The intoxicating ecstasy is right within reach.

I pouted and pounded his chest with my fist, crying out.

“Ah, why! A man shouldn’t keep pulling away!”

“What a sexist remark… That’s not it. Kissing isn’t something you do with just anyone. It’s not just the act of pressing lips together.”

What is this man saying after kissing me so much? I refuted his words point by point.

“So we can do it, right? We’re already married, and you said you love me. I really enjoyed it just now too. What’s the problem?”

“I see…”

Cedar blushed bright red even as he looked dumbfounded.

“Did you enjoy it that much?”

Is that all he wanted to say?

I stared at Cedar with disdainful eyes.

“…You know that’s the kind of line an ex-husband would say in an outdated novel, right?”

“Ah, no! I just asked if you enjoyed it because you said you did. Why are you reading so much into it! And what do you mean ex-husband?”

“I’m saying it’s the kind of line that could be grounds for divorce. See how it gives me goosebumps?”

“How is that such a harsh thing to say…”

Cedar genuinely seemed upset, furrowing his brow.

“That’s not it. Expressions of affection like kissing should be done with someone you truly like. Shouldn’t the exchange of emotions take priority over the purpose of replenishing magic?”

Cedar was speaking in a very serious tone, but from my perspective, it seemed like he kept asking unnecessary questions. I tilted my head and retorted.

“But you love me, don’t you? Isn’t that the most fundamental emotion?”

“But you don’t like me! Aren’t you just trying to milk a walking magic piggy bank?”

“I told you I like it too. How many times do I have to say it?”

“But as far as I know…”

Cedar frowned as if his pride was hurt, but he couldn’t continue his words.

I pouted my lips at the repeated conversation.

‘Doesn’t it seem like he’s just nitpicking?’

When someone keeps finding fault even after everything’s been explained, it means something’s bothering them.

Since I wasn’t lying about anything, it meant that the other person was making contradictory statements.

After careful logical reasoning, I came to this conclusion.

“I see, you must have a girlfriend with an amazing body.”

At my words, Cedar’s face turned bright red, but in a completely different way from blushing with pleasure.

He even popped a vein in his thick neck as he shouted.

“There’s no one! No one! In fact, this is the first time I’ve had such close contact with another person. I’m hesitating because of you! You have someone else you like besides me!”

Should this be called a passionate love confession, or is he spilling his true feelings out of anger?

I wanted to thank him for liking me so fervently, but there was something I had to address first.

I calmly asked back.

“Who?”

“Huh?”

“There’s no such person.”

At my answer, Cedar made a bewildered expression as if he’d been slapped by a hamster. And he asked again.

“…Really? No one has confessed to you saying they like you?”

“You’re the first.”

“Ha.”

Cedar laughed bitterly as if he couldn’t believe it. Then he rubbed his handsome face and muttered dejectedly.

“What a foolish worry I’ve been having.”

Exactly. Why on earth did he have such worries?

‘How should I know.’

The misunderstanding was cleared up, and that misunderstanding wasn’t important to me now.

I grabbed his clothes with both hands to prevent him from running away again.

“Have you resolved all your inner conflicts, whatever they were? Then now really press your lips to mine. I’m curious how much magic I can replenish with one kiss.”

“…You really know how to ruin the mood with every word you say, don’t you?”

Cedar’s eyes sharpened again, though he was smiling half with joy and half with exasperation.

But perhaps because the misunderstanding was cleared up, he no longer backed away from me or scolded me not to say such things.

His large hand carefully cupped my chin.

“And yet, why do you look so cute?”

I never knew the word ‘cute’ could sound so ticklish.

‘No, maybe it’s not about the word cute.’

For some reason, my mouth went dry, and I felt ticklish from the inside of my palms to the nape of my neck.

Cedar held my waist with one hand and cupped my face with the other as he slowly lowered his head towards me.

His straight eyebrows, his high nose bridge, came closer and closer.

My face, with eyes wide open, was reflected in his mirror-like gray eyes. It was a strange expression I’d never seen before.

‘Is that really me?’

It was my face, but it felt completely unfamiliar.

Cedar, who had stopped approaching at some point and was facing me, whispered in a low voice.

“…Aren’t you going to close your eyes?”

Only then did I come to my senses and answered promptly.

“Ah, yes, yes! That would be better for feeling the sensation.”

Right. To clearly know how the magic flows in, it’s better to shut off other senses.

As I tightly closed my eyes and tensed my shoulders, a shallow sigh touched the tip of my nose. Cedar’s voice that followed tickled my body once again.

“I’m just asking you to close them because I’m embarrassed.”

Before I could respond, his lips touched mine.

It felt like he was gently sucking on my lower lip, and then our lips fully overlapped.

Magic, as refreshing as the early morning forest air, rushed into me.

Perhaps because it was a sensation I had already experienced once, it wasn’t as intoxicating and vague as the first time.

Rather, everything felt too raw and explicit, which was troublesome.

The feeling of skin touching my lips, his body temperature slightly higher than mine, even the rough touch of his hands.

But what struck me most was Cedar’s heartbeat transmitted through my palm.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

His heart was beating so fast and strong that I thought it might burst.

‘This man really thinks of me as someone special.’

It was impossible not to know. And once I recognized that affection, a corner of my heart ached.

‘This is strange. It feels like my heart is hurting.’

Isn’t it just a happy thing when someone likes you? Then why does my heart hurt?

‘Is this love?’

Being new to everything, I couldn’t find the answer.

In the end, receiving the magic transfer was only half successful.

‘This isn’t just a magic piggy bank. It’s a magic fountain. No, an active volcano.’

Cedar’s heart was so full of magic that even when I absorbed his magic, it was quickly replenished.

‘How can a human be like this?’

Could it really be a dragon’s heart? Even I, who was praised for having an unprecedented amount of magic at the academy, was far behind Cedar.

‘To think magic depletion could be solved like this!’

That joy disappeared exactly 30 minutes later.

“All the magic has disappeared.”

I said with tears welling up in my eyes. Cedar flinched for a moment, then adjusted his posture as he held me and replied.

“So there’s a time limit.”

Why are you so calm! Is it because it’s not your problem!

‘Right. It’s not Cedar’s problem.’

But for me, it’s a terribly cruel reality. I buried my face in my palms.

I wanted to wail like a child, but I barely held it back.

“This is too much! Such high-quality magic… and it all slipped away in just 30 minutes.”

“Is it completely gone?”

“Not to that extent. Just the amount I usually gather with magic circles remains.”

“So that’s the limit of what can be stored in your body.”

“Oh, God!”

I don’t particularly follow any god, but this time I had no choice but to call upon one.

‘Isn’t this really too much?’

They showed me a way to replenish magic, but I can’t actually store it.

This means I’m just a disposable magician, doesn’t it?

“This is truly a false hope. How can it be so cruel? It’s not even a tasting spoon, what is this?”

In my despair, I mumbled nonsense. Cedar gently patted my back and comforted me like this.

“You can just kiss me whenever you need to.”

Well, that’s true. That’s the only solution available.

Rather, it showed his willingness to cooperate whenever I asked, which was a good consolation.

But to me, whose heart was tattered from the false hope, it didn’t sound like comfort at all. I glared at Cedar and picked a fight.

“You were so shocked and avoided me until just now, but now you’re speaking so well.”

At my grumbling, Cedar’s cheeks flushed slightly. He quickly made an excuse.

“That was because I thought your heart belonged to someone else. I was being considerate of you.”

Yes. I know you’re a person overflowing with consideration.

But right now, I’m Nelly Periway at her most spiteful! I stubbornly continued to nitpick with a sulky pout.

“That’s strange. If I said I had someone I liked, were you planning to just let me go and have a beautiful love with that person?”

“If it was for your happiness…”

“Aren’t you the one with too light a love? Even I, who doesn’t know much about love, know that it’s an emotion you can’t yield to others.”

Cedar, who had been indulging my provocations until now, couldn’t hold back this time and flared up.

“That’s rude! I was trying to step back despite that! Aren’t you the one treating my feelings too lightly?”

“I didn’t treat them lightly at all!”

“Does someone who takes it seriously ask to pucker up right after a confession? I thought you were toying with me!”