Thanks to Selina’s kick, Calix dropped the herbs he’d been holding onto the ground.

He stared down at them for a moment, then lifted his gaze to Selina.

“Selina.”

His eyes curved pleasantly as he smiled, yet despite the smile, there was a distinct chill in the air around him.

“If it’s dirty, bear with it. There’s no other tool to use.”

“I-I’m sorry! That’s not it, I swear…!”

Selina flailed her hands in panic, but Calix’s expression showed no sign of softening.

“I see. I should have gotten a stone and crushed it instead. That way, you might have felt more at ease.”

He actually began to rise as if to fetch a rock, prompting Selina to quickly reach out and grab his arm.

“No, that’s really not it. I just… didn’t expect it at all…”

Of course, that wasn’t the whole reason she’d startled so badly.

‘But I can’t exactly tell him it was because I was trembling too much.’

Fortunately, he seemed to find her excuse reasonable enough, because he gave a small nod.

“Didn’t expect it?”

“Yes…”

“Then I should have told you beforehand.”

There could have been an easier way.

Hearing him mutter that, Selina let out a small sigh of relief. If he meant an easier method, surely it wouldn’t be anything so direct as his hands touching her—at least, that’s what she thought, allowing herself to relax.

“Kya!”

All of a sudden, Calix lifted her injured leg and set it over his shoulder.

Caught in such a suggestive position, one leg raised onto him, Selina gave a startled cry, flustered beyond belief.

“This time I’ll tell you in advance. I’m going to use my mouth.”

“What?! P-put me down right now…!”

“No.”

Calix shook his head with infuriating ease and, even from a distance, began chewing the bitter-smelling herbs.

“There isn’t much of it, so I’m worried I might not be able to use it because of you.”

With that, Calix held the chewed herbs in his mouth and lowered his lips toward her ankle.

One hand gripped her slender leg, and, as if placing a kiss there, he pressed the remedy against the injured spot.

“Ah—”

Selina clapped both hands over her mouth, but even so, a soft, embarrassed sound escaped her. Each time that faint noise slipped past her lips, she felt as though Calix’s gaze shifted toward her.

The moment his touch met her skin, the pain in her ankle was gone—replaced entirely by a heat that sent a shiver through her.

She tried to pull her leg back, seeking to escape the overwhelming sensation, but his grip only tightened, holding her in place.

“Calix…”

Until now, she had only ever addressed him as ‘Your Grace’. But, caught up in the moment, she blurted out his name without thinking.

She had meant to stop him, but saying his name seemed to have the opposite effect.

Hearing it, Calix leaned in as if to answer her and attended to her injury with even greater focus. His movements were unhurried and deliberate.

Despite the herbs now completely covering her ankle, his careful touch made Selina feel as though she might lose herself entirely.

“Please….”

“Do you want more?”

Calix whispered teasingly, his lips brushing her skin.

“I won’t refuse.”

He muttered softly, then began to lower his head. His lips, which had been kissing her ankles, slowly moved up her legs to her thighs.

Grabbing her soaking wet thighs, clinging to her riding clothes, he began kneading them, making her feel strange.

When he touched her delicate skin as though touching the area between her legs, Selina couldn’t stop herself from moaning again.

“Ah, hmph…!”

When he received the desired response, Calix’s hands began to move more teasingly. They slowly moved up to grasp her waist. Her top was soaked by the rain and clung to her body. However, as it was made of thinner material than her bottoms, her skin was visible underneath.

Calix let out a quiet sigh.

He had only meant to treat her injury. If Selina hadn’t reacted so willingly, he wouldn’t have done anything to cause further distress to someone who was already in pain.

But now, he was finding it hard to stop, too. In that moment, he was fighting the urge to pull her fully into his arms.

“Selina.”

Had he been in his right mind, he might have realized just how much heat his voice carried.

Looking down at her, Calix saw her face hidden behind both hands.

“Move your hands.”

She gave a faint shiver.

Still, there was one last restraint left to him. Surely now, Selina would shake her head and tell him to stop. Soaked through by the rain, if she refused with genuine conviction, he would have no choice but to listen.

Yet contrary to his expectation that she would remove her hands at once, she remained still for a long time.

‘Is she… crying?’

A belated thought struck him—perhaps she was angry at his presumptuousness.

“Selina.”

A hint of urgency colored his tone as he pulled her hands gently away.

“…Ah.”

The small hands fell aside, and her uncovered face was revealed.

Her violet eyes, framed by reddened lids, had taken on a hazy look—almost as if blossoms of heat had bloomed within them.

“I… I…”

It was as though she had never found herself in such a situation before; she bit at her lips over and over, unsure what to do, until they were flushed red.

‘D*mn it.’

Calix nearly let the curse slip aloud, forcing it back down.

Until now, the only reason he had provoked Selina was to see her flustered—nothing more.

And yet, just look at him now!

An inexplicable thirst seemed to weigh down his entire body. Overcome by an unshakable desire, Calix closed the distance between them and kissed her as though her lips were a drink that could quench his thirst.

“Ah—”

As Selina drew her waist back under his weight, Calix immediately tightened his hold around her, claiming her lips with rough insistence.

The sensation was nothing like the teasing touch he had used when tending to her injured ankle. This was a fierce pull, as though he meant to draw out every bit of heat from her body. She clutched at his shoulders, struggling for breath.

‘I want to be closer.’

Until now, moments like this had stirred more fear than excitement in her. She had never been able to admit her feelings for Calix, and she couldn’t accept the thought of sharing such intimacy in a relationship that might shatter at any moment.

But now, it felt as though something long locked away deep inside her had been unfastened completely.

‘I don’t want to push him away anymore.’

Even if, once they returned to Thalia, their relationship became nothing more and nothing less than a political marriage—

Even if the one who remained by Calix’s side in the end was not her but someone else—

‘Still, at least for now, I want to be with him.’

Selina wrapped her slender arms tightly around his waist. Through the thin, rain-soaked fabric, the shape and firmness beneath her touch made Calix flinch.

“Ah—”

But only for a moment. Calix lowered his head and began undoing the rain-clung buttons of her blouse.

When his hand brushed firmly over her chilled skin, Selina let out a soft, involuntary sound.

Then, as if waiting for that moment, he caught her parted lips with his fingers, and the touch began to stir restlessly against her, stealing away her breath.

The faint, bitter trace of crushed herbs lingered in her mouth, reminding her of the way his lips had touched her ankle.

Her eyes half-lidded in a haze, Selina instinctively ran her tongue over his fingers.

“…Haa.”

Calix let out a low, heavy breath.

His reaction was different from the composed expression she had always known, and so Selina, as if savoring a sweet held between her lips, let her tongue brush over his fingers again.

“Look at me.”

His voice came out rougher than before. Tilting her chin upward, he pressed his lips to hers in a sudden, urgent kiss, then shifted to lift her into his arms.

“Ah—”

With her cradled against him, Calix sat down on the rock and settled her directly onto his lap.

Through the clinging fabric, she felt the solid muscle of his thigh, and her body gave a small jolt—

“Ah—”

A sudden pain struck.

The abrupt shift in position had put pressure on her injured ankle.

Calix turned his head, his crimson eyes still clouded with desire, only to see the swollen ankle. In that moment, he finally registered that Selina was hurt—and that he had been losing control, acting recklessly.

He had been on the verge of pulling her close again, but forced himself to rein it in.

“…Haa.”

Releasing her from his arms, he let out a deep breath. The only way to keep the wild pull of his instincts in check was to put distance between them.

He drew in long, steadying breaths, doing his best to smother the maddening urge clawing at him—

And then, something unexpected happened.

Selina reached out with her small hand, slipping it under the damp fabric of his clothes, and whispered,

“I… I don’t want to stop.”