Chapter 147: Even After the Date Ends, the Scenario Continues

After that, Seron and I first decided what to do about our wet clothes.
The carriage returning to the academy was scheduled to come back later this afternoon.
But that didn’t mean we could stay soaked forever.
Besides, we hadn’t eaten yet, so we were starting to get hungry.
So the decision we made was simple.
“It’s not simple!”
Seron shouted next to me.
What was she even saying after coming all the way here?
Right now, we were standing in front of the inn room, key in hand.
Thanks to Seron and me renting a nearby inn room by the hour.
Many nobles attend Zeryon Academy.
So even a basic inn would have rooms with private baths.
In a place like this, we could wash up and dry our clothes while resting.
Plus, if we asked the inn, they’d even bring food to the room.
It was the perfect place to solve everything at once.
But Seron, standing next to me, had turned bright red in the face.
I’d assumed her limit when it came to intimacy was something like a kiss.
Turns out, this girl knew more than I thought.
“I-I mean, this kind of thing…”
Seron’s face flushed even deeper as she twisted and fidgeted nervously.
When I looked at her, our eyes met.
She quickly lowered her head.
“…It’s not that I don’t want to, but…”
Didn’t I just hear something no man should overlook?
Unfortunately, love is deeply entangled with physical desire.
“Seron, I think you’re forgetting something.”
So I decided to bring her crashing back to reality.
“I’m the kind of guy who slept in the same bed with Lady Iris and didn’t lay a single finger on her.”
Iris, who’s not only naturally decadent in beauty but also enchanted by the Evil Lord himself.
Even sharing a bed with her, has there ever been a problem?
Sure, I almost suffocated with my face buried in her chest—but I didn’t do anything.
Even Hania, who loves Iris, acknowledged me.
Would someone like me really feel lust toward Seron?
I had to shake my head.
“Don’t worry. There’s no chance I’ll lay a hand on you.”
I even gave her a thumbs-up to reassure her.
Then Seron’s fist flew at me.
Of course, I dodged it.
“You jerk, how can you say that to a girl who came to an inn with you?!”
“…A girl?”
I dodged her leg sweep too.
It had a pretty nice arc.
“Touch me! I dare you to touch me! I’ll utterly wreck you!”
“This… isn’t something that can be solved that way.”
Emotionally impotent people exist in real life too.
Like how a guy might be too nervous to perform on his wedding night.
So there was really no helping this situation.
“Achoo!”
Seron huffed angrily, then sneezed.
Seeing her shiver, it was clear she was cold.
“Alright, stop being stubborn and just go wash up already.”
Thanks to fire dragon magic, I could generate body heat—but Seron couldn’t.
If she lost more warmth here, she’d catch a cold.
“How did I end up liking such a frustrating idiot…”
Grumbling, Seron opened the door, and we stepped inside.

Then she headed straight for the bathroom, giving me a sideways glance.
“Just try peeking.”
“I won’t look.”
“At least pretend you’re trying to!”
What does she even want from me.
Seron huffed and stormed into the room.
I watched her go and then stepped inside as well.
Maybe because it was autumn, the room was pleasantly warm.
On top of that, every room came equipped with magical tools for washing and drying clothes.
I took off my school jacket and shirt, then placed them inside the magical device.
For the first time in a while, I began unwrapping the Veil Bandages.
The bandages, by their nature, barely had any physical sensation when worn—but still, they were wrapped around me.
It was nice to take them off when I had the chance.
This way, it would probably take a bit more time for the rage and sorrow to be completely drained away.
I could breathe a little easier now.
I carefully rolled up the bandages and placed them beside me.
Thankfully, there was a robe in the room to wear.
I dried off my rain-soaked body and wrapped the robe snugly around myself.
Then, as I sat quietly on the bed, I slowly began to notice the sounds around me.
The sound of rushing water came from beyond the wall.
It was the sound of Seron taking a shower.
Girls generally take longer showers than guys.
She’d come out once she was done.
Leaning my damp hair back against the bed, I let out a breath.
After all the running around, I was finally getting some rest.
As the fatigue left my body, I thought it was a good thing I came out on this date with Seron.
‘What should we eat?’
As I was thinking about food and brushing my damp bangs with my fingers—

“Ahem, Prince Sweet Potato.”
The bathroom door opened, releasing a cloud of white steam as Seron stepped out.
She was wrapped in a robe with her hair bundled up in a towel.
“You should wash u—…”
Seron started to speak with a slightly flushed face, then stopped dead in her tracks.
She froze the moment our eyes met.
Her eyes trembled violently.
Wondering why she was reacting like that, I realized—Seron still wasn’t used to this version of me.
Before I knew it, her face started turning bright red like a beet.
She had finally registered who she’d come into this inn room with.

“Seron.”
“H-heek.”
A voice unlike my usual tone slipped out.
Just that was enough to make Seron flinch and take a step back.
Once again, I was reminded how weak she was to this face.
Seron trembled like a lost puppy, not even daring to glance my way.
She clearly had no intention of coming closer.
I had no choice but to get up.
As I stepped toward her, Seron instinctively took a step back.
But her back hit the wall, and she had nowhere left to go.
She looked up at me with wide, deer-like eyes, her hands clutched in front of her.
She looked exactly like a frightened puppy staring up at me.
But still, she couldn’t take her eyes off my face.
Or rather, her gaze briefly flicked below my neck, and she flinched, sucking in a shaky breath.
Her eyes looked… kind of dangerous.

“You’ll catch a cold like that. Go dry your hair and get in bed already.”

“Ah, y-yes!”
Seron flinched and leapt onto the bed with a whump.
Then she threw the blanket over her head and let out a silent scream.
Seriously, her every reaction left no room to rest.

Growl—
I’m hungry.
Better wash up quickly and eat.

* * *

After getting cleaned up, I had a meal with Seron.
It was a long-overdue break.
Maybe because I stayed in Vikarmern’s form the whole time, Seron ate in tiny, embarrassed bites.
I think it was my first time seeing her eat so timidly.

After that, it was simple.
We strolled through the now rain-free streets, visiting places here and there.
Since I returned to my Hanon form midway, Seron went back to her usual high spirits.
She laughed like she was truly enjoying the date from beginning to end.
That alone made it worth coming out today.

By the time afternoon came, we boarded the carriage back.
Maybe because we’d spent the whole day out, Seron leaned her head against my shoulder.

“It kind of feels like… a dream on an autumn night.”
Seron murmured in the rattling carriage.
A dream on an autumn night.
This autumn had been quite the dynamic one.
And now, slowly, winter was approaching.
After Act 4, Scene 6—The Winter Demonic Palace—a series of upcoming events were already setting the world on edge.

“Prince Sweet Potato, you bought a ring earlier, right?”
She noticed?
Since I’d promised Sharin, I bought the ring while I had the chance.
From the look on Seron’s face, she knew it wasn’t for her.
A slight pout appeared on her face.

“Whatever. I did more stuff today anyway.”
But her expression soon softened.

“Prince Sweet Potato, today I finally understand what it means when you say you don’t know love.”
I don’t know love.
In my current state, no matter how many people around me confess or make advances, my reaction stays the same.
Today, Seron seemed to have felt that painfully.

“That’s why—it’s a fair and square head-on match.”
Seron said to me with a confident look.

“A match to see who deserves to stand beside you—the one who can bring back your love.”

Then her expression shifted slightly.

“……………That must be why Nikita-sunbae backed off so easily today.”
She was talking about Nikita, who we met earlier.
I tilted my head.
Seron stared at me blankly and clicked her tongue.

“You must be thrilled, surrounded by women who like you. You total womanizer.”
“That’s the kind of thing that really makes me want to gloat.”
“Ugh, that face is so annoying!”

The fact that she still liked me despite all this probably meant Seron really liked me.

“Just wait till you get your love back. I swear, you won’t have a moment of peace like this ever again.”
“Even if I get it back, I feel like I’ll still be this chill.”
“Let’s see how long that lasts.”

Even I didn’t know what would happen after I got my love back.

In the meantime, our carriage arrived safely at Zeryon Academy.
As I opened the door and stepped down, the academy buildings, now cloaked in darkness, came into view.
After thanking the coachman for his work, I walked Seron to the girls’ dormitory.

“Hey, you know how to escort a lady properly, huh?”
“No, it’s just that I have something to take care of at the girls’ dorm after this.”
“…Say you’re going to spend the night with another girl in front of me one more time, I dare you.”

That one’s not even on me.
Seron was especially possessive today.
Just as she lunged at me, trying to bite my head off, we arrived at the dorm.

“Hanon.”
A familiar voice stopped me.
I turned toward it—and there stood Hania.
Her peach-colored hair still stood out, and she was dressed in casual clothes.
But her eyes were full of unease.

As Seron continued chomping on my head, I tilted it at Hania.

“Hania, something wrong?”
My ex-girlfriend looked like she was in trouble.
As her ex-boyfriend, I couldn’t just ignore it.

“It’s about you, Hanon.”
Something about me?
Before I could ask, Hania continued.

“The Saintess.”

And my face froze.

“The Saintess came to visit Iris in secret. They’re talking privately right now.”

The Saintess—Narea of Acrede Castle.
She had come to visit Zeryon Academy during her break.
And she did it in secret.