The Protagonists of Romance Fantasy Novels Have Escaped

92 – 92. Confession, Kiss (2)

—-

The dry sensation enveloping their lips.

Now, a pungent gunpowder scent even evokes longing.

The faint sound of a waltz.

The soft moisture of the outdoor terrace enveloping the surroundings.

Rubbing her shoulders nervously, Ludmila felt a sense of bewilderment and tightly shut her eyes.

Then, she tentatively extended her lips, exploring the sensation of a first kiss. Carefully moving her tongue, wary of making any inexperienced mistakes with Edanthe.

“It’s bitter yet sweet. Did I have coffee before coming here…?”

After the dry sensation, a bitter taste followed.

Coffee.

The subtle and deep bitterness was unmistakably the flavor of coffee.

What kind of taste was Edanthe experiencing in this kiss?

Having briefly tasted wine at the reception, she must be savoring a sweetness as bitter as coffee. Ludmila toasted to her choice of wine that had soothed her throat.

If it had been right after a hearty meal like steak, it could have led to disaster.

“I apologize. I was rude without a word. You seem quite surprised.”

“I-It’s, it’s fine…! I was a bit surprised, though…”

Edanthe gently pulled her lips away.

Thin strands of saliva lingered between their lips.

It was intense to call it a first kiss.

The moist lips of Ludmila, moistened by saliva, were telling that story.

Feeling unsure about the first encounter, Ludmila turned her head. Her face was so flushed that even briefly meeting eyes seemed impossible.

“I’m sorry, it’s my first time… I was very clumsy.”

“I, too… it was my first time.”

They acknowledged it was each other’s first kiss.

At this, Ludmila’s face reddened even more.

She had thought Edanthe must have had many passionate kisses with other women. To think Edanthe’s kiss with her was also a first.

Meaning I’m his first woman.

And expressing love through a first kiss must mean he truly loves me.

His first woman.

I’m his first woman…!

Her heart raced madly.

From Noble mtl dot com

A warm sensation enveloped her body quickly.

It felt like a nun dressed in pure white robes wailing loudly in her ears. Ludmila, finally, was confident in her victory in this fierce competition.

“So, we were both first-timers.”

“C-Cough…!”

Edanthe chuckled.

Ludmila turned her head to the side, giving a fake cough.

“It’s an honor. To receive the beautiful princess’s first kiss. I must be very fortunate.”

“D-Don’t tease me! It’s embarrassing…!”

Perhaps due to the lingering feeling of the first kiss, her body was burning like a sputtering candle.

Edanthe, resigned, stepped back.

But then Ludmila, driven by urgency, grabbed Edanthe.

“Ugh…!”

The blood rushing from the first kiss excited the virgin.

Ludmila reached out with both hands and embraced Edanthe’s neck. With a resolute expression, she kissed him forcefully.

“…!”

Was it because of her lack of kissing experience?

Or did her body heat up to the point of losing control for a moment?

Stiffened by Ludmila’s passionate gesture that restrained him, he was utterly powerless. The disparity in strength was so overwhelming that he couldn’t even move his shoulders.

“As long as I have you… nothing else matters. Anything else is fine.”

The enmity towards the sole deity,

The resentment towards the crowd that exuded complacency,

Even the sinister whispers that constantly stirred up malicious emotions,

In the face of the long-awaited kiss, all these futile thoughts were powerless.

Having received a sincere confession from Edanthe, Ludmila, in turn, showed her deep affection through her own confession, displaying a love as pure as it gets.

Edanthe wrapped Ludmila’s slender waist, nodding his head.

“Do you know how surprised I was to see Ludmila sitting on the floor?”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s not your fault. It’s because of the worry I caused Ludmilla.”

“How could it be your fault? It’s all because of the trust in the One…”

The passionate and youthful kiss overflowing with fervor came to an end.

But Edanant and Ludmilla still held each other close.

They didn’t want to let go.

They didn’t want to part as if nothing had happened.

So, as if they were about to kiss again, they gazed deeply at each other and whispered in each other’s ears like lovers.

“Should I propose now? Or later?”

“You, isn’t it too sudden…! P-proposal should wait for another time. My heart might burst even now…”

After confessing to each other, they mentioned the proposal.

When Edanant, who was usually indecisive, started to advance like a shooting star, Ludmilla felt dizzy.

A proposal.

In other words, an engagement.

The time had come to put an end to her long spinster life.

But perhaps the rapid unfolding of events was too sudden. Despite being on the brink of the moment she had longed for, Ludmilla foolishly chose to postpone her answer.

* * *

The next day.

Ludmilla spent the night with wide eyes.

Sleep eluded her.

No,

to be precise, she couldn’t sleep.

The eerie unease that enveloped her body seemed oddly comforting. Ludmilla’s mind was filled only with the lingering aftertaste of the first kiss she shared with Edanant, full of passion and longing.

“Ugh…! Ugh!”

She swallowed the mixture of tender emotions.

Simultaneously, she mercilessly tore the pillow she clutched in both hands apart, back and forth.

Riiip!

As the pillow let out a scream, feathers fluttered down.

The maids who witnessed the madness unfolding in the second princess’s chamber hastily closed the door. Then, as if nothing had happened, they disappeared with brooms and dustpans in hand.

“Sister, are you okay like this?”

“Giggle…! If I say I’m not happy at all, that would obviously be a lie.”

The younger sister, observing her sister’s madness intently, chuckled and spoke.

It was the first time.

Seeing her sister like this.

The sister who always appeared flawless was now acting recklessly. Elizabeth gazed at her sister, who was shedding a tear of frustration, with a faint smile.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t show such an excited state in front of you…”

“I’m fine. I’ve always wished for you to be with Edanant. Since you’ve kissed and confessed to each other, the wedding will soon follow.”

Perhaps because her wish had finally come true,

Elizabeth momentarily forgot that she, too, harbored feelings for Edanant.

It was a relationship where they both loved the same man.

Therefore, she feared that her foolish boasting might hurt her younger sister.

But Elizabeth showed a mature side as she warmly congratulated her sister. She genuinely loved Edanant, yet she also supported her sister wholeheartedly.

“Snnif. Snnif…”

As the princesses of the Valtaria palace proudly displayed their sisterly affection,

a girl with long green hair wrinkled her nose and interrupted the beautiful atmosphere with her sniffles.

What’s going on?

Not a military dog dispatched to a crime scene.

Ruay, who had been closing her eyes and focusing on her sense of smell, approached Ludmilla. She then grabbed the hem of Ludmilla’s skirt and buried her face in it.

“Huh? Auntie… I mean, pretty sister, you suddenly smell strange.”

“…”.

Ruay’s sensitive nose caught a suspicious scent.

A smell of fire.

More precisely, a smell of burnt velvet.

Why on earth would such a ominous smell emanate from the princess’s evening dress?

Like Edanant, who subtly dispersed the scent of gunpowder whenever he used the sacred incense of war.

“Ruay, even if the sister is a spinster, you shouldn’t say such things lightly.”

“eeek…! I-I’m sorry! I-I was just… curious about the unique smell!”

The stench was a common feature among the followers of the god of calamity.

Rusty iron. Decayed soil. Rotten vegetation.

The followers always invaded the scene, spreading a nauseating odor like a harbinger of slaughter.

However, the apostles who received the grace of talents were different.

Just as the smell of refined gunpowder emanated from Edanant, Rudmila exuded a scent reminiscent of velvet touched by fire. It was clear that the other apostles serving the innocent talents were likely the same.

“….”

A strange smell.

A unique scent.

It was like hearing a shocking statement close to a rural murder from the mischievous little one.

Nervous.

What if Edanant suddenly visits…?

Rudmila, showing a sense of unease, asked the maids for bathwater.