Ch.263-20. Academy (4)

# -20. Academy (4)

Even I couldn’t clearly understand what was happening now.

Well… being under the same roof with someone else’s husband in the predawn hours when even birds were asleep… This was a deviation I couldn’t have imagined under normal circumstances.

‘This is way beyond just a deviation…’

My mind went blank. I didn’t know what to do.

It was already late, and he seemed quite drunk, so I let him in, but now I was regretting that decision.

I paced anxiously in the quiet bathroom.

“What should I do…? What should I do…?”

First, I needed to cool my head.

Turning on the water and taking a shower helped me feel a bit better. As my head cooled down, my mind cleared considerably and my thoughts became calmer.

“I’ll just put him to bed right away. That’s the right thing to do…”

If he stayed awake, there was no telling what might happen.

It’s not that I didn’t trust Albert, but he was just a man after all… Besides, to be honest, Albert hadn’t exactly been trustworthy lately.

In terms of male-female relationships, that is.

‘I’m worried… Will this work out…?’

After finishing my shower, I stepped out of the bathroom.

Normally, Albert would have gone in next to wash up, but he was already sprawled out on the bed.

“Is he sleeping…?”

I approached him.

The strong smell of alcohol made me reluctant to get closer, but it was a necessary step.

When I waved my hand above his eyes, a groan escaped from his collapsed form.

“Aaah…”

“Are you okay?”

“Not at all…”

“I’m sorry… I was too drunk earlier… I wasn’t in my right mind…”

I felt sorry since I was largely responsible for his condition.

If only I had come to my senses sooner, Albert wouldn’t have to suffer like this…

“Should I turn off the lights?”

“Yeah…”

I promptly turned off all the lights in the house.

The sun was also beginning to rise, so I drew the curtains as well.

Then I headed to the living room where the sofa was. I lay down on the sofa and closed my eyes.

But sleep wouldn’t come due to the sound of footsteps gradually approaching me.

“What’s wrong? Are you uncomfortable?”

His face, flushed from the alcohol, was somehow displaying clear signs of dissatisfaction.

That look was very… sensual.

He looked at the sofa where I was lying and said:

“Are you going to sleep here?”

“Yeah… that’s the plan.”

“That’s strange…”

“What is?”

He shifted his gaze and now looked at me.

From earlier, his defenseless appearance… I could somewhat understand how those two women had seduced him.

“You’re not doing anything…?”

Albert asked timidly, with embarrassment.

I caressed his face.

“Why? Would you like me to do something?”

“Not particularly…”

“What do you mean, not particularly?”

I had sworn never to cheat no matter what.

But when he acted like this… it was hard to resist.

“After all my efforts… you don’t even appreciate it…”

I pushed him down.

He collapsed weakly, wearing a frightened expression. When this situation came upon me, I felt an immense sense of transgression.

I knew this was wrong. And Albert probably knew it too.

But neither of us was thinking about stopping.

“This is all your fault.”

He didn’t deny those words at all. In fact, he was enjoying the current situation.

“You’re really a pervert, aren’t you?”

“Are you two in any position to say that…?”

“You made me like this.”

Now that I was in this situation, I finally understood their feelings.

Who would give up the chance to have their first love—something they could never obtain no matter what they did—just because it wasn’t morally right?

‘This is all Albert’s fault…’

I carefully began to undress.

It was truly a strange situation, which made my heart beat faster and the atmosphere quickly grew heated.

Eventually, I was left without a stitch of clothing.

“You’re already wet?”

This was a first for me.

I hadn’t even given myself to my previous boyfriend… but now, the touch of this man who was neither my husband nor my boyfriend was making me increasingly aroused.

“Haa… Haa…!”

My body was wanting more and more.

I twisted my body and somehow managed to pull down his pants. But he continued to tease me.

It felt like he was treating me like a toy.

That state of almost reaching the peak but not quite was driving me crazy.

“Does it feel good?”

He was mischievous.

“You already know…”

I couldn’t hold back anymore.

So, humiliating as it was… I begged him.

“Put it in quickly…! Stop teasing me…!!”

***

Monday returned to the world once again.

This morning was more uneventful than expected, or rather, it was quiet.

It should have been lunchtime filled with various conversations, but only the awkward clinking of utensils filled the air.

Luna looked at the two people who kept glancing at each other and thought:

‘What’s wrong with these two?’

She was already in a bad mood lately, and seeing these two in low spirits made her feel even worse.

So she sharply asked:

“What’s wrong with you two?”

Neither of them could provide a proper answer to her question.

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“Nothing happened in particular…?”

The atmosphere clearly suggested something had happened, but they both continued to deny it.

Rachel wore an obviously awkward expression, and Albert avoided eye contact.

It might be crossing a line, but there was no way it wasn’t what she thought. The atmosphere was telling, and the rumors she’d heard couldn’t be ignored.

“Did you two do it?”

The perfectly stiffened expressions of the two at that moment…

Luna said to Albert, who couldn’t make any excuses:

“You’re really something, aren’t you?”

“Haha… You don’t need to praise me…”

“Praise?”

“Sorry…”

Though Luna said that, she was looking at Rachel as if envious.

Unlike Albert, Rachel had already noticed this.

Rachel winked at Luna, who frowned in response.

And Albert tilted his head in confusion—it was a frustratingly clueless situation.

“I’ll go ahead. I have a class during fifth period.”

Albert made the wise decision to quickly escape this awkward situation.

As soon as Albert left, Rachel moved right next to Luna.

Luna scolded Rachel:

“Are you crazy too?”

“Hey, you could do it too.”

“What are you saying… I have a fiancé…”

“You never know until you’re married. Some people call off engagements the day before the wedding, you know.”

Rachel continued to encourage her.

“I’m telling you, you can do it.”

“I’ve given up…”

“What nonsense are you talking? You were just looking at me enviously.”

“No, I wasn’t! Is that something you should say to someone who’s getting married soon?”

The mention of an upcoming marriage came as a huge shock to Rachel.

She had often seen Luna complaining about her fiancé and the stress it caused, but marriage had never been mentioned.

Such sudden news of marriage was shocking.

“Marriage?!”

“Shh! Shh…!”

“Really?”

“Would I lie about that?”

Rachel couldn’t understand.

“You said you didn’t like him.”

“What does that matter… My mother wants me to get married soon…”

“Don’t do it. If you don’t like it, don’t do it…!”

“If I could say that, I wouldn’t have gotten engaged in the first place… right?”

After meeting Albert.

Despite her parents’ opposition, she had gone out into the world and participated in war without permission.

Perhaps because she had shown such immature behavior, she couldn’t go against her parents’ wishes now.

“If I had lived quietly, maybe I could have delayed it?”

“…”

“It’s okay, I’m fine, so please don’t make that face.”

She was clearly not fine at all, yet she brazenly said such things.

The heart hidden behind that expression was surely crying, but it didn’t show on the outside.

“Why don’t you express yourself like you used to?”

Before coming to the Kainis Empire, she might not have known, but when she was at the academy with Albert, she had expressed herself quite well.

But now, what could she say? She had grown too mature.

To the point of seeming foolish.

“I’m going to stop that marriage. For real.”

“Don’t do anything foolish.”

“Why don’t you try saying it once? That you don’t want to do it.”

“I’m fine, I tell you.”

Luna stood up in the middle of her meal.

“Isn’t a friend supposed to congratulate another friend when they’re getting married?”

“Do you really want this marriage? If so, I’ll congratulate you.”

“…”

“See, you can’t even say it.”

Rachel also stood up.

Of course, a friend should support another friend’s happiness. But there was no guarantee anywhere that this marriage would make her happy.

Such a marriage was worse than not marrying at all.

“Think about it carefully.”

“Okay… I got it.”

Luna returned to the faculty office with a gloomy expression.

Her retreating figure seemed to be hoping someone would stop her. But Rachel didn’t hold her back.

“It’s not my place to do this…”

She could have just congratulated her without saying all this.

But that would have been a failure as a friend.

Rachel asked Bellian, who had been eavesdropping nearby:

“What do you think?”

“So, did you have a good time the day before yesterday? I was in a bad mood because of you, sister.”

Bellian’s sudden question caught Rachel off guard.

She lowered her head at the question.

“I’m sorry…”

“I want a little sister.”

“Haven’t you been listening this whole time?”

“Well, I don’t think it’s a bad idea. It would be cool if her father showed up saying ‘I object!’ Can I record that on video?”

Rachel nodded.

“Of course. So, could you persuade her? I’m… a bit awkward with her right now.”