Chapter 17: Dilemma

The warmth of sunlight barely breaking through the blinds, asserting its presence.

The faint sound of a gentle breeze, signaling the sun’s quiet rise beyond the window.

The sound of insects ruling the dawn garden, and the birds flapping their wings in satisfaction at the abundance of food they’ll find today.

These were the sensations that greeted my senses as soon as my mind awakened.

For the past few days, due to the state of my damaged core, it had been difficult to perceive the outside world this clearly. But now, as this comes so easily to me…

Ah, I slept well.

I couldn’t say it aloud, but I knew that I felt more refreshed than I did when I opened my eyes yesterday.

Sleeping in a proper bed two days in a row really revitalizes the body.

Indeed, the first rule of staying healthy is good sleep.

Yesterday, Aslin had practically forced me into bed, and now I felt so grateful that I couldn’t help but think I owed her proper thanks. This clarity, this feeling of refreshment—I hadn’t felt it in so long.

But despite feeling so refreshed…

‘I planned to sleep a little longer, but I ended up sleeping until dawn.’

It was a bit disappointing that I had slept longer than I intended without any self-control.

Given yesterday’s circumstances, no one would scold me for oversleeping, and I could have easily gone back to sleep without any trouble. However…

In truth, my body no longer felt sore, and in fact, I was feeling so refreshed that getting up and moving would only help maintain this state.

So it would be right to open my eyes and start the day.

Just as I was about to get up…

…Maybe I should check my surroundings first?

Now that my body was back to full health, I could also work on improving my mana control by expanding my senses while restoring my mana core.

“…”

With that thought, I expanded my senses without opening my eyes. Not only the bedroom where Aslin and I were, but the surroundings became crystal clear to me, as if I could grasp them with my hand.

Though I couldn’t see it with my eyes, I could clearly sense the presence of others from far away, as if their energy was appearing in colors, even with my eyes closed.

Beyond the bedroom door, I sensed a calm, deep blue energy gently flowing.

It was Katarina. I could feel her standing outside the door in a perfect posture, hands neatly folded.

…Yesterday, I had watched with my own eyes as that lunatic Khalid knocked her out with a direct blow to the jaw, yet here she was, standing in place.

It occurred to me that she might be forcing herself to stand, dragging her injured body out of loyalty. So I carefully expanded my senses even further.

‘Impressive.’

From the refined energy I could feel from Katarina, there wasn’t a single sign of her forcing herself through pain to perform her duties.

Even with my eyes closed, my mind worked as I accepted what I sensed through my heightened perception, thinking about why Katarina was standing there so perfectly fine.

Was it because she was naturally strong, or perhaps that lunatic Khalid spared her, merely knocking her out since she wasn’t directly involved in the assassination attempt?

Both reasons made sense. It could even be both.

In the end, it didn’t really matter. The important thing was that, unless she was fatally wounded or gravely injured, it seemed the duchy had a remarkable work ethic that expected nothing less.

‘The duchy isn’t the duchy for nothing, after all.’

There’s no need to say more. Having someone of her caliber, someone who could easily lead a knight order under any count, serving as the personal maid of the next head of the family speaks volumes.

No need to worry about her. She can certainly take care of herself without me fretting over her.

With that, I retracted my senses from the far distance and refocused on the room. As I did, I felt Aslin’s presence next to me, just as close and clear as our physical proximity.

Aslin’s energy, felt through my senses, was a vivid blue, much like her hair.

Even if three or four of Katarina’s auras were combined, they wouldn’t compare to the brilliance and density of Aslin’s.

Every part of her exterior, from her hair to her appearance, had no flaw. It was all beautiful.

Even the color of her aura, sensed with my eyes closed, was so beautiful.

I found myself thinking that I’d never have to worry about losing sight of her anywhere.

‘Why am I even thinking about something so useless?’

I immediately dismissed the thought.

Focus, focus. There aren’t many people in the Empire who could fight alongside Aslin and match her strength if she wielded her sword with intent.

With someone that strong, what reason would she have to get lost? Why would I even imagine such nonsense?

I barely managed to suppress the wry smile twisting at my lips and slowly opened my eyes, turning my head slightly.

“…”

I could see Aslin, sleeping with such shallow breaths that I had to focus to even hear them.

She wasn’t lying flat, but had her back turned toward me. It seemed she wasn’t awake yet.

I didn’t turn my head away immediately. I took in her form for a moment. The first thing that filled my view was the blue wave of her hair.

It was hard to believe that someone destined to lead the sword spirits could have hair so glossy and full of life.

…Wouldn’t it feel nice to touch?

Slap!

The moment another impure thought surfaced, I reflexively slapped myself, punishing myself for letting such a devilish idea take root.

Twitch-

The problem was, I had moved too abruptly, and I felt Aslin’s body faintly tremble through the blanket we shared.

…Ugh, you idiot. You’ve just woken up someone who should be resting and healing.

At this point, pretending to be asleep again wouldn’t work.

“Ahem.”

With a deliberate cough, I steeled myself.

“Good morning.”

I greeted Aslin, expecting her to wake up, but…

“…”

There was no particular response from Aslin, who had turned her body towards me.

Still unsure whether she was too dazed from just waking up to hear me, I tried again.

“Did you sleep... well?”

Once more, I cautiously spoke to Aslin, but...

“….”

There was no proper response from her. All I got was a slight twitch of her body.

…Strange. In the past two days, I’d more than confirmed that Aslin wasn’t the type to ignore me, especially not after waking up. The idea that she would ignore my morning greeting wasn’t even worth considering, so I began thinking of other possibilities.

Then, as I focused on her breathing, I noticed something irregular. Her faint, shallow breaths, which I’d chalked up to sleep, now felt… unnerving.

‘…No way.’

A strange chill ran down my spine.

The sound of her breathing was far too small. And then—

Thump, thump—

Her heartbeat, which I could now hear in my ears, was far too harsh and rapid in comparison to her breaths.

Regret washed over me for wasting time expanding my senses so leisurely just moments ago.

‘You idiot.’

I quickly reflected on my complacency and hurried to Aslin’s side, getting up from the bed. It took longer than expected to cross over, given the bed’s size—it could easily fit five adults lying down—but despite my rushing steps, I managed to make it without stumbling.

What greeted me when I arrived was Aslin’s face, flushed with an abnormal heat that instantly told me something was wrong.

I reached out to check her condition, pressing a hand to her forehead.

‘…Damn it.’

At first, her forehead had felt warm, but the longer I kept my hand there, the more I could feel the heat rising to an alarming degree.

‘What’s going on?’

Even when I cared for people in the back alleys, those stricken with high fevers who could barely move didn’t have a heat this intense.

Today, Aslin was giving me a brand new experience.

There was no time to waste.

I immediately reached for the tool used to summon servants in a formal manner within the room.

Jingle, jingle—

It was a small bell, perfect for calling servants with just a shake.

“You called for m—wait, it’s not the young lady—”

“This isn’t the time for that. Hurry and fetch a doctor or healer!”

Katarina, who had entered the room expecting Aslin to call her, seemed confused at seeing me instead. But I cut her off with an urgent order to fetch a doctor or healer after quickly checking Aslin’s condition.

Without hesitation, she gave a slight bow and swiftly left the room.

I had to admit, I was quite pleased. Despite any personal feelings, she immediately put them aside and took action when her master’s health was on the line.

Ah, there was something else I needed to ask.

“Before you go, could you bring a basin full of cold water and a cloth suitable for placing on her forehead?”

Before she could leave, I requested the tools necessary to give Aslin some immediate care until the doctor or healer arrived.

Katarina responded with a light snap of her fingers toward the open bedroom door before she departed.

Is snapping her fingers like that enough to get the other servants, whose presence I’d vaguely sensed earlier, to understand her orders?

“Here you go.”

The arrival of the servants, carrying exactly what I had asked Katarina to fetch on a tray, quickly dispelled any lingering doubts I had.

So it works. Clearly, they were already prepared to care for Aslin, whose body had been weakened by the battle with the monsters, all with a simple gesture.

I silently expressed my gratitude toward these well-prepared staff members of the mansion.

Carefully, I placed the basin filled with cold water on the bedside table.

I soaked the cloth, wrung it out, and gently placed it on Aslin’s forehead.

Though the servants seemed surprised, albeit subtly, by the fact that I, of all people, was doing this, I didn’t mind.

After all, it probably looked unusual for someone of my status, the son of a fallen Duke, to be personally wringing out a cold cloth and placing it on an ill person’s forehead.

‘Do they think I’ve never done this before?’

Having lived in the back alleys, surrounded by those with similar fates, I had countless experiences caring for and being cared for by others. That experience made it easy for me to place the cold, perfectly wrung-out cloth on Aslin’s forehead, without worrying about what others might think.

As soon as the cloth touched her skin, the pain caused by the fever visibly eased, and Aslin’s face relaxed.

Before long, the duchy’s doctor arrived, calming the turmoil that had stirred up what should have been a peaceful morning.

As expected.

Aslin looks much better with a softened expression than one marred by pain.

####

Aslin Blath Caladbolg, the daughter of the prestigious Caladbolg Duchy, renowned for the sword spirits and the birth of great heroes, now faced an unexpectedly difficult situation.

A situation far more frustrating than the time monsters had suddenly ambushed her on the battlefield.

Though her eyes were still closed, she could clearly feel the worried gazes of all the servants in the duchy, who were now concerned about her condition.

And right beside her, her husband, whom she had dragged into a forced marriage—no, a marriage of conquest by her stubbornness—was, despite his high status, personally wringing out a cold cloth and placing it on her forehead.

“Miss… Please get better soon.”

Her personal maid, who had been with her since childhood, spoke with a voice trembling on the verge of tears. This whole situation left Aslin feeling terribly flustered.

If she had been truly sick, she might have been touched by all this attention and care, but…

‘I’m… not sick.’

The main reason for her discomfort was that she wasn’t actually ill. All this worry from those around her was entirely misplaced.

She wasn’t sick at all. Her current state was solely due to her husband, Endymion, whose presence in the bed beside her had overwhelmed her more than she had anticipated. She had spent the night wide awake, the side effect of that restless night being what everyone now mistook for illness.

The rapid heartbeat that could easily be misunderstood by her husband was, in fact, the result of her being oddly excited by his comforting presence beside her.

The warmth that had alarmed her husband, who then placed a cool cloth on her burning forehead, was caused by the same thing—a physiological response beyond her control.

Her heightened metabolism, driven by her racing heart, had caused her temperature to rise naturally. The sudden touch of Endymion’s hand on her forehead had shocked her, sending her already active metabolism into overdrive, like a wild horse running unchecked.

‘His hands… strong and rough… but gentle…’

Despite her initial shock, she found herself oddly satisfied by the feel of his hand on her skin.

‘No… This isn’t the time for that….’

But this wasn’t the time for idle thoughts, so Aslin deliberately slowed her metabolism, trying to keep anyone from realizing that she was already awake.

Strangely, controlling her metabolism, which had been nearly impossible with Endymion lying beside her, became much easier once there was some distance between them. She couldn’t help but find the irony in that.

‘I can’t blame anyone for this…’

As the person responsible for inconveniencing everyone in the duchy, she chided herself for having such frivolous thoughts, quickly erasing them from her mind.

Once she did, the awkwardness of the situation—surrounded by servants, her husband, and the family doctor, all concerned for her health—became even more uncomfortable.

‘It’s understandable, though…’

Anyone would have misunderstood the situation. So, although it made her feel awkward, she couldn’t blame anyone for reacting the way they did. She simply calmed her mind and accepted the misunderstanding.

‘…Should I… just get up?’

The thought did cross her mind—to endure the embarrassment and clear up the misunderstanding. After all, it was becoming increasingly unbearable.

The long, sleepless night had dragged on, but now the morning seemed to stretch even longer, almost unnaturally so. The anxiety building inside Aslin was headed in a completely different direction from those who worried for her.

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