Chapter 26
‘Where am I?’
I blinked a few times, and my eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness.
I stared at the shadowed ceiling and tried to remember.
I killed monsters. Again and again. Then I picked up Valentin and ran toward the direction where the fireworks had exploded.
…After that, my memory became blurry.
Only after meeting those clear, light-colored eyes did I finally feel safe enough to relax.
With Lucy’s help, we saved Valentin. She treated my injuries too.
‘I decided to leave the rest to my monster-like self-healing ability.’
I must have fainted as soon as I lay down.
I went over everything in order and tried to understand the situation. It was dark all around, so it must be night—
“Ahhh!!”
I screamed when I saw a pair of eyes staring at me in the dark.
W-What? Why is he looking at me like that…?
“Your Grace?”
My voice came out so hoarse it hurt to hear. I frowned. I could taste blood in my throat.
“Cough.”
When I tried to sit up quickly, a strong arm stopped me.
“Lie down.”
Thud. My head was pushed back onto the pillow. I rolled my eyes and looked up at Valentin.
He wasn’t lying there like a corpse anymore. He was alive. Moving.
In the darkness, I quickly looked over his body to see if he was hurt anywhere.
“Your Grace, how are you feeling? Are you in pain?”
Healing magic wasn’t perfect.
In cases of fatal injuries or incurable diseases, the caster sometimes had to sacrifice their own life force for complete healing.
Of course, only a few mages could use such powerful healing magic. And because it could be abused, it was banned by law except in special cases.
‘So Valentin probably isn’t fully healed either. Shouldn’t he be lying down?’
I glared at him, silently asking why he was sitting beside the bed instead of resting.
“You’re not one to talk,” he said coldly.
“My recovery is different. Look. It hasn’t even been that long, and the bleeding has already stopped.”
I raised my hand confidently.
The holes where my nails had been torn out were slowly filling in with new flesh.
Valentin stared at my hand without smiling.
Then he grabbed it with his right hand.
And squeezed.
“Ahhh!!!”
He pressed hard on the wound.
Pain shot up my nerves, and tears welled up in my eyes.
It hurt. It really hurt.
I had pretended to be brave, but my whole body was sore, aching, and burning. Even though I had the body of a strong beast, it still hurt.
I’m not even good at handling pain. Was it fair to press so hard just because I lied once?
When I tried to pull my hand away, he lightly pressed the injured spot again as if threatening me to stay still.
I immediately behaved.
Only after noticing that I had given in did he finally release my hand.
“You slept for a whole day.”
A day? Twenty-four hours? I thought it was just early morning.
“You didn’t move at all. I thought you were dead.”
I almost said that the best healer, Lucy, was here, so there was nothing to worry about—but I quickly shut my mouth.
Valentin’s face was too dark for such optimistic words.
Seeing how worried he looked made my heart ache.
He had been right beside me when I woke up.
I couldn’t look at his face, so I just stared at our hands tangled together.
He gently stroked my hand, and I awkwardly wiggled my thick fingers.
“…I thought you were going to die too.”
Did he know how my heart dropped when I saw his corpse-like pale face?
I must have grown attached to him.
It wasn’t because he was the man who could turn me back into a human.
It was because he was Valentin.
Because he was the first person who looked at me with a steady, sincere gaze.
But instead of responding to my worry, he laughed at himself.
“Yes. I was a fool. I didn’t realize I was such an arrogant idiot.”
The twisted smile on his face was full of self-mockery.
“That’s not what I meant!”
I shouted quickly.
Valentin touched the bandages around my ears.
“No. I realized just how weak and insignificant I am.”
His hand moved down from my head and brushed across my face—my forehead, nose, eyes, cheeks, and chin.
Wherever he touched, it felt unbearably ticklish.
It felt nice… but strange.
When I tried to turn away, he moved closer and met my eyes.
“So stay by my side. Keep protecting me.”
I couldn’t look away, as if I were under a spell.
His green eyes were deep, like a forest with no exit.
“Even if I end up broken again.”
His low whisper disappeared like a dream in the middle of the night.
‘What does that mean?’
I tried to understand his words, but his face was too close and hidden in shadows.
It looked like his lips trembled. Maybe he was angry. Maybe he was about to cry.
Before I could figure it out, he buried his head in my shoulder.
I couldn’t see his expression in the end.
If his whisper sounded like a confession asking me to stay by his side no matter how painful things became… was I imagining it?
The thought that he needed me made my chest ache.
Maybe my heart was damaged from fighting the monsters.
I closed my eyes and leaned my cheek against his head.
“Mm…”
Nathan let out a soft groan in his sleep.
Valentin’s hand, which had been stroking Nathan’s cheek, froze in midair.
Nathan had insisted he was fine after sleeping all day, but less than an hour later, he had fallen asleep again.
After confirming Nathan was fully asleep, Valentin stood and left the tent.
“Devon.”
At the icy voice, Devon bowed deeply.
“We’ll move up the schedule.”
“Yes, sir.”
Devon didn’t dare raise his head.
He had expected this moment ever since he sensed the dark anger hidden beneath Valentin’s sharp smile.
After seeing Valentin’s signal to leave, Devon stepped back.
Valentin remained still until Devon disappeared into the darkness.
Only then did he slowly blink and look up at the night sky.
Countless stars sparkled in the pitch-black sky.
“It’s okay. Everything will be fine. I’ll get you out.”
His memory had cut off after falling for that vicious trap, but fragments remained in his mind.
Nathan running desperately while holding him.
A hand patting him in the darkness.
A back moving forward, ready to face death.
“This time, I’ll save you.”
That single voice echoed clearly in his ruined mind.
“Why are you…”
When he regained consciousness and saw Nathan asleep, covered in injuries, he felt ridiculous emotions.
Rage at those who had hurt Nathan.
And a twisted sense of satisfaction knowing those wounds were from protecting him.
The unfamiliar feeling filling his empty chest made Valentin grit his teeth.
‘Maybe it would be better if you never return to being human.’
Couldn’t he stay as a beast forever, depending only on him?
What if Nathan turned back into a human and left him someday?
The thought made him uneasy.
Remembering how Nathan used to smile among people, loved by everyone, made his heart sink.
‘I want you to stay by my side.’
His golden hair shimmered under the moonlight.
“If you knew how selfish I am… would you run away?”
A crooked smile appeared over his beautiful face.
My eyes flew open.
Birds were chirping, and bright sunlight filled the tent.
It was morning.
After checking that no one was around, I carefully moved my body.
‘Hmm. I’m fine.’
As expected of my monster-like recovery!
An ordinary human would have died from those injuries, but after a good sleep, my body had healed amazingly fast.
Still, without Lucy, it would have been hard to survive. Especially for Valentin, who had been critically injured.
“Lucy really did a lot.”
She was truly exceptional.
As I walked toward the Berenice camp, I started thinking about what Lucy liked. I wanted to give her a gift to thank her.
Then I noticed something strange.
There was no one around. The street was almost empty.
Why? Is everyone busy eating breakfast?
Lost in thought, I suddenly remembered something.
“Oh, money!”
“Money?”
“Ah!”
My heart!
As soon as I opened the tent door, I almost fell over at the sight of Valentin’s handsome face.
I barely managed not to collapse and placed both hands on my chest.
“Do you need money?”
Valentin smiled softly with his eyes.
Because of last night’s strange atmosphere, I felt awkward meeting his gaze—but he seemed completely normal.
“N-No. Where is everyone else?”
I looked around the empty tent to change the subject.
“Subjugation,” he said calmly. “Unfortunately, we’re the sick ones, so we stayed behind.”
“I see. But after what happened yesterday, is it okay to continue?”
There had been so many monsters. Even a forest whale!
I worried someone might get hurt, but Valentin just shrugged.
“There’s no target today, so it should be quiet. That mysterious white powder seemed to be only on our fireworks.”
As expected.
I had asked Lucy to check if any other fireworks had that strange powder.
It seemed only mine and Valentin’s had it.
Valentin gently smoothed my frown.
“I sent the remaining powder to Baron for analysis. We’ll have to wait.”
I wanted to tell him who the culprit was—but it would be pointless.
Valentin probably already had his suspicions. What he needed was evidence.
Seeing me quiet, he waved his hand in front of my face.
“Nathan, there’s something more important right now.”
“More important than this?”
More important than our lives?
He opened a drawer and took out a blue ribbon.
It was a beautiful shade of blue. I couldn’t imagine how expensive it must be.
Then he said something even more shocking.
“We’ve been invited to lunch by His Majesty the Emperor.”
“…Who?”
His green eyes sparkled playfully.
Valentin pointed between himself and me with a boyish smile.
“You and me.”
My face twisted.
‘You mean… I have to wear that ribbon?’
