Beguiling the Enemy’s Patriarch - Chapter 92

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 92
“Has there been any word from Azekhien?”
“No, Your Majesty. Upon seeing the state of the Imperial Palace, they appear to have grasped the situation and have notified us that they will adjust their fees accordingly.”
“Ah. So it’s the same everywhere—those who won’t listen to reason understand only force.”
“Your Majesty, you mustn’t think that way….”
“There’s no need to raise their fees, and we have no budget for the Magic Tower right now either. We’ll pour all our resources into restoring the Imperial Palace.”
His words tumbled out carelessly, and something about his tone bothered me. Hmm. I preferred him when he was gentler…. I tried to open my eyes by tensing my forehead and brow, but my eyelids refused to budge.
Only then did I sense something amiss. My mind seemed awake, yet my body moved as though turned to stone. My body was refusing my brain’s commands.
Oh, so it’s not time to move yet? Then I’ll stay still.
I inwardly muttered something about how I’d kick the blankets if I got up and thought better of trying to wake. Right. I’m a patient. Patients are allowed more rest. With that thought, a deep drowsiness rolled back over me, and my consciousness cut off entirely.
I awoke again not long after drifting back to sleep. Something at the head of my bed was wailing like a ghost.
“Hic-hic. Hueeeeng….”
Hueeeeng- Hueeng-eeng-.
Even with my eyes closed, I furrowed my brow sharply. Ugh, so loud….
“Yeniiiii….”
The wailing rivaled a ghost’s cry. The persistently grating sound finally made my body react on its own.
Smack!
“Hueee…ugh.”
My swinging arm connected squarely, and the wailing ceased abruptly. But only for a moment—a thunderous cry tore through my eardrums.
“Yerenika!”
“….”
That voice was Sergei Lebanon’s. Sergei. This damned fool. I just wanted to rest because I wasn’t feeling well. What?
“You’re awake, Yeni?”
But Sergei Lebanon didn’t read my mind and mercifully stay silent. I was forced to pry open my stubborn eyelids. Through the haze, my damned friend’s face filled my entire vision. Black hair and green eyes. It was unmistakably Sergei Lebanon. His swollen eyes streaming with tears were both slightly amusing and pitiful….
“Am I seeing things! Yerenika, say something!”
For one thing, he was far too loud. My skull was ringing. I grimaced and forced open my parched lips.
“Quiet….”
“Gasp. You really are awake. I thought you were going to die!”
“Quiet, please….”
This bastard. I couldn’t finish because my throat felt like it was tearing apart. A wave of nausea. Something metallic rose from deep in my throat along my tongue.
“Ugh….”
Retching seized me. A large mass forced its way up, stretching my throat. Hack. I turned my head and spat the mass out, only then realizing it was a clot of bright red blood.
“…What.”
“What.”
An identical gasp escaped both Sergei Lebanon’s lips and mine. I stared blankly at the bright crimson blood staining the blanket.
“Cough….”
“….”
“Hemoptysis…?”
I looked up at Sergei Lebanon with wide eyes. Before I could say anything more, he let out a piercing shriek.
“Doctoooooooor!”
* * *
“Y-your throat appears to have sustained considerable strain, Princess.”
The Royal Physician summoned immediately was the same man who had examined me once before. Perspiration beaded his forehead as he conducted a thorough examination, his diagnosis delivered with visible concern.
“Despite ten days having passed, you continue to cough blood, which suggests the ruptured organ has not yet fully recovered, h-hic.”
The poor doctor couldn’t even finish his sentence before hiccupping. The cause was painfully obvious—the man standing rigid beside my bed, radiating an intensity so palpable it made even me instinctively solemn.
I laughed softly and opened my mouth.
“A bit more rest should help, shouldn’t it?”
“We shall need to observe further for now, but… absolute rest is paramount, Princess. Since you’ve regained consciousness, I shall prepare medicine for you to take… I w-will.”
Fearing I might cough up blood again if I spoke further, I simply nodded obediently.
“First, be cautious with your throat. Meals should consist primarily of soft risotto or soup, and avoid anything too hot or cold.”
Nod, nod.
“And… and…”
The Royal Physician wiped his brow and glanced nervously toward Auredhian. Don’t worry, I’ll handle this well. I conveyed this reassurance by patting him gently a few times. Only after the Royal Physician departed with a visibly relieved expression did Auredhian and I remain alone in the room.
The moment Sergei cried out, the man had rushed over and swept him aside without uttering a single word during my examination. I smiled broadly and finally spoke.
“It’s been so long… cough.”
I closed my mouth immediately upon opening it. My condition was clearly serious—each time I spoke, my throat burned. I quickly placed the candy-like medicine the Royal Physician had given me into my mouth. A bitter, pungent taste spread across my tongue—like sucking on an intensely cold, medicinal mint lozenge.
I forced the medicine to dissolve on my tongue while carefully observing Auredhian’s expression. If I opened my mouth again and coughed up something red, those eyes might truly lose their composure. So I waited until the medicine dissolved completely, then spread my arms toward him with determination.
Hold me! Embrace me! Please hold me! I shot him an intense, pleading gaze, and I could see fine cracks forming in his rigidly set features.
“…”
Yet he remained motionless where he stood. I noticed his eyes were acutely tense, the whites and lower lids tinged faintly red like his irises. This man always looked this way when exhaustion kept him awake for days.
He hadn’t slept? I thought this calmly before remembering I had been bedridden for ten days. Ah. He must have been worried sick.
Only then did that realization dawn on me. Ten days. A long time indeed. Since I’d been unconscious, it felt unreal somehow. It wouldn’t have been strange if I’d only lost consciousness for a single day, yet it had been ten.
Eventually, I opened my mouth again.
“Won’t… cough… you hold me?”
My voice was still terrible. I looked up at his reddened eyes and continued.
“If not, I’ll just keep talking like this.”
“…”
“If my throat is completely ruined and I can never speak again for the rest of my life, then that would be His Majesty’s fault…”
I didn’t need to finish. A large hand gently covered my mouth just as he sat down beside me. The sheets rippled softly. I smiled and pulled his hand away from my lips. With my other hand, I touched the reddened skin around his eyes, brushed his cheek, and drew him closer to me.
“Why were you so cold and angry earlier, cough, like that?”
“Stop talking.”
Finally, I heard his voice. It sounded as subdued as my own. His index finger, seeming equally worn, pressed gently against my lips.
“Didn’t the Royal Physician tell you to be careful with your throat?”
He did. But then how could we converse? It felt like an eternity since I’d heard his voice properly. Only then did I truly feel the weight of those ten days.
My body felt light as it lifted, only to be laid back down on the bed. No, I don’t want this. I want to face him… As I struggled, Auredhian firmly gripped my shoulders.
“You cannot. You must rest.”
“But…”
“Do not speak.”
At this rate, he’d tell me not to even open my eyes. I looked at him with a petulant expression, and Auredhian exhaled a low sigh.
“I’ve confirmed your breathing every day, but seeing your eyes open… it feels like you’re truly returning to me.”
His voice was strained and tight. I blinked blankly. Go back? What did that mean? While I was still bewildered, Auredhian touched me again and again. He brushed my hair aside, caressed my cheek, and lowered his head as though he might kiss me. At that distance where we almost touched, our breaths intertwined.
“…?”
What was he doing? He behaved as though he needed to confirm I was truly alive, even though my eyes were clearly open. Unable to speak, I could only feel frustrated. I reached out and grasped Auredhian’s hand, tracing letters across his palm with my fingers.
[Were you worried?]
“That’s hardly what I’d call words….”
He managed to understand the letters I had written, and laughed with a hollow, exhausted sound.
“If you knew what I endured these past ten days, you wouldn’t be able to smile so carelessly.”
Auredhian bent toward me. Up close, I could see more clearly how his face, which had always been relaxed and composed, had grown gaunt and tense. Before I could respond, a gentle kiss descended upon my forehead. From my forehead to my nose, to my cheek, and finally to my lips. I received his kisses scattered lightly across my entire face while I struggled to gather my thoughts.
“So it seems I collapsed that night and suffered greatly….”
“If you say one more word, I’ll kiss you again, so choose wisely.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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