CHAPTER 29………………………………….
Urenia hurriedly pushed the door open.
With Maeve Dalton Valerio away receiving the High Priest and the lateness of the hour, a bluish darkness lingered in the room.
She hesitated for a moment, but soon, with the help of faint moonlight, she was barely able to make out her surroundings.
The room felt devoid of life. There was only a wide bed and a small bedside table. The cat had disappeared somewhere.
After a quick glance around, Urenia ran straight to the bed where the girl lay.
Moonlight slipping through the curtains illuminated the girl.
Thanks to that, Urenia could clearly see her face.
The girl lying there with long black hair looked as pale as a corpse.
‘So this is Lilian.’
Her small face, with a delicate nose and lips, was lovely—but the deep shadows under her eyes revealed obvious illness.
Lilian clutched her chest with a hand so thin her bones nearly showed. Her eyes were tightly shut, her face twisted in agony as if trapped in a nightmare.
“Ugh… ha… ngh…!”
“Lilian, are you okay?”
As Lilian groaned again, Urenia quickly looked around.
She found the bell rope and pulled it, then stayed by the girl’s side.
“Lilian, hold on a little longer. Someone will come soon—”
“Cough! Cough—kgh!”
The girl’s violent coughing cut her off. Her frail body shook uncontrollably.
It was so severe that Urenia feared she might suffocate if left lying flat.
“Lilian!”
“Young Lady!”
Footsteps rushed in from afar. Urenia tried to lift the girl.
She couldn’t just watch her struggle helplessly.
“It’s okay, I’ll help you.”
Urenia quickly propped up an extra pillow, then carefully took Lilian’s skeletal hand.
“Come on, let’s sit up.”
The moment their hands touched—
Flaaash—
A brilliant light burst from their joined hands, filling the entire room.
The dark room instantly brightened as if it held the sun, and a gentle breeze appeared from nowhere, stirring Urenia’s hair.
At the center of the light, Urenia looked at Lilian, worried something might have happened.
But strangely—
The girl’s coughing began to subside.
Soon, Lilian’s face, once twisted in pain, gradually relaxed.
‘Thank goodness… huh?’
Just as Urenia was about to feel relieved—
The strength drained from her body.
As if fuel were leaking away, the energy in her limbs rapidly disappeared.
At the same time, overwhelming fatigue pressed down on her. Her eyelids grew heavy, and drowsiness flooded in.
‘What’s happening…?’
She tried to keep her eyes open, but it felt like she might lose consciousness at any moment.
The relentless sleepiness showed no mercy.
Finally, her eyes closed, and her body went limp.
As she collapsed, her hand slipped from Lilian’s—and at the same time, the light filling the room vanished.
“Teacher!”
As Urenia’s body fell, someone caught her before her head hit the floor.
The person holding her tightly shouted urgently,
“Teacher, stay with me! Teacher!”
It was Chester.
The man who always treated her with calm composure was now shouting in panic.
“Teacher! Urenia!”
“….”
Urenia tried to gather the last of her strength to answer him.
But no sound came from her lips.
She couldn’t even move a finger.
It felt like someone was dragging her deeper and deeper into a dark abyss—
And just like that, Urenia fell into a deep sleep.
When Urenia regained consciousness, it felt like hardly any time had passed.
Like a match relighting a wick, her awareness suddenly flared bright.
Her body felt refreshed, as if she had had a deep, restful sleep.
It was strange.
“Mm…”
“Teacher? Waaah—Teacher!”
As she slowly opened her eyes, she heard Kylus crying.
The child clung to her, tears streaming down his face.
Urenia gently comforted him, blinking slowly as her vision came into focus.
She was in her room.
And beside her were Chester, Kylus, Enzo, and Kiernan.
“Enzo, go get the physician—quickly!”
As soon as she woke, Chester urgently gave the order.
Enzo rushed out, while Kiernan gently pulled Kylus away.
“Young Master, if you stay like this, it will be hard for her. Come here.”
“Sniff… okay…”
Kylus obediently went into Kiernan’s arms, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Urenia.
His gaze was full of affection.
“Teacher, how do you feel? Are you hurt anywhere?”
Chester asked with a troubled expression.
“I’m fine. I feel perfectly okay.”
“That can’t be.”
“…What?”
He cut her off immediately, staring at her as if telling her not to lie.
He looked at her as though she were gravely ill.
‘Why is everyone acting like this?’
She had only slept for a short while.
Maybe they were just shocked because she suddenly collapsed.
“I’m really fine. I feel normal…”
“You’re awake!”
Just as she tried to reassure them, a physician entered with Maeve.
“Thank goodness.”
The physician sat beside her bed, opening his bag.
Behind him, Maeve Dalton Valerio asked in a serious tone,
“Are you feeling any pain?”
“No, Marchioness. But is it alright for you to leave the young lady—?”
“…Physician, how is her condition?”
Like Chester, Maeve completely ignored Urenia’s answer and addressed the physician.
Urenia couldn’t understand why everyone was acting this way.
“She has been unconscious for exactly three days. It’s a relief she has finally woken up.”
“…What?”
Urenia’s eyes widened in shock.
“Three days?”
She couldn’t believe it.
It had felt like just a brief nap—
Yet that much time had passed.
“That’s right. So don’t say you’re fine or perfectly okay.”
Chester muttered, exasperated.
Urenia held her forehead, bewildered.
“I feel like I just had a good sleep…”
“Indeed, your condition is surprisingly good.”
The physician examined her and raised his brows.
“Your vital signs are normal, your pulse is strong and steady. It seems you recovered your strength while unconscious.”
“But doesn’t that mean she could collapse again at any time?”
Chester pressed.
The physician thought for a moment.
“You said she collapsed right after resonating with Lady Lilian?”
Urenia recalled the moment before she fainted.
The light from their joined hands—the way her strength had been drained.
Was that… resonance?
“I did collapse after touching her, but I don’t know what it was.”
“Lady Lilian’s condition improved significantly after contact with you. I was concerned she might have absorbed your energy, but judging by your state, that doesn’t seem to be the case. You’re very healthy.”
At the physician’s explanation, Chester let out a deep sigh of relief.
