By Zephyria Ivan could not see Mana.
However, he knew better than anyone else how Mana could affect people. Around him were Wizards and Sword Masters.
Wary of something invisible harming his reason, Ivan had, while attending the Academy, asked a high-level Professor to cast spells on his frequently used accessories. These were spells that defended against or reflected magical influence directed at him.
“The other Artifacts are in my bag and aren’t always active, so perhaps my wife and I are the only ones with our minds intact thanks to the influence of those Artifacts.”
“Then, who used magic on us…?”
“Yes. I became a little agitated thinking about who would have a reason to put us in danger. I apologize.”
“⋯Ah. No, no. It’s alright.”
“A glowing island on the night sea like that is, frankly, not normal. Whether this was an event targeting me, or a random kidnapping from the ships that came up on this sea, we’ll have to watch a bit longer to know.”
“⋯Targeting Ivan?”
“Yes. It could be because of a friend… or something else could be at stake.”
“⋯.”
“I hope it’s not.”
Ivan gazed steadily at the Helmsman, Sam. With no spare rope, he had roughly torn Sam’s shirt and used it to bind his mouth, wrists, and ankles. Sam, bound tightly all over, crawled on the floor, repeatedly butting the closed door with the back of his head. The direction he was trying to go was clearly the opposite of the ship’s course, towards the golden island.
Damn, look at those eyes rolling back. I wondered if this was the state of someone infected with rabies. I was grateful I wasn’t in that state in front of Ivan. I marveled anew at Ivan, who always dressed properly before sleeping, and felt it was truly fortunate that I had gotten used to sleeping nestled snugly in his arms.
With a heavy heart, I moved closer to Ivan’s side.
“⋯Will it be like this until we arrive?”
“I don’t know… I hope not. For now, I think we’ll have to endure in the captain’s cabin. You must be tired, get some rest.”
“What about you?”
“I don’t know. For now, I’ll observe the situation until morning.”
“⋯.”
“Later, when I’m asleep, you’ll have to hold the helm, so don’t worry and rest. I’ll wake you if anything happens.”
“⋯Yes.”
I pulled the plush sofa from the captain’s cabin to the front of the cockpit. On the sofa, which was large enough for three people, Ivan sat, and I lay down with my head on his thighs. Just in case, this time I tied his left wrist to my right wrist.
Anxious and restless, I couldn’t fall asleep.
The next day.
Fortunately, when I opened my eyes, everyone, from the laborers to the sailors, had regained their senses. Those tied to the masts, with battered faces and aching bodies, were initially terrified, thinking they had been attacked by pirates. Upon seeing me and Ivan, they let out all sorts of shouts, and after hearing the explanation, they turned pale.
“I… I tried to jump into the sea in the middle of the night?”
“Yes. Do you really remember nothing at all?”
“Yes, not at all… Ah. What, a singing sound. A song… I think I heard something.”
“A song.”
“Yes. I felt like someone was lulling me to sleep… and then I have no memory, as if I’d drunk heavily.”
The frightened people murmured. Ivan blinked slowly twice and looked around, which was enough to silence everyone. Amidst the hushed, breathless crowd, only the sound of waves lapping against the shore broke the silence. Ivan, who had completely taken over the space, smiled faintly.
Then, as if declaring, he said.
“Just in case, it would be best for everyone to tie yourselves to the masts on deck during all free time, except for essential activities like eating or using the restroom. If you suddenly jump overboard from your rooms, it might be difficult to save you.”
“⋯What? Will this happen again?”
“It was fine this morning, but during the day, even if I just….”
“I don’t know. If you want to experiment with your lives, I won’t stop you.”
“⋯.”
People’s gazes turned to Ivan’s face.
The corners of Ivan’s mouth, still bruised from yesterday, were still stained with blood. The laborers, who had no way of knowing who had inflicted such wounds on Ivan’s face, all lowered their heads with awkward expressions and weakly agreed to his words.
The laborers and sailors helped each other tie themselves to the masts during all their free time. They also learned the sailor’s knot, which doesn’t come undone. However, I did not have to tie myself to the mast with the sailors. Ivan suggested that we tie our wrists together with a cravat, just like the day before, both day and night.
So, we did.
At first, it was quite enjoyable. After all, spending the entire day, from morning to night, with Ivan wasn’t a bad thing for me either. Although our wrists were tied together, the cravat didn’t stop us from walking around holding hands, our fingers intertwined.
Actually, I had wanted to walk around like this even when we were dating.
Thinking about it made my insides tingle again. Unlike back then, now that our hearts were connected, it felt even better. Sometimes, when our eyes met, Ivan would smile tenderly, and whenever we went somewhere without people watching, he would stand on tiptoe and press his lips onto my cheek or lips.
But isn’t this a bit much?
“Can we untie it briefly during meals…?”
“What if, in the middle of eating, you suddenly want to jump into the sea and start wielding a fork or knife? While I could subdue two other people, I must not strike you. It’s better to prevent it beforehand.”
“Well… that’s true, but. We’re both right-handed.”
“Then shall we tie our left hands together and sit side-by-side to eat?”
“⋯Yes.”
It was a wrong choice.
With our left hands tied together, Ivan sat to my right. To avoid making Ivan uncomfortable, I rested my left hand on my right thigh while eating. Naturally, Ivan’s hand also rested on my right thigh. That was fine, I thought.
“⋯Ivan.”
“Yes, my wife.”
“⋯Your hand, your hand.”
“What’s wrong with my hand?”
“⋯.”
“Is it uncomfortable?”
“⋯No…”
But that didn’t mean he should be stroking my thigh during the meal.
My thigh, from just next to my knee down to my groin, was being slowly caressed by his hand, making me confused about what I was eating or spitting out. However, pointing this out was… well, the situation was really not good.
It wasn’t just the two of us sitting at the dining table.
The sight of a sailor beating the captain or ordinary laborers restraining their direct superior, Paul, was not pleasant to see and was burdensome. Therefore, to prevent any accidents, the intermediate managers, the captain and Paul, usually monitored each other, and during meals, they decided to dine with me and Ivan.
Just as Ivan and I tied our wrists with a cravat, Paul and the sailor had one of their ankles tied to the leg of the dining table. In case of an emergency, it was better to fall over with the table and break a bone than to jump into the sea.
So, across from me was Paul. My childhood friend, who had seen me cry my eyes out because I liked Ivan.
“Why, is something wrong?”
“⋯No. It’s just awkward eating with one hand…”
“You are truly amazing. How could you have known something like this would happen and prepared an Artifact for magic defense.”
“It’s probably because I have amazing friends. Actually, I’ve been carrying it to defend against mental magic.”
“Mental magic, you mean Black Magic?”
“Yes. I tend to be a bit sensitive about safety.”
“Even though I heard all existing Black magicians belong to the Empire?”
“That’s how it’s known. There have always been unscrupulous people who want to secretly handle unregistered Black magicians, so I was just in case. Of course, I’ve never personally seen an unregistered Black magician.”
How could he do this in front of my friend?
Is this shameless person really my husband?
No, it was me who was shameless. Ivan was merely resting his hand comfortably, but I felt like I was getting aroused. The thigh touched by Ivan’s fingertips tensed to the point of trembling. After a few failed attempts with the fork, Ivan poked a piece of meat with his fork and brought it close to my mouth.
“Why aren’t you eating?”
“⋯That’s…”
“Say ah.”
“⋯Ah.”
I didn’t know if I was chewing beef or biting Ivan’s tongue. Paul’s expression contorted strangely as he watched me obediently accept the food Ivan offered. This was truly maddening. This was not right. This was really not right. If I stayed like this any longer, I felt I would show something I shouldn’t.
Unable to bear it any longer, I extended my left arm a little further and moved my hand onto Ivan’s thigh. Ivan’s eyebrows slightly rose as he looked towards me. He smiled faintly and whispered with his lips,
‘Pervert.’
…Damn it, who is calling whom? I felt like I would die of injustice, but I had nothing to say, so I just shut my mouth and shoved food into it furiously. The thigh I held with my left hand was unnecessarily warm and firm, which felt good, and that fact made me more embarrassed and angry.
More troublesome than mealtime was bath time.
No matter what, I couldn’t go to bed without washing after sleeping in the same bed as Ivan. Even when I said I would just wash alone for a moment, Ivan shook his head, insisting he had to go with me. I watched him closely, wondering if he was just enjoying himself. But Ivan’s serious expression showed no hint of ulterior motives.
Well, Ivan usually has a blank expression, but this was truly a sincere one.
“It’s really, really fine. The bathroom doesn’t even have a window, does it? I can wash by myself.”
“But in case you try to harm yourself like Sam did yesterday. If you’re embarrassed to wash in front of me, I can wash you instead.”
“No, well, that’s, that’s not it.”
“Not it?”
“⋯.”
“Hm? Eric?”
Calling that name was cheating. I looked up at the ceiling, then at the floor, and finally nodded. Fine, do as you please. Do it all.