After experiencing Rukna’s holy power during the last summons, Matian began to read books about holy power indiscriminately.

Among them, the book titled ‘Principles and Applications of Holy Power’ contained information Matian was curious about.

Written by a person named Kyle Closet, it stated that contact with someone possessing excellent holy power can purify a soul contaminated by dark magic.

The greater the love for the other person and the deeper the contact, the stronger the range and effect of the holy power transfer.

As soon as he read that sentence, Matian automatically thought of Rukna.

The reason why Rukna’s holy power that flowed into his body that day felt particularly strong was perhaps…

‘Why do I keep having these kinds of thoughts?’

Matian irritably ran his fingers through his hair.

They say when the body is sick, the mind becomes ill too, and he was exactly in that state now.

‘Anyway, the heart pain has intensified and become more frequent. I must have become weak or the seal binding the demon’s egg has weakened.’

Although the exact cause was unknown, neither was a good sign.

‘Nothing has gone right since the holy sword disappeared.’

On top of that, he even had strange imaginings about his classmate because of her holy power.

This was no different from a curse.

The only fortunate thing was that he was certain his body’s recovery wasn’t due to absorbing Rukna’s holy power.

‘If that were the case, I would feel much more refreshed.’

Let’s snap out of it now. Matian raised his upper body.

As he did so, his unbuttoned shirt fell open on both sides, revealing his bare body.

‘What’s this?’

Red medicine was drawn in the shape of a heart on his well-toned abdomen with no excess fat.

It was clearly Rukna’s doing, who had brought the medicine.

‘And she put the holy power bracelet I gave her back on me.’

Was it meant to help him recover quickly?

Matian alternately stared at both wrists now wearing identical bracelets.

As deeper wrinkles formed between his brows, Rukna returned to the room carrying a small basin filled with water.

“Ma-Matian?”

Startled to see Matian awake, Rukna nearly dropped the basin from her hands.

She had intended to erase that medicine mark before he woke up, but she was a step too late.

The red medicine applied between his wide open shirt might have looked funny, but his sculpted appearance made even that not seem humorous.

His face, solid neck, and sturdy upper body were still drenched in sweat, but that only made him look more stimulating.

“A-Are you alright?”

First asking about his condition, Rukna reached out her hand toward his forehead.

Had his fever gone down? Earlier when he lost consciousness with a raging fever, she had debated whether to call the school nurse, but now his complexion seemed to have improved quite a bit.

“Don’t worry about it.”

Matian, who wanted Rukna’s touch more than anyone, habitually brushed away the hand approaching him.

It was a kind of habit. Growing up seeing childhood friends who ran away in fear that the demon’s fragment might transfer a curse, and adults whispering about it behind his back with contempt, at some point he came to avoid contact with others.

‘What am I doing now?’

Inwardly surprised, Matian stared at the small wall mirror instead of checking Rukna’s expression.

The furrowed brow, eyes devoid of warmth, and lips pressed together without emotion were exactly the face that peers had pointed at in childhood, calling him demonic.

Matian belatedly tried to pull up the corners of his mouth to make up for his mistake, but today it wasn’t easy.

‘It feels like neither my body nor my emotions are my own.’

Nothing was under his control as he wished. Matian didn’t want Rukna to see this pathetic appearance and his filthy thoughts.

Meanwhile, Rukna was quietly looking down at her rejected hand.

‘After barely dragging the collapsed guy to bed and even nursing him, what kind of rude treatment is this?’

She wanted to shout at him to take care of himself and dramatically exit while throwing the towel she was holding, but for some reason her feet wouldn’t move easily, as if she had grown fond of him despite herself.

Towards such a Rukna, a series of sharp words flowed:

“I clearly told you before. If you see me collapsed, just ignore me and walk past.”

Hah, that guy is really prickly. Rukna puffed out her lower lip and sighed heavily, causing her platinum blonde bangs to flutter upwards.

“I remember you saying to pretend not to see you even if you’ve collapsed. But how could I just walk past someone who looked like they were about to die?”

“What a compassionate statement. Is this how you lured in Giselle Golden too? Oh, or maybe it was Perta Golden.”

Matian sneered with a crooked tone.

What nonsense was that about luring in Giselle and Perta? Seeing him say such uncharacteristic things, it seemed he really was quite ill.

Rukna nodded towards Matian’s chest.

“Is it because of that demon’s heart thing again that you’re in pain?”

“It’s nothing now.”

Dismissing Rukna’s question, Matian snatched the towel she had brought and began wiping off the red medicine himself after dipping it in water.

“Sigh, of all the ways to apply medicine, why this shape.”

Matian seemed to have given up on pretending in front of Rukna, continuing to use rough speech.

Still, Rukna understood his attitude to some extent, thinking he was a sick person. No, this appearance might even be more comfortable.

“Don’t misunderstand about the medicine being applied. I wasn’t trying to play a trick on you, I just thought it looked quite effective so I followed what the school nurse did.”

“How disappointing. If this red medicine were some golden elixir that cured all diseases, I might have agreed with you.”

“You know you’re more prickly than usual, right?”

At Rukna’s pointed comment, Matian briefly paused wiping off the medicine. Did he just realize it now? Matian smirked and resumed moving his hand.

“Let’s just say I’m embarrassed because I keep letting you see me like this.”

“Like what? Afflicted with prince disease?”

Rukna looked around. Mirrors were hung here and there in the room that was clean to the point of being desolate.

“…Prince disease?”

He had heard of being called princely before, but prince disease was a new term.

Matian frowned and tilted his head.

“What kind of disease is that? A disease of impersonating royalty?”

Is this guy crazy? Rukna wrinkled her face at Matian and explained about prince disease.

“It’s a disease of being extremely fond of oneself. A kind of mental illness where you think you’re the greatest in the world?”

“That’s Chad.”

“You too, you too.”

“Me?”

“Yes. You always look in the mirror with a self-satisfied face. Stop staring at it so much, you’re handsome even without looking.”

“That’s not why I… Never mind. What I meant earlier was that I’ve often let you see me in a weak state.”

As he spoke, Matian scratched his cheek with his finger.

It was as if Rukna’s words about him being handsome were still sticking to that part, making it tickle.

“People can get sick sometimes, why do you have to hide it?”

“If you’re going to spread rumors. Those Ruibitdong or whatever members would love it.”

Matian laughed weakly, recalling the delinquents who had shouted about taking over the school.

If rumors spread that the student council president was struggling to handle the demon’s fragment, the prestige of the student council would plummet.

Those guys who saw the student council as a thorn in their side until just a few months ago would probably laugh saying it serves them right.

“Do I look like trash who would spread rumors about someone being sick?”

The fact that Matian was saying ‘trash’ seemed to indicate he was still in a lot of pain.

Rukna snatched away the wet towel Matian was holding and began wiping off the red medicine she had applied herself.

It was an expression of her intention to take responsibility to the end for what she had done.

The sound of a pounding heart could be clearly felt through their touching hands.

‘Is it because he’s so big? His heart is beating extremely strongly.’

Every time she vigorously wiped off the dried medicine, Matian’s well-defined muscles would swell up firmly and then relax again, a sight that was quite stimulating.

But Rukna remained calm.

The fact that she wasn’t getting too excited while wiping the body of a perfect handsome man was because that guy had ignited Rukna’s anger with his annoying words.

Of course, it was an intense image that would probably come to mind once before going to bed.

At that moment, the closed door suddenly swung open and a breathless voice was heard.

“Huh? What are you doing there, blockhead?”

Bolton, who had arrived panting, alternately examined Rukna and Matian.

Judging by the student council documents in one hand, it seemed he had come after handling urgent work in Matian’s place.

“Would you look at that? You were groping Matian’s chest?”

“I-I wasn’t groping! I was just wiping off something on Matian’s body.”

Rukna quickly withdrew her hand like someone caught doing something bad.

Bolton’s expression as he looked at her was really something.

“That’s exactly like a middle-aged man caught doing something naughty. Don’t you think, Matian?”

While confirming that Matian’s complexion had improved, Bolton doubted Rukna’s intentions.

Rukna, who was suddenly accused of being a pervert, protested her innocence.

“Why would I, a man, grope Matian!”

“What does gender have to do with it? Our esteemed president is popular regardless of gender.”

What does gender have to do with it? As he had felt before, this Bolton guy was less prejudiced than expected.

“There’s even a guy who tries to copy Matian exactly. I think his name was Randall?”

Just then, through the wide open entrance Bolton had left, faint sounds of people talking in the hallway could be heard.