CHAPTER 181: BACK TO THE ACADEMY (18+)

"Never tried to be," Jae shot back, his tone light but heavy with hunger. He knelt between her thighs again, pulling her toward him until her legs draped over his, her core slick and open against the head of his erection.

He didn’t push in yet, instead rubbing himself along her folds, slow and deliberate, letting her feel his heat, his hardness. She moaned softly, her hands reaching for his chest, fingers splaying across his skin, tracing the lines of muscle there.

"Jae," she said, her voice a mix of question and command, her hips tilting up to meet him. He leaned down, kissing her hard, messy, all teeth and tongue, a clash of want, before guiding himself to her entrance.

He pressed in slowly, just the tip at first, stretching her gently. Her breath hitched, her nails digging into his shoulders, leaving faint crescent marks. "More," she whispered, her voice trembling with need.

He thrust forward, filling her completely in one smooth, deep stroke. Elise cried out, her legs wrapping around his waist, pulling him tighter, and Jae groaned, the sound low and guttural as her heat enveloped him.

"So tight," he rasped, holding still for a moment to let her adjust, his hands gripping her hips hard enough to leave faint marks of his own.

Then he moved, pulling back slowly before slamming back in, setting a rhythm, deep, steady thrusts that rocked the cot beneath them, its creaks loud in the small room.

Elise’s moans matched his pace, rising with each drive of his erection, her core clenching around him, wet and hot.

He shifted, angling his hips to hit that spot inside her again, and her eyes flew open, a sharp "Oh!" bursting from her lips.

His hand found her breast again, teasing her nipple as he thrust harder, faster, his erection plunging into her with a slick, relentless force.

Her legs tightened around him, her hips meeting his thrusts, grinding against him, chasing another peak. "Jae, yes," she gasped, her voice breaking, her nails raking down his back, leaving trails of heat.

He felt her tighten again, her core pulsing around him, and he growled, his thrusts growing erratic as her second climax hit.

She screamed his name, her body shaking, her wetness soaking him, and it pushed him over the edge.

He pulled out quickly, his erection throbbing as he spilled across her thighs, his hips jerking as he groaned, his breath ragged against her neck.

The system chimed softly.

1 lustful session, +20xp

They stayed like that, tangled and panting, the air thick with sweat and sex. Jae kissed her jaw, soft now, and Elise laughed, breathless, sated. "You’re too much," she murmured, echoing his earlier teasing, her hands sliding lazily over his back.

xxxx

The academy gates stood tall, scorched in places where shadows had once licked at their edges. Their heavy iron frames had been reforged years ago, etched with protective wards meant to hold against intrusion, yet they bore scars now.

Charred marks streaked across the metal like old wounds, and faint cracks spidered along the stone pillars that held them upright. The air still smelled faintly of ash, as though the courtyard could not forget what had happened within it.

Most of the debris had been cleared, but small fragments of shattered wards glimmered on the ground like dead stars.

Jae walked through steadily, his steps light despite the weight that memory left in his muscles. His uniform was clean and pressed, every fold sharp, not a trace of injury to suggest the fight he had survived.

To anyone watching, he looked untouched, composed, whole, as though the battle that had broken him into pieces had left no mark at all.

It hadn’t been that long since he had lain broken in the infirmary, too weak to even sit up. Days, at most.

His friends had expected a long recovery, weeks of slow healing, months of care before he could so much as stand without pain. Yet here he was, walking through the gates like nothing had ever happened.

Whispers rose as he entered the courtyard, small at first, then swelling as more students noticed him.

"That’s him."

"Jae, the one who fought the Shadow General."

"They say he burned it alive."

"No, no, he absorbed it. Took the monster’s essence into himself."

"Look at him, there’s not even a scar."

The voices twisted and grew with every retelling, each student adding their own spin to the story.

Some looked at him with awe, others with unease. None approached. They clustered in groups, their gazes trailing after him as though he were both legend and danger at once.

Jae kept his head lowered, letting their voices wash over him. Attention wasn’t what he wanted. It never had been.

He had chased strength, yes, strength mattered. It was what kept him alive, what allowed him to protect the people around him.

But fame? Whispers? The way eyes clung to him now as if measuring whether he was savior or threat? That came unasked, and he had no patience for it.

"Jae!"

The call snapped through the murmurs, cutting the tension like a thrown blade.

Elise darted across the courtyard, her dark hair loose, her steps quick but controlled, as if even her urgency carried a certain grace.

Tirel followed a pace behind with a wide grin, waving with the kind of bold confidence that turned heads as she passed.

Byun came slower, deliberate, his posture steady, shadows flickering faintly at his hands before he stilled them.

Yuna was last, moving with her usual poise, her spine straight, her expression carefully composed, though her relief was plain in the softening of her eyes.

Elise reached him first. She caught his wrist without hesitation, turning it slightly in her grasp as though checking for wounds she couldn’t see.

Her gaze swept up to his face, sharp and searching, her lips pressed thin. "You’re... fine?" she asked, almost accusing. "How are you even completely healed already?"