.
Celeste was supposed to be the one losing her composure during the lesson, yet the roles had completely flipped. It was ridiculous.
Suddenly, an oracle he had received years ago flashed in his mind.
So he had accepted it out of pure necessity. He had accepted it to survive, and that need had brought him all the way to this place.
To Terkan, a woman chosen by fate carried no emotional weight. She was simply a means to stay alive. Because of that, he had treated tonight's instruction as nothing more than a routine task, only to end up like this.
Was a physical reaction unavoidable just because fate demanded it?
A bitter laugh escaped his lips. He stopped walking and looked up at the night sky.
A moon as pale as his own skin hung in the dark like a curved fingernail. Just looking at it brought her delicate hands and slender fingertips back to his mind.
I have lost my mind.
He shook his head and let out a long sigh.
What am I supposed to do?
Bound by his oath to Batizo, he couldn't take her for himself.
Terkan paced in the cold, wrestling with his thoughts, lingering in the dark for a long time before finally walking away.
The next morning, Tarega was the first maid to enter my bedroom to change the sheets.
I waved my hand and told her there was no need to strip the bed.
[Celeste] "Nothing happened."
[Tarega] "Was there no instruction?"
[Celeste] "Not exactly none. We are taking it bit by bit, it seems."
[Tarega] "Aha. So you only progressed far enough to leave the bed completely untouched last night."
I gave Tarega an embarrassed smile at her blunt summary and walked toward the washroom.
A quick wash would have been enough, but Tarega had already prepared a full bath for me.
Since the hot water was ready, I decided to soak for a while, undressing and stepping into the tub.
[Tarega] "Heavens! Your Highness!"
She gasped as her eyes caught something on my skin.
[Tarega] "What is that on your neck?"
[Celeste] "On my neck?"
Tarega handed me a small mirror. A deep crimson mark stood out clearly against my skin.
A mosquito bite? A mosquito in the middle of winter makes no sense.
I rubbed it with my fingers, but it didn't hurt at all.
[Celeste] "Did I scratch it in my sleep?"
[Tarega] "Well... Could it be an insect bite?"
[Celeste] "In my sleep? Where would an insect come from in this cold weather?"
[Tarega] "True. I shall ask the physician for some ointment."
[Celeste] "Leave it be. It will fade in a few days."
I brushed it off and sank back into the warm water.
The tutors who came for my lessons today went out of their way to avoid my gaze. In fact, they refused to look at my face at all.
I racked my brain trying to think if I had done something wrong, but nothing came to mind. Then I realized the maids were avoiding my eyes too.
Did a new rumor start spreading outside?
If so, at least one maid would have whispered it to me, but no one said a word. I wanted to ask Terkan about it, but he was nowhere to be found today.
[Celeste] "Tarega, have you heard any rumors among the maids?"
[Tarega] "Rumors? Did Your Highness hear something?"
Tarega seemed completely in the dark as well.
[Celeste] "No, but everyone is avoiding my eyes."
[Tarega] "Hmm. Why would they do that? Could it just be your imagination?"
[Celeste] "Maybe. I am not sure."
[Tarega] "Let us wait until tomorrow. If it continues tomorrow, you can ask the maids directly."
I wanted to ask right away, but afraid I might just be overthinking things, I decided to wait until the next day.
Then a sudden thought hit me.
Could someone have seen me at the masquerade?
That was the only thing I had done recently that could cause trouble. Although Elizaveta came to visit often without raising suspicion, a lingering sense of unease stayed with me.
I made up my mind to check with Elizaveta during tea time today and stepped outside to take a break.
Because I had been stuck in the annex for so long, I wanted to catch a breath of fresh air whenever I had the chance.
I sat on a garden bench with a blanket draped over my lap, chatting quietly with Tarega.
When Batizo passed by and noticed me, he changed direction and walked toward us, prompting me to stand up to greet him.
At first, Batizo approached with an unusually calm expression.
As he drew closer, however, his face twisted into a fierce glare, his eyes locking onto me. As if he were ready to kill me right where I stood.
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