PMEVBO 74

Everything was fine until I thrust my face forward. When I lowered my head from above, Iser tilted his own back. But I stopped just inches away from our lips meeting.

No matter how I think about it, this probably isn’t right…

Iser was 20. At 20, the ink on his ID card hadn’t even dried yet. Legally classified as an adult, but in every other way, still closer to being a teenager.

On the other hand, mentally, I was already 31. Even among adults, someone who had just become an adult and someone who had lived as an adult for 11 years couldn’t be the same.

I even remembered Iser’s face from when he was younger. He was only 14 back then, but he was so small and had such a childish face that he looked about 10. I felt disgusted with myself when I realized I was about to kiss that child.

But more importantly… I had a premonition that if I took just one more step forward here, it would be irreversible. I was afraid of that.

Then, Iser’s breath tickled my lips. I could see his Adam’s apple slowly moving up and down on his tilted neck.

“You look troubled.”

“……”

“Why? Does the thought of kissing me make you sick?”

His eyes had darkened.

It was true I felt sick. Not of Iser, but of myself. The thought of me, a human being, willing to stoop to this to achieve my goal, made me want to vomit.

“Even if it makes you sick enough to vomit, can’t you just kiss me?”

Iser’s smile was as imperceptible As a moon hanging in the dawn sky. It felt like my escape route was blocked.

I took a deep breath but couldn’t bring myself to exhale. The trapped breath stabbed at my lungs. I lowered my head, and felt a soft touch on my lips. Iser gently closed his eyes. I exhaled the breath I’d been holding and closed my eyes too. Then, cautiously, I entwined my tongue with his.

With my vision blocked, my others senses heightened. I wanted to push away the intrusive thoughts, so I deliberately deepened the kiss. When the tip of my tongue brushed his palate, Iser’s breath faltered. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me toward him. I didn’t resist and obediently sat on his lap.

My heart was beating so fast it felt like I was suffocating. The heartbeats and my gasping breaths echoed in my head. The sensation of our entangled tongues was good. I could feel my earlobes burning hot.

My hands, wrapped around his cheeks and neck, kept tightening, and I struggled to curl my fingers.

The moment Iser sucked on the tip of my tongue, a cool shiver ran down my spine. At the same time, I felt my lower body tightening.

I quickly pulled my lips away before it was too late. If I kept going like this, I feared I wouldn’t be able to stop even when Iser wanted to.

A thread of saliva, thin as a spider’s web, stretched out before snapping. In that instant, our gazes met. His eyes, sparkling in the lamp light, were beautiful like stars on a clear night after rain.

After gazing up at me silently for a moment, Iser murmured softly.

“You didn’t throw up.”

…At this point, it was hard to dismiss it as a joke. He must have genuinely thought I’d vomit while kissing him.

No, if that’s the case, then why the hell did you let me kiss you…?

I have no idea what made this guy go this far. I wiped the moisture from Iser’s lips with the sleeve of my prison uniform and said.

“Well, I almost did throw up… my heart.”

“……What?”

Iser’s hand gripped my prison uniform tightly. He looked up at me without blinking. I cringed and looked away.

“…Didn’t you hear my heartbeat when we kissed?”

“Haha.”

I stared at Iser, who suddenly started laughing, then buried his face in my shoulder. Every time he laughed, the vibration traveled through our touching bodies.

Come to think of it, this guy… had a habit of hugging when he laughed.

Though he’d grown quite big now, so it felt more like he was holding me than me holding him, but… well, it was cute. His soft hair tickled my neck, making me flinch, but I didn’t want to push him away. I chuckled softly and patted his back.

(2/5)

D-2 (61h 45m 50s)

Two praises had been achieved while I wasn’t looking.

Two for one kiss…

So this was what Iser really wanted from me? …I couldn’t deny it anymore.

Just then.

Grrr─

The sound escaped against my will, making me pause. Iser lifted his head and looked up at me.

“Come to think of it, today’s meals are still sitting there.”

“…….”

“You haven’t eaten anything all day?”

Iser asked as he looked at the wooden trays for breakfast, lunch, and dinner still sitting in front of the iron door. I absentmindedly rubbed the back of my neck and replied.

“……I was sleeping.”

“Ah, sleeping…”

Iser rose without another word. Then he returned carrying all three wooden trays at once.

And so I had to enjoy an unexpected meal time. Iser stood quietly beside me. Maybe because it had been six years since I’d eaten in front of someone, it felt a little awkward.

“Do you want to eat with me?”

I said that, but honestly, I didn’t want to invite him. …Because they all tasted awful.

“Then, can I just have some water?”

“Here, drink.”

I chose the water that had arrived in the evening from the three cups and handed it to him. It was probably in the best condition. Iser slowly drank the water I offered. But he still was staring at me. He had been quietly watching me tear off and eat bread when he suddenly spoke up.

“I have a question, Lucariel.”

“What is it?”

I stopped midway to put the last piece of bread in my mouth and looked at Iser.

“Is there a special reason you skip breakfast?”

Thud.

The bread piece slipped from my hand and fell onto the wooden board. Iser picked it up himself and placed it in my mouth. Something entering my mouth triggered a reflexive chew, but I shivered.

...How did this guy know I skip breakfast?

As if he was reading my thoughts, Iser said calmly.

“There’s a document that keeps track of whether you’ve eaten or not.”

“……”

“I was curious and read it. It said you hadn’t eaten breakfast for about three years.”

Wait, what? Do they really have to check and record if some criminal bastard eats or not? And not only that, but they read it too… Being a guard really is an extreme job.

I’m someone who’s always believed that skipping even one meal is a big deal. That’s why, even if it meant getting up at the crack of dawn to cook, I always made sure to eat breakfast. It was the same after I possessed this body. But after I started touching the cigarettes that came with breakfast in prison, I stopped eating breakfast.

Because lighting a cigarette with divine power makes my stomach churn.

But I couldn’t honestly admit that. I know shame too.

I ended up choosing the safest answer.

“I never really liked eating breakfast.”

“Really? But you always ate breakfast when you were with me.”

Iser tilted his head to one side and added.

“Not just breakfast. You made sure I ate lunch, dinner, and snacks in between.”

“……”

…This is why I hate people with good memories.

I brushed the breadcrumbs off my hands onto the wooden board and forced myself to sound indifferent.

“I was young back then. As I got older, breakfast just doesn’t sit well with me.”

“You’re only twenty-three, what are you talking about? Someone might think you’re an old man.”

Iser chuckled softly. But I couldn’t laugh. Even if not quite an old man, I was at an age where I should start getting used to being called “uncle.”

“Hmm.”

After a moment of silence, Iser set the cup he was holding down on the table. Then he gently cupped my cheeks with both hands. The cool touch felt pleasant. Only then did I realize my cheeks were burning hotter than usual. …Probably because of that kiss earlier.

Iser kept his hands on my cheeks. He looked at me with eyes as still as a lake.

“I don’t understand.”

“……What?”

“Your body.”

……Why my body?

As I waited for him to continue, life energy suddenly began flowing into me from the hands holding my cheeks. My whole body instantly felt languid, I felt like I’d been given a sedative.

“Even though I treat you every day, the next day I’d see your condition had worsened a little.”

In that moment, I found myself holding my breath. Iser, who had been quietly watching me, smiled and asked.

“Does anything come to mind?”