—
Only then did Adrian suddenly snap back to his senses.
‘What was I just thinking…?’
Wasn’t his relationship with Sabina purely contractual?
Adrian provided her with a safe life and covered the costs of her stay in the capital.
Sabina, in turn, sought a way to stop the surge in monsters.
That was all. And yet, this…
‘Wait a minute.’
Suddenly, Adrian sharply lifted his head.
‘Now that I think about it—where did Mabel go?’
It felt like at least an hour had passed since Mabel had left.
Adrian frowned slightly.
Well, nothing bad should’ve happened.
This area belonged to the Duke of Valencia, after all.
They regularly checked for monster appearances or dangerous beasts.
Still, Sabina weighed on his mind.
If she woke up and Mabel wasn’t there…
‘She’d definitely be worried.’
First, Adrian quietly pulled back the hand that had been shielding Sabina’s face.
Thankfully, enough time had passed that the sun had shifted in the sky.
Sunlight no longer poured down on her face.
Sabina’s sleeping expression was peaceful.
‘First, I should go find Mabel.’
Adrian slowly stood up.
…Doing his best to ignore the turbulence stirring inside him.
—
I was crouched near the lake, completely absorbed by the fish swimming below the surface.
Silvery fish, about the size of a finger, darted through the water, waving their translucent tails like ribbons.
I had been watching them intensely for a while when—
“Yap!”
I darted my hand into the water, trying to catch one.
Splash!
Water flew everywhere.
“Ugh.”
Soaked from head to toe, I shook my head.
Total failure at catching fish…
“Hmph.”
Just as I slumped my shoulders in defeat—
“Mabel, what are you doing here?”
“Ah! Adrian oppa!”
Startled, I snapped my head up.
Adrian had approached quietly and was now giving me a stern look.
“I’ve been looking all over for you.”
“W-Well…”
“Didn’t Sabina tell you not to wander off?”
Oops.
I winced internally.
At first, I just wanted to give my sister and Adrian some alone time.
But then I got totally distracted by the fish.
“What if you got lost? Your sister would faint.”
“….”
I couldn’t argue with that.
I clamped my mouth shut, feeling sheepish.
Adrian let out a long sigh and held out his hand.
“Let’s go.”
“Okay…”
I quietly took his hand.
But then—
“Mabel, wait.”
Adrian’s eyes suddenly sharpened.
He pulled me behind him and grabbed a long branch from the ground.
Then, he stared intently into the forest, where there was nothing but trees.
‘Huh? What is it?’
I tilted my head in confusion.
Grrrr…
A low, eerie growl rumbled from somewhere, like claws scraping metal.
Instinctively, I froze.
‘That sound…!’
My eyes flew wide open.
‘A monster!!’
A grotesque creature, as if molded from darkness like clay, emerged.
It was the size of a house, with long, slit eyes that gleamed.
Grrrrgh…
Its gaping mouth revealed blade-like fangs.
Squelch. Squelch.
Its spindly legs, barely supporting its massive body, moved in a creepy, spider-like gait as it approached.
Unintentionally, I gripped Adrian’s sleeve tightly.
Chills ran down my spine.
‘Why is there a monster here?’
This was Duke Valencia’s territory.
And yet a monster had appeared?!
Suddenly, my sister’s worried voice echoed in my mind:
> “If we can’t stop the monster surge… even the capital will be in danger.”
My entire body stiffened.
‘Right. That’s what she said.’
Now I remembered.
Before I returned in time, there had been a big commotion when monsters were first spotted near the capital.
But back then, I was too young to care much, and I eventually forgot all about it.
‘Wait… That land near the capital was Duke Valencia’s territory?!’
So this is how a mouse must feel in front of a lion.
My mind went completely blank.
My body lost all strength—I couldn’t even move a finger.
‘…What do I do?’
Am I going to get eaten? What about my sister?
“Mabel, snap out of it!”
Adrian’s sudden yell jolted me back.
“Don’t stay here—run! It’s dangerous…!”
He kept his sharp gaze on the monster, quickly glancing at me.
A golden energy shimmered faintly around the branch in his hand.
‘Aura!’
My eyes widened.
But Adrian wasn’t supposed to use aura yet.
‘His Aura Heart hasn’t fully healed!’
In that instant, the monster lunged.
Screech!
Its massive arm came crashing down toward Adrian.
He swung the branch, slicing the arm cleanly off.
Like cutting cheese with a hot knife, the limb fell easily.
Kyaaaagh!!
The monster let out a horrifying screech.
Thud!
Its severed arm hit the ground, spraying black blood into the air.
But the monster wasn’t the only one hurt.
“Cough!!”
Adrian spat out a mouthful of bright red blood.
“Oppaaaa!!”
I screamed.
He spat more blood onto the ground, then once again aimed the branch at the monster.
The monster charged again.
Kyaaaaah!
A huge shadow loomed over Adrian.
In response, he lifted the aura-imbued branch diagonally to guard.
That was all he did.
Claaang!
The sound that followed was hard to believe—it was like metal scraping metal, not wood meeting claws.
The monster’s enormous talons slid off the branch.
Then, it staggered, then—
Crash!!
It collapsed onto the ground with a loud thud.
Kkrrrk, grrrrk…
It had fallen so hard it couldn’t get back up properly.
A faint golden glow clung to its body—he must’ve struck it with aura during that brief moment.
But…
“Cough, cough cough!!”
Adrian doubled over, coughing violently again.
He tried to cover his mouth, but blood smeared across his palm.
‘No!’
A chill ran down my spine.
‘The more he uses aura, the more damage his Aura Heart takes!’
I had to stop him—no matter what.
With that thought, I rushed toward him.
But as if he had eyes on the back of his head, Adrian held out a hand to stop me.
Then, glancing back at me—
“You’re still here?”
His cool green eyes, even now, sparkled with a cheerful smile.
As if to say, Don’t worry.
“As if this much would bother me.”
That teasing voice made my eyes brim with tears.
—
