The Escort Knight Who Is Obsessed by the Villainess Wants to Escape - Chapter 183

After the natural kiss between the couple ended, it was a time to freely eat and chat.

It was also a time when Judas and Eliza greeted the guests up close.

The first person they approached was, of course, Maria.

She was sitting in a safe spot near the royal guard.

She had cried so pitifully that the nearby guards were keeping an eye on her.

“Mom.”

Eliza softly called her.

It felt strange.

In the past, when she cried, Maria would comfort her, but it seemed that role had switched.

She didn’t mind it at all.

She thought she understood why Maria was crying, and she could take care of her now.

“Yeah… Eliza. I’m sorry, I keep crying without thinking… I shouldn’t cry on a good day.”

“No, there’s no need to apologize. You’re not doing anything wrong. If you want to cry, you should cry.”

Maria nodded at her daughter’s words.

“Thank you for saying that… Eliza. Be happy, okay? I want you to be happy. That’s all I want.”

“Yeah. I’ll definitely be happy.”

Eliza said it as if making a promise.

She was filled with certainty.

With Judas by her side, she was confident that she could be happy.

“You should be happy too, Mom.”

Maria had been feeling this a lot lately.

Eliza had grown up so much.

It wasn’t just in appearance.

The words ‘let’s be happy together’ could only come from a heart that truly had room and consideration for others.

“…Yeah, you’re right. I should.”

Maria said to the pillar that had supported Eliza’s growth.

“Judas.”

“Yes… Mother-in-law?”

The awkward title made Maria laugh.

“Just call me whatever is comfortable. Thank you for staying by Eliza’s side until now. And please continue to take care of her in the future.”

“I receive much more than I give, but I will make sure there is nothing for you to worry about.”

A reassuring answer.

Eliza, smiling with relief, looked happier than ever.

Judas was the same.

Maria smiled and said,

“Congratulations on your marriage, both of you.”

After finishing the conversation with Maria, Eliza firmly instructed the servants helping with the meal.

They were to bring everything Maria requested without fail and serve her with the utmost care.

The servants, as well as the royal guards nearby, listened carefully to her words.

Since Eliza’s only guest was Maria, it was now time for Judas’s guests.

No need to go far.

It was the turn of the royal guards at the nearby table.

Gawain and Shylock were also sitting there with the guards.

“Oh, Your Majesty. Thank you for granting us the honor of being here.”

They first greeted Eliza.

Then they looked toward Judas, checking his reaction.

“…What’s going on? Why is everyone so awkward, looking at me like that?”

“Well, you’re the consort of Her Majesty now…”

“I’m not sure how to treat you now, man…”

“Hmm…”

Gawain was also grappling with the same dilemma.

Judas waved his hand with a laugh as if it were all absurd.

“Relax, treat me normally, like before.”

Eliza chimed in.

“You don’t need to worry about me. His opinion is my opinion.”

Only then did everyone start acting like they used to with Judas.

“With that outfit on, it’s hard to recognize you.”

“I thought you were a completely different person.”

“I remember when you first got knighted and wore your armor.”

“Congratulations, Judas.”

Judas clinked glasses with them as they complimented him and offered their greetings.

“Thank you.”

“I knew you’d be like this, yeah. I’ve always seen it in you since the old days.”

At Richard’s words, Eliza became intrigued.

“Really? You’ve known since then? How long ago? How did you know?”

“Well, uh…”

“Feel free to speak.”

With permission granted, Richard grinned at Judas.

Judas felt a strange unease.

“So, it goes way back—about five years ago, to be exact…”

“Oh… much longer ago than I expected.”

“…Richard, senior?”

“Stay still, you. You know, ever since a while ago, every time a lady showed up at the training center, something about the way he looked at her changed.”

Richard started the conversation, and other guards nearby added a few words to the account.

“There was one time when we were training out in the wild, and Judas, in his sleep, mumbled the name of Lady Eliza.”

“…”

“So, I asked him, and this guy, half-asleep, couldn’t even get his thoughts together and just blurted out that he’d been feeling empty because it’s been so long since he saw her.”

“Ho ho…”

As the story went on, Judas turned redder, while Eliza nodded along, clearly intrigued.

“There’s a lot more where that came from, but I can’t take up too much of your time.”

“Well, that’s a shame. It’s a rare opportunity.”

“…”

By now, Judas was completely embarrassed and couldn’t say a word.

“If there’s a next time, I’ll be sure to hear it.”

“Sure!”

Finally, all the guards offered their congratulations to Eliza as well.

Gawain, who had been laughing so hard he nearly cried, quickly cleared his throat and tried to regain composure.

“Ahem, ahem! So, Judas. You’ve grown up into an adult and will be taking such a noble person as your bride. Truly admirable.”

“…It’s a bit late to act all solemn now.”

“Yeah, but I’m still really proud of you.”

Gawain purposely pretended not to hear Judas’s words.

“You’re an upright and diligent person. You’ll be a husband who fits perfectly as the consort of Her Majesty.”

“Yeah. I think so too.”

Judas felt grateful for Gawain’s praise.

“Thank you, Gawain… No, Sir Galehad.”

“Once again, congratulations. I hope you live happily.”

Gawain didn’t give the usual advice to not hesitate this time. Judas had grown enough that such advice was no longer necessary, and there would likely never be a situation where it would be needed.

Next was the table where Hermes was sitting.

Judas glanced at Eliza, but she spoke first.

“It’s okay. Don’t worry about me.”

“Hmm…”

“I mean it.”

“Understood. I’ll just greet you both and be on my way.”

All three of them greeted Eliza first.

Then Eurydice spoke to Judas.

“It’s an honor to meet you. Thank you for inviting me to such a rare occasion, Your Excellency.”

“…I’m going to die of awkwardness, can you just treat me like usual?”

“Hmmm… Is that really okay? How can I, in front of such a great person?”

Eurydice said it teasingly.

It was rather amusing to watch Judas squirm.

Judas thought that Hermes’s playful nature must have come from her family background.

“Her Majesty herself has allowed this.”

“Well then, I guess it’s okay. It’s been a while, Judas. I’m glad to see you’ve been doing well.”

“Yes, and I’m glad to see you two as well…”

Judas tilted his head, looking at Orpheus.

His smile seemed oddly awkward.

He looked almost pale.

“…Orpheus, are you feeling unwell?”

“Oh, it’s nothing like that. I just got scolded a bit.”

“Scolded?”

“Yeah. Something happened.”

“…I see…”

Well, every couple has their own matters, so that was fine.

“That little brat who barged in so boldly has grown so much.”

“Indeed. When we first met, you were even shorter than me…”

Hermes joined the conversation.

She rubbed the freckles on her nose and looked up at Judas.

“You’ve grown like bamboo over the years and now you’re already married before me.”

“Not that much like bamboo…”

Judas paused mid-sentence, startled.

Eliza had pressed herself against him, crossing her arms.

More precisely, her body was pressing into a certain part of his.

She did it so subtly, no one else could notice.

“W-well, anyway! Thank you for coming today.”

“No, no! I’m more thankful that I can be here.”

Squeak, squeak.

Judas found it hard to keep his composure with Eliza’s constant nudging.

He stole a glance at her.

She wore a confident expression, her face full of pride as she smiled arrogantly at Hermes.

‘The person involved probably has no thoughts about this, but why is she doing this…?!’

It was cute, but also awkward enough to fluster him.

After receiving congratulations from the three of them, Judas hurriedly left the place.

A multitude of thoughts swirled in his mind.

There was no one else left to greet.

That meant there was only the time for the newlywed couple to spend together right after the wedding.

‘What should I do? How should I act?’

This was his first time dealing with such a situation, and his head was spinning.

‘Is there… a space for that in the temple? No, can we even do that in the temple?! Well, the Sun temple isn’t a particularly ascetic religion, but still…!’

The embarrassing thoughts were ultimately useless.

He closed his eyes and opened them again, finding himself in a completely different place.

“…Huh?”

It was a very dark place, but not so dark that it was unrecognizable.

Soft candlelight illuminated the space around him.

This place was the same as the one Eliza had taken him to before.

It was the unique villa that Eliza had shown him, which he had thought was a kind of personal retreat.

At the foot of the mountain, a birdcage-shaped cave.

Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine.

Before the wedding, Eliza had mentioned that he would be staying in the mansion or somewhere else for a while.

Could this place be…?

“Judas.”

Eliza approached him.

Without thinking, Judas took a step back.

“Where are you going?”

“…No, I’m not going anywhere. Yes.”

“Then why are you backing away?”

With one more step forward, Judas stepped back again.

“Well, there’s no special reason, but…”

“There’s no place for you to escape. Getting in here and getting out—only I can do that.”

“…Right…”

Eliza had endured a whole week to find Judas.

During that time, Eliza had prepared a great many things.

One of them included this birdcage.

A place from Judas’s memory of another world.

A world full of things that didn’t exist in this one.

Among those, Eliza had focused on something called a ‘refrigerator.’

A device that preserved food by keeping it cold, extending its shelf life.

Eliza had created a similar version of this, using magic to make ice that would never melt, and placed it in this birdcage.

Food had also been prepared in abundance.

Therefore, they could survive here for about 30 days without needing to leave.

Beds, lighting, and even water for bathing had been arranged.

Now that the person had arrived, everything was perfect.

“Judas.”

“Y-Yes…”

“The ring I gave you—it’s not just a ring.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s an artifact.”

“An artifact…?”

“What kind of function does it have…?”

Before Judas could finish his question, he stumbled backwards.

His legs got caught on the bed.

There was no time to wonder when such a large bed had appeared in the room.

Eliza climbed onto him, speaking softly.

“The effect of the ring I gave you is exactly the same as the one I have. With it, from now on, you can teleport to me at any time, in any situation, without asking for my permission—or you can summon me to you.”

“……”

“Do you understand what that means?”

Judas swallowed.

Eliza smiled, his usual calm expression, but today there was something unusually seductive about it.

A hot, burning desire spread from his heart, and it made his whole body feel warm.

A primal urge, too intense to be controlled by human language or reason, seemed ready to burst.

Their lower bodies pressed together, aligning completely.

Belly. Chest. And the tips of their noses.

Their breaths intertwined.

It felt as though they were touching each other’s skin with just their breath.

From their breathing, there was a faint scent of wine.

A sweet fragrance.

They had drunk lightly, so they weren’t drunk.

But both of them were already as heated as though they had been drinking for hours, and their rational minds were half-fogged.

The red eyes looked down at him.

Waiting for an answer.

Eliza, lying on top of him, read the same burning desire in Judas’s golden eyes, which reflected his own.

It was satisfying.

They both realized that they had reached the breaking point of something that had been simmering beneath the surface.

Judas didn’t answer with words.

He answered with something else.

The first word was the lips.

He roughly pulled Eliza’s face toward him and pressed their lips together.

Eliza, as if he had been waiting for this moment, wrapped his arms around his neck and deepened the kiss.

Their lips parted due to their ragged breaths.

They shared warm, wet saliva.

The small space started to fill with each other’s heat and breath.

It didn’t take long for Judas’s sensations to be consumed by Eliza, and Eliza’s sensations to be swallowed by Judas, until they were both completely overwhelmed.