I glanced sideways at Ruvlian. Perhaps because I’d put distance between us, the blood vomiting had calmed down, but the curse might still be affecting him even at this distance.
This was a disaster. I was at a loss for how to resolve this. I’d been so absorbed in thinking about what to do with the parallel world Ruvlian, and Ruvlian was in a heated state, so I hadn’t had the leeway to respond quickly. I shouldn’t have forgotten that as long as he was also ‘Ruvlian,’ he wasn’t someone who would come at me docilely. It was a mistake.
If there were no curse in play, I would have run away with just Ruvlian without considering harm to others, but the situation was too complicated for that.
That said, trying to use this curse against him was pointless—the bastard who cast it was that lunatic himself. Even if I got close, if he saw through my intentions and released the curse, it would be useless.
Moreover, to think he hadn’t done something to protect himself, the parallel world Ruvlian who had been close to me was far too unscathed. The curse should apply to him too, yet he wasn’t vomiting blood like Ruvlian.
So using this curse to drain the parallel world Ruvlian’s life force was on hold. Taking Ruvlian and leaving was on hold. Fighting while leaving the bleeding Ruvlian behind was on hold too, since Ruvlian might get hurt.
What exactly could I do right now? I wiped my sweaty hands on my pants and calmed my mind as much as possible. As I assessed the situation and searched for a way to break through, the parallel world Ruvlian called out to me in a rich voice, as if he knew what I was thinking.
“Honey.”
“……”
“Do you want to save him?”
Drawing out the corners of his eyes in a long line, he said something obvious. It was vicious of him to ask when he already knew.
“What do you want?”
“It’s easy. You just have to come to me yourself.”
His voice was infinitely benevolent, as if he’d spare Ruvlian if I just did that. He was like a devil wearing stolen angelic skin, whispering sweetly.
“How can I trust that you’ll keep your promise?”
When I immediately countered, the lunatic tilted his head at an angle. His golden hair fell to one side, making his white forehead and sharp eyebrows stand out. The corners of his mouth smoothly curved upward. A confident, relaxed face.
“Think I won’t keep it?”
Having returned my question with a question, he continued as if he wasn’t done.
“Well, you might not believe me. But, honey.”
Is there any other way?
I clenched my teeth hard at those last words he let slip. I had nothing to say because the lunatic was right. There was no way to escape this situation right now.
“Si, hyeon……!”
When I didn’t answer, Ruvlian stubbornly opened his mouth even while vomiting blood. His voice trying to stop me was much weaker and trembling than before.
I’d thought this distance was fine since the blood vomiting had calmed down, but I was wrong. Ruvlian had been swallowing the blood.
I felt like I was going crazy. Both the fact that Ruvlian was deliberately pretending to be okay, and that there was nothing I could do when Ruvlian was in that state. It was the first helplessness I’d felt since meeting Ruvlian.
Ruvlian had never vomited blood while subjugating the Demon King, and he’d resolved everything quickly, so my sense of powerlessness only doubled. Moreover, even if he got hurt somewhere, with Deadrian’s Divine Power, I could……Divine Power?
I was an outsider when it came to curses. Even what I did know was just a few things I’d picked up from God. So I couldn’t know if Divine Power would work on blood vomiting caused by a curse. Still, it would be better than not even trying.
The problem was that to heal with Divine Power, contact was unavoidable. If I approached Ruvlian, my life force would be sucked dry, so I couldn’t easily put it into action.
“Honey, are you done calculating?”
His tone was leisurely. He deliberately acted relaxed. The reason he was generously acting as if giving me time to think was probably because he wanted me to realize that following his words was the only option. His kindness disgusted me. The more I dug into his intentions, the more his cunning nature revealed itself, which made it even worse.
But what was the parallel world Ruvlian’s purpose? Questions bubbled up. I could tell he wanted me. But what came after? What happens next? Was he trying to take me to his world or something? What benefit would that have?
What was he trying to do with me? Why was he obsessed with me, a man he’d never met before? Why was he trying to separate Ruvlian and me? Unsolved questions just kept piling up layer upon layer.
I shook my head. This wasn’t the time to think so leisurely. I shoved the accumulated lump of questions into a corner of my mind.
“……Then I haven’t finished?”
I replied a beat late and glanced at Ruvlian, and the blood-stained clothes were the first thing that caught my eye. Since he was wearing a white school uniform, the red stains were even more vivid.
Our eyes met. His irises, which seemed like a clear sky or like rippling ocean waves, were pleading. Don’t go. Please, come here.
My fingertips twitched at his desperate gaze. Strength entered my hands.
Ruvlian’s moving Adam’s apple still seemed to be swallowing blood. If he was in that state even at this distance, it was obvious what would happen if I got closer.
……But it would still be better than continuing to stay here. I created a barrier with Divine Power between me and the parallel world Ruvlian. Beyond the water-clear barrier, the parallel world Ruvlian still had an aristocratic face. His characteristic composure remained unbroken.
I’d made it just in case, but it seemed unnecessary. He was certain I would return to him.
Wait a minute. But was he really letting me go this easily? Why was he giving me this opportunity? Suspicion surged at the suddenly felt sense of dissonance, but first I turned around and approached Ruvlian. Ruvlian’s face brightened. A faint doubt crossed over that bright face.
Right. I’m gnawing away at your life force, so there’s no way I’d go to your side this easily. It was doubt he could have because he knew me well.
We simultaneously trusted and distrusted each other. This contradictory sentence was allowed for us, because of us, because we were us.
“Ruvlian.”
When I put his name in my mouth as gently and softly as possible, Ruvlian blinked blankly. Taking advantage of that opening, I covered his eyes with my hand and used healing magic to heal his entire body.
I didn’t know that never calling his name affectionately would be helpful. It was a hard-to-describe feeling.
I layered a sleep spell over the protection magic I’d originally cast. At the same time, I also removed the barrier I’d made with Divine Power.
“Goodbye.”
I gave a small whisper to Ruvlian, whose consciousness was gradually becoming hazy. It was also a farewell greeting given less than a full day after we’d met.
Soon his transparent water-colored irises disappeared from view. His eyelashes settled neatly on his skin.
Before Ruvlian’s head hit the floor, I recalled the coordinates of home and used Teleportation magic. His limp body disappeared as if being sucked into the magic circle.
Now all that remained here were me and the parallel world Ruvlian. Just the two of us.
[Huh. Si, Sihyeon? Is it okay to send Ruvlian away? Do you have some kind of plan?]
……I stand corrected. There were three of us.
‘I don’t.’
[And you sent Ruvlian away anyway?!]
God cried out in shock. My head rang as if I’d eaten cold ice cream. I’d told him many times before not to shout, but there was no sign of him keeping it.
‘Then should I have left him to die? If I hadn’t sent him away by force, it’s obvious what would have happened. There’s no way you don’t know that.’
Besides, that knockoff had blatantly targeted me. He wanted me. So Ruvlian, who was always my only weakness, shouldn’t have been here. I could never watch him die.
Instead of answering, God let out a faint groan. That was a kind of answer, and agreement.
As the brief conversation cut off, for some reason, eyes that had become colder than before were persistently staring directly at me.
When had he told me to walk to him on my own two feet—he arrived before me with elegant bearing. Then he placed his hand on my cheek. I raised my hand to swat it away immediately at the unpleasant sensation, but I was subdued along with my other hand.
“Say it again.”
“What?”
“My name, say my name again.”
Unlike before when he’d gripped my chin forcefully, he rubbed my cheek with a somewhat softer touch. What the hell did this lunatic want from me? What was he trying to do with me? No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t understand. I felt like I was placed in an unknown world.
“Why should I?”
“Honey.”
His hand applied a bit more pressure. Not only the hand restraining both my wrists, but also the remaining hand that had been caressing one cheek.
“What will you do if I get so pissed off that I kill him in a fit of anger……”
His slow voice pierced my ear. That voice was tinged with fury.
He didn’t say who he’d kill, but I roughly understood. The bastard in front of me had no intention of killing me, so that left one person.
This crazy bastard was threatening me with Ruvlian’s life.
My insides twisted, but only briefly—I picked out the strange sense of dissonance I’d felt earlier. I’d been half-doubting, but seeing that he didn’t add much to say about sending Ruvlian away, I became somewhat certain.
I moved my restrained hands with all my strength and grabbed his collar, pulling him down. At close range, I was reflected in his lightless eyes.
“You have no intention of killing him.”
At my words, whispered with each syllable emphasized, a madness-consumed interest rose in his blue eyes, and his blood-dipped red lips drew a gentle arc. A thick smile filled his face.
It was the correct answer.
