Chapter 51: How That Man Applies Medicine
Valentin had long since stopped caring about living things. Without realizing it, he nudged the cat away with his foot.
“What are you so afraid of?”
Afraid? Valentin tilted his head. He gave it food, applied ointment to its wounds—yet he didn’t want to name it. Maybe, just as Regina had said, it was fear.
But he didn’t want to admit it. For some reason, the thought of acknowledging that fear overwhelmed him for a moment.
“I’ve never been afraid. I just don’t like it.”
“Then we’ll go with that.”
“My Lady, are you in there?”
Eileen’s voice came from beyond the door. Regina stood and opened it halfway, peeking out.
“I’m here.”
“I got better ointment from Healer Roten. The one we applied earlier is probably dry by now, so let’s reapply this.”
“It’s just a small scratch. There’s no need—”
When Eileen held out the small round ointment tin, Regina nearly stepped back instinctively.
The sticky ointment rubbing against the silk of her dress was already annoying and itchy. It wasn’t even a deep wound, so reapplying ointment twice in one day was unheard of in her mercenary life.
“If it scars, that’s a problem. We have to put it on.”
“I’ll do it.”
A large, thick arm reached out from inside the room and took the ointment from Eileen. Surprised, Eileen bowed slightly.
“Please apply it generously. She complained earlier that it tickled, so I could only use a little.”
Complained? Regina furrowed her brow slightly. The truth was, Eileen’s touch had been too gentle—it really had tickled.
But Eileen knew that even Regina wouldn’t be able to easily turn down an offer from Valentin. Watching her go back into the room with him, she smiled to herself.
He’d have to apply ointment all the way to her thigh—but so what? They were husband and wife, after all.
‘From now on, I’ll ask His Grace to handle all the medicine.’
Valentin, oddly pleased, held the ointment tin and gestured for Regina to sit on the long sofa.
‘Why does he look so happy?’
“I’ll try not to make it ticklish.”
So that’s why. Regina, perched on the edge of the sofa and lifting her dress, paused. That playful glint in his eyes—there was no way his hands would match the promise coming from his mouth.
Then, Valentin knelt in front of her and placed his large hand gently over hers.
Regina couldn’t quite accept the sight of Valentin kneeling before her.
She was used to always looking up at him. Looking down at his face now gave her a strange, almost sinful feeling. His eyes, which she had always thought were beautiful, now seemed like they were pleading with her.
In short, Regina was frozen in surprise.
“May I lift this?”
He asked as he carefully removed her shoe, his voice low and cautious.
His palm was cool—but his long fingertips were even colder. When Regina slowly nodded, Valentin gently lifted her dress to the knee.
Her legs, pale and smooth, were marked with old scars.
‘…So thin.’
Her ankle, which he held to apply the ointment, was surprisingly slender. For someone who could kick so hard, it was shocking that her ankle fit entirely in his hand.
Valentin stared at her white leg for a while before moving his hand.
‘Ugh, this isn’t just ticklish… it’s something else.’
He dabbed his cold fingers in the ointment and slowly spread it along her leg. Despite the cool touch, a strange heat ran up her calf.
As his hand moved upward, she flinched without meaning to.
“Does it hurt?”
His low voice came close, and even her shoulder twitched. She was used to rough mercenary hands—this gentle touch felt completely unfamiliar.
‘More than Lady Menlo…’
It tickled even more than Joy or Eileen’s hands ever had.
“…No. It’s just ticklish.”
As Eileen had requested, Valentin applied a generous amount and rubbed it in thoroughly. In the still room, Regina didn’t know where to look.
Looking at him kneeling in front of her, focused on her leg, felt strange. But following his gaze to her leg felt even weirder.
When his cold fingers brushed a sensitive spot, she let out a tiny sound.
“Ugh.”
Valentin looked up, and Regina quickly turned away, pretending nothing happened. But her ears were slightly pink.
“Did it hurt?”
“…It was just ticklish.”
“You really are sensitive to that.”
This wasn’t about her being sensitive. Who could stay calm while a royal was kneeling before them?
‘I’d better end this quickly.’
Actually, the injury stretched from her calf to her outer thigh. But Regina didn’t trust his hand to stop at the calf, so she defensively held her dress down.
That only made Valentin more curious.
He raised his hand and gently pushed the dress upward. Her body twitched slightly, but he didn’t stop. Slowly, the edge of the wound was revealed. Regina looked down at him, caught.
“I’ll close my eyes while I do this.”
Trying to be considerate, Valentin shut his eyes, his long lashes casting shadows. But that somehow made it feel even more forbidden.
Regina reached out and cupped his cheek, forcing him to open his eyes.
“It’s done.”
Valentin, who had just finished applying the ointment, set her foot on his thigh.
Her leg—on a kneeling royal’s lap. That could be grounds for immediate execution for insulting the royal family.
But that wasn’t the real problem right now.
“I know it looks kind of gross with all the scars. Ha.”
She quickly pulled her foot away and shoved it into her shoe. This wasn’t like her at all—but the strange atmosphere between her and Valentin made her say awkward things.
Valentin chuckled and ran a cold hand over the top of her foot, which the shoe leather didn’t fully cover.
‘Damn it.’
His fingers were cold, but somehow they felt hot. Regina nearly let a curse slip, but she swallowed it.
“You’re beautiful. All of you.”
“W-What are you saying about my leg?”
“You called it gross, but I think it’s beautiful.”
His tone was light, but his voice was heavy. His lips curved faintly, but he wasn’t smiling.
Was this a new kind of torture? Regina wondered. If Valentin asked her a secret right now, she might just spill it.
She felt like her mind was being shredded by a quiet, overwhelming storm.
“I mean, seriously, what—”
Meow.
Right then, the bold black cat climbed onto Valentin’s knee. But instead of pushing it off, he just frowned slightly—clearly a bit flustered.
“…Pfft.”
Regina laughed. Just moments ago, he had created this overwhelming mood, but now he was losing his cool over a cat.
Still, thanks to the cheeky cat, she was finally free of that heavy tension.
“Well, thank you for the ointment. I’ll be going now.”
Meow.
The black cat, now sitting comfortably on Valentin’s warm, firm lap, happily rolled around. Regina glanced back at the scene as she left, her soft laughter echoing behind her.
Click. The door closed, and Valentin let out a quiet, breathy laugh. Then he gently tapped the cat’s nose.
Meow?
Coo coo coo.
Under the night sky, Joo, a carrier bird, dove toward a familiar large building. A wide-open window waited, just as if it had been expecting him.
This was the room meant for Persona Guild’s carrier birds. Inside, other birds rested on the table, their tired wings finally folded.
Coo.
The moment Joo entered, the other birds all stood at attention.
“…How many did you even take down?”
A nearby mercenary muttered in disbelief.
When Regina first picked him up, he had seemed weak and sickly. But now, he stood prouder than a hawk or eagle.
Even his beak and claws were sharper and shinier—he must’ve honed them somewhere.
“…That bird was rescued by Miss Regina herself. I guess it shows.”
Rozie, who had been sorting the reports brought by the birds, replied with a strange edge in her voice.
“What? Are you still sulking?”
“I’m not sulking!”
She just thought it was unfair. Rozie pouted.
“Besides, didn’t you fail to get the Silver rank again? Then of course you can’t take night missions yet.”
Mercenaries are divided into four ranks: Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. Bronze is the most common.
The world of mercenaries judged worth by skill. At Persona, where expensive contracts and perfect success were expected, Bronze mercs weren’t often used.
“Even if I didn’t get Silver, I did great on the mission. I’m strong in real battles!”
Only because Miss Regina was there. The mercenary who had been nagging Rozie let out a deep sigh.
