What’s so special about a kiss? It was just lips meeting lips. It was like being bitten by a dog while standing still. The more meaning he gives to it, the more unpleasant sensations dominate his mind.

“Control your mind, but do not be controlled by it.”

Nicholas murmured a phrase from the scripture to steady his mind.

The bathwater that had been steaming was now lukewarm. As soon as he felt the chill on his neck, Nicholas got out of the bathtub without hesitation.

When he looked down, his c*ck was still standing er*ect.

‘Could it be that being kissed by a stranger is my thing?’

Nicholas entertained a rather humiliating assumption. At this point, he was even doubting his own s*xual preferences.

His body not aligning with his mind was infuriating. Nicholas irritably grabbed a robe and covered his obliviously er*ect c*ck.

The time he spent drying his hair with a towel after getting out of the bath was usually his favorite part of the day, but today, even that felt burdensome. It seemed like he was getting a migraine, and he felt suffocated. The humid air in the bathroom felt like it was choking him, so he burst out of the bathroom.

Nicholas, who was still drying his wet hair, threw the towel onto the floor and flopped onto the bed.

He never lay on the bed with wet hair. Moreover, he never threw a wet towel just anywhere. It was an absurd thing to do. But today, he didn’t have the energy to care about anything else.

“O noble Lord, Goddess Arne. Please do not lead your son into temptation.”

Nicholas made a sign of the cross, closing his eyes as he lay down.

He didn’t become a priest because of deep faith, but he prided himself on being chosen by God. It was because he wasn’t swayed by carnal desires.

But he never expected such a trial to suddenly come upon him. This was a terrible event that shook the very foundation of Nicholas’s beliefs.

Yes, God was testing him. It was an opportunity to prove his perfect faith in God, or rather, in himself. He already knew the answer. Just as he had preached to others, he needed to overcome it through prayer.

“Your son is being persecuted by a senseless witch. I repent for my lowly heart swayed by wickedness. Please protect my faith and belief in you, and kindly watch over the process of overcoming this hardship.”

It was the greatest crisis in Nicholas Reinhart’s life. Usually, he only performed perfunctory worship, but today he was earnest.

“Damn it.”

No matter how much he prayed, it was useless. His insane p*nis was still standing er*ect, even as he lay down.

He felt like he was going crazy.

***

In the annex of the temple where the guest rooms were located. Rarien, having finished attending to Sera Evotte, was walking out with slumped shoulders.

Her mind automatically recalled the events of that night.

She didn’t even know with what mind she had run away. She had dashed out in high heels, boarded a carriage, and hid in her room until late at night, fearing someone might discover her, before returning the dress to Sera.

As a result, her heels were all scraped, and her unsettled heart was a mess.

“Did you do it? Did you do it?”

Sera eagerly interrogated her, asking how the masquerade was, whether she succeeded in having s*x, from one to ten.

She felt like crying, but she had no choice but to spill everything under Sera’s pressure.

“I didn’t have s*x.”

“Didn’t have s*x?”

“We just… kissed.”

“Wow!”

If you considered it, it was half a success.

The kiss was also without Nicholas’s consent, and it was that she stole it forcefully. She wondered what meaning could be given to such a stolen kiss.

“Congratulations, sweetie! Still, that’s something, I’m so happy!”

“…….”

“Oh right, we should toast. Want to pop some champagne?”

Sera, unaware of Rarien’s rotting insides, enthusiastically celebrated that half-success. She was so happy that Rarien found it hard to say that Nicholas had looked at her with an extremely disdainful gaze.

She said that since they kissed, the next step was only s*x, and encouraged her to keep trying, but it was no comfort.

Of course, for her, even a kiss was a significant event. If she weren’t terminally ill and hadn’t set an unrealistic goal of having s*x, she would have been so happy with just the kiss that she would have run around the neighborhood. Such is the fickle nature of the human heart.

“Kissing His Excellency, that’s an honor in itself. Let’s not harbor any bad thoughts.”

She hadn’t even properly spoken to him, yet she was sulking over not having s*x. No matter how she thought about it, it was an arrogant action that didn’t suit her.

“But those eyes really were disdainful.”

But those eyes lingered in her mind. Rarien remembered those sharp golden eyes. It felt like her heart was pricked by them.

Of course, it was a choice she made to smooth over a difficult situation….

“I’m crazy, truly crazy.”

It seemed like she had made the wrong choice. From His Excellency’s perspective, being harassed by young ladies might have been better than being forcibly kissed. She wanted to smack her own head for foolishly taking unnecessary courage based on her own judgment.

Unwanted contact is violence. So taking his lips without his consent was akin to hitting Nicholas with her lips.

Of course, Nicholas had embraced her shoulder without her consent. At that moment, Rarien’s heart raced, and she almost thought her heart would burst.

But their positions were different. She had long harbored a crush on Nicholas, so it was that way for her. From Nicholas’s perspective, having his lips stolen by a woman he didn’t even know must have been not just absurd but bewildering.

“At least he doesn’t know who I am.”

Fortunately, Nicholas didn’t know her identity. Even in this situation, she felt a strange sense of relief. Human nature is indeed selfish.

At this point, with less than 100 days left to live, what did it matter if she was a bit selfish? Rarien was not in a position to be picky.

“I’ve lived selflessly until now, so it’s okay to live a bit selfishly from now on.”

So don’t be discouraged and start again from the beginning. Considering she even kissed him as a trial and error, it wasn’t bad. Rarien clenched her fists tightly, reigniting her determination.

There wasn’t much time left, but the more urgent it was, the more carefully she needed to proceed.

First, she needed to see if there was anything small she could do to build a rapport. With a renewed mindset, she would form a human connection and then approach him gradually.

Eventually, she might be able to do more than just kiss.

“Still, it’s better to restrain myself for a while.”

While deep in thought, Rarien bumped into something with a thud and fell forward. The impact of the collision sent her glasses flying far away.

“Ow…”

Without her glasses, she couldn’t see anything. Rarien groaned and raised her upper body.

‘…Where are my glasses?’

She groped the floor to find her glasses when the ground seemed to swell up and then sink.

No, this was strange. This definitely wasn’t the ground. The firm and soft sensation under her fingertips was not the ground. Beneath it, she could feel a heart beating.

“You…”

The boiling voice was somewhat familiar.

Surely, this voice was….

“What on earth are you doing?”

Oh my God. It was indeed him. Her hair stood on end, and goosebumps ran down her spine.

After forcing herself to stand up and opening her eyes in a daze, a familiar face loomed into view.

As expected, Rarien was sprawled on top of Nicholas Reinhart’s body.

As their gazes locked sharply, Rarien’s eyes widened as if they would burst.

“What is it? You.”

Nicholas interrogated her with an icy cold voice. His face, at a glance, was extremely angry.

“I-I’m sorry.”

“Name.”

“Pardon?”

“I said, your name.”

“R-Rarien Claude.”

Why is he asking for my name? She answered because he asked, but she was utterly bewildered. Rarien’s voice trembled as she was startled.

“Rarien Claude.”

Nicholas called her name. His voice was deeper and more resonant than usual.

“Do you not watch where you’re going?”

“…….”

“Or are you doing this on purpose?”

“Pardon?”

His lips twisted.

“You’re the rude woman who kissed me at the masquerade, aren’t you?”