Miss Klein collapsed on the corridor floor.
Through the empathic link, the extreme comfort of Wendy being pampered surged through her limbs.
Shame, resentment, and uncontrollable numbness savaged her nerves.
She felt as if she hadn’t just lost a man, but that her dignity and body had both been trampled underfoot by that woman named Xi Ya.
Spirit and body, double defeat.
A strong dizziness hit her; she tried to struggle and get up, but the world began to spin, and she ultimately fell into an endless darkness…
***
Inside the reading room, Xi Ya’s fingers, resting on Wendy’s head, paused slightly.
The chaotic and sharp emotional fluctuation from outside the door abruptly disappeared.
She let out an extremely soft laugh, almost inaudible.
Her purple beautiful eyes flickered with a playful glint.
She slowly withdrew her hand, then gently pressed it onto Wendy’s temples, her fingertips carrying a warm, moist touch and rubbing in a soothing rhythm.
“Alright, let’s stop here for today. You’re too tired.”
Wendy was awakened from the extreme sense of creative achievement.
The long period of intense focus left him feeling exhausted.
His body felt sticky from sitting too long, and his brain was hot from all the information he had been fed.
He also enjoyed Xi Ya’s perfectly timed massage.
His body instinctively leaned back, and he looked up at the knowledgeable librarian, his eyes revealing drowsiness and dependence.
“Mm…” he answered in a low voice, his tone somewhat unclear.
“Body sticky, brain hot… wanna… cool down.”
The words came out a bit fuzzy, carrying a subtle hint of coaxing, as if implying something, or just a simple complaint.
The gentle smile on Xi Ya’s face deepened—a knowing smile.
But she didn’t call attention to Wendy’s implication.
“Alright, I understand.”
Her soft pink hair brushed past Wendy’s cheek, leaving a faint lavender scent.
Xi Ya didn’t walk toward the door but instead headed deeper into the reading room, toward the massive bookshelves.
“Follow me.”
Wendy didn’t understand, but his body moved before his mind, and he stood up to follow.
Xi Ya stopped in front of a row of heavy classical bookshelves.
She reached out with her slender fingers and gently pressed on an inconspicuous carving.
A soft clicking sound came from the mechanism, and the heavy shelf slid slowly to one side, revealing an antique wooden door behind it.
Wendy’s eyes widened slightly.
He had never imagined that this reading room, where he had spent so much time, held such a secret.
Xi Ya pushed open the door, and a wave of warm, moist air rushed out.
Behind the door was a luxurious, elegantly decorated washroom.
A large white porcelain bath was already filled with steaming water.
“This was specially prepared for visiting royalty when the academy was first built, but it was later abandoned,” Xi Ya said as she turned around.
The dim light outlined her soft facial profile.
“Now, I’m probably the only one in the whole academy who knows about it.”
Her tone was calm, but it made Wendy’s heartbeat pause.
This feeling of sharing a secret made him feel that he was “special.”
“Warm water can relieve fatigue and also clear your mind.”
“Take off your clothes and get in.”
Wendy was stunned.
Take off his clothes?
In front of her?
Astreia and Laxana’s faces uncontrollably flashed through his mind.
One was dominant and overbearing, the other spoiled and willful, but both had tear-streaked faces.
A sharp pang of guilt stabbed into his heart, making Wendy instinctively want to step back.
But at that moment, he happened to lock eyes with Xi Ya.
The color of her purple eyes seemed to deepen.
A hazy, bright red flickered at the corner of his vision for an instant, so fast it seemed like an illusion.
That guilt that had just risen was forcibly suppressed by an invisible hand, quickly fading.
Instead, it turned into an indescribable peace and longing.
He longed for the warm water, and he also longed for the peace this woman brought.
Wendy found himself smiling uncontrollably.
Then, under Xi Ya’s quiet gaze, he raised his hand and unbuttoned his shirt, one button at a time.
The warm water instantly enveloped his whole body.
Wendy let out a long sigh of relief and sank completely into the bath.
All his pores seemed to open at that moment, greedily absorbing the warmth that seeped into his bones.
Xi Ya didn’t come in.
Instead, she brought a carved wooden chair and sat quietly by the pool.
She rolled up her wide sleeves, revealing an arm as smooth as cream, then leaned down and reached her hand into the water, finding Wendy’s tense shoulder.
Her fingertips carried a strange magic.
When she pressed on Wendy’s stiff neck and shoulder muscles, he could feel a faint but extremely comfortable warmth flowing from her fingertips into his skin, spreading through his body along his meridians.
All the fatigue and soreness quickly melted away under her kneading hands.
“How… do you do that?” Wendy asked with his eyes closed, in awe.
“Just a little relaxation magic,” Xi Ya answered lightly, putting her other hand into the water and slowly massaging along his back.
Her movements were slow, filled with a reverent concentration.
Time seemed to flow gently in this warmth…
Suddenly!
A soft kiss landed on Wendy’s earlobe.
Then on his neck.
Then on his shoulder.
They were hot but without any lust—more like a mark, a comfort.
Each kiss was as light as a feather, yet it ignited a wildfire inside Wendy’s body.
His breathing grew heavy.
His body was being reshaped.
All his edges and resistance gradually dissolved in this ultimate gentleness.
The last trace of guilt toward Astreia and Laxana in his heart completely vanished in the steam and touch.
Wendy slowly opened his eyes, lifted his head, and looked up at Xi Ya by the pool.
“Senior…” His voice was hoarse.
“I want to learn something else.”
He had surrendered completely.
A satisfied curve finally appeared on Xi Ya’s face.
She withdrew her hand from the water and gently touched Wendy’s nape.
An irresistible force came, and his head was softly pressed down to rest on her lap.
Through the layer of moist, soft fabric, he pressed against her warmth, his nose filled with the lavender fragrance that was stronger and more aggressive than before.
Xi Ya again placed her hand on the top of his head.
A faint dim-purple magical glow lit up at her fingertips, and she combed through his spirit in an even gentler, more intimate way.
“Ah…” Wendy let out a satisfied sigh.
He felt that his body, his mind, his soul…
At this moment…
Had completely melted.