Ah, I’m really embarrassed.

I was the one who screamed, and I was the one covering my face. I wanted to crawl into a mouse hole if there was one.

‘I can’t even face Hadel. How bewildered must he be looking at me.’

After provoking him to hug me first, now I’m at a loss for what to do.

‘I have my pride as an older woman! What an unseemly display this is.’

It was when I couldn’t bring myself to remove my hands and was tightly covering my eyes with my palms.

Hadel, who had been momentarily still, slowly began to move. But the problem was that his movement was very sensuous.

“Oh!”

Blushing, I lowered my hands and looked at Hadel. Because there was no light except for the very dim one left on for sleeping, I couldn’t see Hadel’s expression clearly.

But he was definitely smiling.

“That’s a big problem.”

“…What is?”

What kind of reaction is that again. I lightly furrowed my brow. At that very moment, Hadel roughly plunged in.

“Huk!”

“Because I don’t have confidence to be gentle.”

The last words scattered around my ears like an auditory hallucination.

It was true that it was my first time. Except for supporting a comrade on the battlefield, I had never even held hands with a man.

‘But by some fate I met Hadel, and like this we fell in love with each other, and became lovers.’

Of course, it’s just that I had no dating experience, but being the age I am and having heard a lot from people around me, I was perfect in theory. Deep down in a corner of my heart, I believed in myself like this.

‘I guess I was the crazy one, not the king…’

In the end, theory was of no help, and after the deed with Hadel, the world remained peacefully unchanged.

Except for me, that is.

Having become gaunt in just one day, I opened my eyes with a haggard expression. The first thought that came to mind was this:

‘Why didn’t anyone tell me it would be this painful the next day?’

I opened my eyes, and thinking I should at least look human before the butler comes to wake me, I tried to get up from bed. But I immediately felt weak and lay back down on the bed.

But when I lay down, my waist hurt, and my hips hurt too.

‘In the end, leaning against the pillow was the best I could do.’

The best I could move. And the best posture I could change to with minimal movement to hurt as little as possible.

Even that seemed to have used up all the strength in my body. I fell into idle thoughts again, groaning.

In the end, after going round and round, it was a reflection on my brave self from yesterday.

‘I must have lost my mind. Because of asking if Hadel and Espen were lovers, I went crazy…’

As I was explaining how much I loved you, I seemed to have reached the crazy conclusion that ‘Wouldn’t it be faster to show with my body than to blabber with words?’

I shook my head as I momentarily recalled my feelings from then.

‘Why did Hadel’s fiancée suddenly appear! It was entirely because of her that I wanted to stamp “mine” all over him.’

When she came rushing in as if she would die if she didn’t become Hadel’s wife, talking about non-attributes and such, I couldn’t help but feel urgent.

There were all sorts of other reasons too. Following me last night, why Hadel didn’t go to bed at his regular time.

‘And why did I linger until night when humans become most courageous.’

In the end, it was entirely my provocation that turned me into a dried anchovy like this. I let out a deep sigh.

“…It was foolish either way.”

I had muttered to myself, relieved to see the space beside me empty when I opened my eyes, but unexpectedly, a response came from beside me.

“Why are you suddenly wallowing in self-loathing?”

“You!”

I turned my head sharply, and there stood Hadel, wiping the water dripping from his hair with a towel, as if he had just finished washing.

While I was in a dried anchovy state, Hadel was in a sparkling, fresh fish state. Seeing only him so fresh, I, feeling anger rise, burst out:

“You, you, you have no middle ground!”

“What did I do?”

How can he ask so innocently. Looking at that clean face, it was unimaginable that he was the same person who had pushed me until I begged for mercy yesterday.

Oh well, who can I blame? I mumbled again, putting all my body weight on the pillow.

“I was deceived. I fell into a trap.”

“That sounds like something I should be saying.”

What! To say such a thing even after seeing my state!

Even as he spoke unkindly, Hadel gently pressed water and a handkerchief to my lips. Unable to move a finger, I obediently sat on the bed and gulped down the water as Hadel offered it.

‘Ah, drinking water makes me feel alive.’

I also cleared my throat, ahem ahem. Was it my imagination, or did my voice sound a bit strange too? As I was fiddling with my neck, Hadel sat down next to me and started massaging my legs.

“I tried to hold back. You were the one who provoked me.”

“Th-that, that’s true, but… Ah! There, there hurts!”

“Bear with it a little.”

I decided to just ignore why my calves were so tight and how Hadel knew about it. I lay there, occasionally whining about the pain from Hadel’s massage. Then suddenly, I narrowed my eyes and raised my head.

‘Wait, why does he seem so skilled at this? As if he had planned to do this after spending the night with me?’

I must have clearly lost half my mind from the lack of energy and the pain in my body. I eyed Hadel suspiciously and said:

“You didn’t deliberately invite Lady Nella Orsini to the castle, did you? To push my back with jealousy.”

At my question, Hadel burst into laughter as if dumbfounded.

“How far are you trying to make me into trash? You know it doesn’t make sense logically from the start, right?”

“Ugh.”

That’s true. It doesn’t match up chronologically, and it’s not something Hadel could have done.

‘To think of such nonsense, it must have been a truly chaotic night.’

As I was banging the pillow in frustration, Hadel put down my leg and pulled the blanket over my body.

“Now stretch out your arm.”

“Hmph.”

You think I’ll be grateful if you massage me like this? This muscle pain was all caused by you in the first place.

Two large hands pressed firmly on my arms and palms. Doing this made my arms look extremely thin.

I looked up at Hadel’s face, which was looking down at my hand with a serious expression.

With his wet hair covering his forehead, he looked even younger than usual. I pouted my lips.

“…I thought you were cute because you were young.”

At my grumbling, Hadel tilted his head.

“I think I’m older.”

“No way! I must be the older one. In my previous life, I was…”

But I didn’t keep track of my age well in my previous life, so it’s hazy. Honestly, I didn’t have time to leisurely count such things.

As I frowned, unable to recall my own age, Hadel kissed my forehead.

Chu.

I opened my eyes wide at the sudden skinship. Gathering my disheveled hair behind my ear, Hadel spoke in a kind tone.

“Alright, do as you please, Marian. Whether you find me cute or pitiful. I’m happy as long as you like me.”

“Huh?”

Somehow, I felt like I was being fooled again.

‘Why does he feel so mature?’

Is it that I’m not mature, or is Hadel more composed?

As I was lost in useless thoughts, Hadel took care of me attentively.

“Are you hungry?”

“No, I don’t feel like eating.”

“Shall I give you more water?”

“That’s enough too.”

As I shook my head, the blanket that Hadel had pulled up to my neck slipped down to my chest. Glancing at it from the corner of his eye, Hadel pointed out with a slightly stiff face.

“…Why don’t you pull the blanket up more?”

“I don’t want to move a finger.”

Above all, thanks to receiving a lot of flame mana from Hadel, my whole body was in a warm state. If only I wasn’t naked, I wouldn’t have even bothered to cover myself with a blanket.

While I was feeling languid from the long-missed warmth, Hadel kept glancing at me. He was clearly bothered by the blanket that had slipped down.

I narrowed my eyes and smiled like a mischievous Cheshire cat.

“It’s morning now, Hadel. You’re not having naughty thoughts, are you?”

Hit right on the mark, Hadel, instead of being embarrassed, boldly retorted:

“What does it being morning have to do with anything?”

Look at this guy. I recited a sex education lesson I had learned somewhere, and Hadel had surely learned too.

“Dignified couples don’t engage in relations in broad daylight.”

And that wasn’t the only problem.

“We have to go up to the capital today…”

“I got it. I understand everything you want to say.”

As if he thought my nagging would go on, Hadel rarely cut off my words. Then he tilted his head and asked:

“But you still need to wash up, right?”

“Well, that’s true.”

Ah, I really don’t want to move.

It was when I had once again become a sloth, clinging to the pillow.

“Kyak!”

Hadel skillfully lifted me up, blanket and all. I, who had been in a daze, was startled and hugged Hadel’s neck.

When I glared at him, Hadel asked as if wondering what the problem was.

“Didn’t you say you didn’t want to move a finger?”

“I-I did say that.”

But why are you lifting me up?

Hadel answered with a benevolent smile that didn’t show a hint of ulterior motive:

“I’ll wash you clean and fluffy and dry you off. Just lean on me and stay still.”

“That’s a bit…”

It was true that I didn’t want to move, but it didn’t seem right for Hadel to wash me either. I pushed out my lips like a duck and asked:

“To begin with, Hadel, you don’t even know how to attend to someone’s bath.”

At my point, Hadel replied in a calm tone:

“I washed you when you were a ferret, didn’t I.”

“I-is that so?”

Well, I guess it’s similar if you think about it.