Please Leave The Sickly Villainess Alone

Senia hummed a tune leisurely in the tent after the Greffin troops had left.

An old man nursing a patient beside her found her behavior strange.

“Did something good happen?”

“Of course something good happened. Our Empire will finally grasp a glorious victory after this long war.”

The old man agreed with Senia’s words and shared in the joy at the end of the arduous wartime situation.

“Both the knights and we have suffered so much. That precious result is not far off now.”

A sneer settled on Senia’s face as she faced the old man.

Today, the Greffin Empire would taste an unprecedented defeat.

This stinking infirmary would probably be swept away too.

Senia had made all preparations to escape before that.

A thrill rose up in her.

The day when Luka would finally fall into her hands was not far off.

The cowardly Crown Prince who fled from the battlefield would be stripped of his position, and the political onslaught of the Kablos family would lead to his confinement.

A fresh smile spread across Senia’s lips at the thought that she could finally have that precious man.

Just then, a knight rushed into the tent, parting the flaps.

He looked as if he had run a considerable distance without rest.

“Lady Senia! His Highness is in critical condition. There’s an order to bring you immediately!”

“Oh my, His Highness is in critical condition?”

Senia spoke, pretending to be surprised.

The knight nodded and extended his hand to her.

Senia looked down indifferently at the hand covered in sweat.

“I have a horse I rode here. Let’s go together!”

The knight, remembering Luka collapsed on the ground screaming, was in a hurry.

However, Senia just smiled as if troubled and didn’t take his hand.

She had thought about healing him and gaining his favor when the curse activated.

And in fact, she had already saved him once.

Two nights ago, when the Selon army launched a surprise attack, Senia had fallen into a distant dream.

And through that dream, she regained memories of her previous life that she had forgotten until now.

Senia remembered even the moment when she had driven Ria to her death.

While pretending to treat her with healing magic, she had actually used a curse to worsen her condition.

Being caught by Enoch was unexpected, though.

‘Now that my memories have returned, I won’t be foolish enough to save His Highness again.’

She had saved Luka in her previous life, but he had still chosen Ria in the end, as he always did.

That detestable man is now writhing in pain.

It’s a punishment for never sparing her a glance in the past.

“Lady Senia, time is of the essence! Let’s go quickly!”

“Ah, yes.”

Senia took the knight’s hand and came out of the tent.

Then, as the knight offered his hand to her to mount the horse, she spoke as if sighing:

“I’m sorry, Sir Knight, but I don’t think I can go.”

“What? What do you mean…”

“Would you please convey my apologies to His Highness?”

“Lady Senia!”

“Or let’s just say you were attacked by the enemy on your way to me.”

As Senia muttered, the knight tried to ask what she meant but was attacked.

“Aaaagh!”

He had fallen victim to Senia, who could freely use Alexer, the secret technique of healing mages.

The knight collapsed onto the horse right there.

Startled by the sudden situation, the horse ran away, carrying the fallen knight.

Senia turned around and returned to the tent as if nothing had happened.

“Oh my, weren’t you going to see His Highness?”

To the old man’s words, Senia spoke as if worried:

“It seems he’s fine now. I met another knight who came after, and he told me it’s okay not to come.”

“I see. That’s a relief…”

“Still, I can’t help but worry.”

The old man wrapped his arm around Senia’s shoulders as she heaved a deep sigh.

* * *

Philip anxiously scanned the distant Greffin camp.

It was about time the sent knight should arrive, but he hadn’t come.

Luka, seemingly not in as intense pain as before, spoke with difficulty while regulating his breath:

“Is the sent knight, ugh, not here yet?”

“No, Your Highness. But he’s reliable, so soon…”

Just then, Philip saw a horse running away from the Greffin camp, carrying a fallen knight.

‘Was there a Selon spy inside?!’

The situation was very bad.

There wasn’t enough time to send another knight.

Philip had taken Luka away from the battle scene.

By doing so, he had unintentionally fulfilled part of Kablos’s order to leave the camp, and the pain from the curse had subsided momentarily.

It was a terrible pain that made him wish for death.

Luka realized the effect of the curse placed on his body.

If he disobeyed the order, it inflicted pain that made him dizzy and wounded his body, but if he accepted the order, the pain subsided and the wounds healed.

The intention to tame Luka with mere carrot and stick was clear.

“Your Highness, how about ordering a retreat for now, recovering your body, and then looking for another opportunity?”

Luka shook his head at Philip’s words.

It was the only chance to defeat the Selon allied forces.

If they missed this moment, the war would be prolonged again.

If that happened, the Carven Kingdom, which had been waiting for an opportunity, would ally with them and gain the upper hand.

“Continue the advance. Prepare to strike the king as soon as Essil and Heild remove the defense barrier surrounding the tent.”

Luka spoke while gasping for breath, but soon screamed again as if terrible pain had returned.

“Aaaaargh! Ugh, aaaagh!”

It was painful even to watch.

Duke Kablos had inflicted pain again as Luka didn’t obey the order.

“Your Highness, Your Highness!”

Philip tried to calm the convulsing Luka with trembling hands.

The standby doctor was just pacing back and forth, seemingly unable to do anything.

A scream like a beast’s roar echoed.

“Ahh, behind! There are enemy soldiers behind!”

At that moment, Philip turned around at the doctor’s cry.

As if they had smelled blood like hyenas, enemy soldiers were close enough to attack Philip and Luka if they swung their swords right away.

‘Damn, I knew there was one Hide Knight in Selon!’

A Hide Knight was a knight with the special ability to conceal their presence for a certain time.

That’s why they only noticed their presence when they were this close.

Philip protected Luka with his whole body and parried the sword coming down on them with his restricted arm.

He barely blocked the first attack, but the next one would surely draw blood.

Just as the knight was about to swing his honed blade again.

A sword enveloped in a red aura flew at terrifying speed and pierced the knight’s shoulder.

“Aaaaargh!”

The knight immediately dropped his sword and screamed.

Philip could only stare blankly at the scene before him.

Soon, the owner of the sword revealed herself from afar.

Noble silver hair, unsuited to the bloody battlefield, fluttered.

Ria saw the fallen Luka and ran quickly.

“Luka!”

* * *

My heart was beating madly fast.

The moment I turned my head at Luka’s desperate scream, I saw the enemy trying to attack him.

There was no time to think.

I immediately threw the Blood Sword, and the enemy soldier pierced by it collapsed on the spot.

I rushed to Luka and embraced him as he writhed in pain.

“Luka…!”

My voice trembled.

An unfamiliar fear enveloped me, thinking he might really die if left like this.

Where was Senia? How long would I have to wait for her to come?

I needed her to break Luka’s curse.

Although she was the one who had driven me to an early death in my past life, at this moment, I desperately needed Senia.

“Did you inform Lady Senia of this?!”

“Yes, yes! I sent a knight, but he hasn’t returned even after a long time.”

Had she not come yet, or did she intend not to come at all?

Now a new hypothesis was added.

The latter was quite possible.

Especially if Senia had also regained memories of her previous life.

‘Then it’s up to me.’

I pressed down on my wavering heart as I looked at Luka suffering unbearably.

And taking a deep breath, I gathered magic in my hands.

“I can do this.”

I told myself.

I’m not a capable healing mage like Senia.

Moreover, I was a half-baked mage whose body weakened the more I used magic.

Nevertheless, I had to do it.

A warm energy seeped out from the pattern on my hand.

Soon, intense beams of light poured from my hand placed on Luka’s body, and a whirlwind arose around me.

“Lady Rayes, could it be!”

The knight guarding Luka seemed to realize what I was attempting and widened his eyes from a step away.

“Ria, Ria…”

Luka muttered my name in a half-conscious state amidst the pain.

As I broke the curses engraved on his body one by one with healing magic, I said:

“Yes, Luka. I’m here. Everything will be alright now.”