Chapter 8.1

Startled, Rosaline stumbled on her feet.

“…Why?”

Why could I see, and now I can’t?

She rubbed her eyes. The light that had returned only moments ago faded again into darkness. A throbbing headache pulsed through her skull like a warning.

Rosaline reached out, her hand finding one of the corridor’s pillars as she winced. That was when someone gently took hold of her elbow from behind.

“Are you alright?”

“Lord Aphlen…”

She turned her head. Just a moment ago, she could clearly make out his eyes, nose, and mouth. His face had been distinct, but now, it blurred into nothing.

Rosaline, stunned, couldn’t even finish saying his name. Her mouth parted, but no sound came out.

“You can’t see?”

“I-I don’t know.”

Her fingertips turned cold. Rosaline turned her head, trying to look around—“trying” being the only word for it. Her entire field of vision was pitch black. She couldn’t distinguish anything.

Then Synox used one hand to gently hold both of her cheeks.

He tilted her face slightly and spoke, calm but firm.

“Try to look at me.”

Rosaline blinked in the direction where he was surely standing, looming over her. She could clearly and distinctly feel her eyelids moving, but her sight gave her nothing.

His hand swept across her forehead, where cold sweat from the pain had begun to bead. Rosaline flinched. Something felt off. His hand, which was usually so warm, was cool to the touch.

“This is a result of mana depletion.”

With those words, Synox released the grip that had been holding her head in place. But his palm remained against her cheek.

The last time she’d felt this way, faint and disoriented, Synox had kissed her. Remembering that, Rosaline hastily grabbed his wrist.

“W-wait.”

“…There’s no time to find someone else right now.”

“That’s not what I mean. This place… someone might see.”

They were in the corridor that opened to the garden. Any servant could walk by at any moment.

Synox calmly peeled her hand off his wrist. And then, not long after, he firmly took her hand in his own. It didn’t hurt, but his grip was strong enough that Rosaline flinched, unable to pull away.

Synox began striding off with long, purposeful steps. As she followed him and stepped onto the familiar stone path, Rosaline realized where they were headed.

The glass conservatory.

“Lady Aria is in the greenhouse.”

Remembering what the maid had said, Rosaline hurriedly tried to stop Synox.

“We can’t go in there. My sister, Aria, she’s supposed to be inside.”

“There’s no one there.”

Even so, anxiety twisted in her chest, but Synox opened the door to the greenhouse without hesitation, leaving her no time to argue further.

Once inside, Synox lifted Rosaline and sat her down somewhere. She squirmed a little. Her feet didn’t touch the ground. It was the tea table, just like the one she had sat on back then.

Rosaline, now unsettled by her blindness, shifted slightly. Synox pressed down gently on her thigh with one hand. It didn’t hurt, but his message was clear. Stay still.

His hand gently grasped her chin, and their lips met.

The first thing Rosaline noticed was that, with her sight cut off, her other senses had grown sharper.

Before delving into her mouth, Synox gently brushed their lips against each other. The soft flesh grew slick with saliva, and only then did he carefully pry her lips open.

His hot tongue dragged slowly across the sensitive inner lining of her mouth, the sensation tickling her. A faint nasal moan escaped Rosaline before she could stop it. She clutched his wrist with both hands. His thick, firm wrist thrummed with veins that pulsed wildly under her touch.

So even this man… he had a heartbeat, too.

And yet, Rosaline sometimes felt like she was the only one whose heart was in this.

Synox always moved with certainty. So much so that it was hard to believe he carried such a chaotic, impulsive organ inside him at all.

Slurp, slurrrp. The sloppy, wet noises between them grew louder. With her vision gone, they sounded even more raw, more explicit… Wait– she still couldn’t see?

Startled, Rosaline forgot to move her tongue and sucked in a deep breath. Tears welled up in the corners of her frightened eyes.

Sensing something was off, Synox pulled away. Their soaked lips parted with an unmistakably lewd squelch.

“…Why are you crying?”

He asked, his voice slightly roughened. Rosaline, on the verge of tears, moved her eyes in the direction of his voice. Her fingers clenched more tightly around his wrist.

“W-what if my sight never comes back?”

“That won’t happen.”

He said it with certainty, and then dipped his head. Something soft and damp pressed against the wet corners of her eyes. Chu, chu. Synox peppered small kisses along her tear-streaked face. They were gentle, like someone trying to soothe a child, and gradually, Rosaline’s hiccups subsided.

Once she calmed down, a wave of embarrassment rushed in. She mumbled a late excuse that sounded unconvincing.

“I was just s-scared…”

“It’s alright.”

Synox leaned in again. This time, he skipped the formalities. His lips parted hers immediately, and his tongue coaxed hers to follow, brushing lightly against it, urging it to come into his mouth.

Rosaline let herself be led, awkwardly touching the roof of his mouth with her tongue. Even to her, it felt clumsy, but Synox remained steady, guiding her patiently.

When he gently bit down on her tongue with his teeth, just enough to feel it, not enough to hurt, Rosaline let out a soft sound from her nose.

“Hnng…”

As if in response to her mewl, Synox reached behind her and hooked his fingers into the strings of her dress.

Just as the heat of his touch started to feel familiar again, like it used to, light began to return to her vision.

Oh, thank god.

Rosaline blinked, her flickering eyes adjusting.

“Haah.”

With a quiet breath, their lips finally parted.

Synox pulled her into his arms without hesitation. His broad hand found her waist and slowly stroked down along her back.

Resting against his wide chest, Rosaline stared blankly into the air. The greenhouse’s door wavered faintly in her sight. Almost like someone had just left…

As she squinted, trying to focus, Synox tugged at the dress string.

Startled, Rosaline jolted back from him.

A flicker of surprise crossed the sculpted features of his face. Seeing his hand frozen midair, Rosaline realized she’d pulled away too abruptly.

She hurried to offer a half-explanation.

“My sight’s back.”

“…”

“So I think it’s okay to stop now.”

* * *

A few days later.

Rosaline covered her mouth with her fan and let out a small sigh.

She was currently standing in the Crown Prince’s banquet hall with the Count and Countess of Rensier, along with Aria.

Her mind, however, was elsewhere.

The kiss in the greenhouse had made it clear. To fix whatever was going wrong with her body, she needed contact with Synox. Or more precisely, with someone who possessed mana.

What do I even do now?

Faced with such a bleak reality, another sigh escaped her. Aria, standing beside her, cast her a sideways glance.

Tonight, the sisters wore nearly identical velvet gowns, with only minor differences in cut and color. Rosaline’s was blood red, while Aria’s was a deeper shade of green than her eyes.

Matching heels of similar height, the same silk gloves, and handheld fans with different jeweled tips, together, they looked less like sisters and more like twins.

Of course, there were a few differences.

Aria was still recovering and prone to headaches, so she wore her hair down to avoid any pressure. Rosaline, by contrast, had her hair twisted up to reveal her neck, the style she often preferred.