Chapter 34
Under the moonlight, the white skin of a slender but well-built man was revealed.
“I already play father to the useless brats at home. That’s enough for me.”
When his pink eyes fixed on Della, she snorted.
“You should have come on time, Ban.”
“I could have torn Xantura apart on the spot. But something unexpected appeared… What in the world was that?”
“I don’t know.”
At her firm answer, Ban’s long eyebrows lifted. If Della Shine, the scholar from the Spirit Kingdom of Anita, didn’t know, then who did?
Ban had rushed over the moment he felt Xantura’s energy. But the sudden appearance of the monster made him miss the right moment to step in.
Ready to move at any second, Ban carefully observed the strange monster dressed in human clothes.
‘A monster that speaks human language perfectly?’
Beasts only had intelligence as small as dust. At most, they could recognize their territory and their own kind.
He had never heard of a beast that acted with will to protect humans.
And since it had escaped the Black Swamp, it was likely a monster driven more by instinct than reason.
‘A mutant of a mutant?’
Frowning at the unsolved mystery, Ban let out a deep sigh and looked down at Della.
“So you gave away the Stoa?”
Della quickly turned her head away, as if feeling guilty.
“What’s wrong with giving one thing to the person who saved my life? The Stoa was the most precious thing I had.”
“I trust you remember why we brought the Stoa. It is not your personal property.”
At his firm remark, Della pouted her small lips.
“We finally found the princess after coming all the way to the Rihart Empire. What will you do if she cannot move?”
“Then we can use another Stoa…”
“That would never be enough!”
Knowing her words made no sense, Della lowered her head and fidgeted with her little finger.
Ban’s heart weakened at the sight.
But he swore he wouldn’t give in and looked toward the place where the beast had disappeared.
“I’ll retrieve it, even now. A father with a foolish daughter should suffer a bit.”
Just as he was about to run off, Della hurriedly grabbed his sturdy leg.
“It felt like the right thing to do!”
“What?”
“I just had that feeling! So leave it be.”
Ban let out a hollow laugh at her stubborn words. Had she started aging backward?
Her tone was no different from his noisy younger siblings who cried loudly and laughed brightly.
The problem was that it was Della saying such illogical things.
The Kingdom of Anita was founded by people with mixed spirit blood. Though the spirit blood in Anita’s people had grown thinner over generations, Della had inherited it strongly.
She had exceptional talent in hearing the voices of nature.
That was why they had come down from the northern Ratlenta Forest to Berenice.
“I can’t find anything no matter how thoroughly we search. Are you sure the princess is here?”
“Berenice.”
“What?”
“The wind just spoke. We must go to Berenice.”
“What?”
Saying it had been a long time since she heard such a clear voice, Della confidently led Ban there.
In the end, Ban gently patted her head.
No matter what, Della was a capable scholar of Anita, and he trusted her ability.
More precisely, he trusted the wind that guided her.
Of course, there were mischievous winds that liked to play tricks, but what could he do? Nature could not be controlled by human power.
“Did you just pat my head when I’m older than you? If you’re so dissatisfied, why don’t you hear the voices yourself?”
“That was a pat of comfort…”
That was the downside of someone who had only studied all her life.
As Della began pointing her finger at him, Ban’s face filled with resignation.
Sweet desserts, colorful bouquets, smooth suits, shiny shoes, luxurious watches, sparkling jewels.
I scanned the list that filled an entire sheet of paper and hurried through Carton Street.
To move as secretly as possible, I wore a dark robe, but since my size was basically that of a walking tank, it didn’t seem very effective.
Still, I tried my best to be discreet!
Because today’s goal was to choose Valentin’s birthday present.
‘He must never find out I’m preparing a gift.’
I came out just to look around, but everything here was flashy and expensive, making it hard to choose.
Shops were full of attractive items like fountain pens filled with high-quality ink and sturdy long umbrellas.
I didn’t dare go inside and only looked through the windows, but even that made time fly.
As I passed the third street and entered the square, a strong scent stopped me.
It was stronger and more artificial than flowers—very familiar.
I naturally approached the shop where the scent came from.
It was a bath goods store with white walls and pictures of fluffy bubbles painted on them.
Among the items, I spotted a cotton-candy-colored bath bomb and frowned slightly.
It reminded me of something I didn’t want to remember.
‘Ayla! Bath! Lots of bubbles!’
Last night, I ran into the mansion and called for Ayla first.
I wanted to wash off the mess from the giant spider as soon as possible.
For two hours, I struggled to wash off the sour, sticky liquid.
It took so long that Valentin came to check if I had drowned in the bathroom.
“What are you doing?”
He stepped inside after seeing me struggling in the bathtub.
Then he washed my hair, gave me a massage, dried me off…
‘That was a good bath.’
The fresh lemon scent filled the air, and everything seemed settled.
‘The spider…’
But the problem came after the bath.
I began seeing the afterimage of hairy spider legs!
At first it was faint, but as time passed, it became clearer, and I even imagined a spider crawling somewhere in my room.
I felt as if something was crawling not just on my right arm, which had been covered in slime, but even on my legs.
Shocked, I flapped around like a startled chicken before finally taking extreme measures.
“Nathan?”
“I’ll trouble you just for tonight.”
Shamelessly, I entered the next room and climbed into the enormous bed big enough for ten grown men.
As I buried myself in the soft blanket, Valentin’s unique floral and soap scent filled my nose.
…Nice.
Wiggling my toes, I stared at the orange light on the ceiling.
At the quiet scratching sound of a pen, I raised my upper body slightly.
Valentin stood against the cold moonlight, focused on finishing his paperwork.
‘So this is what they mean by a face that improves your quality of life.’
Wrapped in cold moonlight and warm lamplight, he looked unreal.
It was different from admiring a piece of art.
Maybe because I had feelings for him, just looking at him made my heart feel soft.
I lay down sideways to admire him more comfortably.
The soft blanket smelling like him, the dreamy moonlight, the warm lamp, the sound of pen on paper.
Seeing the corners of his lips curl upward was the last thing I remembered before falling asleep.
‘I think I felt him pat my head…’
“Oh right, this isn’t the time.”
Shaking off the memory, I passed the bath shop.
Soon, I found a store that sold expensive goods. The items displayed were clearly on a different level.
Even a knight’s salary might not be enough to buy them.
Of course, I didn’t receive a salary…
‘Why would I need one? If I just say the word, he’ll buy me anything.’
Thinking of Valentin smiling sweetly as if he would give me his liver and gallbladder, I suddenly felt troubled.
Buying Valentin a gift with money Valentin gave me.
…That felt wrong.
But the prize money left after buying gifts for George and Jamie was nowhere near enough.
With a gloomy face, I looked around out of habit.
Then something sparkling caught my eye.
It felt like bells ringing in my ears.
As if drawn by an irresistible force, I stepped into the shop.
Ding—
“Welco… me.”
The clerk’s voice grew smaller when he saw me. Even the hurried movement to call security couldn’t distract me.
‘This is it.’
The perfect gift shone right before my eyes.
