Chapter 17
A child could be suffering unimaginable torment at this very moment — every second counted.
There was no time to hesitate.
Of course, I had something to rely on, too.
Rustle, rustle…
In the quiet forest, only the sound of my footsteps echoed softly.
I pushed through the overgrown underbrush and continued forward.
Sharp blades of grass and branches repeatedly scraped and pricked my arms and legs, but I couldn’t stop for even a moment.
How long had I run like that?
Just as I parted the final thicket of tall grass in the darkened forest—
“…!”
Without thinking, I instantly summoned the power of water and hurled it at the target.
Water, shaped by my will into a blunt mass like a boulder, struck the assassin who had climbed atop As and was about to plunge a sword into his neck.
Thud—
With a dull, violent crash, the assassin’s body slammed into a tree behind him.
As, who had been trembling in fear, opened his eyes wide the moment the crushing force holding him down disappeared.
“As—!”
I shouted his name at the top of my lungs and rushed toward him.
Even though the spirit-suppressing spell was making my insides feel like they were melting from the pain, it didn’t matter. That could wait until later.
“As, are you okay?!”
Maybe my voice snapped him back to his senses—As, who had been struggling to rise, spotted me and broke into a teary cry.
“Einra…!”
The child, bruised and battered, ran toward me with all the strength he had left.
Thank goodness.
At least he wasn’t gravely injured.
As I reached out my arms in relief to embrace him, I suddenly noticed something gleaming behind As.
‘That’s… metal? Something sharp…?’
The thought barely formed when I realized what it was.
A blade.
‘I have to block it—!’
But by the time I realized it, it was already too late.
I tried once more to summon water with desperate speed, but the dagger—already flying like lightning—struck As squarely in the back as he ran toward me.
—Thunk.
“…!”
Time seemed to slow down, as if it had frozen.
The light vanished from the child’s crimson eyes.
At the same time, the power I had summoned dissolved into a shimmer and scattered into the air.
Because by then, it was too late to do anything with it.
As’s body staggered violently.
I collapsed to the ground and caught him in my arms as he fell forward.
“As…?”
My mind swung between blazing hot and freezing cold.
The dagger had been thrown with such force—it had buried itself frighteningly deep into the small child’s body.
I yanked it out and hurled it aside, then instinctively poured healing magic into him like a madwoman.
“As, no… As…”
My already upset stomach began to churn again.
My vision blurred.
Blood that had surged up from within trickled down the corner of my mouth, but I didn’t stop healing him.
I had to save him.
That thought alone became an obsession that wouldn’t leave my mind.
What jolted me back to awareness was the sound of footsteps—those of the last assassin stepping on the dirt.
My senses, sharpened to a razor’s edge by my desperation to save As, didn’t miss even the slightest sound that might pose a threat to him.
I immediately formed a massive rock-like mass of water and crushed the last assassin to the ground.
“Guh…!”
The assassin hit his head as he fell and died on the spot.
In exchange for forcing out so much power, more blood surged violently from my mouth.
My mind was slipping into darkness, yet I couldn’t even think to wipe the blood away. All I could do was hold As tighter in my arms.
“Don’t die…”
“…”
“If you die… I can’t…”
Still channeling healing magic, I mumbled on like I’d gone insane.
I didn’t even understand why I felt so desperate.
He was a child I hadn’t even known for a full week.
There was no connection between us.
I had only taken him in because I couldn’t bear to watch him die.
I thought maybe he could help me mend things with Achess, so I’d kept him nearby.
And yet… why did the thought of this child dying make me feel like I was losing my mind?
Why did my heart ache so much?
Why was I, even at the cost of my own life, so desperate to save him?
“I knew this would happen.”
With a soft sigh, a radiant light surrounded us from all sides.
At the same time, the spirit-suppressing spell pressing down on everything was shattered.
Startled, I slowly lifted my head and looked at the figure who had approached me.
“To be using your power so recklessly when even high-ranking spirits couldn’t be summoned under such a strong suppression spell…”
Hair the color of the clear sky, as if woven from the threads of the sea. Eyes of the same hue.
With features so beautiful they could never be forgotten after one glance, he frowned down at me in disapproval.
“I don’t know if I should be amazed that you lasted this long, or call you a fool for using so much power without knowing your own condition.”
Eliaye clicked his tongue softly and reached out, placing his hand on my forehead.
With a cool sensation, the excruciating pain that had been devouring my insides melted away.
“I came to check because I felt someone pouring out healing magic like a lunatic, and what do I find? What kind of mess is this?”
He scolded me as he effortlessly scooped me into his arms.
I smiled faintly and rested my head on his shoulder.
“…Thank you, Eliaye. Thanks to you, it doesn’t hurt at all.”
“Don’t thank me—take care of your body by yourself.”
With a stern voice, Eliaye waved his hand.
In the same moment that brilliant light filled my vision, I suddenly found myself on the second floor of my house.
“Wow… it’s home. It’s really home.”
It had been less than thirty minutes since I left, but after what I’d just been through, this small, peaceful house felt like a miracle.
Eliaye sighed and gently set me down as I giggled.
“I heard the gist from Quiel. You picked up a child?”
He crossed his arms and looked down at As, who was still curled up in my arms.
Thanks to the healing magic, As’s wounds were completely healed, and he now slept peacefully.
I brushed aside the strands of hair that had fallen over his face and nodded.
“Yes. I think he’s from a noble family. I found him collapsed in front of my house, covered in injuries, so I brought him in.”
“Do you even know who the kid is?”
Eliaye tilted his head.
I told him what little I knew.
“His name is As. He’s a noble.”
“…As. I see. You don’t know him then. That’s fine.”
He turned his head away, looking slightly displeased.
I blinked, confused by his reaction, when he glanced down at As.
“Isn’t it tiring to keep holding him like that?”
“Huh? Oh, right, I’ve been holding him all this time. I’ll go lay him down in bed!”
I quickly carried As to his room.
He must have been exhausted—he was still sound asleep.
After gently laying him in bed, I quietly closed the door behind me.
“Eliaye?”
When I stepped out, Eliaye was standing there with his arms crossed, staring at As’s door.
At my voice, he turned to look at me and spoke after a pause.
“Are you… still afraid of seeing the Grand Duke?”
“…Wh-What?!”
The blunt question hit me like a jolt of electricity.
No one had mentioned Achess directly to me in years, so the shock hit even harder.
“U-Um, let’s talk downstairs. I’m starving from running around all morning.”
I let out a shaky laugh and awkwardly headed toward the stairs.
As I clumsily walked with my arms and legs out of sync, Eliaye sighed from behind.
“Forget it. From your reaction, I already know the answer.”
“Aha… ha, haha…”
Internally, I was crying a river.
I could practically feel how pathetic he must think I was. I thought I was pathetic, too, but there was nothing I could do.
I hate being like this too!
But what am I supposed to do? I was born this timid from the start!
My shoulders drooped with a gloomy weight.
Suddenly overwhelmed with sadness, I stopped halfway down the stairs and sat down with a small, defeated huff.
‘It’s scary…’
I still… wasn’t ready to face Achess, who looked down on me.
Eliaye looked down at me silently for a moment before letting out a soft chuckle.
“Well… I suppose learning things slowly isn’t such a bad way either.”
