Chapter 291: Karma (X)

Her trembling gaze never left me.

“Y-you… forgive me… r-right?” she asked again, her voice like the crack of glass about to shatter.

I didn’t answer… not yet.

I was still thinking about which ’choice’ would be the correct one.

And in that silence… something twisted.

Christina’s breath hitched. Her eyes widened slightly, trembling, before narrowing in a strange, broken way.

“…You’re not answering,” she whispered, her tone uneven, almost sing-song, but underneath it a trembling madness.

“Why aren’t you answering, Aestrea? You… you’re not actually thinking of not forgiving me… are you?”

A bead of cold sweat ran down my temple.

Her arms tightened against me, too tight, like iron chains disguised as an embrace.

I honestly could snap it off, but it would probably fuel the fire more…

“That can’t be it… no, no, you wouldn’t… right?” she went on, her voice quickening, almost frantic.

“Because… because you know how much I love you. You know how much I’d throw away for you. I already abandoned everything, my faith, my Goddess, my entire world, just for you!”

Her pink eyes quivered, growing darker, sharper, but her tears didn’t stop falling.

“I gave you everything… so you wouldn’t just… push me aside, right? You wouldn’t betray me like she did… right, Aestrea?”

Her nails dug into my back now, the pressure sharp enough to pierce skin.

“Hagh… huff, haa…”

Her breath grew shaky, but her arms never loosened. Instead, they pressed tighter, like she feared I’d vanish the moment she let go.

“…You’re still not saying anything,” Christina whispered, her tone breaking into something soft, fragile, yet sharp enough to cut through anything.

Her pink eyes swirled, glistening, trembling between love and madness.

“You’re still silent, Aestrea… why? Why?” Her voice cracked, higher now, nearly desperate.

“It’s been so long already… and still… no answer. Are you… are you actually hesitating? Are you really thinking… of not forgiving me?”

Her aura flickered just like before, the golden light fading as a black mist curled faintly at the edges of her form.

The pressure in the air increased.

I clenched my jaw, cold sweat sliding down the side of my face.

“That’s not it, right?” she continued quickly, breathless, eyes growing wider. “It can’t be! Because if it is, if you’re thinking of casting me away again, I don’t know what I’ll do. I don’t know what will happen to me.”

Her golden and black hair shimmered under the dim light, strands twitching as though alive.

“Tell me, Aestrea… tell me it’s not true… tell me I’m wrong…” Her voice slipped into a tremble, both pleading and demanding at once.

The dark aura swelled thicker, vibrating the walls with pressure, and I knew that if I stayed silent any longer, she’d slip fully.

’Fucking hell…’

I swallowed hard, feeling that my throat was quite dry.

How come I always get into this type of situation…?

Slowly, I lifted my gaze, forcing myself to meet her swirling pink eyes.

They made me shiver. Not from fear… but from the sheer, suffocating obsession burning inside them.

“Christina, I…”

My throat tightened as I looked into those swirling pink eyes.

Gulp…

I swallowed hard.

“I… cannot forgive you. Not yet.”

The world trembled.

In an instant, her face twisted, eyes widening with shock before snapping into despair.

“W-what…?”

Her black aura burst outward violently, consuming the golden and divine shine that once surrounded her.

The air grew heavy, the marble floor beneath our feet cracked, and a suffocating chill filled the hall.

The sound of her uneven breathing mixed with the low hum of her spiraling divinity as it warped and darkened.

“No… no, no, no! You can’t—!” she screamed, her voice a mix of anguish and fury. “You can’t say that!! You can’t reject me again!”

The black spread through her hair like wildfire, strands turning dark before my eyes.

Her trembling body radiated an unstable madness, threatening to collapse entirely into a Fallen Saintess.

I acted.

Slowly, deliberately, I raised my hand and touched her cheek. My fingers slid against her hot, tear-stained skin, caressing her gently.

Her aura faltered.

Her body froze, her breath catching sharply.

“A-Aestrea…” she whimpered, leaning instinctively into my hand, trembling like a wounded animal desperate for comfort.

The black aura shrank back, dissolving in waves, leaving only fragments of darkness clinging faintly to her half-black hair.

I swallowed again, forcing the words out.

“But…” I said softly, my eyes locked with hers, “if you can prove it to me… if you can show me in some way that your love isn’t just empty words… that it’s real, unshakable… then maybe…”

Her lips parted, her body shivered, her eyes drowning in both fear and hope.

“Maybe I’ll forgive you.”

Christina’s eyes instantly widened, and then tears spilled down her cheeks like a flood.

Her lips trembled into a shaky and frantic smile, almost childlike in its relief.

“Y-You’ll forgive me…? You’ll forgive me if I prove it?!”

“Hehe~!”

Her voice broke into a wild laugh as she threw herself forward, wrapping her arms desperately around my neck.

Her body clung to mine as if letting go would mean losing everything.

“Aestrea! I’ll do it! I’ll prove it—I’ll prove I love you more than anything, more than anyone!” she cried, pressing herself against me with trembling devotion.

But then, as though something clicked in her head, she suddenly froze.

Her grip loosened, and slowly, she stepped back. Her fingers rose shakily to her shoulders, slipping beneath the golden straps of her saintess garb.

My eyes widened as the fabric slid down slightly, her intent clear.

“Christina!”

I reached forward, stopping her hand.

“Not like this. Not with your body.”

Her lips trembled into a slight frown, her pink eyes clouding with confusion, hurt… and then something deeper.

“But…” she whispered, then her expression hardened, and the wild glimmer returned.

Her back straightened as if a dangerous resolve had been forged.

“No. I understand now,” she breathed, wiping her tears with trembling hands. “I’ll prove it. I’ll prove I really love you… that I only care about you, Aestrea, in this whole wide world!”

Her words struck me cold.

My body stiffened, a chill running down my spine.

“Christina, don’t!” I reached my hand toward her, panic edging into my tone. “I shouldn’t be the only thing on your mind. That isn’t—”

But before I could finish, a spatial crack opened at her feet. Her figure flickered, her eyes glowing with dangerous devotion, and then, she vanished.

I stood frozen, my hand hanging in the empty air where she had just been.

“Fuck…”

A sigh escaped my lips.

Click!

The heavy door opened with a soft groan, the sudden sound breaking through the suffocating silence Christina had left behind.

A figure stepped into the room with elegance, her long gown brushing the floor like flowing ink.

“Isabella…”

“My, oh my~ what a delicate relationship you two have,” she teased, her hand rising elegantly to hide the curve of her amused smile.

“Ugh, don’t mention it.”

I furrowed my eyebrows.

She only chuckled, and then, without warning, her hand reached out, cool fingers brushing my forehead.

With a feather-light touch, she began to massage my forehead lightly.

My body betrayed me, easing just slightly under her touch.

“But well…” her voice dipped softer, smoother, as she moved behind me.

Her fingers pressed harder, finding the tension in my temples. A shiver of reluctant relaxation coursed through me.

She was always good with these kinds of massages for some reason.

“If you are troubled by such a childish girl,” Isabella’s words rolled like velvet against my ear, “then perhaps… You should consider a more mature one.”

Her fingers stilled.

And then, her arms slid around my waist from behind, pulling me into her embrace.

Her massive breasts pressed against my back, soft yet insistent, and the hardened peaks of her nipples teased mercilessly through the fabric, sending an involuntary shiver up my spine.

“Haaah~”

Her breath, hot and damp, fanned against my ear before she exhaled a soft puff, savoring my reaction.

I stiffened slighly.

“Mhm~” she purred, and her lips ghosted along my skin before planting a deliberate kiss at the nape of my neck.

Her hands traced lazily across my torso, fingertips brushing as if she were mapping every line of muscle, every place I tensed.

“You know…”

I muttered, my voice rougher than I intended.

But she didn’t stop.

Her lips dragged over my skin, slow, almost taunting, as her hands wandered lower before returning upward in an almost mocking caress.

“I’m still a man,” I finished, forcing the words out.

“So?” Isabella giggled softly.

She leaned closer, her lips grazing the shell of my ear.

“That’s exactly why I’m doing this~. Men are meant to be tempted, aren’t they?”

“Pff~” She chuckled, as if daring me to resist.

That was enough for me.

Swish!

“Kyaa!~”

Without warning, I spun around and seized her, lifting her effortlessly. Her back slammed against the nearby wall, her gown flaring for a moment before settling around her.

Her legs instinctively coiled around my waist, locking me in, and her arms wrapped tight around my neck.

Isabella’s emerald eyes blazed with delight, her lips parting in a sharp, amused breath.

Her face flushed faintly, not with shame, but with the thrill of victory.

“Mmm… finally showing a little fire, are you?” she whispered, her lips mere inches from mine.

I simply smiled at her words.

“I was… a little hesitant to eat you,” I murmured lightly.

“After all, adding one more lover, especially the queen, sounded like more trouble than it was worth.”

Her emerald eyes widened slightly, curiosity and delight sparking within them.

“But now…” I leaned closer, staring deeply into her beautiful emerald yes. “You’ve gone and broken the chain that held me back.”

Before she could answer, I closed the distance.

Chuu~♡

My lips crashed into hers.

“Mhm!”

Her soft gasp was swallowed by the kiss, her body jerking before melting against me, her arms tightening around my neck.

“Haamh… churup, *suck*~”

Isabella moaned into the kiss, grinding her hips against me shamelessly, as though she had waited centuries for this moment.

Her nails scraped lightly across my nape, pulling me deeper, demanding more.

The queen who always carried herself with elegance, composure, and teasing cruelty now trembled in my grasp, yet not from fear.

But from sheer, unrestrained hunger.

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