“Wh-what should we do. There, there must have been po-poison. I’m so-sorry….”
When Evernight glared sharply, Anya quickly shut his mouth. He was letting out shallow breaths, and his breath was so hot that steam seemed to be rising in the air.
“You…… Get away. Move back.”
Evernight raised his hand and pushed Anya’s shoulder with a light tap. Normally, he would have staggered at his strength and collapsed right there, but somehow his strength was weak, so Anya instead tensed his body rigidly.
That fact made Anya feel miserable. Having lost Ronan not long ago, the boy who had yet to emerge from the mental shock was deeply shocked by Evernight’s weakened state.
He turned around slowly at Evernight’s stubborn attitude, but couldn’t rashly move away either. At Anya’s lukewarm behavior, Evernight gradually felt impatience rising. He said while suppressing his anxious feelings.
“It’s not poison… so don’t worry.”
He spoke as if gritting his teeth and cutting out each syllable. The damn novice still loitered around Evernight like a dog that needed to piss. That ghoul—he thought it was just a simple lower-class monster, but things got more tangled than expected.
That monster bastard’s saliva wasn’t poison but a kind of hallucinogen that maximized human instinct. Among them, it planted the most vile madness-tinged hunger and lust.
*’This is maddening.’*
Evernight felt his mind gradually becoming hazy. A fatal poison would have been better. He wasn’t a body that died easily anyway. Something hot welled up from deep in his stomach. Right now he was enduring through mental strength, but before long he might lose his reason and become a beast that only followed instinct—no, a monster.
Then….
“…Kyung… I’ll go out-outside and somehow find me-medicine, me-medicinal herbs….”
He might make that novice prostrate on the ground and forcibly violate him. Evernight recalled Anya who had been lying face-down on the bed sniffling during their first night. The scars carved into his back showed in a single glance what kind of life the boy had lived.
It was a memory that felt very… filthy.
“Ah… fuck….”
Even so, perhaps because of the instinctive pleasure he felt then, his lower body instantly became stiff and aching. Evernight exhaled deeply and tried to compose his mind.
If only he had been trapped in this cave alone… no matter how he thought about it, that would have been far better.
“Don’t mind me and just get some sleep.”
Evernight concluded it would be better to prevent Anya from approaching him any further. He gestured with his hand.
“…Yes, the sword. Put it down here.”
At Evernight’s gesture, Anya nervously placed Haebing on the ground. Move it more toward the center. Anya placed Haebing between Evernight and himself, exactly in the middle.
“All night, absolutely… don’t cross over this sword.”
Outside the cave, deep darkness had already arrived. The Northernmost village where oil was precious was dark beyond compare, but beyond the wall couldn’t even be compared to that. As soon as the sun began to set, the entire world was dyed pitch black at a rapid pace. Not a single star appeared in the night sky, and only the giant full moon cast its presence.
“Anya.”
At the sound calling him, Anya quickly raised his head and looked at Evernight. Evernight let out a long, hot breath with a *hu* and banged the back of his head against the wall.
“Whatever sounds… I make, absolutely don’t cross over.”
Why is he saying such things?
Anya couldn’t fathom Evernight’s intentions at all. He just felt sorry to him, and sorry again.
“Answer me. Anya.”
Anya nodded like an obedient child. Evernight’s brow furrowed as if in pain. He had flatly ordered Anya to lie down, yet Evernight himself closed his eyes while leaning against the wall instead.
“……”
Eerie sounds seeped in from outside the cave. They sounded like someone’s laughter, or like something passing by. Anya burrowed deeper into his cloak, curling his body up, while not taking his eyes off Evernight.
*’…I must protect him.’*
The boy recalled the Tildyen knight who had protected him from the monster. Shouldn’t Haebing go to someone like that? He put strength in his eyes before his heart could weaken again.
He would never fall for the monster’s cunning tricks again. He would never put the people of Tildyen in danger again. And if he returned… no, he would definitely return and apologize to the Northernmost people for his transgressions.
*’Death is not light. I must take responsibility.’*
Anya clenched his fist and watched the blade of Haebing shining reflected in the bonfire.
* * *
Within his flickering consciousness, Evernight helplessly took in the scenes that spread out hazily. There was nothing he could do about it. All sorts of vile scenes flashed by.
The first day he fled Tildyen and set foot in Red Coast.
The red lights of the Red Coast brothel he crawled into trying to survive after enduring several hours in the rain.
*’This son of a bitch bastard! I picked you up out of pity and you dare betray me?’*
The vicious face of the brothel keeper who beat him black and blue while shouting.
*’Hey. What’s your name?’*
*’Oh my. You’re a poor child without even a name.’*
The scent of powder from the brothel women who treated his childhood wounds.
*’Run away. This is no place for a child like you to live.’*
Their tears and bruise marks.
And what did he do then… did he kill that fucking brothel keeper bastard….
The scenes continued to change rapidly. Now the day he first entered a gladiator match unfolded. Back then, it was a match where he faced off against someone easily twice as big as himself when he was still small in build. His entire body burst open from the axe blade that bastard swung, but he didn’t die regardless.
*’Uaaaaah!’*
He hung on the bastard’s neck and stabbed him repeatedly with a dagger. As he stood there receiving the fountain of spurting blood, people applauded and cheered.
*’Your body price keeps rising day by day. That high noble person over there wants to see you.’*
Dragged by Red Coast’s guards, his knees were forced to the ground before a man.
*’Where do you think you’re raising your head so carelessly!’*
A massive shield instantly struck Evernight’s head swiftly. Evernight spat out saliva pooled with blood on the ground. You, insolent bastard…! When the shield was raised high once more, someone said.
*’Boy gladiator. What’s your name?’*
Red Coast was a city where strong sunlight shone all year round. With the intense sun at his back, the man’s face couldn’t be seen well. Evernight narrowed his brow and answered coldly.
*’I don’t have a name.’*
*’Hmm, a name is very important…. It’s like a magical word that guides a person’s life, their destiny.’*
Then… shall I give you one? He muttered in a languid voice while putting a red grape into his mouth. The man’s face still couldn’t be seen, but his lips curving up elegantly could be clearly seen.
This is… he lightly tapped a drink placed on the table.
*’It’s alcohol that lower-class bastards of Red Coast drink.’*
At his touch, the yellow liquid filling the glass overflowed and wet the table surface.
*’It’s called ale, isn’t it?’*
El. Shortened, El. Your name is now El.
*’Do you like it? It’s a name that perfectly suits a shabby life like yours.’*
When he tapped the glass once more, this time it helplessly spilled onto the table. The yellow liquid dripped down onto the floor. El Evernight’s palm became soaked wet.
“E-Evernight-kyung….”
Evernight let out rough breaths like a person emerging from water. In his dazed consciousness, he momentarily felt a strong killing intent. Evernight instantly pulled out a dagger from the holster on his thigh. Anya hiccupped softly and blinked his large eyes. In the boy’s blood-covered hands, small, withered leaves were neatly held.
“Th-there in the corner… th-these kinds of things we-were there.”
Anya extended his hand while trying not to be conscious of the blade aimed at his neck.
“After the ho-honor duel ended, the healer app-applied oi-ointment with th-this.”
Cold metal touched his throat. He couldn’t quite hide his helplessly trembling voice.
“……”
Evernight’s blue eyes were deeply sunken. His bangs were soaked with sweat and stuck messily to his forehead, and the hand holding the dagger had now turned completely black. Anya unconsciously bit his lip.
“You look… dif-difficult… kyung.”
These herbs might be traces left by Riario during the wall battle. Anya couldn’t take his eyes off Evernight’s bloodshot pupils. He looked like he was suppressing something, enduring it barely, extremely painful.
The man had told him to just leave him alone, but how could he just leave him alone? Anya picked up a stone from the surroundings and carefully pounded those leaves. Evernight quietly watched Anya’s profile, then lowered the hand holding the dagger weakly.
Beyond his hazy consciousness, the pounding sound flowed faintly into Evernight’s ears.
“I-I… I’ll cr-cross over now.”
After a while, Anya held something in his hand and stepped his toes toward Evernight’s side, across Haebing.
