~Chapter 18~
“It looks like you relaxed.”
I thought it would be Leher, but Yushen appeared. He was holding the treatment kit that Leher said he would bring.
I was almost asleep, so I was a bit dazed, but I could still think straight.
“Why are you here…?”
“You said I should get treated.”
Right, I did tell him he should get treated since he was hurt.
But what I meant was—why did he come to the room where I was resting?
I spoke quietly, worried someone might overhear.
“Isn’t there another healer outside?”
“There are plenty.”
“Then why come here? You should get treated by them!”
“Someone said they’d treat me personally.”
Yushen sat down naturally at my feet. He looked me right in the eyes.
Then I realized the “someone” who said they’d treat him was me.
Did I… say I’d treat him? Me?
‘Did I hit my head in the explosion and lose my memory?’
…That can’t be. If anyone was hurt in the head, it should be Yushen, not me.
I pointed at myself and asked.
“…Me?”
Yushen nodded.
But I shook my head.
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“When did I?”
“You stopped me earlier and said you’d treat me yourself.”
The way he said it made me wonder if my memory was wrong.
But except for the scratch on my hand, I wasn’t hurt at all. I was perfectly fine!
And unless I’d lost my mind, there’s no way I’d promise to treat Yushen.
I went over my memories from less than an hour ago.
‘No matter how hard I think, I never said I’d treat him myself.’
If I fainted and forgot, then maybe Yushen was right—but I didn’t faint. I remember everything clearly.
So maybe he misunderstood something I said—
“Let someone else clean up here. You should get treated first.”
…No way. That’s not what I meant.
But Yushen did say I stopped him and told him to get treated…
‘That wasn’t me saying I’d treat him.’
If I’d known he’d misunderstand, I wouldn’t have said it. Now he’s misunderstood because I tried to be helpful.
I should clear this up. But… since he got hurt protecting me, I started to feel guilty.
Yeah. This feeling is just unnecessary guilt.
Not long ago, Yushen wanted to kill me.
Did he forget all about that? Now, just because I feel bad, I was about to help him.
‘…It’s not fair. I never asked him to protect me.’
Even though I felt sulky, my body already made the decision—I snatched the treatment kit from Yushen’s hands.
“…Show me your back.”
Without hesitating, Yushen turned his back to me. Up close, even I could see his injuries were bad.
It looked too serious for me to handle.
As I studied his wounds, a strange thought came to mind.
‘…He’s showing me his back so easily. Isn’t he afraid I’ll stab him?’
Does he trust that I’m not Leana? Or does he just think he can overpower me if I try anything?
I hoped it was the first reason. I don’t attack hurt people.
(And it’s not because I’d lose.)
Still, I didn’t feel good seeing his wounds. Even if Yushen is a jerk, I don’t want him hurt like this.
‘Who caused the explosion, anyway?’
As I picked up the gauze, I paused.
‘…Wait, how do I even treat this kind of wound?’
I’ve never treated anyone but myself before.
And this looks like the kind of wound that needs divine power, but I don’t even know if I have any.
No matter how I look at it, this isn’t something I can fix.
“Wouldn’t it be better for a healer with divine power to treat your back?”
“…”
“…Sir?”
No response. Was it because I used informal speech? I quickly added “sir.”
But Yushen was still silent.
Did I cross a line?
“You don’t know how to use divine power?”
Thank goodness his back was turned. If he’d seen my face, he’d know I was lying.
I’d said I had divine power to get on the medical team.
If I could have joined just for my foresight, I wouldn’t have lied.
But now it was too late.
I couldn’t take my words back, so I tried to play it off naturally.
“Before I could learn how, I was kicked out of the temple… because of someone.”
“…”
I once read that the best lies have a bit of truth. I mixed in a real fact Yushen knew, and he seemed to believe it.
After all, he was the one whose reckless action got me kicked out.
Maybe he knew he’d lose the argument if we kept talking about this, so he didn’t say anything else.
Instead, he compromised.
“…The other healers are busy, so just give me first aid, Miss Montrose.”
He wanted first aid, not a full treatment.
But didn’t he just say there were a lot of healers outside?
‘Fine. I refused, but you insisted. If there’s a scar because I did a bad job, don’t blame me later.’
I only know first aid from medical dramas. What else could I do?
I put down the gauze and picked up a warm towel to wipe away the blood.
I gently touched it to his wound, worried it would hurt.
Luckily, he didn’t flinch or seem hurt. So I pressed a little harder.
Whether it was pain or just the process, Yushen stayed perfectly still.
‘He’s tough. If it were me, I’d already be whining.’
…Is that why I’m a bottom-rank employee?
As I wiped away the blood, his uniform got in the way.
‘He’ll have to take his shirt off… but I can’t ask him to do that. That sounds weird!’
I hesitated, unable to continue. How could I ask him to take his shirt off without sounding like a pervert?
Then, Yushen started taking off his uniform jacket himself.
I blinked in surprise, and suddenly his strong back was right in front of me.
‘Wow…’
Even when he was dressed, I thought he had a good build, but I was wrong. Seeing him now, it was totally different.
His shoulders were so broad, you could build a soccer field on them. Maybe his small face made them look even wider.
Under those shoulders, his muscles were well-balanced—not too much, just right.
I never realized why women like men with good muscles until now.
Thud.
The towel fell onto the bed.
“Miss Montrose.”
His low voice stopped my hand just as I reached for his shoulder blade.
“Is it that bad?”
His voice brought me back to my senses.
I realized how I must have looked, and my face got hot.
‘No way. Of all people, I was admiring Yushen…!’
It annoyed me that it was Yushen I was impressed with.
But no matter how I felt, my voice was full of embarrassment.
“Huh…? What?”
“You didn’t say anything, so I wondered if the injury was serious.”
“Ah, no! It’s not bad at all!”
I shook my head even though he couldn’t see.
And yes, I was flustered.
‘Get it together, Letitia. Stay calm. Don’t get distracted. If it was Aydin being nice, maybe, but feeling anything for Yushen? That’s just annoying.’
I really need to make friends with the heroine and get her close to Yushen. That way I won’t act so crazy.
I forced myself to calm down, picked up the towel, and continued treating him.
Silence fell between us. I could faintly hear voices outside and the sound of the treatment kit.
‘This is driving me crazy.’
Even breathing felt awkward.
It was worse because the other person was Yushen.
It almost made me miss the days when we were chasing and running away.
There had to be a way to break this awkwardness…
There is.
