Chapter 15

‘He’s good at helping people sleep, too.’

Whenever Ash’s warm hand touched Erin’s cheek, a sense of comfort washed over her. Erin slowly blinked and reached out to stroke Ash’s face.

“That’s not a reason to insult or *buse a child, just because they ‘shouldn’t have been born.’”

“…….”

“That’s just cowardice from the adult. Such people would have abused children for no reason anyway.”

Even while drowsy, Erin could say that for sure.

It was obvious that abusing or hitting a child, saying they shouldn’t have been born, was an evil act.

“And… children born in those circumstances aren’t doomed to unhappiness.”

Even children born into such environments, with a little help, could live good lives.

She herself had lived in an orphanage in her past life. But she’d met kind teachers and social workers, and eventually became a full-time employee at a pharmaceutical company.

“So, I just want to reduce those situations a bit…”

Yawn. A yawn escaped her lips.

Ash kept stroking her face, as if telling her to sleep.

“Understood, Doctor.”

“Mm…”

“Now sleep.”

“Ash.”

Just before falling asleep, Erin mumbled, as she always did, not knowing why.

“For the record, I’m really glad you’re here.”

“…….”

“I’m really happy you exist in this world…”

Otherwise, she’d have been miserable.

Her previous life had been lonely, and even after realizing she’d reincarnated, nothing much had changed. Erin was still a Baron’s daughter struggling with debt, unable to form proper friendships or trust anyone.

All she could do was devote herself to research, achieve her goals, and find satisfaction in the rewards.

Maybe that was her only comfort, which is why she focused so hard on her research.

But now, she had Ash’s touch.

A gentle, warm touch, always there.

A touch she didn’t want to lose.

‘I really do like you, Ash.’

She admitted it with a blink. Ash’s lips quietly parted.

“…Un…”

“…….”

“…derstood.”

Ash’s whispered words were hard to catch.

Erin drifted off to sleep, snuggling into Ash’s arms.

* * *

“…Where should I move this?”

“Put it over there…”

Clatter, crash.

Two weeks later.

Erin sat in the middle of her newly renovated lab, absentmindedly holding a pen.

‘I knew a lot had changed, but…’

She hadn’t expected it to change this much.

Crash, bang!

Next door—now Erin’s office—expansion work was underway.

‘Once again, I got a really cheap rent.’

Landlords these days must be rolling in money.

The landlord, once famous for being stingy, suddenly changed his attitude, saying the room wasn’t going to be rented anyway, and practically gave Erin the next room for free.

Why go for it…?

‘Maybe I’ll separate the test room from the lab?’

Just as the next room became available, Ash suggested she get it too.

His proposal: separate the room for experiments from the research lab.

At first, Erin waved it off, but eventually she had to agree.

She realized the downsides of having their intimate encounters in a combined lab and test room.

For one, the sensual scent never seemed to go away.

Ever since that night together in Ash’s bed…

The two of them were busy joining bodies at every opportunity.

‘Come here, Doctor.’

‘Hm, ah! Ash! Wait!’

‘Don’t look away from me. You have to work, you know.’

Sometimes, Ash would reach out to Erin while she was buried in reports.

‘…Ash.’

‘Yes, Doctor?’

‘I think it’s about time for another test…’

Sometimes, Erin would subtly suggest it herself.

Or, sometimes, without a word, both would suddenly be drawn to each other, stripping off their clothes and tumbling together.

With a place to wash and a luxurious sofa to collapse on, their actions grew bolder.

‘No wonder they say a late-learned thief is the most dangerous.’

The past few weeks had been a blur, filled with memories of wild, passionate encounters.

Thanks to that, Erin found it hard to focus in the lab. She nearly spilled a vial or ruined a report more than once.

That’s how she ended up getting the next room.

‘How did it come to this…’

It felt like she’d crossed some kind of line. Sometimes she wondered if it was okay, but honestly, she enjoyed it too much to complain.

‘Still, maybe it’s been too frequent lately…’

Should she cut down a bit?

Knock, knock.

Just as she was deep in thought, someone knocked at the door and called out.

“Delivery from the boutique.”

“Oh, yes. You can leave it out front.”

Erin replied lightly, hearing “boutique.”

The clothes she’d picked out with Ash on a recent outing had arrived.

‘All those clothes… Ash paid for them.’

Every time they were together in the lab, Ash ended up tearing Erin’s clothes. She almost felt he enjoyed it.

He always tore her clothes, then bought her new ones.

‘…Where does he even get the money?’

Erin insisted she’d buy her own clothes, but Ash never let her pay.

He said he should pay since he tore them, and always bought several sets, not just one replacement.

That must have been close to his entire salary.

When she expressed concern, Ash always replied with a calm face:

‘I’ve saved enough, so don’t worry.’

‘Still…’

‘Please don’t make me feel like a shameless man.’

She never managed to suggest he should control his strength better.

Truthfully, Erin liked it when Ash got so excited he tore her clothes.

She liked it when he pinned her down, sometimes almost trapping her, and took her fiercely. It felt like she was discovering a new side of herself.

It was a bit burdensome that he paid for everything…

But she didn’t dislike going to the boutique with him.

‘Actually, it’s not really the boutique…’

She just didn’t mind going out with him.

Using the excuse of buying Erin clothes, Ash often took her out shopping.

‘Oh my, are you picking out clothes for your girlfriend?’

‘Uh, er! We’re not…’

‘Is there anything nice?’

‘Yes. There’s a pink skirt that would suit your girlfriend’s hair perfectly…’

They acted so close that people mistook them for a couple. Even when others said things like that, Ash took it in stride.

Sometimes, they would return to his place and stay up all night. Erin’s new home still leaked water frequently.

‘Doctor, are you alright?’

‘Yes! I’m fine. But the ceiling again…’

The upstairs owner was still nowhere to be found, so repairs couldn’t begin.

Whenever that happened, Ash would come down and invite Erin to stay at his place.

‘This won’t do. Come to my place, Doctor.’

‘Huh? Maybe I’ll just go to the lab…’

‘You’ll just sleep hunched over again?’

‘But there’s a sofa now. And a place to wash…’

‘The sofa’s too small, and there are chemicals and materials everywhere. It’s not comfortable.’

‘…….’

‘I promise I won’t do anything, just come sleep. Anyway, the contraceptives are in the lab, so without those…’

‘Ah, okay! Stop saying that, please!’

Each time, Erin would give in and spend time at Ash’s house. Eventually, she moved most of her things and furniture there, just in case.

To be honest, it felt like a newlywed home.

‘…It was nice, actually.’

She couldn’t deny it.

Erin really enjoyed the time she spent with Ash in that house.

Unlike in the lab, where every glance led to intimacy, when they were at home, the atmosphere was more comfortable and close.

She ate meals Ash cooked, read books together…

Or, sometimes, instead of getting swept up in desire, they would just hold hands and talk until they fell asleep.

“…It really was nice.”

Though after the first night, it was mostly Erin who did the talking.

‘So, the next experiment will probably be a hair loss treatment…’

‘That should be very marketable.’

‘Yes. There’ll be even more demand than for contraceptives. If it works, things will be much easier.’

Maybe because she wanted to be with Ash longer, she found herself making such suggestions all the time.

‘Wait. Was that really all I had to say while lying next to him?’

She scolded herself, but couldn’t help but think it was fine.

Ash always listened to her, no matter how unromantic her words were, with those gentle eyes.