Now You’re Obsessed - Chapter 22

I don’t know how she knew to prepare for this situation, but Ariel was incredibly grateful. At that moment, Ariel was about to receive the white saintess candidate dress that she was offering…

“Ari… Sophia?”

Lionel, who was returning with something that smelled delicious on the makeshift shield he was carrying, made eye contact with them. He was emanating a fresh scent as if he had just washed in a nearby stream, with water droplets falling from his loosened shirt. Lionel froze the gentle smile on his face as soon as he saw Sophia.

“…Commander.”

Meanwhile, Sophia narrowed her eyes as if glaring at Lionel.

The moment a strange atmosphere began to flow, Ariel realized how awkward this situation must look and swallowed a groan.

‘The Vice Commander must have known about Lionel’s marriage talks with Lady Rivella.’

And now to witness such a scene. From Vice Commander Sophia’s perspective, how terrible must Lionel appear? Ariel was about to open her mouth to defend Lionel. However, Lionel spoke first.

“Is that clothing?”

“…Yes, Commander.”

“Give it to me.”

“But it’s for Lady Tenia.”

“That’s why I’m asking for it. I need to dress her.”

Ariel was startled by those words. But Sophia unexpectedly handed over the clothes to him without resistance. Her narrowed eyes from earlier were gone, replaced by an oddly mischievous expression.

“Yes, of course. How thoughtful of you.”

“We’ll join the others once we’re ready. Just tell me the location and go.”

“The eastern rendezvous point. Don’t dawdle too much.”

“……”

“You owe me one, okay?”

Soon, when Sophia really handed the clothes to Lionel and left, Ariel was left alone with Lionel again. Ariel looked at Lionel repeatedly with an awkward face.

“Um, I’m sorry, Lionel.”

“What are you talking about?”

Lionel spoke calmly as he swiftly removed the cloak that she had been wearing. Ariel, suddenly left covering only her br*asts and p*ssy, stood with her shoulders turning red again.

“Oh, I can dress myself…”

“Raise your arms.”

Ariel’s feeble resistance was completely ineffective. He calmly dressed her. From fastening the undergarments that wrapped her chest and tightening the corset, to securely fixing the saintess candidate’s dress that by nature had to tightly envelop the body, he did it all silently.

While wrapping the clinging fabric around her body and fastening the buttons at the back, Lionel’s hands frequently touched and held her body. Even though she had been intimate with him yesterday, she couldn’t help feeling nervous.

“It’s done.”

“Th-thank you…”

Although Ariel blushed at the overly intimate act, thinking that this would be their last contact made her feel somewhat melancholic.

‘The moment we leave here… it’s all supposed to be forgotten as if it never happened.’

She clearly said that at dawn. To act as if nothing had happened. Lionel must have heard that too, so this was probably his way of showing one last kindness. As a courtesy for the time she had liked him.

After filling her stomach with the food Lionel had brought and joining the others together, Ariel exchanged eye greetings with Sophia. It was a relief at least that Sophia wasn’t the type to spread such matters around.

Regarding any misunderstandings Sophia might have, Ariel thought she could explain later that Lionel had only done it to save her life.

‘Yes. At least… this won’t spread.’

Ariel firmly believed this as she headed towards the Holy Kingdom. And as soon as she returned, she began packing and preparing.

* * *

For a while, every day was hectic. Submitting a resignation letter to the subjugation team, preparing for the graduation exam at the Holy Academy, obtaining entry and settlement permits for Veloto—days passed in a blur without a moment to breathe.

“To think that Miss is no longer a saintess candidate, it feels strange!”

“If you need anything, we’ll help as much as we can!”

“Ariel, if there’s anything I can do… I’ll help.”

The maids and her father also supported Ariel in their own ways. Unlike when she used to follow Lionel around, when they had shown quite a skeptical attitude towards whatever she did.

Ariel felt somewhat bitter but still worked hard in preparation for her move to the Republic of Veloto.

Of course, during this time, she was a step removed from news of the Holy Kingdom. Not only news about the erotic novels she had been so immersed in, but also news about the small social circles of the Holy Kingdom and the subjugation team she had now quit.

“Is that really true?”

“My goodness, how could…”

Even the murmuring voices she sometimes heard while walking couldn’t distract Ariel’s concentration. It wasn’t easy to leave the place she lived in and start anew in a completely different place. Moreover, Veloto’s language, laws, and social systems were more different from the Holy Kingdom’s than she had thought, and there wasn’t enough time just to study them.

“Hey! Ariel! Is it true?”

“I heard the news. Finally…”

“I’ll talk to you later! I’m busy now!”

She didn’t even have time to properly receive greetings from her academy classmates who had already obtained holy knight qualifications or had holy knight siblings in their families. She was truly that busy.

Fortunately, her classmates just passed by with warm smiles or gentle nods.

“Right. We can celebrate later.”

They must have heard the news that she was going to Veloto. They probably wanted to congratulate her on finalizing her career path. Still, the fact that there were people who liked her at the academy gave Ariel courage.

“Phew!”

Ariel finally managed to obtain the settlement permit. And a big part of that success was due to all the time she had spent trying to win over Lionel, which had provided a solid foundation for her studies and learning new things.

‘Even to the very end… you’re being kind to me.’

Ariel simply summarized her feelings that way and ignored her aching heart. There wasn’t even time to be frustrated over her ended first love or to lock herself in her room and cry.

Even in the midst of such busyness, the last November Ball, just before graduation, was approaching.

“Miss! Another letter has arrived… It’s from Frenderick…”

“Sorry! I’m busy now!”

“But you should at least check…”

“Are there any other letters? It’s about time for documents from the Republic of Veloto to arrive!”

And even until then, Ariel was spending days that felt like her soul might leave her body. Obtaining the settlement permit wasn’t the end. There was so much to prepare. She barely even looked at letters coming through the academy or brochures from boutiques and jewelry stores about the ball.

‘It’s not like anyone’s going to ask me to be their partner now anyway.’

So on the day of the ball, Ariel attended in a light party dress. Since the saintess candidate dress she often wore was pure white, she chose a white, flowy dress not too different from it. It was the result of unconsciously choosing a familiar and comfortable outfit.

Of course, thinking about the torn saintess candidate dress kept bringing back memories of that time, but.

‘Ariel.’

The damp heat of that moment, and the voice calling her name…

‘I need to stop thinking about this.’

Ariel deliberately pressed her heating cheeks with her hands to calm down. The maids did their best to dress her up in the meantime.

“Miss, you look truly beautiful.”

“If only we could have dressed you up a bit more…”

“Oh! Come to think of it, we have some leftover corsages and veils!”

“You don’t need to try too hard. Just keep it simple.”

“But this is our pride!”

“That’s right. It’s the last ball!”

“Come to think of it, you seemed like you weren’t going to attend the ball. But you’re going after all!”

“Mmm.”

In fact, Ariel had been considering not attending the November Ball until just before it was held. She was busy enough without the ball. The reason she didn’t was that she wanted to end things well.

‘I have something to say to Caelo too.’

Although she had been seeing Caelo quite often as he helped with various documents related to the Republic of Veloto, it had been a few days since they last met as the ball approached. Caelo himself had been busy with graduation schedules.

‘Still, I should meet and talk to him soon.’

She had to meet him anyway to discuss matters related to the Republic. At the same time, she wanted to participate in the academy event she had diligently attended and end on a good note. The maids encouraged her until the end.

“Our Miss will shine brightly even without a partner.”

“Of course. Honestly, all the men who see Miss today will probably be frustrated that they can’t court her.”

The maids, who noticed Ariel’s change of heart after returning from the monster subjugation without her having to say anything, praised her without mentioning Lionel. Ariel inwardly thanked the perceptive maids.

Meanwhile, the maid who had been watching over her the longest still wore a strange smile.

“What’s wrong?”

“No, it’s nothing. But…”

“But?”

“Perhaps, do you have any intention of reading the letters that have come for you one last time?”

“At this point?”

She knew there were private letters that had come for her, but she was planning to reply to them all at once after everything was over. She didn’t think there would be any nobles wanting to ask her to be their partner for the November Ball anyway.

“You didn’t reply to the letter from the Frenderick duchy before either.”

“Ah.”

Come to think of it, there were letters from the duchy before she left for the subjugation. And a few more had come after that. They were probably sent by Lionel, but given that such things had already happened between them, Ariel wanted to postpone those letters again.

‘It’s fortunate that Lionel won’t be coming to the November Ball.’

He would be participating in the subjugation team’s events, as he had done consistently since he was sixteen. He would probably be with Lady Rivella. Not wanting to imagine that, Ariel quickly gathered her thoughts.