Keep Alicia forever by my side?

  Roel already had an answer to that question in his mind. Yes, I want to, but I can’t voice it aloud.

  He was Alicia’s big brother, and it wasn’t right for him to draw boundaries for Alicia to stop her from pursuing her happiness. Instead, he should encourage her to explore more and try out new experiences. The world has many wonders to offer someone as young as his little sister.

  However, logic and emotions don’t always go hand-in-hand. As much as Roel wished the best for Alicia, there was a part of him that wanted to keep her by his side too. When Alicia took the initiative to ask him this question, he nearly succumbed to his selfishness and spoke out his true thoughts, especially since the earlier assaults had muddled his brain.

  Faced with Alicia’s intent stare, Roel determined that it was due to him getting kidnapped by Charlotte or that Charlotte had said some words that led to her emotions running wild. He could somewhat tell that this was her way of throwing a tantrum, but when he looked into her eyes, he found himself unable to voice out words of refusal to her.

  Alicia had a striking beauty that would awe anyone at first sight. Roel thought that he had gotten used to her appearance over the years they had spent together, but when she showed him a completely different side of herself, he found the immunity he had painstakingly built up collapsing in an instant.

  “.…… I do.”


  After a long moment of hesitation, Roel still ended up saying the words that he shouldn’t have. Alicia’s body began trembling, and she leaped forward to hug him so tightly that it hurt a little, bringing back some rationality to his head.

  “I understand. Lord Brother also wants to stay with me forever,” whispered Alicia into Roel’s ears.

  It looked like her emotions were already on the verge of running amok. Roel, who had finally regained some of his sense, quickly pressed down on her shoulders and attempted to pull the derailed topic back on track forcefully.

  “W-wait a moment, Alicia! Aren’t we in the middle of treatment? What’s with that method you used earlier on?”


  “What else do you expect, Lord Brother? Are you intending to make me bleed, or do you wish to see my cry?”


  “N-no, that’s not what I mean……”


  The embarrassed Roel was struggling to find a mild way to explain why mouth-to-mouth transference was inappropriate, and Alicia made use of this opening to force her point through.

  “Mister Andrew has already said that we have to carefully control the quantity, or there’s the risk of overconsumption of life force. If we wish to do it by tears, I would have to cry several times in order to produce the required amount. As for blood, it contains far too much life force, such that it’ll be hard to control the quantity. If so, doesn’t that leave saliva as the optimal medium for the transference of life force here?”


  Roel took some time to contemplate Alicia’s argument with his heated mind, and it did make some sense. It was much easier to produce saliva, and the concentration of life force was much lower, making it easier to control the quantity. From such a point of view, saliva was indeed the more effective medium.

  “I do see where you’re coming from, but still……”


  The red-faced Roel found himself unable to finish his sentence. There was no doubt in his mind that the act was inappropriate, but it didn’t seem quite right to call it amorous either. Their lips did touch, but all that happened was really just the transference of the alcohol and saliva. It wasn’t exactly a kiss in that sense.

  On top of that, he was a little afraid of pushing Alicia away too far. While she was officially a member of the Ascart House, in truth, she had been given the choice to leave the Ascart House upon adulthood. In the first place, Carter had taken her in with the intent of taking care of her so that his old comrade could rest in peace. It was just that the following series of events spurred some thoughts in him, and he hoped that Alicia could officially become one of their own.

  “Lord Brother, it looks like you’re unaware of your current situation.”


  Seeing how Roel was already down to his last layer of defense, Alicia pushed her way forward. Maintaining a stern and stoic expression on her face, she looked earnestly into Roel’s golden eyes, allowing her worry for the latter to show through.

  “Does your sense of shame outweigh the importance of your health? It’s nothing more than a peck on the lips. Shouldn’t you understand your priorities?”


  Knowing that Roel was particularly susceptible to logical arguments, Alicia placed herself in the position of a doctor lecturing an unruly patient. Her judgment was right, for Roel was swiftly led astray by her train of thoughts. He thought that if Alicia was willing to bear the embarrassment, why should he, a man, act so squeamish?

  “Alright then. I understand.”


  Roel finally gave in with a nod.

  Seeing that her persuasion had succeeded, a delighted smile curled on Alicia’s lips. She grabbed the alcohol and gulped it down before feeding it to Roel. However, behind Roel’s back, Alicia began manifesting a faint light glow in her hand.

  The Pamela wine wasn’t high in alcohol level, but after drinking several cups of it consecutively, Roel started feeling a little weird.

  He found his body heating up swiftly, as if someone had infused a great deal of energy into his body. Perhaps it was due to the life force acting up in unison with the alcohol, he was actually starting to feel his mind fuzzing out.

  “A-Alicia, wait a moment. My head feels a little giddy…… I don’t know why, but I feel very hot.”


  Realizing that the treatment was headed in the wrong direction, Roel quickly called for her to stop. Alicia was very docile and did as she was told, but her hand that was wrapped around Roel’s body was still infusing more and more life force into him.

  Wine, intimate touch, and excessive life force; these were the ingredients required for Alicia’s plan to come to fruition. Under the combined force of the three, Roel’s breathing began to grow heavy, and the side effects from excessive life force began to become apparent.

  Wait wait wait wait! What’s going on? Why is it growing stiff? I only had several cups of wine; isn’t this a bit too much?

  Roel was alarmed to see that he was actually reacting. His cheeks grew red, and he hurriedly tried to conceal it. However, what he didn’t know was that Alicia was not an innocent little bunny but a big bad wolf. It was all according to plan, so how could she allow her prey to escape from her grasp?

  “Lord Brother, what’s wrong?”


  Knowing that she was already on the edge of success, Alicia slowly moved her gaze downward before widening her eyes a little. There was a momentary pause of hesitation before she slowly leaned forward and whispered softly into Roel’s ears.

  “It’s fine…… Lord Brother, if it’s you, I’m willing.”


  “!”


  Her words made heat rush right to Roel’s head, and he felt that he was about to explode at any moment. Then, something really did explode.

  Not Roel’s mind, but the door to the room.

  Bam!

  The door was knocked mercilessly into the ceiling before splintering into bits. An auburn beauty wielding Jewel Trigger and a golden angel with a pair of unfurled wings charged right into the room. There they found themselves greeted by a silver-haired girl seated upon Roel’s lap. Their eyes dilated with fury, and they bellowed with utmost animosity.

  “Alicia, how dare you!”