Chapter 205: Arwin’s True Feelings (2)

 

I grabbed both sides of her shirt’s hem and lifted it up toward her face.

 

The clothes slowly slid off.

 

I carefully removed her arms from the sleeves and pulled it over her head.

 

Ner’s bare body was revealed.

 

Her chest, too, was completely exposed.

 

Larger than I’d expected.

 

Ner shyly covered her pink-tinted nipples with both hands.

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

Pretending not to notice, I continued to wipe her body clean.

 

Starting with her left hand, I gently grasped it and pulled it toward me.

 

With her remaining right arm, Ner shielded her chest.

 

I began by wiping down the back of her left hand.

 

From the back of her hand to her elbow.

 

Then from the elbow down to the inner forearm.

 

From the inner forearm to her bare underarm.

 

From her underarm to the side that led up to her chest.

 

Ner, eyes squeezed shut, accepted my touch as if she were embarrassed.

 

There was a peculiar feeling that came with cleaning a woman’s body.

 

I gazed at her flawless, clear skin.

 

Her right arm was harder to clean.

 

While wiping it, her chest brushed against my arm unintentionally.

 

Every time, Ner let out a faint moan.

 

“...Ah”

 

“…”

 

I simply continued cleaning her body.

 

At some point, she turned her head away.

 

Unable to look at me.

 

Our actions felt both natural and awkward.

 

Expected, yet strange.

 

Ner seemed especially overwhelmed by the atmosphere between us.

 

I worried if I was placing an unnecessary burden on her.

 

After wiping down her arms and sides, I moved on to her stomach.

 

Her belly button was elegantly vertical.

 

Underneath her soft skin, a faint outline of abdominal muscles was visible.

 

I could see her slender waist more clearly than ever.

 

My bare hand occasionally brushed against her stomach.

 

In truth, it was a sight I should have seen long ago.

 

It felt like I had taken a very long, winding road to reach this point.

 

I quickly pushed away those idle thoughts.

 

After gently wiping her stomach, I told her,

 

“...Turn around. I’ll clean your back now.”

 

“…”

 

But Ner didn’t respond.

 

She seemed frozen, locked in place by embarrassment.

 

But we couldn’t stay like this forever.

 

“...Ner?”

 

I called her name.

 

Unexpectedly, she gave me a response I hadn’t anticipated.

 

“…H-here…feels…sticky too.”

 

Ner whispered in a barely audible voice.

 

Then, she slowly lifted her arms, revealing the area she was referring to.

 

It didn’t take long for me to understand she was talking about the area beneath her chest.

 

“…”

 

Sien had mentioned it before too.

 

It was an area that tended to gather sweat.

 

“…Are you sure about this?”

 

I didn’t mind, but Ner had been so embarrassed up to this point.

 

Could she really be okay with this?

 

“…”

 

Ner gave a tiny nod.

 

Watching her, I slowly moved my hand.

 

—Swoosh.

 

The soft sensation of her chest met my touch.

 

To properly wipe away the sweat, I had to apply a bit of pressure.

 

Her chest softly molded and shifted with the gentle force of my hand.

 

Ner bit down on one of her fingers, attempting to manage her embarrassment.

 

After pondering for a while, she asked, hesitantly,

 

“…Is… is this… weird…?”

 

Sensing her self-consciousness, I offered a genuine, light-hearted response.

 

“…It’s beautiful.”

 

“…Ugh…”

 

Her face flushed an even deeper red.

 

I smiled softly as I looked at her.

 

After I finished wiping her down, I told her,

 

“All right, now your back.”

 

Only then did Ner finally turn around and offer me her back.

 

Now that her chest was concealed, her expression relaxed a little.

 

I gently wiped her back as well.

 

I dipped the cloth into the basin of water, wringing it out repeatedly.

 

Continuing to wipe away the sweat that covered her entire body.

 

“…It feels… refreshing.”

 

She whispered.

 

Seeing her comfort brought me joy as well.

 

Ner rested her face against her crossed arms.

 

Still embarrassed, she asked,

 

“…Berg.”

 

“…Yeah?”

 

“…I can stay by your side… now, right?”

 

Her voice carried a hint of uncertainty.

 

But there was no other answer for that question now.

 

I responded to her,

 

“…I won’t let you go again.”

 

“…”

 

Ner’s tail slowly started to sway.

 

She nodded gently.

 

Given the recent chain of events, she seemed to have expected this response from me.

 

I added, just to be clear,

 

“…But we can’t get married.”

 

“…”

 

“…I still have Sien.”

 

Ner nodded, understanding.

 

“…Yes. I know that much.”

 

“We’re still under the royal family’s watchful eye.”

 

“…Yes.”

 

“Even a common-law relationship… would be difficult. The royal family wouldn’t just sit back and allow it.”

 

“…”

 

There was no way we could live in a common-law arrangement.

 

If the need arose to avoid suspicion, Ner might have to return to the estate.

 

It was something we both expected, but it had to be said aloud.

 

Ner’s tail slowly stiffened.

 

I could tell she wasn’t entirely satisfied with this answer.

 

“…It’s fine.”

 

Yet, she hid her true feelings and spoke to me.

 

“As long as you cherish me… that’s enough.”

 

“…”

 

I paused, closing my eyes.

 

Even I wasn’t sure what to do yet.

 

I felt that simply saying such things to Ner wasn’t right.

 

It only felt irresponsible.

 

“…I’ll find a way to make it work.”

 

So, I told her.

 

“…Huh?”

 

Ner looked up at me, as if she hadn’t expected those words.

 

Her eyes widened in surprise.

 

“I’ll find a way somehow.”

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

Though I hadn’t specified what kind of solution I’d find, in that long exchange of gazes, Ner placed her trust in me.

 

Her once-stiffened expression softened into a bright smile.

 

It was the smile I had once loved so much.

 

“…Yes!”

 

She exclaimed in a voice more spirited than ever.

 

Her response made me smile as well.

 

Though I didn’t know how, I was determined to find a way.

 

.

.

.

 

I decided not to wipe her lower body.

 

There were only a few reasons, but it felt like the right choice.

 

For now, I decided to keep it simple and just clean her upper body.

 

I moved to help her put her clothes back on.

 

“Ner.”

 

“…”

 

But now, she was refusing to put her shirt back on.

 

“…Lie down with me, Berg…”

 

Perhaps weakened, she had started whining more often lately.

 

She knew well that I found it hard to refuse her requests, and it seemed she was taking advantage of that.

 

I shook my head.

 

“It’s daytime. I have to go back out.”

 

“…Just for a moment… please? Just rest with me for a little…”

 

She tugged insistently at the hem of my clothes with her feeble grip.

 

I kept shaking my head.

 

It was a request I couldn’t grant for now.

 

Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t.

 

Too many lives still depended on me.

 

“…I just… want to lie down together…”

 

The shy Ner from earlier was nowhere to be found.

 

I could tell that Ner was imitating me.

 

Whenever we lay in bed together, I was always the one without a shirt.

 

Though she still covered her chest, her longing for me was more evident than ever.

 

“…”

 

I smiled at her, then leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

 

—Smooch.

 

Ner’s body froze at the gesture.

 

If this simple act could make her react like this, would lying together without clothes really be the right thing?

 

I told her,

 

“When you’re stronger, we can do that.”

 

“…”

 

“…And more.”

 

A gentle promise of the things to come.

 

“…W-what…?”

 

Ner inhaled sharply.

 

Her face kept growing redder.

 

On her pale skin, the flush was all the more visible.

 

I smiled, gently brushing her hair.

 

“…I’ll go now.”

 

I said, looking at her.

 

Satisfied with my response, she finally released the grip on my clothes.

 

I helped her put her shirt back on.

 

This time, she didn’t resist.

 

****

 

“Ha… Haa..!”

 

Late at night.

 

The Lizardman, Reton, looked at the distant lights.

 

Finally, the grueling journey was over—they’d arrived.

 

Stockpin.

 

“We… we made it…”

 

Reton whispered, gripping his wife’s shoulder.

 

They weren’t the only ones on this path.

 

Countless Lizardmen were fleeing their lands, making their way here.

 

Around fifty in total.

 

They had no other choice.

 

They had to abandon their homeland.

 

The soldiers sent to face Krund had been utterly crushed.

 

Waiting hidden in the territory would only mean death by Krund’s hands… so fleeing was the only option.

 

Refugees scattered far and wide, and a few chose to make their way here, to Stockpin.

 

There was only one reason.

 

This was a village with a human hero.

 

Though she had stepped down from her role as a saintess… there was once a woman who held that title.

 

And Berg Reiker, known for his ghostly swordsmanship, was here as well.

 

Their presence made this place a temporary refuge.

 

But there was still unease.

 

A Lizardman who had traveled with Reton approached and asked,

 

“…Will they accept us…?”

 

“…”

 

“I heard Stockpin’s situation isn’t great either. There’s even a plague spreading.”

 

Reton gritted his teeth, looking down at his young daughter clutching tightly to his pant leg.

 

He replied,

 

“…There’s no other way. We have to seek help here.”

 

“They’re humans, Reton. Selfish and even cruel…”

 

“Where else would you suggest we go? My daughter is exhausted; she can’t rest on the road any longer.”

 

Reton had planned everything out in his mind.

 

It wasn’t as though he intended to stay in Stockpin forever.

 

They just needed a temporary place to hide.

 

Besides, Stockpin wasn’t large enough to resist if Krund came here… they would all have to flee eventually.

 

Even Berg Reiker would likely choose to escape with his people.

 

If the stronger Lizardman clans had fallen, how much longer could Stockpin hold out?

 

Reton had heard that the Draigo family was gathering soldiers.

 

If they could survive until the Draigo family defeated Krund… Reton hoped his family could endure until the final battle.

 

So Reton set his sights on Stockpin and moved forward.

 

“…Let’s ask for help here, just for a little while.”

 

Suppressing the anxiety of entering a human village, he whispered.

 

“Even if it’s terrifying… we have no other choice.”

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

 

[TL: Hello everyone!

Just wanted to tell y'all that I'm picking up a new book! It's 'The Prestigious Family's Son-in-Law Wants a Divorce' and is from the author of 'I Became The Necromancer Of The Academy'. It is something I have high hopes for. Hope y'all will like it too. 

Taylor.

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