Their romance storyline only begins on the second playthrough

He could sense a peculiar resistance within Ivina, a constant rejection of his approach.

The superficial arrangements and decorations are never about considering the desire for the future, but simply about experiencing this particular moment.

But if you really want to be with someone, you will inevitably start thinking about the future... Rod understands this very well.

But he didn't understand, he didn't understand where his actions went wrong.

Whether it was overall gentleness, occasional teasing, or providing her with various methods to overcome the crisis... in the end, she still couldn't gain more confidence in herself.

why?

Because I'm afraid that I won't be able to successfully walk into that crowd tomorrow and stand normally in front of people.

But if that's the case, the more afraid she is, the more she should rely on herself.

I don't understand... Rod pulled up the covers, and after unintentionally sensing Ivina's presence while breathing, his inner turmoil intensified.

The blankets in the guest room didn't have much of Rhodes' scent on them to begin with, and since he hadn't been there last night, when he lifted the blankets, all he could smell was Ivina's scent.

The young girl always had a very pure fragrance, not the scent of perfumes, but a natural and simple fragrance.

There's a saying... Everyone has their own natural body odor. Some people like this smell and will be attracted to it, while others dislike it and will stay away.

And perhaps some people, after liking this person, will naturally also like this smell...

But in any case, Rhodes didn't dislike him.

“Ivina, what are you afraid of?” Rhodes finally asked. “Today, you are clearly burdened, and your soul is fading.”

"Hey, is the Soul Seed really that disgusting? You can even sense fluctuations of this level...?"

“To some extent, one can sense the quality of the spirit,” Rhodes replied, gazing at the ceiling.

"It's nothing! What's there to be afraid of... At most, I'm just a little scared that I won't be able to stand in the crowd tomorrow and I'll faint from fright."

“If that’s the case, I’ll have no choice but to carry you away in public,” Rod said calmly. “If you don’t want your innocence to be ruined by me for the rest of your life, you should try to overcome this problem.”

Rod said half-jokingly, after all, Ivina, who always talks nonsense... that's how it has to be said.

but……

Unexpectedly, the girl turned her gaze to Rhodes, her crimson eyes shimmering.

Ivina's face appeared flawless in the pale moonlight, and her already haggard appearance was further accentuated by the moonlight, highlighting her fragility.

"...Rhodes, if my innocence is ruined by you, will you take responsibility?"

“I’m serious,” Ivina added.

Chapter 98 If it succeeds... will there be a CG? (3k chapter)

Ivina's words were like a death knell hanging over Rhodes' head.

His eyes also fell on Ivina—

"What do you want me to choose?"

"Hey, you can't just push this topic onto me, okay... I only asked you because I wanted to know your opinion, okay?" Ivina said in a muffled voice, her hand resting on the middle roll of blankets.

"If I choose the wrong one, it will be terrible, right?"

"..." Ivina buried her face completely in the blanket.

Rod reached out and tickled Ivina's waist;

The girl was wearing a thin silk dress, so the tingling sensation from the electric current made her whimper instantly.

"Ugh—!" Ivina, realizing what was happening, shouted angrily, her face flushed red, "What...you...are...doing...!"

"I can only say that you should have some self-awareness. From the very beginning when you slept with me, you have never been innocent," Rhodes said calmly.

"Huh? How, how could this be..."

"Of course the maids know that your room is gone, and of course they know that there will be traces of you in my room, since someone comes to clean it every day."

"So, the ending was actually predetermined from the very beginning."

"Is this what you're worried about? You're afraid I'll abandon you in the end, so you don't dare to get close to me."

"Hey, no, that's not it...!" Ivina's face turned bright red.

Rhodes then pulled aside the blanket separating them and leaned close to Ivina, pulling her into his arms.

"Wow—! I want...I want..."

She had originally intended to shout that she was going to be raped to stop Rod's actions, but strangely, she inexplicably had no intention of resisting and instead kept quiet.

To put it another way, it's like a dying plant will bloom and bear fruit, and that's the state she's in.

To Ivina, Rhodes's body was always so robust, while she was so tiny.

Therefore, the moment the warmth of the wrapping was transmitted to her, her heart also felt a little more at peace.

Of course, my body also started to feel warm...

Oh no, am I really going to be forcibly enforced? Her body trembled slightly as she thought wildly.

But Rod simply began to tell the story calmly—

"For cowardly people, trust can only be built up after life and death."

But sometimes, secretly revealing a little bit of your weakness can make others trust you more.

Unfortunately, I don't have any really bad dirt on you right now.

So, let me tell you a short story.

Rhodes glanced at Ivina, sensing her peaceful listening, and began his narration:

"There was a child in the empire who, from the moment of his birth, was the eldest son of the royal family and had the most legitimate right to inherit the throne."

But the old folks of that empire didn't really like this future heir, because they could always peer into his soul and sense how terrifying he was.

That's the truth; they clearly sensed the soul (mind) of a one-year-old baby.

As we all know, babies do not have any kind of thinking.

Therefore, the old folks were shocked and terrified of him, and tried to pin the titles of "Demon God Reincarnation" and "Monster Soul" on him, and to remove him from his position of succession.

Once this fame spread, the little boy's childhood was not exactly pleasant.

[Imprisonment] Studying in the palace was his only option.

He has been trapped in the palace and the empire, unable to leave, for the past seven years.

His so-called soul was constantly monitored and spied on to see if it was thinking about dangerous things;

But in the end, those old guys failed because they hadn't obtained any special information despite seven years of surveillance.

So in the end, everyone knew that the heir had been wronged, and that his childhood had been exposed to naked surveillance, and they felt guilty about it.

So they released the heir, freeing him from that shadowy space and bringing him to the so-called "Pleasure" nation to restore his mental state.

But... how could the torment he suffered in the past be simply dismissed like that?

Rod calmly recounted these stories.

These things were naturally known to the creator of the character Rhodes.

However, when he actually used his true identity as [Rhodes] to experience [memories], the feeling of resonance became even more intense.

However, for him, these past stories are not the point.

after all--

"Therefore, I will not betray my past self; in fact, I will work even harder to save my past self."

Rhodes' voice was deep, but it was spoken close to Ivina's hair, so every word and every utterance would clearly reach her ears.

The girl in his arms remained silent, neither denying the story nor suggesting thinking about those troublesome matters...

She finally raised her eyes, her nose a little sore, "No matter what?"

"Well, anyway."

"Just like Cecilia turned into a bad person, even if I turned into a bad person, would you still help me?"

“I will tie you up tightly and keep you by my side to teach you a lesson. I don’t want another Cecilia who was betrayed after so much time was spent trying to redeem her.”

Ivina's fingers tightened around Rhodes's collar—

"Then, will you scold me severely?"

"No, I will teach you properly what is right and what is wrong."

"Then... will you stop caring about me altogether?"

“If I were teaching you, or tying you up, how could I not care about you?” Rhodes replied.

“You must remember this: desire is not my true purpose in approaching you. The reason I approach you, appreciate you, and feel you is because I understood what kind of being you were during the witch's invasion that day.”

"The purest and most naive, yet covered in thorns, that's you."

"So, don't worry." Rhodes stroked her head and said the last thing.

The girl felt the gentle pat on her head, and her panicked heart finally tilted towards a state of calm.

"...Hmm." In the end, only a small response was given to Rhodes.

as well as--

"If I can still be with you after tomorrow... I'll reluctantly agree to whatever you do."

The last vestige of her haughty demeanor was left behind, but it vanished without a trace.

……

...

In [Carmen].

Cecilia sealed Clara, the girl who had fallen into demonic possession, onto a cross.

Very strange.

Although Clara's face was contorted with rage and she was unleashing her power wildly, no large-scale mutations had occurred in her body.