The Cursed Beast Caught My Leash - Chapter 64

“But… are you really not going to do anything?”

“Why do you think I won’t do anything, Estella?”

Unlike Stella, who kept stammering with a pale face, Islay was as calm as could be. His demeanor was like that of a person who had made an unchanging decision.

Stella took a moment to catch her breath and tried to regain her composure. Then, like a flash of lightning, she recalled their conversation.

“What do you think will happen if I live through the twenty-eighth winter without continuing the bloodline?”

Impossible.

“I think I might die as a human without becoming a monster.  And the curse that exists across the northern lands will be lifted.”

Despite receiving the awaited revelation, he had no intention of following it. He intended to ignore a sure method, all to avoid spilling blood and to avoid harming her.

“There are other methods worth trying…”

As if reading her mind, Islay muttered quietly and reached out to stroke her flushed cheek with his knuckles.

“I can’t bear to spill the blood of the precious princess.”

Then he smiled loosely, as if it were nothing. Knowing that the other method he mentioned pointed to his own death, Stella could say no more.

If his words were completely baseless, she would have shaken her head. Indeed, if the line of Peruno were cut off, it could finally put an end to the repeated misfortune.

“But…”

“If possible, I didn’t want to tell you the prophecy. I wanted to be greedy for as long as the time allowed.”

Greedy… Stella looked into his trembling eyes, facing the deepest truth that lay within his heart, rather than the shallow sincerity of hiding it out of concern for her fears.

She knew the desire Islay spoke of was nothing more than the desire to touch her fingertips. It had been she who had crossed the line he had drawn.

Unable to answer, Stella bit her lips and lowered her gaze. Her cold hands trembled like the last leaf hanging from a winter tree. Now that she knew the whole truth, it was time for her to think.

This was the heaviest dilemma Stella had ever faced in her life. It was frightening and nerve-wracking, but she did not want to run away like a coward. Despite his difficult and exhausting circumstances, Islay was anything but shaken. Surprisingly, this helped her continue her thoughts.

Stella was useless. From adolescence until now, she had always heard that she was useless. Even when she realized she had an ability that only existed in myths, she could not show any real results.

So perhaps… Stella took a trembling breath.

The ability of the sixth sense itself was not flawed. The reason it did not manifest properly was solely due to her lack of capacity. In other words, as long as she lived, the ability remained effective, so how she “used” it was crucial.

If she could offer this ability, if sacrificing her life could save the monster-infested land and save someone’s life…

If it allowed Islay to escape the endless cycle of suffering and live as an ordinary man…

Wouldn’t that truly be something worthwhile?

‘Because I…’

She wanted him to be happy. She did not want him to suffer. She wanted Islay…

It was difficult to think logically, as if her brain circuits were malfunctioning. Stella clenched and unclenched her small hands, her breathing ragged.

“Estella.”

Her name, spoken in his low, smooth voice, carried a faint hint of bewilderment. Stella lifted her head.

Islay reached out and held her tear-streaked face.

With one cheek cradled in his palm, Stella looked up at him. Her vision was blurred and wavering, making it difficult to see Islay’s face. All she could see were his vividly red eyes. The pupils that occasionally loosened when looking down at her.

Suddenly, she remembered his comment about not being good at comforting crying women. Despite that claim, Islay always extended his warm hands whenever her eyes turned red. And just like now, he only made her cry even more.

Islay did not bother asking why she was crying. Nonetheless, Stella sniffled and murmured, “I don’t know… I…”

She tried hard to steady her trembling voice. Even so, she didn’t want to seem childish in front of him. Her sobs broke irregularly with gasps.

But thanks to that, she realized why.

Because she liked him. Even after hearing that he would have to gouge out her eyes and slit her throat, she liked him so much that she was willing to let him do it for his sake.

The presence of Islay in her heart had grown so immensely…

Stella wiped away the tears gathered on her lashes with the back of her hand. She finally felt she could accept the feelings that had left her in inexplicable disarray.

She wanted to touch him again. She wanted to press her cheek against his firm chest. She wanted to forget reality, if only briefly, amid the overwhelming sensation.

“I’ve heard too much in one day, and my head hurts.”

Even in her childish voice, Islay listened quietly. It was not the gaze of someone watching her whine or act spoiled.

“I don’t want to think about anything. Not now…”

Stella placed her hand on top of his, which still held her cheek. She met his gaze with eyes that couldn’t hide her desperation.

“Make me not think of anything.”

Islay knew exactly what she wanted. A storm of desire swelled in his previously calm eyes, like a tranquil sea.

He moved his Adam’s apple as if suddenly parched, then exhaled a deep breath. He swore to himself this wasn’t what he wanted.

He had resolved not to offer an innocent woman as a sacrifice, even deciding to die without leaving an heir, yet here she was, wanting to be held by him. If he accepted her now, it would mean repeating an absurd contradiction.

His feelings for her had gradually grown stronger. Islay wasn’t sure he could end it with just a light indulgence while harboring such an overwhelming emotion. He also had a growing desire to reach her deepest part.

During that time, Stella approached him quietly and wrapped her arms around him. The two hearts pressed together, quickening in pace.

The sound of her whimper reached his ears before Islay finally embraced her in return. He lifted his hand to stroke her round head. Her warmth burrowed deep into his chest. There was no way he could push her away.

He slipped his fingers into her soft hair, caressing it for a while before tilting his head and lowering himself slowly. He parted her tear-stained lips and pushed his tongue in deeply.

***

They stayed another night at the inn, situated on the border between Calis and Nortelli.

Thanks to that, Stella was able to hold Islay with her bare body from early evening until the shadows of night thickened.

She reached out and touched him as much as she wanted, wrapping her arms around his neck. Islay, unable to control himself under her awkward warmth, pressed his forehead against her chest and panted heavily. His breathing was rough, like that of a beast about to snap its leash.

However, he still did not penetrate her or cause her pain. Nor did he release his fluids onto her body as he had the first time.

Having fully learned how to stimulate a woman’s body, Islay only devoted himself to heightening Stella’s pleasure. He touched her soaking body, trailing kisses all over her. Every touch was meant solely for her pleasure.

Receiving his caresses from head to toe, Stella drifted into sleep. Even in her sleep, she felt his fingers twirling her hair and touching her ear and the soft downy skin of her cheeks.

She liked it, so even in her hazy state, she buried her face deeper into his shoulder. Sharing a bed, they spent the entire night without leaving an inch of space between them.

Stella had never fallen asleep in the same bed as another person in her life.

She thought it would be uncomfortable and awkward, especially since the inn’s bed wasn’t even that spacious, but it wasn’t like that at all. The shared warmth was comforting. Stella kept burrowing into him, nuzzling her nose against him like a cat seeking warmth on a cold winter day.

It was likely Islay’s first time sharing a bed with someone else as well, so did he feel the same way? Could they sleep in the same bed even after returning to the Ice Castle…?

Stella didn’t want Islay to isolate himself in his self-imposed tower. If possible, she wanted to endure the boundless darkness with him for as long as possible.

Now, she fully understood what “desire” Islay had spoken of as he foresaw his own end. She had unconsciously accepted her fate, and from the moment she realized it had an end, she didn’t want to leave his side. She wanted to be greedy for even just a little longer.

Whether Islay would agree with her decision, she couldn’t tell.

“…Islay.”

When the cold dawn light seeped through the window, Stella, who was half-awake, called for him.

The man, who still had his face buried in her chest until then, lifted his head. His face showed no trace of sleepiness.

“It’s dawn… Haven’t you slept?”

“It felt like a waste to spend time without awareness.”

Answering nonchalantly, he sucked hard on her plump breast. Her pale flesh jiggled and made an embarrassing friction sound.

“Mm… Are we returning to Calis now?”

“A little later.”

Replying shortly, Islay grabbed her breast and lowered his head further. His dark hair tickled her ribs, abdomen, and rounded mound.