Demian made Lara stand. Then, he held her waist in one arm and forcefully grabbed her as though to lift her. Every time Lara moaned, their kiss became intense. It was a persistent and fierce kiss as if he would not want to miss every single breath of hers. Even though it was not their first kiss, they could not resist it. When Demian, who lost his rationality, tried to bite Lara's lips and snatched her tongue, a plate flew in.
"You crazy bastard!"
Normally, he could just avoid the attack by just slightly turning his head, but Demian was hit hard on his head by a plate thrown by the innkeeper. The savory potato and cheese dish fell on the floor.
"…Ah."
"What are you doing in someone else's shop, you womanizer?"
"Why are you hitting me?"
"Why? What do you mean why?"
The innkeeper was furious. Demian stood silently and listened to his nagging. After a round of storms passed by, Lara was led back to her seat by the innkeeper. Then, she was served the last food.
"This is only for you, milady."
"Thank you for the food."
"Raise your standards for men."
"Yes."
Lara murmured that she never had any standards for men in the first place, but she would try anyway.
The food was delicious. She did not even know she was hungry, but the more she ate, the more hungry she felt. Demian had nothing to eat because he was hit on his head with the plate of his share of food. He sat next to Lara and stared at her eating the potato dishes.
"Would you like some?"
"You will get in trouble with the innkeeper."
"What we were talking about earlier…"
"Forget it. Just do as you want."
Demian's voice was relaxed. It was obvious that he was in a good mood. His gaze was drowsy and one corner of his lips pushed up his cheek.
"Lara."
"Yes?"
"I'm fine now."
"About what?"
"Just do whatever you want."
"I mean, do what?"
Lara asked with her eyes wide open. Demian, who enjoyed watching her scarlet pupils dilate, muttered in a voice that was filled with laughter.
"Anything."
"Like what?"
"I will also do as I want."
Lara wondered if she should ask what Demian would do, but she just kept quiet.
Demian took Lara's hair and played around with it. At the same time, he kept peeking at her lips. Then, he admired Lara's movement of scooping up the potato and putting it in her mouth, as if it was the most amazing and talented thing in the world. His sharp, cold, and crescent-shaped smiling eyes were as beautiful as if the moon had laid down there.
What's wrong with this guy?
Lara's mind swelled up like dandelion seeds. As if it would scatter and fly high in the sky just by blowing it.
I will just stay still. If I ruin this moment with hasty words, I would regret it to the utmost degree.
12. Fake Saintesses
Why me? Why did the great existence choose me out of all those people and send me back to the past? I don't think I would be the only one who regretted my life. Wasn't I chosen not because I was special, but rather because I was just lucky?
After returning home at sunrise, Lara was nagged by Konny, who had just woken up, before finally sleeping until the afternoon. Then, she kept thinking about her kiss with Demian. It was not her first kiss, it was not even her first experience with a man, and even when she came back to the past and met him at the arena, they already started their relationship with a kiss.
But something was different. When their lips touched against each other, she felt that the act of kissing she had known so far had now been completely denied.
In her previous life, Lara had kissed Prince Sidhar several times. The Prince always kissed Lara as if he was doing a good deed. He always made sure to do it in the presence of people at that, as if to show it off. As Lara craved for the Prince's love, the number of times he touched her decreased.
Lara loved the Prince, so she was delightfully content by the reward-like contact he made for her. Holding hands, hugging, and somehow even kissing all felt the same.
Would it feel the same even when we make love?
Lara was a fake, but she was still a saintess. So when the Prince wanted the both of them to keep their chastity until they got married, she happily accepted it. She was brainwashed by the Prince's sweet nothings and turned a blind eye to everything else. She thought that what the Prince said was proof of his love. Lara loved him and mistook that as being the only form of love there is.
It was all nonsense. Lara realized that too late.
In her previous life, she did not realize that until she was about to die. And now every time she thought of herself at that time, she felt like she was going crazy with how pathetic she was inside out.
'Pure love, my foot.'
How easy it must have been to deceive me?
A woman whose desire was castrated by her own father. A fool who did not know what pleasure was or what she wanted.
Love looks the same to everyone, but it actually has a thousand faces. Lara peeked into one of them through Demian's eyes at the inn last morning.
It was a terribly dangerous gaze. There was no such thing as rationality in it. There was no logic nor was there guilt. There was no fear, not even a sense of moderation. A self-destructive desire that would not let go of the feelings of that moment, even if one needs to burn their body and sacrifice all the blood left in their heart. It was only that.
She had never seen anything like that before. The love Lara knew was not like that. Love was all about effort. At least, it was like that for her. Love was making an effort, trying hard, giving up, and letting go all at once.
But Demian was different. He let go of himself.
On their way home from the inn, Lara asked Demian why he kissed her.
"Because I couldn't help it."
It was not the answer she wanted, but she felt like she had heard the answer.
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘
Princess Sonnet sent a letter to Lara. It was about wanting to meet her whenever she had time. That was so just like the Princess. She could specify the date and time, but instead, she carefully asked when Lara could spare her time.
When would be good?
Since the typhoon is coming soon, it would be better to meet after the weather is clear. A typhoon was coming to mark the beginning of autumn. Dark clouds gathered at a rapid pace and covered the sky. Soon, a drop or two of rain began to fall.
"Konny."
"Yes?"
"Close the window."
The windows rattled little by little as the wind grew stronger. Konny walked with short and quick paces and locked the window.
"Valentine's going to get rained on. He said he was going to the doctor earlier. I should have given him an umbrella."
Konny stomped and worried about Valentine. Knowing that one day, the currently clumsy Valentine will become an alchemist who is obsessed with money, Konny's actions just looked cute to Lara.
"Konny, Valentine is not your son."
"I'm just uneasy because it feels like he will get a blow no matter where he goes."
"He's not your son."
"I know!"
Konny pouted her lips. She said that this much worry was normal between friends and complained that her lady was too cold-hearted.
"Are his legs all better now?"
"I heard, as long as he's not going to be a knight or a mercenary, he won't have any problems in his daily life."
"That's good."
Lara took a pen and a piece of paper and put them on her desk to write a reply to Princess Sonnet. Konny sat close to Lara, who was thinking about what to write.
"Milady."
"Yeah?"
"Is the Princess cute?"
"She's cute. Lovely, too."
"Does she look like an angel, as the rumor goes?"
"Why? Are you curious?"
"Lady Eunice's maids bragged about the Princess a lot. At the goodbye summer party, Milady held the Princess' hand and danced like the Demon Lord. They think that the first love of our Princess was taken away by Demon Lord Lara…"
"What? Demon Lord?"
"Sidhar, the warrior, came to rescue the Princess late at night. But since Demon Lord Lara was more good-looking, the Princess' face was wrinkled, as if she just chewed on bugs."
Lara looked at Konny with a look of uncertainty about what to say.
"You guys are having so much fun, huh?"
"Come on, milady and your friends are not the only ones who know how to have fun."
Lara had no idea whether that was a compliment or an insult. Konny made Lara laugh when she said that Lara might have another chance to wear a tailcoat and asked Lara if she had any intention of dressing up like Prince Charming.
"Konny, do you want to meet the Princess?"
"Yes, I'm really curious about her. I heard she's as cute as a doll. Milady was not cute at all when you were young."
"Then, next time I go to the Princess palace, I'll take you with me."
"Oh yeah"
Konny jumped with joy. She's a maid who took good care of a grown man as though he were her son, so she will also like Princess Sonnet. Lara thought it would be really cute if the squirrel-like Konny handed out a sandwich next to the rabbit-like Sonnet.
Lara began to write her reply.
[Dear Princess Sonnet.]
She said that she would visit the Princess a few days later on a sunny autumn day.