The moment I heard that, my mind went white. I felt my face heat up for no reason, and I diverted my gaze as if avoiding his eyes, picked up a nearby book, and sat in the armchair. I pretended I hadn’t heard anything and opened the book. Of course, I couldn’t actually read it.
I flipped pages mechanically while trying to think about other things. Something far more practical and important. Like, say, a plan for rescuing the twin demons...
Honestly, there wasn’t much to think about. I’d already succeeded at this quest in the game. I just had to do the exact same thing I’d done before.
I logged into the shop and checked which items I’d need to complete the quest. Adding up the prices, it came out to exactly 1,000 points. My current point balance was 200p. Way short.
The method that immediately came to mind was soul offering, but I didn’t like the option. Every soul offered up brings the Demon King’s resurrection that much closer. I really wanted to avoid it.
Wait. I lowered the book slightly and looked at Theo. The fastest and easiest way to earn points was already right in front of me.
Just hours ago, I’d been bitter about not being a family man raising his household through OnlyFans... looks like I’d have to do something similar. No, even worse.
The first step is the hardest, once you cross the line the rest is easy. Since I’d already tangled with Theo, I just needed to ride the momentum and keep having physical relations with him to accumulate Evil Points. This morning’s experience had already proven that Theo was drawn to Shane’s body.
I closed the book and was about to call Theo. But before I could, Theo got up first. And suddenly wrapped his arms tightly around me where I sat in the chair. A gentle voice tickled my ear.
“Thank you for granting my unreasonable request.”
The register of his words had changed.
“And... I’m sorry for hurting Rihen.”
Huh?
“Since Rihen said he won’t sell his body anymore, I won’t lay a hand on Rihen either. I promise.”
Theo continued softly, both arms wrapped around me.
W-what? Why? Why are you saying this now, when you literally stole a kiss from me while I was sleeping?
I understood, though. Theo is fundamentally a good-aligned character. At first, shocked by the fact that I’d been selling my body, he’d forced himself on me pretty aggressively, but now that he’d come back to his senses, he’d apparently reverted to the original Theo.
Being kind is good. Very Theo, very hero-like. But I have a world to save. I need to accumulate points and buy items.
Still, I couldn’t shamelessly insist in this situation that I wanted to keep having that kind of relationship with him. Even if I’d been forced into playing the slut role, there were still lines to hold.
For now, I gently pushed Theo away.
“Alright. Go wash up quickly.”
Theo studied my expression carefully, then obediently went into the bathroom. The sound of running water came through the door. Only then did I finally release the breath I’d been holding and clutch my head. The situation was tangled, time was short, and quests needed solving.
I don’t know how long I turned it over in my head, but eventually, a strange solution came to me. In the process of carrying it out, I might hurt Theo. I might even end up warping his values.
Still, at this point, it seemed like my best option.
After his bath, Theo said he’d make breakfast this time. He said with confidence that he’d learned simple cooking while working at the tavern, but I couldn’t quite trust it. What if the kid cuts his hand chopping vegetables? Just thinking about it made me anxious.
“It’s fine. I’ll do it.”
“No, Rihen. You must be tired. I’ll cook, so please rest.”
Theo showed no sign of listening to me. He rolled me up in the blanket like a gimbap roll and laid me on the bed. The kitchen filled with the sound of a knife tapping the cutting board, water boiling, plates clattering. Before long, a savory aroma tickled my nose, and steaming chicken stew was set on the table.
“We give thanks to the Goddess of Abundance for our daily bread.”
We folded our hands together in a brief prayer before starting the meal. The broth was rich and the meat tender. It was better than I expected, and I complimented Theo several times.
After cleaning up, we started sword practice as a form of digestion. It was so ordinary a scene it was hard to believe what small mishap had happened the night before.
There wasn’t much I could teach Theo. His skill had already surpassed mine. He hadn’t yet manifested aura to reach sword master, but in pure swordsmanship, Theo was superior. If I used demonic abilities like flame or stealth, I could still overpower him, but that was a different story. So lately I’d been adding penalties to our matches. Today, we decided to spar with wooden swords while Theo was blindfolded.
At first, Theo struggled. Losing his sight, it took him time to track my presence. I deliberately scattered my footsteps and hushed my breathing as I circled him.
But soon the tide turned. Theo didn’t rely on sound alone. He pinpointed my location precisely through the feel of wind brushing past, vibrations in the floor, and his unique, keen intuition.
Wooden swords cracked against each other several times with dull sounds. Theo caught my blade cleanly, and whenever I retreated, he pressed in immediately. Trying to dodge his strike, I tripped over a stone and lost balance. My body pitched backward and I stumbled, and at the same time, he lost his center trying to catch me.
Theo and I tumbled together. His body practically fell on top of mine. At twenty, when had he grown this much? He pressed down on me with shoulders now wider and a chest fuller than mine. As our breaths tangled and body heat overlapped, some hard-to-explain current passed between us. From our pressed-together chests, I could feel his heartbeat clearly. Without either of us moving first, we both held our breath and froze. It felt like time itself had stopped.
Theo suddenly came to his senses and untied the blindfold. He quickly pulled himself off me.
“Rihen, are you okay?”
He rolled up my pant leg and checked my ankle. He carefully held it and pressed to check for a sprain. A sharp pain flared where his fingers touched. Heuh, a faint sound slipped through my teeth. Whatever inappropriate thought crossed his mind, Theo’s face flushed even redder.
After applying an herbal salve and wrapping bandages, my ankle recovered completely within an hour. Theo said the muscle might be startled and diligently massaged my entire leg. The hand kneading my calf never made it above the knee.
“You need to rub here too.”
I grabbed his wrist and placed it on my thigh, and Theo visibly wavered. His fingertips froze, his gaze drifting awkwardly. What are you even trying to do, kid. Despite myself, a bitter chuckle slipped out.
Loving me this much, yet swearing he’d never touch me again. Get real. I only thought it, and looked away as if nothing had happened.
Aside from these small hiccups, my relationship with Theo appeared shockingly unchanged. But peel back a single layer, and the situation was different. That peace was like walking through a room full of oil while holding a lit match. The moment I let go, the match would fall to the floor. And everything would be different from before.
And in three days, I planned to set fire to this relationship myself. For this world I loved, and for the hero Theo.
Theo watched Rihen emerge from the bathroom with only a towel. Water still clung to that firm, lean body. Inevitably, the images from the night before came back to him. Rihen panting beneath him. The unexpectedly delicate, sensitive skin. The ragged breaths and sharp moans. The reddened, teared-up eyes and lips parted as if gasping for breath, all vivid in memory.
A dangerous impulse stirred deep in his chest. The urge to swallow him whole. The desire to dig through his body and soul in pieces and know everything about him. The stubborn craving to unload his cum deep inside him.
Rihen’s naked body couldn’t have been offered only to him. Even if the rear was his first, there had certainly been customers who’d held him. That fact fed an unexplainable anxiety. An irrational thought crossed his mind.
I want to leave passion marks on every part of him that isn’t covered by clothing. He wanted to carve tooth marks along Rihen’s pale neck, plant kiss marks on his wrists and ankles. So that everyone would know he was his. Then no one would carelessly approach him.
If some deranged person got cocky and dared to look at Rihen with lust... I would blind them. I’ll make sure they can never look at what’s mine ever again.
And for Rihen, I’d prepare a large, cozy room. I’d lay him on a wide, plush bed and not let him take a single step outside it. I’d spend all day rolling around with him, carving a path shaped like my cock into his belly. Until his head was full of only me. Until pleasure melted his soul to mush. So he’d only look at me, only call my name, for the rest of his life.
Even he was startled by how crude his own imagination had become.
But no. I can’t do such a horrible thing. Theo realized his desire was growing out of control. He had to repay Rihen’s kindness, and yet his heart kept trying to cross the line. If this kept up, he’d end up hurting Rihen in the end.
He walked up to Rihen, who was quietly reading a book, and carefully wrapped his arms around him. It was to restrain himself.
“Since Rihen said he won’t sell his body anymore, I won’t lay a hand on Rihen either. I promise.”
That wasn’t a promise made to Rihen. It was a promise to himself. Could I actually suppress my lust just by saying so? A fundamental doubt crossed his mind. Even now, just from the scent of Rihen’s skin, blood was rushing to his groin...
But this wasn’t the kind of thing he could choose. He had to suppress his lust. If he touched him even one more time, he might cross a line he shouldn’t as a human. So the events of last night had to be left as a one-time fantasy.
For Rihen’s sake.
And for the sake of the peaceful ‘family’ relationship between him and Rihen.
