Chapter 109: Surging Power (3)
As Zetto and I fed each other, the food quickly disappeared.
I wondered if it was okay for to eat it since it was made for his frail body, but I realized that it would be a rare opportunity for him to feed , so I gobbled it up.
“How’s that, do you feel stronger…?”
I asked Zetto as he sat on the bed, while I was cleaning up the dishes after our intimate al.
“Strength? I feel like I’ve been gaining strength since earlier, so I guess that’s why I’m feeling a little feverish, but…”
“Fever…? Mmm…”
I muttered at Zetto’s next words.
Still, it’s a nutritious food, so it only gave a little energy, but I wonder if it’s better for n, as Hutton said, but it seems to have a greater effect on Zetto.
The first ingredient, the Magma Bear, is a monster that lives in the lava fields.
I couldn’t tell if it was because it was a fire magic Clentine family nourishnt or because it was an ingredient, but it seed to have increased his strength.
While I was thinking about it, I heard a strange sound coming from the direction where Zetto was.
-Plop
It was the sound of sothing falling on the fluffy bed.
I felt puzzled and imdiately turned my head and the next thing I knew, Zetto was lying on the bed.
“Zetto…?”
I called out to him, but he didn’t answer.
I wondered if he was playing so kind of prank on so I walked over and called out to him again.
“…Zetto.”
“…”
Still no answer.
At least, the Zetto I knew wasn’t the type to just lie down in a woman’s bed without saying a word.
Sensing the oddity of this, I shook his shoulder slightly.
“Huh…?”
His body stirred without much resistance to my touch so I thought he might have fallen asleep but I couldn’t be sure.
His eyes were covered with bandages, so I couldn’t tell if they were closed or open so I kept calling out to him and shaking his shoulder.
How could he be sleeping in this situation?
…I think Zetto must have passed out.
“Did I…Did I make the wrong food…?”
Alard, I checked Zetto’s pulse and found that it was still there, albeit a little too fast.
It hadn’t happened before since neither Lucia nor I had any health problems.
So what the hell was going on?
***
When Hutton, the Clentine family chef, realizes that a whole magma bear has been sent to Yuri, he rushes to find his master, Jeras Clentine.
“…So you’re worried about Yuri’s obsession with perfecting the dish?”
Hearing Hutton’s explanation, Jeras leisurely flipped through his papers.
“Yes…”
Hutton, on the other hand, had his head down and was pondering.
“Hahaha! …Hutton, don’t worry too much, even if Yuri does perfect the food, it won’t do what you’re worried about. You know the true effects of nourishing food…”
“I do, but…”
“When I t her not long ago, she still had a fairy tale book on her bedside table. I’m afraid I don’t think she’d be able to catch it, even if given the chance.”
“What do you an, unfortunately, my lord…?”
“She should have realized how much she likes him. He’s a decent enough man and I’m sure you’d agree if you t him.”
At Jeras words, Hutton could only scratch his head with a shaky smile.
The man who consus Clentine’s nourishnt feels a surge of ‘strength’, but he is unable to overco it and falls asleep. It is not until much later that the big event takes place.
Hutton, too, was surprised to learn of the potion’s effectiveness, and speculated that perhaps a woman had been the patriarch of Clentine’s family when it was created.
‘A fairy tale.’
Hutton was a little relieved, as he was well aware of the innocence of Yuri.
After all, a woman’s “active movent” is required to fully enjoy the benefits of the potion.
***
In the darkness of the unlit room, I stared at Zetto, who slept peacefully by the light of the moon.
It was so quiet in the room that he could hear Zetto’s breathing in his ears if I stayed still.
‘You went to sleep without saying a word…’
Zetto had been working himself to the point of exhaustion lately so I wondered if he hadn’t been able to withstand the overwhelming fatigue.
With that thought in mind, I laid Zetto down on the bed and covered him with a quilt after he fell asleep in an awkward position.
I rolled my eyes and glanced to the side.
“…”
Sothing was rising up near Zetto’s lower body, and even with the futon covering it…its presence was overwhelming.
It was sothing much different from my shallow knowledge. To put it bluntly…ugly.
I had no idea how it had gotten there, but I was determined to pay it as little attention as possible so I quickly put a blanket over my face, knowing that if I didn’t, my face would explode with heat.
Still, I couldn’t help but stare at it and suddenly I rembered what my father had said to before he left.
‘With a son-in-law like Zetto, this father is always in favor.’
What if…my father’s words were true, if I were to beco engaged to Zetto and marry him?
It was a what-if, but I swallowed hard.
‘I’ll have to deal with that every night…?’
I buried my face that was burning just by thinking about it in the bed.
How in the world could I possibly be fantasizing about doing sothing to a sleeping Zetto?
“Whoa…”
I looked up and took a deep breath, quickly clearing my head.
‘No matter what…’
I couldn’t bring myself to make such an unscrupulous display of lust against soone who was asleep from exhaustion.
Soon enough, his face ca into view once more. His eyes were hidden by the bandages over his eyes, but he had a sharp jawline and a straight nose.
He was very popular with the female students, as he was quite handso, and even the bandages couldn’t hide it.
This was undeniably true, even for the girls who used to ogle and flirt with him when he was performing acupuncture.
Then he ca to my room, laid down on my bed, and fell asleep, defenseless.
As I slowly replayed the events, one by one, my heart kept tickling.
‘Lucia told that Zetto was running his hands through his hair when he was on a date with Aizel…’
My hand naturally went to check his forehead but I stopped it.
I wondered if it was okay to touch him when he was so defenseless and unresponsive.
‘But at least his forehead…’
No one would see and no one would know.
The thin walls of my mind crumbled, and I gently brushed back the hair that covered his forehead.
In the next mont, Zetto’s smooth forehead is revealed.
“…Hmph.”
I smiled slightly as I studied him. This was definitely sothing different.
Gathering my courage, I leaned in close to his face. My lips lingered, but that wasn’t my intention.
Soon, I could hear his breathing in my ear. It was the first ti I’d ever heard him this close.
It was nothing, just a small rush of breath, but… I don’t know if it’s my mood or what, but for so reason, my body and mind are relaxing.
“Hmm…”
Maybe I was just sleepy so I decided to put my head near his and try to sleep.
Even if we didn’t sleep together, it was the closest I could get.
Although we didn’t get to talk as much as I would have liked, I feel like I was able to spend more than enough ti with him.
Before closing my eyes, I whispered sothing to Zetto and although I knew he wouldn’t hear , it was sothing I wanted to say at least once.
“Good night, Zetto.”
***
anwhile, as Zetto wakes up and quickly grasps the situation, Ecline is in trouble.
Saint Bernice hadn’t eaten in days and the reason was Zetto’s initiation as an honorary knight a few days earlier.
“Sister, surely Zetto said he was fine…”
Ecline said sternly to Bernice, who was still refusing to eat and Bernice’s pursed lips slowly opened.
“…That’s the problem, I’ve ruined his initiation ceremony so I don’t deserve a al…a one-ti initiation ceremony…without a blessing. Without a blessing…”
Bernice trails off, bows her head deeply and her soon-to-be-dead voice is heard.
“I am the worst…”
“I wouldn’t go so far as to say that…”
Ecline couldn’t tell, but Bernice’s words held many anings.
It was bad enough that she had ruined Zetto’s initiation ceremony, but she realized that the dark aura on Zetto’s body, and the helplessness with which she had to accept his ‘fate’, which could never be known, was the worst.
Still, she couldn’t go against the revelation of the Lord since she was told that if she ssed with it, she would not escape punishnt. But the aura that had taken up residence in his body was growing in size.
At first glance, it seed to be spreading from his heart to his entire body.
Even Zetto’s life force had been drained from him, as if it had been gnawed away by sothing but Bernice could not detect any trauma or internal injury in him.
The implications of that fact were obvious.
So far, so good, but would it be the sa afterward?
Bernice was afraid of that unknown future.
For the first ti in her life, she had sothing to fear.
The curse, or whatever it was, Bernice had the power to break it but she could not interfere with the fate of the man nad Zetto and because of that Bernice felt she was the worst kind of woman.
Bernice began to sob again since thinking of Zetto overwheld her with emotion, and the tears kept coming.
“Saint…”
Ecline could only wonder that even if she had ruined the initiation ceremony, was it really that painful… Isn’t it too early to say that they’ll die without each other?
Eventually, Bernice’s frustration got the better of her, and Ecline drew her sword.
“Saint, if you’re going to be like this, you should et. How long are you going to sit there and wait?”
“You want to go see him…? But he’s at the Academy…”
Bernice interrupted Ecline’s rambling.
“…We’ll have to put on a disguise or sothing.”
“Disguise…? But…Do I have the right to go to him…?”
“The Saint is the master of the Knights and you’re also the master of the Honorary Knight Zetto, so you have plenty of qualifications, don’t you think?”
Bernice nodded at Ecline’s answer while Ecline crossed her arms and continued.
“If you’ve done sothing wrong, you can ask for forgiveness…It’s not like you’ve broken off your relationship with Zetto because of this.”
“You’re right…”
She couldn’t change Zetto’s cruel fate, but she could be good to him, as Ecline had said.
It was only right, Bernice thought, to make him as happy as possible. Though she didn’t know how long that would last. Still, she felt it was the best she could do.
“…I was being silly, thank you, Ecline.”
Bernice regained her composure.
“Well, well… If you’re grateful, please eat first.”
Ecline turned away from her and scratched her head in frustration. Despite this, Ecline was very fond of Bernice and followed her closely.
It was a little sad to see Bernice in that condition, but as long as Bernice was happy, that was enough for her.
Reviews
All reviews (0)