The moment the witch approached him, Julius saw it coming.

Therefore, she stood no chance.

Not to mention, the witch’s small figure, which had once put him under a deadlock, hadn’t only been weathered by the heavy rain, but also weighed by fatigue.

Still, in the next second, the mellow, sinking, sound of the mattress could be heard along with the soft creaking of the bed as he landed on his back.

The otherwise preventable fall happened as easily as if it was inevitable.

The witch quickly climbed on top of him. A victorious smile spread on her face. As she lowered her gaze to match him, a cascade of lustrous black hair fell from her shoulder. Her hands sank on the bed on both sides of his head. The entire time, Julius maintained eye contact with her.

With the room’s only source of light behind her, there shouldn’t be a way for her eyes to be that brilliant.

There shouldn’t be, which was why he kept staring into them, trying to figure out the reason.

That was all that was there to it.

Before long, he noticed that despite the innocence reflected within her eyes, the witch was still showing the expression of utter immodesty as usual.

Her grin was getting wider by seconds.

It was obvious to Julius that the witch was patting herself for her ‘success.’

“...It seems that I’m still able to push you down despite being tired.”

Towards the witch’s statement, Julius showed a hint of a smile. 

“I guess.”

“...” The witch became slightly appalled—and even more so after a brief period of time passed without any of them doing anything.

“W, why, Julius, you’re being quite obedient today—haha, just kidding! After all, there’s no way, right! I bet you’re onto something!”

Did the witch want him to resist or something?

...Now that he recalled it, during the first time the witch had pushed him down, she seemed to be having the time of her life doing whatever she pleased to him despite his blatant misery.

The type of individual who derived joy from others’ suffering, Julius was aware that they existed. It was perhaps the equivalent of a predator playing with his prey, knowing full well that it was his soon to be food.

Indeed, and the witch most likely was one of them.

Being aware of that, Julius could totally see himself giving her the exact opposite. Knowing that his suffering was precisely what she wanted, he would make sure that was exactly what she didn’t get.

But that wasn’t what was happening at the moment.

There was neither nausea, nor resentment. Instead of his nails digging deep into his palm due to having to pretend he was willing, both of his arms peacefully rested on his sides. His mind was a perfect calm.

Which was why he was asking himself the same—

—why am I not resisting?

Despite so, he still had to come up with a reason. His prestige as the knight templar demanded so.

“Not at all.”

The witch was surprised by that.

“W, what do you mean? If you have forgotten, then let me remind you—I’m the witch! The creature you despised the most is now towering over you! If you aren’t planning anything, then at least resist, or at the very, very, least, get angry, maybe...?”

“Will that stop you?”

“Huh?”

“Be it high-ranking amulets, expert-level spells, and even my last resort—which is to self-destruct, I have exhausted everything—to no avail. Therefore, I don’t think my resistance will be tantamount to anything.”

“T, that’s... still—...”

The moment the witch showed a blatant remorse in her expression was arguably when Julius realized his time had come.

The witch knew of his derision towards the witches well.

At the same time, the witch’s brazenness was also well-known to him.

As in, the witch was so bold, she wouldn’t think twice about doing something—

—that, unless she didn’t plan to do anything from the start.

“You can do whatever you want.”

Which is, nothing.

As those words left his mouth, the corners of his lips rose.

His previous words, which could be taken as his admittance to his absolute powerlessness, could elicit pity from the majority of those who heard them. However, they didn’t match the calm smile which currently hung on his lips.

The fact that he could nonchalantly say those words; the fact that he could show such a cool expression—nothing else spelled a challenge as clearly as that.

“You...! Watch what you are saying, especially to a witch...!”

The witch became panicked, then aggravated. All the while, Julius’ expression remained the same.

“Final warning! If you keep underestimating me, then I won’t hesitate to—!”

 “’To’...?”

“T, to do...—”

“’To do’ what...?”

“To do forbidden, unspeakable, acts to you—!!!”

As much as he wanted to keep his calm expression, which seemed to taunt the witch most effectively, Julius couldn’t help but find the witch’s quack attempt to intimidate him amusing.

“Like what?”

The witch’s eyes grew twice their size as she spoke in bewilderment.

“Right now, shouldn’t you be scared? Where is your sense of danger—!?”

“Well, if I don’t know what kind of peril I’m in, it’s difficult to be scared.”

“That sounds a bit off—more importantly, the peril I’m talking about is that I—I will eat you up!”

When he saw the witch’s eager eyes, there was a rippling sensation in his heart. But, just like a mundane ripple, it was soon forgotten.

“Is that so?”

“Yes! I will eat you up, real nice and slow!”

“Then do it.”

Julius didn’t say that because he actually wanted to be eaten by the witch.

To be more precise, he said it because he knew the witch wouldn’t actually do it.

However, as for the basis of his clarity, he didn’t know to put it concisely—

—or if he had one in the first place.

Maybe, it was as the witch had said.

Perhaps, it was indeed faith.

***

Until the very end, the knight templar stood unwavering.

W, w, why isn’t it working?!

The witch’s main objective was to trigger the knight’s loathing towards her.

Under such a close proximity, said objective should have been fulfilled a few minutes ago. The moment she tried to push him down, he was supposed to push her back. Afterwards, he was supposed to scorn her for taking advantage of his good intentions.

However, none of that happened.

As he laid under her, his gaze wasn’t of derision, nor was it of resignation, either.

In fact, the witch got an impression that he was messing with her.

It was as if he knew her plan had long gone awry.

Under her eyes, Julius suddenly crossed his arms.

“So, when will you begin?”

“D, don’t rush me! I’m contemplating where I should start!”

Oh, he knows about it, alright!!!

His smirk was daring her. Both panic and annoyance rose into her head.

I didn’t plan to do anything since the start, so what—!?

Or, did he think I was lying? Is that why he’s so haughty about it?

Indeed, in folk tales, children were the ones who usually got tossed into the witch’s cauldron and got eaten afterwards.

Did he think she was incapable of doing the same to him just because he was bigger? Was that it?

Didn’t he realize what kind of position he was in?

She had already managed to push him down, which meant she was quarter-way done!

Recalling such a fact filled the witch with confidence.

She grinned back at him.

“Let’s see if you can still act so smug after this!”

Besides, as if a witch of her caliber needed to do any of that if she wanted to eat someone up!

Amidst her contemplation, the bed creaked. With his elbows sinking into the mattress, Julius propped his upper body.

Whatever remained of her thoughts were immediately sucked into a pair of grey eyes which hastily drew closer to her.

In the next moment, his face passed hers as the majority of her vision got obscured by his shoulder and neck.

The fact that her face wasn’t buried into his shoulder made her realize the thin, almost imperceptible, distance that was nonetheless there.

Whether Julius was unconscious of it or not, he was maintaining a distance with her. Regardless of his provocation, there was a line that he dared not cross.

But, that tiny, tiny, gap wasn’t enough—far from enough.

Before long, his scent inadvertently greeted her nose.

Amidst her pool of questions, a certain epiphany emerged—

—That man was forsaken by God.

The scent that had just pervaded her nostril was one that she terribly, utterly, absolutely liked.

The witch was aware that she didn’t have a way with words.

However, if she were to liken his scent to the fragrance of a flower, then it was the fragrance of her favorite flower.

If it was the aroma of a perfume, then it was her favorite perfume.

If it was a dessert, her favorite dessert.

If it was tea, her favorite tea.

To put it simply, he smelled precisely like her favorite everything.

It wasn’t a normal kind of scent, either. The scent was the result of a blend between the man’s body odor, and his magic. For it to smell that good, especially when he was right before a witch... it must be some sort of cruel joke.

Before she realized it, both of her hands were tightly clenching the comforter, which had fallen to her lap.

Julius whispered something into her ear, the hotness of his breath revealing the close proximity of his lips, and causing her a slight shudder. He asked her about whether or not she needed help.

However, at that point in time, words were no longer coherent to her—

—Well, almost.

Judging from the smell, his magic must have been delicious as heck...!

Speaking from experience, the sensation of his magic indeed didn’t disappoint.

Nevertheless, back when she first absorbed his magic, she did it with the tip of her finger. Although it felt exquisite, if she were to use her mouth, she’d be able to properly taste it.

Which was why—

—...I, I want to have a drop...! If it’s just a drop, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind, right...!? T-then, since it’s just a drop, I think it’s alright for me to take a swig! I want to guzzle it down...

...no, no, I can’t! If I were to do so, he will be a magician no longer!

Besides, he isn’t food! That’s right, how thoughtless of me!

I have to reign it in. That’s right, all I have to do is slowly back away—

—Julius decided to lean even closer.

He said something again, but his scent spoke louder than his words.

Akin to the tantalizing words of a Devil, it made her reconsider—

—but, what if, figuratively speaking, he’s indeed food?

The witch gulped.

Now, how delicious would he taste? Would it be as quenching as a grassy, mildly sweet, milk tea? Or, would the sweetness leave an overbearing aftertaste just like that of a melted brown sugar?

No, bad, bad...!

Think about it from Julius’ perspective as a human!

Surely, he doesn’t want that either!

—But wait, didn’t he say yes before...?

Then—

—Before the witch could finish her thought, the door to Julius’ room was opened.

***

Despite knowing that she wouldn’t make it in time, the witch scrambled for the shower. However, Julius was faster than her.

With a swift movement, he hadn’t only pulled her back to his side, but also the comforter, which had fallen on the bed.

After Julius had shifted his position so that his back was facing the door, he pulled the comforter up so that it covered her entire person. From a bystander’s point of view, he seemed to be tucked in and asleep with his back facing the door.

Beneath the comforter, being pressed against his chest, however, was the witch.

Before he turned towards the door, he sternly reminded her.

“Remain still.”

Oh, if only...

Besides, it wasn’t as if she could do anything else beside that. His arm, which draped on her back, seemed to have transformed into the strongest of metal.

Stuck against his body, especially with his neck right in front of her nose, the scent only intensified.

As it was, she had no choice but to be assaulted by his good smell.

The witch realized that the one being toyed by fate wasn’t him, but her.

As if on cue, the sound of footsteps echoed inside the room.

It soon stopped. It seemed that the person wasn’t expecting anyone to be inside.

“Huh...? C, Captain Visconti, I didn’t know you'd returned...!”

A female voice could be heard, which mixed with surprise and awkwardness.

Julius immediately answered.

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Thorne, I’ve been feeling under the weather, as such, I decided to retire early.”

“I, I see! Is that so! Ah, pardon me, I came here for the daily cleaning duty. You gave me permission to just enter whenever you aren’t here, so...”

The voice seemed to belong to a middle-aged woman. The woman itself was most likely a janitor—

“Captain Julius, how are you feeling right now? Are you dizzy, perhaps? Or, nauseous?”

—and a chatty one, at that.

“I’d like to express my gratitude for your concern. However, it’s unnecessary. I’m merely feeling a little fatigued, a brief nap would surely do the trick.”

Normally, the knight templar’s ability to arrange such magnificent sentences in a span of mere seconds would astonish the witch to high heavens.

As of the present, the witch didn’t have the luxury to think about any of that.

Her self-control was rapidly diminishing. If she could, she’d like to move as far away as possible from him.

She was caught between a rock and a hard place.

Maybe literally, considering how tight his grip on her was, not allowing a single movement.

Well, that was to be expected, after all, his position—and most importantly, his own life, were on the line.

The witch would like to assist him with that, and honestly, the solution was quite simple—

—to remain calm.

However, to the present witch, that was the most difficult task in the world.

B, before, he said ‘do it’, right...?

Surely, I didn’t mishear it, especially at such a close distance...

He said ‘do it’, which mean—which mean—

—but wait, what if by ‘do it’, he meant ‘don’t do it’, I mean, it’s Julius we’re talking about, here...

B-but, he was so confident when he said it, so it’s a ‘yes’!

B, b, but, what if his ‘yes’ actually means ‘no’? I read somewhere that it could be the case...

So, so which is it? Does his ‘yes’ mean ‘no’? Or by ‘yes’, does he actually mean ‘yes’—!?!?

As the witch contemplated heavily, the sight of his slender, defenseless, neck graced her in its entirety. His skin was bright and smooth-looking, with no freckles. It was akin to the silky white surface of a steamed bun—and perhaps just as warm, and as delicious. With each of its rise and down, her urge was refreshed anew.

At that moment.

“Indeed, the weather has been harsh lately. Do you need help in procuring medicine?”

“No, I can’t possibly trouble you—”

“—Oh, I’m sure my daughter, Sylvie, will be happy to oblige! Besides, she’s about to run an errand in town, so—”

“—No, I’m serious, it’s unnecessary. I will do it myself later—”

What Julius had just said overlapped with what he previously said—

“—Then do it.”

“—Aah!!”

A second later, the blond-haired man let out a scream. It contained a mixture of shock ...and pain. He immediately hid his face from the janitor.

No wonder, the witch had just bitten the side of his neck, after all.

There was no blood, because she wasn’t a certain supernatural being who had that kind of inclination. Regardless, from that place, his magic began to flow out.

Almost instantly, the flavor of his magic spread to her entire body.

It was exquisite, truly so, to the extent that the witch had a brief moment of euphoria where all she could see was a field of shimmering gold.

Even though it was a mere trickle.

That was right. During the last moment, the witch had managed to regain some control, and only sucked a drop of his magic.

Whether she did it in concern of the man’s safety, or because she wanted the enjoyment to last longer—she honestly didn’t know at that point.

All in all, she had no intention of stopping anytime soon.

“C-Captain Visconti—!? What’s wrong—!?”

The janitor began to approach them.

However, Julius immediately stopped her.

“D, don’t come any closer...! I, it might be infectious, so...!”

“But, didn’t you just say that it’s nothing...? Also, just now, you were screaming in pain...”

The witch kept licking the spot she had just bitten in fear of wasting even a single drop.

“Yes, I, experienced... a splitting headache. B, but, it has subsided ...now! T, there, fore, it’s nothing, to worry... —about!”

Throughout his entire explanation, Julius desperately tried to keep his tone even. It was as if he was trying to suppress a scream.

The knight templar probably wanted to voice his wrath towards the witch.

Other than that, the witch couldn’t think of any other reason. After all, she didn’t bite him that hard, and her current action shouldn’t have elicited any kind of pain. She was also experienced in drawing out other’s magic, so it should be no problem.

After no trace of magic was left, the witch began to softly nibble on his neck. Julius’ entire body immediately tensed up.

However, the action didn’t bring the same satisfaction to her when compared to taking an outright bite. Thus, the witch switched to gnawing.

“Mmm...! Mm...”

Helpless whimpers could be heard from above her head.

From the closeness of the voice, and also the fact that his chin kept hitting the top of her head, Ame concluded Julius hadn’t turned around for a while now.

Are you sure that’s a wise thing to do?

Not even a moment later, the confused janitor resumed her step.

“Captain Visconti, it seems that you’re truly ill, I advise that—”

—At that time, Julius turned around, and raised his voice.

“Leave me alone, I beg of you—!! I want to get some rest, please—!!”

“I, I understand! My sincerest apologies!”

As the woman scrambled for the door, Julius rushed to bite a clump of his pillow case like there was no tomorrow. His entire body trembled. Its vibration was transmitted to her through his grip.

The woman had kindly closed the door behind her. Afterwards, her panicked footsteps could be heard echoing within the hall.

...It seems that the uninvited guest has left.

“Alright, it’s time to move on.”