‘Should I… scream?’
If His Highness was nearby, he would surely notice this commotion. Just as I was about to open my parched lips, hoping it would reach him.
With a clang, the sound of the assassin’s sword flying through the air rang out, and unlike what I’d been prepared for, no pain came.
“How troublesome.”
I tried to check what had happened, when an unforgettable voice arrived on the wind. When I opened my eyes that I’d closed, golden waves rose beyond my blurry vision.
A light that didn’t suit the dark corridor flickered. Even though it wasn’t clear, I was certain the person I’d been waiting for had come.
“There are… four of them. In the trees, an archer.”
After spitting out the words I had to say, the pain I’d been ignoring came crashing down. It wasn’t like this was my first time receiving such an injury, but seeing my consciousness about to cut out, it seemed Aila’s body had quite a low tolerance for pain.
“Yes. I heard it all, so rest now.”
With His Highness’s permission, I relaxed my body.
“Archer in the third tree on the left, swordsman at the fourth pillar. Handle it.”
The Crown Prince, who had dealt with two assassins with a single swing of his sword, gave orders nonchalantly. The knights who had been searching for the archer after hearing my last words seemed to head to the indicated locations without hesitation. From my low vantage point, I could only see blood drops flowing from His Highness’s sword falling plop, plop onto a place already pooled with blood.
“How irritating.”
Was it irritating that the little rat bastard he’d let go in the garden a while ago was lying on the floor bleeding, or were the assassins irritating? I was curious, but I had neither the qualification nor the strength to ask.
“Handled. The archer is still breathing.”
“Use a potion to keep them alive for now.”
“Yes!”
One of the knights seemed to head to the underground dungeon dragging the gasping archer, while another ordered people to be called to clear away the corpses. His Highness seemed to look down at me silently, his gaze not leaving for quite a while.
“Your Highness, what shall we do with this one?”
“Take him.”
He willingly bent at the waist and lifted me up as if picking up luggage. Though it was quite rough treatment for an injured person, there was no one rude enough to point that out. Even Aila, the real owner of this body, probably wouldn’t have been rude enough to do such a thing.
“Your Highness, blood will get on you, so we’ll carry him.”
I wanted to ask for that too and tried to open my mouth. However, my thoroughly parched lips wouldn’t separate easily.
“No need.”
His Highness moved his steps as if there was no value in saying more.
“Marquis Estella’s seal came out from the archer.”
“They must have put it there for tail-cutting purposes. Interrogate them until Duke Ten’s name comes out. That’s why I allowed the intrusion.”
“I will obey your command.”
His Highness discussed the assassins in a very languid voice. The characteristic tastelessness of a human who wasn’t living life but shouldering it seeped through. While that was regrettable, I was also relieved by the fact that he had already known about today’s intrusion.
‘Even without me, nothing serious would have happened.’
For a while, only cold footsteps and the sound of a sword dragging on the floor echoed in the corridor. I eventually couldn’t overcome my wavering vision and lost consciousness.
* * *
‘Where is this?’
The moment I came to my senses, pain came crashing down even before I could open my eyes. My hand naturally moved toward the wound. The quite deep stab wound was healing. It was a trace of using a potion—and quite a high-grade potion at that. The reason pain remained was because even if you used a potion, it didn’t heal immediately, and the body remembered everything that had been injured.
Still, since I’d received treatment quickly, thinking I wouldn’t die, I raised my upper body. When I checked my surroundings, I saw a familiar space. It was His Highness’s bedroom, more familiar than Aila’s bedroom. I unconsciously felt relieved, then immediately forgot the pain and jumped up from my seat.
‘Aila shouldn’t be here.’
What had just happened flashed through my mind. I would have understood if I’d been dragged to the underground dungeon instead.
‘Why did he bring me to the bedroom instead of the drawing room?’
Moreover, the bedroom’s owner was nowhere to be seen. I immediately tidied the sofa I’d been lying on and checked the surroundings more thoroughly. The knights guarding the room were deliberately not completely concealing their presence. The meaning was that if I didn’t notice them, they could kill me at any time, and if I noticed but did something suspicious, they would handle it.
‘It would be better if they just showed themselves openly.’
I was taking steps while worrying about what excuse to make when His Highness returned, when I saw a figure lying in the bed hidden by the canopy.
‘It’s not His Highness Kairen.’
Since there were no lights on, it was difficult to tell who it was. Since it wasn’t His Highness’s rut period now, it wouldn’t be an omega, and since he’d just dealt with assassins, it certainly wouldn’t be a young lady either. Recalling the prophecy I’d seen a while ago, I headed toward the bed as if entranced. When I got close enough to confirm the face, I had no choice but to stand rooted to the spot.
‘As I thought, it’s my corpse.’
My corpse, seen in reality up close, was more chilling than what I’d seen in the prophecy. Despite quite a long time having passed since death, it hadn’t decomposed and didn’t smell rotten. Though I didn’t know much about magic, something had clearly been done to it.
What was more eerie was that the clothes my corpse was wearing were different from both what I’d seen at the funeral and what I’d seen in prophecy.
‘Then who’s been changing this corpse’s clothes?’
My body swayed from the shock, making me step back. As if the waiting knights had some misunderstanding, it sounded like they were about to rush over immediately. I tried to straighten my posture, but the door opening and a sword appearing before my eyes was faster.
“Your Highness!”
Simultaneously with the sword flashing, guard knight Sir Ken blocked in front of me and called to His Highness. The sword that had been about to cut down the intruder narrowly changed its trajectory and fell to the floor.
“He is a guest Your Highness brought. Please sheathe your sword.”
Sir Ken’s back trembled minutely at His Highness’s menacing gaze. I realized the knights had rushed out not because they suspected me, but because they were worried His Highness might kill me.
“I apologize. I opened my eyes and was just trying to confirm who was in the bed since someone was there.”
When I took two large steps back and obediently bowed my head, the atmosphere that seemed about to explode subsided. As I didn’t straighten my bowed waist, His Highness’s voice came after quite a while.
“You seem to do many things requiring apology.”
“I will gladly accept any punishment.”
“It would be harsh treatment to punish someone who personally blocked assassins. Raise your head.”
The eyes that had been stained with madness had already settled coldly.
“One becomes sensitive in one’s bedroom. I hope I didn’t startle you too much.”
“Yes. I’m overwhelmed by such consideration.”
His Highness’s eyes curved beautifully. At the first smile I’d seen since dying, my fingers tingled and I ended up bowing my head again. If I kept looking, it felt like the sound of my violently beating heart would be discovered.
“You’re not surprised.”
Perhaps because I’d let my guard down, His Highness’s voice flowing out low made me feel as if cold water had been poured over my head.
“You opened your eyes in an unfamiliar room and suddenly faced the Crown Prince, yet you’re not surprised. Rather, you’re acting as if you already knew this bedroom was mine.”
Setting aside the fact that this room was too familiar to me, even after wracking my brain over how to explain fighting the assassins, no clear answer came out. Even in this desperate situation, I resented that the pain from my injury persisted, making my head not work well. There were many other reasons I couldn’t respond properly, but they were all things I shouldn’t do in front of His Highness. He was a hunter who didn’t miss even the smallest clue.
“Sir Aila, am I not waiting for an explanation? If it’s difficult to answer, shall I change the question?”
His Highness closed the distance in a single step and grasped my throat. No strength was applied, but it was a position from which he could take my life at any time if he wished.
“You, what are you really?”
Though no strength had yet entered the hand grasping my throat, my breathing was already constricted.
