NOVEL NEXT Chapter 29: Not Him
Silvara moved too fast, like lightning striking the same spot twice. Her claymore vanished with a flick of her wrist. Her fist, hard as iron, slammed straight into Lucas's solar plexus.
"Guuhhh…!!!"
Lucas crumpled instantly, knees hitting the ground first before he crashed onto his back. His breath was gone, his stomach churning like a sledgehammer was raging inside it. He clutched his gut, curling into himself, eyes watering from the sudden agony; even his cock twitched for a split second from the sheer shock.
Silvara was already on top of him before he could draw another breath.
She straddled his chest, just below the ribs, knees clamping his waist like a vice. She knelt over his trembling naked body, silver hair spilling wildly across half her face, but her eyes… they were broken.
"Hehehe… hehehehe…" A small laugh escaped her lips, yet tears streamed down her cheeks. This wasn't happy laughter. No. This was the laughter of someone whose mind had cracked.
Goosebumps exploded across Lucas's skin. The Silvara he knew, the cold, cynical knight, now looked like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
SLAP!!
A brutal slap landed on his left cheek.
"So… you're not…"
SLAP!!
"…you're NOT…"
SLAP!!
Lucas's head snapped sideways, his cheek burning. He tasted blood.
Suddenly Silvara grabbed a fistful of his hair, yanked hard, and smashed his face into the cold, rocky ground. His lips parted from the force; dust and gravel scraped into his mouth.
"Hehehe… look at this… this face…" Her voice trembled, her smile so wide her gums showed. "The trash who owned it is gone from this world. Not him… not him…"
Then her hands shifted, both of them seizing his face. Fingers dug into his cheeks, his jaw, until the bones felt ready to shatter.
Lucas fought back, hands clawing at her wrists, trying to pull her off, but his strength was spent. His legs kicked uselessly at the air while Silvara didn't budge an inch.
"You are not a demon…" she whispered hoarsely, eyes feral. "Also not him… How… The Baroness will be sad…"
Lucas swallowed hard. His chest was tight. Was this because of her loyalty to the Baroness? Or… because she had already given everything to the "Lucian" she thought was real?
Silvara suddenly laughed again, louder this time. Her tears dripped onto Lucas's face.
"Thank god... it wasn't him who touched me…" Her voice shook between relief and madness.
Lucas weakly raised a hand, trying to speak even though his jaw felt broken. "Y-yeah… it's not… let… let go…!"
Silvara stared at him for a long time. Her eyes were still wet, but something strange glinted in them.
"Your name…" she asked softly, almost whispering.
"Lu… Lucas…" he stammered, voice hoarse.
Silvara smiled. A terrifying smile, stretched way too wide.
"You'll behave, won't you?" she asked again, like a mother making sure her child wouldn't misbehave anymore.
Lucas nodded frantically. "Yes…"
"You won't be a burden to the Baroness, right?" Her voice rose half an octave. "You won't make her suffer like that piece of trash did, right?"
"Yes! Yes, I promise…!"
Silvara went quiet for a moment. Then her smile stretched even wider, almost ear to ear.
"Good…"
Her right hand suddenly shot back to his throat. This time it wasn't a normal grip; her fingers pressed into his trachea with horrifying precision.
"Then… this is your reward."
Lucas instantly couldn't breathe. Eyes bulging, he slapped at her arm, legs thrashing against the dirt. His chest felt like it was about to explode.
And in that moment, Lucas's real face surfaced again. Not the arrogant face of Lucian Voss.
Silvara saw it.
Her eyes widened. Then, without warning, she leaned down.
And kissed him.
Her lips crashed against his, hot and hard, brimming with a hunger that had been pent up far too long. Her tongue forced its way in, prying his mouth open even as he teetered on the edge of passing out. The kiss was rough, wet, and soaked with the tears still pouring from her eyes.
Lucas could only let out a weak, choked moan in his constricted throat.
Slowly, Silvara loosened her chokehold, but her lips stayed glued to his, her hot breath washing over his face.
"Promise me…" she whispered between kisses, voice trembling. "Be a good man…"
Silvara slowly slid down from her straddling position on Lucas's chest. Her body, drenched in sweat and other fluids, finally collapsed, curling up atop his chest like a huge cat that had run out of lives. Her head rested right over Lucas's still-thundering heart, her silver hair spilling down and covering both their faces.
Her legs were still loosely spread, and her pussy, still wet and gently pulsing, accidentally brushed the tip of Lucas's now-limp cock. The warm contact made him flinch slightly, but he was far too exhausted to do anything more.
His breathing came in ragged gasps, chest heaving irregularly. His eyes stared blankly at the dark cave ceiling; occasional flashes of lightning still slipped in through the cave mouth, briefly illuminating their naked bodies covered in claw marks, slap prints, and dried fluids.
A sudden breeze blew through… but strangely, it was warm. Not coming from outside the cave.
Lucas slowly looked down.
It was coming from Silvara's body. Warm air flowed out of her, like she was releasing the last of her mana before passing out. The silver knight was now sleeping soundly on his chest, lips slightly parted, breathing slow and steady, like a child who'd cried herself to exhaustion. The tear tracks were still drying on her cheeks, but her expression… peaceful. Way too peaceful for someone who'd nearly killed him minutes ago.
Lucas let out a long, slow breath until his lungs felt empty.
[DING!]
In the corner of his vision, the transparent blue panel popped up again.
---
[Connection successful! Host, I'm so sorryyyy… (⁄ ˊᵕˋ ⁄ )
Looks like your body ingested a high-grade mana poison earlier.
I got forcibly disconnected because of overload protection, waaah… ]
---
Lucas just glared at the cave ceiling. "You goddamn chatbot…"
The panel immediately vibrated in outrage.
----
[OI HOLD UP! WHO'S THE ONE WHO ATE RANDOM POISON?!
YOU WERE THE ONE CHEWING THE POISON!
I HAD TO REBOOT THREE TIMES, YOU KNOW?! (╯°益°)╯︵ ┻━┻ ]
----
Lucas just gave a bitter grin, voice hoarse. "I was gonna ask something—"
----
[NO. NO QUESTIONS ALLOWED.
King… I might not know the details of that "epic" battle just now,
but from the data I received… looks like you got absolutely destroyed, huh? ( ´ ` ) ]
----
Lucas closed his eyes, annoyed but genuinely too tired to argue.
Then the panel changed again; this time the emoticon suddenly turned respectful.
----
[Go sleep, King.
Go sleep… truly the King of getting beaten up by one knight.
( ⁄ ⁄ • ⁄ - ⁄ • ⁄ ⁄ )つ─♡ sleep tight ♡─ ]
----
Lucas cracked a thin, cracked-lip smile.
"You… corny-ass chatbot…"
His eyes slowly dimmed. Silvara's warm breath still washed over his chest; their naked bodies pressed tightly together in the cold cave. His consciousness gently faded into peace.
---
A few moments later, in the darkness, Lucas thought he saw a warm light.
What's that? So warm…
The warm light slowly drifted away, then was suddenly replaced by a cold flash.
Wait, is that sharp?
Without realizing it, Lucas's eyes cracked open. He woke up.
His eyes shot wide.
"SHIT!"