I Was Hired by the Black-Minded Prince for My Life's Ransom - Chapter 37

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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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Episode 37. Wholly on My Side
Splash—
Cold seawater lapped at my feet.
I blinked my wet eyelashes slowly.
“Ugh… my eyes.”
The salt stung, and my vision swam.
Tears trickled down my cheeks.
I wiped away the moisture with both palms and looked around.
Blindingly white sand and deep blue sea stretched in every direction… and.
“We’re ruined….”
The wreckage of a shattered sailing ship lay scattered across the beach.
Strewn cargo and wooden planks tumbled in the waves, dragged back and forth with each surge.
Only then did the memory return, piece by piece.
‘We hit the reef.’
The ship had splintered into fragments, caught in a sudden whirlpool of churning waves.
The crew had scattered in all directions, and my last clear memory was clinging to him, gripping him tightly—
“…Your Highness?”
I jolted upright and scanned the surrounding beach.
Not far away, Yurian lay sprawled on the sand.
I scrambled to my feet.
Wet fabric clung to my legs, hampering my stride.
“Your Highness!”
I rushed across the sand and shook his shoulder.
“Are you all right? Are you injured?”
Tears welled up unbidden.
I frantically checked his wet clothes, his chest—everything.
Mercifully, no blood.
His breathing was steady.
…Which was precisely the problem.
“…Are you asleep right now?”
“You’re making noise.”
He replied without opening his eyes, and my strength drained from me in an instant.
Relief, yes, but—
“You frightened me….”
“I was merely resting my eyes. It’s Vanillin who’s being theatrical about it.”
Did that make any sense whatsoever?
I stood there, my lips parting soundlessly.
We’d suffered a shipwreck.
Debris was scattered in every direction.
The two of us alone had washed ashore on this desolate island—!
“Why are you so calm about this?”
Not a trace of alarm crossed his face.
At my question, he opened his eyes slowly.
His golden irises caught the sunlight, gleaming with lazy indifference.
“If I’d known you’d weep, I might have obliged you.”
“That’s not the point—we’ve been shipwrecked.”
“A shipwreck.”
He rose and settled back onto one bent knee.
Fine sand clung to his calf, glinting in the light.
“Perhaps it’s more accurate to say we’ve reached our destination despite an accident.”
“What?”
What did he mean by—
“This is Valenta Island.”
“Pardon?”
Here? This place?
My eyes went wide.
By any measure, this was an uninhabited wilderness.
Surely a named island should have inhabitants, shouldn’t it?
But beyond that—
I turned my head, surveying the island, then looked back at Yurian with a question in my eyes.
“How did you know this is Valenta Island?”
There’s not a single sign marking the boundary, so how on earth did you figure it out?
Drip.
A clear droplet of water fell from Yurian’s hair.
He laughed without concern.
“I’ve been here before.”
“…Here? Why would you come here?”
“Well, you might call it exile.”
“E, exile?”
The world’s foremost sage came here as exile?
I looked up at him with eyes demanding explanation.
But Yurian simply shrugged as if reluctant to elaborate, then turned his head away.
His gaze drifted toward the dense palm forest.
“It’s good to see it again after so long.”
…….
His voice carried an eeriness to its flatness that made me think better of pressing further.
According to what I’d heard in Luern, Valenta Island was a remote place marked only faintly on maps.
That perfectionist prince would never have neglected his studies, even as a boy.
Lost in thought, a breeze laden with salt spray swept across me, refreshingly sharp.
The scent of seaweed scattered across the sandy beach brushed against my nose.
Just the two of us on this vast island….
‘Wait—just the two of us?’
I snapped back to awareness and looked around.
Nothing.
No one at all.
“Wh-where are the other sailors?”
There had been a dozen or more crew aboard, yet not a single soul was visible.
Yurian leisurely swept his damp hair back.
“I couldn’t say.”
“You couldn’t say….”
“They’re all pirates, after all. Being accustomed to the sea, they shouldn’t perish.”
…Was that really something to speak of so lightly?
I fidgeted with my fingers.
But thinking about it, his words weren’t entirely wrong.
Brennon’s sailors were all seasoned veterans born and raised on the ocean.
The real problem was….
‘Us….’
I swallowed a sigh.
No food, no water, nowhere to rest.
Nothing at all.
“I should explore the island.”
“Diligent as always.”
“If we just sit around, we’ll starve to death!”
“You do have quite the imagination, Vanillin.”
Yurian yawned languidly and lay back down on the sand.
Not a trace of urgency about him.
“I won’t stop you. Have a safe journey.”
He closed his eyes languorously beneath the sun.
He looked like someone on holiday.
…No, a shipwreck, you say?
No one knows we’re here, there’s no rescue in sight, and if we can’t escape we’ll either spend our lives on this island or have to build a raft!
His carefree ease irked me more than I cared to admit, so I kicked at the sand irritably and turned away.
* * *
“…What if I end up spending my whole life here?”
The interior of the island was denser than I’d expected.
Sunlight broke through the thick emerald canopy into delicate fragments.
Bird calls, wind whispers, and the fragrance of unfamiliar, exotic fruit.
It was a landscape too beautiful for any place called uninhabited.
“Though as a tourist destination, it’s perfect.”
Just doesn’t seem like anywhere people should actually live….
A soft sigh.
I swallowed hard.
‘What if things ended up this way—just the two of us on this island forever?’
I was bound by the Soul Contract, so if a shark appeared, I’d throw myself in front of him every time, wouldn’t I?
Then eventually he’d notice the loophole in the contract and push me headlong into every danger.
For instance, if a shark showed up—
“Vanillin, go check on that.”
If a viper suddenly struck—
“Get bitten and report back to me.”
That’s how it would go.
A ruthless man like him could absolutely do it.
“What are you thinking so hard about all alone?”
“Eek!”
What, what, what, what—what was that?
I clutched my racing heart and spun around.
Yurian had crept up behind me.
My startled pupils trembled with the shock.
“Why are you—no, wait, did you hear all of that?”
“Why? Are those thoughts something I shouldn’t be hearing?”
Yes… that’s right.
As I shivered and curved my lips upward, Yurian’s eyes narrowed.
Then he smiled like an angel.
“I heard every word.”
“…Oh no.”
“That Vanillin—”
Yurian let his words trail off as he studied my reaction.
When he bent down slightly and met my gaze, my pupils quivered and I found myself swallowing dry air.
“That Vanillin…?”
……
He glanced down at the fruit nestled in my arms.
Then he smiled.
“You’re trying to poison me.”
“…Pardon?”
Yurian picked up one of the fruits from my arms and tossed it lightly in his hand, catching it again.
“You can’t eat this.”
“Really?”
“If you want to spend three solid days bedridden, go ahead.”
“Oh…”
I gasped and looked down at the fruit in my arms.
I’d chosen them because I saw the animals eating them, but—how could this be?
‘So how am I supposed to tell which fruits are poisoned and which aren’t?’
I rummaged through the fruit with a miserable expression.
Then Yurian reached into my arms and withdrew a different fruit.
And without hesitation—
Crunch.
He took a bite.
“My lord?!”
I grabbed his arm in alarm.
His gaze flicked to my hand for a moment, then rose to meet mine.
“What if it poisons you?”
“I have to try it—to see your sincerity.”
“Why would you do that? Spit it out, please!”
“I’m joking. This one’s safe.”
…Really?
My heart sank and I stared at him, lips trembling.
He chewed calmly a few more times, then tilted his head slightly.
“You really are quite timid, Vanillin.”
“Anyone would be startled if you ate a fruit that might be poisoned…”
“I didn’t realize you’d go pale like that.”
Yurian chuckled softly.
I felt the tension drain from my body and let out a long breath.
“…Of course. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
If something went wrong while my soul was bound to his, I had no idea what might become of me.
That’s what I meant by those words.
But then.
…….
Yurian’s expression shifted—a look of genuine surprise, as though the ground had just shifted beneath him.
‘What…?’
I blinked.
Despite all the time we’d spent together, this was a face I’d never seen before.
The expression of someone hearing words they’d never imagined.
He said nothing for a moment.
Shhhhh—
The wind drifted slowly through the forest.
His golden hair, carrying the faint scent of salt, caught the breeze and scattered.
“You don’t want me to suffer?”
he asked.
“Is that because I’m truly on your side?”
His gaze found my eyes and held them.

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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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