At that moment, Raeyan discreetly followed someone, melting into the shadows and moving stealthily, suppressing any sound.

It was an extension of the mission Raeyan received from Elodie while serving as an escort in the demonic beast subjugation battle, the task to ‘monitor Gabe Jenade.’

 Throughout the subjugation, Raeyan kept a watchful eye on Gabe.

However, Gabe hadn’t shown any peculiar behavior. He simply stared fixedly at the transmission magical device without any visible movement.

Although Gabe hadn’t done anything, an incident occurred where a new type of demonic beast appeared, and casualties increased.

Was there really no connection? It felt uneasy to just let it pass.

‘For now, I need to figure out where he’s heading.’

With his distinctive unhurried steps, Gabe leisurely entered a secluded area. As a Tower Lord, he could have had subordinates, but he was alone. Gabe, walking through the dense trees, suddenly stopped.

“Hmm…”

Gabe seemed to be thinking about something, looking around before staring intently at a certain point. Surprisingly, it was where Raeyan was.

 “…….”

But Rayan was unfazed.

Even though there was a feeling of eye contact, it couldn’t be the case. Concealed in the shadows, with the power of his ability, no one could perceive Raeyan’s presence. 

As if to bolster his confidence, Gabe looked ahead again and began to drag his feet. 

Soon, Gabe arrived at a carriage.

It was an ordinary carriage with no emblem of any family, and the coachman was an utterly ordinary young man.

Raeyan scrutinized the coachman’s appearance. Perhaps, he suspected someone else was already inside, but after scrutinizing, there was no one on board.

While Gabe boarded the carriage as a matter of course, no one approached. With a creaking sound, the carriage began to move.

‘Should I follow him?’

Raeyan hesitated for a moment, then turned his steps. The mission ended here. He couldn’t leave Elodie and venture into an unknown place.

***

With Elodie’s single word, preparations progressed smoothly. A makeshift tent for laying down the two patients was quickly erected.

‘Hmm, technically speaking, it was my words that prompted the Chancellor to give the orders, but let’s leave it at that.’

After about 10 minutes, the Chancellor approached Elodie and Jansi to report.

“Everything is ready.”

To complete all preparations in just 10 minutes was a glimpse into his abilities. While he was stubborn earlier, once he made up his mind, he acted swiftly.

 Finally, they carried Adenmir and Carlot, who had lost consciousness. At that moment, Raeyan, who had disappeared into thin air, came up beside Elodie and whispered. 

 “He’s completely out of the neighborhood.”

 “Without meeting anyone?”

 “Yeah.”

 “Well done, Ian.”

Elodie, mindful that someone might be eavesdropping, responded cautiously. Once again, they had failed to find evidence against Gabe Genade. However, that couldn’t be helped. First, they needed to deal with the situation at hand. When Elodie took a step toward the makeshift tent, Raeyan called out to her.

 “Lili.”

 “Mmh?”

“Do you have to be the one to step forward?”

Raeyan, who had never questioned or contested anything Elodie did, unexpectedly asked a question.

 It was the same blunt, handsome face she’d seen when they’d first met.

The only difference now was that beneath his impassive expression, some emotions were perceptible. Elodie could sense it.

‘He’s worried about me.’

Elodie reached out her hand and Raeyan bowed his head slightly to make it easier for her to touch him.

She smiled while gently stroking his jet-black hair.

“It will be over soon.”

 “…….”

“Just wait a little longer.”

Raeyan watched as Elodie entered the makeshift tent.

Waiting was the most terrible thing for Raeyan Vietan. 

She had no idea.

How long he waited for her to wake up as if he knew she would open her eyes at any moment. How long he wandered, searching for those elusive pink eyes that never showed themselves. But, as always, Raeyan couldn’t hold onto Elodie.

Because Elodie told him to wait. Her words were more binding than any contract to him.

It was an undeniable truth. Raeyan, as a guardian, silently carried out his duties outside the makeshift tent.

***

Inside the temporary tent.

Elodie was finally able to take a closer look at the two men’s condition.

Their vital signs were significantly deteriorating as if their organs were stiffening. The breathing, heartbeat, everything was noticeably slowing down.

 “We are running out of time, Lady Elodie.”

The imperial physician was getting impatient.

In truth, there was no need to examine their condition, as Elodie could detoxify any poison. 

The reason for assessing the poisoned state was to estimate how severe the aftermath of the poisoning might be.

“At this rate… It will take at least a week.”

 “What do you mean by that, Lady Elodie?”

 “Nothing, Your Grace.”

Jansi was the only one in the room who understood Elodie’s mutterings. Before she could decipher it, she asked a question she knew she shouldn’t. 

“If I ask you to leave, you won’t, right?”

“I cannot entrust the safety of His Royal Highness so blindly.”

 “Forgive me, Lady Elodie. I have left the minimum number of people behind. It would be best for you to have a witness.”

The imperial physician insisted that he should be present, of course, since she was in the process of detoxifying the royal family, and the chancellor agreed to be a witness.

Since the detoxification method would eventually be revealed, the spread of the secret wouldn’t be a significant blow.

However, they hoped that the rumor would not spread too soon, as they didn’t know when or how Elodie’s purification ability might be used again. As a precaution, Elodie looked at the two individuals and made a request.

“Alright. But in return, please keep anything you witness a secret.”

“Why would you worry about that, Lili? Of course, they’ll keep the secret.”

Jansi smiled and looked at the physician and the chancellor in turn. It was a seemingly kind and affectionate smile, but when they felt a certain pressure, both of them trembled.

“Ha, we’ll keep it.”

“We won’t disclose it anywhere.”

This was Perdia, after all. They didn’t know what retaliation awaited them if they didn’t heed the warning. Satisfied with the frightened reactions of the two, Elodie looked at Jansi. He returned a look as if seeking praise.

Feeling a little overwhelmed, Elodie smiled awkwardly and turned to the imperial physician. 

“Will you give me the blood of the demonic beast?”

“Yes. The liquid in this vial is the blood of the demonic beast. Be careful, as direct contact can cause immediate poisoning.”

Baffled by how one could detoxify poison with poison, the physician and the chancellor watched Elodie with great tension. However, Elodie’s next actions were nothing short of shocking.

 “……!”

 “Eh, Lady Elodie!”

Without hesitation, Elodie uncorked the vial and gulped down the demonic beast’s blood in one go.

“Ugh, disgustingly awful….”

The effects of the poison quickly manifested. Clang! Due to the sudden loss of strength in her hand, the vial Elodie was holding slipped from her grasp and shattered on the floor.

‘Cancelling the one-week estimate. It’s at least two weeks…!’

A crisis loomed where she might lose consciousness at any moment.

Although Elodie didn’t say anything, Jansi, who sensed it through her expression, handed her a bottle of water.

Once Elodie was certain that the poison had circulated to some extent, she manifested her ability.

A gentle shimmer, like tiny specks of light, appeared on the water’s surface before fading away. Elodie’s patience paid off as the antidote was completed.

 “Brother, please…… take care……. off.”

She couldn’t finish her sentence and lost consciousness. Jansi, who understood without her saying anything, hugged his defenseless sister.

In just a moment of contact, he felt Elodie’s body temperature drop sharply. Although she had ingested the poison with a seemingly unaffected expression, in reality, she had been tense, evidenced by the nail marks deeply imprinted in her palms.

‘My fragile and lovely sister.’

Jansi held the limp Elodie in her arms and glanced at the Imperial Physician, who stood dazed. 

 “That is the antidote. Let the two of them drink it.”

 “This, this?”

The imperial physician stared at the water bottle with suspicion. Jansi smiled gracefully and spoke up. 

 “There must not be much time left…….”

 “I see!”

Even though less than an hour had passed, their breathing was precarious, as if it could be extinguished at any moment. The imperial physician quickly poured the antidote into their mouths, one after the other. Then…….

“No way……!”

The imperial physician and the chancellor exclaimed at the same time. Indeed, the conditions of the two individuals were rapidly improving.

***

 Adenmir opened his eyes amidst a throbbing pain as if his head were being split in two.

 The first thing that came into his blurry vision was the flickering candle and the shadows of things that grew larger behind it. 

 ‘This is…….’

The place was familiar, and Adenmir recognized it immediately. His bedroom in the Imperial Palace. Him lying there. It seemed like he had been injured and brought in during the subjugation battle. His last memory was of blacking out, covered in demon blood. 

 “You’re awake, Your Highness.”

The chancellor, entering the room, approached with a relieved sigh. Adenmir, lifting his heavy body, inquired.

“What’s the situation?”

“It might be hard to believe, but Your Highness, you were on the brink of life and death.”

“Life and death?”

Despite the words, his body felt excessively fine for someone who had faced such a situation. Aside from a slight headache and a somewhat heavy body, there was no discomfort elsewhere.

“The demonic beast’s blood was extremely venomous. We were in a difficult situation as there was no antidote listed in the demonic beast compendium.”

“How was it detoxified?”

Considering his condition, Adenmir wondered if his limbs had been amputated. 

However, the chancellor, with a serious expression, gazed at Adenmir.

He had asked Elodie, who had regained her senses briefly after her blackout, for permission to speak of her powers to explain the situation to Adenmir. 

 “Lady Elodie has saved Your Highness with her power to destroy poisons.”

“……Powers?”

Elodie didn’t have any power. That much Adenmir, her former fiancé, knew very well.

“It seems she recently awakened her power. It’s a power that can neutralize the toxicity of a poison, making an antidote by destroying the poison’s toxicity.”

“Toxicity… you said?”

“Yes.”

A single incident came to Adenmir’s mind. It was when he discovered that the empress was secretly poisoning the emperor. He wondered how she knew something he didn’t, but perhaps it was because her ability had awakened.

‘Certainly, there was talk of a pharmacist in the family.’

It seemed like Elodie was circling the truth. Perhaps she wanted to help even if it meant telling a lie. Regardless, his throbbing headache intensified. He didn’t know that she had been directly detoxifying the antidote he received every week from the emperor.

‘…….So, that’s why she kept asking for more poison.’

He had always been puzzled by why she kept requesting more poison even after successfully creating an antidote. Now, the mystery was finally unraveled. She had indebted herself not only to the emperor’s life but also to Adenmir’s own life.

“What about Lady Elodie?”

 “She lost consciousness shortly after manifesting her powers. It was as if she felt the pain of the poison as much as you did, Your Highness.”

 “…….”

 “After that, she regained consciousness briefly, so there’s no need to worry too much, Your Highness.”

How could he not worry? She ingested poison to save him. The toxicity was so severe and she experienced it herself. Was it okay? Adenmir’s mind was filled with thoughts of Elodie. He pressed firmly on his temple, and the chancellor stepped back, bowing his head.

“Then rest Your Highness. I will visit you again tomorrow.”

Thunk.

The door closed.

Adenmir silently stared at the flickering candlelight.

Once again, he received help from Elodie.

If he thanked her, she would probably respond with a bright smile.

 He could only imagine the look on Elodie’s face as she smiled charmingly, and he grinned like an idiot. It was that moment. 

 “……aah.”

One realization pierced through his mind like an arrow. It was an undeniable and unmistakable awareness. He harbored affection for …..Elodie Perdia. This feeling could not be anything other than the emotion of love.

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