The Nymph Wants to be Plundered - Chapter 21
“……”
“Huh… hoo…”
As he looked down at her, trembling and on the verge of tears, a pang of pity surged ahead of his burning desire. Was it right to force this?
He knew better. He knew the small, precious things a woman needed to ease her mind and body when joining with a man for the first time. Things that would make the memory of their first night something to cherish. A glass of sangria, perhaps, or even a simple piece of candy. But he couldn’t afford such luxuries now.
There was no time. Even the sanctuary wasn’t guaranteed to be safe, and her jasmine tree… it was too fragile.
“I’ll hold you now.”
As if determined to keep his stubborn promise, Cassis’s hands moved to remove the stole draped over her upper body, then moved lower to undress her completely. She lay there, powerless, soon bared to him. He, too, shed his own garments one by one, casting them aside.
The tension between them reached its peak.
‘It’s… it’s starting. It’s really happening…!’
Her body, once limp, began to tremble intermittently. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, her brxxsts shaking faintly with each breath. When Cassis reached out to stroke her side, her body twisted slightly, and a nervous whimper escaped her throat.
“Hng…!”
That was exactly what he wanted. Ignoring her flushed, crumpled face, he buried his nose and mouth into the soft curve of her shoulder. Ah, he could feel it more clearly now—the delicate scent unique to a wood nymph. He lingered there, his lips brushing against her skin as if he wanted to say something.
“Evelyn…”
“Ah, ah…! Mm, hng!”
Caught off guard by the sudden kiss, Evelyn’s response was to cover her mouth with both hands, stifling her cries.
Of course, Cassis had no intention of letting her get away with that. His lips still damp from her skin, he pulled back just enough to whisper, his voice low and commanding.
“Scream all you want, Evelyn.”
Logically, it made no sense. Wasn’t it Cassis himself who had insisted that the method of sharing the World Tree’s life force must remain a secret? But at this moment, reason had no place.
There was no chance for her to protest his contradictory words. He had already stoked her desire, and now he nipped lightly at the spot where his lips had been buried moments ago, his teeth grazing her skin.
Cassis truly believed this was her fault. It was her small act of defiance—biting her lower lip when he declared he would hold her—that had provoked him. Had she simply parted her lips, he might have started with a gentle kiss.
“Ah—hng!”
She let out a sound that was almost a whine, squirming beneath him. The shame of her own scream was unbearable.
Evelyn tried to cover her mouth, to stifle the wanton cries spilling from her lips, but her attempt was futile. His large, lithe body had already risen over her, pinning her down.
The sensation of her hips sinking into the soft bedding made her head spin. Her breath grew shallower. Was this what it felt like to surrender completely? Her arms lay limp at her sides as she called out to him, her voice pleading.
“C-Cassis… my lord…”
“I like the way you say my name.”
He chuckled softly, the sound unexpected. His lips, so perfect that even a hundred sculptors working in tandem could never replicate them, curved into a smile. The way the muscles around his mouth moved was like a dream, too beautiful to be real. As she stared at him, dazed and speechless, her hands, which had been aimlessly searching for something to hold, were suddenly caught in his firm grasp.
Ah—!
“Hng… wait, please…”
“I don’t particularly like this either, Evelyn, but there’s no other way. By tonight, you must surrender yourself completely to me. So endure it.”
“Wha—? Ah, ah…!”
Her flailing wrists were effortlessly brought together and bound as one. She stared in stunned silence as the thick cravat—where had it even come from?—wrapped around her, securing her hands. It wasn’t tight enough to hurt, but the sensation was unbearably strange.
“I’ll release you once your tension eases. Until then, trust yourself to me.”
Cassis, having tied her wrists and raised them above her head, slowly straightened up.
‘Ah…’
With her hands unable to even grip the sheets, Evelyn squeezed her eyes shut, wishing she could flee somewhere, anywhere. But escape was impossible. The path she had taken to enter this chamber had already faded from her mind. How had she gotten here? Where was the exit? What rooms had she passed through? She couldn’t remember.
Left with nothing else to do, Evelyn panted softly, her gaze drifting aimlessly to the patterns on the ceiling. At first, it had all seemed a blur of white, but as she focused, faint shapes emerged. Tiny flowers formed rosette patterns that swirled and spiraled, mirroring the chaos in her mind. What do I do? I’m going crazy… I’m… I…
Before she could gather her thoughts, Cassis returned, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
It was nothing like the teasing, persistent touches he had lavished on the sensitive curve of her shoulder earlier. This was gentle, warm, like a soft breeze filling the spaces between her toes. It felt… nice.
