For the heart - Chapter 47
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 47
* * *
Late at night, Desmorak quietly went to find Lillien.
An attendant who had checked the surroundings opened the door for him without saying a word.
Lillien, who had been waiting for him inside, bolted upright and approached with quick steps.
“What happened? Was that bastard who testified he saw Nina that day really caught?”
“…Yes, Your Highness.”
“What? You call that an answer?! You said you’d handle everything! Nina ended up conquering the Six Small Nations. They say she’ll return to Arsed soon! Are you telling me to watch her become the hero of Arsed as the greatest contributor to continental unification?!”
“I didn’t expect Count Puaco to track him down so persistently. But don’t worry. He’ll commit perjury until the end.”
“Does it make sense for him to stand on the witness stand and slander the Princess until the end? That bastard will try to find his own way to survive! The magic inspection revealed Nina’s hair wasn’t hers, and if his testimony is also revealed to be perjury, how are we supposed to pin murder charges on that thing! She needs to rot in prison as a murderer, not become a war hero!”
“I have a way. More than that, Your Highness. I heard you haven’t been able to sleep for days… your face looks haggard.”
“Do I look like I can sleep right now?!”
Desmorak looked at Lillien with pitying eyes.
Ever since news arrived at the Imperial Palace that Nina had conquered the last remaining Six Small Nations, her nerves had become sharper than ever.
The plan to kill Michelle with Desmorak’s help and frame Nina for murder wasn’t going according to their wishes.
It was because of Count Puaco, who was raging like a dog with rabies.
“That crazy Count Puaco! He can’t rage in moderation and is ruining everything. Get rid of him too!”
“Your Highness, that’s.”
Eliminating Count Puaco wasn’t such a simple matter.
Count Puaco was someone even the Emperor had to be wary of, and she was telling him to eliminate him.
If they eliminated him, the Puaco family would immediately point to the Imperial Court as the culprit behind it.
When it hadn’t even been clearly revealed who killed Michelle yet, they couldn’t make things bigger in that way.
“The timing isn’t right yet. There’s a way to pin murder charges on Princess Nina. So don’t skip meals and don’t worry.”
“Do your job properly first before saying such things. You’re disgusting to look at, so get out right now!”
After leaving the room, Desmorak fingered something he had put in his pocket.
Biting his lips, he walked quickly toward the prison.
* * *
Nina and Casian walked quietly through the darkness.
The distance between them was neither close nor far.
The reason they could avoid getting ahead or falling behind was because the tall Casian was walking to match Nina’s stride.
Nina knew this too. The two were sensitively aware of each other even in this darkness.
Very occasionally their fingertips touched, but when they did, they just left them as they were.
Though Casian wasn’t thirsty, a strange thirst arose and he kept wetting his lips with the tip of his tongue.
Naturally, the thirst wasn’t relieved at all, and he realized what he wanted wasn’t water but a sensation.
The sensation of Nina’s soft lips that had touched his lips.
It was the first time in his life he’d been captivated by such an impulse.
Nina had clearly been surprised. But the force of her hands pushing against his chest was unbelievably weak.
That fueled Casian’s impulse even more, and his heart became hot as if it would burst.
In that moment, except for the single piece of earth they stood on together, the world seemed to crumble beneath their feet.
There was no way to explain how he felt relieved in such a dizzying sensation.
When his lips touched those small, soft lips and her delicate breath came to him, he had to struggle desperately to suppress the instinct to become fierce.
Selenia must be blooming somewhere on this cliff. Otherwise, the flower fragrance couldn’t be this intense.
The closer he got to Nina, the stronger the Selenia scent became, gradually numbing his reason.
Only after feeling Nina panting did Casian realize he had been frantically devouring Nina’s lips and mouth.
He had been so completely absorbed that he hadn’t given her even a moment’s respite.
Though his reason had returned, he didn’t forget his cunning nature.
“I felt this when I healed your body after you were attacked by Kushis in the town square, but healing is taking longer than before.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I don’t know the exact reason either. Transmitting healing power only through hands takes a long time, and it’s a big drain on my energy too.”
“Then…”
“So from now on, I’d like to do all healing through kisses. The wider the area of skin contact, the greater the transfer of healing power, but what’s more powerful and faster is mucous membrane contact. The more intimate, the faster the healing possible.”
“…”
“The war is over, and there probably won’t be many occasions for Your Highness to get hurt in the future. You don’t have to answer right now. We have plenty of time.”
Even seeing Nina’s obvious confusion, Casian didn’t withdraw this proposal.
He intended to refuse her rejection by any means necessary.
His mind had already been pickled by the taste of those sweet lips he’d sampled once.
Meanwhile, Nina walking beside him found this situation confusing.
As Casian said, it did seem like the healing time was getting longer compared to when she first received healing from him.
But what was more confusing than that was his attitude.
He suddenly kissed her, made her feel strange emotions, and now said he’d do healing through kisses from now on?
‘But I didn’t dislike the kiss. It was so soft and ticklish…’
Nina’s eyes widened at the thought she’d had.
‘What am I thinking right now!’
Startled, Nina quickly erased her thoughts. And immediately found a reason.
‘Since healing me causes Casian a lot of energy drain, it’s right to go with a mutually efficient method. Anyway, the war is over now, so there probably won’t be occasions needing healing.’
It was fortunate it was dark.
If he had seen her face that had naturally flushed, Casian might have quickly read her thoughts again.
Deciding not to answer for now, Nina turned her attention to grasping the current situation.
Because they had run frantically to avoid the arrow attack and fallen from the cliff, she couldn’t get a proper grasp of their location.
The Blanche Duchy had more than one or two such cliff terrains, so it seemed they’d have to find a village after daybreak.
“You’re trying to go down following the sound of water now, right?”
If it were daytime, there would be several things to help grasp the terrain, but what entered Nina’s eyes now were tree shapes swaying in the darkness, and all she could hear was quite loud water sounds.
But Casian’s steps were unhesitating.
“Yes. A valley is flowing a bit in the distance. This place isn’t suitable for people to stay. But the area below the valley is different. I don’t know how long the valley might be, but let’s try going down first.”
Once again, the two fell silent.
After traveling like that for a while, Casian, who had been walking a step ahead of Nina, slowed his pace.
“Can you see it? Over there.”
Soon he stopped and leaned toward Nina, raising his hand to point ahead.
“It’s faint, but it’s a light.”
“A light? You mean there’s a village?”
To Nina’s question, who couldn’t see the light, Casian shook his head once.
It definitely wasn’t a village.
He had judged this wasn’t a place where people could live, yet someone was living here below this treacherous cliff, not even in the forest.
“Let’s go check it out. If there really are people there, spending the night wouldn’t be bad.”
Though he said that, Casian and Nina instinctively suppressed their presence as they approached the light.
There might be ambushers or pursuers waiting there.
As they got closer, just as Casian had said, a very small light was leaking from inside a house.
‘To have seen such a dim light from that distance. His eyesight really is excellent.’
She was newly impressed by his keen eyes.
“Stay here for now. I’ll go check the situation first—”
“…!”
It was a chillingly cold sensation that reached them.
Nina and Casian knew it was a blade so sharp it could cut their skin if they turned their heads even slightly.
Only their hair swayed in the wind that blew through the darkness as they stood frozen in place.
When the chill ran down their spines, a voice was heard.
“Who are you?”
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————