The Tyrant Won’t Let Me Go Chapter 120 - Side Story 4

 

Even though it’s what I wished for—to be able to live a long life with Cedric.

 

“Ciel, are you crying?”

 

Why on earth am I crying like this?

 

“Are you okay?”

 

I quickly rubbed the corners of my eyes before the tears could fall.

 

‘This is a happy moment. I shouldn’t cry.’

 

Thinking that, I wiped away the tears and smiled at Cedric, pretending everything was fine.

 

“I’m not crying. I’m really happy.”

 

“…You’re lying.”

 

“I’m really not crying, okay?”

 

I looked up at Cedric with a bright smile, but he didn’t smile back.

 

“Really.”

 

His red eyes, filled with affection and concern, just stared straight at me. Maybe it was because I realized once again that those eyes were still fixed on me.

 

Even though I had confidently claimed I wasn’t crying just moments ago, tears welled up again.

 

In the end, the tears started flowing once more.

 

Just as I raised my hand to wipe them away, Cedric interlaced his fingers with mine and wrapped his other arm around my shoulder.

 

“See? You were lying.”

 

He chuckled softly and began to lean closer. The distance between us gradually closed, and I could feel the warmth of his breath.

 

The moment I closed my eyes to let the tears fall, a tender kiss followed.

 

Every time his lips touched the corners of my eyes and then pulled away, I could hear the faint sound of moisture clinging to and then separating from my skin.

 

For some reason, my body instinctively tensed, but Cedric cupped the back of my head with the hand on my shoulder to keep me from pulling away.

 

For what felt like an eternity, he kept kissing the corners of my eyes.

 

“It’s salty here.”

 

Then his warm lips and tongue began to trace the tear-stained skin.

 

“W-Wait, hold on.”

 

But Cedric didn’t stop kissing me.

 

The tears that had been pooling now seemed to dissolve and disappear under his relentless kisses.

 

I could guess why Cedric was doing this. He probably thought this would make me stop crying.

 

‘But isn’t this a bit too much?’

 

How many times is he going to kiss me?

 

At this rate, I won’t even be able to open my eyes. I tightly shut my eyes, grabbed Cedric’s shoulders, and spoke.

 

“That’s enough…”

 

Finally, Cedric pulled his lips away from my eyes. I looked at him and whispered softly.

 

“I’m feeling a bit better now.”

 

Cedric grinned and reached out to wipe away the remaining tears at the corners of my eyes.

 

“Have you calmed down now?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

I glared at him as I rubbed my eyes dry.

 

“Thanks to someone who kept kissing me until I couldn’t even open my eyes, the tears have all dried up.”

 

When I grumbled, Cedric just smiled, lifting the corner of his mouth, and said nothing.

 

“I wasn’t crying because I was sad. I was crying because I was so happy.”

 

“You’re happy that we’ll be together for a long time?”

 

Cedric wrapped his arm around my waist and gently pulled me closer as he asked. I let myself lean into his affectionate touch and settled into his embrace.

 

“Of course. You already know that.”

 

His ruby-like red eyes curved into a gentle arc.

 

“Honestly, it feels really good to know that you’re so happy because of me.”

 

Finally, I realized the faint sense of satisfaction I had been sensing behind Cedric’s red eyes.

 

It seemed he was pleased to be the cause of my emotions.

 

‘Though that’s been the case for quite a while now.’

 

I muttered this to myself and leaned my head against Cedric.

 

“But still, I hope you won’t cry because of me.”

 

“…Really?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Because it hurts my heart when you cry.”

 

Wait, hold on.

 

Even though my face had just flushed from Cedric’s kisses, it started heating up again. Even though it’s been a long time since Cedric and I became lovers, I still have no immunity to these ticklish lines.

 

Whenever he says something embarrassingly sweet, I can’t help but blush.

 

“I don’t know if all lovers are like this, but I am.”

 

And he didn’t stop there.

 

“Ah, but that doesn’t mean you should never cry. If you ever feel like crying, you can always cry freely.”

 

Cedric kissed my head tenderly as he spoke, “I’ll always wipe away your tears.”

 

I stared at Cedric as he said this. His clear, transparent red eyes were filled with me.

 

“…It’s a strange feeling, now that I think about it.”

 

“Huh? What is?”

 

“When we first met, I thought I’d be the one wiping away Your Majesty’s tears.”

 

“Really?”

 

“I’m only telling you this now, but I felt sorry for you when I looked at you.”

 

I lifted my head and looked into his eyes, which shone as transparently as they did when he was young.

 

“It felt like you had been hurt by people as much as I had.”

 

But now, Cedric has become strong enough to rise above those wounds.

 

“But now it’s the opposite. It just shows how much you’ve grown.”

 

“That’s all thanks to you, Ciel.”

 

Cedric pulled me into a tight hug as he replied, “You’re the one who taught me how to comfort others and wipe away their tears.”

 

After a quiet breath, he added in a soft voice,

 

“I learned all of this from you. It’s not something I figured out on my own.”

 

I let out a small laugh at his words.

 

“I’m glad.”

 

“And there’s one more thing I want you to remember—”

 

His warm breath brushed against the nape of my neck.

 

The moment I realized it, Cedric’s whisper reached my ears, hovering at a distance so close it was almost touching.

 

“I only do this kind of thing with you.”

 

Nothing is as fickle as the human heart. But at the same time, nothing seems as steadfast as the human heart either.

 

Seeing Cedric, who I thought would grow to care about others, continue to only look at me.

 

‘Actually, I’m no different.’

 

I can’t say I felt the same way as Cedric from the beginning, but I’ve also had feelings for him for a long time.

 

It’s just that I kept denying that those feelings were anything more than affection.

 

Even though I denied it for so long, those feelings only grew stronger and more solid, and now they’ve taken up so much of me that I can’t even deny them anymore.

 

“I know.”

 

I turned my head to look at Cedric and smiled.

 

Then I gently kissed his cheek. His lips, as if painted with a brush, curved into a gentle arc.

 

“Then, Ciel, can you keep looking only at me from now on?”

 

Looking into those lovely eyes that remained fixed on me, I couldn’t help but laugh.

 

“Of course.”

 

That night, we kept gazing at each other until we fell asleep.

 

Grateful for the fact that there would be many more days like this to come.

 

💫

 

To be honest, the initial reason I proposed sharing a bed with Cedric was because of the topaz.

 

But even after confirming that Cedric’s lifespan had become similar to mine, I didn’t return to my own room.

 

After the topaz incident was resolved, Cedric suggested that we continue sharing a bed, and I agreed.

 

‘Actually, I never really planned to go back anyway.’

 

And Cedric’s earnest gaze made it impossible to refuse.

 

[That emperor really should be grateful to the topaz. Thanks to it, he gets to spend the nights with you too.]

 

Caliberne spoke to me while we were preparing.

 

“Well, even without the topaz, wouldn’t it have ended up like this anyway?”

 

[That’s true. But isn’t it uncomfortable sleeping together?]

 

“Uncomfortable?”

 

If I had to name one thing, it’s that Cedric clings to me in the morning and refuses to let go.

 

Once, because of that, Cedric, who is known for being punctual, was five minutes late to a meeting.

 

In the end, Cedric scolded me about it that evening, but the next morning, the situation didn’t change much.

 

‘But if I mention this, Caliberne would genuinely hate it, right?’

 

It’s probably better to just keep my mouth shut.

 

“Um, I don’t think there’s anything like that.”

 

[Really? I think I’d have trouble adjusting if my sleeping arrangements changed. Youth really is something else.]

 

And Caliberne’s lament continued.