Bellia’s gaze trembled finely at his voice overflowing with desire.

“How much is your greed?”

“I told you. I want to lock you up. So that you can’t think of anyone else but me.”

At those words, Bellia let out a chuckle. Then she pushed him away with a little force and got down from the desk.

Just as Callid was about to part his lips, feeling as if her action was rejecting him.

Bellia placed her hand on Callid’s chest and slowly, slowly pushed him back.

“You don’t seem to know much about me.”

“Me?”

“That’s why you’re being hasty.”

Bellia continued to push Callid while walking forward one step at a time. As Callid stepped back like that, his feet caught on something, and he fell backwards.

It was onto the bed.

“Yes. We don’t know much about each other. We each have things we hide, and we’re deceiving each other.”

Callid, lying on the bed, raised only his head to look at Bellia standing in front of him.

Bellia swept her long hair to the side with one hand and very slowly climbed on top of Callid.

“Now……”

Callid couldn’t continue his words.

He felt like he was about to stop breathing.

“So I think we need time to get to know each other.”

Don’t you think so? Bellia asked with a smile.

That look was unnecessarily seductive.

Just looking at Bellia sitting on top of him now was enough to make Callid’s reason precarious. It was on the verge of snapping like a thin thread.

“I can’t guarantee what will happen next, Bellia.”

Callid’s voice broke hoarsely, tinged with lust.

Bellia laughed seductively, and Callid covered his eyes with his hand.

‘This is driving me crazy.’

…No.

We’ve already come to the room, do I need to hold back more?

“Callid……”

Bellia called his name, stretching out the end a bit as if whining. That was the final blow.

“If you’re doing this knowingly, it’s even worse. You know?”

Callid grabbed Bellia’s arm and pulled. Then in an instant, he laid her down on the bed and climbed on top.

It was the opposite situation from before.

“You keep pushing me to my limits.”

Passion settled in his eyes.

At that moment, an irresistible impulse enveloped Bellia. Bellia reached out and embraced Callid’s neck.

“Ha.”

Callid exhaled a short breath. That hot breath disappeared instantly between the colliding lips. It was a persistent and relentless kiss, as if trying to make up for the time they had been apart.

While continuing the sticky kiss, Callid reached for Bellia’s back and undid the tightly fastened buttons one by one. As Bellia’s dress slipped down to her shoulders, Callid buried his face in her neck.

“Bellia.”

A shiver ran down her back at the sound of her name flowing from his lips as if asking for permission.

She wanted him too. It was an undeniable fact.

Bellia tightened her arms around him and whispered in his ear.

“I told you I was looking forward to today.”

At those words, Callid’s eyes grew even fiercer.

Bellia closed her eyes and smiled.

Today would be a very long day.

The night had not yet come.

When did I fall asleep?

Bellia blinked her heavy eyelids and stared blankly out the window.

Moonlight filled the dark room. She vaguely thought that much time had passed, but it was still not dawn.

Bellia turned her head to look at the man lying beside her. Black hair partially covered his face, but couldn’t hide his sharp nose bridge and jawline.

She reached out slightly to brush away the fallen hair, satisfied that his face was much more visible now.

‘He looks gentle when he’s sleeping.’

Bellia spent a long time admiring Callid’s face, lost in various thoughts. His face was so handsome that just looking at it was enjoyable, making it impossible to know how time was passing.

Perhaps because she had acknowledged her feelings for him, he looked even more handsome than before.

Just then, his tightly closed lips curved up into a smile.

“Ah……”

I thought he was asleep.

Bellia was startled and turned her gaze away from him. Callid then reached out his arm to embrace Bellia tightly and asked,

“Did you sleep well?”

Bellia couldn’t open her mouth, feeling oddly embarrassed at being caught observing him. She could feel him laughing softly through the vibrations of his body pressed against hers.

“Sleep more. It’s still early.”

Callid said kindly as he pulled her deeper into his embrace. His slightly hoarse, low voice sounded pleasant.

“Shh……”

Feeling Bellia fidgeting in his arms, Callid patted her back gently.

“It’s going to be a tiring day today, so it’s better to sleep more, Bellia.”

“……I can’t sleep.”

“Still, just lie down. It’s been a while since you’ve been by my side, so I’d like to stay like this a little longer.”

Callid rested his face on Bellia’s collarbone as if whining. These small actions made it feel like they were really lovers. Somehow, it felt like her empty heart was being filled.

“Callid. Are you sleepy?”

Maybe now I can talk about it.

Those stories that I had resolved to tell many times but couldn’t bring myself to.

“No.”

“Then get up for a moment.”

But Callid showed no sign of getting up and hugged Bellia even tighter.

“I have something I want to tell you.”

Callid hesitated for a moment, then stroked Bellia’s slender waist fidgeting in his arms before finally grasping her wrist.

“You’ve gotten thinner while we were apart. Were you lonely without me by your side?”

“No, I’ve been doing well.”

“No. You clearly haven’t been eating properly. You feel like you might break if I apply just a little force.”

Seeing him continuously changing the subject, Bellia made a sullen expression.

“You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?”

Bellia asked, lifting her head abruptly.

“Well.”

It was obvious to anyone that he was doing it on purpose, but Callid shamelessly pretended not to be and started fiddling with Bellia’s hair this time.

She was trying to have a really important conversation, but somehow he didn’t seem very interested.

Not knowing how much she had agonized before bringing this up!

Bellia shook off his touch and sat up in bed.

“Callid.”

It was a sign that she would only speak when he was ready to listen properly.

Only then did Callid chuckle and get up from the bed. He then brought a nearby robe and draped it over Bellia’s shoulders.

“Honestly, I’m even a bit scared now about what you’re going to say.”

Callid joked lightly as he flopped down on a nearby sofa.

Bellia also slowly got out of bed, wrapped the robe he had given her tightly, and sat down near Callid.

“So what kind of words are you going to say that’s making you so serious again?”

“……I’ve decided to take your hand. Not Raul’s. You don’t know how big of a choice that is for me, do you?”

His face, which had been full of laughter, darkened instantly.

It was because the words that just came out of Bellia’s mouth made him realize the weight of what she was about to say.

“I’ve chosen you, betting my entire life.”

Bellia put strength into her lips that wouldn’t open easily.

If she turned back now, it felt like she wouldn’t be able to tell him the truth.

“So I decided to tell you everything.”

“……Everything?”

Bellia nodded.

“Yes. The things you were so curious about.”

For example, how she could foresee various situations in advance, or why she wanted to bring down Raul.

“Do you want to hear it?”

“……Yes.”

He had a complicated expression on his face.

As if he had been expecting his curiosity to be satisfied, but was confused about whether he should really hear this story.

“No, wait.”

Just then, Callid stopped Bellia’s words and covered his face with both hands, leaning forward.

“Can you give me a moment?”

Bellia sat silently in her seat and waited. Callid was also quiet for a moment.

‘……He must have known instinctively.’

That once he heard her words, it would truly be irreversible.

Since Bellia herself needed a lot of resolve to bring this up, he might also need some mental preparation.

“If you’re scared, you don’t have to listen.”

But isn’t it unpleasant to try to back out now?

She felt frustratingly stifled by his hesitation. However, Bellia didn’t show it and casually raised the corners of her mouth to throw a provocation.

“Scared? Me?”

And he tended to fall for Bellia’s provocations quite well.

It was the same when she first proposed a contract relationship to him. He accepted all the proposals with a face that said he didn’t know what to do because it was so interesting looking at her.

As that memory flashed by, Bellia slowly closed and opened her eyes.

‘I didn’t think at all back then that we would become like this.’

A wry smile escaped at the thought of her past self, who was only full of thoughts of using him. Not knowing that it would become so sincere.

“Alright. Then shall we hear about the things you’ve been hiding from me?”

“You won’t regret it?”

Bellia knew that he had tried to run away for a moment. As if he had suddenly come to his senses while floundering in a swamp, his instincts had warned him not to go any deeper.

So she asked for his opinion one last time.

She had no intention of letting him go, but she could at least hear his opinion.

“Regret? There’s no way I would regret anything. Right?”

Callid smiled slyly.

Looking back was not a common occurrence in his life. Regretting past events while ruminating on them was even more uncommon. He had grown up in an environment where he could only survive by always looking forward.

“Go ahead and tell me, Bellia. The secret you’ve been hiding so tightly.”

The expression that had been confused until just now hardened. As if he was ready to hear whatever story she would bring up.

Bellia began the introduction to the story she had been hiding from him.

“Aren’t you curious why I hate Raul so much?”

At that question, Callid burst out laughing.

“How could I not be curious? I was more curious about that than the fact that you seemed to know an impossibly large amount of things.”

Bellia let out a small sigh at his typical answer.

Bringing up this story was a huge gamble for Bellia. He might not believe the difficult story she was about to tell.

But hadn’t he believed so many stories for which she couldn’t show proper evidence?

Bellia tightly clasped her slightly trembling hands together. Then, holding back the desire to run away, she painfully parted her heavy lips.

“……Have you ever heard of someone jumping through time and coming back to the past?”