[Book of Eros] Chapter 48 - A message from above. (Patreon)

When Leonardo woke up, the unfamiliar weight on him immediately made him remember last night’s events. Angela was still snoozing on his shoulder, an arm across his chest and boobs still pressing against him. One of her legs was also wrapped around one of his. He was practically serving as Angela’s body pillow, and… dammit, he loved it. If she had been clinging to anyone else, their body might’ve hurt or at least felt numb, but to him this was nothing. Instead he got to wake up with a gorgeous woman clinging to his left side. The only thing that could make it better was if Reiko was at his right.

Leo reached for his phone as gently as he could not to wake up Angela and noticed it was about time they got up. He needed to take a shower and get started on breakfast, but… he didn’t want to wake Angela up, nor did he want to get out of bed. That was a first. Still, they needed to get up or they’d be late. And they needed to have a serious conversation with Reiko.

“Angela,” he whispered, brushing her cheek with the back of his fingers. “We need to get up.”

“No we don’t,” she answered groggily and snuggling ever closer to him. “Fuck school.”

“What about breakfast?”

“I’m awake,” she said, opening her eyes wide. “Shit, did I sleep on your arm? Are you okay?”

“Doing great,” he nodded. “You?”

“Remember when you said you had annoying dreams about me?”

“Oh no…”

“At least I’m waking up next to you, or it’d be worse,” she grinned. “Hey, I know the deal with Reiko was until last night, but… can we pretend like it lasts until we leave the house, at least?”

It wasn’t a fair questions. Leo wanted too much to say yes. So he did. “Okay.”

Angela kissed him, this time slipping her own tongue inside his mouth. It was short, but just as delicious as every other kiss last night. They got up, each going to their own bathrooms to take a shower and change into their uniforms.

It was as he was getting his backpack ready that he noticed something odd. He always kept the Book of Eros close to him. Today would be no exception. But when he got it from his desk, he noticed the white cover was slowly flicking with a dim, red light. Had another condition been fulfilled without him knowing? Last time it had shined bright and pink, but who was to say it would always be the same? He took the book, and the magic item startled him by opening to the first page on its own.

His whole body froze, a cold sensation running throughout his body as he saw it. On the first blank page, shining red letters were… writing themselves in clear English and beautiful, meticulous handwriting.

‘Such an interesting little item. The amount of sexual energy in it is still miniscule, but it was enough for me to notice it. To think humans could craft something that would dare challenge my power. Hehe. But I cannot say I disapprove. I suppose I will watch more closely. But I want to make this more amusing. You do not mind if I alter this little grimoire, do you, Leonardo? Did you really think you could leisurely challenge the power of the Gods? No, child, it does not work that way. You are a descendant of the people who wished for my gifts. Easy enough to tell. So now you want to keep the gifts AND take back what was given as an offering? Very well. Try it and see if you can succeed. But if you cannot break the spell in a year’s time, not only will your people not recover their sensations, but I will render this cute artifact useless and even take away all your gifts as a punishment for defying me. You get what it means, right? The grimoire will not let you feel anything anymore, and you will lose all chances of ever recovering your sensations. I believe this is fair, is it not? An all or nothing challenge. Though I care little about the end result. What I want is to see you struggle, see what choices you make and how they affect the people around you. I look forward to seeing the kind of person you are, Leonardo Contreras.’

The book shook in his trembling hands and his mouth felt dry. He’d learned that the occult was real, but clearly hadn’t truly grasped what it meant. His mind, shaken by such a disturbing, esoteric event, believed every written word. This was a message from the god that granted the Tensai clan its powers, a response to their direct meddling.

A year. He had a year to remove the curse or…

…

His thoughts went to Reiko first, to the delightful moments they’d shared already. A great terror crept into his chest, thinking he might not ever be able to feel like that again. His eyes then set on his undone futon, where he’d spent the night with Angela. A rush of thoughts and worries assaulted him, and he didn’t know what to focus on first. He had a year to fix everything, or they’d lose it all. He didn’t care about losing his endurance, but Angela would lose her fighting prowess, Mrs. Wisler would lose her insight, and all other members would lose the one thing that let them cope with the curse.

His chest hurt, and his body felt heavy. Too great a weight had been thrown upon him.

***

Author's Note: Like I said in a previous update post, I had like 1-2 weeks worth of chapters ready that I had to discard to make this change. It might seem small, but I believe this time limit will give the story the sense of urgency it's been lacking and be better for it. Tell me what you think.