Chapter 74

Since you asked me not to include any commentary, I will translate the text directly into English using first-person point of view:

—

From that day on, many moments throughout the day, including dinner, were spent with Asulin.

Even though her appearance was beautiful, instead of finding it burdensome and avoiding looking at her, I accumulated more tenderness by watching her. This seemed to be the same for Asulin as well.

In crowded places, she only showed restrained reactions when I gazed at her, but at night, specifically when we were alone, she started to smile bashfully more often whenever our eyes met.

People who knew that Asulin, despite her actual personality, always maintained an appropriate seriousness fitting her position, would be surprised in many ways by this delicate smile. Whether others thought so or not, I was happy to have a monopoly on this smile from Asulin.

Days began and ended with smiles, and without fail, when we met each other’s eyes in the morning, we would start the day with a faint smile along with a greeting.

Whether we spent the day chatting together in the bedroom or practicing our swords in the training ground, every situation was different each time, yet each moment was always enjoyable, and I hoped it would continue like this.

As time passed, I could feel slight changes in Asulin’s appearance.

Although she had always been pretty, and despite having such good looks, she used to be indifferent about grooming herself. However, lately, there were more traces of effort put into her appearance. Even her makeup, which made her already flawless skin stand out, was noticeable.

Her effort to look good and appear before me without showing off, trying to remain calm, was endearing yet pitiful. So, if I noticed any effort, I would praise her, and these praises accumulated over time.

The Asulin before that day and the current Asulin, after some time had passed, were quite different.

There was no need to elaborate; her beauty was almost personified, beyond just being pretty. It wasn’t just me; even Katarina, who spent a lot of time with her, was stunned, blinking rapidly as she watched the changes in Asulin.

One could easily imagine how people at the Duke’s Residence, who had less self-control than Katarina, would react.

Despite their unexpected reactions, Asulin handled them with a composed and graceful demeanor.

“You’re beautiful…”

“…Oh… Oh.”

“I don’t want to show you to others because you’re too beautiful.”

“…I’m embarrassed.”

Sometimes, when alone with me, she would cover her eyes and twist her body in embarrassment, unable to handle my compliments, despite seeming to have no resistance to them.

“Still, thank you for your kind words.”

Seeing her happy with simple praise, I tried to make her happier with compliments. Nowadays, when talking to Asulin, I never forgot to give her praise.

Me, giving affectionate compliments, and Asulin, accepting them purely and happily, made each day feel like floating on clouds.

I never imagined that the relationship between Asulin and I, formed through a strategic marriage considered somewhat abnormal, would become this good.

But then, unforeseen difficulties arose.

“When… Andy…”

As the nights came and it was time for bed, Asulin’s displays of affection increased.

At first, she was content with hugs, but humans aren’t creatures satisfied endlessly by the same actions.

Our intimate activities progressed gradually, like climbing stairs.

Hugs turned into light kisses, and those kisses evolved into longer ones, eventually leading to deep kisses involving tongues.

Yesterday marked the beginning of deep kissing.

It started with Asulin. During our usual pre-sleep affection, the duration of the bird kiss extended longer than usual. Suddenly, her lips slowly opened, and her tongue entered. Although I was startled, I didn’t show it and responded with my own tongue.

Needless to say, her lips were incredibly soft, and tasting them with my tongue made their softness indescribable.

Thanks to this, while exploring her lips and tongue, we lost track of time and fell asleep on the bed.

Even while swinging my sword to cool down after work, I found myself thinking about Asulin’s tongue, indicating the severity of the situation.

No matter how hard I tried not to think about it, the memory from that night kept vividly resurfacing.

Unlike the past days when training went smoothly, today, my sword movements were filled with distractions.

Though I felt a refreshing sensation with each swing, stronger than usual, the weight of the sword in my hand felt negligible, as if it had become part of my body.

Yet, in this heightened state, my swings felt messy, leaving me unsatisfied.

…

“Oh…”

Unrelated to my satisfaction, the third party’s perspective saw my sword movements as quite impressive.

“Why, the sword path seems slightly unstable, but the power felt from the tip of the sword has improved tremendously compared to before.”

Pailord’s praising voice broke the silence and echoed in my mind.

…

“Is this…?”

My question, questioning whether I should truly believe the praise, was met with a response.

“There’s no reason to downgrade the evaluation just because the path is messy. Rough and messy aspects will naturally soften over time. What matters is the meaning embedded in the path.”

Pailord calmly evaluated my sword technique, despite my sharp question.

“Seems like something good happened between you and that girl while I was sleeping.”

He even analyzed the reasons behind my improved sword skills.

To invalidate her analysis, I needed to pretend not to hear, but…

“Cough…”

My involuntary cough made Pailord’s laughter audible.

“Ha ha ha…”

Her analysis gained credibility, making her laugh sound almost malicious.

“It’s a good time, a good time.”

What kind of gentlemanly tone is this?

“Hmm, it seems you had some naughty thoughts about me just now.”

“Impossible, you must be mistaken.”

Watching her, I realized that I couldn’t even think freely anymore.

“Hmm…”

Pailord’s murmured response echoed in my mind.

Even though I couldn’t see her, the image of Pailord narrowing her eyes and staring at me naturally appeared in my mind, as if we were in that unknown space.

“Alright, considering the joyful moment, I’ll let it slide today.”

Hearing Pailord summarize the situation as if she knew my thoughts, I realized I needed to be more careful about what I thought and said around her.

“So, what happened between you and that girl while I was sleeping?”

With playful curiosity, she probed me about what happened with Asulin. If I reacted emotionally, it would be problematic.

But…

“Nothing you need to hear from me. I’ll check it out myself.”

Hearing Pailord’s verdict, which felt like a death sentence, I momentarily wished I could throw Pailord into the boiling metal in the forge.

“My vessel won’t melt in molten metal. It’ll freeze.”

“…Yes, of course.”

Thanks to Pailord’s ability to analyze every detail of my memories, I understood the humiliation of being scrutinized so thoroughly.

I wondered how Asulin felt, who used to be embarrassed and couldn’t lift her head in front of me over trivial things.

I started to understand the phrase “husbands and wives become one heart and soul.”

“GAH!”

Why did she scream so loudly?

“If you’ve become husband and wife, why haven’t you consummated your relationship yet?”

“Don’t say it! Don’t say it!”

I was surprised by Pailord’s near-seizure reaction to my memories, but relieved that her voice only echoed in my mind.

“Go sit quietly over there!”

“There’s no way.”

“How can you torment your beloved so much? Among all the men I’ve dealt with, regardless of gender, you’re the first to act like a wallflower towards a lover!”

After listening to Pailord’s relentless scolding in the middle of the training ground, I finally escaped.

“I’ll personally inspect your progress tomorrow. Stay up late again tonight and sleep, just like last time…”

Finally, I heard her warning, which didn’t seem threatening due to her youthful voice.

“Sigh…”

I was exhausted. Maybe enduring the harsh cold of the Zakarat Mountain Range and fighting the demon army would have been easier.

I was more fatigued than usual.

I needed to get cleaned up and go to bed soon.

I wanted to wash away the fatigue from the bizarre experience and spend some time chatting with Asulin, adding to the tenderness, before she waited for me in the bedroom.

“…Asulin?”

“…It feels hotter, so I changed my outfit.”

“…”

“…What do you think?”