The moment Leon was pushed off the cliff, entangled with the beast, Kasha’s face was the only thing that filled his vision, magnified.

And that scene had the power to make his heart sink even more than the pain of the beast’s claws digging into his side.

It was certainly not a short distance. Yet her eyes, wide with terror, her bloodless lips, and her pale hand reaching out desperately felt as if they were close enough to grasp.

“Leon!”

‘Kasha.’

But there was no time to even call out Kasha’s name. He began to fall down the cliff, tangled with the beast. And at some point, he lost consciousness with a strong blow to the back of his head.

What awakened him again was immense pain. Even before opening his eyes, the excruciating pain piercing his ribs made stars dance in the darkness beneath his eyelids.

As he struggled to lift his eyelids, he saw dense branches obscuring the blood-red sky. It seemed those branches had struck the back of his head as he fell. Thanks to that, his fall was slowed, allowing him to survive.

Suddenly feeling a rough and dense fur sensation behind his back, he turned to look. Beneath his body lay the corpses of the wolf beasts that had fallen before him. The beasts he had slain had saved his life.

The claws of one of them were still embedded in Leon’s side. Leon gritted his teeth and pulled out the claws. Instantly, an enormous amount of blood poured from his side, completely soaking his upper garment.

Just as he was relieved to have survived and tried to somehow lift his body, this time he felt an excruciating pain in his right arm. It felt as if his wrist had been bent backwards.

He raised his left hand and felt the bones of his right wrist. He gritted his teeth and tried with all his might to summon his holy power, but it did not rise, perhaps because he had lost too much blood. Rather, the pain only intensified, and he passed out once again.

He managed to open his eyes again because he heard Kasha’s voice.

He barely opened his eyes, but his vision kept flickering. He saw Kasha’s crying face blurrily.

To make her cry like this. He should embrace and comfort her, but he couldn’t muster any strength in his arms.

Kasha stroked his right arm, shedding endless tears.

“Leon. Please don’t die… I told you not to die.”

Her face, smeared with sweat and dirt, was devoid of color, however she had managed to descend the cliff.

She looked truly anguished. It was the first time he had seen her in such a precarious state. She was trembling like someone who had seen a nightmare before their eyes, whispering pleadingly.

“Please… Don’t die so senselessly like this. I’ll do anything. I’ll do anything…”

‘I won’t die. So don’t cry, Kasha.’

He wanted to say that, but no voice came out.

He focused his mind with all his might. Gathering what holy power remained in his body, he was able to calm the pain for a few seconds and speak.

“All right. So… don’t cry.”

“Leon??”

Kasha’s eyes widened in surprise as Leon, whom she thought was dying, spoke. Leon thought he smiled at her.

But the next moment, his vision went dark again, absurdly. Even as he lost consciousness, his only concern was her well-being.

When he regained consciousness, the surroundings had changed.

‘A cave?’

It was enclosed on all sides, and a faint light was coming in from somewhere. Moreover, there was even a thin blanket laid out beneath Leon’s body.

‘Did Kasha move me here alone? How on earth did she do it? It must have been no ordinary feat.’

At that moment, Kasha entered Leon’s field of vision again. In her hand was a basket full of holes, filled with unknown medicinal herbs. Even with a face covered in sweat and dirt, he was just glad to see her.

Noticing that Leon’s eyelids were slightly open, she opened the water container that had been attached to his waist. Then she poured water through the gaps between his lips.

“Just hold on a little longer, Leon. This time, I… will definitely save you.”

‘This time.’ As if she had memories of suffering from not being able to save him, she said that as if making a resolution.

He couldn’t even muster the strength to swallow the water, and it trickled down the corners of his mouth. He wanted to reassure her, but he couldn’t even smile. The shock from the injury was severe, and the bleeding had not yet stopped. If the bleeding was not stopped soon, it could become a truly dangerous situation.

Then Kasha began to remove his armor, panting with effort. She turned his body as carefully as possible so as not to hurt him, and upon seeing his injuries, she let out a soft groan.

Riiip.

The sound of cloth being torn rang out. Fighting against his heavy eyelids, he managed to open his eyes and saw her tearing off the hem of her shirt to make a bandage.

She poured a little water on the most serious injuries to his ribs and right arm, washing away the congealed blood. Then she quickly ground the medicinal herbs she had gathered and carefully applied them to his wounds.

“It’s a hemostatic herb. The bleeding will stop soon.”

She whispered after wrapping the bandages around his injuries.

He had the strange feeling that she seemed familiar with this place. Moreover, the blanket laid out beneath him and the basket in which she had brought the hemostatic herbs were clearly unfamiliar objects.

‘Could it be?’

He recalled her story of hiding out with her mother inside a barrier when she was young.

‘Is this the cave where she used to hide with her mother long ago?’

He wanted to look around more closely, but his body frustratingly refused to obey. Moreover, his head ached as if it would split, and his body was feverish.

Into his blurry vision came her swollen eyes and blistered hands. He wanted to tell her he was fine and reassure her right away, but not being able to do so was driving him crazy.

He had experienced countless battles and injuries, but this was the first time he had suffered such a serious injury. The sense of powerlessness he felt for the first time was even unfamiliar.

‘I don’t know why I always end up like this in front of you, Kasha.’

Suddenly, her cool body temperature touched his forehead.

“The fever won’t go down… I’ll have to go out again and look for some antipyretic herbs.”

Don’t go.

He simply missed her body temperature as it left his forehead.

“Leon, Leon. Are you all right? Try to stay conscious.”

At the sound of Kasha’s urgent voice, Leon opened his eyes again.

How much time had passed?

The light that had been seeping through the cracks of the cave had also disappeared, and it was pitch dark all around.

Had Kasha been tending to him alone in this darkness all this time?

“I’m sorry. I don’t know how to light a fire…”

Suddenly, he was puzzled by the self-reproachful voice coming from the darkness, but he quickly grasped the situation.

He was now shivering all over.

The bleeding seemed to have stopped, and the fever seemed to have gone down, but this time, severe chills had set in. At some point, his teeth had started chattering loudly.

‘I must look pathetically miserable.’

Kasha had already wrapped him tightly in a blanket. But the chills showed no sign of abating.

Suddenly, Kasha took his hand. She didn’t seem to have noticed that he was awake yet.

“Leon. I… won’t let you go like this again this time. But I really don’t know what else to do.”

Her tired voice was even desperate. Hearing that voice, it was as if an unknown strength welled up from his abdomen.

He opened his parched lips with a thud.

“What exactly do you mean by ‘this time’… Kasha?”

Startled by his sudden voice, the sound of Kasha moving could be heard.

“You’re awake? Are you all right? Shall I give you some water?”

She slowly poured water between Leon’s lips. Forcing himself to swallow it, he managed to raise his hand.

Seeing this, her face, which had come close, was caught in one hand. That small face, completely wet with tears.

“I’m fine.”

“There’s no way you’re fine.”

Her voice was choked with emotion. He gently stroked her cheek with a trembling hand.

“You said it yourself, Kasha. In ‘this life,’ never die.”

“…!”

He could feel her face stiffening under his fingertips.

‘Never, never die. In this life, never.’

He had effectively admitted that he had actually heard the confession she had impulsively blurted out the day before he left for the expedition.

“H-how? Then, you… heard everything, even the story about me releasing the seal on the demon stone?”

Kasha asked in a trembling voice.

Nod.

His head moved with difficulty.

Cough, cough.

But at the same time, an ominous cough burst out. The shock was like someone mercilessly grasping and shaking his ribs, making him feel faint.

Leon managed to open his mouth again, but his voice still trembled from the ongoing chills.

“I will never, ever die… Kasha. In return, will you tell me your story? I don’t want to fall asleep anymore…”

Hearing his voice, Kasha was startled.

His life was hanging by a thread. The fact that he had heard her confession no longer felt like a serious problem.

Confessing how miserably she had made him unhappy in her previous life, or making the astounding confession that she had traveled back in time, did not feel difficult in this situation.

Even if he treated her as a crazy woman, what did it matter?

Leon might die. Just that fact alone made her heart ache as if it were being squeezed.

She placed her hand on his forehead again.

‘Too cold.’

Leon’s voice growing fainter was also worrisome. Kasha suddenly shook Leon’s body, which had gone still.

“Leon, don’t fall asleep.”

She had a premonition that if he fell asleep now, an irreversible situation would unfold. It was as if her vision was being stained with pitch-black despair. But Kasha gritted her teeth.

‘I will never let you go like this.’

She had not struggled so hard to lose him in a place like this.

Kasha finally made up her mind. To do everything she could at this moment. Without fear, without hesitation.

Removing her hand from his forehead, Kasha slowly brought her hand to the buttons of her shirt. Then she began to slowly undo them.