SWNOVELXO Chapter 8: A kiss for revelation.
Gulp.
Shirley chugged down the wine, making a satisfied gasp right after.
Her cheeks were now red, her eyes glazed, and a little wiggly as she suddenly packed her hair to the back, tying it in a ponytail.
She had positioned herself on the floor, right between Lumin's legs, who was still seated on the bed, confused and speechless.
Gently, right after she was done packing her hair, she placed both hands on the young man's lap, looking straight at him with a smile.
"Why are you so nervous? Loosen up a bit."
Lumin sighed, indeed trying to calm himself down.
"That's easy for you to say," he replied.
Shirley responded with a laugh.
Then, she pressed her chest on his thighs before hugging him, her head resting on his lap.
Lumin quickly looked up at the ceiling, face flushed and eyes widened.
'What is she—'
He tried to look at her, but his eyes would always catch a glimpse of her butt, forcing him to look away again.
Just as he thought, she wasn't wearing anything underneath.
With a soft voice, Shirley uttered,
"Lumin…"
"Y-yeah."
"I haven't really told you much about myself, have I?"
"Other than the fact you are a researcher, no, I don't think so."
"Hmm~" she giggled a bit, "And you never once asked."
Lumin now looked down at her face, but it was covered by the strands of her blue hair.
"Well, I figured if you wanted to tell me, you would have felt like it."
"Such a Lumin thing to say."
Uttering those words, she slightly pressed her head on his lap, a sad expression etched on her face.
"Now would probably be a good time to tell you."
Lumin didn't say anything else; he intended to listen.
If she was willing to go through all these efforts, then it must be somewhat important.
"Nexus Organization, that is the group of outriders I was a part of during my years as a Hunter," she began.
"The Nexus Organization believed in one thing: the coming of the Harbinger, a powerful being said to have slain the seven gods a long time ago. Because the gods were dead and didn't want to be forgotten, they created a new world, this world we live in, and appointed their powers to the Architects. Their powers soon spread as artifacts born from the Architects, granting people unprecedented levels of power. Powers we believed to be a source of corruption for the world."
Lumin suddenly spoke.
"You feel that having powers is ruining the world?"
"I used to think like that. My mother—or rather, the woman who raised me into the organization— she was called the Witch of Calamity. She, as she claimed, was a servant of the mighty god-slayer, the Harbinger. A being said to despise the gods, stating their influence on the world is unbecoming and evil."
'A witch? That's the first I'm hearing about something like that,' Lumin thought to himself.
He then felt Shirley's arms tighten around his waist as she contained him.
"Being as intelligent as I was, I began to make artifacts using Echo cores from Fecits we killed. The Nexus didn't believe in powers from the gods; as such, we never recovered a pathway, and we never tried. Blindly, I made weapons for them, weapons they used to terrorize the world for their evil doings."
She pushed, burying her face in Lumin's lap.
"I helped them kill thousands of people. All in the name of my mother, the Calamity Witch. In time, I realized our influence on the world and how people feared us. Though some understood the Nexus, most were those who failed to receive a pathway and turned to hating the gods for rejecting them."
"You don't have a pathway?" asked Lumin.
Shirley shook her head.
"I don't. Just like them, I lied about my rank to you. I, too, believed the power of the gods was corrupt. It was only later that I discovered the damage my artifact's creation was doing as well. While I don't like the gods or people in general, it was quite hypocritical of me to do the same thing. I was becoming what I hated.
I knew it then, but chose to ignore it. I guess you could say I am no different from the Fecits hunting the world."
She kept quiet, allowing her words to sink into Lumin's head.
Then slowly, she looked at him, her eyes bubbling as though on the verge of crying.
"Do you hate me now? Knowing a fraction of what I used to be?"
"I see…" Lumin voiced it softly. "I don't hate you. I don't have the right to, nor do I have the right to question why you did what you did. That said, in this world, you are the only one I know or have spoken to. This is not something to make me turn my back on you."
"And if I tell you more about the unspeakable things I have done?"
Lumin locked gazes with her as he responded.
"You clearly regret what you did if you are willing to walk away from it. As your friend, I will listen to your heart's content."
Shirley glanced to the side for a while. "Friends, huh…"
Without any warning whatsoever, she launched at Lumin, pinning him to the bed, both her hands resting on his chest while she sat on him.
At first, Lumin was confused as to why she would suddenly do that; his doubts were cleared as soon as he felt Shirley's lips against his.
He didn't try to fight her, though he didn't make a move either.
He simply remained on the bed, allowing Shirley to kiss him as much as she pleased. Her soft lips caressing his were enough to make his cock harden under his trousers.
After a while of kissing, Shirley gently pulled away, searching his eyes.
"Do you still think, we are friends now?" she asked, panting heavily, heat huffing from her mouth while she carried a seductive look on her face.
It was the first time she had ever looked at Lumin like that.
Indeed, that broke something inside him.
Ppam!
Lumin grabbed her by the arm, pushing her to the bed, so he would be the one on top.
And just like she did to him, he kissed her.