They Say an Age Gap Like This Doesn’t Even Need Matching - Chapter 3

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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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The soldiers startled at the sight of the knight standing with a murderous expression.
“Sir Heron?!”
“Why suddenly…?”
“This bastard… killed the hostage and tried to pin the blame on us.”
Excuses for the impulsive murder that even I couldn’t comprehend spilled from the knight’s lips.
“He must be an assassin sent by some subversive faction in Bardia.”
It took only an instant for the truth to become distorted in the soldiers’ minds.
“What! That can’t be…!”
“This dog of a man!”
Rage ignited in the eyes of the soldiers as they looked down at the traitor whose head had been severed from his body.
“We must hang that bastard’s head on the City Gate immediately.”
“Agreed. We must make an example for all traitors.”
‘Decide among yourselves what to do and get out.’
I needed to quickly check on the condition of the man covered entirely in blood.
‘There’s quite a lot I need to hear as well.’
As I wished, they collected the corpse and left the room.
Leaving behind only a single healing salve they had been carrying.
‘Wasn’t that too harsh for someone who isn’t even a criminal, just a hostage?’
Only after the sound of the knight and soldiers’ footsteps, accompanied by the creaking of the lock, had completely faded did I roll out from under the bed with the blanket still wrapped around me.
“Are you… alright?”
If I hadn’t fallen on top of this man, he wouldn’t have gotten wounded like this.
I asked out of guilt, and the man lying on the floor suddenly sat up.
‘That startled me.’
“This much is nothing.”
Despite enduring such an ordeal, he answered calmly as if nothing had happened.
“For Heron to mistake such an incompetent fool for an assassin, he must have lost his senses.”
He merely glanced at the traitor’s bloodstain and clicked his tongue.
I found the knight and soldiers’ sudden actions strange, but fortunately they didn’t dig any deeper.
“You witnessed something terrible. Weren’t you frightened?”
I nodded and pulled myself completely free from the blanket, approaching him.
‘Those wicked men. They should have freed his arms before leaving.’
Looking closely, what was fastened around the man’s wrists and ankles were special restraints that absorbed mana.
They weren’t the kind that could be severed using aura.
‘I can’t help it. Let me treat his wounds first.’
I could satisfy my curiosity later.
“I need to remove your clothes.”
“Your clothes, now?”
I needed to see his wounds, didn’t I?
But why did he make that expression again?
Just as I tilted my head in confusion, the man said something unexpected.
“I’ll wash up and be right back.”
As he spoke, the man shook his arms as if brushing off the restraints bound behind his back.
Soon after, a heavy object fell to the ground with a dull thud.
“…!”
It was the shackle that had been fastened around the man’s wrist.
‘How did he break free from that by himself?’
When I stepped closer to examine it, I could see the jagged edges where it had been torn apart.
He had snapped the shackle—which possessed a strength exceeding that of steel—using only the power of his bare body.
‘Wow, this is genuinely absurd.’
The expedition that had conquered the Demon Lands was filled with individuals worthy of being called monsters, yet this man was a different breed of monster entirely.
Without hesitation, the man also severed the chain connected to the ankle shackle.
…During the process, I heard what sounded like metal warping with a sharp crack.
Was it damaged?
How had someone possessing such tremendous strength ended up in this predicament? His power seemed entirely at odds with his current state as a hostage suffering violence.
“You’re not going to leave, are you?”
While I stood dazed, the man turned back to me as he gathered his clothes and headed toward the bathroom.
“I’ll wait for you, so come back.”
At my response, the man’s ears flushed slightly as he nodded and entered to wash.
‘He must prefer being clean.’
Usually, one would postpone washing due to the pain of their wounds.
As I retrieved emergency potions and healing supplies from my spatial bag, I reflected on what had transpired today.
Why had the return magic with coordinates set for Mikhail activated incorrectly?
How had steadfast Bardia fallen into such dire straits within mere years, and how had a new nation risen to prominence?
Such events should have been impossible if Mikhail existed.
‘…Surely that man hasn’t done something wrong.’
The thought alone made my heart sink.
No, that couldn’t be.
There had to be some other explanation.
“What’s wrong?”
The man who had just emerged from the bathroom approached me and asked.
‘Hah….’
When I turned to look at him without thinking, I couldn’t help but be startled.
Because the man had draped his robe loosely, his chest was fully exposed to view.
“Are you alright?”
As he bent his waist to examine my face, I could now see his taut, muscular abdomen all at once.
‘What… his body….’
Due to the extreme gender imbalance in the expedition, I had seen male bodies countless times, yet they were merely those of my comrades—nothing more than that.
So why was I so flustered now?
“Shall we go to bed now?”
He whispered softly as he closed the distance until our noses were nearly touching.
“If you’re comfortable as things are now, that’s fine too.”
What preference matters when treating a wound?
I laughed despite myself at the absurdity.
“Of course a bed is more comfortable.”
I had him sit on the bed first and was about to uncork the potion bottle when suddenly a firm arm wrapped around my waist.
“I’d prefer to use that later rather than now.”
“…?”
I stared at him blankly, bewildered.
Wouldn’t it be more effective to use it right after an injury?
More importantly, why was he embracing my waist….
“Can I kiss you? I won’t be hasty like before….”
His sudden kiss proposal caught me off guard, and I blurted out.
“We need to treat your wounds first!”
And we need to talk once treatment is done!
“Hm? Treatment?”
He repeated back as if he’d heard something unexpected.
‘Wait, surely not….’
A thought suddenly crossed my mind, and I asked just to be sure.
“Did you… misunderstand when I told you to remove your clothes? You understood it meant to treat your wounds, right?”
The man, who had been blinking slowly, withdrew his hand from my waist and spoke.
“So it wasn’t meant to continue….”
His lips drooped slightly.
“…I apologize.”
‘Good heavens.’
He really had misunderstood.
‘Then this potion bottle too….’
He must have thought it was some sort of oil or medicament used between men and women.
He was the one who misunderstood, so why was my face burning so intensely?
“I appreciate it, but I don’t need treatment.”
“What? Why?”
In response to my question, he parted his robe and exposed his upper body.
‘What… there’s no wound….’
I clearly saw that traitor unleash a barrage of blows while even channeling mana, yet the man’s body was completely unmarked.
‘So it wasn’t just raw strength. How is this even possible?’
Could a human—not even a demon—possess such recovery ability?
Examining his unblemished body, I felt nothing short of awe.
“You don’t know much about me, do you?”
He asked me carefully.
‘What should I even say?’
After a brief moment of thought, I simply kept my mouth shut and nodded.
“Surely you didn’t leap into bed without knowing who I am… did you?”
“…I’ve heard you’re the Crown Prince of Bardia.”
“I see.”
The uncertainty that had flickered in his eyes settled once more at my response, growing calm and composed.
“Well, I suppose we can learn the rest as time goes on. We have plenty of it, after all.”
Perhaps.
Whether time would be sufficient depended entirely on how he answered my question.
“There’s something I’m curious about.”
I studied his expression carefully before speaking.
“What’s your relationship to Mikhail?”
“Mikhail…?”
“Yes. Mikhail, the founding king of Bardia. Where is he now?”
Bewilderment flickered across the man’s gaze.
“What do you mean by that? Are you curious about the founding king’s disappearance from about 300 years ago?”
“What…?”
What was he talking about?
“300 years…?”
“Roughly around then. It happened fifteen years after the expedition departed.”
I stared at him with wide eyes, my mind reeling from the shock.
‘What did I just hear?’
“You seem quite interested in Bardia’s history.”
He smiled gently and tugged my hand slightly.
“Come, sit here. I’ll tell you anything you wish to know.”
It felt as though I were sitting on something elastic and firm rather than the bed, but I had no mind to dwell on such details now.
“As is well known, no one knows whether the missing founding king lives or dies. Not a single clue has ever been found, let alone his remains.”
And so some have theorized.
That Mikhail had joined the expedition after all.
That he departed late to finally meet his dear friend, Iserna Airwain.
For on the day he left the palace, he had seemed so joyful.

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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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