# Chapter 68
Devan blinked. I pulled the dazed man along to Rio. I was hoping to prevent the atmosphere from becoming gloomy, and while it was effective, he seemed a bit disoriented. Thinking about my conversation with Luan made my blood boil, but right now I just wanted to see Rio. When we arrived at the infirmary and flung open the door, Jiman jumped out and bombarded us with questions.
“Are you hurt anywhere? What about that bastard Luan? Was everything alright?”
“It ended well. And here.”
Jiman’s eyes changed as he received the blue medicine bottle. He didn’t even notice Devan standing awkwardly, and quickly disappeared inside. He seemed to want to test the antidote. Devan had raised his hand to greet Jiman as he passed, but was now embarrassingly running his hand through his own hair.
Shortly after, Jiman came running back after completing his test, with a bright smile.
“It’s normal!”
“Good. Let’s prescribe it to Rio.”
He handed me a glass bottle.
“You take it first, Ludin.”
“Ah… I…”
As I hesitated, not knowing how Jiman would react, Devan quietly moved closer. He spoke to Jiman, who was looking at me with puzzled eyes.
“He’s not going to take it. He says Rio comes first. And he collapsed from pain earlier.”
“Hey! How could you say it like that…”
I glared at Devan, who was listing all the unfavorable conditions about me as if reporting to parents. But he merely raised his eyebrows nonchalantly, as if it wasn’t his business. I could see Jiman’s expression changing as he already understood the situation. I hurriedly explained the circumstances in more detail.
“You know, I’ll take it too. But not now. I’m standing here fine, while Rio is unconscious. Right?”
“…I know that too. It’s just…”
Jiman, who had been gritting his teeth, let out a deep sigh.
“I’m angry, that’s all.”
“…At me?”
When I asked timidly, Jiman turned around with the medicine bottle and muttered.
“How could I be angry at you?”
Devan clicked his tongue as he watched me secretly feel relieved. I punished him with a light punch and followed Jiman into the room. Rio lay in bed with a pale face, exhaling feverish breaths. The smile disappeared from Devan’s face. As Jiman calmly tilted the medicine bottle, the child moved slightly. I thought I’d feel better seeing Rio take the antidote, but facing Rio lying there so weakly made me suddenly afraid. Seeming to notice my feelings, Devan quietly placed his hand on my shoulder to comfort me.
“Rio. Are you awake?”
“…Jiman-nim?”
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d heard the child’s voice. Tears welled up at the sound of that fragile voice. I pushed past Jiman and rushed to the child. I buried my head to hide my tears, but the blanket was already becoming damp.
“Ludin-nim. I’m okay.”
“Yes, Rio. You’ll get better from now on.”
My voice trembled terribly. Fortunately, the child still seemed too weak to lift his head.
“Really?”
“Yes. Soon you’ll be able to run around and play, and the food you like…”
My voice choked up and I couldn’t continue. Jiman’s hands gently wrapped around me, perhaps afraid that my intense emotions might be too much. I obediently rose with him. As I quickly turned my head to wipe away tears, I saw Devan looking at me with a complicated expression. I hadn’t brought him along to show him this side of me. I felt a bit sorry.
“For now, sleep a bit more, Rio.”
Jiman warmly covered him with the blanket. The child’s lips moved as if wanting to say something more, but he soon fell back asleep. We could see the fever subsiding from his listlessly stretched body. Jiman, who had been briefly checking his temperature and pulse, slowly nodded. With this positive sign, my spirits gradually calmed from their rock bottom state.
* * *
The meeting atmosphere was relatively light. Rio had passed the crisis and would regain his strength soon. The first plan had proceeded smoothly, and we could figure out what Luan was aiming for. Also, since Devan’s cooperation didn’t raise much suspicion, we gained an opportunity to investigate Arzel’s castle in more detail. Wimu shared what he had discovered by following Luan’s movements.
Only two people escorted him. One was, as expected, Arzel, and the other was that man I had met. This man, loyal to Luan, had been hiding behind the forest while we were talking. Seeing that Wimu couldn’t identify him even after seeing his face, he probably wasn’t a famous nobleman.
Luan’s forces seemed smaller than we had thought. This was because, even knowing Devan was coming, he didn’t bring anyone capable of dealing with him. Moreover, Devan easily undid their restraining device, leaving Luan exposed to danger.
“The situation is much more favorable to us. It would be great if we could turn Arzel to our side.”
“Is that possible?”
“If we can find out what reward Luan promised him, we have a chance. Arzel probably knows the location of the medicine too.”
Devan nodded.
“I’ll look into it while I’m at the castle.”
“Good. There might be more medicine than we thought. He casually broke the first bottle.”
“You mean he has extras…”
He exchanged some conversation with Wimu. While the two discussed the structure of the castle, I approached Kadilen.
“He said he’s targeting the temple. Is there anything in the village below that Luan might use?”
Kadilen calmly lowered his eyes and organized his thoughts for a moment.
“I’m not sure, but we should visit the temple first.”
“The temple?”
“There’s an annual ritual, which will make a good excuse. It’s been empty for a long time, so we need to visit anyway.”
Though he spoke calmly, Kadilen’s expression was somewhat dark. But my mind was racing too much to soothe his unknown emotions now. How could we stay one step ahead of Luan? He was planning to use something related to the temple anyway. So I could pretend to gather information with Kadilen while setting a trap attractive to Luan. We could secure a favorable position before he could pull off his vile scheme.
It wasn’t a bad plan. Kadilen decided to announce his plan to visit the temple at tomorrow’s banquet. Arzel was also scheduled to attend. He would wonder why Kadilen suddenly wanted to go to the temple. He might be suspicious, but I had a plan too.
* * *
The next day, I quickly finished dinner and loitered in front of the banquet hall where the feast was in full swing. Kadilen was in the middle of announcing his temple visit plan to the gathered ministers and nobles. As soon as Arzel opened the door after the banquet ended, I led him to a quiet corner.
“What is this? So openly.”
“I did something good.”
Arzel’s eyes narrowed. Looking at his snake-like slit eyes, tension rose, but I continued calmly.
“You heard Kadilen’s going to the temple, right? I suggested it. Luan seems right. Looks like he’s hidden some treasure pot there.”
“You’ve become that close already?”
“Of course. It’s better to do it quickly, right? For you, for Luan.”
Arzel looked around to see if any nobles were eavesdropping. He crossed his arms as if assessing the situation, then sighed and smoothed his platinum blonde hair.
“Whatever it is, bring something useful.”
“Don’t worry. You should be grateful to me. Not many people can access the temple.”
When I instructed him to relay the message to Luan as well, Arzel nodded halfheartedly. I frowned at his consistently ambiguous attitude, which seemed suspicious. Thinking about it, he looked more displeased when I became an ally than when he was threatening me. Arzel should be happy that I was helping Luan, to whom he was loyal, but he had been strangely troubled from the beginning. When I stopped speaking and looked at him, Arzel opened his eyes wide as if asking if I had more to say.
Just then, footsteps were heard from behind. The attendant who was turning the corner spotted us and was approaching. I was secretly relieved that he was on Kadilen’s side, but I whispered to Arzel, pushing him away. He hastily retreated in the opposite direction. Seeing Arzel quickly disappear, the attendant cleared his throat.
“What’s going on? How did that person…”
“We ran into each other by chance. By the way, about that time… in His Majesty’s office…”
Seeing him reminded me of something I hadn’t been able to say before. The attendant, who was still visually tracking Arzel, turned to me suspiciously. It seemed necessary for Kadilen to tell him about our plan to prevent unnecessary worry. But for now, I ignored his persistent gaze and brought up what I wanted to say.
“I’m sorry for causing you trouble. I know you were worried about Kadilen.”
The attendant’s eyes became even more skeptical.
“I’m sincere. I care about His Majesty too.”
“…”
“This sounds weird but anyway…”
The attendant politely raised his hand to cut off my fumbling words, and quietly spoke.
“I may not know everything that happened between you and him, but what’s certain is that His Majesty has changed a lot.”
“Kadilen has?”
“I served His Majesty before as well. Not often, but he used to visit the palace occasionally. Back then, he never put down his sword for even a moment. He was gentle and kind but always strictly controlled himself. We were at war, after all.”
The attendant’s eyes grew heavy as if reminiscing about the past. The wrinkles on his forehead seemed deeper today. Kadilen’s appearance that I didn’t know. He remembered how principled that appearance had been. Soon, the attendant raised his head and looked at me. The anxiety that had always lingered in his steady gaze was gone.
“Now… it’s different. Instead of his sword, he looks for a certain person more often. His emotional range has also broadened. I believe you understand what this means to His Majesty. As someone who serves him, I’m concerned, but in my personal opinion…”
“…”
“His current appearance is more pleasing to see. Because he becomes happy with just one small smile from a certain person.”
