“Car…los?”

Sensing something wrong, Ines called his name, but there was no response.

Having caught him instinctively, Ines looked down at her hands when she felt something wet. It was Carlos’s blood.

“Carlos!”

Finally noticing Carlos’s condition, Ines cried out. Supporting his completely collapsed body, she laid him on the ground. The man taking shallow breaths looked as if he might stop breathing at any moment.

With an ominous feeling, Ines urgently examined his body. Soon she discovered the wound at his waist.

The sword wound was clearly serious at a glance. Moreover, the blood that had already soaked his clothes proved he had lost a lot of blood.

“No, no…”

Ines hurriedly tore her skirt and began to stop the bleeding. However, the gushing blood instantly stained the white cloth red.

Realizing this much wouldn’t be enough to treat him, tears welled up in her eyes. She wanted to heal him immediately, but Ines didn’t know how to treat someone who had been stabbed. No, rather, her mind had gone blank and she couldn’t tell what she should do first.

‘It’s because of me.’

It was undoubtedly an injury from fighting them just moments ago. Realizing this, Ines became terrified.

‘What if something happens to Carlos?’

Carlos, who should have been heading to the capital, got injured because he came to save her. That fact weighed on her like heavy guilt.

Ines pressed hard on his wound with trembling hands. Hoping at least the bleeding would stop. But contrary to her wishes, his body seemed to be growing colder and colder.

The fear that Carlos might die at this rate consumed her.

‘Carlos dying?’

It was unimaginable.

Suddenly, memories of Carlos going to war because of her flashed through her mind. Those days when she couldn’t even sleep properly, worried about receiving news of his death. How helpless she had felt, unable to do anything.

Briefly recalling those times, Ines looked up. Her blue eyes took in the man taking shallow breaths. After staring at him for a long while, Ines bit her lip as if she had made some decision.

‘I can’t let this happen.’

She couldn’t just wait helplessly like before. Ines took a short breath as if she was preparing to do something. Her breath trembled.

Closing her eyes briefly, Ines began to focus all her attention on Carlos’s wound. She was about to use her ability.

Just as light was about to spread from her fingertips wrapped around his abdomen.

Snap, someone grabbed Ines’s wrist. Startled, Ines opened her eyes.

“Carlos…?”

The one who had grabbed her wrist was none other than Carlos. She thought he had lost consciousness completely. Through his slightly opened eyes, red irises were directed at Ines.

He parted his parched lips and whispered quietly.

“Don’t… do it… Ines.”

His voice was firm, as if he already knew what she was trying to do.

“Don’t do anything… I can’t let you get hurt… because of me…”

“But Carlos, because of me… you got hurt because of me. How can I…”

“Please, Ines.”

Carlos weakly shook his head.

“If you care for me… don’t do anything.”

“Carlos…”

He felt the same way she did. Just as she couldn’t accept that Carlos was hurt because of her, he too couldn’t bear to watch her suffer because of him.

“Carlos, what am I supposed to do then…”

Watching the blood endlessly flowing between her fingers, Ines bit her lip.

At the same time, her welling tears fell drop by drop.

Her hot tears slowly soaked into Carlos’s body.

Carlos, who had been quietly watching Ines’s tears, painfully raised his hand. Then, wiping her tears with his fingers, he murmured.

“I’m sorry.”

“…What?”

Not expecting Carlos to apologize in this situation, Ines asked back blankly.

“For not believing your words, and for all the pain I caused you… I’m sorry.”

“Why are you… saying that now…”

Why was he apologizing to her even in this moment when his life hung by a thread? Hadn’t he apologized enough before?

Yes, from the moment he saw her until now, he had continuously apologized to her. The king of a nation had knelt before her and shed tears, regretting his past mistakes. It was she who hadn’t accepted it.

As Ines’s face contorted in pain, feeling that all the current situation was because of her.

Carlos’s hand, which had been wiping her tears, gently caressed her cheek once more. And then…

“I love you.”

With those final words, his hand fell.

“No, Carlos…!”

Ines’s wail echoed faintly.

* * *

Candlelight flickers in the dark room. As the crackling sound of the fireplace warming the room echoed quietly for a while, Greta, having finished treatment, sighed and straightened her back.

“The urgent treatment is done. Fortunately, it missed vital spots. It seems he instinctively avoided the blade even while being stabbed.”

“Haah…”

Ines let out a sigh of relief at Greta’s words.

After Carlos lost consciousness, Greta, who had come to her senses, rushed over and helped with Carlos’s emergency treatment. Then they moved him to a place suitable for treatment and completed a brief surgery.

Her hands trembled so much while assisting her. At one point, Greta even scolded Ines to get a grip on herself.

Ines barely calmed her trembling heart and asked Greta.

“Then his life isn’t in danger?”

“Yes, the surgery went well. Now we can only wait for him to wake up…”

Ines’s body, which had briefly relaxed, tensed up again.

“What do you… Does that mean he might not wake up?”

“Human affairs are always unpredictable, dear. Even when surgery goes well, there are cases where people don’t wake up. But don’t worry too much. I always speak considering the worst-case scenario.”

At her consolation, Ines gathered her resolve once more.

‘That’s right, Carlos will be fine.’

Hadn’t the surgery gone well? So Carlos would wake up safely.

“…Thank you, Greta.”

When Carlos lost consciousness again, Ines was truly beside herself. When she reached out to use her ability even now, it was Greta who stopped her.

‘Don’t do anything foolish!’

Greta had struck her back hard and reprimanded her in a frightening voice. The fear of possibly losing Carlos had prevented her from making rational judgments.

“Thank you, Greta. Without you, I probably would have…”

She would have done something that would have hurt Carlos. As she recalled the mistake she almost made, Ines’s expression darkened again.

Watching Ines bow her head, Greta spoke up.

“Don’t blame yourself. If I had such an ability, I would have tried to use it just like you did.”

“Greta…”

Greta not only knew about Ines’s healing power but had also noticed that she tried to use it on Carlos.

‘Well, it would be strange if she hadn’t noticed, since she saw everything when we were kidnapped together.’

Whether aware of Ines’s thoughts or not, Greta continued speaking calmly.

“But Lena, next time, I hope you won’t risk your life to heal others. That man survived that wound because his body was well-trained. Even with the same wound, you might not have survived. So don’t make such a foolish choice again. That’s a choice for yourself, not for him. You need to think about those who would be left behind.”

There was an unfathomable sadness in Greta’s voice. Instinctively sensing that this advice was related to her dead daughter, Ines closed her mouth.

“Those who gained abilities from the Sun’s Flower seem to sacrifice themselves too much. I… I don’t want to lose you like I lost my daughter, Lena.”

“Greta…”

Realizing her choice could have hurt Greta too, Ines clutched her skirt.

“I’m sorry, Greta… But I was scared. Scared of losing Carlos like this. So before I knew it, I…”

“Then from now on, you should stay with him and never part, shouldn’t you?”

“What?”

Ines lifted her head abruptly at the unexpected words.

“If he’s someone you’d trade your life for, you should stay with him forever.”