IWBCAS 02

CHAPTER-02

‘Really? Is this happening till the end?’

This was just too much!!

Reina stared up at the moon in the night sky and silently cursed the gods who were probably watching from somewhere.

Then, that cold voice pushed her again.

“Criminal, show yourself.”

Reina couldn’t turn around right away. If she did, the Holy Grail she was holding would be seen.

‘I’m doomed.’

Caught red-handed while stealing from the royal treasury.

‘At this rate, I’ll die before they even find out I’m the Saint!’

As she hesitated, the man with the sword spoke again.

“What are you doing? Turn around!”

Reina clenched her fists.

‘You think I didn’t prepare anything just because I’m robbing the palace?’

Gulp.

She swallowed hard and pulled out a pouch she had hidden in her sleeve.

Then, slowly pretending to kneel, she bowed her head.

“S-sorry…”

While apologizing, she glanced sideways. The man was about 1 meter away.

If she aimed well, she had a chance.

Reina looked up at his face and then, in one move, stood up straight and threw the powder in his face.

“What are you—! Cough! Cough cough!”

The man got a full face of it and started coughing wildly.

‘Yes!’

Reina smiled in victory while holding her breath.

What she had thrown was black pepper she secretly took from the kitchen.

It was ground so finely that even Reina had coughed just from packing it.

So of course, the man who inhaled it all at once must be suffering a lot.

She quickly tried to run past him.

But just as she passed—

“Cough, cough! Where do you think you’re going!!”

Even though he couldn’t open his eyes, he randomly reached out—

And grabbed Reina’s wrist perfectly.

He yanked her hard, and her body lost balance.

“W-wait?! Aaaah!!”

Her body tilted at a 45-degree angle—about to fall.

To keep from falling, she swung her arm out hard—

Totally forgetting she was still holding the Holy Grail.

Thud!!

A loud noise rang out.

“Huh…?”

In front of her, she saw the man’s eyes close slowly as he collapsed.

‘Crap.’

Even as he fell, he moved his lips like he was swearing. She couldn’t hear it, but she was sure it was a curse.

Thump.

Something heavy hit the grass.

“H-hey! Are you okay?”

Even though she was the one who knocked him out, Reina panicked.

When he didn’t respond, she crept closer and crouched down.

“Wake up!!”

She shook his body, but he didn’t move at all.

He looked seriously hurt.

His body was limp, and blood was pouring from the back of his head.

Apparently, there had been a sharp rock where he hit his head.

“…He’s not dead, right?”

She never meant to kill someone!!

Her eyes shook like there was an earthquake in them.

Sure, she was stealing, but stealing and killing were totally different.

Nervously, she put her finger under his nose.

She felt faint breathing. He was alive, thankfully.

“Ugh, why is everything going wrong?”

‘I just wanted to take the Grail and leave quietly…’

And this man looked important. His sharp eyes, high nose, and strong jaw…

He was ridiculously handsome—like a celebrity.

Then, Reina noticed a slight blue tint in his hair under the moonlight.

“…Kallheil?”

Wait… was this Kallheil Lautgen?

The Emperor’s youngest brother, the Crown Prince’s uncle.

The Grand Duke who left for the North to avoid power struggles.

The “War Demon” who wiped out all the monsters in three years.

The cruel man known to tear gargoyles apart with his bare hands.

And the man lying on the ground looked exactly like the description from the novel.

‘But why is he here? Shouldn’t he be in the North? Maybe it’s just someone who looks like him?’

But then she saw the golden lion emblem on his collar.

‘Yup. Definitely Kallheil. 100%.’

“Wow… just my luck.”

Of all people to run into here, it had to be him.

‘O-okay. Time to run.’

She had knocked him out, and she was stealing from the palace. No way would he forgive her.

Just thinking about his scary face and the curse he mumbled made her want to vanish.

So she turned and started running away.

But then, a thought stopped her.

“…If I leave him like this… will he die?”

This was the farthest, most hidden garden in the palace.

What if no one found him before morning?

‘He was bleeding a lot. What if he dies from blood loss…?’

She glanced back.

He was still lying there, blood pooling around his head.

Her conscience hurt like a needle was poking her chest.

‘If he dies, the theft could turn into a murder of a royal!’

Reina hesitated, sighed loudly, and stepped back toward him.

‘Who knows what will happen when he wakes up, but…’

‘Let’s just make sure he doesn’t die.’

But there was no medicine, and she had no idea what to do in this empty garden.

“Stay calm. Calm down. Reina, think! There must be a way!”

She paced around thinking hard—then suddenly stopped.

There was one way to heal him.

‘I’m… a universal healing potion!!’

Sure, serious healing needed strong contact or blood, but just stopping bleeding—just a few drops of saliva might work.

Reina swallowed nervously as she looked at Kallheil.

24 years of being single. No dating. No kissing.

And now, her first kiss would be with this unconscious man?

‘Ugh… fine. I’ll do it.’

Saving a life was more important than a first kiss.

Anyway, this wasn’t even a real kiss.

In modern times, this kind of thing was called CPR, right?

“It’s a medical act. Medical!”

She nodded to herself and crouched beside Kallheil.

‘Goodbye, my first kiss.’

She lowered the mask covering her face and shut her eyes tightly.

Then she pressed her lips to his.

The soft feeling surprised her.

She thought his lips would be cold, like ice.

But they were soft and warm.

‘Okay, lips touched… what now?’

Awkwardly holding her lips there, Reina remembered—it needed fluids to work.

So, she carefully slipped her tongue into his mouth.

Yes, it was awkward. And yes, the man was unconscious. But she had no choice.

It was a medical procedure, after all!

His tongue wasn’t moving, so Reina gently explored his mouth with her tongue.

Finally, she found his tongue and touched it with hers.

And then—suddenly—he started sucking on her tongue.

‘Wait. What?!’

Her eyelashes fluttered in shock.

She’d only seen kisses in dramas or movies.

She thought kissing was like eating beef—soft and chewy.

But this was different.

It made her chest tingle. Her whole body felt warm and buzzy.

Kallheil’s movements became stronger. His tongue licked everywhere, and his sucking made heat rise from her belly.

Her whole body tingled, and her head got dizzy from his scent.

“Mmm…”

A soft sound slipped out of her mouth.

Reina felt like she was losing consciousness now.

But just as she melted like a soggy piece of paper…

She felt something cold and snake-like wrap around her neck.

Goosebumps.

‘Wait… how is an unconscious person moving like this?’

She opened her eyes wide.

And met Kallheil’s—crystal blue, awake, and staring right at her.

‘He’s awake?! Since when?!’

“KYAAAAAA!!”

She screamed and swung her hand.

Unfortunately, she still had the Holy Grail.

And her swing went straight at his head.

THUD!

That familiar sound rang out again.

Kallheil’s eyes, which had just opened, rolled shut once more.

“…Again?”

Reina stared at the unconscious Kallheil with a shocked face.