With a surge, hot blood flowed down. Damian looked down with cold eyes as his own flesh split open and spewed blood. The man trembled as he tried to push the knife in deeper, but his feeble strength couldn’t even tear through the flesh.
Clang—
When Damian reached out and struck it away, the knife fell pathetically to the floor.
There was no anger or pain in his eyes as he looked at the man. Only dry, emotionless coldness dwelled within them.
The man trembled and squeezed out his voice.
“Kugh… Huk, you… be…cause… of…”
“…?”
This time, even Damian showed a surprised expression.
He can speak? There was no one here who could have taught him, so when did he learn language?
Come to think of it, what made him let his guard down might also have been thanks to that residual intelligence. Well, the human species was notorious for being tenacious.
Damian frowned as if newly disgusted. Then, as the man coughed up blood, he continued to spit out words clearly between his feeble breaths.
“Mon… monster…”
“Me?”
At that indifferent remark, the man flinched instinctively, but Damian actually sneered.
Right. Isn’t this man—hunched over, with sunken flesh on his face and protruding cheekbones—far more monstrous-looking than myself, who merely has horns but objectively has a beautiful face?
Damian raised his nails and scratched the man’s neck. However, he didn’t cut deep—only a single line of blood flowed down. He would die soon anyway. There was no need to leave messy traces.
In the end, Damian left the man behind and exited the shack, clutching his side. Hot, sticky blood flowed between his fingers.
Just as he was about to hurry and attempt to stop the bleeding—
Whoosh—!
Something was scattered from behind him. A pile of finely ground herbs fluttered on the wind and burrowed into his wound and respiratory system.
“…!”
As a sharp, acrid scent pierced his nose and lungs over the fishy smell of blood, Damian’s face contorted for the first time.
It was poison.
“Di… die… kugh, kek…!”
The man’s hands were already turning black. Unable to withstand even touching the poison while handling it, he soon trembled all over and collapsed on the floor, dying. His panting chest stopped as if cut off, and his cloudy eyes completely rolled back.
Damian looked down at the corpse indifferently. The wound on his side grew wider, and blood flowed endlessly.
However, there was no wavering or anger in his eyes—they were just coldly cooling.
“…”
Soon Damian clicked his tongue and grabbed the corpse by the neck. Then he moved and threw it beyond the boundary, toward the village where humans lived.
Thud. With a dull sound, the body rolled onto the dirt.
That was enough. If humans found it, they would bury it on their own. Even if that place was barren land without his bloodline.
So Damian had kept his father’s last request. He hadn’t killed or abandoned him.
Though he never harbored affection, at least he didn’t burn with hatred either.
Couldn’t that be considered showing generosity?
After disposing of the man, he tried to return straight to his home, but the poison spread through his body faster than expected.
The wound on his side gaped open as if gouged out, and the torn flesh grew deeper, clearly revealing the tender inner flesh.
Damian clicked his tongue inwardly, but in the end couldn’t maintain his human form. Soon his bones twisted, his muscles swelled, and a beast-like cry burst from his throat.
Grrrrr!
If I return to the forest of monsters like this?
Other monsters would soon catch the scent of blood and rush over. They respected the king as king only when his power was intact. A bleeding king was merely prey.
Damian hid his body between the boundary lines, breathing roughly.
The wound slowly healed, but recovery was slow.
He didn’t know what kind of poisonous herb it was, but the poison tenaciously circulated through his blood as if gnawing at his life. The veins visible on his skin turned black, and though the wound seemed to close, it still burned inside.
The traces of poison have clearly been erased, yet it remains this persistently.
Hiss, hiss—
Every time rough breaths were exhaled, the smell of metal vibrated. The stench of blood that leaked out with each sigh dampened the air.
That’s when it happened.
A faint light flickered in the distance.
Peculiarly, there was a light blinking alone in the middle of the boundary line shrouded in darkness. At the same time, a savory smell that pricked his nose wafted over.
Hunger and instinct forcibly pulled Damian’s steps forward.
His blood-red eyes tore through the darkness and slowly moved toward that light.
And finally, at the edge of his vision, he saw an inn from which small, warm light leaked out. Damian collapsed while taking in the sight of the inn in his gradually blurring vision.
Boom—!
That was his last memory before falling.
When Damian opened his eyes again, instead of a cold, damp floor, soft bedding supported his back.
What entered his vision next was a man with night-colored hair that covered his eyes with shaggy bangs.
A chilling energy spread through Damian’s red eyes.
Because I received help from a human? No, the very fact that a mere human dares to look down on me is unpleasant.
Instinctive hostility surged at this unfamiliar humiliation.
Grrr—
A warning growl resonated deeply, telling him not to approach. Sharp teeth were revealed, and Damian swung his arm as if swatting away an annoying fly.
“…Ah.”
However, though it was just a light swipe from Damian’s perspective, human skin was so fragile that a vivid red line appeared on the man’s arm, and beaded drops of blood dripped onto the floor.
But instead of remorse, Damian only let out a cynical sneer. As expected, humans are weak.
Then the man flinched as if frightened and stepped back. He’s running away, Damian thought as the man closed the door and left.
However, a moment later—
Click, the door opened again and warm air seeped into the room. In the human’s hands as he re-entered was a bowl with steam rising from it.
A savory, rich aroma penetrated Damian’s keen sense of smell head-on.
“Want to eat?”
The man’s voice was softer than expected, and Damian wavered for a moment.
Did he offer food out of fear after being injured? Then he should have shown signs of being frightened.
But there wasn’t a single line of trembling on the man’s face. Of course, his eyes were covered by his bangs so his expression couldn’t be fully read, but not even a trace of fear could be felt in his breathing.
…This human, what exactly is he?
Monsters were inherently sensitive to fear. The trembling of breath, the wavering of gaze, the quickening of heartbeat. All of it was revealed without lies.
But nothing could be detected from this human. Is he trying to induce complacency? Did he mix poison in that food? Isn’t shallow trickery the exclusive domain of humans?
As he glared at the bowl with suspicious eyes, the continuously surging hunger stimulated his instincts.
In the end, Damian couldn’t overcome his nature and slowly touched his tongue to the broth.
“…!”
As the taste of the broth climbed along his tongue, his red eyes shook greatly. He wasn’t a gourmet, but compared to other monsters, he had a picky palate. Yet this broth was different.
The hot meat aroma mixed with fat settled deep into his chest, and his entire body instantly warmed with the heat that examined every corner of his hungry body. Damian, as if enchanted, put his mouth to the bowl and licked up the remaining broth with his tongue.
All the broth disappeared, revealing the bottom of the white bowl. As his stomach slowly filled, drowsiness mixed with fatigue washed over him.
For the first time, Damian let down his guard and loosely buried his body in the blanket. As the warm heat seeped in, his eyelids slowly descended.
How much time had passed?
Damian, who opened his eyes at a faint presence, saw another bowl placed on the table. Beside it, the man with night-colored hair was leaning back in a chair. Though his eyes were closed, his breathing was too even and calm to dismiss as carelessness.
Is he deliberately pretending to be defenseless to tame me? Damian displayed his guard according to instinct. However, the moment his gaze lingered on the man’s arm, a shallowly carved scar entered his vision. It was the trace he had scratched with his claws. The beaded drops of blood had dried as they were and were still vivid.
Damian twitched his nose.
In the air, the scent of human blood and the savory smell of broth mixed together, tickling his instincts. Before long, he lowered his head and touched his tongue to the cold broth.
Lick. The savory taste brushed across his tongue.
When he briefly shifted his gaze to the man again, between the shaggy bangs, the man’s golden eyes faintly blinked as they watched him.
Hmph.
When their eyes met, he snorted and turned his head. Letting my guard down is forbidden, but at least right now, the food this human offers is more delicious than harming this human.
Damian roughly clutched the cloth and buried himself in it. The stench of blood and the smell of broth mixed faintly in the air and entered his nose. His stomach was strangely soothed by that peculiar scent, and a brief sleep came.
Soon, when he opened his eyes again, there was cooled broth on the table and the still-sleeping man in the chair. Even breathing spread through the room.
Damian narrowed his eyes.
Even though I’m an injured monster, to breathe so defenseless by my side. Is this stupidity, or does he have no sense of feeling danger at all? Like a stupid human, he seemed unable to even notice the red warning of instinct.
