episode_0028

Blink.

When Rudel came to her senses, she opened her eyes wide and immediately sat up to look around.

It seemed as if it was swallowed up in pitch-black darkness, but the torches caught in the crevices of the rocks were barely illuminating the path with their faint light.

The floor was filled with rough, irregular stones, but the spot where Rudela had been lying had been worn flat by time, making it a good place to rest.

But there was no escaping the chill that seeped through the cold stone floor.

‘Here is… … .’

Rudel rolled her eyes and examined the wall. It was made of rough rocks.

In some crevices, small moss and moisture-laden water droplets glistened.

Knock knock knock.

The sound of rain was heard. Rudel turned her head in the direction of the sound. She could see the outside, the only bright light besides the torches.

Rudel could tell that she was inside a cave.

“Are you awake?”

At that moment, a calm, comforting voice was heard from the entrance. It was Johan Harsen.

His condition was quite poor, with his uniform being torn and covered in bruises. His pure white uniform top was stained red as if it had been bleeding.

“… Are you okay?”

“It’s okay. This much.”

John walked slowly toward Rudella. He was holding two rabbits in each hand. It seemed like he had gone out to get food.

“Can you explain what happened?”

“Didn’t you know that?”

“I don’t know.”

“… … .”

John sat down, put the rabbit aside in a corner, and lit the bonfire he had created with magic.

“We were attacked by unknown people. And they were attacked in a subtle way. As we were crossing the bridge across the border, the bridge suddenly blew up.”

John shrank down and placed his hands on the campfire. The heat was so warm that he opened and closed his palms, taking in the warmth.

“All the other escort knights and detection magicians seem to be dead.”

Johan, who barely managed to enter the cave after rescuing Rudella, checked the cliffs to see if there were any other survivors.

But the others were found as cold corpses, with no one breathing.

“If there had been no carriage, we would have been crossing the river with them.”

“… … .”

John looked at Rudela with deep-set eyes. His eyes, like blue lakes, contained her.

“This is a cave between cliffs. It was a good place to escape the eyes of the outside world, and I came here because I wanted to cool down right away.”

“Support now─”

“That won’t do. The guys who caused the explosion are most likely waiting nearby to deal with us.”

These are the people who attempted to assassinate me by blowing up my leg.

It was clear that they would check carefully for follow-up.

“Let’s just hold out for 5 days. Then the public office will realize what happened and send reinforcements with a reconnaissance unit.”

As soon as information comes in that the Imperial messenger has not arrived in Sandburg, the public office will move immediately.

“… Are you telling me to stay here for 5 days?”

Rudelera tilted her head slightly.

“Yes, but. Don’t you like it?”

“… That’s not it. I know the situation.”

John continued, unbuttoning his rain-soaked shirt.

“You can get at least some water thanks to the puddles on the ground, and I’ll get you some food. The campfire won’t last long, but I can keep you warm with my magic.”

Sarak. When John’s uniform top was removed, angular muscles and small bruises here and there were revealed.

Dark, dried blood stained the deep wound on his side, and red streams slowly ran down his skin.

“Huh… … .”

Rudella’s eyes trembled sharply for a moment as she held her breath. It wasn’t because she saw the wound or the blood. She wasn’t so naive as to be startled by such a thing.

John’s body was sharply sculpted with lean muscles. The muscles extending from his broad shoulders were firmly positioned without any unnecessary flab.

Thin, hard muscle fibers ran from his shoulders to his chest, and his abs were clearly visible like sculpted stripes.

“Hmm. Hmm.”

Rudel, who had been admiring Johan’s body for a long time, awkwardly shook her head and turned her gaze to the side.

“… The wound seems deep.”

“It’s okay. I can handle it.”

“There’s no way it’ll be okay.”

Rudel stood up and tore the hem of her dress. Whoosh! Johan quickly turned his gaze to her pure white bare legs that were revealed in an instant.

“This will stop the bleeding.”

“… Thank you.”

Johan wrapped the hem of his long empire dress around his waist and tied it tightly. Pain rose up and his brow furrowed slightly.

“… Are you in a lot of pain?”

“Tolerable.”

“You got hurt while protecting me. I’m sorry.”

“There is no need to apologize.”

“Is it because your mission is to protect me?”

“Yes.”

Rudel smiled faintly as she watched Johan nod briefly and then look back at the campfire.

The warm light gently enveloped the lines of his face. It was as if he was sinking into a deep, calm lake.

His calmness was transmitted to Rudela, putting her mind at ease.

John asked.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

“I’m a little hungry.”

“I knew this would happen, so I caught a rabbit.”

John picked up the two rabbits he had left behind and summoned his magical power. A small blade made of wind appeared.

“It might be ugly.”

“It’s okay.”

Although it was a bit considerate, Rudel looked at Johan with eyes full of interest. It could have been a disgusting scene, but he didn’t seem to feel any particular discomfort.

John laid the rabbit down, cut a sheath around its neck, and skinned it.

The limbs were separated from the joints, the internal organs were taken out, and only the heart and liver were set aside.

The meat is cut into tender chunks. The skin, flesh, bones, and entrails are separated cleanly in an instant.

“… It looks familiar. Have you tried it?”

“This is my first time.”

“That’s amazing.”

Rudella watched with sparkling eyes as Johan groomed the rabbit. This was the first time she had seen something like this, as a noble lady.

John put sticks into the meat he had cut into chunks and placed them in the cracks of the stones of the campfire. If we wait a little longer, they will be good for our health.

“… Let me dry your clothes.”

“That, that way.”

John hung his uniform jacket, which he had taken off, near the campfire. Rainwater was dripping from it.

“Did you go outside after it rained?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“That way, no traces will be left.”

The deep, sunken eyes of John met Rudella’s gaze.

For some reason, Rudella’s throat felt heavy. Was it because she was alone with a man in a place like this? Her heart was beating fast.

“They must be quite skilled assassins if they are targeting us. They won’t use detection magic because it can be traced back, but they must be experts at finding traces.”

Rudel asked him, trying hard to ignore the tension that threatened to stiffen her body.

“How can you be sure that he is an assassin?”

“Because there’s no one else.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Although Yohan had a vague idea of the identity of the culprit who had instigated this incident, he covered it up appropriately.

“There is something like that. I’ll talk about the background later. For now, it’s more important to get your body moving.”

Why John can pride himself on being an assassin.

There was no trace or sign of them.

If it is something that cannot be detected by a wizard of the sensing series, then there are only a limited number of people who can do it.

Who else but those who make a living by assassination? Perhaps only a small number of elite assassins of the first class or higher were mobilized.

So who is behind this?

Cassis Lenokhonen has already attempted a raid once and failed, so he cannot move easily. The Archduke is keeping a close eye on him.

And, Cassis has two means at his disposal: the belligerent hyenas and the Black Knights. However, even they cannot plan such an elaborate plan while avoiding the eyes of the Sensing series wizards.

Eventually, the culprit is narrowed down to one.

‘Crown Prince.’

He has access to first-class assassins, and there’s no one else who can target both him and Rudella.

Of course, the possibility of intervention by the Kingdom of Sandburg was also raised, but the probability of this is minimal.

Because the moment you lay a hand on Rudel, the imperial messenger and the crown prince’s fiancée, the price you pay will not end there.

There is no way he would do something so reckless that would put his country on the brink of destruction.

‘Fedelian, you crazy bastard. I never thought you’d try to kill Rudela.’

Seriously, you need to question whether you’re thinking with your lower body.

“It’s cold.”

Ludella’s body, hugging her knees, shrank even further. The air was cold. And since it was a cold cave, her body temperature was bound to drop.

‘I can’t help it.’

John slowly got up from his seat and walked over to Rudella. It was a move without hesitation. He sat down next to her naturally without saying a word.

“What, what…?”

Rudel took a sharp breath, as if she was out of breath. His arm brushed past hers, and soon their bare skin was in contact.

She instinctively shivered at the unexpected sensation. As the warm body temperature seeped in, her face flushed and her heart pounded.

“We need to stay together to maintain body temperature. I can use my magic, but I have to put off using magic until the very end because of the risk of being tracked.”

In order to maintain body temperature, the life magic must be maintained for a long time.

Unlike when grooming a rabbit or lighting a fire, there was a risk of being tracked.

“Doesn’t it feel a little better now that you’ve shared your body temperature?”

“Oh, that’s right. Ahem.”

Rudel turned her head and looked outside the cave. Pitter-patter. Thick drops of rain were falling.

“Hmm, hmm.”

She twitched her body as if she was nervous. Her gaze could not stay in one place and kept shaking.

As I was looking at the fire, I glanced at John’s body next to me, then tried to look straight ahead again, but before I knew it, my gaze returned to John’s body again.

“… Is there anything to cover?”

“There’s no way.”

“… … I see.”

Rudel’s face was as pale as snow, but the edges of her ears were, in stark contrast, flushed red.

“… Five days here. I don’t know if it’ll be okay.”

Rudel, who was feeling uneasy for no reason, tried to change the subject and forget about Johan who was right next to her.

“It’ll be okay. As I said before, there’s food and water. There’s also a distortion field at the cave entrance, so you can’t see it visually.”

Rudelha tilted her head. Her silver hair flowed down her shoulders.

“Didn’t you say there was a risk of being tracked?”

“The reverse magic is fine.”

“Is it because there is distortion?”

“Yes.”

But John continued,

“Only the entrance is distorted, the inside is the same, so be careful when using magic.”

“I see… … .”

Johan, who saw Rudella continue to fidget and tremble, figured she was cold and hugged her shoulders.

“Please stick a little closer. If you get hypothermia, it will be a big problem.”

“… … .”

Rudel’s face turned bright red. She was not immune to men. No, to be precise, this strange atmosphere and the contact with bare skin was too unfamiliar.

Under the soft light.

Alone with a strange man.

With a little bit of each other’s bare skin exposed.

Because of the crown prince, I had many opportunities to see male muscles, but it only brought me contempt and disgust. I only saw them rolling around in bed with other women.

But John was different. His appearance made my heart race, and I couldn’t control the trembling.

A strange attraction to John confused her. It was hard to name the feeling, but it was definitely a mixture of excitement and trembling.

My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to burst. I couldn’t breathe, worried that Johan might hear the thumping in my ears.

Can’t you hear this pounding heart?

Did he notice that you were getting anxious?

As that thought crossed Ludela’s mind, she became increasingly confused.

“It’s all ripe.”

John lifted the branch he had stuck in the gap and handed Rudelah a piece of meat.

“It’s hot. Eat carefully.”

“, thank you.”

She accepted the branch. The sight of the golden-brown, cooked rabbit meat made her mouth water in her hungry state.

Rudella tasted rabbit meat for the first time in her life. The texture of the meat spreading in her mouth was soft and delicious, but her senses were already focused elsewhere. She couldn’t take her eyes off Johan.

Her heartbeat reverberated loudly like an echo through the cave walls.