It felt like our noses could touch any moment. I didn’t need to look down to know that the curse was surging.

“I like you! I like you!”
It felt like I kept hearing such hallucinations in my head.

Idrish stared at me intently. In his deep gaze, I felt like I could be devoured and melt away.

But what came out of his mouth was entirely unexpected.
“You found out how to lift the curse?”

What?

I involuntarily opened my mouth wide.

My mind went blank, not knowing how to respond.

How did he know? Did I give something away? He couldn’t have figured out the exact method, could he?
“Of course, before we went to get the antidote last time, kissing out of the blue did seem a bit suspicious…”

“I don’t know anything about how to lift the curse. How would I know… If I did, I would have lifted it right away…”

I found myself stumbling into a lie without even realizing it.
I had wanted to say it at some point, but at least not like this, not in this posture. Idric lifted my chin.

“You can’t lie.”

“It’s not a lie…”

“You definitely noticed.”

“Not at all.”
Idric chuckled. It felt like he was reading my mind thoroughly. Idric slowly spoke.

“And that’s related to your emotions.”

My whole body bristled. If it were in the form of a hedgehog, it would have been with its quills raised.
How on earth did he figure it out? I haven’t given any hints!

It didn’t seem like he was just testing me or saying it on a whim. Idric’s tone was filled with confidence.

Gulp.

I swallowed hard.

When on earth did he start noticing?
That my emotions are related to it.

And how could he be so sure, to this extent? It’s as if he’s tested everything.

“Well, that’s not the case at all.”
Idris’s hand rested on top of mine. His fingers, tracing the gaps between mine, felt overly provocative. Despite my unease and confusion, my body seemed to react with excitement, tensing on its own.
“When we hold hands like this, the mark seems to react more intensely,” Idris said.

This time, he used his hands to cup my face.

“If I touch here, it gets even stronger, and then…”
Idris’s head tilted slightly.

“It seems to be most intense when we kiss,” he said.
As Idris spoke like that, his gaze shifted downward. He looked at my lips. After that, I didn’t need to ask what he intended to do next. Our lips would meet, and Idris would consume me with hunger.
And then, as Idris had said, the black mark would throb the most intensely.

Idris wrapped his arms around my neck and pulled me closer.

Just before our lips met, I pushed him away roughly.

“Wait.”

“Why?”
“So, even last time… you kissed me to check that?”

“Are you talking about that night?”

“Yes, when you kissed me in the garden.”

My voice quivered involuntarily.
“Of course not,” he would say, right? Surely, he didn’t kiss me to test the curse, did he? Who kisses someone for such a reason? At least, not Idric…

“Yeah. That’s right.”

In Idric’s response, there was no trace of guilt or a hint of hesitation.

“How…”
I stared blankly at his face.

I couldn’t figure out what to say.

Did he only think about the curse the whole time, even when I believed our hearts connected?

Was it just an experiment for him?
I stood up abruptly and returned to my seat.

He didn’t say a word. I stared at him intently.

Now is not the time.

I had intentions of confirming, but still, I did it because I wanted to. Because our feelings were similar…
But the silence stretched on.

Idrish didn’t say a word.

The heat in my eye sockets came first. I didn’t want to show tears to Idrish for no reason, so I closed my eyes tightly.

Taking my lips just to confirm the curse?

This is like a pure thug, a bandit, or a tiger.

I’m not some kind of experiment.
Touching my hand… Hmm, 2.0 for the face, 3.8 for the kiss… Oh, this is quite remarkable. 11.9, indeed. It’s related to Cecilia’s love for me, after all, isn’t it?

“Eek!”
As I imagined Eedreesh’s inner thoughts, I howled towards the field like a beast. It’s been 10 days since I spent time alone with Eedreesh in the carriage. During this time, no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t understand Eedreesh.
I had thought that if Eedreesh found out about my feelings, he might ignore them or even reject them. There was no guarantee that his feelings would be the same as mine. It would be embarrassing and quite sad, but I would be okay.
But I never knew my pure and beautiful emotions would be used to break the curse.

“Do you want to return to the wild?” Eedreesh teased from behind.

“Yes, I want to be a hedgehog of nature again.”
I didn’t even spare him a glance and spoke curtly. Oblivious Eedreesh had no idea what he had done wrong. Well, he wouldn’t be interested in my emotions.

Hmph!

I sniffed twice, blew a puff of air, and quickly turned away.