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Chapter : 25
The playful tone in his voice vanished in an instant.
His red eyes, which had been languid and relaxed, were now sharp—no, blazing.
Cold sweat trickled down my back at the expression I had never once seen on his face. My body trembled on its own, making clear thinking nearly impossible.
What am I supposed to do…?
Thankfully, the tension finally eased when Leonard gently cupped my cheek.
His cold face didn’t match the cautious touch of his hand.
“Who did this?”
“Ah…”
His fingers brushed the scraped cheek, and a sting pricked my skin.
I let out a small groan at the unexpected pain, and Leonard flinched.
His hand, which had been examining my cheek, suddenly went still.
“Who on earth…”
Leonard bit down on his lip hard, swallowing the rest of his words.
…At this rate, the man behind me might actually die.
“…I’m fine! This kind of thing heals overnight for me. Remember? Even when my lip got hurt before, it healed right away.”
Despite my insistence, Leonard simply turned his head away without a word.
Seriously—why is he acting like this?
He saw it himself back then too.
Right then, off in the distance, I spotted Gerald waving—he must’ve found the inn.
Leonard glanced that way briefly, then turned back—no, behind me.
Ah. Caught.
“…Go on inside first, Loreina.”
“What about you?”
Leonard lowered his eyes before replying quietly.
“I’ve got something to take care of nearby.”
I had a pretty good idea what that “something” was, so I grabbed his arm and whispered.
“…You’re not going to kill him, right?”
Leonard hesitated, then gave a small nod.
He’d answer since I asked, but he clearly wasn’t happy about it.
“…I’ll try.”
“No, ‘try’ isn’t good enough.”
If he tried and the man still wound up dead, that would be the end of it, wouldn’t it? I do not need a murder happening anywhere near me.
Sure, the guy hitting me was annoying, but still—not like this.
And anyway, I’d already gotten my revenge perfectly fine on my own.
“Don’t kill him. Okay?”
Leonard’s face twisted into an expression of pure displeasure at my repeated pleading.
“I don’t get why you care about that bastard so much.”
“…”
“He ruined your face.”
…Wow. I nearly clicked my tongue out loud in disbelief. How did his thoughts end up there again?
“I’m not worrying about him—I’m worrying about you.”
“Then why does it matter what I do?”
“It matters. I don’t want you wasting your time on someone like him.”
Leonard paused at that. His expression softened noticeably, unlike before.
“…I’ll try.”
He said the same words as earlier, but they felt completely different.
And honestly, that alone was a huge relief.
At least no one was going to die now.
I stepped aside, and Leonard walked past me.
He hoisted the heavy-looking man with one hand as if he weighed nothing, then turned back.
“I’ll be right back.”
Before I could answer, he vanished with the man like a gust of wind.
It was over in a blink.
Thankfully, no rumors of murder in the area cropped up overnight.
Though there were whispers about a man in his underclothes being hung upside down from a tree.
But, well… maybe he was hot?
…Even though it’s winter cold enough to freeze someone to death.
Still—better than killing him.
Granted, tossing someone outside in their underwear in this weather basically says “I don’t care if he dies.”
He must’ve been shivering like mad out there… kinda feel bad for him.
But the point is—he lived.
Which is good. Because last night really felt like the kind of night where someone would die.
Now let’s see how much my face has healed and—
Clink!
“Young lady—are you all right?”
“Ah, nothing! I’m fine!”
Before Mary could come in, I hurriedly gathered the shards of the mirror from the floor.
Thankfully, she didn’t enter my room.
A moment later, I heard her go back to the room next door.
I let out a quiet sigh when her door shut.
“…Whew. That was close.”
I carefully picked up the pieces, worried I might cut myself—and caught my reflection in one of the larger fragments.
My right cheek, scabbed over and barely changed from yesterday.
Why?
Four years ago, even my poisoned lip healed overnight.
Naturally, I assumed this would too.
“Does your physical condition affect the blessing?”
If so… that couldn’t be helped. At least Mary didn’t see me like this.
Last night she nearly cried when she saw the swelling—and I had barely managed to calm her down by saying the divine blessing would heal it.
It’ll get better eventually.
This is the first time I’ve been traveling long-distance like this. Maybe my body’s just worn out.
Uncomfortable, but I chose to accept that explanation and move on.
The real problem came when I snuck off to get medicine from Gerald.
As he examined the wound, he frowned slightly and spoke.
“Looks like it might scar.”
“…What?”
A scar? From just one slap?
“Looks like he scratched you pretty clean with his nails. How did this happen?”
“There was… an incident yesterday. Wait—will it really leave a scar? A big one?”
“I’ve spent years watching injuries. Might vary, but it’ll likely remain.”
Gerald pressed the medicine into my hands with a look of sympathy—telling me to apply it every night without fail.
I can’t believe I’m going to have another mark on my face.
…This is infuriating. I should go kick that guy again—
“What happened?”
Leonard entered, wearing loose white shirt and black trousers.
Unlike yesterday’s attire, he looked much more relaxed—and frustratingly handsome even like that.
“It seems Lady Amelio was injured. I was preparing ointment.”
Leonard’s gaze immediately flicked to my right cheek.
His red eyes frosted over as he inspected it.
…I know what you’re thinking. Don’t. Please don’t.
You already took him out once last night.
Someone really would die at this rate.
“…I’ll go see if breakfast is ready,” Gerald muttered.
And left—quickly. He’d definitely seen Leonard’s expression.
…Can I go too? This atmosphere is suffocating.
“…Let me see.”
Leonard came close, tilting my chin up to look at my cheek.
His brows furrowed. I was the one who got hurt, but he looked like he was the one feeling the pain.
“It looks worse in the light…”
“…I know, right?”
His worried gaze made me oddly itchy inside, so I gave a small laugh.
That only made his face harden more.
“You’re laughing? If someone like that came after you, you should’ve woken me up instead of just taking the hit—no. Forget it.”
Still examining the cut, Leonard lowered his eyes and muttered softly—
“I should have woken on my own…”
No—that’s not fair. Why is his self-blame so well-practiced?
“I didn’t wake you on purpose. I planned to just take the hit and end it.”
“What? Why do something like that?”
“If you got involved, the situation would’ve blown up. You were just crowned—you can’t get dragged into trouble over nothing.”
“…”
“It was easier to let him hit me and be done with it.”
Also—not that he knows—I didn’t just take it.
I winked. Leonard sighed long and deep.
Huh. Did I say the wrong thing again? I honestly couldn’t tell which part exasperated him.
I’ve never had someone worry like this, so I’m clueless.
“…You’re right. It’s better not to get tangled in unnecessary trouble right now,” he finally admitted.
“Exactly!”
“…The problem is that this isn’t unnecessary trouble.”
His gaze traced my cheek again, and I held my breath without meaning to.
Um. We’re awfully close.
“You really need to take better care of yourself, Loreina.”
“I am taking care of myself. That’s why I’m getting medicine now.”
I’m trying so hard not to die—that’s why I’m following you to the palace.
Not that he knows that part.
“Not like this. I mean stop getting hurt in the first place.”
“I’m not trying to get hurt. It’s just more efficient to let things go—”
“That’s the problem. Why is ‘efficiency’ more important than your body?”
Leonard cut me off sharply.
“Think about yourself first. If something like this happens again, call me.”
“…”
“Got it?”
It was strange—Leonard’s words echoed what Enoch once told me four years ago.
And my thoughts then were the same now:
Why?
Why do Leonard and Enoch think so differently from me?
Most people would swoon at a scene like this—straight out of a romance novel.
But for me, only a faint bitterness surfaced first.
Because I already knew the answer.
Because I knew I’d lived my life a little warped.
But so what?
I’ve managed to survive this long. Isn’t that enough?
“…Is it really necessary to call you? The blessing will heal it anyway.”
“…Loreina.”
“It’s true. It’ll heal soon. Why trouble you over it? Sure, my body’s bad right now so it didn’t heal overnight, but—”
“…Do you really believe that?”
“Huh?”
His fingers tightened on my chin. His face came so close I could feel his breath.
In a much lower voice than before, Leonard asked—
“Do you really think it was the divine blessing that healed you back then?”
