Chapter 31
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: True Feelings Are Conveyed Through Bedside Visits
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About four hours had passed since that sudden encounter with the monsters?
In the distance, the sharp spires that were the pride of Kaltstein Castle began to appear faintly.
Finally, home.
And there, surely, Seria would be waiting for me, her neck stretched out in anticipation.
Just thinking of her name made my stifled heart begin to beat softly again, easing the suffocating tightness.
But at the same time, imagining the look on her face when I returned with a broken arm and ragged appearance sent a chill down my spine.
'Gonna get an earful.'
I gave a wry smile and leaned deeply back against the seat.
Roselia, too, let out a small sigh of relief as familiar scenery came into view outside the window.
"Haa... I'm alive. I really thought I was done for."
"You have my thanks for your hard work, Your Highness. We made it back safely thanks to you."
I spoke with genuine sincerity.
If not for her, I wouldn't have even learned the location of the dragon's lair, let alone opened the door to the nest.
Of course, I'd returned carrying the massive bombshell of her true identity... but even factoring that in, it was all profit, no loss.
"...Ahem, what do you mean? I pretty much just chattered on the sidelines. You did all the work, Duke."
Roselia scratched the tip of her nose shyly at my words.
"You blocked the monsters, cleared the path..."
"We helped each other. And... about what you said earlier."
"Yes? Oh, the part about this being a world from a novel?"
Roselia looked at me again with tense eyes.
I flashed a gentle smile and continued the explanation I'd cut short before.
"Whether this place is from a novel or some fake world doesn't matter much to me. That's why I reacted that way."
"......."
"You're the only truth to me—the one breathing right in front of my eyes, the one who faced danger by my side. Isn't that enough?"
"Uh... y-yes? I mean, th-that..."
Roselia's face flushed red as a ripe apple in an instant.
At the same time, she fidgeted with her lips, her eyes darting around as if unsure where to look.
As a avid reader of romance fantasy novels, I'd thrown in an extra cheesy line on purpose...
Seems she had no immunity to this kind of cringey dialogue.
Screeech—!
Perfect timing—the carriage came to a full stop.
"W-we're here! I'll get off first!"
"Wait, Your Highness. Allow me to escort—"
"No! It's fine! Get some rest!"
Before I could finish, Roselia kicked open the carriage door and jumped out.
Without so much as a backward glance, she hiked up her skirts and bolted into the castle.
Her retreating figure looked desperately like someone fleeing a ghost.
"......."
I stared blankly out the open door, my extended hand still hanging in the air.
This is kinda embarrassing.
The lord of the North rejected for an escort and left alone in the carriage.
If other nobles saw, they'd probably whisper, "Looks like that guy's been dumped, ho ho."
"This is pretty humiliat—"
It was then.
"You've returned safely."
From outside the carriage, amid the swirling cold northern wind, came a familiar, longed-for voice.
I relaxed my stiff expression naturally and turned my head.
There stood my adjutant, her silver-gray hair neatly combed back, dressed impeccably in her uniform as always.
Seria stood primly.
Her eyes appeared as cool and sharp as ever, but deep within them lingered an unmistakable relief and worry she couldn't hide.
I slowly descended from the carriage and faced her.
"Yeah, I made it back safe, Seria."
"......."
Instead of replying, Seria scanned me from head to toe.
Top to bottom.
Her gaze was relentless, as if taking an X-ray.
And it locked precisely on my left shoulder.
Her brows furrowed ever so slightly.
Realizing I'd been caught, I gave an awkward smile.
"I got here sooner than expected, right? This injury's from some monsters on the way back..."
"To the office."
"Huh?"
"Treatment first. Looks like you only did basic first aid."
Seria cut off my excuse and turned to lead the way.
For a moment, the chill radiating from her back felt sharper than the winter wind.
'... I'm in trouble.'
I meekly followed her to the office.
"Urk...!"
"Bear it. It's necessary to set the bone."
Crack.
A scream escaped amid the pain of bones grinding into place under Seria's merciless hands.
I sat on the office sofa, shirt off, entrusting my left arm to her.
My bruised shoulder and slightly bent arm were returning to place under her skilled first aid.
Of course, enduring the pain was entirely on me.
"Hoo... Thanks. Feels like I can live now."
I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead and caught my breath.
Seria glanced at my face before meticulously wrapping the bandage, asking softly.
"Doesn't seem like simple monster work."
"... You noticed?"
"I've seen your swordsmanship up close more than anyone. There's no way you'd let mere monsters injure your arm like this—enough to crush bone. What exactly happened in there?"
Hurt laced her voice.
For a moment, I hesitated over how much to reveal.
But half-truths would only make things worse.
I nodded toward Winter Fang on the desk and began explaining the journey.
"This guy's the culprit."
"The sword?"
"Yeah. Hard to believe, but... there's a dragon sealed inside it."
Her gentle hands paused mid-wrap on my shoulder.
She stared at me with wide eyes.
"Are you joking right now? Because I look too gloomy...?"
"I'd love for it to be a joke, but it's real. The soul of the blue dragon, Archaeos—former master of the lair—fused with this sword. It's become an ego sword."
I calmly recounted the events of the past few hours.
Opening the stone door and entering, breaching the traps and meeting the dragon's hatchling golem, encountering the dragon's soul and forming the contract.
Of course, I omitted Roselia being a possessor and my terminal prognosis.
Too early to tell her, and it'd only worry her needlessly.
"... So, the injury happened fighting that hatchling golem that nearly severed your arm?"
"Right. Just my guess, but it was at least quasi-special grade strength. Nearly got me."
"...."
Having heard me out, Seria silently finished tying the bandage.
She secured the final knot and gazed at the sword on the desk with a complicated expression.
"You're back alive, so I won't complain. But a dragon from legend... You really can't be left alone for a moment without stirring up the unimaginable, Duke."
"Haha... Guilty as charged."
"Not funny."
Seria glared at me sternly.
"One slip, and you could've been buried in that lair with Princess Roselia, right?"
"Sorry. But I had no intention of dying without you. So I fought hard... You believe me, right?"
I peeked at her reaction with an uncharacteristically cutesy expression.
Seria's face flushed slightly at my look. She let out a small sigh, then nodded in surrender.
"... Take me with you next time. If I die, I want it to be with you, Duke."
"Got it. I'll be more careful from now on, so no more scary talk about dying together."
I smiled softly and gently covered the back of her hand, which cradled my treated one.
Her hand was cold, but the warmth where we touched was comforting.
"By the way, what about Lady Leonier while we were gone? She stayed quietly in the castle?"
To lighten the mood, I asked about another headache.
Seria's expression subtly stiffened.
"Ah... Lady Leonier? She was quiet, but... while you were away, we ended up having quite a few conversations."
"Conversations? Just the two of you?"
"Yes, we talked, but..."
She trailed off awkwardly, glancing at the office door.
"Um... if it's not too rude, may I ask one question?"
"Question? Sure, go ahead."
"Right after you left, I ran into her in the garden by chance and we ended up having lunch together."
Seria hesitated, choosing her words carefully.
"But her eyes were all puffy. Like she'd been crying as if the world had ended."
"... She cried?"
"Yes. At first, I thought I'd offended her somehow. She didn't say a word throughout the meal, but at the end, as she set down her teacup, she said something strange to me."
"... What?"
"Her voice was so hoarse I couldn't catch most of it..."
She furrowed her brows, recalling, then murmured thoughtfully before continuing slowly.
"Something like she'd been thinking too simply... And the look in her eyes as she said it—too deep and poignant for mere sadness. I couldn't even respond."
"......."
I had no reply and stayed silent.
At the same time, the words I'd tossed at Leonier just before departing flashed through my mind.
'When will you leave?'
Had that single line held some profound meaning for her?
For someone who might be a regressor, not just a possessor, was pre-regression me something special?
I wasn't certain she was a regressor yet, but Seria's words only strengthened my suspicions.
"... Got it."
Unable to find a proper response, I just nodded.
Complicated emotions weighed on my chest, but I couldn't show it in front of Seria now.
"Thanks for telling me. I must've been too harsh. I'll meet with her soon and talk properly."
"... Understood. I hope I didn't overstep."
"No. Thanks to you, I know what's going on."
I smiled and waved lightly.
"You must be tired. Go rest. I'll just skim the backlog and call it a night."
"But your injury..."
"Ointment's on, bandage is secure. I'm fine. Go on."
Seria gave me one last worried look but bowed, unable to sway my stubbornness.
"Then, don't overdo it. Call if you need anything."
"Will do."
Click.
The office door closed, plunging the room into heavy silence.
I sank deep into the sofa and let out a long sigh.
"Hoo..."
Fatigue crashed over me.
Encountering the dragon, Roselia's identity, battling monsters, Leonier's tears.
Too much variety for a single day.
'Handle work first. Can't neglect territory management.'
I forced myself up and headed to the desk.
A mountain of papers had piled up in my absence.
"Even after Seria handled what she could, it's still this much..."
The moment I reached for the pen to dip in ink—
Thud.
"...?!"
A sinking sensation spread through my body, as if my heart dropped.
Then came the vivid, horrific pain—like an invisible hand piercing my ribcage, clutching and squeezing my heart.
"Guh... Ack...!"
I collapsed onto the desk without even screaming.
Ink spilled, black liquid soaking the papers, but I had no time to care.
"Ugh...!"
My heart felt like it was burning.
No, freezing.
With the nauseating sense of blood reversing in my veins, my vision flickered black.
'What... is this...'
Cold sweat poured like rain.
Breathing grew ragged, fingertips pale.
And at the core of that agony, Archaeos's warning flashed in my mind.
[If you don't meet the conditions, you die. Horribly.]
"Damn... it."
The curse.
Was this the proof of the deadline lurking somewhere in my body, as he said?
'Of all places... the heart?'
Didn't he say I had a year left? Or is this a prelude?
I clutched my chest with trembling hands, scraping the desk with the other.
But the pain showed no sign of easing, and consciousness faded into dim darkness.
In the end, my vision went black right there.