Ch.98Happiness (3)

*

A cabin so poorly designed that it’s dark even at midday.

Sadly, without even a single candle to be found, the room’s lighting had to rely entirely on the bonfire placed in the middle of the living area.

The only furniture was a desk and a piece of wood so crude it was embarrassing to call it a chair.

This absolute poverty, born not from destitution but from distance from civilization, functioned alongside the darkness as a decorative element defining the cabin’s theme.

It was essentially a structure that failed to meet the basic conditions for human habitation.

To most people’s eyes, it would generously be considered a barn, or at best a storage shed if judged fairly.

Though it bore the sweat of a carpenter, this wooden structure, so inadequate it made those efforts seem futile, was my home.

Yet despite how lacking this building was, I felt no deficiency.

At least not while I was embracing her.

Against her beautiful body curves that were impossible to look away from, against her voluptuous breasts that stuck to my entire palm, changing shape in a sticky and soft manner, I forcibly withdrew my eyes and hands, barely managing to separate myself from Silvia’s skin.

Despite her thrilling demands—whining, teasing, and making seductive movements—I soothed and comforted her as I got up to finish what I needed to do.

In truth, I wanted to pounce on her right now as well.

Without pants, the desire between my legs, hidden only by a single tunic, made no attempt to conceal itself, growing large, hard, and burning hot.

The fact that the woman I loved wanted me so desperately evoked a violent sense of satisfaction and superiority in my heart, and that throbbing exhilaration continuously fueled my sexual impulses.

I want it, and she wants it too.

In fact, what could possibly be the problem? But I deliberately turned my eyes away from her and moved my hands busily to distract myself.

Since we were just entering winter, it would only get colder with each passing day.

The longer I delayed using my hands, the longer she would have to remain naked.

As much as I desired her body, I didn’t want her walking around like this.

Although I had never made clothes before, and my only materials were two deer hides that hadn’t even finished being tanned, it was clear that completing clothes to cover and protect her body would take more than a month. Still, I didn’t want to be lazy.

Besides, it wasn’t as if I was committing to celibacy until the clothes were finished, like when I used to carve tombstones.

When night came, I would enjoy time with her.

When the sun set, when night arrived, when darkness fell,

I suppressed my rising excitement and kept my hands busy until sunset.

Silvia watched me with a broad smile, then slowly picked up a dagger and began removing the remaining fat from the hide.

*

Even before complete darkness fell,

As soon as it began to darken outside, Silvia and I, as if by agreement, put down everything we were holding.

She called my name with a yearning voice.

“Ash…”

“Let’s eat.”

“…Ah,”

“Aren’t you hungry? You haven’t eaten anything today. Probably not yesterday either,”

“…”

At my words, Silvia silently blinked her eyes.

Seeing her awkward response, a sudden thought crossed my mind.

I asked with a slightly trembling voice.

“…Silvia, when was the last time you ate something?”

“Well… I’m not sure.”

“…I’ll prepare something right away.”

Good heavens.

Could it be that she hadn’t eaten anything since we parted?

If so, her last meal would have been months ago.

Of course, she might have eaten fruits while wandering through the forest as I had, but I suspected she hadn’t.

She probably wouldn’t have wanted to eat alone the simple snacks we used to share when I was addicted to magi.

I hurriedly prepared dinner by putting some wild raspberries I had gathered a few days ago, a handful of mushrooms, and the fish Silvia had caught from the lake a few hours earlier into the bonfire.

As if trying to prove that cold meant nothing to her, she had gone into the cold lake naked, splashing around to catch fish.

From the beginning, I had the feeling she wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about making clothes.

Of course, she diligently removed fat from the hide, but it seemed like she was just mechanically helping me.

Wasn’t she embarrassed to be naked?

Or was she just sulking because I wasn’t focusing on her?

Perhaps spending all day rejecting her advances while concentrating on making clothes had hurt her pride.

But clothes aren’t just for warmth; they symbolize human civilization itself.

I didn’t want to see her acting like a primitive human.

Besides, it was troubling how my heart kept pounding and my face flushed every time I saw her sensual body.

Above all, I absolutely didn’t want to reach a point where seeing her naked body became so familiar that I felt nothing when looking at her.

Watching the meat sizzle as it cooked, I fell into thought.

Since both Silvia and I were isolated from the world, perhaps clothes truly were useless to us now.

Although it wasn’t impossible for someone to visit this forest, like the inquisitor who left yesterday morning, how many times would that happen in our remaining lives?

For us, who would only see each other for the rest of our lives, perhaps the civilization and common sense we had known until now weren’t so important after all. I tilted my head briefly at this thought.

“Silvia.”

“Hmm?”

“Do you dislike making clothes?”

I asked directly.

Sitting across from me with the bonfire between us, hugging her knees, she blinked at my sudden question.

After a moment of silence, she soon smiled and answered.

“Do you think I have some kind of exhibitionism?”

“Ah, no, that’s not it, but you don’t seem to be embarrassed…”

“What is there to be embarrassed about in front of you now?”

“…”

“Ah, perhaps I should act a bit more shy.”

“I think I’m the one who’s more shy about looking…”

Silvia smiled at my response.

“I’m just being petty.”

“Petty?”

“Yes, punishment for leaving me behind.”

“Ah,”

I closed my mouth with a short sigh.

Although she hadn’t particularly interrogated or gotten angry with me, my disappearing on my own must have hurt her.

Yet she didn’t ask me anything or speak any words of resentment, which seemed remarkable.

With guilt raising its head again, I lowered my head and sighed.

I wanted to apologize, but since she had asked me not to, I had to find other words.

“Thank you.”

Silvia nodded and said.

“Thank you too.”

“What did I do?”

“…Ash, do you know why I told you not to apologize?”

I shook my head.

“I was tired, exhausted, and in pain. I was so angry at you for suddenly disappearing, and I hated myself for losing you like a fool.”

“…”

“But, you know. The moment I saw you again, all those bad thoughts flew away. No resentment, no anger, and when you held me, I even felt incredibly happy.”

“…Silvia.”

“Thank you for being alive. For coming to me that rainy night, and… for coming back to me…”

“…”

“I don’t want anything more from you than that.”

As she finished speaking, the savory smell of fish oil had already spread throughout the cabin.

She and I smiled as we sat around the fire and began eating.

Honestly, I couldn’t taste anything at all.

The quality of the meal, the tableware, the furniture.

In every aspect, things had regressed from before, but our relationship was actually progressing significantly.

We were lovers before, but now it felt like something more.

I could clearly feel us becoming part of each other’s lives, slowly dissolving into one another like mixing paints.

I had felt it throughout my time living alone.

That I couldn’t live without Silvia.

Throughout our meal, her words kept echoing in my mind.

She who asks nothing of me and simply loves me.

Every second, my heart fills with excitement.

The pitch-black darkness settling in the cabin felt like a romantic night sky.

The sparks rising from the bonfire dotted the cabin’s darkness like stars.

But I did have something I wanted from Silvia.

Beyond the fateful demand to defeat the Demon Lord, I had one personal wish.

Someday, after the Demon Lord was dead and the curse binding us to this forest was lifted,

To hold a small, charming wedding in a countryside chapel.

I wanted to marry her.

There might be no guests, no officiant, but a proper wedding with wine, rings, and appropriate attire.

Like my parents, like the Count and Countess, I wanted to become a loving couple whose affection for each other was palpable.

Building a small house on a wide plain or hilltop, not in a forest, having and raising children.

If we were going to spend our lives together anyway, that’s how I wanted to live.

“Sil…”

I unconsciously started to voice that wish but hastily closed my mouth.

If I spoke this wish, it would essentially be no different from a proposal.

Though we were already practically in a common-law marriage, I still felt somewhat embarrassed.

“Did you call me?”

“Ah, no.”

I shook my head with an awkward smile.

Having finished our meal, we disposed of the trash and wiped our greasy hands and mouths.

After going outside to throw away the fish bones and coming back in, Silvia was waiting for me inside the door and suddenly embraced me.

“Huh?”

“Ash.”

“Yes?”

“We’ve finished our work and eaten our meal.”

“…Yes.”

“Now it’s time. Right?”

“Um… for what?”

I pretended not to know.

For some reason, I wanted to feign ignorance.

Partly because it was fun to see her squirming with desire,

And partly because I was afraid of the predatory look in her eyes, glistening with lust.

Silvia began to speak slowly.

“Stop… teasing… me.”

“Ah.”

Before I could say anything, her lips completely covered my mouth.

But I wasn’t surprised.

I naturally embraced her, feeling her soft skin against my entire body.

Her breath, sweeter than perfume, filled my mouth.

Her hands also invaded under my tunic as if swimming.

I caught her rough breathing on the tip of my tongue.

As our arms entangled around each other’s necks and backs, the two bodies slowly sank toward the floor.

All day today.

No, perhaps for the past few months, the night that both of us had been so desperately waiting for finally arrived at the cabin.

.