Chapter 122
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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Chapter 122
Taking Rose to the Black Forest proved remarkably simple.
There was scarcely any deception involved at all.
A single suggestion to go picnicking in the forest sufficed.
"You're... actually going to play with me?"
Rose's already enormous eyes widened further, her face radiant with joy.
Kieran, who had always ignored her persistent pestering in the Study, now found himself the subject of her adoration.
When he himself proposed the picnic, Rose bounced with unbridled delight.
She counted down the days until the outing, boasting about it to everyone she encountered.
Word spread so thoroughly that even the Basilian Knights under his command casually mentioned it to Kieran in passing.
On the day of the picnic.
The Servants arrived with a basket filled with provisions and presented it to him.
As always, they obeyed his orders in silence.
Yet.
Kieran's eyes narrowed slightly at their demeanor.
"Thank you!"
Rose accepted the basket with a bright smile, and the Servants made no effort to hide their concern.
Nor were they alone in this.
The Basilian Knights, too, had subtly looked after Rose.
Without being asked, they had organized themselves and cleared the monsters from the Black Forest.
Though without Kieran's presence, they hadn't managed to eliminate them completely.
Watching them all rush out to see Rose off to the Black Forest, I found it contemptible.
"I wonder who actually rules this Castle."
My cold remark caused the Servants and Knights to lower their eyes.
I mounted the horse with Rose.
"Let's go!"
Rose, brimming with excitement, laughed brightly as she called out.
Since she couldn't ride, I placed her in front of me.
Our bodies naturally pressed together, yet she remained utterly unbothered.
Without a shred of tension, she leaned against me and hummed a melody to herself.
Her innocence stemmed from her complete naïveté regarding such matters.
Watching her sing like a small bird, I resolved that if she didn't recover her memories soon, I would have to give her some basic education about propriety.
She couldn't behave this way with just any man.
Finding it somewhat tiresome, I urged the horse forward at a leisurely pace.
And finally, we arrived at the Black Forest.
"Oh..."
Only then did Rose realize our destination was the Black Forest, and disappointment crossed her face.
"A picnic here? Your taste really is peculiar."
She complained softly but made no mention of turning back.
Instead, she clutched the picnic basket protectively and nestled obediently against me.
Kieran carried her into the heart of the Black Forest.
'She mentioned she could walk a little lately.'
I'd heard her legs had recovered enough to shuffle along slowly.
Even so, she couldn't run properly, so escaping far would be impossible.
I set Rose down in a spot where monsters lurked.
Rose carefully placed her feet on the ground.
She straightened up and puffed out her chest proudly.
"Look at this!"
Kieran was momentarily at a loss for words.
But I offered her the brief praise she sought.
"You stood up on your own."
"Yes. I practiced hard. Want to see? I can walk a little now."
Rose set down the picnic basket and lifted her feet to demonstrate.
Kieran silently retreated a distance from her.
Rose turned back in confusion, wondering why he'd suddenly moved away.
"Grrrowwwl...."
A monster's cry echoed from the darkness of the forest.
Grotesque creatures emerged from the shadows.
Rose froze like a startled rabbit.
From a distance, Kieran observed the monsters' behavior.
The creature approached Rose with a threatening growl.
Without any special reaction, it displayed the same murderous intent it would toward any other human.
Kieran furrowed his brow.
'Pointless.'
I'd wasted time on a futile endeavor.
Perhaps Rose had survived the Black Forest through sheer coincidence stacked upon coincidence—a miracle.
Kieran snapped his fingers.
At the sharp sound, the monster lunging at Rose shifted its attention.
With a bored expression, I drew the blood sword.
The blade sang with an eerie sound, eager at the prospect of drinking blood.
The moment I deliberately released my killing intent, the monster's target switched entirely from Rose to Kieran.
I raised the blood sword with a familiarity born of tedious repetition as the creatures charged.
I was about to cleave the monster in two.
"No!"
Rose suddenly threw herself in front of me.
Kieran barely managed to redirect the blade.
I had nearly split her in half.
I spared Rose, but the price for altering my sword's trajectory had to be paid.
"Screeeech!"
The monster's claws raked across exposed flesh.
A sharp, burning pain spread across my forearm.
Kieran's eyes narrowed in displeasure.
The metallic stench of blood filled the air.
'This is becoming troublesome.'
Of all things, I'd been struck on my sword arm.
The scent of blood would only excite the beasts further, driving them into a frenzy.
To face them alone, without the Knight Order, while protecting a woman—the absurdity of it all.
Irritated by the worsening situation, I scowled and glared at Rose, my expression darkening.
I needed to understand why she'd thrown herself forward so recklessly, especially with her injured leg.
"..."
Without realizing it, my face had gone rigid.
Rose was trembling violently, her entire body quaking.
Despite her shaking, she positioned herself in front of me, glaring defiantly at the beasts.
It was an act that defied description—sheer foolishness.
But what truly astonished me was the creatures' reaction.
Until moments ago, they'd been savage and bloodthirsty, their killing intent laid bare.
With the scent of blood now in the air, they should have been raging ferociously.
Yet the beasts had frozen in place, utterly motionless.
Rose's voice pierced the darkness, sharp and commanding.
"Leave!"
Her fragile cry echoed outward.
At the shrill command of this delicate woman—one whose body could be shredded by a single swipe of their claws—the beasts recoiled as though receiving an order from a supreme being.
Ssshhh.
With a wet, slithering sound like a serpent crawling across damp leaves, the creatures vanished into the darkness of the Black Forest.
Rose, who had been trembling uncontrollably, lost the strength in her legs and collapsed to the ground.
"Hah... hah..."
Her shoulders heaving with ragged breaths, Rose suddenly jerked her head upward.
She attempted to rise unsteadily, only to crumple back down.
She'd exhausted every ounce of strength throwing herself in front of me, her injured leg unable to bear the strain.
She dragged herself forward on her legs, crawling toward me.
It took her considerable time to reach me.
Despite how easily she could have given up, she persisted with stubborn determination. Upon reaching me and seeing blood dripping steadily from my forearm, her face crumpled in anguish.
Her pink eyes glistened with moisture.
Tears welled up instantly, rolling down her pale cheeks in streams.
The woman who hadn't shed a single tear before those vicious beasts now wept openly at the sight of my wound.
Her face flushed crimson as she called out my name through her sobs.
"Kieran..."
I'd taught her countless times to address me as "Count," yet she refused to learn.
She couldn't even manage the proper formal speech... this woman simply never listened.
Normally, I would have corrected her immediately.
But for some reason, I didn't want to do that now.
Rose trembled before Kieran, her worry evident in every quivering breath.
"Does it hurt? It must hurt terribly, right? But... it'll be okay. You just need treatment..."
It was merely a scratch from a monster's claws.
My arm wasn't severed, yet she wept profusely as though I were on death's doorstep.
Though I thought her concern unnecessary, I let Rose be.
I felt slightly dizzy.
Not from blood loss, but rather...
From the flower's fragrance.
I drew a deep breath.
Between the metallic scent of blood, an aroma incongruous with the Black Forest flooded my lungs.
It was the delicate floral scent that always emanated from Rose.
As my hazy mind became enveloped by that fragrance, I suddenly found myself curious about her name.
The woman who had lost her memory couldn't even recall her own name.
So I had always called her by vague, generic titles.
When she had shielded me just moments ago...
It would have been better to call her by her name then.
I felt I needed a proper name to call her—any name would do.
After all, even the dogs we keep at home are given names.
As I breathed in the floral fragrance flowing from Rose, an impulsive word sprang to my lips.
"...Rose."
Her eyes, like pink roses glistening with morning dew, reflected me within them.
I met her gaze and spoke softly.
"It's your name."
"My name...?"
"I can't keep calling you 'you.' Until your memory returns, at least temporarily."
The woman's face, which had been consumed by tears moments before, brightened.
She stopped crying and broke into a smile.
"Yes!"
As she smiled radiantly, like a flower bud bursting into bloom, I found myself thinking unbidden:
Smiling really is better than crying.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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