Even a Scoundrel Gets Tired

144 – Ah

Crack, creak.

Muscles dormant for a night were jolted awake, and

Snap, crackle, pop.

Even the slightest twist of her waist

elicited a symphony of complaint.

From her chest, still,

something impossibly hot

poured forth,

and with it, a crushing wave of agony.

“Ughh…!”

“Just a moment…!”

“Please, do not move.”

In that instant, a sensation

like every inch of flesh on my chest

was being carved away.

I bolted upright, a sudden

jolt through my body,

only to find someone’s hand

blocking my path.

Or rather, someone’s *hands*.

“…?”

“Oppa, you’re awake? Oppa?!”

“Please, just… just do not move!”

“M-Master!!”

A multitude of familiar

voices buzzed around me,

and slowly, ever so slowly, I lifted

my head and looked ahead.

Ella, clinging and dangling,

came into view.

“M-Maaaster… Let go of meee!!”

“No, I understand your feelings, but

if you throw yourself at him like that, this gentleman—”

“Oppa… Oppaaa!!”

“Guh…!”

“Ah.”

Looking at my sister’s face,

now that my senses were returned,

I saw it was smeared with tears,

and something about that

felt… achingly painful.

Physically and emotionally.

*

After a brief flurry of commotion,

the man in the holy robes,

the one who appeared to have

healed me, abruptly began

shooing everyone else out.

Now that the patient was awake,

he declared, he needed to

resume treatment in earnest.

“W-wait just a moment, Brother—”

“Worry not, I shall do my utmost.”

“D-Do-ryeon-niiiiiim!!”

Still, it echoes

as if circling in my ears.

The piteous sight of them,

lifted high in that gargantuan hand

and thrown out.

‘..Like watching an affection-starved kitten─’

“….”

“….”

Taking advantage of the moment my mind wandered to useless fancies,

he returned once more

to my side, taking his seat,

and an awkward silence settled between us.

And, it was not I

who broke it first.

“Are you… alright?”

“Yes… thank you.”

“Nay, I did little myself.”

“….”

“It is all due to the Saint’s body

bearing up so well.”

Saint.

Merely that title alone

caused my brow to furrow slightly.

Of course, when I saw

him wearing the Saintly Robes,

I knew he was a man of the Order,

but I hadn’t imagined

he would address me so directly.

Furthermore, without even asking if I wished to be called by that title.

Well, the fact that he didn’t

mention it when others were present, as before,

I was grateful for, at least.

‘..Did the Pope not make mention?’

“Are you alright?”

“..Ah, yes.”

“…Perhaps you are aware, but the Saint’s current condition is—”

His subsequent

explanation was excessively long-winded.

As if the wound was

refusing divine power.

The look on his face, as though he himself couldn’t believe what he was saying,

was quite enough to

mirror my own sentiments.

Though I had received

treatment once before,

it certainly hadn’t been like this then.

*Throb—*

Along with his explanation,

another pang tightens in my chest.

Almost as if flaunting its presence.

“Kuh…”

“Oh, are you alright?”

“…Yes, more or less.”

“…My apologies, my abilities are insufficient to—”

“No, truly, I am fine.”

As if genuinely solemn,

he lowered his head, and

I quickly raised him back up.

At least this wound wasn’t the man’s fault.

To begin with, this wound,

it must have been that small, tiny girl—

“Ah.”

“What is it?!”

“No…it’s nothing.”

Ah, that’s right.

This wound was surely

inflicted by that girl.

And that girl was

surely connected to “that witch.”

“That witch” had certainly

said to me,

*My power has taken root within your body…*

…*Gah—*

“J-just a moment, are you alright?”

“…Please, leave.”

“..Yes?”

“I possess the means to

heal this wound of yours…

Please, depart, and quickly.”

“Ah…if I am here…ah, that’s how it is!!”

“…?”

“I understand, the Saint’s will.”

“…??”

“You do not wish to have your

hidden power exposed!”

“…?”

“Do not fret, I will be gone shortly.”

Countless retorts

sprang to mind,

but he afforded me no such opening.

Even as my lips

began to part,

he was reciting cautions for daily living

and then vanished from the room.

With a wish for my tranquility.

Hidden power, you say?

As if any such thing existed.

It is simply that the deed

I am about to perform is

far too inappropriate a spectacle for a priest’s eyes.

When his presence

no longer lingered,

I hastily seize

a knife from nearby.

A fruit knife, placed

neatly atop a nearby cabinet.

And, I plunge it in.

Into my chest, now

not merely bleeding, but festering.

*Squish-*

*Pffshhh-*

“Son of a…b*tch…”

The moment the blade pierced,

pus erupted forth,

accompanied by a

foul odor,

A viscous ooze, sickeningly thick, burst forth.

Blood, of course,

erupted in a fountain,

and to flay flesh

while mind was still sharp

remained excruciating.

Even after enduring

so many agonies.

But without pause,

I urged on the blade.

Now, without a moment’s delay,

I needed to erase this wound.

If my suspicions held true,

this very scar was the problem.

This scar alone

rejected the divine power.

Why I, just now,

met that b*tch, all of it.

‘If her essence lingered in this wound…!!’

Her essence,

a piece of that harpy.

Barely suppressing the bile rising in my throat,

once more,

I began to carve into my chest.

Like untying

a woman’s ribbon,

so very slowly,

and with utmost care.

Squish─

Pshhhsssh─

A scene prompting retching

unfolded before my eyes,

but I continued to move the blade.

A small, sharp blade,

that in life, had known only fruit.

One layer, then another.

My heart yearned to

slice it all away,

but alas, this was my body,

so, regrettably, not such…

Extreme measures

couldn’t be taken.

*’If only it were an arm or a leg—’*

“Oppa…can I come in?”

“Doryeonniiiim…!!”

And then, not long after

he left the room,

more visitors

burst in like arrows.

The women who, just moments ago, had nearly created a sea of tears.

“…No answer?”

“M..maybe something happened?”

“M..maybe he’s asleep?”

No, not like that.

Just frozen solid, that’s all.

The thought of them seeing

what I look like now

made my body seize up on its own.

“W..wait, don’t come—”

“Oppa? Why are you awake and not answering…”

“….”

“Ah.”

Clang—

All the medicine bottles

Aria held crashed to the floor,

and at the same instant,

the light died in Ella’s eyes.

Pshhh—

Even amidst all this, the blood

from my chest

showed no sign of stopping…

Veritably, I could say,

that this moment

was the most uncomfortable of my entire life.

*

Meanwhile, at that same hour,

Charlotte’s mansion wasn’t

the only place where the lights

remained ablaze.

Brightly shining

The owner of the golden armor, too,

was not sleeping.

To protect his one and only

master, you see.

“Rindell, you may retire first.”

“No, Your Majesty.”

“Heh… honestly, aren’t you being a bit too rigid?”

The Emperor, Siegfried Pravel.

Just moments ago, his fingers,

which had been sipping wine

while simultaneously

sorting through documents,

now pointed towards the door

of the chamber he occupied.

“Besides you, there are plenty

of knights over there to

guard me, wouldn’t you say?”

“….”

“So go and get some rest, that’s an order.”

“….”

“How can you not understand

that taking care of yourself

is important too?”

“..Understood.”

“Yes, yes, that’s the way!”

Though he swallowed a deep

sigh into the depths of his heart,

he had no choice but to obey

his command.

He was, unequivocally,

his master, and this order

of his was born solely from

concern for his well-being.

What knight would dare cause

his master worry?

“..Then, the escort of

Your Majesty, I will personally

handle the handover.”

“..Haha, well, see to it then.”

“I thank you for your permission.”

“Don’t be too exacting.”

“….”

“Compared to your standards…

“Who could ever be truly satisfied?”

“…I will strive to do better.”

“Yes, and if possible, consider their dignity as well.”

With the Emperor’s last words ringing in his ears,

he slipped out of the room,

and there, just outside in the corridor,

stood a line of knights, many in number.

All there to safeguard the Emperor.

“L-Lord Rindell?!”

“You’ve come out alone…?”

“Has something happened to His Majesty?!”

As he expected,

the knights voiced their questions

regarding his appearance.

They’d been at His Majesty’s side

without fail, so it was only natural.

“Hmph…”

“L-Lord Rindell?”

“It is nothing.

His Majesty is safe.”

“Ah… That is a relief, truly.”

“And now, I shall be taking a rest.”

“Y-Yes?!”

Could it be they never imagined

that the word ‘rest’

would ever pass his lips?

Every single knight present,

save for himself, could not

conceal their astonishment.

A few even dropped their swords.

“Did… did I hear that right?”

“…A dream, or perhaps a hallucination?!”

“Yes, that must be it.

There’s no way the word ‘rest’ could come from his mouth…”

“…”

He hadn’t expected

such a reaction.

Even though it was true,

he had hardly taken a rest

lately.

Surely, I hadn’t anticipated blades being drawn, threats thrown about.

‘…Well, at least they seem to

take this matter seriously.’

“Don’t you dare laugh, you fiend!!”

“Where did Lord Ruindel go?!”

“….”

Just as I was briefly impressed by the

quality of this escort,

it seemed I should clear up a misunderstanding first.

Before a brawl erupts in this

confined corridor, that is.

“That’s not─”

“Lord Ruindel.”

And at that very moment,

the vice-captain of the knight order

he commanded returned.

The very fellow I’d dispatched

to shadow Duke Reinhardt.

“…Already finished?”

“Not quite, but…”

“Then get back to─”

“We did acquire a rather fascinating piece of information.”

“…?”

And the single phrase that followed

was more than enough to shock everyone present.

Ah, though a few had already turned pale before the words even began.