Chapter 21
The trials the hero's party faced hadn't all been life-or-death battles.
They were all called trials because they shared the promise of a reward in exchange for a price, but many were too different in nature to group together—and some lured people with illusions.
Early in their adventure, Tarmin had been too young to understand lust.
Because of that, he hadn't encountered any illusions in the dungeon.
Tarmin couldn't understand the blushing witch or the prince who came strolling out with a broad grin.
What if adult Tarmin challenged that trial once more now?
What if the demon appeared in Enya's form?
Her thin white dress revealed the full, bare curve of her back.
He'd thought it was a loose-fitting garment, but even as she sat, it hugged her waist, as if it had been designed that way on purpose.
Her plump bottom, contrasting with her slender waist, rested atop Tarmin with only a single layer of fabric between them.
Enya was sitting on his lap.
Now that she was close, she gave off a strange scent he'd never noticed before.
A subtle scent that was sharp yet hard to describe.
Hadn't this been a loving dinner between neighbors?
How had things ended up like this?
Resisting the urge to reach out and touch Enya's defenseless back, he spoke.
“E-Enya.”
“What.”
“I don't know what I did, but I think it was my fault. I'm sorry, so could you tell me why you're angry?”
For some reason, Enya didn't answer and only glared at him.
He also thought it was a problem that she kept looking back at him whenever he spoke.
When the soft flesh of her thigh brushed against his, he nearly leaped out of his seat.
They say people recite prayers in emergencies, but he didn't know any—not even the name of a god he worshipped.
He should've at least learned the names of the gods the prince used to recite.
Tarmin sat stiffly with his legs pressed tightly together, serving as a chair.
Whether she knew he was doing everything he could to minimize the awkward contact or not, Enya brought the bottle to her lips.
The wine bottle she kept holding worried him.
She'd been unable to stand after just a sip of cider before, but it looked like she'd already drained half the bottle.
He desperately tried to figure out why Enya was angry.
The thin, pure-white dress he'd never seen before.
The subtle scent that tickled his nose.
**
Had she acted too recklessly?
She came to her senses and regretted it as she felt Tarmin's firm thighs.
Tarmin wasn't at fault.
He'd only invited her over to use up some of the food they'd bought, and Enya was the one who'd misunderstood and made a scene on her own.
What kind of guest insulted the host who'd invited her to dinner, then sat on him?
She hadn't intended for things to turn out like this when she'd changed clothes and stepped out the door.
Once she confirmed that Tarmin didn't have those kinds of thoughts, she'd planned to part on good terms and go home.
That had been the plan.
The moment she'd heard him say she could leave.
The time she'd spent washing and applying scented oil, her heart pounding.
The time she'd stood awkwardly before the mirror in thin clothes that were embarrassing even to touch.
When she realized those hours had all been a misunderstanding, she couldn't bear it.
And the realization that she'd done it all to look good for the awkward man behind her.
She couldn't stay sober without doing something.
It was lucky she'd spotted the bottle in the basket.
As the strong aroma of wine filled her nose, her body grew hot and her face flushed red.
Getting her hopes up and then disappointing herself somehow felt girlish.
The moment she thought that, she let out a snort of laughter.
She was trying to become more womanly, yet she hated being called a girl?
Once the alcohol hid her true feelings, what emerged next was resentment toward Tarmin.
She couldn't stand how irritating he was, walking out with the cake.
She'd been agonizing over all this, but seeing Tarmin so carefree made her realize how trivial and insignificant her worries were.
They were worries she wouldn't have had back when she was a man.
Just the hero's aura had been enough to make people look at her with admiration and respect.
She'd never had to worry about how to win someone else's heart.
So she plopped herself down on him.
Being able to get drunk easily had its advantages in moments like this.
She was realizing anew how great alcohol was.
She put her inconvenient feelings away in the wine bottle and focused on tormenting Taal.
“E-Enya.”
“What.”
“I don't know what I did, but I think it was my fault. I'm sorry, so could you tell me why you're angry?”
During their confession practice while making stew, she'd realized that he was conscious of her as a woman.
When she turned around as if by accident and shifted her position, she could feel Taal tense up, enduring it despite his discomfort.
There was a peculiar sense of triumph in tormenting him without even trying.
To hide the victorious smile rising on her face, she brought the bottle to her lips.
Then she had a good idea.
If Tarmin couldn't take it and reached out, and she called him a lecher then, couldn't she hide the grand misunderstanding she'd made tonight?
It would make this all Taal's doing, leaving her blameless.
However she looked at it, it was a pretty good plan.
But whenever she looked back, Taal endured as if nothing was wrong.
He was acting like some saint.
Even though he'd always grinned foolishly whenever they met a beautiful woman on their adventures.
As if Enya were the only one who'd gotten dressed up with her heart pounding.
That sight made her bristle, and she pressed herself even farther back against him.
She was thrilled to hear Tarmin groan.
But Enya didn't know.
That alcohol could drink people too.
**
About five minutes later, Enya was making a tearful scene.
“Taal, you bastard... Hic.”
Tarmin looked pitifully at the empty wine bottle and cake plate.
The cake they'd brought along had helped her drink.
Enya was insensible after one bottle of wine.
He'd guessed she was angry because she wanted him to compliment her for dressing up so prettily, but there'd never be any way to confirm that now.
The ribbon that had neatly tied up one side of her hair had come loose, and Enya was throwing a fit on top of Tarmin.
“Taal, are you impotent?”
“Watch your language, Enya.”
“You are impotent.”
“I'm not!”
“Then why won't you touch me!”
“What if I did?”
“You have to touch me, then…”
He sighed as he watched Enya blurt out her plan while drunkenly rambling.
So she had been plotting something.
People get used to things more easily than you'd think.
This innocent young lady hadn't done anything beyond climbing onto him, but when Tarmin sat still, she started looking as if she might cry.
Then she'd lost her mind to the alcohol.
There had been plenty of bets between the two of them, but Enya hadn't always won.
“You, never drink outside the house.”
“Nope. I'm gonna drink.”
Enya was drunk to the tips of her hair, defying Taal without even understanding what he meant.
Her usually straight posture had gone slack, and she was leaning against Taal in his arms.
It was a good thing the drunk lived next door.
As he wondered where to hold Enya to keep her from thrashing around so much, she said tearfully,
“Or am I so disgusting you don't even want to touch me?”
“Huh? What?”
He looked at her in surprise.
“Is it disgusting to have some half-finished thing clinging to you? Does this outfit look wrong on me because I wasn't even a woman before? Sigona, you were just nice to me because I saved you, but now I'm doing, doing this.”
He caught his breath at the words Enya choked out through her sobs.
So that was what she'd been worrying about.
Tarmin had only thought about what he might've done wrong, never imagining she might be harboring such dark thoughts.
He'd never think she was disgusting just because he hadn't touched her.
“N-No. Enya. That's not it.”
He raised his hands in a panic, unable to figure out what he should address first.
To reassure her, he first wrapped his arms around Enya's waist as she sniffled.
He looked down at Enya and said,
“Enya. The truth is, I wanted to touch you. More than anything.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I was just holding back because I thought you were up to something.”
Because she was more precious to him than words could express.
Because he loved this relationship, made up of battles of will and wordplay.
Enya looked up at him with damp eyes and asked,
“Are you turned on?”
“Huh… Yeah. I'm turned on. Happy?”
What was she making him say?
Despite his confusion, he answered to the very end, and Enya staggered to her feet.
Enya slipped out of Tarmin's embrace and stood up, swaying unsteadily as she said,
“Show me.”
“Show you what?”
“You said you were turned on. Show me proof.”
“How am I supposed to show you that I'm turned on?”
“Take off your pants.”
He was reminded that there was no point trying to reason with a drunk.
He pressed a hand to his forehead.
“Enya. You idiot! If you're going to get drunk, do it gracefully!”
“Hurry up and show me!”
“Stop talking nonsense. Come on, let's go home. I'll take you back.”
It was right next door, though.
Enya resisted as he tried to take her arm.
“Why won't you show me? You stingy bastard. You have one and won't share.”
“N-No. You've seen it before. Why are you curious?”
Besides, didn't she have one herself?
“Show me!”
He'd planned to give her some vague answer and drag her along, but she was resisting more seriously than expected.
Even as she staggered, she skillfully dodged the hands reaching for her.
He was getting so irritated he wanted to give up.
He plopped down in a chair and said,
“Fine. Stay there, then. I don't care. Go home or don't.”
The ignored drunk fidgeted, then went over to the basket across the table.
Then she took out another bottle of wine.
“If you don't take off your pants, I'll drink it!”
“What?”
There was no time to ask her what she meant.
Enya had removed the cork and was bringing the bottle to her mouth.
Startled, he rushed over and grabbed her.
They wrestled over the wine bottle.
“No, hey, that's dangerous! You're not some kid trying to give your parents a hard time, so why are you acting like this?”
“Then hurry up and show me.”
“You really want to see that badly?”
He sighed at Enya, who nodded with a flushed face.
Did he have no choice but to show her this humiliating sight?
But after all that, there was no way she'd find any evidence of his arousal beneath his pants.
Besides, Tarmin's pride was hurt by the idea of doing whatever she told him.
Enya wanted proof.
Proof that he could get turned on by her.
Proof that he didn't think she was disgusting.
Proof that he wasn't being nice to her in return for saving Sigona.
He steeled himself and took a deep breath.
It was time to scold Enya for her vulgar words.
“Enya.”
“What, are you going to show me?”
“Stop asking me to show you.”
“If you don't show me, this wine, I'll…”
“You want to drink it that badly?”
Tarmin took a drink from the wine bottle he was holding.
He needed some alcohol in his system, too.
Enya was startled and held onto the bottle without moving.
After taking a few swallows, he held the last mouthful in his mouth.
And then,
“Taal?”
He kissed Enya.
**
Feeling wine flow into her mouth, Enya let out a belated shriek.
“Mmph!”
With her lips blocked, she couldn't do as she pleased.
It felt as if her mind had shattered into pieces.
When Enya came to herself, she was clutching the wine bottle, held in Taal's arms as he kissed her.
She was drunk and couldn't remember things clearly.
What was happening?
Her memories mingled and drifted like shattered wreckage on the sea.
The festival. The date. Taal's house. Steak, wine, and cake. And her drunken antics.
Even her efforts to recover her memories through the haze of alcohol vanished like bubbles the moment she felt Tarmin's tongue touch her lips.
Now the only way to find out what was happening was to ask Taal.
“Mmph, T-Taal, chuup.”
She stopped speaking, startled by the sound that came from her mouth.
When that lewd moan rang out, her body stiffened and her face flushed bright red.
Enya herself had never made a sound like that.
It was only the sound she made when she tried to speak with their lips pressed together.
Fortunately, Tarmin seemed to hear her calling him, because he pulled away and said,
“What's wrong, Enya? Didn't you want to drink the wine?”
“N-No, wait, I, this, what's going on, wai—mmph!”
Tarmin didn't wait.
With wine in his mouth again, Tarmin pressed into Enya's lips.
She should have resisted, but although she'd thought she had her lips clamped shut, they opened far too easily when Taal's tongue touched them.
The wine flowed helplessly into her mouth, and his tongue followed.
Taal gently licked the tip of Enya's frozen tongue.
As the strength left her entire body, Taal tightened his arms to support her.
Enya could do nothing as he poured the wine into her mouth and then sucked it back out.
Taal's lips parted from hers.
“Chuup.”
Her face flushed even redder at the sound as their lips separated.
If only that lewd sound would stop.
With her strength gone and her body completely in his arms, she looked at Taal with watery eyes.
“Taal.”
“Enya. You can't drink wine like that. Want to try a little harder?”
Startled by his words, Enya could only shake her head instead of answering.
“N-No. No more wine. That's enough.”
“Okay. I understand. But I want one more drink.”
“Taal, please, no more than that, mmph!”
It took several more rounds of wine before Enya was finally released from his arms.
Enya sat dazed in her chair, her lips wet.
“Enya, understand? If I thought you were disgusting, would I have gone this far?”
“N-No.”
“Did I seem like I didn't think of you as a woman?”
“Mmm…”
“My pants are safe now, right?”
“Yeah…”
“Good. Now go home, missy. Drink some cold water and come to your senses. Don't ever drink too much again.”
Enya only nodded in a daze.
She didn't say a word until the moment she returned home.
**
Renzo began an early lunch as he read a magazine published by the castle.
The main story was that a circus troupe licensed in Quaalid had finally arrived and was recruiting workers to build its performance grounds.
Since he had nothing particular to do besides his ‘observation activities,’ he made a note of the location, thinking he might apply.
If he brought young Tarmin along, couldn't they make twice as much money?
Savoring the coffee Sigona had brought him, Renzo raised his head.
Then he asked Tarmin,
“Why is the young lady sitting over there?”
He was pointing at Enya, who was sitting at the far end on the opposite side rather than her usual seat by the window.
“Who knows.”
“You did something again, didn't you?”
He didn't answer and give Renzo something to tease him about.
Enya, sitting some distance away, kept glancing this way warily.
Tarmin sighed as he looked at Enya, who was watching him as if he were some kind of snake or monster.
***