Chapter 11
#11. Return
The human mind is more fragile than one might think.
Even when it seems strong, it often crumbles over the slightest trigger, and when that happens, one is forced into a choice between two options.
Either become a complete wreck or become dependent on something.
I hear that overseas, people often become dependent on drugs made from monsters' blood and flesh, but since such things are hard to obtain in Korea, it was common to rely on games, the internet, religion, and the like.
In the earlier stages, things are still relatively manageable. With proper counseling and medication, one can recover quickly.
But once the mind becomes ill and festers further, things get complicated.
“You won't leave me here alone, Mr. Hyunwoo, will you? Right?”
“...”
[13:24]
‘I'm going to have to leave soon, though.’
Even someone oblivious to social cues will usually start picking up on them when their life is in danger.
That's simply how survival instinct works.
Iris, tightly clutching my wrist with both hands and silently looking up at me, was insanely beautiful.
Since Iris was about a head shorter than me, I naturally found myself looking down at her.
Perhaps because of that, the valley between her breasts, clearly visible despite her modest dress, drove me crazy. If I stayed like this, my lower body might stiffen and cause a setting-breaking incident by bringing a mortar into another world.
Of course, even though it was troublesome, it was definitely a situation where any man could only smile. That said, my back was drenched in cold sweat.
My instincts had been screaming at me to run away from here immediately.
‘...This is driving me crazy.’
I repeat, I'm a mage.
Though I'm only a pathetic little one-circle mage, thanks to that, I can now sense natural mana and other people's magical power.
In other words, I'd awakened what people commonly called a sixth sense.
Being able to feel what ordinary people couldn't meant I was no longer an ordinary person. Put positively, if I returned to Earth and simply continued growing like this, I could grasp wealth and fame with my own hands—things other people might work their entire lives to obtain.
But if you asked whether that was entirely a good thing, I could firmly answer NO in the current situation.
The distance between Iris and me was close enough that I didn't even need to reach out.
Thanks to that, I could enjoy a front-row view and experience of her insanely beautiful face, the breasts I'd touched before, and even her fragrant scent, but on the other hand, Iris's magical power, which I'd been sensing for a while, was anything but normal.
Iris's magical power was churning like an active volcano that could erupt at any moment.
It was churning so violently that my nearby skin prickled as if needles were poking it, and the lingering traces of her magical power made my brain ache.
‘That's what she looks like while her magical power is being suppressed...?’
Completely out of the blue, it was time to review what I'd just learned.
Basically, a mage accepts natural mana, assimilates it into their own body, and converts it into magical power.
That converted magical power gathers in the fuel tank known as the heart, becoming fuel for casting magic.
Perhaps because of the special nature of magical power being gathered around the heart, it was directly influenced by a mage's emotions.
Sadness, regret, hatred, resentment, self-reproach, jealousy, anger.
The stronger the negative emotions, the more violently magical power would churn.
Just as a sea with powerful waves is more threatening than a calm lake, stronger negative emotions did offer the advantage of increasing magical power's output. However, because they also caused rapid consumption of magical power and made it possible for one's opponent to decipher one's magic, maintaining an unshaken mind anywhere and anytime was considered the most basic of basics for a mage.
Iris had emphasized this several times during class as well.
“Mr. Hyunwoo. What are you thinking about?”
Iris was dangerous right now.
She was an eighth-circle archmage, yet she was so consumed by negative emotions that she'd forgotten the most basic of basics.
In a situation like this, nothing that happened would be surprising.
“Nothing in particular...”
“That's a lie. Whenever you're troubled or want to change the subject, your voice drops in a strange way, Mr. Hyunwoo.”
Her green eyes, shining as clearly as if a light had been turned on even in the dark cavern, were fixed on me.
Her gaze swept from my head to my toes, making me feel as though she were baring everything inside my mind.
Then Iris's left hand passed over my cheek.
“Like now.”
My feelings at that moment were very simple and concise.
'...I think I'm going to piss myself.’
If I had been an ordinary person, I probably wouldn't have been trembling as violently as I was. At most, my legs would have been shaking.
It was all because my mana circle had formed, allowing me to sense magical power.
To me, who could sense magical power, Iris was like an eight-ton truck with a busted engine.
It meant I could never tell when Iris might ram into something.
Of course, Iris wouldn't do anything so extreme... but no one knew what might happen in this world.
'She must be seriously misunderstanding something...’
This was a problem that could be solved if I just explained things properly.
I didn't know exactly what she was misunderstanding, but her condition had worsened as soon as I said I was going back, so I assumed that was probably it.
This situation was definitely awkward, but if I looked at it from the opposite angle?
It meant Iris didn't like the idea of me going back.
'...I shouldn't laugh.'
The corners of my mouth kept trying to rise.
Still, if I laughed in a situation this serious, I could genuinely ruin the entire mood.
Even though I was incredibly oblivious, I had at least that much awareness.
"Ms. Iris, that's not it—"
“You don't have to say anything.”
I'd decided to explain the situation properly and break through this thin ice. But all I got in return was a slender index finger pressing firmly against my lips.
“I understand. You have a life of your own, Mr. Hyunwoo. I can't selfishly force you to stay forever.”
At that moment, the magical power churning within her body became still, as if it had fallen asleep.
“Instead.”
Iris drew closer, bringing her face toward me. It was flushed bright red, as if it might burst at any moment.
“...Please kiss me.”
***
According to something I'd once seen on an online community, a first kiss supposedly felt like hot pollock roe entering your mouth.
Honestly, my reaction had been that I didn't understand what the hell that meant.
Hot pollock roe? I'd never even eaten regular pollock roe, let alone hot pollock roe.
The metaphor wasn't merely strange; it sounded like something a science major had written.
The reason I was suddenly thinking about this was simple.
“...”
I looked like I was about to have my first kiss.
Iris came into view with her entire face flushed bright red as if she were about to burst, her eyes squeezed shut and her lips extended toward me.
I hate repeating myself, but seriously, this was something else.
‘She's fucking beautiful...’
When I was in high school, there was a guy in my class who was so obsessed with an idol that he skipped class and followed her to concerts, autograph signings, and even every event on her schedule.
Back then, I'd wondered if he was seriously insane, but now I understood him a little.
I guarantee that almost any idol wouldn't even dare stand beside Iris.
Just because a fairly pretty squid stood beside a fairy wouldn't make it a fairy.
“I'll do it...?”
She didn't give any particular answer, but the fact that she didn't pull away was answer enough.
‘...Wait.’
Haa, haa. I secretly checked whether I had bad breath, and fortunately, I didn't.
Just as I thought I was finally ready, another concern suddenly crossed my mind.
‘...But how far is this allowed to go?’
I knew for certain that I absolutely couldn't just launch into a deep kiss straight out of a porn video.
Then what about the most basic bird kiss?
But considering that Iris had even allowed me to touch her breasts, wouldn't a bird kiss be a little too childish for us?
No, resolving the most fundamental question came first.
Was I allowed to use my tongue or not?
‘Iris was the one who asked me to kiss her first, so using my tongue should be all right, shouldn't it?’
That thought dominated my mind, but the more I considered it, the more I realized that a woman's heart wasn't necessarily so simple.
Just as there's a world of difference between saying 'ah' and saying 'uh,' there was an old maxim that one should never take a woman's words and actions completely at face value and simply follow along.
‘...Let's not take a risk.’
It was a shame, but I shouldn't ruin things just because I was impatient.
After all, time was on my side.
If I suddenly shoved my tongue in and started slurping, only to make the mood turn icy, it seemed like the only ending left would be sticking my face in the water and killing myself.
“Phew...”
Flinch! Iris reacted far too strongly to the small sigh I let out because I was nervous.
Her flushed face alone made it obvious that Iris was incredibly tense.
Iris looked about 170 centimeters tall, but since I was around 190, I had to bend slightly at the waist to meet her eye level.
With our eyes at a lower height than usual, I saw Iris pressing her lips together.
‘Her eyelashes... they're really long.’
Thump, thump, thump.
Strange.
Even when I'd touched Iris's breasts, my heart hadn't pounded this noisily.
Now it was hammering so hard that it wouldn't have been strange if my entire mana circle had burst out at any moment.
As we drew close enough for our breaths to mingle, I carefully and gently took hold of her chin.
Finally, just as the fragrant scent coming from her made me feel as though my nose would go numb, I—
Smack.
Lost my reason.
·
·
·
·
“Sluurp, smack, haa... H-Hyunwoo...”
Our red flesh tangled together.
Sticky saliva that neither of us had managed to swallow stretched out like a strand of yarn before snapping.
It was like a honey jar that never ran dry, no matter how greedily I drank from it.
It was actually sweet.
I felt dazed, as though my head were full of fog.
The small concern I'd had moments ago had long since been forgotten.
Squeeze!
“H-Hyunwoo...?!”
When I grabbed her buttocks, Iris seemed startled and let out a shrill cry.
But she didn't pull my hand away.
“...Smack.”
Her returning to the kiss without offering any particular resistance felt like tacit consent to me.
Even while our tongues tangled frantically, my hand never stopped moving, roughly kneading and teasing her buttocks. Her firm yet soft ass was incredibly large.
The flesh beneath the thin dress was so stimulating that, just like with her breasts, it was impossible to grasp it with one hand.
“Haa, hng, mmph...”
As time passed, my touch grew increasingly more daring.
I didn't stop at simply kneading her buttocks. I caressed her waist like a lover, and even deliberately gathered the flesh beneath her buttocks to feel it bounce like jelly.
Each time, Iris only flinched without stopping me. If anything, she merely clung to me more insistently, as if asking me to continue.
Then, suddenly, I wanted more.
No matter how thin the fabric was, wouldn't touching her bare skin directly be much softer and more pleasurable than touching her through her clothes?
My hesitation was brief, and my actions were quick.
While stroking her thigh, I slowly lifted the dress along with it.
The dress, designed to leave no skin exposed, rolled upward, first revealing her snow-white ankles, then her shins, knees, and finally her pale thighs to the outside world.
“H-Hyunwoo, that...”
Iris, who had seemed as though she would stay still no matter what I did, called out to me in a faintly trembling voice.
I understood. Her dress had already become more like a miniskirt.
If it went up even a little farther, the entrance to the secret garden no woman should show anyone would be exposed.
‘Tsk... Is this as far as I go?’
It felt wrong to forcibly push things further when she clearly didn't like it.
No, if it had been another woman, I probably would have pushed ahead anyway, but the innocent look in Iris's eyes poked at the triangular scrap of my conscience, already worn nearly to nothing.
Perhaps because Iris's voice had stopped me, I felt the atmosphere, which had been blazing hot, cool sharply.
It wasn't just me; Iris's expression made that clear.
“I... I'm sorry...”
“N-no, it's all right!”
I briefly lowered my head.
It was the same as when I'd touched her breasts. I'd suddenly launched into a deep kiss and touched her buttocks however I pleased.
It was an obvious mistake.
“...Please raise your head. I'm really not bothered at all.”
The sight of her generously forgiving my mistake
even gave me a strange sense of déjà vu.
As I looked into kindhearted Iris's eyes, my lower body, which had been painfully swollen for some time, began to act up.
“Then can I touch you again?”
“N-not now...!”
Tsk, what a shame.
Still, if she said not now, that meant she might allow it later, so I could take it as a somewhat positive response, right?
While indulging in happy fantasies on my own, I suddenly remembered the time limit and hurriedly took out my phone.
[00:03]
“Ah.”
[00:02]
I had done nothing besides kiss her and engage in a little physical contact, yet I had spent more than ten minutes on just that.
[00:01]
“B-but next time, a-all the way to the en...!”
[00:00]
[Returning to Earth]
Just as the timer reached zero, I returned to my room, as though the power to the monitor displaying the dazzling screen had been cut.
“...I didn't get to say goodbye.”
I would be able to see her again soon, but I still couldn't help regretting that I hadn't been able to say goodbye properly.