A Dramatic First (2)

The last thing she remembered was the explosive wrath she felt when she saw Dowd embracing another woman.

Even right now, everything was just a blur to her.

The act of thinking felt so meaningless, almost as if a fog was covering her entire consciousness.

She realized that there was something crumbling down nearby and people around her were screaming. But all those sounded so faint, as if they came from a faraway place.

As her gaze wandered in the air for a moment

In the monochrome landscape, akin to a faded photograph, she could vaguely see the contours of a person gazing down at her.

It was a mysterious atmosphere, floating in the air as if defying gravity.

The only thought that came to mind was her acknowledgement that even a peculiar figure without a single stitch of clothing could have such a presence.

However

Even with just that vague outline, she could at least recognize its shape clearly.

If she were to age just a few more years, maybe she would look like this.

Mother?

In her daze, that was the first word to cross her mind.

After all, it was someone she had seen many times in her dreams. Someone she missed the most.

However, there was one thing she could feel for certain.

Although the shape was identical

She was not the same existence as the mother she remembered.

The essence was as different as heaven and earth.

-

Something that took the form of her mother was desperately trying to say something to her.

Stop doing that. Please stop.

It felt like something was trying really hard to stop her.

However, that voice didnt get through.

Almost as if in her current state, that existences voice didnt reach her.

And then, even that figure quickly disappeared.

Eleanor gazed at the vanishing figure with a dazed expression.

What am I doing?

However, even in a state where her head was in the clouds and she could barely muster such a thought

A wicked voice that seemed to slither like a snake could be heard all too clearly.

-Why dont you just do it?

Do what?

-Dont you want to make that man yours forever?

-You dont want to feel hurt anymore, right?

But still

Dowd was Dowd.

-If you dont want to kill him, you can just turn him into your puppet, you know?

Then, she remembered.

She had heard this voice before, back when she tried to give Dowd a ring for the first time.

However, this time.

It was much harder to resist than at that time.

Almost as if, compared to before, it had taken over more parts of her.

I dont want to.

She barely managed to conjure up such a thought as she shook her head.

No matter how angry he made her. No matter how much he hurt her.

Dowd was still Dowd.

Kill him? Make him a puppet?

She didnt wish to harm that man like how the voice was telling her to.

-I said do it.

-Hurry.

However, such a voice burrowed into her dazed consciousness.

It was gradually increasing in volume, to the point that her ears were ringing.

However, as that voice continuously got louder and louder and louder like that.

Right when she thought that she couldnt endure it any longer

It suddenly disappeared.

She couldnt understand the situation.

Since she did not know the reason for its disappearance, all she could do was blink her eyes blankly.

She examined the surroundings with the sliver of reason that had returned to her. In order to understand even a little of what was going on, she strained her dazed eyes with all her strength.

And thanks to her focusing her consciousness on her sight

Eleanor could see Dowds face right in front of her.

Not only that, she could also feel the touch of his lips enveloping hers.

She had heard Beatrix fiercely argue many times that a first kiss tasted like cherries. But, instead of that, she could only feel a prickly sensation and the stale taste of dust.

Then again, it was laughable to compare her first kiss to cherries or whatever, especially when her surroundings were literally crumbling to pieces. After all, there was no doubt that this man didnt prepare anything special before he pressed his lips against hers.

Wait, he pressed his lips against hers?

Right.

That.

It was that.

A kiss.

Only then was she clearly aware of her surroundings.

In this monochrome world, akin to a faded photograph

Only she and Dowd could move properly. As if in this stopped world, only she and him existed.

Moreover, in a state where their lips were pressed together.

Her eyes widened even further than before.

A kiss?

A kiss? Seriously?

This man, to her?

Really?

Why? Why in the world?

Wasnt he fooling around with another woman just moments ago?

W-Wa

Her expression broke. Her heart dropped. The heating running up her entire body completely drained her strength.

At that moment, his lips were separated from hers.

This was the first time she had a clear look at Dowds face.

You finally woke up.

At the sound of his voice, Eleanors face became flushed to the point of bursting.

Maybe it was because of his kiss, but he looked dozens of times cooler than usual.

Of course, the normal her couldnt see anyone else except for this man, but at this moment, that fact was even more pronounced than usual.

She was getting short of breath. Before she knew it, various thoughts sequentially came to mind.

What did she eat today?

Did she brush her teeth properly?

Maybe he felt unpleasant? She desperately hoped that wasnt the case.

If it was, next time, he may

Wait.

Next time?

Wait, no. Now was not the time to think about such things just because that one action put her in a trance.

Get a hold of yourself, Eleanor. There are things you have to settle first.

First, she had to address this mans infidelity-

Alright, Ill do it again.

What? Wait, no what

When she heard Dowds voice, she instinctively tried to distance herself by leaning back, but it seemed that he had noticed her actions since that mans arms were wrapped tightly around her waist.

Considering the difference in their abilities, she could probably easily shake him away.

However, she couldnt. She couldnt resist at all.

As soon as she felt this mans desire for her, all she could do was redden her entire face and stiffen up.

And at that moment

The second shock came.

Once again, Dowds lips were pressed against hers.

Taking it a step further, this time, even his tongue entered her mouth.

AhOohD-DowdAh, ahW-Wait

She tried to say something, anything, but it was all in vain.

The inside of her mouth was practically violated. Dowds probing tongue immediately intertwined with her own.

It sloshed around, yanking and burning, sticky and thick.

She felt distressed.

This was her first kiss. So why was this man so skilled?

As their saliva entwined, all the thoughts Eleanor had built up in her scrambled mind until now completely collapsed.

Argue? Settle the score? Address his actions? Putting all that aside

I love it.

This sensation.

This devotion.

The warmth that this man was filling her with.

It swept away all the gloomy emotions that were eating at her just a moment ago.

Her entire body was filled with warmth.

In the end

Before doing anything

Eleanor wrapped her arms around Dowds waist without even being aware of it herself.

It definitely expressed that she did not intend to argue about anything.

For now, those things dont matter.

It really was as such.

Hahh-

As I took my mouth away, a long strand of saliva dangled.

Was this how it was done?

I wasnt sure if I was doing it right since it was my first time!

[You were doing pretty well. Are you sure you werent a gigolo in your first life?]

What do you think?

[Then you must have been born with the talent of seduction. Whenever you do something related to that, you seem to do well. As expected, even among trash, are the pros different?]

You. Shut up for a moment.

With that thought in mind, several messages appeared before my eyes.

System Message

[ Corruption Value of target Eleanor has plummeted by more than 250% in a short period of time! ]

[ Berserk state is released! ]

[ Tremendous achievement! You have been granted a new Title! ]

System Message

[ Title System is added! ]

[ Equipping Titles can provide additional proficiency in non-combat actions! ]

[ Currently, the Title granted to you is Playboy! ]

[ When you flirt with women, you can perform more skillful, versatile, and proficient techniques than before! ]

Was this little shit picking a fight with me right now?

Why the fuck was the Title, Playboy? And, what in the? Why were all the effects of this such bullshit?

No, wait. For now, I should worry about this later.

Eleanor, are you

Ah, Haah, Hahhh-

Just a glance at her was enough to tell me she was far from okay, so I shut my mouth.

She was panting heavily, completely red from her neck to the tip of her ears.

Wait a moment. Ill support you.

With that, I tried to approach her, but

Can youNot come closer?

Eleanor stopped me while gasping.

If you come closer right now, it will be dangerous in many ways.

At her words, my expression stiffened once again.

When she said it was dangerous, it could be interpreted in various ways.

Even though she was feeling better at this moment, this was right after she had already gone berserk once. This meant that it was more than probable enough that there were aftereffects.

In fact, the Grey Devils aura had not completely dissipated yet. After all, the world was still frozen.

Moreover, Eleanors state of suspicion was still active.

As such, what I needed to do from now on was clear.

I composed myself and opened my mouth to speak to Eleanor again.

After all, I needed to think of something that would further ease her mood.

System Message

[ Effect of Title: Playboy is displayed! ]

[ Revisions are attached to your actions! ]

Eleanor.

What is it?

Recently, just hearing your voice makes my heart flutter. If I dont see you for a few hours, I want to see you again. It makes me want to thank God everyday before I sleep for blessing me with such a fiance.

Eleanors jaw dropped.

And I, who had spat out such words, was horrified as well.

No. Wait a fucking minute. Halt. Hold. Chotto Matte.

I didnt intend to say anything like this.

It was as if my mouth moved on its own, beyond my control.

Stop it. Dont fuck with me.

SHIT, DONT FUCK WITH ME!

This was undoubtedly because of that Title bullshit. I had to immediately deactiva

System Message

[ Requested the deactivation of Title: Playboy. ]

[ It is the only Title. Deactivating is impossible! ]

MOTHERFUCKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I-I see. You were having such thoughts?

While I silently screamed inside, Eleanor avoided my gaze and fidgeted.

At the very least, it was fortunate that she didnt seem as angry as before, but

My following actions due to the influence of the Title couldnt be seen as fortunate at all.

Eleanor.

What is it this time?

I steadily approached Eleanor, whose face was still burning red, and lowered my head.

I embraced her into my chest before pressing my lips on her forehead.

I love you.

Even though I couldnt quite see her in this position, there was no doubt that Eleanor had stiffened with only her mouth moving, as it opened and closed.

After all, she would find it ridiculous.

And I felt the same way.

Stop it.

Please stop it, Title or whatever you are.

If this continues, Im going to die of embarrassment!

However, even such screams were in vain.

My body, which was already far beyond my control, pressed my lips against Eleanors forehead once again and whispered in her ear.

I love you.

Faint whimpers and moans resonated against my chest. I could clearly feel Eleanors body trembling.

Although I couldnt see her face well because it was burrowed into my body, judging by how her ears were red to the very tip, I could tell what state she was in without even needing to see her with my own two eyes.

[Wow, whOA, WOAH! AHAHAHAHAHAHA! AHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAAAH-! I-I cant b-breat-! Heuk, I-Im going to die! STOP! PLEASE!]

What the fuck was this dead person saying? Bro, you already died once.

No, rather than that, I also really wanted it to stop, okay? Fucking hell.

Soon after, I tried to lower my head once again to press my lips against her, but Eleanor extended her arms and stopped me.

D-Dont

No.

Although her words said not to do it, her arms didnt have any strength in it as I gently pulled it down. This was even despite the fact that Eleanor could have easily pushed me away if she so wished.

I pressed my lips against her again and whispered.

S-Stop Dowd People around us are watching. I said, theyre watching

Time had stopped, so no one should be watching us, but Eleanor seemed to be embarrassed that there were people around since she kept mumbling.

However

Just let them watch.

My fucking piece of shit mouth responded as such to Eleanors desperate voice before lowering my head.

Once again, I pressed my lips against her and whispered.

I love you.

Ah, t-this

Once again, my lips

S-Stop Stop!

Are you not angry anymore?

Im not! I said Im not!

At the same time as Eleanor said this while nearly welling up in tears

A window appeared before my eyes.

System Message

[ Target Eleanors state of suspicion has been released! ]

[ The fluctuation of the Corruption Value has been properly corrected! ]

Yeah, okay. Great.

I managed to pull it off.

At the price of my dignity.

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