A raven perched on the stone railing folded its large wings and indifferently dropped a letter from its beak.

Diana, upon receiving the long-awaited news, put down the newspaper she was reading and rushed over in one breath.

“Is it from Raoul?”

The raven pointed down silently and apathetically.

Tap, tap, with its beak. As if telling her to look and she’ll know.

Diana quickly bent her waist and picked up the letter.

On the neatly folded paper without an envelope, there were bloodstains.

For a moment, her heart clenched with unease. Considering his thoughtful personality, no matter how chaotic the war was, he would never send a blood-stained letter.

‘He clearly knows I’ll worry, yet he sent a blood-stained letter? No way. Something must have happened.’

Just then, the raven spread its wings wide and stirred up the wind. Flap, flap.

Following the fluttering wings, feathers swirled and dried blood fell like snowflakes.

Looking closely, there were also blood traces around its sharp beak that she hadn’t noticed before.

“…What, you were the culprit?”

The battle raven cawed as if asking if she didn’t know its nickname, spitting out red blood.

On the sticky flesh spewed from its throat, twitching tendons could be seen.

“Eww… Anyway, I’m glad.”

Diana, stepping away from the disgusting sight, quickly unfolded the letter.

The neat handwriting that looked like it came from a book made her eyes well up with tears of relief.

She preciously read the carefully written letter word by word.

He explained about the soldiers’ slow march due to not adapting to mana, reorganizing the army after joining forces with troops from other territories, and being included in the advance party to assess the types and strategies of dealing with monsters.

It was upsetting that a knight representing a territory was included in the scouting mission, but he probably volunteered to participate.

‘Because he can’t rest assured leaving it to others with his personality…’

The fortunate thing was that after a month, the system entered a stabilization phase, allowing them to set up barracks in a nearby forest and take turns carrying out missions.

At the good news, Diana sighed with relief.

‘I was worried he might fall ill, but it seems he has time to rest at least. Thank goodness.’

She read the last paragraph with a relieved heart.

“I constantly think of you. The soft bed, warm fireplace, abundant food, and more than that, the library we spent afternoons in together, our evening walks, and the small conversations that ended our days are what I yearn for at night.

I’m not in pain or struggling physically. It’s just a small complaint I make only to you, so there’s no need to worry deeply. I only wish to be able to return soon.

I’ll save all these long and tedious nights. So that I can slowly unfold them on the day I return… Please don’t be too lonely. My heart is always with you.

To my most lovely spring, your longest night.”

She caressed the bumpy pen strokes over and over with her hand.

His sincerity could be felt in each character written with firm pressure. Her nose stung with emotion, so Diana closed her eyes and savored the lingering feeling.

Until the hungry raven broke the reverie.

Caw!

At the dissatisfied cry, she finally pulled the bell string. Angela, who was waiting outside, poked her head into the bedroom.

“Did you call, Miss?”

“Could you prepare some raw meat for the raven to eat?”

“The raven…? Oh my!”

Angela pointed towards the terrace, opening her already large eyes even wider.

“That fellow brought the news?”

“Yes. He says he arrived safely. Let Vincent and Bichan know too.”

Just then, Vincent, who was leaning against the corridor window, poked his head through the open door crack as if there was no need to relay the message.

“Is he adapting well?”

“Oh! Really, this person!”

Angela pushed his head out the door at the rude behavior, but he didn’t budge an inch.

“Yes. I don’t know if he’s hiding it, but he’s not complaining. It seems the full-fledged extermination started last week. He’s handling it well without much difficulty.”

“Ah… I’m so relieved.”

He rested his chin on top of Angela’s head and let out a sigh of relief. They already looked like a married couple, making Diana chuckle.

“Move! I need to go down to the meat storage!”

“Ah, I’ll go with you. It must be heavy…”

“Are you teasing me or what…”

She firmly slapped Vincent’s abs and smiled at Diana like an angel.

“I’ll be right back!”

It was clearly a playful hit, but she was so innately strong that Vincent even let out a groan.

Groaning for a moment, Vincent also bowed his head and closed the door.

The pitter-patter of footsteps overlapped outside the corridor. They were such an adorable couple, bickering even though they were going together anyway.

In the meantime, Diana sat at the desk.

She prepared a pretty piece of stationery with a flower design and slowly wrote a reply so the handwriting wouldn’t be crooked.

Words of worry flowed easily, but she absolutely couldn’t write things like missing him or longing for him, even in writing.

‘It’s too cheesy!’

After repeating the process of writing and tearing up several times, a letter full of nagging was finally completed.

‘Hmm… How do you even write such embarrassing things? He’s quite shameless if you look closely.’

The raven, tearing into a raw chicken with its sharp claws, shook its head at the sight of her reddening face.

It seemed displeased that a battle raven had to play the role of Cupid, getting involved in this love affair.

And not long after, it had to let out a scream. Caw caw!

Because Diana tried to wash the dirty raven.

“Just stay still!”

The sweet scent of soap that Diana usually liked filled the bathroom.

The fellow struggled, as if asking what kind of disrespectful act this was, but couldn’t escape the sturdy hands trained through monastery service.

“Phew! Really! Why are the wings so big? It’s taking half a day to wash!”

Angela, who was helping from the side, wrapped the raven in a large towel and sighed.

“Well… It’ll get dirty again as soon as it returns, so this feels like a useless task.”

Still, it was better than the letter arriving to Raoul all shabby.

Even if the fragrance would dissipate along the way, she wanted to convey a clean and pleasant energy. She hoped that he, who saw blood every day, could enjoy a peaceful moment at least when looking at this letter.

The raven flew away with the letter in its beak, glaring fiercely at the terrace, but she still felt good.

Raoul entered the personal tent given only to knights and shook off the moisture.

Having just washed off the blood in a stream after the battle, a lingering musty smell of metal still emanated from his body.

He wiped his face once with a towel and lay back on the simple bed.

Lying on his back looking at the ceiling, he covered his eyes, finding the gloomy tent scenery suffocating.

“Diana.”

The longed-for name escaped through his dry lips.

When the tongue softly rolled, the image of her plump cheeks and gently curving eye smile came to mind, spreading a bright energy in his chest.

Since arriving, he hadn’t spoken except when attending military meetings or conveying instructions.

It was due to his naturally taciturn personality and his sharpened nerves from the prolonged battles.

The number of monsters far exceeded his expectations. As the Duke said, it was a fight that could last for years or even decades.

Silently slicing through heavy flesh all day long, the despair about the future and the will to return endlessly clashed.

At such times, he emptied his mind and focused solely on the battle.

With the single thought of returning no matter what, he slashed and slashed again until reaching his limit.

When he returned to the barracks, a burning hatred filled his heart. Anger at the class system that separated him and Diana, and at the Duke who only thought of selling off his daughter, gnawed at his mind.

These emotions were harmful to the body.

Anger was not a means to awaken a Lycan. The only thing that made a Lycan strong was love.

He closed his eyes and envisioned the face he missed.

He intended to calm his heart by imagining embracing Diana like he did not long ago.

Caw!

Before he could, the battle raven entered the tent with a loud cry.

The fellow looked much cleaner than when it left.

As Raoul sat up, it naturally jumped onto his arm.

Firmly digging in its claws and folding its long wings, a familiar scent invaded Raoul’s nostrils.

The smell of cute wildflowers blooming in spring.

It was the scent of the bath salts Diana used.

At that sweet fragrance, the corners of his mouth involuntarily curved into an arc, and the dark emotions residing in the desolate tent receded.

He set the raven down by the bedside and pulled out the letter stuck in its beak.

On the stationery with a flower design, worries and concerns were densely written like grains of rice.

“You’re not sleeping without covers, just roughly in the barracks, are you? The valley is chilly all year round. Always be mindful even if your body temperature is high.

Don’t eat carelessly either! If you feel the nutrition is lacking, don’t hesitate to take the energy potions I packed for you. If you run out, I’ll portion and send more, got it?”

He could picture her pouting and wielding the pen, making him chuckle repeatedly.

And upon seeing the last sentence, he completely crumbled.

“I’m not good at saying embarrassing things… I’ll just repeat what you said. Okay? Take good care of your health.

Your shortest winter and long-lasting spring!”

Love was indeed what a Lycan needed. Even amidst the chaos, his heart blossomed with flowers.