Chapter 41: Kissing Lessons: A Sweet Torment

(This chapter is best enjoyed with Matt Maeson’s “Put It On Me” as background music—it’s a very sexy song~)

“Ah, Astreia, what… what happened to you?”

Wendy felt a chill run through him.

The person before him was so familiar, yet so utterly changed.

Her figure and face were still that Royal Princess from his memories, but the aura she exuded was worlds apart.

“Oh? Are you afraid of me?”

Her voice was husky, seductive, and lazy.

“Astreia… are you… alright?”

Wendy instinctively tried to back away, only to realize his body wouldn’t respond, leaving him completely immobile.

But the Witch only smiled, drawing closer with every step.

Then, a hand—gentle yet domineering—wrapped around his waist, pulling him into a scalding, soft embrace.

A rich, intoxicating fragrance instantly enveloped Wendy.

Gone was the fresh daisy scent of grass from his memories; now it was a fallen, decadent aroma that could drown a soul.

Wendy looked up at the Witch, his gaze drifting from those bewitching violet eyes, down the elegant nose, and finally locking onto her moist, full, crimson lips.

His heartbeat spun out of control.

“Gulp!”

Wendy swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

As if possessed, he found himself slowly leaning closer.

Yet, just as his reason was about to be devoured by desire, a slender forefinger gently pressed against his lips, blocking all thought.

Astreia smirked, shaking her finger playfully, then used that same hand to cradle his cheek, her fingertips tracing up along his jawline, finally threading through his hair and pressing softly at the back of his head.

“Don’t rush~”

A warm, moist sensation brushed his lips.

But in an instant, it was gone.

In the air, a sultry tension began to brew.

Wendy felt as if a cat had scratched at his heart—itchy, stifling, with a nameless heat he had nowhere to vent.

Why… did she stop?

“Do you like it? My Prince~”

Seeing the dazed, misty look in Wendy’s eyes and his ragged breathing, the Witch smiled even more smugly.

“Astreia… don’t, don’t go too far!”

The Prince’s breathing was completely thrown into chaos.

He realized that the Princess, after her fall, had become frighteningly skilled; she was no longer that innocent girl, but a true Witch who reveled in toying with hearts!

But before he could finish, Astreia suddenly pulled him tighter, showering him with hot, soft kisses like raindrops.

Once, twice, three times…

Each kiss was a fleeting brush, but they came endlessly, interrupting his every attempt to steady his breath.

His emotions were ignited again and again, his reason crumbling away, leaving him gasping for air.

Wendy felt as if his heart was about to explode, even hearing a pounding drumbeat in his ears.

At first, he thought it was his own heartbeat.

But soon he realized—the rhythm was different from his own.

Faster, deeper, wilder!

It was Astreia’s heartbeat!

Her heart was beating even faster than his!

This discovery gave Wendy a sliver of hope for a counterattack, even as he teetered on the brink of surrender.

Just then, the Witch ended her sweet torment, her husky voice teasing in his ear: “So I’m going too far—what can you do about it?”

“Huff… huff…”

Wendy gasped for air, subconsciously licking the lingering fragrance from his lips.

His stubborn nature flared up, and mustering his last bit of strength, he retorted, “Hmph! Who knows whose heartbeat is so loud, it’s making my ears ring.”

A test.

He wanted to see if the Witch before him still possessed… Astreia’s shyness.

“Tch!”

Sure enough, the bewitching beauty’s face instantly darkened, a flash of annoyance in her violet eyes as she abruptly grabbed the back of his head.

“Wait—mmph!”

All of Wendy’s words were swallowed by her rough, forceful kiss.

This time, it was no longer a tentative brush, but a wild, stormy invasion.

Though she still broke contact quickly, each kiss lasted longer and delved deeper than the last.

Wendy felt his heartbeat being forced to match hers, racing as if on fast-forward.

In the rainy night, only two frenzied heartbeats and those sultry, entangled sounds remained.

At first, Wendy still tried to resist.

But soon, the suffocating sensation and an unfamiliar, overwhelming pleasure crashed over him, his body softening uncontrollably, completely lost in her embrace.

In the end, he gave up all resistance, his hands moving of their own accord to wrap around Astreia’s neck, surrendering to her every demand.

Sensing the Prince’s submission, the Witch’s actions finally softened, rewarding him with a long, lingering kiss.

Her left arm tightened around him, as if she wanted to fuse Wendy into her very bones.

Her right hand slid slowly from his hair, down the back of his neck, brushing his flushed earlobe, and finally gently cupping his face.

The whole process was as careful as unwrapping a gift, tinged with irrepressible excitement.

The barely-there touch of her fingertips gave Wendy an inexplicable sense of security and relaxation, making him unconsciously lean in, his whole being about to melt away.

At last, their lips parted.

Her Highness gazed at the dazed, adorable look in the Prince’s eyes, and planted a scorching kiss on his smooth forehead.

Then she whispered with a laugh, “Now, tell me—which heartbeat is louder?”

“Thump thump… thump thump…”

Wendy could clearly hear his own heartbeat thundering in his chest, making it tingle with numbness.

Whatever shame he had left made him turn his head away in embarrassment, refusing to answer.

But the Witch pressed closer, burying her face in his neck, her warm breath caressing him as she made an irresistible offer.

“Do you want more?”

Wendy’s heart trembled.

“If you want it, beg me.”

Her voice dripped with enchantment, each word a slow, seductive whisper.

“Say: I~ want~ more~”

Humiliation and a stronger, more urgent desire surged up together.

Wendy opened his mouth, but pride wedged those words in his throat like branding irons—no matter what, he couldn’t say them.

Yet inside, a fierce battle raged.

Anyway, Astreia had already fallen, so getting a little more intimate shouldn’t… be a problem, right?

But judging by her current state, she clearly still retained her self-awareness, not utterly lost to desire like in the game…

If they kept going so recklessly, would it deepen her corruption?

Maybe… he should ask that strange Priest?

With that thought, Wendy forcefully suppressed the heat surging inside him, using the last of his strength to gently push Astreia away: “Wait, hold on a second… Where’s that Priestess? Why don’t I see her?”

The moment he spoke.

The air turned icy cold.

“Killed her.”

Two words, tossed out as casually as if she’d just said, “I stepped on an ant.”

“K-killed her?!”

Wendy’s heart skipped a beat.

It’s over!

Completely over!

He wasn’t afraid that Astreia had killed someone—he was terrified that she’d killed a powerful figure whose background was a mystery!

That White-robed Priestess knew the secret of the Holy Sword Curse and was connected to the Church—there was no way she was just some ordinary character.

If someone like her didn’t have an organization, a sect, or some old monster backing her up, Wendy would eat a barrel of explosives right then and there!

Beat the small fry, the big boss appears—that’s an RPG tradition!

Yet this selfish panic, in the eyes of the obsessive Witch, became the cruelest betrayal.

So… he was worried about that woman.

That “I do” really was sincere.

He actually… wanted to elope with her!

All her tenderness vanished in an instant.

Those violet eyes, just moments ago brimming with desire, now blazed with twin flames of jealousy.

The Witch grabbed Wendy by the throat with one hand, lifting him like a chick.

All her pent-up insecurity, anger, and fear exploded at once, turning into a violent, savage roar:

“So, I killed her…”

“Are you, heartbroken?”

“Is that it!!!”