Chapter 622: Dangerous Love

Aqua’s soapy hands moved in slow strokes across Cassius’s back, but her mind was miles away.

She was desperately trying to make sense of the gulf between what she had imagined and what was actually happening.

After all, this was supposed to be her homecoming week.

Her long-awaited, perfect reunion.

She had spent years in the capital daydreaming about it—picturing every wholesome, golden moment.

Taking his hand and dragging him through the bustling town market, pointing at every shiny trinket and saying,

"This one’s for you, little brother—try it on!"

Spoiling him rotten with sweets, new cloaks, enchanted baubles, anything that would make his eyes light up the way they used to when he was small.

Coming home afterward to the kitchen, sleeves rolled up, proudly unveiling the new recipes she’d practiced in secret just for him—spiced honey cakes, roasted quail with herbs she’d foraged herself—watching his face melt into that wide, innocent grin that always made her feel ten feet tall.

Sitting together on the sunlit veranda afterward, gossiping like they used to: her teasing him about any crushes he might have, giving him big-sister advice he’d pretend to ignore but secretly treasure.

Maybe showing off a new spell—something flashy to impress him to make him clap like he was five again, while she stood there beaming, basking in his praise.

And at night...curling up together in the big bed like when they were children, his head on her shoulder, her arms around him, whispering nonsense until they both drifted off feeling safe and loved.

That was the dream.

That was what she had carried in her heart every lonely night in the capital.

But instead of that, she was kneeling naked behind her grown-up brother, soapy hands roaming his bare back, both of them flushed and aroused for reasons that had nothing to do with nostalgia.

She could even see the thick outline of his erection straining against the towel knotted at his waist.

This was the opposite of wholesome.

This was lewd. Taboo. Depraved.

And it was all her fault.

If she had controlled herself—if she had walked away the moment she saw him with Portia, if she hadn’t touched herself, if she hadn’t come while watching him fuck—none of this would be happening.

They could be laughing in the garden right now.

Instead she was here—fingers tracing the hard ridges of muscle she had no business touching—burning with shame so intense she prayed he wouldn’t turn around and see how red her face had become.

But just then her hands faltered as she realised something.

’Muscles?’

’My baby brother has muscles?’

Thinking of this, she properly looked at his back for the first time...and she gulped.

Gods.

When had he gotten so...big?

The boy she remembered had been fragile.

Thin as a leaf.

A playful shove from her would send him stumbling, giggling.

One solid pat and he’d dramatically flop forward like he’d been mortally wounded.

But this back...

Broad. Wide. Strong.

It felt like she could swing a battering ram against it and the ram would splinter while he stood unmoved.

And it wasn’t just big...it was chiseled.

Every subtle shift of his shoulders made the muscles roll and flex beneath her palms like iron coiled under warm skin.

Deep valleys ran along his spine.

Thick lats flared out from his narrow waist in a perfect V.

She could feel the power humming there, hidden and controlled.

And as a woman, she couldn’t help it.

The sight, the feel of all that restrained strength made heat pool low in her pussy again.

Her nipples tightened against the cool air and her thighs pressed together instinctively.

Before she could stop herself, her touch stopped being normal.

Instead, her fingers explored.

She followed the deep valley of his spine down to the dramatic taper of his waist—wide at the shoulders, narrow and taut at the hips.

She traced the hard lines of his lats, felt them flare when he shifted.

She then slid lower, shamelessly mapping every knot and ridge.

It was wrong.

So wrong.

She was taking advantage of him.

But he wasn’t stopping her.

He wasn’t even looking at her.

And this might be the only chance she ever got to touch him like this without consequence.

So she let herself.

Just for a moment.

Just to see.

Just to...check how much he’d grown.

Yes.

That was the excuse she fed herself.

She wasn’t being perverted.

She was just...curious.

Concerned.

And because of that same concern, she wanted to check his arms as well and see if they were alright.

"Cassius." She said, voice a little too breathy. "Hold out your hands for me too. Let me touch them—I-I mean scrub them as well."

He obeyed instantly since it was hard to resist, extending both arms behind him in a posture that made his shoulders and triceps flex beautifully.

Aqua didn’t hesitate.

She lathered her palms again and took his right hand in both of hers.

Gods.

Even his hands were different.

Callused. Strong. Thick fingers that could probably crush stone.

She ran her thumbs along the raised veins on the backs, felt the corded muscles of his forearms jump under her touch.

Compared to her own soft, slender hands—hands made for spell-weaving and delicate runes, his felt like weapons.

"How..." She laughed softly, almost disbelieving. "How did you grow up this much? I’m honestly shocked, little brother."

"Back then you were so thin, so fragile—I swear I had more muscle than you at one point. And now? Look at you."

She squeezed his bicep experimentally; it flexed hard under her grip.

"I can’t even recognise you."

Cassius let out a small, embarrassed chuckle.

"I mean...people grow up, Aqua. Can’t stay a little kid forever."

"No, no—it’s not just growing up. You gained all this." She squeezed his bicep again—harder this time. "Your body changed. It’s so...rigid. Hard. There’s no way this just happened naturally."

"Have you been training? Sword work? Weight training? Something?"

She moved to his other arm, scrubbing diligently while secretly leaning in—nose brushing his shoulder—so she could inhale the clean, masculine scent of his skin mixed with soap.

She even turned her head slightly, catching the faint musk from under his raised arm, and her eyelids fluttered.

Cassius hesitated, before deciding to use this moment to raise his image in her heart.

"Honestly..." He said shyly. "It started because of something kind of embarrassing."

Aqua leaned closer, breasts brushing his back through the thin towel barrier.

"Tell me."

He cleared his throat.

"Remember that day in the yard? We were playing with that old leather ball. One of the maids brought her little god over and it got off the leash, started barking at us."

"It was nothing dangerous, just a tiny dog making noise. But we both screamed like it was a dragon."

Aqua burst out laughing, pressing herself tighter against his back.

"Oh my gods—yes! You bolted straight behind me and hid! You were shaking like a leaf, tears in your eyes, clinging to my skirt."

"I thought it was the funniest thing in the world."

"Especially because the dog was so small—if it had bitten you, it probably would’ve just gummed you."

Cassius shook his head, cheeks darkening.

"To you it was hilarious. To me...it was humiliating."

She stilled.

He turned his head just enough to glance at her over his shoulder.

"Not just because I hid behind my big sister like a coward. But because I realized, if something actually dangerous ever came for you...I wouldn’t be able to protect you."

"I-I was weak. Useless. And the thought made me feel sick."

Aqua’s hands froze on his arms.

"Cassius..."

"So after that moment..." He shrugged, almost shy. "I started sneaking out. Swinging a practice sword against the stable wall. Running laps until I threw up. Lifting whatever heavy things I could find."

"I didn’t know what I was doing half the time, but I kept going. Every day. Because I never wanted to feel that helpless again. Not when it came to you."

He met her eyes—soft, earnest.

"And when you were gone...it only made me train harder. I hired a few retired guards to teach me properly. Sword forms. Footwork. Strength drills."

"I’ve kept at it every single day since. That’s how I got like this."

Aqua stared at him in awe and wonder.

Her vision blurred—not with tears, exactly, but with something dangerously close.

"You...did all of this...for me?"

He ducked his head, cheeks burning.

"As embarrassing as it is to admit...yeah. I wanted to be someone who could stand in front of you. Protect you. No matter what came."

He hesitated, then added quietly,

"And right now, I’m not the same helpless kid anymore, Aqua. I can fight now. I can use a blade."

"A-And if anything ever tries to hurt you...I’ll stand between you and it. I swear."

The words landed like arrows.

Straight through her heart.

After all, she had expected a silly answer—something about wanting to impress girls, or liking the way his clothes fit better, or just vanity.

Not this.

Not him reshaping his entire body—years of sweat and pain for her.

Not because he wanted to protect her.

And what made it even more fatal to her was the fact that she was supposed to be the powerful one.

The archmage, the continent’s prodigy, capable of leveling armies with a gesture.

And here was her little brother—mana-less, magic-less—telling her with perfect sincerity that he had rebuilt his entire body, his entire life, just so he could shield her.

Her chest ached with so much love it hurt to breathe.

But beneath the love twisting through it like ivy was something hotter.

Something darker.

Because the body she was touching right now—the broad back, the corded arms, the narrow waist flaring into powerful hips—was all for her.

Every muscle. Every scar. Every inch of strength.

Hers.

The realization made her dizzy.

And before she knew it, her hands slid up his arms again, slower this time. More deliberate.

She even pressed herself fully against his back, breasts flattening warmly against his shoulder blades, nipples dragging with every breath.

Cassius stiffened, upon feeling the change.

"Aqua...?"

She didn’t answer.

Instead she wrapped both arms around his torso from behind, palms gliding over his chest—feeling the hard slabs of pectoral muscle, tracing the ridges of his abs.

Her fingers then found his nipples.

And then she pinched.

Gently.

Then harder.

Cassius sucked in a sharp breath.

"Aqua—what are you—"

"Shhh." She whispered against his ear, lips brushing the shell. "It’s okay, Cassius. Just relax."

She rolled his nipples between her fingers before giving them a few flicks.

"Doesn’t this feel good?" Her voice was low, husky. "Having your big sister wash you...touch you...all over?"

He swallowed hard.

"I—I don’t—"

She nipped his earlobe.

"Say it, Cassius. Tell me it feels good."

His voice cracked.

"...It...It feels good."

She smiled against his neck.

"Good boy."

Then, deliberately she let the towel fall completely.

Her heavy breasts spilled free, pressing bare against his back.

She dragged them up and down, nipples scraping along his spine.

"Feel that?" She purred. "Your big sister’s big, soft breasts all over you. Warm. Heavy. Don’t they feel wonderful against your back?"

Cassius groaned—half in protest, half in surrender.

"Y-Yes...gods, yes...they feel...so good..."

But he still tried to weakly protest one last time..

"But, Aqua...this is wrong. We shouldn’t—you’re my sister—we can’t—"

Aqua turned his chin with gentle fingers until their eyes met.

Then to his utter shock—she kissed him!

Kiss!

Soft at first, chaste, almost sisterly.

Then deeper.

Her tongue slipped past his lips.

He whimpered into her mouth.

She pulled back just enough to whisper against his lips.

"It’s okay, Cassius. Nothing’s wrong. I’m just taking care of my little brother. Giving you all the love I couldn’t give you for so many years. That’s all this is."

Her hands slid lower—over his abs, teasing the edge of the towel knotted at his waist.

"So relax."

She kissed him again, slower, hungrier.

"Let big sister make you feel good."

And Cassius—trembling, flushed, torn between instinct and whatever lingering resistance still lived inside him—finally stopped fighting.

He melted against her.

And Aqua—heart pounding, body burning—smiled into the kiss.

Because right now, in this stolen, forbidden moment—

—she had him.

All of him.

And she wasn’t letting go.