Chapter 4: Second Request
The cold facets of the memory crystal clicked into Caelum’s eager palm.
"She resisted at first," Leo said, his voice flat and even. "Then she opened for me."
Caelum clutched the crystal to his chest, retreating into the corridor as the second-period bell began to chime.
Morning classes. Sword theory. Basic elemental control practice.
Students talked excitedly about the coming Ranking Battles and which noble houses were sending scouts to watch the arena matches. Instructors gave their standard warnings about maintaining noble dignity and avoiding academy scandals.
Leo kept his head down, remaining in the lower-mid tier during practical training drills.
His mana felt noticeably denser than before, but Leo carefully suppressed the pulse of his core. No one noticed.
Leo saw Elara twice throughout the day.
The first time was in the grand lecture hall. She sat in the front row as always, her pure-white hair neatly braided, her posture immaculate, answering advanced questions with cold precision.
Rank 1. The proud crown jewel of House Snowveil.
The second time was during the midday break in the central courtyard. She stood surrounded by her usual circle of noble companions.
She laughed politely at a comment from one of the girls, the sound bright and practiced. But when her sharp golden eyes swept across the courtyard and caught Leo standing near the fountain, her expression froze for half a second.
Her face remained calm, but her fingers tightened perceptibly around the porcelain cup in her hand.
She looked away first. Leo did not approach her.
Caelum was also present on the grounds.
He trained harder than usual on the sparring field, swinging his heavy practice blade with aggressive precision while fellow cadets cheered his technique.
No one suspected that the flawless ducal heir had spent the previous night watching a recording of his betrothed losing her virginity to another man.
Late in the afternoon, after the final bell rang, Leo was walking along the tree-lined path toward the dormitory when a quiet voice called out from the shadows.
"Leo."
Leo turned.
Elara stood beneath the wide canopy of an ancient oak. She was alone.
Her silken white hair drifted in the autumn breeze. Her golden eyes looked exhausted and furious at the same time.
She glanced around to verify the path was deserted, then spoke in a hushed, strained voice.
"Caelum spoke to me."
Leo remained silent and waited.
Elara’s jaw tightened.
"He wants... it to happen again."
The words tasted like poison on her tongue.
Leo looked at her with an unreadable expression. "I told him to talk to you first. I also told him one night was the deal."
"I know," she said, her voice sharp and bitter. "He still asked. He kept begging. He said he could not stop thinking about the crystal. He said if I truly loved him, I would understand."
She looked down at the stone path, her fists clenching so hard her knuckles turned white.
"I argued with him for almost an hour. I told him it was disgusting. I told him I already endured it once for his sake, and that I never wanted to see your face again."
She lifted her head, her golden eyes blazing with suppressed anguish.
"But he looked at me like he was breaking apart. He said his sword core needs the pressure. He promised no one would ever discover it."
Leo said nothing, watching her struggle against her own noble upbringing.
"I hate this," she whispered, her chest heaving beneath her tight uniform jacket. "I hate that he asked. I hate that I am standing here again. And I hate that a part of me... still wants to make him happy."
Her voice dropped to a barely audible murmur.
"So I agreed. One more time. That is all. After tonight, I am done. Do you understand?"
"You do not have to go through with this," Leo said calmly. "You can still walk away."
Elara’s eyes flashed with fierce resentment.
"Do not pretend you care about my dignity. You already took everything from me the first night."
She looked away, fighting the humiliating crimson rising on her cheeks.
"Just... do what he wants so he stops looking at me with those desperate eyes. Tonight. Same place. Your room. After evening self-study ends. Do not make me wait."
She brushed past him without another word, her back straight and her steps measured.
Leo watched her silhouette disappear down the path.
One more time, she had claimed. But in the world of desires and ancient bloodlines, one more time was simply the beginning of total surrender.
Leo turned and headed back toward his quarters.
When the evening bells tolled the end of self-study, the campus grew quiet. Magic streetlamps illuminated the foggy stone walkways.
Leo sat in the armchair in his room, waiting in the dim lantern light.
A soft knock came at the door. Three measured taps.
Leo opened it.
Elara stood in the doorway. She wore her formal academy uniform, fully buttoned to the collar, her white hair tied back tightly. Her face was pale, but her golden eyes met his without wavering.
She stepped inside the moment he made space.
Leo shut the heavy oak door and turned the lock. The click echoed loudly in the quiet room.
Elara stood in the center of the chamber, her arms folded across her chest. She glanced at the neatly made bed, then quickly looked at the wall.
"Do not speak more than necessary," she said, her voice icy. "Just finish it so I can leave."
Leo leaned back against the locked door, his dark eyes analyzing her rigid stance.
"You can still walk out," he said.
"Stop saying that," she snapped, turning her head toward him. "I already gave Caelum my word. I will not break my promise to him a second time."
Her aristocratic pride was still fighting, but the foundation was already crumbling.
Leo pushed off the door and closed the distance between them. Elara did not retreat; she only tilted her chin upward in defiance.
When Leo reached out and unbuttoned the high collar of her jacket, her breath caught in her throat.
Leo parted the dark jacket, then unfastened the white linen shirt beneath. Smooth, porcelain skin was revealed to the warm lantern light.
He reached behind her back and unhooked her bra. It slipped down her slender arms.
Her full, delicate breasts were exposed, her pink nipples tightening instantly from the cool room air and sheer nervous tension. She did not cover herself, maintaining her proud glare even as her pulse raced visibly at her throat.
Leo guided her toward the bed. She sat on the edge, then lay back against the pillows as he pressed his hand gently against her bare shoulder.
Her silver-white hair cascaded across the dark sheets.
He undressed quickly and climbed over her, his tall frame casting a heavy shadow across her body. When he leaned down and claimed her lips, she did not freeze as rigidly as the first night.
Her lips were still inexperienced, but they parted under his pressure. A soft, involuntary gasp escaped her throat when his tongue brushed against hers.
Leo trailed his kisses down her jawline to the sensitive curve of her neck.
Elara turned her head to the side, unintentionally granting him full access. When his mouth closed over her right breast, his tongue swirling around her stiff nipple, her back arched off the mattress with a sharp, ragged breath.
"Do not... make me make those sounds," she pleaded in a choked whisper, frustrated by her own physical responsiveness.
Leo did not answer. He moved to her other breast, lavishing the same intense attention until both peaks were glistening and sensitive.
Then he moved lower.
When he pressed her slender thighs apart, her legs gave way with far less resistance than before.
She was already wet. Her body had remembered the sensation from their first night.
He parted her folds and traced her sensitive core with his tongue.
Elara’s hips jerked upward. Her small hands gripped the bedsheets in a desperate attempt to stay silent.
"Leo... please... just put it in..." she begged, her voice thick with sweet shame.
Leo probed her entrance with two calloused fingers. Her inner walls clenched tightly around him, slick and scorching hot.
He stimulated her swollen bud with his thumb while his fingers stretched her inner passage. Elara’s breathing broke into erratic hitches, her toes curling against the sheets.
When Leo aligned the head of his shaft against her entrance and pushed forward, her golden eyes widened.
He slid deep inside her with one smooth, unyielding stroke.
"Ah... full... again..." she moaned softly, her head tilting back into the pillows as his length filled her to the hilt.
Leo paused for a moment to let her adjust, then began a deep, rhythmic drive.
The wet friction of their bodies echoed rhythmically through the quiet room. Elara’s full breasts swayed with every impact. Her slender legs naturally lifted, hooking securely around his waist to pull him deeper.
Her internal walls pulsed and milked his length with every stroke.
"I hate this..." she panted, her fingers digging into his broad shoulders. "I still hate... that my body likes this..."
Leo kissed her deeply, swallowing her protests. She kissed back with growing desperation, her hips rising to meet every downward drive.
Leo reached between them, rubbing her engorged clitoris in tight circles.
Within moments, Elara’s entire body went rigid.
"Ah! I am coming... again...!"
She cried out into his mouth as a violent orgasm ripped through her lower body. Her walls clamped down in powerful, rhythmic spasms, drenching his shaft in clear, warm fluid.
Leo continued thrusting steadily through the peak of her release, quietly assimilating the released frost essence into his pathways.
When her spasms subsided, he shifted her onto her hands and knees, taking her from behind.
The new angle drove his length into the deepest recesses of her womb. Elara let out a loud, breathless cry, her white hair swaying across her glistening shoulders as she rode the waves of intense pleasure.
She reached her second climax within minutes, her voice breaking into sweet, helpless sobs.
Feeling his own release approach, Leo pulled her back against his chest, lifted one of her slender legs, and drove home with powerful, unyielding strokes.
He buried himself completely and released, pumping thick pulses of warm seed deep into her trembling core.
Elara gasped, her body shuddering through the aftershocks as she absorbed his seed.
When it was over, Leo stayed inside her for several minutes as their breathing slowly stabilized.
Elara stared blankly at the ceiling, her arm draped over her eyes to hide her flushed face.
Leo withdrew and sat back. Elara slowly sat up, her white hair disheveled and her pale skin marked with light red flushes.
She looked down at the wet mess coating her inner thighs, drawing a shaky breath.
"This was the last time," she murmured, her voice hoarse. "Tell Caelum that. I will not do it again."
She stood up on trembling legs and dressed herself in complete silence.
When she reached the door, she paused with her hand on the iron handle.
"Do not look at me in the academy," she said without turning around. "Pretend none of this exists."
She slipped out into the dark hallway, pulling the door shut behind her.
Leo remained on the bed, feeling the newly devoured frost essence circulating through his pathways, further expanding his internal mana reserves.
Elara collapsed against the pillows, her golden eyes glassy as she whispered: "This cannot happen again..."
"It will," Leo murmured against the curve of her neck. "Because your fiancé will ask for it."