Chapter 230: A Goodnight Kiss and a Morning Run
Chapter 230: A Goodnight Kiss and a Morning Run
By the time we returned to the Academy, it was already late into the night.
Shortly after the guards at the main entrance let us through, they closed the massive iron gates behind us. Most of the campus had fallen silent. Aside from the magical lamps illuminating the paths, there was little light around us.
Iris and I walked side by side toward the dormitories.
The conversations at Elara’s house continued to circle through my mind.
Family...
Iris’s hand was still holding mine. Every now and then, she squeezed my fingers and looked at me as if checking that I was truly beside her.
When we reached the point where the paths to the girls’ and boys’ dormitories separated, Iris stopped.
After releasing my hand, she clasped both of hers behind her back. She leaned forward slightly and looked at me with a warm smile.
"Thank you for today, Cass. I had a lot of fun."
"Me too"
Walking around the capital, meeting Adam, seeing Elara, and holding the small baby...
It had all been more exhausting than I expected.
But it hadn’t been unpleasant.
"Good night, Cass."
Iris turned around and began walking toward the girls’ dormitory.
"Wait."
Her steps stopped.
"Where are you going?"
Iris looked at me over her shoulder.
"Huh?" She blinked in surprise. "To my room. It’s already quite late."
I took a step toward her.
"Aren’t we sleeping together tonight?"
Iris’s cheeks instantly turned red.
"A-again?"
"Yes. What’s wrong?"
We had slept together last night. As far as I was concerned, there was no reason we couldn’t do the same tonight.
Iris began fidgeting with her fingers. She struggled to meet my eyes and crushed the thin layer of snow beneath the tip of her boot.
"Well, Cass... How should I say this...?"
Her voice gradually grew quieter.
"Last night was a little special. I had found you again after years, and I didn’t want to leave you alone. But sleeping in the same room all the time..."
Unable to finish her sentence, she pulled her scarf up over her face.
"You know, I’m a girl, and you’re a boy."
"I know."
"I know you know, but..." Even the tips of Iris’s ears were beginning to turn red. "That makes some things different."
She spent a few more seconds thinking about what to say.
"I know you love me."
Her voice was barely more than a whisper.
"And I love you too."
She had said the same thing at Elara’s house.
Even though this was the second time I had heard it, the warmth it created in my heart hadn’t faded.
Iris tried to hide her face completely behind her scarf.
"But it’s still a little too soon for us to keep sleeping together. You understand, right?"
I understood what she meant.
No matter how much I wanted to be close to her, she was right. Insisting on something that made Iris uncomfortable would completely contradict my claim that I loved her.
"I understand."
Iris raised her head in surprise.
She had probably expected me to argue more.
I stepped closer to her.
Although Iris remained where she was, her shoulders tensed. She watched me, trying to understand what I was about to do.
I leaned down slightly and pressed my lips against her forehead.
"Good night, Iris."
Her entire body froze.
The blush on her face immediately deepened. Her lips moved several times, but no sound came out on her first attempt.
"G-good night, Cass..."
She nearly tripped over her own feet as she turned around.
After recovering her balance at the last moment, she hurried toward the girls’ dormitory. Just before reaching the entrance, she looked back once.
The moment our eyes met, she quickly faced forward again and disappeared inside the building.
I remained where I was for a while, watching her leave.
Kissing her forehead had felt nicer than I expected.
Even so, I didn’t want to return to my room and sleep.
There were no classes tomorrow or the day after. I could spend plenty of time with Iris. Perhaps I could take Auralis outside as well.
Only six months had passed since she hatched, but as a dragon, her growth rate was completely different from that of a human. She already looked like a six-year-old child.
Keeping her inside the hidden room all the time wasn’t right.
Auralis was curious about the outside world and tried to leave at every opportunity. Besides, whenever she couldn’t burn off her energy, she started setting the furniture on fire.
Nivelle had also been forced to remain inside with her for a long time.
It wasn’t difficult to tell how exhausted the little fairy was from looking after Auralis. The last time I checked on them, Nivelle had been lying on the bed with messy hair and her wings drooping from exhaustion.
Meanwhile, Auralis had been running around her head while breathing white flames.
I could take them to a park or one of the quieter parts of the capital.
Of course, that depended on whether I could hide Auralis’s white horns and draconic aura...
But there was a more important matter I needed to deal with first.
I had to return to the North.
The White City was defenseless while I was away.
Stray monsters wandered through the surrounding area, creating a natural defensive line. They could easily tear apart weaker groups or ordinary adventurers who approached the city.
But they couldn’t stop a real army.
If the Demon Empire decided to attack, there was no longer any serious force standing in its way.
According to the original story, after the Empire and Obsidian Dawn seized Frosthelm, the Demon Empire was supposed to remain quiet for a long time. It would observe the consequences of what happened in the North from a distance and refuse to cross its borders.
But the story was no longer following its original course.
I had controlled the White City and most of the North for the past two years. I hadn’t allowed either the Empire or the Demon Empire to establish themselves there.
That had changed many of the events that were supposed to happen in the future.
I could no longer predict what the Demon Empire would do.
No one other than me lived in the White City. If they entered, they would find nothing but empty streets and an abandoned castle.
Even so, the thought of someone setting foot in that city bothered me.
Even if it had been reduced to ruins, it was my territory.
My castle.
My solitude.
I had been too peaceful these past few days.
I had reunited with Iris, recovered a part of my old life, and begun spending my time at the Academy like an ordinary student.
But I knew that peace wouldn’t last forever.
Toven, Charles, Luin, and Luxurion were still alive.
The Holy Church, the Empire, and Obsidian Dawn hadn’t forgotten about me. The large explosion in the North must have also drawn the attention of the entire continent.
Someone would make a move soon.
"I’ll think about it later," I muttered.
I couldn’t travel to the North in the middle of the night.
I shrugged and walked toward the boys’ dormitory.
At the very least, I could try to sleep for a few hours.
---
When I opened my eyes again, it was almost six in the morning.
I had only slept for a few hours.
Despite that, I didn’t feel tired. I was leaning against the headboard, reading an adventure novel I had randomly taken from the bookshelf.
The main character in the book woke up before sunrise every morning, ran for several kilometers, and swung his sword hundreds of times.
There was no reasonable explanation for why he did this.
If he wanted to become stronger, enhancing his body with mana would have been far more efficient.
Knock. Knock.
Someone knocked on my door.
Without looking away from the book, I turned my gaze toward the entrance.
I already knew who was outside.
Celine and Lunox.
That was why I had no intention of opening the door.
I hoped they would assume I was asleep and leave.
Besides, what did they want from me at six in the morning?
Knock, knock, knock!
The knocking was louder this time.
I turned the page.
Perhaps they would get bored after a few minutes.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
My eye twitched.
I could hear Celine breathing on the other side of the door and impatiently tapping her foot against the floor.
Lunox stood a few steps behind her, leaning against the wall.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
I slowly closed the book.
KNOCKKNOCKKNOCKKNOCKKNOCK—
I climbed out of bed in irritation and reached the door in a few long strides. Then I pulled it open.
"What?"
Celine stood in front of the door wearing a cute, comfortable-looking white tracksuit. Her blonde hair was tied in a high ponytail, and there was far too much energy in her smile for this time of the morning.
Lunox wore simple black clothes that resembled her usual eastern attire but were better suited for movement. Her wide hat hung against her back. From her sleepy eyes, it was obvious that she wasn’t here by choice.
Celine placed both hands on her hips.
"Come on! Let’s go for a morning run!"