Chapter 103
The Flower That Bears a Sword - Chapter 103
Translation: godsn
It made sense. Seeing her unconscious, they might have deliberately stepped forward, fearing the Magic Sword would be exposed. Judging by how composed Yurien remained, it seemed no one except Nicole had noticed the sword's pattern.
Amid the relief, a sense of dissonance arose. While the situation was plausible, it felt too conveniently arranged—eerily so. It reminded Eki of the answers Yurien would give whenever she probed him. She rubbed her forehead with a gloved hand.
"Lord, I—that is, um..."
"The tea leaves were laced with a poison called Funus. You ingested it. The Saintess healed you with Elgiosa, so there should be no lasting effects, but it would be wise to rest for a while."
Yurien spoke quietly, his tone measured, but beneath his lowered gaze flickered a cold flame. Funus was an exceptionally lethal poison, nicknamed the "Footprintless Poison" because victims would perish before taking a single step after consuming it.
Others might think Echinacea was fortunate, but Yurien knew better. Had she not reached Zenith's level of mastery, there would have been a corpse before him right now.
Her corpse.
He transmuted the terror crawling up his spine into a fury that simmered beneath ice. A state of emergency had been declared across the Azure Sky Order to trace the poison and magic tool's origins and weed out the infiltrators among the Royal Guard. Security around Lady Diassant had been doubled in severity.
Of course, even without an investigation, Yurien could guess where the roots of this plot lay. Those who could not tolerate the Crown Prince's alliance through marriage—it had to be either the Second Prince or the Emperor himself.
Surprisingly, Duke Diassant might have been the one to prepare the poison. Considering how he had positioned his own daughter as a leash for Yurien, it wasn't implausible.
No matter how well-hidden, leaving a woman with a prior marriage to wed Yurien would have been a precarious gamble. If discovered after prolonged delays, everything could unravel. Knowing the Duke's temperament, he would have undoubtedly prepared a way to dispose of Rosalin once her usefulness expired. The poison could have been one such contingency.
If luck favored him, the rare tea might have taken Yurien down as well. Even if Yurien survived, Rosalin's death would allow him to be held accountable for failing to protect her. If she didn't die, she could be discarded later by other means. And if the poison were exposed, suspicion would fall on the Second Prince's faction—so for the Duke, it was a low-risk gambit.
Even if Lady Diassant were suspected of administering the poison, the Duke held leverage over her. She would be forced to take the blame alone and remain silent. On the surface, Duke Diassant—Rosalin's father and the Crown Prince's father-in-law—stood to gain nothing from such a scheme, so no one would suspect him. Had Yurien not heard Rosalin Diassant's story, he wouldn't have suspected the Duke either.
On the other hand, the Royal Guard Knight who had outright attempted to kill Lady Diassant was more likely aligned with the Second Prince. The Royal Guard was effectively the Emperor's personal force.
For now, these were all conjectures. But once the roots became clear, he would act. He had already resolved to move—now, he simply had more reasons. Yurien's sharp gaze drifted downward before lifting again. The moment his eyes met Echinacea's, their intensity melted like water.
"Thanks to you, the assassination attempt was thwarted. Lady Diassant expressed her gratitude. The Azure Sky Order will also issue an official commendation."
"Ah, th-thank you."
"It is I who should be grateful. And... though it wasn't your fault."
Yurien's voice, smooth until then, trailed off. He leaned toward her. Eki stiffened reflexively.
"Seeing you hurt, in pain, or suffering—"
His hand brushed aside a stray lock of her hair, and his eyes locked onto hers. Eki stared at him as if entranced, her eyes glistening. The distance between them had narrowed—close enough that she could see the faint tremor in his lips as he spoke slowly.
"I don't want to see it. Truly. Even until now......"
I've already witnessed too much of your suffering. And yet, how much more of your pain must you show me? Yurien swallowed unspoken words and said something else instead.
"So please... just be a little more careful."
His fading voice carried a sorrowful tone. Bathed in half-light, he gazed at her with what seemed like a pleading expression.
<Yes, I am by your side.>
Suddenly, the words he'd spoken amidst her pain resurfaced—along with the sensation of his hands supporting and shielding her. There were so many things she wanted to ask. Right now, she felt like she was forgetting something. But more than anything else, responding to him—his damp eyes fixed on her—felt most important. The sunset spilled like watercolors across her muddled thoughts.
"Y-yes, I'll... I'll be careful, Lo—"
Echinacea's stammering reply cut off abruptly. Her gaze had landed on the nape of his neck. Through the loose, thin fabric of his shirt, she spotted bandages wrapped around his throat. His flowing hair had concealed them earlier—too distracted by his face, she'd only just noticed.
Bandages? Was his neck injured? Who could possibly wound the Azure Sky Knight Commander? The creaking gears of her mind recalled the moment she'd lost consciousness. What had the Magic Sword said? That if she fainted now, slaughterous intent would pour out. She'd reached the same conclusion.
And she had fainted. She'd wanted to lean on Yurien—for just a moment, that weak impulse had taken hold, and she'd lost control. So then... what happened after?
Echinacea recoiled in shock, shoving him away as she scrambled backward. She clutched the thin blanket like a lifeline, swallowing hard against the lump in her throat.
Nothing. No memory. Her mind was pitch black. Surely... surely she hadn't... overflowed with bloodlust again and... killed someone? Attacked him? Was that how his neck— How did— How—? Crimson and black and filth churned violently inside her.
"Echinacea? What's wrong?"
Yurien called out to her, sounding bewildered. Unable to contain her turmoil, she spat out the question like bile:
"Lord. Your neck—what happened to it?"
"Ah."
He exhaled a short sigh, as if he'd forgotten, then tugged at his collar.
Most of the wounds sustained while restraining her had been treated by the priests. The Saintess could have healed all his injuries at once, but she'd exhausted herself treating Echinacea's wounds, so he couldn't ask. They weren't serious injuries anyway—just minor scratches not worth requesting.
Priests were typically skilled herbalists or mages specializing in healing magic. They could mend superficial wounds quickly. Showing the injuries wasn't an issue either—he could claim they were from flying debris during the explosion.
The second explosion—caused when he'd expelled the Holy Sword's overflowing mana—had been disguised as the result of hidden magic tools planted by the Imperial Guards. The remnants of Sword Energy in the bedroom had nearly vanished due to the blast, so no one suspected combat had occurred. Yurien could easily cover up that much.
But there was no explaining the dark bruises unmistakably shaped like handprints around his throat. Who could possibly strangle the Azure Sky Knight Commander, and how? The questions would inevitably pour in. So he'd concealed them beneath his uniform, ensuring they remained unseen.
Once the situation had settled somewhat, he'd deliberately brought Echinacea to a seldom-used private residence outside the Knight Order. Though they'd managed to suppress her using the Sealing Tool and Holy Sword, if she succumbed to bloodlust again, it would be disastrous—she needed isolation and monitoring.
Officially, it was for the "critical patient" Echinacea's stabilization. In truth, the Saintess had already fully healed her wounds using Elgiosa. If stability were truly the concern, private rooms existed in the infirmary, and the headquarters and dormitories had plenty of vacant spaces. The excuse was utterly nonsensical.
Yet even amidst the chaos of poisoned tea, two explosions, and the assassination attempt by the royal guard, no one dared question why a squire had been taken away by their Lord—especially when that Lord was the master of the Holy Sword and the captain of the Azure Sky Knights. The accumulated trust and respect he had built proved useful in times like these.
The moment they arrived, he had washed and changed his clothes, then spent the entire time watching over Echinacea. Though he knew she had been healed by the Saintess and should be fine, worry gnawed at him—and the tension of whether her murderous intent might resurface kept him awake for a full day. In his exhausted state, having already strained his mana core to its limits to pull her back from the corruption of the magic sword, he eventually reached his breaking point and dozed off briefly.
He had been so mentally drained that he hadn't even considered the possibility of the temporary bruise-concealing bandage catching her eye. He couldn't tell her the truth. Yurien adjusted his collar to cover the bandage and lied smoothly.
"It was from shrapnel during the second explosion."
"Second explosion?"
"The royal guard left behind a magic tool. It detonated in the princess's chambers. It's nothing serious. Not even worth having a priest heal."
Eki's ragged breathing eased slightly. Still clutching the blanket, she called out to him softly.
"Lord."
Instead of answering, Yurien met her gaze. His eyes were gentle, damp—devoid of resentment, hatred, suspicion, or wariness. Only tenderness, fragility, and an aching affection remained.
A gaze that should never have been directed at the wielder of a magic sword.
"I... think I lost consciousness. After that... did I...?"
"You hovered at death's door."
He cut off her stumbling words firmly, as if to say she need not doubt or worry.
"You were in critical condition. I watched over you the entire time, fearing the worst, until the Saintess arrived."
"You... watched over me the whole time?"
"Yes. You didn't regain consciousness. Not even after the Saintess healed you. You were out for a full day and a half. Echinacea, today is June 16th."
Mid-sentence, he suddenly tilted his head.
"Come to think of it, you must be hungry. Wait here a moment."
Yurien rose and headed toward the door. Eki watched his white-clad back disappear outside before burying her face in her knees.
"...Val. Are you awake?"
[Uh, yeah, I woke up a little while ago.]
Valdergiosa answered cautiously. After hesitating for a while, Eki forced herself to ask the question she wanted to avoid.
"The murderous intent... it overflowed, didn't it?"
[Well, uh... honestly, I'm not sure?]
"Tell me straight."
[No, I mean it's really ambiguous! It definitely felt like it was about to spill over, but hey, when you pass out, I black out too. So I can't say for certain.]
"There's a way to confirm."
She bit her lower lip, letting out something between a groan and a sigh.
"The accumulated amount of murderous intent."
[...Honestly, that's the weirdest part.]
"What's weird about it?"
[It's definitely decreased. Like, by about ten people's worth. But here's the thing—it doesn't feel right. If we'd actually killed that many, even if I was unconscious, the aftereffects should've left me refreshed. But I don't taste blood at all. It's really strange.]
The magic sword grumbled as if complaining. Eki froze at the mention of "ten people's worth," but managed to breathe again upon hearing the rest.
"So... you're saying it's like no one died?"
[Yeah. Ugh, I feel cheated. So unfair! Do you know how rare an opportunity like this was?! Well, uh—not that I'm saying you should've—]