Chapter 81
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The Male and Female Leads Broke Up - Episode 81
"...Yes."
Even as he nodded, he couldn't shake the worry and concern etched across his face.
Seeing him like that, I smiled softly.
Though excessive, I didn't dislike his concern and protection.
"Oh, but how long has it been?"
Looking out the window, it was pitch dark outside.
The battle with Hagus had also been late at night, and seeing it's still night now...
'Has only a few hours passed? Surely not a whole day...'
"Two days have passed."
"What?"
Shocked, I pushed myself up from the bed.
"Be careful..."
"Two days have passed?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Then now, the current watch is, ah, you said it was fine."
"Yes, so you can rest more. We're currently repairing the damaged Castle Wall, and the Knights are also taking their rest."
"I see."
I relaxed and lay back down.
Then Aiden Byon supported my head so I wouldn't fall backward.
"Thank you."
At my words, he smiled gently.
"But what about the antidote? They'll attack again, and we'll absolutely need the antidote then."
"I heard that the House of Maxius is doing their best."
"Can the Duke create the antidote? You said he's never succeeded before."
"All we can do is believe he'll manage it."
"That's true. I really hope he succeeds."
"Yes, he will definitely succeed."
Thinking of the antidote, I recalled one of the Knights whose entire body had gone rigid during the battle.
'How did that happen so quickly...'
Ah, I realized I hadn't even thought to ask if he was alright.
I quickly opened my mouth to ask about his condition.
"Aiden Byon, are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine."
"You always say you're fine. Are you really truly okay?"
"...I'm really fine."
"Try moving your fingers like this."
I believed his words.
Outwardly, he seemed perfectly lucid.
Still, since he was always saying everything was fine and okay, I asked him to move his hand just to be sure.
"Like this?"
Aiden Byon moved his fingers one by one.
"They're moving. Thank goodness."
I exhaled in relief, and then I heard a soft chuckle.
"Why are you laughing?"
I narrowed my eyes at him as he suddenly laughed, giving him a sidelong glance.
"I was just thinking that we've become quite close now, and I couldn't help but laugh."
"No, that's not it."
Suddenly, I felt the urge to tease him.
So I deliberately hardened my expression and replied.
"...Was it just my misunderstanding?"
At that, Aiden Byon's expression and voice fell instantly.
"Yes, it seems that way."
I nodded along, intending to tease him a bit more.
"Ah, I see. I'm sorry. I was greatly mistaken. I thought Belita was being kind to me-."
"Wait!"
I quickly covered his mouth.
I didn't want to hear any more unfortunate words from him.
Don't these men understand jokes?
Lian was like that, and Aiden Byon was too—whenever I threw out a teasing remark, they took it far too seriously.
'Or am I just that good of an actress that they actually fall for it?'
In any case, when they took it so seriously, even I felt uncomfortable for having made a joke just for fun.
"I'm sorry. It was a joke."
I apologized to him immediately.
"Pardon?"
Aiden Byon looked at me with a bewildered expression, as if he hadn't quite grasped the situation.
"It was just teasing."
"Just teasing?"
"Yes... I didn't expect you to take it so seriously. I'm sorry."
I apologized to him once more.
"And I do think we've become quite close. That's why I'm teasing you like this."
Come to think of it, the only person I'd ever teased before was Lian.
Since Lian didn't know the real Belita, I showed him myself without reservation—not Belita, but me.
But now I was treating Aiden Byon in much the same way I treated Lian.
Of course, my feelings toward Lian and Aiden Byon were distinctly different.
How did I end up becoming so close with Aiden?
The shift in my heart was remarkably fascinating.
"Were you joking because you two are close?"
"Ah, yes, that's right. It's because we're close."
"Because you're close...."
"Yes."
He seemed fixated on the word "close," continuing to murmur it to himself.
"I'm relieved it wasn't my misunderstanding."
With those words, Aiden smiled peacefully, his eyes crinkling at the corners.
In that moment, the flutter in my chest that I sometimes felt when looking at him began again.
* * *
The next day, Hagus attacked the Castle again.
Since we hadn't yet created an antidote, we struggled desperately to avoid being splattered with their bodily fluids.
But without an antidote, we couldn't fight properly.
So this time too, I summoned Phenia, the guardian beast.
Cain Maxius was currently devoting all his efforts to creating the antidote, so he wasn't participating in the battle.
And Aiden didn't have a ring, so he couldn't summon the guardian beast of the Iron Family.
But Aiden was still fully demonstrating his abilities, even if he couldn't summon a guardian beast.
The power of iron.
Just as fire flowed from my body of the House of Fire, liquid iron streamed from the people of the Iron Family.
And they could freely shape it into spears, swords, shields, or any form they desired.
However, the effect of those attacks was localized.
Without a ring, without the ability to summon a guardian beast, there were limits to what could be achieved through ability-based attacks alone.
A ring was necessary to execute wide-range attacks.
Therefore, right now, only I could do it.
Fortunately, having experienced it once before, I could control my power well.
Phenia blazed with crimson light once more, sweeping through Hagus and his forces.
They retreated, turning tail just as they had before.
Once the monsters were no longer visible, we left only a few knights for surveillance and withdrew entirely.
I dragged my exhausted body back to my room.
"My lady."
Mary was looking at me with worried eyes.
"Aren't you pushing yourself too hard?"
"There's no choice."
I answered with a smile at the corners of my mouth to reassure her not to worry.
"But...."
"Once the House of Maxius creates the antidote, everything will be fine."
"My lady...."
Despite this, worry never left Mary's face.
"I should get some sleep."
"Of course, please rest well. Call if you need anything."
"Got it. Sleep well."
"Rest well, miss."
Once Mary left the room, I closed my eyes to sleep.
But exhaustion made it difficult to drift off easily.
That was when it happened.
Knock, knock.
Someone tapped on my room's door.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, miss."
The voice belonged to Lian.
"Oh? Come in."
Lian opened the door and stepped inside.
I lifted myself from the bed and sat up against the headboard.
"Sit in that chair."
At my words, Lian settled into the chair by the table.
"What's wrong?"
From the moment he entered, I could sense his expression was quite grave.
"Did you come because you're worried about me too?"
Lian nodded.
"Don't worry. I'm not that fragile."
"But miss...."
"As I told Mary, I just need to endure until the antidote is made. So please don't worry so much, understood?"
"Yes, I understand."
"Just as you all worry about me and want to protect me, I feel the same way. I want to return to the Duke's House safely with all of you."
"I feel the same way."
"Right, so don't forget what I said before."
"Yes, I understand."
"I'm tired. You must be tired too. Go rest now."
"...Yes."
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