The Wind Quenches the Fire Chapter 9
In Carion’s hazy gaze, a pair of sparkling green eyes trembled into view. He knew perfectly well who those green eyes belonged to, yet the name would not come. Right now he could think of nothing at all. Only the desperate conviction that he must not let go of the person in his arms held him captive.
“Carion?”
He cupped the nape of her neck and pulled her close, swallowing the lips that called his name. He wanted more contact—deeper still. A single thought dominated Carion’s mind. Instinctively he realized that this touch was his lifeline. He tilted his head so their lips could lock even more deeply, thrusting his tongue inside to coil around her soft one.
What is this?
The moment their tongues tangled, Rhea felt the surging energy from his body. If this was the power of the spirit he possessed, it went against everything she knew. Spirits were beings of nature with firm will; they might perish, but they never wavered. She tried to push him away, yet he wrapped his arms around her waist and bound her even tighter. Driven by survival instinct, he continued the desperate kiss.
This was the first time she had ever experienced such a deep kiss. Their fluids mixed, and the heat of their touching mucous membranes gradually equalized. The unfamiliar, thrilling sensation—whether pleasant or not, she could not tell—left her bewildered.
Help me.
She pleaded with her spirit to pull this man away from her. Yet for some reason the wind merely circled around her, as if giggling.
Are you serious?
The wind spirit usually acted like a benevolent mother embracing all things, but sometimes it played mischievous tricks.
“Hah.”
When he strongly sucked on her tongue, her fingertips twitched.
Ah… somehow…
The energy that had been surging up and down in waves seemed to be gradually settling. She decided to wait a little longer.
Carion, who had clung to her for survival, felt the terrible pain tearing through his body subside, and his scattered reason began to slowly return. He recalled who the owner of those green eyes was.
The princess.
Even so, he could not let go. Was a woman’s body always like this? The sensation of her slender, soft form fitting perfectly into his arms was deeply satisfying. Even as he thought he had made a terrible mistake and should release her, he could not bring himself to give up this ecstatic fullness. He thought he understood a little of what it felt like to fall into alcohol or drugs for the sake of pleasure.
When she felt his energy had almost completely calmed, Rhea pushed him away again. Carion slowly parted his lips from hers. Unable to let go of his lingering desire to the very end, he sucked on her lower lip for a long moment before finally releasing it. Their eyes met at a distance where the tips of their noses nearly touched. Without a word, without moving a muscle, they simply gazed at each other.
Crack, thud!
A portion of the burning cabin’s roof collapsed with a loud noise. Startled, Rhea pushed him away with both hands. Carion obediently loosened his arms. He rose to his feet, took several deep breaths, and clenched then unclenched his fists.
I’ve gone mad.
Unlike his mental state, his body felt perfectly fine. Usually after a fit it took a full day for his body to return to normal once the episode subsided, but now he felt incredibly refreshed. His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Rhea. What had just happened could not possibly be mere coincidence. Just what was this woman? What did she know about this curse? Had she approached him because of it?
She took a step closer to him and spoke.
“Why were you here alone?”
Carion did not like her first question. He had braced himself for a few slaps, yet her expression was calm, as if nothing had happened. Her lips were so red, yet it was as if nothing had occurred.
“I came because I heard a child might have been left behind alone.”
He spoke curtly, then immediately regretted it.
“Did you find them?”
There was no displeasure in her voice as she asked back. Feeling embarrassed at his own childish spite, Carion averted his gaze and shook his head.
“We can’t delay any longer. Let’s leave before our escape route is cut off.”
The cabin where the fire had first started was blazing with terrifying force and beginning to spread to the surrounding underbrush.
“Just a moment.”
Rhea slowly looked around and moved her hand slightly. She sent a small breeze to quickly sweep through the entire village.
“There’s no child nearby. We should flee quickly as well.”
Carion looked at her confident words with a strange gaze and asked,
“How did you know the way here? Why did you come?”
Rhea did not answer, and Carion did not ask again. The fire was spreading rapidly. The two of them left the burning village behind and entered the forest.
Along the way, Carion spoke to her as she kept glancing back repeatedly.
“The wind has died down since earlier. You don’t need to worry that the wildfire will catch up to our pace.”
Rhea merely smiled faintly without a word. She was attempting to summon the wind to contain the flames in that village. Just as when she had looked from the watchtower earlier, the wind would not move according to her will. It was a phenomenon that occurred when spirit powers collided with each other.
In her previous life, Rhea had met only one other person who commanded a spirit besides herself. That person had been the king of Nortia. In that case, the owner of the power colliding with the wind spirit nearby had to be Carion. Having Carion beside her did not completely bind Rhea’s power. She simply could not summon strong winds; she could freely control small breezes.
Only after the two of them had put some distance from the village did the wind within it begin to move.
Please. Hold the flames so they can’t spread.
The main force of the wildfire would be extinguished by the backfire operation, but the fire that had spread to this village was a separate force. If left alone, this fire would evolve into another large-scale wildfire. So Rhea sealed the surroundings of the village with a wall of wind. Within the wind barrier, the fire would burn until it consumed the entire village and exhausted its fuel, then naturally die out.
“Wait a moment.”
Along the way, Rhea stopped. She peered into the dark depths of the forest, then pulled her lips with one hand and whistled sharply. Soon a horse without bridle or saddle appeared from within the forest, approached Rhea, and nuzzled its head against her affectionately.
“You waited patiently. Good job.”
Carion watched with interest and said,
“It’s clever. Have you trained it for a long time?”
“No. It’s Your Highness’s horse.”
“...My horse?”
“It’s a horse managed at the garrison, so isn’t it Your Highness’s?”
Rhea strode ahead boldly. Looking at her back, Carion opened his mouth as if to say something, then closed it again. There were so many things he wanted to ask that he did not even know where to start.
Rhea finished her bath while enduring Penny’s storm of nagging.
“Good night, Your Highness.”
“Yeah, you sleep well too.”
“You are going to sleep properly, right? Should I stand guard at your bedroom?”
The way Penny stood with both hands on her hips looked exactly like her nanny—Penny’s mother—when she was angry.
“I’ll stay put and sleep quietly until tomorrow morning.”
Rhea said with a sheepish expression.
“It’s a relief that the flames have died down and won’t reach here. Once morning comes, this chaotic atmosphere should settle down roughly.”
“Yeah. Don’t worry and get some good sleep.”
After Penny left, glancing back several times, Rhea closed her eyes. But sleep would not come. Rhea touched her lips with her hand. Her first kiss had been hot and long.
Did he mistake me for someone else?
It had been a desperately clinging kiss. A kiss like that seemed like something one could only do with experience.
He said he has no lover… Meaning none now, but he might have had one before.
Mistaking the other person and a first kiss without consent—it was the worst. If she were her twenty-one-year-old self before returning, she would not have been able to contain her anger. She might have jumped up and down crying. Now, surprisingly, she felt nothing. Something like a kiss was nothing compared to the countless hardships she had endured. Instead, the fact that she thought, Could this be a good card to bring up marriage? made her feel thoroughly worn and jaded.
I asked you to help. But you just watched?
Rhea scolded the spirit in a sulky voice. A soft breeze gently patted her cheek as if soothing her.
I’m disappointed. I’m really angry.
She huffed and turned her head sharply, and the wind brushed past her skin as if flustered. As the soft breeze continued to caress her skin, Rhea found herself smiling before she knew it.
He has a spirit’s energy too, right?
The spirit touched her cheek as if in answer.
His Majesty never mentioned anything like that…
Even when she had run into the forest, she had thought, No way, that can’t be.
There’s no reason to hide it. He didn’t know either. His spirit must be fire like His Majesty’s, right? When did it awaken…
Rhea sat up abruptly.
Fire!
Could it have awakened because of today’s wildfire?