She had grown old without ever having the chance to feel the thrilling romance of people her own age. 

 

Because of that, Scylla could calmly hold open a snake’s jaws with one hand and extract its venom without batting an eye, yet the mere thought of a kiss on the lips was enough to make her hold her breath—she was completely immunodeficient when it came to sex.

 

The sight of such a seductive beauty blushing like a teenage girl excited Langsion. 

 

It felt exactly like having a sweet, innocent first love and dating in that innocent, fluttery way. 

 

He felt like a boy again. Though, to be honest, his actual boyhood had consisted entirely of memories of going mad, wandering around to vent his insanity.

 

‘Haa, haah…’

 

Her flushed cheeks. The hazy golden eyes are visible beneath half-closed lids. 

 

Slightly upturned, cat-like eyes. A sharp jawline and an arrogantly raised nose bridge. 

 

A proud, haughty, intensely striking beauty lay disheveled and wanton beneath him.

 

Scylla was fiercer than Aphrodite and more elegant than Athena. 

 

If they ever found out someone dared compare their beauty to hers, they’d probably fly into a rage at the insult—but who cares? 

 

In his eyes, Scylla was the most beautiful.

 

“Master, I love you.”

 

“Ah!”

 

At the words impulsively blurted out, Scylla’s eyes widened hugely. 

 

Seizing her chest, Langsion thrust his hips fiercely.

 

In his mind, he recalled a thought befitting the son of Zeus.

 

There’s no tool more attractive for seducing a woman than the word “love.”

 

Tears welled up in Scylla’s eyes. Her pupils shook violently. Then, finally, she clung to Langsion like a flower that had just bloomed. 

 

A single teardrop slid down her pale cheek, as if she had never experienced the traces of time at all.

 

It felt heavy, as though her entire life up to that point had been condensed into it.

 

🫧

 

The next day.

 

Thud! Thud! Thud!

 

Langsion frowned. When he opened his eyes, bright sunlight greeted him. He raised a hand to shield his eyes and turned his head.

 

“Master?”

 

Scylla, who had been grunting as she set down a log on the ground, turned her head. 

 

The cabin was still half-repaired, so through the wide-open gap in the wall, their gazes met.

 

Under the sunlight, every wrinkle on the old man’s skin and every age spot stood out vividly.

 

“You’re awake?”

 

Scylla smiled.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“It’s about time we rebuilt the house properly.”

 

“But your body still hasn’t fully recovered…”

 

Langsion let his words trail off slowly as his gaze drifted deliberately between her legs. 

 

Noticing it immediately, Scylla blushed and snapped at him.

 

“Where do you think you’re staring?”

 

“I’m looking at you, Master.”

 

“…”

 

At his sly, melting smile, Scylla was momentarily speechless. 

 

Soon she shook her head in resignation.

 

“I can never win against you with words.”

 

“…”

 

“For the time being, I’m not sleeping with you.”

 

The smile vanished from Langsion’s face in an instant.

 

“Why not?”

 

“Why? Because every time we do, I’m exhausted all day, that’s why.”

 

“But you’re young now.”

 

“That’s…! That only happens at night. In reality, this body is so old that it wouldn’t be strange if it dropped dead at any moment. I have no stamina.”

 

“Hmm… Then I’ll make you some restorative tonic.”

 

“I don’t need it. Just don’t do it. Spending hours at it is really not productive.”

 

“Everyone else does it.”

 

Langsion lied without missing a beat. 

 

Scylla looked suspicious, but since she had no way of knowing what other people’s sex lives were like, she couldn’t refute him.

 

“Anyway, it wears me out. Even though we went at it for a long time, there’s still no sign that the curse is getting any better. Besides, apart from breaking the curse, I have things I need to do.”

 

Langsion’s eyes turned listless. He didn’t even need to ask—he already knew.

 

She was talking about that absurd revenge of hers again.

 

Before the cabin burned down, Scylla had spent entire days immersed in her research, so in a way, she had already been very patient.

 

And that’s why she’s saying no more sex…

 

Langsion rested his temple on his hand, staring at her with a slouched, defiant posture.

 

In the past, simply watching her daily routine had been entertaining enough, but not anymore. 

 

Even now, his hands itched to pull that body into his arms. 

 

Scylla called him a pervert for pouncing on her during the day instead of only at night, but to Langsion, Scylla in the daylight and Scylla in the dark were both equally irresistible.

 

Scylla at night was sleek and yielding, but Scylla in the daylight carried a deeper blush of shyness. She seemed to feel a guilty pang whenever his hands brushed her sagging breasts or the wrinkled flesh of her skin—unaware that her very reactions only stoked his desire into a fiercer flame.

 

In any case, he wasn’t some priest of Artemis’s temple, and a return to his old life would feel unbearably dull, leaving him restless and unsatisfied.

 

‘It’s about time I lifted my own curse, too.’

 

The pleasure she gave him had been unexpectedly overwhelming, drawing him in so deeply he lost all sense of time—but he still needed to break Hera’s curse. 

 

Only then could he bring back nectar and ambrosia from Olympus, extending Scylla’s life as well. Her forced aging was just the curse’s doing; beneath it, she was truly young. 

 

But even so, she was human—aging swiftly, dying all too soon. 

 

Feeding her ambrosia and nectar was essential.

 

“Master.”

 

“If you’re about to say something weird again, don’t talk to me.”

 

“But there’s a way you wouldn’t have to toil so hard with your research?”

 

“…”

 

“Should I not say it, then?”

 

“As if such a thing exists.”

 

Scylla’s lips curled into a wry, hollow smile. She was like a racehorse charging straight for the finish line, blind to any detours. 

 

Langsion felt like the guide forcibly turning her head aside.

 

Look somewhere else.

 

Don’t waste time on the impossible.

 

“I have a way to obtain the Hydra’s venom.”

 

“What?”

 

Scylla frowned deeply.

 

“A lie. Impossible.”

 

“I never lie to you, Master.”

 

Her eyes turned to him, swirling with bewildered emotion. He shrugged casually.

 

“I simply couldn’t tell you before—it was top secret.”

 

“And you can tell me now?”

 

He could see suspicion bubbling up like purple flames deep within her amber eyes.

 

“Yes, now I can. I’ve made up my mind. Whatever you want, Master, I’ll make it happen for you.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because it’s for the master I love—of course.”

 

Scylla sighed and dragged her hand down her face.

 

“I can’t tell if you’re being serious or just messing with me.”

 

“Of course I’m serious.”

 

Scylla set down everything she was holding and sat directly across from Langsion. Her eyes were grave, issuing a clear warning: don’t play games.

 

“Tell me in detail.”

 

“Master.”

 

Suppressing the thrilling shiver in his chest, Langsion called her tenderly. 

 

The sharp edge in Scylla’s gaze softened, just a little. 

 

How could she be so lovable? 

 

Langsion thought that if his fascination with her ever faded, he might as well turn into some shaggy, trembling beast covered in fluffy fur.

 

“I’ll explain everything. So please don’t get too excited—it’s not good for your body.”

 

“…I’m calmer than I’ve ever been.”

 

Hiss— 

 

Sensing his master’s mood, Thyrsos slithered over, climbing up his ankle. 

 

The cool touch of scales soothed Langsion’s heated nerves. 

 

Holding back the overwhelming urge to push Scylla down right then and there and bury himself between her thighs, he spoke.

 

“The Hydra’s venom is stored by a merchant guild called the Sons of the Sun. Since the guild master is a descendant of the hero Heracles, it’s not entirely impossible.”

 

Scylla, lost in thought for a moment, muttered,

 

“You wouldn’t tell such an easily disproven lie.”

 

“…”

 

“I’m curious about one thing. How do you know such top-secret information?”

 

Her piercing gaze drilled straight through him.

 

“I called it top secret, but honestly, any well-traveled person has probably heard the rumor at least once—along with the legends about the Hydra’s venom.”

 

“…”

 

“But I suppose that alone isn’t enough to convince you.”

 

As if he already understood everything, Langsion gently cupped Scylla’s cheek with his hand. When he stroked it softly, one of her eyes squinted shut. She still found this kind of intimate touch awkward. 

 

He wondered how long it would take before she could accept his hands naturally—like a long-tamed cat that purrs contentedly the moment it’s touched.

 

Langsion drew closer to Scylla as she tried to pull her head back, deliberately pressing his forehead against her shoulder.

 

“You know my family situation is… complicated, right?”

 

“…”

 

“I ran away from my stepmother, who hates me.”

 

“…”

 

“My family has enough power to discern the truth behind rumors. That’s how I found out—about the rumors regarding who possesses the Hydra’s venom.”

 

“…”

 

“To get the Hydra’s venom, I have to go back home.”

 

“…”

 

He lifted his head. Their faces were so close that the tip of his nose nearly brushed her chin; their breaths tangled together.

 

“For your sake, Master, I can go back.”

 

“…”

 

“But please come with me, Master.”

 

“…”

 

“I’m scared to go alone.”

 

He took her hand. His fingers were trembling faintly. He waited like that—certain she would respond.

 

A moment later, Scylla’s hand closed around his in return. 

 

The corners of Langsion’s lips curved into a soft, satisfied smile, like someone who had just discovered a carefully crafted trap had finally caught its prey.