Alaric’s gaze turned complicated, as a thousand thoughts swirled in his mind. Who does not want to take care of their bodies? A sudden warmth crept into his heart, like sunlight breaking through a cloudy sky. Could it be that she actually cares for him?
After bandaging Alaric’s wound, Lara moved to the cot where Asael was lying. There were only five makeshift beds in the infirmary, which looked deserted with only two patients inside. But once the war started, the place would be overcrowded.
Lara was worried because Asael had been unconscious the entire night. He hadn’t taken anything apart from the drip from wet cotton that she would regularly dab on his lips. She decided to change Asael’s dressing and hoped that he would wake up to take a glucose solution she had prepared.
While replacing his bandage with a fresh one, Lara felt a towering presence behind her. She paused but when Alaric said nothing, she continued with her work.
Alaric frowned when he noticed Lara pulled up Asael’s pants and started massaging the man’s lower limbs.
He heard that he was General Odin Norse’s eldest son, the commander of the Eagle Team, the one he hadn’t t. He only knew of Galahad, who trained with him under the tutelage of the general, and the twins Percival and Peridur, whom he occasionally t in the palace when the general would bring them along with him.
Asael’s face was still slightly swollen and the bruise had not lightened yet. He sustained those injuries when he was attacked on top of the stab wounds on his stomach.
Alaric’s gaze did not linger on his face but was drawn instead to the way Kane used gentle strokes, kneading, and putting pressure on his legs. Each movent was precise, the gentle touch imbued with an unexpected warmth that conveyed both care and reassurance.
"You really are quite the ticulous person, aren’t you, Kane?" Alaric remarked, his tone dripping with a hint of playful sarcasm.
Lara turned slightly, her gaze shifting to him, her eyes filled with curiosity and unspoken questions, as if seeking to decipher the hidden layers behind his words.
"Do you need to do that?" He asked, sounding aggrieved.
"Of course. This will promote blood circulation. Asael has been unconscious most of the ti. It would be easy for his muscles to atrophy." Lara pulled down the pants and she moved to his other leg. "Besides, it is necessary as a doctor," she added indifferently.
"Then, why did you not massage my legs when I was bedridden the last ti?" he inquired, his voice tinged with frustration and a hint of betrayal.
Lara: "..."
The sounds of voices from outside the tent broke the awkward silence. Lara’s gaze flicked toward the entrance to see General Odin, her Master, Jethru, and Bener walking toward them.
Jethru’s eyes widened when he saw Lara massaging the man’s legs without care.
"Why don’t you ask soone else to handle that?" Almost instantly, he was by the patient’s bedside, sweeping Lara aside with a gentle yet firm motion. Without hesitating, he knelt down and began to massage Asael, his skilled hands working with practiced ease.
Alaric heaved a sigh of relief.
General Odin and Bener looked at each other in bewildernt. Why do they feel that the white-haired man did not want Kane to touch a man? Wasn’t he a healer?
"Master, are you here to find ?"
Lara, who stood beside the kneeling man, asked. Her voice has a trace of amusent in it.
"Of course not. I’m here to earn money." Jethru blurted out without thinking.
"Oh, I thought you were worried about ."
"Heh." Jethru continued to apply pressure on Asael’s legs. Just as he finished with the massage, an aggrieved voice reached his ears.
"I am hurt, Grandpa. I have a wound on my back." Lara addressed him, Grandpa. She must have been truly hurt.
"Where, let see." Jethru suddenly stood behind Lara.
Lara laughed with mirth. Her laughter bubbled up like sunlight breaking through the morning mist, a bright and joyous sound that filled the air with warmth and delight. Her eyes sparkled with mischief, and the corners of her lips danced upward, creating a radiant smile that could light up the darkest room. She almost forgot to mask her voice.
Alaric’s breath hitched. The tiredness in her face was hidden behind the beautiful smile.
General Odin and Bener stood in daze. A sudden mory from years ago ca into their mind at the sa ti. The sa laughter. The sa mischievous smile. His ten-year-old daughter playing a prank on her brothers when they were celebrating her tenth birthday.
"You brat!" Jethru exclaid, his voice filled with irritation.. He realized his disciple had played him, catching him completely off guard.
"I am sorry, Master. I just missed you." Lara said softly, almost forgetting to mask her voice.
General Odin watched the banter of the pair, one old and one young, with a gloomy expression. Their banter showed how close they were. He felt a dull ache in his heart. Was he jealous because his master had a disciple that he valued more than him?
He joined the Zen Warriors when he was twelve and left at seventeen when his master was frad and sentenced to death. At that ti, he was his master’s favorite. He always told Odin he was a fast learner and nobody in Northem could beat him.
But everything ended twenty-five years ago. His gaze softened as it lingered on his master. Where was he in the last twenty-five years? How did he manage to survive? What was his relationship with Kane? Why did Kane have the sa surna as him?
He knew that ndel was his master’s mother’s last na.
"You looked awful. Why don’t you take a nap?"
Jethru’s voice pulled Odin from his quiet reverie. He shook his head to dispel any lingering thoughts and approached Asael’s cot to check on him.
"Are you staying, Master?" Lara asked while yawning. She must have looked awful.
"No. I will be on my way. The children might worry as I was gone for a few days. When you return to Calma, we should have moved to the Narra Alley."
"Take care, Master. Send my regards to Reya, Sandoz, Alpha, and Oga, then Lara turned around and lay on the cot where Alaric had previously lain.
Bener’s eyes flickered.
Reya. Why does that na sound familiar?
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