Chapter 44 …
‘H-how am I supposed to breathe?!’
Have you ever been so conscious of your breathing that it suddenly becomes difficult?
That was exactly what was happening to me.
At this rate, I felt like I might hyperventilate—but there was nothing I could do.
All I could manage was to try and calm myself down.
“R-Rishian… Can you move a little farther away?”
“…Then why did you choose this alley, Muriel?”
“I was in a hurry…!”
“Who do you think is going crazier right now—you or me?”
My trembling hand was suddenly clasped tightly in Rishian’s, our fingers interlocking.
It looked as though he was desperately suppressing something through sheer force of will.
But I was having just as hard a time enduring this.
His warm breath brushed against my cheek and earlobe. Our bodies, pressed together without the slightest gap, burned with heat.
I couldn’t even tell whether the warmth was mine or his.
“…Muriel, should we just go out?”
“N-no…! If we get caught, we’re dead…!”
Rishian let out a long sigh, and the fine hairs along my skin stood on end.
Shuddering, I scolded him in a tiny voice.
“Don’t breathe!”
“……”
I could feel his incredulity, but I didn’t have the mental space to care.
I squeezed my eyes shut, desperately trying to ignore the situation.
Sienna’s voice, which had been so close, gradually faded farther and farther away.
And the moment no more voices could be heard, I let go of Rishian’s hand and bolted out of the alley.
“Haaah…”
Letting out a heavy sigh as if the ground might swallow me whole, I plopped down onto the street.
I glanced toward the entrance of the Veratis branch. Thankfully, no one was around.
‘We got through that safely….’
It was too soon to run into Sienna. She needed to believe I was still struggling in the contaminated zone.
‘But… why did Sienna visit the Veratis Guild?’
As that question surfaced naturally in my mind, someone lifted me from behind as though embracing me.
Of course, it was Rishian.
“Are you okay?”
“Y-you… are you?”
Maybe because I’d been so acutely aware of him just moments ago, I still wasn’t quite in my right mind.
I couldn’t bring myself to look at him and only blinked rapidly. Rishian answered calmly.
“I’m fine. I have good self-control.”
“Th-that’s impressive! What a relief!”
“It is. If I didn’t, we’d be in serious trouble.”
“……”
I didn’t even want to imagine what kind of trouble that would be.
I tried to step out of his arms, but before I could even take one proper step, my legs gave out.
“Ah—”
“Careful.”
Just as I was about to collapse, Rishian firmly supported me from behind. After hesitating for a moment—
“…!”
He lifted me up entirely.
In a princess carry.
Flustered, I stammered in protest.
“Wh-what are you doing? You don’t need to go this far!”
“I guarantee you can’t take even three steps in your current state.”
“No, but… we can’t go into the Veratis Guild branch like this…!”
“So what? They’re all oddballs. Even if they see us, they’ll just shrug it off.”
“That’s just what you think…!”
I tried protesting earnestly, but it was no use. Carrying me as I was, Rishian stormed straight into the Veratis Guild.
The person sitting behind the long lobby table eating noodles saw us and let the strands slip right out of their mouth.
Even though he was the cause of it, Rishian frowned at the man as if disgusted.
“Call the Guild Master.”
“W-who are you?”
Wiping his mouth, the man rose from his chair and looked between us in confusion.
I felt like dying of embarrassment at the sight of myself, but I opened my mouth to salvage this chaotic situation.
“I’m an apothecary. I’d very much like to see the Guild Master. Is he available?”
“Ah…! I see! But the person who came with you is…?”
“This person is my….”
What should I say? Assistant?
Colleague? Friend? Ally?
But none of those titles accurately described what Rishian was to me.
As I hesitated, lips parted, a firm voice sounded from above.
“Partner.”
“Ah…! So he’s your spouse!”
“…?”
My jaw dropped as I stared at Rishian, too dumbfounded to even speak.
“Please have a seat and wait here!”
The man—apparently the receptionist—hurried off somewhere, leaving just the two of us in the lobby.
I pinched one of Rishian’s cheeks hard.
“Put me down. Now.”
“Can you walk?”
“Do I look like a newborn to you?”
When I glared at him, Rishian smiled faintly and carefully set me down.
The moment my feet touched the floor, I grabbed both his cheeks with my hands and stretched them as I protested.
“Why am I your partner? Are you going to keep scamming people?”
Even with his face distorted ridiculously, Rishian enunciated clearly.
“Think of it as a companion animal. You said I’m like a fox, didn’t you? I’m Muriel’s companion fox.”
“That doesn’t make you an actual fox….”
Though you are fox-like and sly.
Shaking my head, I released his cheeks.
As I stepped back to create some distance, his hands suddenly reached out and cupped my face.
“…?”
Blinking wide-eyed, I stared at him. His hands were so large that my face was practically swallowed by them.
His golden eyes, fixed on me, sank deeply. I could read the complicated thoughts swirling within them.
“Muriel, I—”
Just as he finally opened his mouth—
“Miss Muriel! And M-Mr. Rishian…!”
A voice full of cheer scattered the heavy atmosphere in an instant.
Startled, I quickly stepped away from Rishian.
My cheeks burned as if someone had caught us in an awkward moment.
“Uh… um… D-did I interrupt something…?”
As expected, the person who had suddenly appeared in the lobby was Allen.
A second man arrived a little later—the very guild member who had guided us earlier.
He halted abruptly, sensing the strange atmosphere.
Facing Allen, I forced an awkward smile.
“It’s not like that, Mr. Allen… How have you—”
But before I could even finish asking after him, a voice as cold as winter cut through the air.
“You do know. It was completely interrupted.”
Rishian, wearing a sneer, glared at Allen with eyes that looked as though frost had formed in them.
‘What…? What’s wrong with you?!’
Stunned, I grabbed Rishian’s arm tightly.
He glanced down at me. The moment our eyes met, he smiled softly with his eyes as though he hadn’t just been icy seconds ago.
“……”
Does he have a split personality?
It seemed Rishian disliked the Veratis Guild far more than I had assumed.
Realizing his feelings, I couldn’t help but feel sorry. Maybe he was going through unnecessary trouble because of me…
After hesitating for a moment, I cautiously spoke.
“Um, if you’re uncomfortable, should we just leave? You don’t have to force yourself—”
Just then, an unfamiliar voice interjected smoothly.
“There’s no need to worry so much, Apothecary. It’s simply that he has a terrible personality.”
I turned toward the direction of the voice.
The owner of that pleasant, gentle tone stepped slowly out from the shadows of the corridor.
Click, clack—
The low heels of men’s dress shoes struck against the marble tiles in a crisp rhythm.
Thud.
Stopping beside Allen, the man tapped his cane against the floor and smiled crookedly.
“Isn’t that right, Your Highness?”
‘…Your Highness?’
My eyes widened at the unfamiliar title. Instinctively, I turned toward Rishian.
“Shut up.”
Rishian growled low in warning.
But the man merely shrugged and smiled shamelessly, his composure anything but ordinary.
‘Is that man Dante Veratis?’
The title he had used for Rishian nagged at me, but identifying him took priority.
As if sensing my gaze, the man turned to me and smiled brightly.
His eyes were amethyst purple. His dark blue hair flowed down to his waist.
His complexion was pale, making the tear-shaped beauty mark beneath his left eye stand out prominently.
Around 185 centimeters tall? Broad shoulders, a narrow waist forming an inverted triangle silhouette, with long, slender limbs.
His features were difficult to describe—rather than a guild master of an adventurers’ guild, he looked more suited to being an actor.
His eyes, fixed on me, shimmered with intrigue.
Soon, from his pale lips, came a voice tinged with laughter.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Apothecary. My name is Dante Veratis.”
