Chapter 6. A Vicious Nightmare (1)
“Ah, hi? This is our… second time, right?”
Elusiana instinctively raised one hand in greeting.
“Have you… been well?”
Was this something to be relieved about? Astein stared at her blankly, then turned his gaze back out the window.
His reaction was so blatantly indifferent that it was almost embarrassing. Elusiana gave an awkward laugh.
‘Seriously? I nearly had a heart attack just now.’
Scratching her head, she looked down at the soup bowl on the table.
‘Still… I should feed him, right?’
Thinking that he might starve to death at this rate, Elusiana picked up the tray with the soup and quietly walked over to Astein.
He still didn’t respond.
Elusiana carefully spoke as she approached him.
“Is it okay if I sit here?”
Again, Astein gave no reply, but Elusiana took that as a yes.
If he really hated it, he’d probably push me away, she thought a little too optimistically.
She sat beside Astein and placed the tray with the soup on her lap.
Wondering what to do, she scooped a spoonful and offered it to him.
“It’s lamb soup. It’s finely chopped and boiled, so it shouldn’t upset your stomach. Come on, try a bite.”
“…”
“Don’t be stubborn. Okay? If you don’t eat, you might really collapse.”
Elusiana smiled brightly, trying to be friendly. But at that moment, a drop of soup fell from the spoon.
“Ah! S-sorry!”
Panicking, she quickly wiped it away with a towel from the tray.
The soup wasn’t hot—it had already cooled.
Still, Elusiana reacted so nervously because of the look on Astein’s face—it was chillingly cold.
“I’ll clean it right away.”
She reached out to wipe the soup from the back of his hand.
And then—
Astein grabbed her wrist tightly.
“Ugh.”
“…What are you trying to do?”
What do you mean?!
A strange fire flickered in the previously emotionless boy’s eyes.
Elusiana’s eyes widened at Astein’s sudden shift in demeanor.
“Answer me.”
“I-I was just trying to wipe it—”
“Do you want my body, too?”
“…What?”
Elusiana was so stunned she couldn’t speak, her mouth falling open.
Want what?!
She was so shocked she didn’t even feel the pain in her wrist.
“…Answer me.”
Answer what? What the hell?! Ouch! You crazy brat, what kind of nonsense is this?!
Astein, with his thin, bony hand, gripped her wrist tighter and yanked it toward him.
Before she knew it, Elusiana’s body was pulled close, nearly falling into his.
“Let… go!”
“I said, answer me.”
His blood-red eyes gleamed ominously as he stared at her. His lips curled into a fierce snarl.
“…Tell me. What do you really want from me? What are you hiding?”
Elusiana stopped struggling.
His voice, though forceful, trembled like a sob.
It wasn’t just coercion—it was a desperate plea, like he was begging her not to cross a line, as if he was trying to keep her away.
Maybe that’s why—
She suddenly felt sorry for him.
And she could see it now.
The fear he couldn’t fully hide in his trembling fingertips.
Ah… I see now.
She finally understood.
What his cold, detached gaze was really saying.
What lay at the bottom of the endless darkness in his eyes.
She didn’t know his whole life story, but she understood at least this much:
He had suffered countless, unimaginable wounds.
…So much so, he was afraid even of peace.
He was like someone left alone in a vast ocean, clinging to the remains of a shipwreck.
Her overheated mind suddenly cooled. She was ashamed of the ridiculous thoughts she had earlier.
Wiping her flushed cheeks, Elusiana flicked Astein’s head with the spoon.
“What kind of nonsense are you spouting? Do you think just talking like that makes it true? I’m way too old to be interested in your body. What would I even do with it?”
Apparently caught off guard by the spoon attack, Astein let go of her wrist.
“And just so we’re clear, you’re not even my type.”
Elusiana scoffed exaggeratedly and looked away. She knew clumsy sympathy only deepened pain.
“Stop with the nonsense and just eat your soup. It won’t taste good if it gets cold.”
His red eyes narrowed with suspicion—an unreadable expression masking his face.
“And here.”
She quietly placed a small blue jar beside Astein.
It was a special ointment she had brought from the temple.
Astein’s gaze shifted. He frowned slightly, as if annoyed.
Does he not know what that is?
Elusiana awkwardly cleared her throat and added,
“Hmph. It’s a really good ointment for wounds. Use it if you’re in pain.”
The crimson glow under his dark lashes shimmered strangely.
Just meeting his eyes felt like being caught in a spiderweb—unable to move.
What? Does he think it’s suspicious?
She hadn’t mentioned it was from the temple, afraid he’d be uncomfortable, but maybe she should have told him.
“That stuff’s amazing. It was specially ordered from the temple. Be grateful and use it. If you need more, just tell me—I’ll get more.”
“…”
“I mean it, don’t hold back. Use as much as you need. My family’s actually got some resources, okay? So, uh… get some rest.”
Elusiana quickly left the room, not waiting for a reply.
But Astein’s gaze stayed glued to the door until it closed.
Click.
Once she had shut the door, Elusiana leaned against it and let out a long breath.
Haah… what’s with that kid’s eyes…
…They looked like they could devour you alive.
They were terrifying—like they were full of blood.
So much so, she forgot any feelings of sympathy, pity, or sorrow.
Elusiana shuddered at the goosebumps crawling up her spine.
“…Maybe I should be protecting myself from the kid, not the other way around?”
✦
Back in the now-empty room, Astein sneered as he stared at the small blue jar she had left.
“She said to apply it to where it hurts?”
He had been fed, rubbed, and soaked in countless herbs. He could identify ingredients from scent alone.
And what Elusiana had generously given him was laced with a vicious herb that caused paralysis.
In small doses, it worked as medicine—but beyond that, it hardened internal organs and could kill.
Irritated, Astein hurled the jar across the room, then glared at the door, grinding his teeth.
One week later.
Elusiana peeked through the cracked door with a heavy sigh. Inside, Tricia was dusting off the bed. Seeing this, Elusiana fell into deep thought.
She had even brought him that precious ointment to get closer, but Astein still wasn’t eating.
No—he had gotten worse. They couldn’t even open the door now. She could imagine how stressed the servants were.
Even Simon, though aware, seemed unwilling to force the sick child out just yet.
Elusiana pouted.
“What on earth is the problem?”
At the orphanage, she had managed to calm even the most twisted kids and win them over.
But this one… was different.
Maybe it was those eerily red eyes.
Still, she couldn’t help but feel pity at the thought of him being alone.
Sigh. I’m the adult here—I should be the bigger person.
“Right. Standing here won’t change anything. I’ll decide what to do after I see him.”
Determined, Elusiana clenched her fists and stood up.
Just then, Tricia, having finished making the bed, looked at her curiously.
“My lady, where are you going?”
“Hm?”
“You’ve been quiet for days. Where are you off to now?”
“To that kid.”
“Excuse me?”
“I’ll be back soon.”
It wasn’t until she’d left the room that Tricia realized what she meant—and shouted in panic.
“My lady! No! You can’t go there—it’s too dangerous—!”
But ignoring Tricia’s frantic cries, Elusiana dashed off.
✦
Wake up.
The child’s limp eyelids twitched.
A boy, identical to the child, gave a twisted smile and tapped her cheek.
