HTNSA 70

Chapter 70

Eila had never expected Felix to step in front of her and block her path when the soldiers came to take her away.

She never imagined he would step forward, not knowing the enormous impact it could have on his future.

As she thought about it, a sharp pain struck her chest.

‘Is this really starting to follow the original plot…?’

Until now, Felix had never shown any romantic feelings toward her. That’s why she had been able to relax around him.

But the way he looked at her during the ball, the soft smile he gave her, the way his hand gently touched hers…

It was becoming impossible for her to pretend she didn’t know.

‘And even when we were being investigated, he was so actively trying to protect me.’

Lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, Eila’s eyes slowly closed.

The moment she thought of him, her heart fluttered again, and a tingling feeling spread through her chest.

“How did you get the egg? From the forest behind the academy?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“But there’s no monster big enough to lay an egg of this size.”

Felix didn’t seem at all intimidated by the many professors who were looking down at him.

“When I found it, it wasn’t this big. It was only about this size.”

He held his hand out to show the approximate size of the egg when he first found it, causing Professor Stephan’s eyes to gleam with interest.

A renowned expert in monsterology, he was particularly interested in the ecosystem of monsters that had not yet been studied.

“And while monster eggs are generally large and tend to be a darker color, this one was incredibly luminous when I found it.”

“You’re saying it was different from a regular monster egg?”

“Yes. That’s why I didn’t think it was a monster egg. As a student of the Swordsmanship Department, I’ve studied monsterology for a long time. It was clearly more like the egg of a divine beast than a monster. That’s why I gave it to Eila.”

Professor Stephan crossed his arms, deep in thought.

The idea of a divine beast’s egg was hard to believe, but he couldn’t immediately dismiss Felix’s words as lies.

Even a monster egg, if it grew this large, was rare.

“So you thought this was the egg of a divine beast, and that’s why you gave it to the girl?”

“Yes. If I had known it was a monster egg, I would never have given it to Eila. No one wants to put someone precious in danger.”

After saying that, Felix turned his gaze toward Eila, looking at her for a long time.

Even at that moment, his eyes were full of affection for her.

Remembering that, Eila felt her face heat up again.

She fanned her face with her hand, squeezing her eyes shut.

Her heart felt strangely light, and her body tingled with excitement.

‘Why am I getting so excited like this? I’m acting like a kid!’

She tried to calm herself down, but it was hard to shake the feeling.

The truth was, she knew it deep down.

She had always dismissed Felix as immature, but he was far from just a child.

He always dealt with difficulties calmly, and whenever she was feeling anxious, he would notice and encourage her to share her worries.

That wasn’t the attitude of someone to be underestimated.

In fact, when they were being interrogated, Felix’s presence had helped her stay calm.

‘It was because I didn’t want to make a mistake.’

It was when she was surrounded by so many people, feeling the intense pressure, that Felix’s calm voice reached her.

“Eila.”

His low, steady voice called her name.

When she looked over, Felix was looking at her with a reassuring expression.

The moment their eyes met, she felt her tension melt away.

Realizing that he was there, even breathing seemed easier.

Thanks to him, Eila was able to answer the questions smoothly from that point on.

“Eila, if you knew the egg wasn’t a monster egg, why did you raise it without informing anyone? You should have reported it to the academy, especially since animals are supposed to be registered beforehand.”

“I didn’t raise it secretly. I just kept it in my dorm room. I was planning to report it to the academy once it hatched.”

“Hmmm.”

“You can’t report an animal that hasn’t been born yet. At that time, I didn’t even know what kind of egg it was.”

The words flowed out more smoothly than expected, perhaps because her tension had subsided.

Professor Stephan stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“Then why did you move the egg to the greenhouse?”

“It started growing bigger than I expected, and it became difficult to keep it in my room. The greenhouse had a better environment for the egg to hatch.”

Eila continued to answer all the questions without hesitation.

Gradually, the professors, who had looked at her suspiciously at first, began to accept her words.

They started to believe that the egg, with its ominous appearance, might actually belong to a divine beast.

Eila let out a small sigh as she remembered those moments.

If Felix hadn’t been by her side, would she have been able to answer so calmly?

Having someone who believed in her made everything feel more secure.

‘Being able to rely on someone and trust them… it’s better than I thought.’

When she first left the Blanche family, she felt completely alone.

At that time, she had a strong belief that she could handle everything on her own.

But as time passed, and as she went through many experiences, the more precious people she met, the more her heart began to waver.

She knew she shouldn’t lean on them, but she began to want to rely on her friends’ kindness.

Suddenly, she remembered the words Felix had whispered to her while they were dancing.

“I don’t think of you as just a contract partner. If you’re ever in trouble, I want you to rely on me. I’ll help as much as I can.”

That heavy statement had given her so much comfort that she couldn’t express how much it meant to her.

And he had already proven those words with his actions.

He had helped her escape the storage room with Peony and blocked the soldiers when they tried to drag her away.

‘…It can’t be easy to step up for someone you barely know.’

Every time she thought of Felix, every time she remembered the things he had done for her, her heart tightened.

As she fluttered her eyelashes and lowered her eyes, a knock interrupted her thoughts.

Knock, knock.

Eila jumped in surprise and looked up.

Soon, she heard a voice from the guard outside her door.

“Someone’s here to visit. Come with me.”

Eila tilted her head slightly.

‘Peony visited me yesterday…’

There was no one else who would come to see her, so this was strange.

Eila hesitated for a moment before opening the door and stepping out.

Eila arrived in the small visiting room prepared for her.

To her surprise, someone was already waiting for her there.

The moment she recognized who it was, Eila stopped in her tracks, startled.

“Rosia?”

“Hello, Eila.”

Rosia, upon seeing Eila, immediately felt upset.

‘Why does she look so calm?’

Rosia had thought that Eila would be in a terrible state, having been locked in a solitary cell.

If she knew the consequences of her actions, that is.

But Eila didn’t look like she had been suffering at all—she looked almost as if she had been on vacation.

In fact, she looked healthier than before she was locked up.

Rosia’s unease grew.

‘What’s going on? If she’s so calm, does she really think the egg wasn’t a monster’s?’

The egg Rosia had found in the greenhouse definitely looked like a monster’s egg.

But now, seeing that no conclusions had been made yet and Eila continued to deny it, Rosia began to wonder if she had jumped to the wrong conclusion.