Chapter 105

“How about we go have dinner now?”

“Yeah, let’s go. I was starting to get hungry anyway.”

We had spent the whole afternoon walking around the streets and enjoying all sorts of things, and before I knew it, the sun was slowly setting.

“There was a barbecue place nearby. Should we go there?”

“Meat sounds good. Let’s go. We’ll eat there and head straight to the inn.”

“Yes, understood.”

Maybe because we had been walking around all day, my body felt tired.

I really wanted to eat dinner quickly and go inside to rest.

‘Still, aside from the fatigue, it really was a fun day.’

After spending nearly a week doing nothing but work, spending the whole day just playing around could only be enjoyable.

And starting tomorrow, it would be the weekend, so I planned to recover from all the accumulated fatigue.

Of course, tonight… I wasn’t sure.

At the very least, until tomorrow morning, it seemed like Lisa would be sticking right next to me.

‘…Hm?’

While I was holding Lisa’s hand and heading toward the restaurant together—

I suddenly noticed that Lisa’s gaze had fixed on something.

Wondering what it was, I followed her line of sight and looked toward that spot…

‘Rings?’

It was a common stall selling accessories.

Lisa had no reason to be interested in cheap accessories like that.

Yet despite that, the fact that she was staring holes into those trinkets—and especially the rings—was very clearly…

“Lady Lisa. Would you follow me for a moment?”

“Uh, huh?”

I took Lisa with me and walked toward the stall.

“If there’s something you want, I’ll buy it for you.”

“N-no, that’s not necessary……”

“Lady Lisa, it seems you truly can’t lie.”

“…Ugh.”

I let out a small laugh and hugged Lisa from behind.

Then, in that position, I whispered next to her ear.

“Lady Lisa would never be someone who shows interest in such common accessories. You were never especially interested in jewelry, and your family mansion surely has things far more valuable. And yet you kept showing interest just now… Isn’t it because you want the two of us to get matching rings?”

“…Was it that obvious?”

“It was a little obvious. In any case, if you choose the rings, I’ll buy them.”

“No, I should be the one to buy……”

“No. Just this once, I want to be the one who buys it for you.”

At my firm tone, Lisa nodded with a look that said she had no choice.

She skimmed through the rings on display and soon pointed at a pair of silver rings.

“I want those. Let’s wear matching ones.”

“Understood.”

I glanced at the stall owner, and he took out the two silver rings from the display.

“The two together are one silver coin.”

“Here you go.”

I immediately slipped the ring onto Lisa’s finger.

Lisa stared silently at the silver ring on her finger for a moment, then looked up at me with deeply moved eyes.

“Thank you, Gideon. I’ll treasure this ring for the rest of my life.”

“There’s no need for that. I’ll get you a better one later……”

“No. This is the first thing you’ve ever bought me. Even if I get other rings, I’ll carry this one forever.”

“Then I’ll carry mine for the rest of my life as well.”

I hadn’t expected Lisa to be this happy.

Still, seeing her like this naturally brought a smile to my lips.

“Customers. If you pay an extra fee, I can engrave something onto the rings.”

“Really?”

The vendor looked at us with a pleased expression as he explained.

“Yes, would you like it engraved?”

At the vendor’s words, I looked toward Lisa.

I didn’t really mind either way, but Lisa, on the other hand…

“Can you engrave any writing?”

“Yes, anything is fine as long as it’s not too long. For 20 bronze coins, I’ll engrave both rings.”

“Here’s a silver coin, and no need for change.”

“Ah… yes. Thank you. Please hand me the rings and write what you’d like engraved on this paper.”

Lisa quickly wrote something on the paper and handed it to the vendor.

And when he checked it, his eyes went wide.

“B-Balmuth? Wait, red hair… I-I’m sorry for not recognizing you. A member of the great ducal family……”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. More importantly, the engraving……”

“I-I’ll engrave it right away.”

The vendor began engraving the rings extremely quickly.

“What did you tell him to engrave?”

“You’ll find out soon.”

A moment later, the vendor returned the rings to us.

“I engraved it exactly as requested on the inside of each ring. Here is the gentleman’s.”

I took the ring and immediately checked what was written.

Inside the ring, in small writing, it said…

“Gideon… Balmuth?”

It took me a few seconds to grasp what the words meant.

And once I understood, I looked at Lisa in surprise.

Lisa was looking at her own ring with a satisfied expression.

Curious, I checked the inside of Lisa’s ring as well…

“Lisa Kyrgram?”

“I just imagined our future for a moment.”

“Our future, huh……”

“Anyway, thanks for the rings, Gideon. Shall we go?”

“Yes, let’s go.”

I awkwardly stared at the hand now wearing a ring as I began walking again.

Even before I transmigrated, I had never worn a ring, so jewelry like this could only feel awkward.

‘Still, Gideon Balmuth… ha.’

From what I remembered, in this world, when people got married, the woman usually took the man’s surname.

But if the woman’s status was higher, the man took the woman’s surname instead.

And that happened to be exactly my situation.

If I married a lady—someone slated to be the next head of a ducal family—then the name written on my ring would become my real name in the future.

‘Well, I still have time, so I’ll think about it slowly.’

Lisa held my hand tightly.

Looking at her, I smiled faintly.

Still, my head had been tingling all day, like someone was staring at me… Why was that?

“It seems this inn’s facilities are excellent.”

Some time later.

Lisa and I had eaten dinner and were now resting inside the inn room she had reserved.

I had washed up first and was resting on the bed, and Lisa had just finished washing.

“This is the most expensive inn in this village. I spent some money.”

“Was it expensive?”

“It’s not a small amount objectively, but from my perspective, it wasn’t much.”

Lisa sat beside me and immediately hugged me.

“But I think it was a worthwhile investment.”

“To spend the night together with me, you mean?”

“Bringing you into my dorm could be dangerous. It’s better to do this secretly outside the Academy.”

“You’re right.”

Lisa smiled lightly as she looked around.

“And besides, the place is nice. The bed is soft, the atmosphere is good, and the pajamas they provided are comfortable.”

They were comfortable.

The pajamas I was wearing felt warm yet cool at the same time—whatever the material was.

Lisa was wearing the same pajamas as me… the pajamas… uh……

“U-ugh.”

“Why are you suddenly turning your gaze away?”

“N-nothing.”

“I told you, lies don’t work on me.”

“…I just thought Lady Lisa’s pajama size seemed a little small.”

Actually, it wasn’t just a little small—it was very small.

Because of that, I had nowhere to look, so I hurriedly turned my gaze away.

“Fufut. I asked them to give me something a bit small on purpose. If it’s too much for you, I’ll get a bigger one later and change.”

“On purpose… you say?”

“Yeah. I was curious about your reaction. But seeing it… you’re definitely still a man.”

“…That’s something I can’t help.”

“Don’t worry. And you know what? Just like you’re a man, I’m a woman too.”

With those words, Lisa pulled me into her arms and lay down on the bed.

And so, she and I ended up facing each other with our faces extremely close.

“And I’m a woman filled with desire.”

“Yes, that… I can tell just from your eyes.”

My face looked expressionless as usual, but her eyes held far more longing than they normally did.

“But don’t worry. I know my position well. Even if I want to follow my desires… I’m the next head of House Balmuth, a Lady, and the current Disciplinary Committee President. If I give in to desire in this position, you might suffer the consequences more than I would.”

“Yes, on that… I can only agree.”

“Of course, if you want to give in to desire, I’d welcome it anytime.”

Lisa pressed her body closer to mine as she said that.

“If anything happens, I’ll take full responsibility, so there’s no need to worry at all.”

“…….”

Lisa said it casually with her usual expressionless face.

But when she rubbed her face against my chest and looked up at me, for a moment I almost lost my reason.

Of course, I immediately grabbed hold of myself.

“Thank you for the consideration. But I don’t think now is the time for us to give in to desire. I don’t want to make the future you suffer for a moment of impulse.”

“…Somehow, I did think you’d say that.”

Lisa smiled faintly and gently stroked my head.

It was a smile that carried a hint of regret.

“Still, I really like this side of you.”

“Th-thank you.”

“Fufut. Anyway, since things turned out like this, I guess I’ll have to just hold you and sleep today.”

Holding me in her arms, Lisa slowly stroked my back.

“Honestly, this is partly why I brought you here too.”

“You liked sleeping while holding me that much?”

“Yeah, I did. I slept deeper and more comfortably than usual and… how should I put it… I think I slept happier.”

I chuckled lightly.

“If that’s the case, how about secretly getting a room like this again next time?”

“That’d be great. I think I’d be so happy.”

I smiled and petted Lisa’s head, and she smiled like she was genuinely happy.

“Then today, are we going to stay like this, holding each other, talking until we fall asleep?”

“If you get bored, you can do something else or move around. Ah, but since we’re talking… there’s actually something I want to talk about with you today.”

“What is it?”

“How long are you going to keep using formal speech with me?”

“…Yes?”

The unexpected question made me freeze.

But regardless, Lisa was looking at me with a rather persistent gaze.

“Considering our relationship, isn’t it fine if you don’t speak formally to me?”

“But Lady Lisa. No matter what, I couldn’t possibly to you……”

“I’m fine with it. No—rather, I want to hear you talk comfortably to me.”

As expected of Lisa, she spoke honestly.

But I showed a troubled expression.

“You might be fine with it, but if others use it as an excuse……”

“Then at least when we’re alone—won’t that be okay?”

“When we’re alone, then……”

“I really want to hear you call me ‘noona,’ even just once.”

I couldn’t help but smile helplessly at Lisa’s words.

If I spoke too casually to her in front of others, as I had just said, some people might use it as leverage.

Claiming I was disrespecting noble hierarchy.

But if it was only when we were alone… I couldn’t think of a real reason to refuse.

“Alright.”

“Really?”

“Yes, so from now on, when it’s just the two of us, I’ll speak comfortably… no, I’ll speak casually, Lisa noona.”

It definitely felt awkward to speak casually to Lisa.

And apparently, Lisa felt the same, because she stiffened slightly and stayed still…

“…Say it again.”

“Eh? Ah, um… Lisa noona?”

“…Ha.”

“Ugh?”

Lisa pushed me to lie flat on the bed, then climbed on top of me.

The expressionless look she’d had melted into pure happiness.

And her eyes—somehow they had turned quite fierce.

“Sorry, Gideon. I can’t hold myself back.”

“Lady—no, L-Lisa noona? Let’s talk about thi— mmph.”

Lisa’s lips covered mine.

I tried to move in surprise, but Lisa held me firmly and pinned me down.

With her strength, I couldn’t resist her at all.

A few minutes later—

“…Paha.”

“Haa, La—Lisa.”

“You should say noona, right?”

“…Lisa noona. Please calm down a little……”

“Gideon. Do you remember what I told you before? The thing my mom told me.”

Ignoring my plea, Lisa pressed close once more.

“That after kissing, blood circulation gets faster, making it easier to drink blood.”

“I do remember, but……”

“Let’s check.”

“If you want to drink blood, then—”

“Not yet. I think your blood circulation still isn’t fast enough.”

With that, Lisa kissed me again.

After sharing a deep kiss without being able to resist at all—

Lisa left my flushed face behind and lowered her lips toward my neck.

“Thanks for the meal.”

“W-wait—ugh.”

In the end, I couldn’t rest comfortably in the luxurious inn.

Since Lisa had no intention of letting me go until late dawn.

Meanwhile, at the same time—

Behind some bushes outside the inn.

“It seems the two of them are having a good time.”

“I’m curious what kind of good time… but peeking would be wrong, right?”

“If I did that, Lisa noona would beat me within an inch of my life. And if we peeked while with Lady Layla… His Majesty the Emperor might literally take my head.”

Jason chuckled and looked toward the inn.

“Well, still, given their personalities, I doubt they’re doing the things people usually imagine… They’ll probably just play innocently and come out.”

“You followed them around all day just to come to that conclusion?”

Sara stared at him as if he were ridiculous.

But Jason smirked confidently at her question.

“At the very least, you shouldn’t be saying that. You enjoyed the festival the most while following them.”

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about……”

“You tried nearly twenty times to beat Gideon’s score on the punching machine, right? Even though you still couldn’t.”

“Hey!”

“And you spent nearly an hour mesmerized by the cats showing tricks, and you ate a bunch of street foo—”

“Okay! I’m sorry! I said I’m sorry!”

At Sara’s surrender, Jason burst into loud laughter.

Then he looked toward Layla again.

“Lady Layla, you had fun today too, right?”

“Yeah! Watching them secretly was fun, and hanging out like this was fun too.”

“Well, I had fun as well. Especially since I got a few things to tease Lisa noona with for a while—honestly, that alone is enough.”

Jason nodded with a satisfied smile.

He already looked excited thinking about teasing Gideon and Lisa tomorrow.

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