Chapter 10: Underwater Rehabilitation Training (2)

“You too, how can you dance if you relax your strength?”

Lise asked in a deliberately cheerful tone to hide her embarrassment.

Then Cain said:

“At first, just follow my lead. Just feel it.”

Why did it feel like he was cleverly omitting the subject?

Was it just her imagination that it sounded incredibly suggestive if she closed her eyes and listened with only her ears?

It might be her imagination. If Cain were that kind of man, he would have fallen for her seduction attempts long ago.

‘What am I even thinking about?’

Lise decided not to attach much meaning to this situation.

“So I just need to stand still? Since you said you’d handle everything.”

“Yes, but.”

Cain said.

“Wrap your legs around my waist.”

“…”

This time, Lise felt like she’d been hit hard on the head with a hammer.

“What, wrap what around what?”

“You need to learn the rhythm first.”

Do we really need to learn it… that way? Your Highness?

But before she could voice such thoughts, Cain easily lifted Lise up. It was a body he could lift easily even outside the water, let alone in water where gravity’s force was weakened.

Lise’s body weighed no more than a feather to him.

Being suddenly lifted up, Lise involuntarily wrapped her legs around Cain’s waist.

She was dying of bewilderment.

Had she ever been in such close physical contact with someone in her life?

She could guarantee that not once since childhood. No, maybe not even in childhood.

Childcare was entirely the wet nurse’s responsibility, and according to what she’d heard, the wet nurse had a cleanliness obsession and wouldn’t touch anything with bare hands without gloves.

Anyway, for someone like her to be pressed almost naked against another person for the first time—and a man at that.

Thump thump.

Lise felt her heart beating violently. It was such an explosive pounding that she thought it might burst through her ribcage.

So she deliberately pulled her upper body back to avoid her chest touching Cain. In case this pounding might be transmitted to him.

Then she became curious. Even though the purpose was training, did Cain really have no thoughts about this? Even while their bare skin was pressed together like this?

“Well… let’s use waltz music. You remember Bern’s Waltz No. 3, right? The music I was your practice partner for before.”

Ah… he seemed to have no thoughts about it. Judging by how calmly he was leading.

‘So it was only me having strange thoughts.’

When she realized it was only her own concern, the heat that had been boiling in Lise’s head gradually subsided.

‘Right, this is underwater training. Training to successfully grace the ball.’

Lise decided to think of it that way.

“Close your eyes. Then you can feel it better.”

Following Cain’s words, Lise closed her eyes. It was indeed as he said. Every time they spun around, the feeling of her body cutting through the water was vividly transmitted along with the sound of ripples.

Was it because he had experience with underwater training? He was really good at it. It was comfortable. If not for the water currents that brushed past her body and returned like waves, she wouldn’t have even known she was in water.

---

While Lise had her eyes closed, Cain stared intently at her face.

His eyes were half-lidded. They were slightly bloodshot too. It felt like fire was rising in his body. A fire that wouldn’t easily subside. He knew well what that fire meant.

Actually, he had told her to close her eyes because he was afraid she’d notice. If they kept making eye contact, he couldn’t guarantee what he might do.

Lise’s face as she closed her eyes and felt the rhythm of the dance was truly enchanting. Even the scar visible between the bangs covering her forehead felt as beautiful as a divine mark.

So much so that he felt the urge to kiss it every moment.

‘I’ve gone crazy.’

Cain thought. That he had gone crazy. Yet he couldn’t stop.

When Mirabel said she would be pressed body against body with Willen like this, he felt like he was going insane. He absolutely couldn’t let that happen.

So he grabbed the back of Willen’s neck just as he was about to enter the bathhouse, pushed him against the wall, and threatened him.

“I hear you’ve been bragging outside that you’re our young lady’s lover?”

“When did I ever…”

Perhaps feeling an unusual dignity, Willen couldn’t dare lower his speech even though he knew Cain was of lower status than himself.

“I’ve already investigated everything and have evidence, so you’d better not think of denying it.”

“What, what should I do?”

“Tell Madam what I tell you to say and get out of this house immediately.”

Willen followed the instructions without complaint. He ran to Madam and said that it would be better for a young man from the household who could use strength better than himself to do it, then hurriedly disappeared.

He thought he could breathe a sigh of relief with that…

Who knew that a situation that was not fortunate at all would be waiting for him.

He thought he’d be fine since he’d seen Lise’s body a few times before, but he didn’t know it would be this dangerous.

It was a stroke of genius that he wore pants with some padding inside. Otherwise, it would have been quite dangerous.

Lise seemed too absorbed in dancing to notice anything. While he was relieved, he also felt strange about it.

He hadn’t expected a secret and suggestive atmosphere, but seeing Lise so unaffected made him a little disappointed.

He was burning up so much that his mind was dizzy, so why could she be so calm?

Did she really have no feelings for him anymore?

“Cain.”

Suddenly Lise called him, and Cain was startled.

“How long do we have to keep doing this?”

“Just a little longer.”

Lise asked, perhaps feeling that they’d been spinning in the same place the whole time.

But Cain wanted to stay like this a little longer. He wanted to look at this face without any interruption just a little more.

The eyelashes with slightly curled ends under her round eyelids and smooth nose bridge were very beautiful.

Her lips moving to count the beat constantly drew his gaze,

And the white teeth visible between them looked as smooth as well-crafted jewels.

Her nape was so white that he wanted to leave some mark on it.

And the contact that was so precariously close yet not quite touching…

“Let’s stop here for today.”

Cain decided to stop here. If they went further, it might really be dangerous.

---

“How was it?”

Mirabel came to ask while she was resting in her quarters.

“How was what? Training is training.”

“Did you really only train?”

Mirabel asked a strange question.

Well, Mirabel might ask such a question. She knew everything about how she thought of Cain and how she had treated him.

“Of course we only trained. What else would there be?”

“Then that’s a relief.”

“It’ll continue to be a relief in the future, so don’t worry. You already know well, right? That he’s not someone who would be swayed even if I tried to shake him.”

“…”

“Besides, I’ve completely gotten rid of such thoughts now, so the kind of thing you’re worried about couldn’t happen even if it tried to.”

Mirabel wanted to say something but didn’t. She didn’t want to shake her lady with unnecessary words when she had finally sorted out her feelings.

“By the way, is the dress fitting tomorrow?”

Lise asked after counting on her fingers.

Then Mirabel answered:

“Yes, at two in the afternoon tomorrow. You should be able to leave right after lunch.”

“Two in the afternoon…”

So it’s after the underwater training ends.

By the way, could her body have become this light from just doing that briefly?

Lise marveled as she felt her movements had become much easier. The struggle of moving through the water resistance had been worth it.

Lise got up from her seat and walked lightly around the room. While doing so, she asked Mirabel:

“How is it? Don’t I seem a bit lighter?”

“Well, it does seem that way…”

Actually, Mirabel had been noticing that her lady’s movements had become considerably lighter since a while ago. She thought it was definitely helping.

So she dismissed her thoughts. Her plan to tell Madam that for the young lady’s sake, Cain should be sent away immediately.

Two hours ago.

Mirabel had briefly headed to the bathhouse to see if her lady needed anything. Then, just as she was about to open the door… the conversation was so strange and suggestive that she couldn’t bring herself to turn the door handle.

‘You need to relax. Then you can feel it better.’

‘Wrap your legs around my waist.’

Mirabel thought she was going to faint and be struck by lightning.

‘What kind of situation is this?’

As expected, that bastard Cain—she should have known from when he said he’d take charge of her lady’s training. Using training as an excuse to try to do something to her lady…!

Mirabel thought she had to save her lady.

But if she burst in suddenly, her precious lady might be startled, so she decided to first peek slightly to check the situation. She thought it wouldn’t be too late to burst in after that. So she opened the door slightly…

What entered Mirabel’s eyes was her lady mounted on Cain with her eyes closed, and Cain staring at her lady intensely.

At that moment, Mirabel had an intuition.

Cain had begun to love her lady. Definitely.

The emotion contained in those longing eyes couldn’t be anything but love.

But her lady didn’t know.

What if she knew? Then how would her lady react? Would she go back to how she was before?

“No. I can’t let that happen.”

Setting aside the difference in status, she couldn’t let her lady, who had just started to come to her senses, struggle with obsession again. Once was enough for that kind of thing.

Mirabel made up her mind.

“I have to send that bastard away before it’s too late.”

And until just a moment ago, that determination had been firm.

But now, seeing Lise spinning around and walking with the same lively and light movements as before, Mirabel changed her mind.

She decided to postpone her resolution for a while.

‘Right, it wouldn’t matter if I delay the timing a bit. Her lady’s body comes first. Once her body is completely recovered, it won’t be too late to send him away then.’

---

Second session of underwater training.

Cain had a slightly more businesslike attitude than yesterday.

“Keep your posture straight. If you shrink your body, you won’t build strength.”

He tried not to make physical contact except for holding hands.

It was as if he had returned to the original Cain.