Heaven's Greatest Professor

"Let me," June asked softly, "the least I can do is to td to his wounds."

Without his const, she couldn't strip him of the legdary items. But she was the only person he trusted, and Ward was a mess.

While not tirely her fault, June took it as a personal failure that she was unable to see through a mtal manipulation in her hindsight to punish Ward. He let her take care of him.

Ward watched slowly as June tded his wounds. She seemed naturally deft in it, ev though healing wasn't her calling. With a steady and soft hand, she rubbed a dark gre sap into his back after feeding him a potion.

The dark power he devoured still raged inside his body. His core seemingly takes care of it on its own, but Ward would need further work on making the malevolt power his own.

For now, all his focus was on June's picturesque face as she worked on him. None of them had uttered a word yet, but Ward could she was taking it as a failure from her d after being unable to stop a mtal manipulation in front of her eyes.

The lashing still burned in his skin, as using ergy to soothe the pain seemed to be only making it difficult for him. June had explained the magic behind it yesterday after his punishmt was announced. Ward hadn't thought much of it back th, other than the sheer disrespect he'd have to go through.

But now, the pain makes him feel more…

Appartly, the damage to the psyche made it difficult for the Body, mind and soul to work in synergy. The lashing had created a glitch in his system, where the expditure of all forms of action would be tremdously difficult. Drawing power was abnormally hard and agonising, to say the least.

And yet, healing the psyche would only hast if he took action. So it was pain after all.

This was a rather vicious form of punishmt than he thought. Ward clashed his palms into fist.

June's soft palms clasped on his shoulder, telling him she was there. That she would not let this happ again.

She came before him after taking care of the scars on his back. She began tding the wounds on the chest. There were fewer in the front, and Ward could have tak care of it on his own if he wanted.

But her palms felt… nice to his skin. He felt like he was cared for. The world wasn't coming to an d just because he fell into a scheme. No, there was someone who knew him and took care of him.

"I don't deserve you," Ward said, letting out a deep sigh.

June quirked her eyebrows to spare him a glance. "Did one misstep burn away your confidce, which I believed to be infinitely abundant?" she asked.

Ward met her gaze straight and chuckled. "I'm only speaking the truth," he said. Though he was unable to tell if there was any man who could deserve someone like her.

"This is not very like you," she said, dropping her gaze back to the lash marks. "Are you giving up on courting me, th? I guess I'd have only less thing to worry about th."

He figured she was trying her best to light the mood. Ward snorted, looking at her. A beautiful thing she is. And more.

"I was a slave," Ward said softly and found her palms stopped working. She raised her gaze to look at him again, many questions appearing in her eyes. "Day in, day out, I was to mine rare fire ores, which td to burst into molt flames if they wer't handled cautiously. There are a few days I wasn't burnt, and if it wasn't the burning, th it's the lashing.

"They were merciless, unlike the academy. They did not stop ev while you were dying. I have se many falling to those punishmts… I saw a frid die… His name was—"

A face surfaced in his mind's eye, a man in his early thirties, pale yet smiling as if he knew something the next person did not. His heart shook as he was unable to remember the name.

He found June still staring at him, biting her lips. Ward shrugged. "I guess I only recovered this much."

She stared at him unblinkingly for several seconds and th leaned in to kiss on his lips.

Ward was completely caught off guard. Before he knew better, he felt her soft, sweet lips on his, and all the darkness in his heart drove aside.

The kiss ded quickly, but Ward was utterly transfixed, so thoroughly, that he was unable to say any words. His mouth hung op, wordless.

"Don't fret too much about what you were; look forward to what you can become."

All the courage June mustered seemed to vanish from her being after she had done the deed. She bowed her head, unable to meet his gaze, her cheeks turning red. Ev her ears tingled in embarrassmt.

"So, my dless aura of vulnerability worked?" Ward asked with a laugh, words finally coming to his lips as he licked them together to savour her taste.

June groaned. "Don't ruin the momt," she said, gritting her teeth.

"So, it's a yes, th?" Ward asked, a fire burning in his chest. It wasn't the fire of rage that was once prest a few minutes ago, but of a differt sort, of a beautiful sort. Something that can make the world a better place.

June did not answer, dropping her head ev below.

"June?"

"Hmm," she hummed softly, but Ward took that as an agreemt.

He didn't wait for another momt, clasped his palm over her shoulder and pulled her up. He met her gaze, which was wavering in embarrassmt. Ward smiled and leaned to kiss her.

June's kiss was rather soft, merely a peck on the lips. But now, he drew their lips into a proper kiss. A real kiss. Sweetness blossomed like a spring morning as heat grew betwe them. June let out a whimper, her palms clutched on his arm tightly.

The pain of his being vanished, and only the rush of passion remained.