Chapter 5 – The Sound of a Crow (Part 5)

‘Fernan?’

Ellerdin, who had been walking absentmindedly, noticed a group of people in the distance and tilted her head.

Due to her tall stature, she stood out even from afar.

Since they were unfamiliar faces, Ellerdin looked around curiously.

Without realizing it, she had wandered far from the castle.

‘When did I get here…….’

As she got closer, she could clearly see the people. From their clothes and accessories, she could tell they were high-ranking nobles.

‘I shouldn’t be here.’

The reason male nobles gathered like that was always for business.

Women were not permitted to join such gatherings.

If they noticed her presence, they would criticize Fernan.

They would say he was neglecting his duties as a husband and tarnishing his name.

The day she accidentally overheard Baron Brian’s business conversation, he had locked her up and beaten her, accusing her of challenging his authority as her husband.

She didn’t want to subject the kind Fernan to such humiliation.

Ellerdin hurriedly turned around.

“Ellerdin!”

At that moment, she was startled by a voice calling her and turned around.

Fernan had spotted her and was waving with a bright smile. His shout made the nobles turn their heads to look at her.

Disapproving glances pierced her entire body.

Ellerdin bowed deeply in greeting.

As she hurried to leave, Fernan ran over and lifted her up.

“Ah!”

Barely calming her startled heart, Ellerdin looked down at him.

Just as she was about to ask him to put her down, she saw Fernan’s radiant smile in his eyes.

His smile was so dazzling that she couldn’t speak.

The nobles, shocked by his actions, stared at Fernan and Ellerdin.

“Did you come to see me? Can I assume that? I’m so happy.”

Fernan beamed at her wide eyes.

“You’ve come to see me, so we shouldn’t be standing around here.”

Fernan gently set Ellerdin down and kissed the back of her hand, bowing.

“I suddenly want to go out with you. I hope you won’t resent me for asking without giving you time to prepare.”

He asked playfully.

“How about it? Will you come with me?”

Sunlight shone on his face.

His appearance, clasping his hands under the pouring sunlight, was so dazzling that Ellerdin nodded absentmindedly.

Her heart raced.

Suddenly, she thought that this person would be so happy whenever she unexpectedly visited him.

‘I want to enjoy this moment a little too.’

As Ellerdin blushed and lowered her head, she heard the disgruntled voices of the nobles in the distance.

“What are you saying? You’re going too far, Grand Duke.”

“We are here on the Emperor’s orders. How can you keep us waiting outside because of a mere woman?”

“Send her away quickly. Do you intend to let such important matters reach women’s ears?”

At the familiar tone of contempt, Ellerdin’s shoulders trembled. Fernan embraced her and glared fiercely at the nobles.

“Who did you just call a mere woman? Ellerdin is my wife and the Duchess. She is not someone you can speak of so carelessly.”

Ellerdin smiled faintly at his gesture, as if he didn’t even consider their words worth listening to.

His embrace was always warm, strong, and comforting. Listening to the steady beat of his heart brought an odd sense of peace.

“Are you ignoring us, who are here on the Emperor’s orders!”

“You will regret this behavior!”

The nobles shouted.

Fernan’s brow furrowed. He waved his hand, splitting the ground beneath the nobles’ feet.

“Ahhh!”

As the ground split in two, the nobles trembled in fear.

“I told you to watch your mouths. Do you have a death wish?”

Fernan growled menacingly.

At that moment, Ellerdin, who had been peacefully in his arms, noticed something.

Fernan always wore shirts with open collars, and through the gap, she saw something like scales.

Following the trace, she saw that the scales extended from below.

As if entranced, she pressed the scales firmly.

“!!!”

Fernan was startled, falling back with a thud.

His eyes widened, and he clutched his neck. The scales that had spread below his collarbone had climbed up to his neck.

Ellerdin, who hadn’t expected such a reaction, looked at him with a startled face.

“Are you okay?”

She reached out her hand but hesitated and stopped.

‘Oh no… I shouldn’t have touched it.’

“I’m sorry.”

Ellerdin withdrew her hand and looked away.

Seeing her sad expression, Fernan quickly reached out and gently grabbed her sleeve.

“Don’t go. I was just surprised. I liked it so much when you touched me. I’m sorry for startling you.”

Fernan said hurriedly with a flushed face. Ellerdin gave him a bittersweet smile at his gentle demeanor.

‘How can this person be so kind?’

What she had done was rude enough to warrant anger. Feeling that she had overstepped his kindness, Ellerdin discreetly pulled her arm away.

She didn’t want to trouble him further.

“No, Fernan. Don’t worry about me and go attend to your business. They’ve come from afar. ……And you kindly suggested we go out, but I just remembered something I have to do. So… I don’t think I can go out. I’m sorry.”

Ellerdin calmed the flustered Fernan and quickly left.

Fernan watched her retreating figure helplessly. Then he stood up and touched his neck.

‘She didn’t notice, did she?’

As an ancient demon, his demonic form appeared depending on the amount of magic he used.

That’s why he tried to avoid using it as much as possible. But he had to use it because of those foolish nobles.

‘I had a chance to go on a date with Ellerdin.’

Those guys ruined everything. Fernan sighed and trapped the nobles in a magic circle.

“The barrier won’t close. And from now on, if you have something to say, don’t use the Emperor as an excuse and say it properly. You won’t have any more business in my territory.”

Fernan said coldly to the terrified, struggling nobles.

As soon as he finished speaking, the nobles were instantly teleported to the imperial palace.

Teleportation was one of the most magic-consuming spells.

Even wizards needed at least three people to use teleportation magic.

Black scales sprouted on Fernan’s arms and body. Due to teleporting such a large number of people, sharp wings tore through his clothes.

He wanted to go to Ellerdin immediately. But he couldn’t approach her with such a monstrous body.

Looking down at his changed form, he walked dejectedly into the forest.

***

Back in her room, Ellerdin buried her face in her knees. Waves of regret and self-reproach washed over her.

‘Why did I do that? Why did I touch someone else’s body and make things difficult?’

Fernan had said he didn’t mind, but it must have been out of kindness. There was no way he wasn’t bothered after being so startled.

‘I promised not to cause trouble, but I did it again.’

She recalled the contemptuous gazes of the nobles. It was obvious that, in their eyes, she was just someone who caused trouble for the Duke.

Although she no longer cared about such disdain, Fernan’s flustered expression lingered in her mind.

It bothered her that she had caused him to make that face.

Her eyes grew hot. She remembered his gaze and smile, filled only with affection. At the same time, she recalled the gentle touch and warm embrace.

Suddenly, she felt scared.

At some point, she could no longer imagine her days without Fernan. The thought of not seeing him after three years made her heart ache.

“Ugh…….”

Due to excessive stress, her legs began to stiffen again.

Ellerdin frowned in pain and pressed down on her legs.

***

By the time Fernan had returned to his human form, it was late at night.

Emerging from the dark forest, he slowly made his way back to the castle. Opening the castle gate, he was greeted by a quiet stillness.

As he climbed the stairs and was about to open his door, he heard ragged breathing.

As if entranced, Fernan followed the sound of the breathing.

‘She didn’t look well earlier… That’s why.’

Fernan hesitated in front of Ellerdin’s door. Making excuses to himself, he carefully opened the door.

The bed, dimly lit by the moonlight, was empty.

Feeling puzzled, he looked around and saw a small figure sleeping on the sofa.

‘Why is she sleeping here?’

This will hurt her back.

Even though the sofa was spacious enough for Ellerdin, she was curled up in a small ball.

Fernan circled around her, feeling troubled.

‘Should I wake her… But if she’s sleeping like this, she must be very tired… But I can’t just leave her like this… What should I do… Is it okay to touch a sleeping person?’

After a moment of hesitation, Fernan seemed to make up his mind and took a deep breath.

His strong, long arms gently scooped up Ellerdin’s body.

He used all his strength to avoid waking her.

Carefully ensuring that she didn’t touch his chest, he held her only with the strength of his waist.

As he awkwardly turned to head to the bed, Ellerdin rolled into his arms.

Her round head bumped against his chest. He could feel her faint breath through his open shirt.

‘!!!’

Fernan froze in shock at the sensation.

‘How… How could this happen? I’m worse than a beast, no, a monster……!’

Anger surged at his treacherous body’s reaction.

His body trembled involuntarily. At that moment, Ellerdin stirred and opened her eyes.

“Huh?”

Seeing the black shirt in front of her, she blinked slowly.

She couldn’t tell if it was a dream or reality. But whether it was a dream or reality didn’t matter.

She was too drowsy to react and didn’t want to wake up from this state.

Ellerdin closed her eyes again and leaned her head against his chest.

‘It feels nice…….’

She liked the expression on his face when she opened her eyes.

Fernan always looked at her with kind eyes. Seeing him gave her confidence and made her feel like a valuable person, which was a strange feeling.

Perhaps it was because he always smiled whenever their eyes met.

She wanted to help Fernan as soon as possible.

Although Fernan had asked her to prioritize building the estate, the curse also needed to be dealt with first.

‘First… Tomorrow, I’ll wake up… and look for books about the curse.’