In the past, after using mana, my body trembled as my heart gradually emptied, but now, even after using mana, my whole body remained warm.
“Perhaps using mana frequently is causing this. Originally, the circuits become more sophisticated with more mana usage.”
That was the extent of my thoughts. If so, will the time I can maintain a human appearance with less mana gradually increase in the future? Lost in such contemplation, Hadel suddenly kissed me.
Smack!
“Eek!”
Because I was lost in my thoughts, I was startled for a moment. Hadel nonchalantly said.
“Why are you so surprised over a kiss?”
It feels like something has changed in our roles. In the past, if I initiated contact, Hadel would eagerly respond, but at some point, Hadel became more proactive than me. I pushed Hadel’s face away with my palm and said, “Don’t be surprised. I told you not to.”
“Everyone does it.”
Oh, really?
Upon hearing the casual response, I unintentionally looked around, and my eyes met with people looking at me. They turned away awkwardly. In the end, embarrassment was mine. I blurted out with a flushed face, “Stop it!”
In response, Hadel shrugged his shoulders.
“Marian winking during a date is bad.”
His expression, which seemed slightly twisted, was a face I never imagined seeing on Hadel. I covered my mouth with my palm and pouted.
“No, why did you suddenly become so cute! It’s like seeing a completely different person.”
No. Is this also a misconception on my part? Does it only look cute to my eyes? I’ll ask Nella later when I meet her.
Anyway, as we walked down the street, a similar yet different scenery caught my eye.
This city was much quieter than Nerris. There were almost no people on the streets, and the snow, not yet melted, adorned the edges of the road. Although the scent of fresh bread made my nose tingle, I wasn’t drawn to it, probably because I had eaten a lot for breakfast.
As I watched a girl running by my side, I suddenly remembered a story Nella told me and asked Hadel, “Hadel, you said you have a younger sister. What kind of child is she?”
Hadel’s response was immediate. It wasn’t the answer I was expecting.
“I don’t know.”
Is there a significant age difference? Well, I can’t claim to know my siblings well either since I’ve been on the battlefield for a long time.
Stretching lazily, I threw a frivolous question, and Hadel added with a wry smile, “I couldn’t get close after the dog my sister was raising got hurt.”
“Oh.”
I momentarily forgot. I’m talking about Hadel’s destitute family. I scratched my cheek.
“But maybe your parents were manipulated by Aspen, and your sister was young at that time, so she might not have understood, right?”
I hope so. I reluctantly offered comforting words to Hadel.
“Nella says she’s a very smart child. We’ll see this time, right?”
“Sure.”
“She was young then. Now, she might have become more dignified, not blindly fearing Hadel. And Hadel can control the flames without difficulty now.”
“That’s right.”
Hadel nodded silently. It didn’t seem like he empathized with my words. I sighed inwardly.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have brought up the topic of siblings. The atmosphere suddenly became gloomy.”
I tried to find something to turn the mood around. At that moment, I saw a crowd gathering at the far end.
“It looks like a street performer.”
The person wasn’t a street performer but someone practicing a musical instrument. Still, people gathered around as if things were going well during their somewhat dull tea time. Watching the kids bouncing around, I impulsively asked, “Hadel, are you good at dancing?”
“I’ve learned the basic steps.”
“Really? Then you’re a good partner for me. I haven’t danced in a very long time, so my memory is a bit fuzzy.”
I reached out my hand to Hadel.
“Let’s dance together.”
Hadel glanced at my hand for a moment and let out a short sigh.
“…Sure.”
Whether it was true that he lacked confidence in dancing or not, when Hadel touched my hand, his body tensed up with too much force, making him rigid.
The rhythm was a mess, and instead of dancing, we were more like stumbling around. After a while of trying to match the beat, Hadel couldn’t hold back and spoke first.
“Keep stepping on my foot.”
I chuckled. What’s the fun if there’s no challenge?
“Where’s the fun if I don’t step on your foot?”
Hadel continued to look seriously at his toes. No, it seemed like he hadn’t lifted his gaze since we started dancing.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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