“Are you really okay?”

“My shoulder still hurts. But now I can move my left arm a bit. I heard everything from Bran. It’s thanks to you that I survived.”

Suddenly, my face heated up.

I looked at Bran.

He gave me a thumbs up with an ‘I did well, right?’ expression.

He heard everything? What exactly did he hear?

All the things I did yesterday to save this man flashed before my eyes.

Actions that felt necessary yesterday now seemed so… embarrassing.

I opened the Duke’s mouth with my tongue and let the water in my mouth flow deep into his throat.

I pressed my lips against his wide shoulder and sucked out the poison from his wound. I placed my hand on his chest…

Suddenly, our eyes met.

My cheeks burned, and I couldn’t look at him directly. But the Duke also shyly avoided my gaze.

Bran asked,

“Esdel, are you not feeling well? Do you have a fever? Your face is red.”

“No, I’m fine.”

‘Be quiet, Bran. This clueless guy.’

But Bran didn’t stop talking.

“Oh, Duke. Your face is red too. Is the poison not fully removed? You should lie down!”

“!”

Startled, I approached the Duke.

His ears had turned red.

The Duke said to Bran,

“I’m fine.”

“Bran might be right, Your Highness. Please lie down.”

I was worried.

Then, the Duke leaned back against the cave wall.

I touched his forehead. Fortunately, there was no fever.

“You don’t have a fever, but…”

“Esdel, you sucked the poison out of my wound… Are you okay?”

He asked with concern, pulling the cloak up to his neck.

‘Is he cold?’

I picked up Bran’s cloak from a corner and added another layer over the Duke.

“I’m fine. I, I had to do it… to save you. I tried hard.”

“…”

“I’m sorry.”

“Not at all. Sorry? You saved me. I’m more than grateful.”

The Duke showed a faint smile.

“Not at all.”

“Did you collapse the mountain?”

“Yes. I thought it would be visible from afar. Hoping that the knights would find us.”

“They must be worried.”

The Duke tried to get up.

“Not yet!”

I supported him.

Indeed.

The Duke grimaced and leaned back against the wall again.

Such quick recovery already demonstrated his incredible strength and stamina.

I pulled the cloak up to his neck.

“You shouldn’t exert yourself yet.”

“Should I fetch more food?”

Bran offered.

“Yes, please, Bran.”

He left.

But then an unexpected situation arose.

With Bran gone, only the Duke and I remained in the cave. An unforeseen silence filled the space.

‘It’s a bit awkward.’

I didn’t know where to put my gaze. Glancing over, I saw the Duke was silently watching me.

“Your Highness! Fruit juice! Would you like some? It should be good for recovery.”

Our eyes met, and the Duke smiled again.

“It’s okay.”

“No, please try it.”

I carefully crushed the fruit Bran had found. But I applied too much force, and the fruit got smashed.

‘Oh, foolish me.’

I awkwardly looked at the Duke.

The Duke suppressed a laugh and said,

“There’s no need to make juice. I haven’t lost my teeth, Knight Esdel.”

“Oh, right.”

I felt a bit aggrieved. It would have been nice if he had told me earlier that he could chew the fruit.

Then, from afar, we heard Bran’s shout.

“It’s the knights! They’ve come!”

I joyfully stood up.

“Is that so.”

“?”

‘What’s wrong? Is he still feeling unwell? He seems indifferent.’

“Duke! Oooh!”

Mobius, the general, burst into tears.

“I’ve caused you worry. Sorry, general.”

“No, not at all… These guys… They deserve medals.”
The general wiped his tears as he looked at Bran and me.

He said they had been searching for us across this vast plain without sleep.

Immediately after the reunion, General Mobius pulled out an enormous amount of herbs from his bag.

Then, with the expertise of someone skilled in medicine, he quickly prepared a remedy, feeding it to the Duke and applying it to his wound.

It was truly a relief.

As I watched the Duke’s shoulder being cleanly bandaged, Bran and I shared a small amount of food brought by the knights.

Although I wasn’t very hungry due to the tension, we had a long way to go to the barrier, so eating was necessary.

After a long rest.

General Mobius and another general supported the Duke. His condition had improved significantly compared to the morning.

I said to General Mobius,

“I’ll go down the mountain ahead with Bran.”

“Thank you, Miss Esdel.”

I looked at the Duke standing beside the general. The Duke was looking at me.

“Let’s go together.”

“No, Your Highness. We might encounter beasts.”

His face darkened.

“I’m sorry to be such a burden.”

“Not at all. It’s no trouble.”

How could he say such a thing?

Bran and I headed down the mountain first, prepared for any potential danger.

Near the bottom of the mountain, we noticed a group of unfamiliar people approaching.

‘What’s this?’

They were all on horseback, at least ten in number. They had a similar count to us.

But their skin was a different shade – tanned. Their attire also differed from that of the empire’s.

A bad feeling crept over me.

Tanned skin… could it be?

Then,

“It’s Ssangtoos!”