# 35
“No, I'm not tired.”
Diana felt the bed move and turned to Harold, who had moved.
He got out of bed and suggested, "How about some tea? I have something I'd like to discuss."
"naturally."
Diana put on her slippers and followed him to the table. She was curious – what did he want to talk about?
A maid soon came with tea, and Diana looked at Harold as if waiting for him to speak.
“Is it physically difficult for you to treat me?”
“Not really. Just holding hands barely drains my energy, so my strength replenishes quickly.”
“How long does it take for you to feel exhausted?”
“Hmm...”
Diana remembered the saint's stories of using the same ability for more than two weeks without rest. But she quickly shook her head to remove the unimportant thought.
"Honestly, I've never felt exhausted. But I've heard that there's a time every year when my ability temporarily disappears. I won't know when until I have a sudden gut feeling."
“Interesting.”
“Why do you ask?”
“We will not dwell on the topic. I want to remove restrictions on physical contact during treatment. We must amend our contract accordingly.”
“You mean… more physical contact than just holding hands?”
"What is your opinion?"
Diana fiddled with her tea cup nervously.
'Was his previous test leading to this? 'Did I succeed?'
“Take your time.”
“No, I will decide now. Let’s remove the restrictions.”
Hand-holding may be effective over long periods, but its effectiveness was very low compared to other forms of communication. Despite months of treatment, Harold's condition improved only slightly, and the recovery process felt painfully slow.
“You sure about this?”
"Yes."
“So, we need to determine the level of communication.”
Diana coughed violently, surprised by the suggestion.
"Cough! You were just thinking about the hug, weren't you?"
“I wouldn't mind going further.”
“Khhhhh!”
Diana coughed again, her throat sore as she took another sip of tea, almost choking.
"It's good that the tea is warm. Be careful while drinking," Harold said, rubbing her back gently. Diana glanced at him, wondering why he was giving her advice when he was the reason she was choking.
“I think a hug would be appropriate,” she announced firmly.
“Well, what if the level of communication increases by mutual consent?”
I nodded. Honestly, she doubted it would ever come to that, but as long as it wasn't forced, she didn't mind.
“Then let's change the contract.”
“Can't we wait until morning?”
“I prefer to do things right away.”
They each brought their contract, crossed out the section on restrictions on physical contact, and added a new contract by mutual agreement.
As she reviewed the contract, Diana remembered how stubborn Harold had been when they made their first agreement.
His present willingness to suggest further contact showed how much he had lowered his guard. I was happy to see how much his guard had dropped.
Suddenly, a shadow cast over her. She looked up to see Harold slowly unbuttoning his shirt, one button at a time.
Her eyes widened as she saw his sculpted chest and abs.
'wow…'
She suspected his figure was impressive, but seeing it in action left her speechless. She felt as if her language function had stopped.
Harold smiled as he gently placed his hand on top of hers.
“Let's get started, Diana.”
gulp.
Diana, as if drawn by his touch, rose and bit the inside of her cheek. It was a direct statement to go to bed for therapy, but why did it sound so suggestive, as if he was leading her into their first night together?
“Okay,” she whispered.
This was for healing only. You will adapt with time.
She took a deep breath, then let Harold lead her to the bed.
She rolled up her sleeves, thinking that she might wear a sleeveless shirt next time for surgery. She hesitated, examining his defined muscles.
'Should I really touch him?'
To increase the level of contact, she would have to put pressure on his body.
With his body now closer, Diana felt dizzy. She hoped Harold would give her a warning or scold her to calm her down, but he was waiting with open arms.
'Calm down. Everything is for treatment.'
She reminded herself as she hugged him.
The feeling of his tense back muscles moving under her palms was palpable. The flow of her sacred energy into his body was significantly stronger compared to just holding hands.
Her forehead rested on his chest, where she heard his heartbeat, loud and fast like a drum. For a moment, she thought it was her heart that was beating.
To her surprise, she felt his breath on her neck and his nose brushing her skin.
“This is… very effective,” Harold muttered, his voice hoarse as he exhaled.
Before she could react, he tightened his grip around her waist, his hands squeezing hard as if he had no intention of letting go.
“…!”
“Does it hurt?”
When Diana twitched, Harold relaxed his body and asked, his voice right next to her ear. Diana shook her head quickly.
“I wasn't hurt,” she said.
But her chest felt tight, and Harold's presence seemed even more crushing.
“Good to hear that,” he replied, rubbing his face against the back of her neck. His nose and lips lightly touched her skin.
The air felt hot as she inhaled, and her mouth dried quickly. The scent of roses became more seductive than sweet.
'Can I really get used to this?'
She agreed to Harold's proposal partly out of enthusiasm.
She had gotten used to his face and felt it was okay to be near him after sharing so many moments together.
But now, her confidence was quickly fading.
Diana loosened her grip on him.
“Should we just sleep tonight?” I suggested.
The moment she spoke, her vision flipped.
Her head hit the bed, and Harold was on top of her.
'What the...?'
Diana stared blankly at Harold's face as he moved closer, pinning her completely.
“Isn't that too short?” mutter.
His breath touched her lips gently, even though they did not kiss.
I felt like they did, simply because his gaze was so intense.
Harold's eyes stopped on her lips before meeting her eyes.
When his eyes met hers, Diana bit her lower lip nervously.
“We only stayed like this for five minutes.”
“I thought it had been more than 30 minutes...”
“No, not yet. Let’s stay like this for a while.”
Even when they held hands, Harold seemed to feel relief from his pain. Now, with the sacred energy flowing through his body stronger than ever, he did not want to escape.
After all, he spent half his life in pain. Diana understood, and felt a pang of pity for him.
“…Just ten more minutes,” she finally gave up.
She tightened her arms around his back as he rested his forehead on her shoulder, letting out a quiet laugh.
“You're always so nice,” he murmured.
“...Stop talking over my shoulder; it tickles.”
"Good."
“I mean it,” she exhaled, muttering quietly.
To Diana, Harold today seemed like a wolf in clothing
Sheep, and she's not used to it yet.
'I'll get used to this... eventually, right?'
Diana glanced at the roses in the vase before closing her eyes. The aroma still seemed strange.
Ella and Kayden were having dinner together at an upscale restaurant in the capital, on the VIP floor.
Ella cut the steak into small pieces and took a bite.
"This place always has great meat. Or maybe even better because of who I'm with," she joked with a sweet smile.
Her bright, sparkling smile made even the distant waiter blush. Ella was amazing.
But Caiden just stared blankly out the window, lost in thought ever since Harold visited their mansion.
“By the way...”
“Yes, Kayden?”
Ella's attention quickly moved to Kayden as he finally focused his gaze.
“Diana must have finally succeeded in establishing a relationship with the wife of the Marquis Mayer.”
Kaiden pricked a piece of meat with his fork and asked indulgently:
“Isn't this something you always wanted to do but couldn't, Ella?”