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Chapter 17
A muscular chest, tense with anger, pressed against my back. His body was as hard ‌‌‌‌as a sculptor's marble—not a soft place to be found.
Only then did I realize how embarrassing this position was.
"It's, it's fine. Thank you."
Even as I spoke, Kaiden still held my wrist, the one ‌‌‌‌gripping the water bowl. His grip was so powerful that my wrist wouldn't slip free easily.
"Wait."
At that moment, Enoch asked for my permission, and his large hand immediately wrapped around my wrist above Kaiden's ‌‌‌grip. ‌‌‌
He freed my hand ‌‌from Kaiden's grasp with such ease. Only then could I step away from his embrace and stand properly.
"There are marks."
Enoch gently traced my reddened wrist with his thumb. The sensation of his fingers brushing across my skin made me feel strangely ticklish.
"Should I kill him?"
"Yes."
I answered reflexively to Enoch's murmur before suddenly startling and shaking my head.
"Wait, what? No. Please restrain yourself. You need to control ‌‌your anger."
As I hurriedly stopped him, he burst into laughter. It seemed he had no such intention from the start, as he immediately changed the subject.
"This man appears to be Kaiden, the Archmage."
He identified Kaiden's identity at once.
Well, Enoch is the Crown Prince of the Empire, so it wouldn't make sense for him not to know the ‌‌‌identity of an Archmage. Besides, there are only five Archmages on the continent.
"Let's move the supplies first, and then move him as well."
Enoch stared at Kaiden with ‌‌a displeased expression before letting out a sigh.
"...I don't like it, but a mage's knowledge might prove useful."
Having said that, Enoch looked at me as if seeking my opinion.
"Bring him inside, but let's bind him. If you don't like ‌‌it, you can say so—it's fine. We can just leave him behind."
...So he wasn't actually asking for my opinion. He seemed to assume I would object to binding Kaiden. ‌‌
But how could I object? I nodded vigorously and agreed with his suggestion.
Enoch ‌‌‌carried supplies into the Cave—coconuts, a spear strung with ducks, and other provisions.
Then he retrieved the torn dress hem we had used as bandages before and bound Kaiden's limbs securely.
Since the Cave entrance was slightly elevated above the ground, Enoch had no choice but to hoist Kaiden onto his back and carry him inside.
He set Kaiden down in one corner of the Cave and went to prepare dinner. I ‌quietly examined Kaiden's condition.
"Is he injured?"
Blood was ‌‌‌seeping through the shirt visible between the folds of his robe.
Wait—blood? ‌‌‌‌I turned back to Enoch in alarm. Fortunately, he seemed occupied dividing fruit into coconut bowls.
After a moment's hesitation, I carefully removed Kaiden's shirt. I ‌needed to assess how serious ‌‌‌the wound was.
"Good heavens..."
And there, across his ‌‌chest, was a long scar. It was a wound from a beast's claws.
The wound was deeper than I expected, and his condition looked serious. The mage's robe had concealed the bleeding, ‌‌which is why I hadn't noticed it before.
"I need to stop ‌‌the bleeding first."
As I murmured this to myself, I belatedly realized I had been leaving Kaiden's wound exposed for far too long. Cold sweat trickled down my spine.
'Enoch is busy with dinner preparations, so he shouldn't have noticed, right?'
With ‌‌that thought, I slowly lifted my head, but my ominous premonition did not prove wrong.
Enoch was looking at me with a bewildered expression on his face.
"The wound...."
Enoch had been staring at Kaiden's wound, but belatedly realized his mistake and ‌‌‌‌squeezed his eyes shut.
"...Margaret, I think it would be better if I ‌‌‌were restrained as well."
Enoch spoke in a trembling voice.
Damn it. How could I have been so careless?
I tore the hem of my dress further and bound his hands and feet.
Enoch seemed to be recalling some unpleasant memory from his past. ‌‌‌He grew visibly agitated and exhaled in distress.
"Ha...." ‌‌
"Enoch?"
I called his name carefully.
As if it were ‌a signal, his breathing suddenly stopped. ‍‌‌
And moments later, with his hands still bound, he sprang ‌‌‌up from where he sat.
'Damn it, this isn't helping!' ‌
I ‌‌quickly dodged out of the ‌‌way as Enoch lunged at me. With reason gone from his eyes, he lost his balance and fell straight to the ground.
I rushed over and pressed him down to the floor with my foot to keep him from getting up.
"Get a hold of yourself!"
With ‌‌the monstrous strength Enoch possessed, he should have already thrown me off and escaped, but surprisingly, once I pinned him down with my foot, he became compliant.
He glared at me with eyes brimming with tears and full of resentment.
The sight was so pitiful that I barely managed to suppress the urge to lift ‌‌my foot away.
"Margaret."
He called my name in a voice completely hoarse.
"Remove this. I'm asking nicely."
"No."
The moment he tried to move ‌‌‌even slightly, I firmly pressed down with my foot.
"Get a hold of yourself while I'm being nice. If you don't, I'll abandon you ‌‌instead of Kaiden." ‌‌‌
The madness that had initially filled Enoch's eyes gradually faded away. As more time passed, he became completely calm. Only then did I relax, exhaling a weary sigh.
"This actually works."
It was ‌‌‌remarkable that no one had ever attempted such a simple method of calming him without drugs or equipment.
'Well, who would dare tell the Crown Prince that they'd abandon him if he didn't get his act together?'
In any case, Enoch, now devoid of strength, fell unconscious. I moved him toward the cave wall and bound his wrists and ankles tightly with cloth.
"Phew.... Done."
As I wiped the sweat from my forehead, Enoch's peaceful sleeping face ‌‌‌came into view.
Then doubt suddenly crept in, and I sank ‌‌‌down where I stood.
"How on earth did these people survive in the original story without me?"
I had never seen Yuanna control Enoch so roughly in the original work. I ran my hands through my hair and groaned irritably.
"Damn it, this is exhausting!"
But first, let me treat Kaiden's wounds.
Setting aside my thoughts, I began treating Kaiden's injuries.
I dampened the dress cloth I had been using as a towel with water from the Valley that I had purified with cotton cloth, cleaned the area around the wound, then washed the cloth again and gently applied pressure to the wound to stop the bleeding.
Even as Kaiden lay unconscious and unaware, pain still reached him—a faint ‌groan escaped his lips.
Watching him, I suddenly recalled ‌‌‌‌the monster I had encountered while ‌‌fleeing from Kaiden days ago.
A deafening roar had echoed through the Forest. At that moment, the monster that had me cornered had suddenly vanished, as if it had discovered something else.
Had that roar been caused by Kaiden?
'Surely not....'
I shook my head vigorously, dispelling the thought. I would ask Kaiden about it once he awoke.
I ‍‌‌found disinfectant and poured it over the wound, then searched for bandages.
Since the wound was on his chest, I needed more bandages than I had anticipated, and my supply was running dangerously low. If anyone else were injured in the days ahead, bandages would be essential—this was troubling.
Just ‌to be sure, I examined the bandage packaging again. On the transparent wrapper's surface was printed "Roselastic"—an elastic bandage.
"Thank heavens, what a relief."
This bandage had the advantage of being reusable after washing multiple times.
"I can recycle the ones Enoch was using as well." ‌‌‌
A reassuring sense of ‌‌‌security washed over me.
"That's right—in the Jungle, a first aid kit is far more valuable than any male companion."
I cut a piece of flesh-colored medical adhesive tape and secured it to ‌‌‌the edge of the bandage. Only after checking Kaiden's cheeks and neck for fever did my worry finally ease.
"Ugh...."
Enoch, who had been ‌‌‌unconscious, soon regained awareness.
Leaning against the wall in a seated position, he slowly ‌‌‌opened his eyes.
"Are you alright?"
At ‌‌‌my question, Enoch stared blankly at his bound hands and feet for a moment.
Watching his face gradually become shadowed with self-reproach, I approached him. ‌‌‌
"I'll untie your wrists."
At my words, he slowly lifted his head.
His face was expressionless, yet in his deep golden eyes, incomprehensible emotions seemed to swirl with turbulent intensity.
And among them, shame was unmistakably present.
He slowly extended his wrists toward me. I untied the knots binding them and closed the medicine kit with a weary expression.
"Margaret, are you unharmed?"
He asked with a composed face, studying my complexion.
"I'm not fine. I'm exhausted beyond measure."
"I'm sorry."
"As I've said before, ‌this isn't your fault. You don't need to apologize."
Enoch fell silent again, his expression heavy.
As I moved to put away the medicine kit and relocate Kaiden, Enoch came to help. He moved Kaiden to a corner, then examined him now that treatment was complete. ‌‌‌‌‌
I returned to my spot and sat down, cradling the first aid kit in my arms.
"Margaret."
I glanced at Enoch just as I was about to lie down. He approached me and knelt on one knee.
"Your wounds—are they alright? Not ‌‌his, but yours."
Enoch gently touched my cheek. The bruising had faded considerably; it no longer hurt when he ‌‌‌touched it.
He lowered his voice as if confiding a secret.
"If you ever wish to dispose ‌‌‌of him, tell me. It wouldn't ‍‌‌be difficult."
No, removing Kaiden would be rather difficult, wouldn't it?
"Are you trying to trigger another episode?"
At my question, Enoch laughed.
"Then the work would become easier."
His ‌words sent an unsettling chill down my spine. I could feel the latent cruelty dormant ‌within him gradually awakening, and it was deeply ominous.
Surely he wouldn't actually lose his mind like some character in a novel?

---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read ‌‌‌‌directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------