MTM 150

Splash.

“Sleepy, are you still sleepy? It feels like you’ve been napping all day today…”

Harto, who had returned alone, quickly finished cleaning the room, a task he hadn’t finished that morning, and then prepared to bathe Sleepy with the elementals. He’d heard that most rabbits dislike water, but Sleepy seemed to be an exception.

Once Mir had filled the tub with clear, clean water and Spi had warmed it to a comfortable temperature, Sleepy closed his eyes. The sight of him curling up in the steaming water looked so peaceful that even Harto felt himself relaxing.

Sleepy, whose ears had been perked up but now drooped as he soaked in the warm water, bore a resemblance to Harto in his monster form.

‘Hmm, now that I look at him, as Zed said, we really do look alike….’

He certainly acknowledged the resemblance in appearance. But their personalities were different. Haruto believed he was nothing like a gentle, docile rabbit.

“Krrng!”

Just then, Krom let out a loud sound. He stood in front of Spi, acting as a guard, afraid that Sleepy might get too close to Spi and burn his whiskers like before. But because the Spi’s flames had been touching him for so long, Krom’s face turned bright red from the heat.

“Whoa, Krom, are you alright?”

“Krrg!”

In response to Harto’s concern, Krom let out a growl, the meaning of which was he was fine. But perhaps he was struggling too, as he slipped over to Mir’s side to cool off. A puff of white steam rose from Krom’s head with a sizzling sound. Spi and Mir giggled at the sight.

Twitch, twitch. Just then, Sleepy’s nose twitched slightly as he lay with his eyes closed.

“He must be having sweet dreams.”

Harto smiled gently at Sleepy. As he gently stroked Sleepy’s softly damp back, the turmoil in his own heart gradually subsided.

He reflected on what had happened just a few hours earlier beneath the bridge.

‘Harto, why are you always so vulnerable?’

All traces of his usual warmth were gone; replaced by a fragile expression. He still couldn’t forget the look in Zed’s eyes when he’d spotted the bruise on Harto’s wrist. That look wasn’t simple jealousy; it was closer to the fear of losing something precious.

‘I… I feel so suffocated that I want to crush every hand that touches your body. Why do you act like nothing’s wrong… and keep driving me crazy like this?’

It was a heart-wrenching thing to say, but to Harto, it sounded like a desperate confession of love.

The jealousy and anxiety swirling within Zed’s golden eyes. The fact that Zed, who had always seemed so perfect, was actually scared like a child that he might be taken away from him shook Harto to the core. That tremor wasn’t fear. It was a painful yet sweet sensation, as if the center of his chest were being gently pierced by warmth.

‘Zed loves me this much… no, much more than I ever imagined.’

He actually felt even closer to Zed. Because he knew that Zed’s possessiveness, his self-reproach, and even his rough touch all stemmed from longing.

In his past life, and in this one as well, he had never experienced true, unconditional love. He had always assumed that such a thing was simply not meant for him. But after meeting Zed, everything changed. Even if, as in the original novel, he was destined to eventually kill him, he was no longer as afraid as he once was.

‘I’m sure… I can change things. I believe in Zed.’

A burning determination to willingly face any trial that came his way for the sake of the person who cared for him so much welled up from deep within his heart. His affection for Zed had already grown so immense that he himself could no longer contain it.

Harto waited for Zed, cherishing the overwhelming emotion filling his heart. His only thought was that when Zed returned, he wanted to give him a tight hug this time.

***

Clunk!

The heavy sound of the door startled Harto awake from his sleep. He had planned to stay wide awake until Zed returned, but he had fallen asleep.

Harto rubbed his stiff neck and looked around the dark room. His vision was blurry, but he could immediately tell who the shadow standing by the door was.

“Zed…?”

Harto rubbed his eyes and sat up in his chair. Zed had indeed returned, but in the [stolen content]darkness, with the candle nearly burned out, he couldn’t make out his expression. Still half-asleep, Harto playfully teased him without a second thought.

“What’s wrong, Zed? Why are you so late? Is it fine to make a lover you cherish so much wait defenselessly?”

He hoped Zed would smile as usual and stroke his head.

But Zed didn’t answer. He simply stared at him without moving. A suffocating silence settled in the room.

“Zed…? Did something happen…?”

Just as Harto began to rise from his seat, Zed stepped forward and grabbed his wrist.

“…You said it was fine no matter what I did.”

Those were the words Harto had said to Zed beneath the bridge.

Zed’s voice was so low it almost sounded desperate. Before Harto could say a word, Zed began roughly stripping Harto’s clothes off.

“……!”

He didn’t even have time to be flustered. Not long after, their lips met. It was not a soft, tender kiss. Nor was it rough like the one under the bridge. It was a kiss that felt as if he were being chased by something.

After putting Sleepy to sleep following his bath, the elementals huddled around them and watched Read on the scene with wide eyes. Feeling their gazes, Harto whispered to Zed, who was caressing his ear and neck.

“Ugh, Z-Zed… not here… inside….”

In response to Harto’s request, Zed silently picked him up and carried him toward the inner part of the bedroom.

‘…Zed, are you still anxious?’

Harto leaned his head against Zed’s chest. He heard the precarious sound of his heartbeat. A pulse beating far too fast and irregularly. Had even the sincerity poured out with his whole heart not been able to completely fill the anxiety deeply rooted within him?

If not, he wanted to know what exactly had been said in the conversation with the Archpriest that was making him so anxious. But in the end, Harto couldn’t bring himself to say a word. He simply couldn’t ask, for fear that the question might touch upon a painful wound he didn’t even want to recall.

Click.

Zed entered the bedroom and laid Harto down on the bed. Pale moonlight streamed through the small window illuminated his profile. Harto lifted his head to see his face up close, but Zed didn’t show his face clearly. He simply lay his heavy body on top of Harto.

“Z… Zed….”

Zed’s intimidating demeanor suddenly frightened Harto. But in that moment, Harto saw his broad shoulders trembling ever so slightly in the moonlight. He wasn’t berating Harto with anger and self-reproach as he had under the bridge; instead, he was enduring sadness that threatened to overwhelm him.

‘…Ah.’

The moment he felt that tremor, Harto’s fear vanished completely.

Instead of resisting, Harto spread his trembling arms wide and pulled Zed n into his arms. Filled with comfort that words could never convey, he silently held his lover, who might be crying in the darkness.