Flames That Devour the Body
The world collapsed with a deafening roar.
Everywhere he passed shattered and crumbled. Flames erupted from all directions.
Raphael’s arms, back, nape, his long strides—his entire body was licked by the fire, swallowed whole.
Yet even in that agony, the hands cradling Kanna never trembled. Not even a fraction.
Kanna watched the scene with wide, unblinking eyes through the gaps in her clothes.
The sight of Raphael burning alive.
“Someone’s coming out!”
“The physician! Bring the physician over here!”
Kanna coughed violently. People were rushing toward them.
Raphael.
She clutched the front of his robe. Her head spun. She had inhaled far too much smoke.
Raphael.
If I’m this bad, he must be worse.
He might even die.
“Physician! Over here!”
Kanna’s consciousness began to fade.
Raphael first… Raphael has to…
She gripped his clothes tighter.
I’m fine, so… just save him…
But the strength in her fingers slowly slipped away.
She let go.
While unconscious, Kanna dreamed—an old memory.
She had been fourteen.
The first time she tried to escape Addis.
While planning her runaway, she had visited the slums many times. There, she met countless people.
Half of them were beggars, the other half were sick. People with no money, no food, no medicine. All they had were bodies waiting for death.
How pitiful.
It was there that Kanna first learned compassion. After that, every time she went to the slums, she smuggled out food.
Not just food. She also brought armfuls of the various medicines she had made.
And she gave them to those in need.
Food for the starving, medicine for the sick. She helped so many people she could no longer count them.
“Thank you so much, sister. I’ve never met such a kind person in my life.”
“Little miss, you’re my savior. To treat me without asking for anything in return—the world is more beautiful than I thought.”
“I wanted to die. But you made me want to live.”
Countless words of gratitude brushed past her.
At fourteen, Kanna had, for the first time, pitied someone. Helped someone. And for the first time, she received thanks.
“Sister, when I make a lot of money later, I’ll definitely pay you for the treatment.”
“This old man never thought he’d experience such luxury in his life. Thank you.”
“I want to give you my life. And one day, I will repay this kindness.”
Saving someone on the brink of death was a truly wonderful thing. More sacred and miraculous than anything else in this world.
I will definitely—
“Raphael!”
For some reason, the first word that left her lips the moment she regained consciousness was his name.
Kanna shot upright in bed. A stabbing pain tore through her, and she swallowed a scream.
“Sister, you’re awake!”
Kalen hurried over. Kanna panted, looking around.
It was her own bedroom.
She must have received proper treatment while unconscious—bandages were wrapped around her legs, arms, and head.
“Where’s Raphael?”
“Pardon?”
“The person who saved me.”
For a moment, Kalen’s face clouded. He remained silent for a while before answering slowly.
“I don’t know who you’re referring to. When I arrived, you were already being treated by the physicians.”
A wave of emptiness washed over her.
Just as she thought.
He would disappear without receiving proper treatment or any reward.
He had always been like that.
Is he even alive?
Anxiety surged through her.
Kanna used the excuse that she was too tired and wanted to be alone to send Kalen away. Then she tied a handkerchief to the window.
He might not come.
Because Raphael had been terribly injured. Or perhaps—
He might be dead.
Fear struck her like lightning.
The tips of Kanna’s fingers trembled faintly. She held her breath under the blanket and waited for him.
Every minute, every second stretched into torment. It was excruciating. Even until the early hours when everyone else was asleep, Kanna kept her eyes wide open, waiting.
How much time had passed?
With a soft creak, the door opened. Kanna bolted upright.
“Raphael?”
A tall man stood in the darkness.
“Is that you, Raphael?”
“Yes.”
That low, heavy voice. It was definitely him. Kanna felt a crushing wave of relief.
He hadn’t died.
At least he hadn’t died.
“Come here. Let me see your face.”
“It would be better if you didn’t.”
“Why?”
“It will be unpleasant to look at.”
“Please.”
After a brief silence, he took three steps forward. The moment he took the fourth, moonlight pouring through the window bathed him.
“……!”
Kanna clutched the blanket tightly.
Raphael was ruined.
The smooth line of his jaw had melted away, and the skin on his nape was peeled back, revealing raw, crimson flesh.
A burn so horrifying it made her dizzy. Red wounds covered his entire body.
The back of Kanna’s hand turned deathly pale. It was the only emotion she allowed to show.
With a perfectly composed face, she asked calmly.
“Why didn’t you get treatment?”
“If left alone, it heals on its own.”
“Heals on its own? What does that mean?”
“Two days will be enough. So please do not worry.”
It was impossible for an ordinary human.
Raphael spoke of something utterly unbelievable as if it were nothing.
But what surprised her even more was how little interest she had in those words.
Right now, her mind was focused elsewhere.
“Still, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt.”
How much pain had he endured?
“Once scarring begins, even I won’t be able to fix it. But right now, I can heal you perfectly. So let me take care of it.”
“……”
“Come sit here. Okay?”
Fortunately, he obeyed without resistance. Kanna sat beside him and first examined the burns on his face.
Up close, it was even more devastating.
Her heart clenched painfully. Kanna bit her lip. And then she felt profound relief.
Thank goodness.
It was truly fortunate that she had the ability to heal these burns.
Kanna carefully applied medicine to the burns on his face and upper body. She handed him the rest for his lower body, since it was out of her sight and reach.
“Use these three medicines in order. Apply the red one first, then the blue one, and finally this white one. After that, wrap it with bandages. And…”
Kanna’s voice trailed off.
“…Raphael?”
Was he even listening?
The way Raphael stared at her felt heavier and more intense than ever before.
She was about to ask why he was looking at her like that—
When Raphael suddenly reached out toward her.
Kanna stared blankly at the hand approaching her.
For a moment, time seemed to slow.
His hand touched the hair that had spilled over her shoulder. It gently threaded through the strands and swept them upward with careful reverence.
In her confusion, he softly grasped a handful of her hair. Then he pulled.
A firm, unhesitating force. It felt like a silent command.
For some reason, Kanna couldn’t refuse. The thought of refusing didn’t even occur to her. She simply let herself be guided, tilting her head. His tightly closed lips captured her gaze.
For a second, she thought he was going to kiss her.
What a foolish misunderstanding.
His gaze had settled on her nape. His eyes traced the clear imprint of a handprint, swollen on her neck.
It felt like an eternity, but in reality, it was only a brief moment.
“Who did this?”
Finally, he released her. Her hair slid down like silk, covering her neck once more.
“Who did this to you?”
Kanna let out a slow breath. Then she answered.
“Don’t worry. He’s already dead.”
It was a completely unfamiliar voice. Even though it was her own.
Silence fell. In the quiet, Kanna lowered her gaze.
Perhaps because of that pathetic delusion, it felt as if she had been slapped awake.
Pity for Raphael. Guilt. Sorrow. She had been completely consumed by those emotions and had lost herself.
The moment she realized it, the misty look in her eyes dried up and turned cold in an instant. She returned to her usual temperature.
Then she looked at Raphael with a perfectly objective gaze.
At the man twisted beyond recognition. At this entire situation.
No matter how many times she saw it, he still looked pitiful. And then she understood.
This made no sense at all.
“Raphael, I have a question.”
“Ask me anything.”
“If I weren’t the Holy Spirit’s daughter, you wouldn’t have paid any attention to me, right?”
“No.”
“What do you mean, no?”
“It is not only because of that.”
Not only because of that.
His almost obsessive politeness and deference were probably because she was the Holy Spirit’s daughter. That was why he served her so respectfully.
She could understand that much. But—
Sacrificing your life is on a completely different level.
Would a defrocked priest throw away his life to save her just because of that? If faith had been more important than his own life, he would never have left the Great Temple in the first place.
Something’s off.
The pieces didn’t fit. She couldn’t comprehend what emotion was driving his actions.
Kanna stared at his profile for a long moment before asking.
“Have we… met a long time ago?”
At that moment, Raphael’s eyebrows twitched faintly.
“Before I married Duke Valentino—did we meet then?”
“……”
“You said you left the Great Temple twelve years ago, right?”
At that time, she had been fourteen. The time when she had planned her escape.
“Did you meet me then?”
It was an abrupt question. Yet he didn’t seem flustered.
Instead, he lifted his lowered eyes and met hers directly. Their gazes intertwined, deep and rooted.
Kanna realized that this horribly disfigured man was tense.
“Yes.”
“Did I save you?”
He drew in a deep breath. Then let it out shortly.
“Yes.”
I see. A small laugh escaped her.
It was like something out of a fairy tale.
A man who could never forget the rope of salvation that had been thrown to him during a desperate moment in his childhood.
How kind he was. His innocence was almost heartbreaking.
“I don’t remember you.”
“I know.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s alright.”
It had been far too long ago. She hadn’t helped just one or two people.
Moreover, the rage from her failed escape had overwhelmed everything else, causing other memories to fade into the background.
Somewhere in those blurry, erased memories, this man must have existed.
Yet she couldn’t even remember him.
And because of something so trivial, this man had walked through searing flames.
How pitiful.
At that moment, a languid impulse washed over her.
Should she hold back?
She pondered it for a second, but the hesitation was fleeting.
Kanna could find no reason to restrain herself. She didn’t want to.
So she reached out. Just as he had done to her, she buried her fingers in his hair and pulled him firmly toward her shoulder.
In that instant, Raphael’s hand convulsed as if electrocuted. Then it fell still again, as quiet as death.
Kanna rested her chin on his hair and whispered softly.
“Thank you.”
“……”
“Thanks to you, I survived this time. I’m truly grateful.”
But don’t risk your life for me again.
I saved you once. You saved me once.
Now the debt is settled. Because—
I’m going to leave soon.
And I won’t take anything with me. That includes you.
Kanna swallowed the words she couldn’t bring herself to say. She knew they would be useless even if spoken.
“With me…”
Unaware of her inner thoughts, Raphael opened his lips. His voice was hot, as if scraping his throat.
“Will you leave with me?”