CHAPTER 243: HUNGER

The moon was shining brightly, illuminating the world with its gentle, beautiful radiance. The water-stained grass glistened under that soft light, each blade shimmering like tiny crystals. The clear lake reflected the moon’s glow perfectly, doubling its charm and creating a scene that felt both cozy and calming to the eyes.

On such a night, at the highest clock tower in the academy, on its rooftop, two figures suddenly appeared. One was a boy with long white hair and clear blue eyes, his expression carrying a faint smile, touched with a sense of longing.

He was dressed in a grey tunic and black pants, the breeze lightly brushing his hair. The other was a girl of the same age, with silver hair and deep crimson eyes, her presence delicate yet captivating. She wore a long, flowing blue dress that swayed gently in the night air.

They sat together at the edge of the rooftop, their legs dangling above the vast city lights below.

"So, how was the day?" Elysia asked softly, her eyes locking onto Ash’s. There was a hidden hunger in her gaze, carefully veiled beneath an innocent expression.

"Same old, trained all day," Ash replied, his voice casual as his eyes wandered over the sprawling Nexus City beneath them. Yet he could feel that burning gaze beside him.

He knew what it meant, and he wanted to respond to it, but hesitation held him back. Why? Even Ash could not clearly explain.

Perhaps it was because Elysia’s body was different from Nancy’s, though the same was true for him. Or maybe he still thought of them as children. Or perhaps it was nothing more than pure shyness and embarrassment. Whatever the reason, it remained elusive, and he let it be.

"And you?" he asked in return, turning his head slightly toward her.

"Same old," Elysia answered with a small smile before gently leaning her head against his body. The sudden closeness made Ash instinctively wrap an arm around her, holding her near. But then...

...Ah!! Damn... it’s so soft...

A sudden heat rushed through him. Something that should not have been touching him was touching him, and in that instant, his body froze, his mind looping like a broken record.

Elysia noticed the stiffness in his body, and a mischievous smile formed on her lips. She shifted even closer, letting the warmth and softness seep deeper into him.

With sheer willpower, Ash forced his thoughts away from the dangerous territory, trying to focus on the feel of her shoulder beneath his hand instead. But that proved to be a mistake.

Because the moment his attention shifted, he became far more aware of just how small and soft she truly was. Her shoulder, her frame, every delicate part of her felt as if he were holding something almost unreal, like the smooth, yielding texture of a slime, yet far warmer... far more alive.

He could not find the right words to describe it, but every part of him wanted to hold her like this forever—feeling her heat, her heartbeat against him, breathing in her sweet scent until he was completely intoxicated.

Is she using some sort of bewitching item...? Or is it just the hormones of a young body..?

Whatever it was, his thoughts tangled into a mess of emotions—happiness, bliss, embarrassment, shame, and countless others he could not name.

Meanwhile, Elysia felt everything as well. She could hear the rhythm of Ash’s heartbeat, smell his faintly intoxicating scent, notice the subtle way his body tensed and shifted. Every little reaction of his only made her composure slip further.

She wanted to break the distance between them, to step beyond the boundaries they had never crossed before...

No, no, what strange things am I thinking...

Her face grew hot, her cheeks burning crimson under the moonlight.

They stayed like that, neither speaking, simply enjoying each other’s touch and company, feeling the warmth of the other seep into their skin and the steady thump of each other’s heartbeat.

It was hard for Elysia to calm down. It was rare for both her personalities to urge her toward the same thing, to leap toward Ash without hesitation, yet she was holding herself back with an inhuman will. Taking a deep breath that steadied the rush inside her chest, she finally spoke.

"So Ash...will you tell me what it is that’s bothering you? You know...you can tell me. Even if I might not be able to help, I can still be here for you, I can listen to you, and there is no need to keep burying certain things inside."

Her voice was gentle but carried a firmness, the kind that left no room for retreat.

"If you let them out, you will feel free. If you bury them, they will become like stagnant water, something that will spill over one day or another. The dam will break someday if you do not let your feelings out."

Elysia’s words came out calm, almost carrying an allure that could make another person’s heart steady, as though her voice itself was urging him to release the weight he carried.

Ash’s expression faltered for a moment before returning to its usual calm. A silence stretched between them, heavy yet strangely comforting.

"I.."

Ash opened his mouth to speak, but his voice faltered. Unconsciously, he clutched Elysia’s shoulder, his grip faint yet filled with hesitation. This made her look toward him, her eyes searching his face. Seeing him struggle, she slowly pushed herself away from him, making him look at her in a faint daze.

And then she pulled him closer once again and...

...rested his head on her lap.

His face was tilted upward while she gazed downward, their eyes meeting in a quiet exchange that spoke more than words.

"Speak now. There is no need to feel insecure, no need to let fear or doubt hold you back. Whatever you are feeling, I am here for you..."

Her way of speaking, combined with her beautiful face now filled with tension and a hint of anger, was a sight to behold. Ash could not help but let out a small chuckle.

This time it was Elysia who was left confused, her brows knitting slightly, but Ash continued.

"I don’t know. Although I don’t care about anyone else, whether they live or die, you are right...there was a blast in the Dwarven Continent..."

Ash began to speak, and this time he did not stop.

He let out everything he had been holding back. He spoke of how he died, the pain that lingered even now, and the nightmares that still clawed their way into his mind. He told her how, on some nights, he exhausted his body until it could not move, simply so he could sleep without dreams.

He told her how he blamed himself for the deaths of millions. Even though he claimed he was selfish and did not care for others, there was still a weight pressing on him. Maybe...if he had carried out his investigation properly, if he had not treated things so lightly, maybe he could have saved them.

Maybe...if he had searched the Dragon’s Library more thoroughly, he might have found the book on Death faster.

Maybe...the outcome would have been different.

His actions had brought both good and bad results, yet he had been in control of neither. It felt as if unseen strings were guiding his every move, pushing him along paths he had not chosen. Most of the time, his luck shielded him, and even in moments of misfortune, fortune still found him...but that did not make the burden any lighter.

Hearing everything Ash had said, Elysia kept her eyes closed, her face holding a neutral expression, yet beneath it, a storm was rising. Anger. Unbearable anger.

It surged within her like a tide threatening to sweep her away. She wanted nothing more than to strike out, to annihilate every dwarf responsible, to crush the Hollow Mother with her own hands. Yet she did not possess that kind of power—not yet.

What made her blood boil even more was knowing the depth of Ash’s suffering. He had endured unimaginable pain, dying over and over, and here he was, calmly recounting only two of those experiences. She had always known he could not truly die, as he had told her personally, but she had never grasped the full scale of his ordeal.

She did not care how he had gained his power, but she could not bear that it had come at such a cost to him.

This is only two times. What about before? How many times had he gone through this? How many times had he died?

Her body shuddered at the thought, tears spilling uncontrollably from her eyes. Her heart felt as if it were being squeezed in a vise, each beat stabbing painfully at her chest.

How many times did Ash die just to save me? I made him go through all of that...

Her gaze fell upon his face, serene and peaceful, lying on her lap as if he were merely resting, eyes closed, unaware of the storm inside her.

She wanted to contain it, to wait, to save this feeling for later...

But she could not.

With a sudden motion, she lunged forward, lifting his head and pressing her lips onto his.

Ash’s eyes shot wide open, startled, but the sight of tear-filled Elysia pressing herself against him, devouring him with desperate hunger, made his heart hammer violently in his chest.

Holding her head and back, he pulled her even closer, their bodies intertwining as they pressed together. Both of them felt the softness, the warmth, the pulse of life in their kiss, the steady heartbeat, the subtle scent that made the moment unbearably intimate and alive.

Each second stretched and lingered, every touch and movement carrying a depth neither of them had expected, leaving them both trembling with the intensity of their emotions, unable to pull away even if they wanted to.

***