MTFBMP Chapter 56

From a rational standpoint, Adele was absolutely not someone I should like.  

 

He was someone who might try to kill me one day. For all I knew, he might try to kill me as soon as he regained his full memories.  

 

‘Just because I gave him my body doesn’t mean all his memories have returned, right?’

 

If Adele were to open his eyes, I might have to run away immediately, clothes or not. I imagined it for a moment and let out a self-deprecating chuckle.  

 

I didn’t have the strength to run, nor did I have the mental clarity to want to.  

 

‘I’ve been tamed. By Adele.’

 

The moment we fell from the sky to the ground, it felt like my heart had also plummeted helplessly into a pit of fire.  

 

If it had been a beastly act of mating, I might have shaken it off and gotten up by now. But Adele didn’t do that.  

 

Even if later we both lost ourselves and sought each other out, until then, Adele had gently approached me, always seeking my permission.  

 

“I wish you hadn’t been so gentle.”  

 

I never thought I’d say those words to Adele. 

 

It wasn’t part of the plan, and it certainly wasn’t something I wanted.  

 

“What am I supposed to do now?”  

 

The human heart is like flowing water. Once it starts flowing in one direction, it deepens in an instant, and turning back is far too difficult.  

 

“Adele has to take responsibility for all of this.”  

 

If things continued like this, I felt like I’d end up pouring out pointless resentment. 

 

Just as I was about to get up to look for my clothes, Adele’s arm, which had been resting on my waist, tightened. His arm firmly gripped my waist and pulled me closer to him.  

 

“A master who tells her servant to take responsibility.”  

 

Adele’s low voice came from above my head. He sounded pleased. I had a feeling he’d been awake all along. His voice was clear as if he’d never been asleep.  

 

“My master is quite spoiled.”  

 

“So you dislike it? Are you going to ask why?”  

 

“Of course not.”

 

Adele laughed as he spoke, the sound light and carefree. 

 

There was no growl of a beast, and the heat that had been boiling between us had completely subsided.  

 

I was still embarrassed about being naked, but since we’d already seen everything there was to see, pretending otherwise would have been even more awkward. 

 

Trying not to dwell on it, I opened my mouth.  

 

“How’s your body feeling?”  

 

“Lighter than ever.”  

 

His voice carried a sense of joy. I could feel it was the truth, not something fabricated.  

 

“Then… do you remember anything else?”  

 

“If you’re talking about during our mating, I remember everything perfectly.”  

 

“That’s not what I meant.”  

 

Embarrassed, I slapped his chest. At this point, even that didn’t feel awkward anymore.  

 

“I still don’t remember anything from before I met you.”  

 

I reflexively felt relieved and sighed. I wondered if I should comfort him, but unlike Adele, the thought of lying made it hard for me to speak.  

 

“That’s a shame. I thought if we went all the way, you’d become a complete human.”  

 

“I thought so, too. But…”  

 

Adele paused for a moment before speaking again.  

 

“It’s strange. I don’t feel any regret at all.”  

 

This was Adele’s biggest problem. He made me let my guard down in an instant, then ruthlessly exploited the cracks in my defenses.  

 

I couldn’t help but start to hope.  

 

“So… is there no other way now?”  

 

“Hmm. Maybe we need to do it a few more times.”  

 

“What?”  

 

At his words, I reflexively sat halfway up. Adele loosened the arm that had been holding my waist.  

 

“You’re saying you want to… do it again?”  

 

“Do you dislike it?”  

 

I hadn’t expected him to ask that. I was about to say that this should be the last time, but when I opened my mouth, no words came out.  

 

Floundering like a goldfish, I quickly turned my head away.

 

I felt ashamed for thinking it might not be so bad. Heat rose to my face, and my naked body started to feel self-conscious again.  

 

“I want to put some clothes on.”  

 

As I sat up completely, Adele’s wing draped over my shoulder, following me as if we were sharing a blanket.  

 

While trying to balance myself, I ended up sitting on top of Adele. He was looking up at me, and I was looking down at him.  

 

“You have to keep covering me with your wings, okay?”  

 

Adele had promised not to allow even a small insect near me, but I still didn’t have the confidence to stand proudly naked in the open, exposed on all sides. 

 

As I tried to get up, Adele, far from obeying my command, grabbed my waist.  

 

“Huh, Adele?”  

 

“You haven’t answered me yet, Master.”  

 

Adele, who had immediately pulled me back down, pressed for an answer.  

 

“What am I supposed to answer?”  

 

“I asked if you dislike me.”  

 

I had tried to play dumb and avoid the question, but he threw an even more difficult and tricky one at me. 

 

Wasn’t this essentially a question about my very existence?  

 

“…This feels like cheating.”  

 

He cleverly twisted the question, making it seem like the same issue while steering it in his favor, all while pretending to be innocent.  

 

“I have no choice but to give everything to my Master without lies. That is the fate of a beast bound by soul.”  

 

“Why are you saying things like that?”  

 

“I cannot refuse my Master, but my Master can refuse me.”  

 

His face returned to that of an innocent beast awaiting orders.  

 

“But… even dogs bite their owners sometimes.”  

 

Of course, Adele wasn’t a dog. The awkward addition to my statement sounded clumsy even to my ears.  

 

I hadn’t planned to say something like that. 

 

Regret washed over me as soon as the words left my mouth. I bit my lower lip and averted my gaze again.  

 

“Dogs can do that.”  

 

Adele readily accepted my words.

 

“Of course, I don’t like being compared to a dog from the start…”  

 

Despite his words, he didn’t seem particularly displeased.  

 

“I’m not a dog. I’m Theia’s Adele.”  

 

And then he immediately countered my statement.  

 

Strangely, it felt like tears might pour out at any moment.  

 

“I don’t dislike you.”  

 

That’s why it’s an even bigger problem.  

 

Perhaps sensing the melancholy in my voice, Adele gently stroked me. Whether it was because of his beastly form or not, his instincts were sharp.  

 

“Don’t leave me, Theia.”  

 

Every time he called my name, my heart rattled. It felt like it was being squeezed painfully, contracting and twisting in agony.  

 

Adele comforted me with soothing touches, as if coaxing me. His hand, wrapping around my waist as if perfectly measured, was soft and natural. My relaxed skin welcomed his touch.  

 

“Ah.”  

 

Adele’s large hand reached my chest with just a slight movement upward. 

 

The hand that had been slowly gliding downward gently grasped and then released. My firm chest yielded to his touch.  

 

“Hmm. Adele.”  

 

Calling his name was becoming more and more natural. His original name kept fading and slipping away in my mind.  

 

“Keep calling me.”  

 

Adele pulled my arm, guiding me to lower myself onto him. Once again, our chests pressed together. 

 

Our lips met in an instant.  

 

“Is your body still hurting?”  

 

It was a belated question.  

 

“It’s still not enough.”  

 

Adele replied as if he knew exactly what I was trying to escape from, giving me the answer I wanted to hear. 

 

Using that as an excuse, I kissed him again.  

 

💫

 

The beast dreamed for the first time in a long while.  

 

He was in human form, wearing unfamiliar clothes.  

 

When he raised his gaze, a meticulously tendered garden spread out before his eyes. 

 

Trees trimmed into sharp shapes lined the path. The beast stepped onto that path with both feet.

 

As he stepped out into the bright, open space, a massive statue came into view. 

 

Beside the statue of a human figure lay a sculpture of a griffin, crafted in his image.  

 

The human statue looked vaguely familiar.  

 

‘It’s the person from Theia’s coin.’

 

After staring at the face for a while, he lowered his gaze and noticed a basket that he hadn’t seen before. 

 

Anyone else would have immediately recognized it as a cradle, but the beast still couldn’t distinguish such things.  

 

He slowly approached the basket.  

 

When he peered inside, what he saw was… 

 

💫

 

The place where Dion finally opened his eyes was a soft sandy beach.  

 

His flickering consciousness returned, only to be swept away again like a wave.  

 

‘Where am I now?’

 

As his mind filled with such questions, a large bird standing guard beside him nudged him gently.