66
As they had already prepared to go to another village, Arpel and Rohan immediately got into a carriage and left the village. Through the window, they could see the retreating figures of Leriana and Casia. Arpel’s gaze as he silently watched them was peculiar.
“Arpel.”
“Ah.”
“I’ve been calling you, why didn’t you answer…?”
It seemed he had been lost in thought. Arpel became restless at Rohan’s upset expression. As if asking for forgiveness, he carefully stroked Rohan’s head, causing Rohan to narrow his eyes and grab Arpel’s hand, pulling it down.
The lowered hand seemed to stop near Rohan’s mouth, and then his fingers slipped into Rohan’s mouth. Arpel, who had been blankly watching this, was startled and came to his senses only when his finger was bitten.
“W-what are you doing…?”
“I’m jealous.”
The bitten finger ached slightly, as if a small electric current had passed through it.
Emotions that he thought he had become somewhat accustomed to suddenly rushed in like a tide. He felt breathless from the intense affection. His gaze wavered as an added effect. Rohan was busy happily watching Arpel, who was visibly at a loss.
Rohan’s lips came close as if he was about to bite again. Arpel quickly pulled his hand away and turned his head. He fiddled with the bitten finger with his other hand.
“Ah… Did I bite too hard? Does it hurt?”
“…That’s not the issue.”
Despite Arpel’s efforts to pull his hand away, it was easily caught by Rohan again, as if finding its rightful place. Rohan gently rubbed the part he had bitten.
After that, Rohan behaved as usual. He still smiled cutely like a puppy wagging its tail and often rested his head on Arpel’s shoulder.
Similar incidents repeated throughout the carriage ride, but it wasn’t boring. Arpel even had a strange conviction that he could live his whole life just watching Rohan’s affectionate behavior.
As Rohan leaned his head, the distance between them naturally decreased. Whenever the distance with Rohan narrowed to the point where even their breaths could be heard clearly, Arpel always felt a burning sensation in his throat. It was the same now.
Yet, his hand that was habitually playing with Rohan’s hair didn’t stop.
‘Since when?’
While moving his hand rhythmically, his mind was busy continuing a single thought.
Arpel couldn’t feel pain. It was an unchangeable rule as long as he was not a complete person but a ‘sword imitating a person’.
He absently moved the finger that had just been bitten. Even though quite some time had passed, he could still feel the sensation of the fingertip being bitten. The moist inside of the mouth, the even teeth that had playfully bitten him, kept lingering in his mind.
His body seemed to be getting stranger day by day. Feeling a dull pain, starting to dream when he hadn’t before, falling asleep at some point even when he tried not to sleep.
Arpel’s gaze flicked towards Rohan.
‘Perhaps…’
Could all of this have originated from you?
Thinking that way, strangely, didn’t feel bad. Rohan’s bright smile as he immediately turned his head, having noticed Arpel’s gaze, was simply beautiful.
***
“Welcome. We’ve been waiting for you.”
There was already someone waiting at the appointed place. Unfazed by Lexia’s sudden appearance, the two sat down in their usual seats across from him. He looked less tired than before.
“The number of people has decreased?”
“Two returned to the temple. They’ll be back soon.”
“Hmm?”
Lexia tilted his head slightly at Rohan’s nonchalant answer, but he nodded anyway, assuming there must be some circumstances.
“We’ve secured one person.”
“Ah, you can just release him here. This tea house is filled with my people anyway.”
Rohan unhesitatingly pushed a man out of the shadow. One of the employees who came to serve tea naturally dragged the man away.
“Here’s the next place for you two to handle. You can rest for a day or two if you want. Oh, and.”
Lexia, who was tilting his teacup habitually, smirked.
“Could you clean up a bit more neatly? It must have been pretty bad if everyone’s throwing tantrums and even vomiting, saying they don’t want to do it.”
His gaze briefly turned to Arpel. Of course, Arpel didn’t care about receiving such a misunderstanding look. Instead, Rohan beside him raised an eyebrow.
“Why are you looking at Arpel like that?”
“I’m just asking you to show some restraint. Being too sensitive isn’t good.”
“I did it, but if you beg, I might reconsider.”
“…What?”
Lexia blinked blankly. As Arpel, who was sipping his tea, didn’t deny it either, Lexia could only belatedly realize.
His eyes became slightly pale. He had always been protective, but now he wasn’t sure what exactly he had raised. It seemed he could no longer overlap the image of the very young Rohan remaining in a corner of his mind with the grown-up Rohan.
Is this what they call a reversal? Lexia pondered seriously.
“Lexia.”
“Hm?”
It was then that Arpel, who had been silent all along, spoke for the first time. Even Lexia, who had been wearing a dejected smile, looked at him curiously.
Arpel, staring fixedly at him, extended his hand. More precisely, he held out only his index finger among the five fingers.
“Bite it.”
“…What?”
“I said, bite my finger.”
The slender finger twitched in the air. As if stating an obvious fact, Arpel’s face remained calm despite the shocking content of his words, leaving Lexia momentarily stunned.
“Arpel…? What are you saying?”
Before he could answer, Rohan’s hand gently wrapped around Arpel’s finger and lowered it.
Although he was smiling, probably no one out of a hundred would think, “Ah, he’s smiling,” upon seeing Rohan’s face. On the contrary, it was closer to a face that would make one seriously wonder, “What did I do wrong?”
That’s how fierce it was.
The corners of his mouth even trembled slightly, so Lexia had to deliberately turn his gaze away from Rohan. His instinct was strongly warning him that if he made eye contact, he would be grabbed by the collar right there.
“…Was there something you wanted to confirm?”
Even without being Lexia, Arpel could sufficiently feel that fierce aura, so he glanced cautiously at Rohan. Anger, bewilderment, and clear jealousy were emanating from Rohan.
Arpel fidgeted with the finger Rohan was holding. His sudden action was the result of an objective judgment.
After much consideration, it seemed that his body had started to change probably from the moment he contracted with Rohan. And all the strangeness Arpel felt occurred when he was in physical contact with Rohan or when Rohan was nearby.
To confirm this hypothesis, he needed someone else to perform the same action. Lexia was the only person he could ask to do this, so he had planned to ask him from the start. Since he couldn’t ask to sleep together, asking to bite his hand seemed like the best option.
“…Not allowed?”
“Not allowed.”
“I’ll grant you a wish.”
The hand that had seemed unshakeable trembled slightly for a moment. Rohan’s resolute face melted like snow, leaving him staring blankly at Arpel.
“…What do you think I would wish for?”
His voice, which came out after a silence, was slightly cracked. Despite the evident traces of anguish, Arpel remained calm. It hadn’t been long since he had suddenly confessed, so what kind of request did Rohan think he would make to recklessly promise to grant a wish?
Rohan didn’t know whether to be sad or happy. He felt doubtful and depressed, wondering if Arpel was conscious of the confession, while at the same time feeling happy about being trusted.
In the end, Rohan, wearing an ambiguous expression, let go of Arpel’s hand. Despite the mixed feelings of two conflicting emotions, he had finally given in to the sweet promise of granting a wish.
Having achieved what he wanted, Arpel extended his hand again.
“Now, bite my hand.”
“…What about my opinion? Is there no one who respects my thoughts?”
Lexia muttered in a dejected voice, looking at the extended finger. Of course, no one listened to him.
When Rohan, who he thought would obviously stop this, turned his head away, there was only one choice left. If he left the seat saying he didn’t want to do it, Arpel would be the type to follow and subdue him to make him bite the finger, so the option of running away had long been erased.
Lexia, making a tearful face, bit Arpel’s finger. As an added touch, he bit down hard, thinking, “If I have to bite, you’re going to get it.”
“Ow-!”
Of course, even that choice backfired on him. Lexia, who had been tearing up for a while with his hand over his mouth, shouted in a voice tinged with resentment.
“You did this on purpose, right?! What is your body made of, iron or something? You wrapped aura or magic around it just to torment me, didn’t you?!”
Lexia had unknowingly hit the correct answer.
“What would I gain from tormenting you?”
“How should I know!”
“Did you really bite hard? I didn’t feel a thing.”
Only after confirming Lexia’s extremely aggrieved expression did Arpel realize that he had indeed bitten properly. Which means… His thoughts, which had been slowly organizing, were suddenly cut off. It was because Rohan abruptly took his hand.
“It’s dirty.”
He started to vigorously wipe Arpel’s finger with a handkerchief he usually carried. Even though there wasn’t a single trace left, his deeply frowning face looked quite displeased, so Arpel could only silently let him have his hand.
There wasn’t a single tooth mark on the finger being meticulously wiped by Rohan. For Lexia, who had bitten down quite hard, it was quite unfair.
“Ugh.”
Then the finger was bitten. As if in retaliation, exactly in the same spot where Lexia had bitten. Arpel, who let out a small moan at the unexpected action, looked at Rohan who was still biting his finger.
Rohan, with his teeth clenching the finger, smiled with his eyes curved beautifully. The moment he saw that, Arpel savored the feeling of his heart dropping.
That day, a clear tooth mark remained on Arpel’s index finger.
