I Was Confessed to by the Golden Sun

37 – The Pact of the Ring

To start with the conclusion of that night, Lucia, having been rejected for a kiss, blushed deeply, kicked my abdomen once with force, turned her body away in a sulk, and fell asleep with her back towards me.

“Lucia, are you mad again today?”

…

And since then, for several days, she has continued to sleep with her back turned towards me.

If there’s a silver lining, it’s that she doesn’t try to pull away from me and continues to link arms with me. Lucia seemed to be portraying her displeasure with her entire body.

‘Being upset for five days is a bit much though…’

With only two days remaining until the start of the third episode.

We are on our way to meet the villain of the third episode.

Because my actions are entirely coNT*Rolled to create points of divergence from the original story.

If Lucia, who is supposed to be guarding me, acts upset, it’s a bit difficult for me as well.

‘Should I replace Lucia with someone else?’

There’s no other suitable character, and if there was and she found out that I brought someone else to guard me, she would only get even more upset.

I can’t handle it if Lucia gets more upset here.

To pacify her, I might really have to sleep with her early.

Thinking about it this way, it might be better for her to be slightly upset, and express less affection like now, after being rejected.

‘Honestly speaking, if I proposed a kiss in that situation and got rejected, Lucia wouldn’t be able to help feeling upset.’

I understand. It’s a situation that’s mortifying to anyone.

But I regret to say that I might have regretted it if I let the atmosphere take over and kissed her.

As it is, Lucia is trying to roam around my body indiscriminately.

If I allowed her lips as well, I might risk losing my virginity pretty soon.

“Why don’t you button up your shirt, why are you always walking around with a few buttons undone?”

So, I’d appreciate it if you could refrain from such provocative behavior.

I’m a man, too. Why does she undo some buttons on her chest as if to show me on purpose?

She doesn’t stick to my chest when she leans her body on mine.

‘Now that I mention it, I can’t help but talk about her chest..’

It’s a natural story to talk a lot about breasts, which are the number one interest when a man looks at a woman.

I learned that it’s only possible for a grown man not to like breasts if his taste is somehow dangerous.

“Lucia, you’re pretty, so you’ll get a lot of attention if you walk around like this.”

What she was wearing was a typical academy uniform.

However, her large breasts and the unbuttoned flaps made the otherwise plain outfit look slightly provocative.

To cover her cleavage that drew lustful glances from the men through her folded uniform, I stopped her and buttoned her up all the way.

“That’s enough, from now on, button up your shirt.”

I don’t know if I am in a position to give such advice to Lucia.

Still, I think I should say at least this much. After all, we’re friends.

“..Annoying.”

Lucia grumbled with her arms crossed, looking at me.

Seeing my worried expression, she lightly twisted her lips and poked me with her elbow.

“I have to treat you badly if you treat me badly too. Why do you always treat me so well?”

“If it’s Lucia, I treat her well.”

If this were another character, I would have cursed them immediately.

I would have cursed Raoul for trying to send me to a dementia center, and cursed the prince and the saint if they were not in their positions.

Even Lucia, when we first met, cursed at me. But now, she’s in a somewhat better state than before.

Is she reflecting on her own mistakes?

“Lately, Lucia often talks about wanting to apologize to Heidi or says things that imply she was wrong in the past.”

To give me a clear belief that she will never commit NT*R again.

I felt proud when I heard that she had a proper plan and strategy.

“For real… You’re so good at saying embarrassing things.”

After hearing those words, Lucia blushed and placed a ring on the palm of my hand before speaking.

“It’s a gift. Read the note once.”

Since the first thing that caught my eye was the note placed on the ring, I unfolded it and began reading.

It felt like some sort of user manual, and it was quite long, but in summary, it said this:

1. The name of this ring is the [Ring of Treaty], which promises eternal love with the person you love.

2. There are two Ring of Treaty rings, and when you wear the ring, you naturally know the location of the person who wears the same ring.

3. No matter where the person wearing the ring is, no matter how far away, they can communicate with each other through the Ring of Treaty.

4. If you wear the Ring of Treaty, you can coNT*Rol the intensity of physical contact that the person wearing the same ring can have with others.

This has coercive power, and under the judgment of the person wearing the same ring, they can impose sanctions on the actions of others and even physically threaten them.

“And under this user manual, there was a small note written in Lucia’s handwriting.”

In neat handwriting, it said ‘I will never hold hands with any other man except for Jack Orante for the rest of my life!’

And in the midst of that, a red jewel embedded in the shiny silver ring.

Looking at Lucia’s finger, I could see that she already had the ring on.

Of course, the fact that Lucia had written ‘I will not get involved with other men’ under the user manual must have already influenced her.

“..Honestly, after being rejected for a kiss, I was slightly upset, so I prepared this to make you trust me completely.”

In practical terms, this was no different from a confession. I could feel it.

The hand that passed the ring was trembling due to nervousness, and even now, she couldn’t look me in the eye.

In coNT*Rast to the confession she made to me when we graduated from middle school, it’s quite different.

Back then, she had a nonchalant attitude, saying it didn’t matter if I accepted it or not.

“This should be trustworthy, right?”

Honestly, I don’t know about anything else, but her trembling appearance is just too adorable.

It’s as if she’s a prey animal meeting a predator.

“Well… right now, um…”

That’s why I extended my words, intending to tease Lucía.

Upon hearing the response with a not-so-great tone, Lucía was startled and began to hesitate.

Then, she closed her eyes tightly, took my hand, and shouted like she was praying.

“I… I’ll do anything! I’ll do whatever you want, from one to ten!”

After that, with tears in her eyes, she wiped them away with her hand, and muttered to herself as if in prayer, urging herself to hold the ring.

“Sob…!”

If I continue to tease her like this, I’ll be the one in real trouble. No, am I already in trouble?

I held Lucía in my arms, who was sniffling and crying, patting her back.

“No… you don’t have to accept my ring… don’t leave…”

Whether she took that as a rejection signal, she now clung to me and cried her heart out.

I was just trying to comfort her, but what should I do now?

“First, let’s wipe those tears away. Don’t damage your face for no reason.”

I gently supported Lucía’s face with my hand and wiped away the tears streaming from her eyes.

In case she decides to cry more, I quickly put the ring on her finger while she watches.

“Eh…?”

Upon seeing the current situation, she seemed puzzled, her eyes darting as if she didn’t understand.

Soon, she seemed to grasp the intention behind my actions and rushed towards me, casting a body slam.

“Ugh… ugh… I thought you wouldn’t accept…”

The force is equal to mass times speed, and though the mass is small, the speed is inversely proportional, so I almost fell back momentarily.

But somehow, I managed to regain my balance and held Lucía, silently stroking her head.

Then, as if enjoying my touch, she closed her eyes with a contented look and played with the ring on my finger that had been put on.

“hehehe, hahahahaha…”

Seeing her laugh carelessly, it seemed like she was in a really good mood.

Even in the state of being held by me, she was trying to bounce around a little.

But still, even if it wasn’t official, it was almost like being in a romantic relationship.

– Pout!

Well, this much should be fine.

“Uh-oh…?”

I brought my lips directly to her cheek, where she was laughing without resistance.

Though disgusting thoughts from the past were slowly surfacing in my mind, the feeling of happiness was even stronger.

“Ja.. Jack?”

Looking at Lucía, who was touching her own cheek and then my lips as if she couldn’t believe it.

It felt like even the remaining traces of negative emotions were being washed away.

These little cute gestures were getting to me in a big way.

“..Chirp.”

So I was feeling grateful to her, but suddenly, her small animal-like excitement changed.

From her hesitant and cute state, it seemed like someone, or more precisely, me, was being targeted.

I recoiled in alarm at this sight, but –

– Shalak!

‘…?’

Perhaps due to the effect of the coNT*Ract ring, my entire body stiffened in an instant, without even a chance to react.

So I desperately begged the ring I wore to stop Lucía, but for some reason, Lucía’s body was moving freely without any restrictions.

“You were the one who seduced me first by wagging your tail, so this isn’t my fault..”

Watching the approaching Lucía, I sighed in resignation and spoke as naturally as possible, suppressing my trembling voice.

“It’s okay to touch other places, but could you save the lips for a more romantic moment later?”

The comment about wanting our first kiss to be in a moodier setting had prompted this request.

But for some reason, thanks to the even more intense Lucía, I ended up being teased all over except for my lips.