"Why did you remove your shirt for that matter?" Sianna asked.
She crossed her arms over her chest, trying so hard not to look down at my bare torso, keeping her gaze firmly locked on my face.
But I could see the faint flush creeping up her neck.
"To show you my mana flow, of course," I replied with a smooth smile.
I rested the training sword over my shoulder.
"How else will you be able to properly deduce the pathways and correct my form?"
"Oh... I guess that makes sense," she stammered slightly, clearing her throat to regain her strict professional composure.
"So, what do you want to work on?"
"You see, ma'am, I am having trouble with enemies that attack from a lower ground," I explained, stepping into the centre of the training mats.
"Whenever I wield my sword downward for a strike, it automatically opens up a lot of empty spaces across my torso for them to counterattack."
I demonstrated the move for her, did a few wide sweeps with the sword, making sure my footwork was intentionally clumsy, and my posture was open.
I wanted to look just amateur enough that she would feel compelled to step in and fix it physically.
After analysing my flawed attacks from a safe distance for a few minutes, she let out a soft sigh and finally walked toward me.
"Your guard is failing because you are leaning your body way too low and dropping your shoulders on the follow-through," she explained, her voice slipping back into her comfortable role as a teacher.
She stepped into my space and stood directly behind me.
Sianna reached out, placing one of her hands firmly on my right arm to adjust my grip on the sword hilt, and placed her other hand flat right against the centre of my bare back to straighten my spine.
Her hands were warm.
The moment her soft palm pressed flat against my bare skin, my entire body involuntarily twitched as a hot shiver ran straight down my spine.
'What the hell is this?' I thought to myself, gripping the sword hilt a little tighter.
'Why am I so sensitive right now?'
I could feel the heat radiating from her body pressing lightly against my back.
A transparent blue window quietly popped up in the corner of my vision.
[Charm Interaction: 30%]
[Scenario Completion: 40% / 100%]
I ignored the text and focused entirely on the woman standing behind me.
"When you swing downward, you need to make sure only your hands and arms are executing the attack," she instructed softly, standing so close I could feel her breath against my shoulder.
"Do not move your entire torso with the blade. You are giving away your centre of gravity."
She gently guided my hands, moving my arms through the proper swinging motion.
I moved the sword accordingly, letting her dictate the pace of the movement.
Despite being under so much emotional pressure herself and clearly being flustered by a half-naked student in a private room, Sianna was a genuinely fantastic teacher.
Her corrections were precise and effective.
Honestly, her deep dedication to her craft while her personal life was falling apart made a possessive part of me even more excited.
I repeated the same downward sweeping move a few more times, moving slowly, intentionally dragging out the exercise so she couldn't take her warm hands off my body for even a single moment.
"Thank you, ma'am," I whispered, letting my voice drop into a low whisper that vibrated in my chest.
"Oh, I am just doing my job as a teacher," she replied.
"And I'm sorry," I said quietly.
"Huh? Sorry for wh—"
I didn't let her finish the sentence, dropped the sword onto the floor with a loud thud and turned around instantly.
I didn't take a single step back to increase the distance between us.
Instead, I reached out with both hands and firmly grabbed her soft hips, pulling her forward until her body was pressed completely flush against my bare chest.
"What are you doing?" Her voice cracked in sudden panic.
She looked up at me, and I noticed her eyes were actually shifting colour, the irises flashing with mana as her body reacted to the sudden proximity and escalating tension.
"How much longer are you going to act like this?" I asked, looking deeply into her eyes.
"What the hell are you talking about?" she gasped.
She put her hands flat against my chest and tried to push herself away, trying to break free from my grip.
But she was surprised to find that my hold on her hips was solid. Also, she's making sure not to use her full power and hurt me accidentally.
"I am talking about you, Sianna," I said softly, dropping the respectful titles.
"You are exhausted, lonely, and you are feeling weak at this moment. You are practically begging for someone to just hold you and actually embrace you for once. It is not like you are a stupid woman. You can clearly see my advances and haven't actually stopped me yet."
"This is highly inappropriate, Shane," she whispered, her hands trembling slightly against my bare skin.
"I am married, your professor."
"I know all of that," I told her, sliding my hands slowly from her hips up to her waist.
"But what if I told you that if I didn't do this right now, I would die."
"Huh?" Her eyes widened in total shock.
"That is the truth," I said.
I pulled her even closer, eliminating whatever tiny sliver of space was left between us.
The sweet scent of her sweat and the faint musk of her morning workout filled my senses, increasing my own arousal.
"We do this just once," I offered in a low, seductive whisper, bargaining with her fragile resolve.
"Just once, right here, and I promise I will never come your way or bother you again."
Sianna actually stopped struggling.
For a long moment, she looked into my eyes and thought about it. The burden of her loneliness was warring perfectly with her strict morals.
"You are so young, Shane," she breathed out, her hands slowly sliding up to grip my shoulders. "You have your whole life ahead of you."
"Which I cannot enjoy if I don't do this with you right now," I countered smoothly.
I lowered my head, my lips slowly nearing hers.
She let out a shaky breath.
Her stiff, resistant body relaxed against me, melting into my hold. She tilted her chin up and slowly fluttered her eyes shut, entirely surrendering to the overwhelming tension in the quiet training hall.
Just as my lips brushed against hers—
DING!
[Message from Melissa: Did you fuck her yet?]
The system notification popped up directly between our faces, and the atmosphere I worked so hard to built cracked in seconds.
Sianna's eyes snapped open in horror as reality came crashing back down on her.
She realised what she was about to do with her teenage student and didn't even wait for me to explain the changes.
She pushed hard against my chest, stumbled backwards, and practically ran for the locker room door without looking back.
The door slammed shut, leaving me standing alone on the training mats.
Veins started bulging in my forehead.
I stood there staring at the blue text from her, my hands curling into tight fists as rage boiled in my chest.