RATBA 40

Chapter 40

I reached Luke’s room in no time, but mustering the courage to enter took far longer.

“…”

I had already snapped at him earlier, and frankly, I had no desire to see him again. Still, I needed that medicine.

Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door open.

“I forgot something.”

As expected, Nayla was there with him.

‘Of course. I knew she was heading this way when we crossed paths earlier.’

Luke, emboldened by Nayla’s presence, glared at me with open hostility.

“You forgot something?”

I nodded, keeping my voice steady.

“Yes. That.”

Fortunately, I didn’t have to search for it—Luke was already holding the bottle in his hand. I strode forward and snatched it from him.

“I left this here earlier. I’m taking it back.”

Luke’s face twisted like he’d just swallowed twenty cockroaches.

“Bullshit.”

“Excuse me?”

“That’s Nayla’s painkiller. Hand it over.”

My mind blanked for a second.

‘What is he talking about? I just left this here minutes ago.’

I considered the possibility that he was still half-asleep—or maybe the beating had scrambled his brain.

“I have no idea what you’re saying…”

I was already wasting too much time on him. Ignoring his nonsense, I turned to leave.

Then—

Luke, who had barely been able to sit up earlier, suddenly lunged and wrenched the bottle from my hand.

“What the hell? Are you insane?”

“You think I’d just let you steal what Nayla gave me?”

“What are you talking about? Nayla gave it to you?”

Baffled, I glanced at Nayla.

Her face had gone deathly pale.

Ah.

‘So that’s her game.’

She had lied—claimed the medicine as her own. And Luke, the ever-gullible fool, had fallen for it.

A dry laugh escaped me.

“That medicine isn’t Nayla’s. I left it here earlier.”

“Oh, here we go again. If you’re trying to paint Nayla as a liar—”

“Nayla,” I cut in, “care to list the ingredients?”

Her pallor worsened.

She was obsessed with her image—and now she was cornered.

“I… I don’t know. I just bought it…”

“Really?”

Her shoulders relaxed slightly, thinking she’d dodged the question.

“I know every ingredient,” I said. “Because I made it.”

Silence.

A normal person would’ve fled in shame. But Nayla, ever the fighter, dug in.

“How can you prove that? You could list anything!”

“The label.”

Her pupils shrank.

I turned to Luke.

“Flip it over. I wrote all thirteen herbs on the back. I’ll recite them now—check if they match.”

To his credit, Luke actually looked.

I took a breath and listed them.

“Lady’s mantle, morpheus root, wild lettuce, lungwort… and a bit of honey for sweetness. Well?”

Luke’s face drained of color.

“…It’s exact. So you did leave this?”

“Yes.”

Luke wasn’t looking at me anymore. His gaze locked onto Nayla, waiting—begging—for her to deny it.

But Nayla just clutched her skirt, silent.

“Nayla,” Luke finally croaked. “Then what you said earlier was…?”

He couldn’t even finish the sentence.

I almost felt bad for him. Almost.

Nayla’s response, when it came, was pathetic.

“I… just wanted you to like me more…”

“So you lied?” I pressed.

Her eyes flashed with venom—just for a second. Then she bolted.

“Nayla!” Luke called after her, but she was already gone.

Exhausted, I held out my hand.

“The medicine. Now.”

This time, he handed it over without protest.

With the spirit’s power, our ship cut through the water unnaturally fast.

“Furl the sails!” I ordered. “The current’s doing the work now.”

The crew watched in awe as the coastline blurred past. We’d make it home in days, not weeks.

Nathan, leaning against the railing, shot me a proud smile. I winked back.

Everything was perfect—

Until a panicked shout shattered the peace.

“Emergency! That nobleman—the one who got beaten? He’s taken a turn for the worse!”