ICM Chapter 114

The door leading to the adjacent room opened soundlessly. Drushia, who had been unable to sleep all along, sensitively noticed the presence and opened his eyes.

 

Soft footsteps touching the floor slowly approached. As a shadow darkly fell over his face and a silent gaze looked down at him, Drushia sat up.

 

Black eyes looked at him and a pale complexion. Long, flowing black hair made the white, delicate woman appear even more precarious.

 

Ashika simply gazed at him with dull eyes, lost in thought. Should he reach out and embrace her, or should he offer words of comfort that everything would be alright?

 

Drushia, who had been hesitating while looking at Ashika, opened his mouth.

 

“Someone came from Igraine during the day.”

 

Ashika had been bedridden for a whole day, and using that as an excuse, he had sent away the messenger Weive had sent.

 

“I just sent them away, but should I have asked about it?”

 

“…No.”

 

A hoarse voice flowed from her barely opened lips.

 

“Should I call the physician if you can’t sleep?”

 

Ashika shook her head. Even the medicine prescribed by Duke Talion’s physician, saying she needed peace of mind and body, had been useless. There was no medicine that could calm her extreme anxiety.

 

“Rushia…”

 

Her voice calling him was pitiful.

 

“What can I do for you? Hmm? Ashika.”

 

Drushia cupped her cheek with one hand and spoke gently. As his body temperature touched her, her rigid face relaxed somewhat.

 

The last refuge she sought when she couldn’t escape anywhere. Ashika wrapped his hand and quietly rubbed her lips against it. She gripped his hand a little tighter as it flinched in response.

 

Ashika pulled his hand to place it on her waist and leaned forward. Long black hair draped over her face like a curtain.

 

Drushia, who had tensed for a moment, accepted the approaching lips. Soft lips gently rubbed and parted his lips, delving inside.

 

“Mmm…”

 

Slurp, slurp. As her small tongue intertwined, her body climbed over his. Despite her much smaller frame than his, Drushia was helplessly pushed down by Ashika’s touch.

 

Even at her clumsy kiss, heat rose in Drushia’s body. His hand caressed around Ashika’s waist and gradually moved upward. Soft breast flesh touched his hand beneath the thin nightgown.

 

“Hah…”

 

A moan escaped Ashika’s lips at the sensation of her breast being grasped. In the moment their lips parted, his lips slid along her neckline.

 

Large hands caressed her body as she lay awkwardly on top. One hand that had slipped under her nightgown stroked her thigh and grasped her buttocks.

 

“Haa… Hold me, Rushia.”

 

As soon as the words fell, her body was pulled down sharply and her vision inverted. In an instant, Drushia laid her down below and pressed down on her with his body.

 

“Huh, Ashika. Really…”

 

This wasn’t what he had intended, but the desire he had been suppressing suddenly rushed to his fingertips.

 

Ashika wouldn’t know. How much he had wanted her every moment. How hard he had tried to maintain boundaries, fearing she might misunderstand it as mere lust. So even if it was an act sought for escape, it was fine.

 

The thin nightgown was stripped off in one motion by Drushia’s hands. As Ashika’s hands reflexively rose to cover her chest, large hands caught them and lowered them.

 

“Shh. It’s okay. Stay still.”

 

A voice deepened with desire whispered soothingly in her ear. Though it was a gentle voice, goosebumps rose along Ashika’s spine.

 

His heated touch caressed her waist and lower abdomen, then slipped between her thighs. Thick fingers delved into her remaining thin undergarment, fumbling around.

 

The sensation of rough fingertips touching soft inner flesh. Every time his hand touched her, she felt a tingling pleasure sliding over her skin. At his careful touch, her toes curled in frustration and her shallow breathing quickened.

 

“Rushia…”

 

Unable to bear the tantalizing touch, her hand groped below him. She brushed against the hard mass that had risen prominently under his pants.

 

“Ashika, wait…”

 

Despite Drushia’s restraint, Ashika untied his waistband. Her impatient hands immediately grasped his exposed member.

 

“Ugh.”

 

“I don’t want… to wait.”

 

Her reddened lips exhaled hot breath as she whispered. It was a sound that snapped Drushia’s enduring patience.

 

“Huu… Me too.”

 

A voice tight with boiling heat leaked out.

 

“Same here.”

 

His center, drawn by small hands, touched the slick and warm crevice. As the heavy bulk found its place and slid in, Ashika held her breath.

 

The heavy, blunt pressure slowly pushed in and the intense sensation spread throughout her body.

 

Ashika exhaled her held breath and looked up at him. That slow and intense spread, the sensation crashing into her entire body, felt like the sincerity he was pouring out.

 

Her pale face flushed red and sweat beaded, making her black hair stick together. It was a face more vividly alive than before.

 

Drushia exhaled his suppressed breath and tilted his face down.

 

“Ashika, I love you.”

 

The black eyes looking at him became moist. Drushia’s lips overlapped the trembling red lips. Because it seemed tears might spill at any moment. Because he wanted to swallow even those tears entirely.

 

The feeling of being consumed by waves of emotion denser than the intense pleasure flowing down her spine. Ashika surrendered herself to the whirlpool of overwhelming sensations and let everything go.

 

****

 

It was a deep sleep without dreams. As his consciousness, which had been deeply submerged somewhere, rose to the surface, he lifted his heavy eyelids.

 

An empty sensation felt despite being covered with a warm blanket. The soft body temperature that had been wrapped around his body had disappeared.

 

‘Ashika.’

 

Sleep fled completely. Drushia got up from the bed, hastily put on clothes, and opened the door leading to the adjacent room.

 

“Ah.”

 

A familiar silhouette stood by the window, bathed in bright sunlight. A white, small face turned toward the window, long black hair with a lustrous sheen.

 

Cold autumn wind flowed in through the wide-open window. As the curtains fluttered, Ashika’s hair also became disheveled in the wind.

 

“You’ll catch a cold doing that.”

 

Ashika, who had been blankly lost in thought, finally turned around. Drushia strode over and extended his hand. Her body, which naturally nestled into his embrace without resistance, was cold.

 

“Look at this. Your body is cold. What if you fall ill again?”

 

Instead of answering, Ashika pressed her body closer and burrowed into his embrace. His solid, muscular body and warm temperature enveloped her.

 

She felt the desire to let everything go and lean on him. It was a temptation she couldn’t resist, even knowing she shouldn’t.

 

A knock interrupted the peaceful silence.

 

“Your Grace, are you awake?”

 

It was the butler’s voice. Ashika was startled and tried to escape from Drushia’s embrace.

 

“Rushia. Let me go.”

 

“You’re fully dressed. What’s the problem?”

 

The people of Duke Talion’s estate knew. The relationship between the two that had been secretly hidden. Amid all this, the incident that occurred at the imperial palace had shocked everyone.

 

The ducal estate had been on high alert since they brought the blood-covered Ashika two days ago. Bringing Ashika to Duke Talion’s estate instead of Igraine meant they were prepared for armed conflict if the situation arose.

 

Drushia reluctantly released the struggling Ashika.

 

“Come in.”

 

When permission was granted, the door opened. The butler who had been waiting outside Drushia’s door earlier had moved to Ashika’s room after hearing the voice.

 

It wasn’t only the butler waiting outside. Aide Kalf and Mia, who was in charge of attending to Ashika, had also been waiting since earlier.

 

“Why did you all come at once?”

 

“Breakfast is ready.”

 

“I came to help the young lady with her attire… but it seems unnecessary.”

 

Mia smiled awkwardly.

 

“Why Kalf?”

 

As Drushia’s gaze shifted, Kalf opened his mouth with a tense expression.

 

“There’s been contact from the Noble Council.”

 

A question crossed Ashika’s face. Why was the Noble Council suddenly convened? As she thought about it, a certain assumption occurred to her. Drushia didn’t look surprised, as if he had already expected it.

 

“Rushia, what’s happening?”

 

“I heard that nobles have been moving since yesterday.”

 

Drushia looked at Ashika thoughtfully. He wished there would be no more hurt for her, but the incident was already spreading like wildfire.

 

“Why the Noble Council?”

 

“The Marquis Oclein house is preparing to file charges. They’ve submitted a petition to the Noble Council meeting.”

 

Ashika’s face went pale. She was the victim. Someone who had been captured by Coral and nearly disappeared without a trace. But charges?

 

Drushia’s expression turned cold.

 

“Everyone knows it’s absurd nonsense. They know.”

 

A high-ranking noble had been murdered and Ashika was the only suspect. Marquis Oclein was determined to attack. Perhaps the Emperor was behind it. The longer this problem dragged on loudly and extensively, the more the Empress Dowager’s problem would be pushed back.

 

“Don’t worry. There’s no way to implicate you no matter what.”

 

The problem was that while the Noble Council dragged out time with the Emperor’s backing, Ashika would bear all the damage.

 

A scandalous affair involving an unmarried young duchess and the great blow to the honor of the House of Igraine. And during that time, there was the Emperor trying to somehow cover up the unseemly rumors about the Empress Dowager.

 

Drushia had no intention of watching that happen. Whoever targeted Ashika would have to face both Igraine and Talion. Quiet hostility simmered in his coldly settled face.

 

Ashika realized it. That Drushia was sincere. Not momentary lust or mere emotional words, but he truly intended to step forward to protect her.

 

Seeing her face stiffen, Drushia sighed.

 

“Let’s eat first and then talk.”

 

He hadn’t meant to frighten her. Ashika’s pallid complexion was pitiful.

 

“Rushia.”

 

Her hesitant lips opened and a voice as tense as her face flowed out.

 

“I have something to tell you.”

 

Ashika clasped her trembling hands together. Drushia, who had been looking at her thoughtfully, gestured toward the door. It meant for everyone to leave.

 

When the door closed and only the two remained, Ashika slowly lowered her gaze.

 

She could no longer postpone it. She couldn’t drag Drushia into her quagmire while he knew nothing.

 

Coral already knew her secret. If Coral knew, it meant Maiheller behind him knew. The secret Ashika had hidden could explode anytime, anywhere.

 

Perhaps because she thought she had already experienced it once, she didn’t feel afraid of death. There was something else more frightening than that.

 

‘What if there’s no future for us? A future with you. What if not just I alone, but everyone is racing toward the end.’

 

“Ashika.”

 

A gentle voice pierced into her solitary dark thoughts.

 

“It’s okay. Everything’s okay, so you can tell me anything.”

 

Just don’t say you’re leaving, he revealed with a tense expression the words he couldn’t quite voice. Drushia stepped closer to her and continued.

 

“I’m ready to hear your story.”