Over the forest fields resembling spring, a thick mist hung low.
The beautiful flowers blooming everywhere were fragrant, and the bees and butterflies fluttering around them did not lose their way despite the hazy scenery.
Yerpi Deilang gazed dreamily at the fantastical landscape.
The sunlight piercing through the dense mist particularly caught her eye.
There, beneath it, stood a white deer adorned with enormous horns decorated with flowers and vines.
Only then did she realize.
This place was a dream.
“This kind of dream is a first.”
It wasn’t a memory from the original Yerpi’s story.
That alone was enough to make it feel utterly unfamiliar.
The black eyes of the white deer turned toward Yerpi. Those eyes awakened an instinctive realization in her.
She knew she had to face this fantastical being directly.
If she didn’t…
As if reading her innermost thoughts, the white deer turned its head and faced the depths of the forest.
Wait, just a moment.
She wanted to say that. But her lips wouldn’t move, as if they were sealed shut.
As the white deer moved farther away, her consciousness began to blur.
When her vision completely faded, Yerpi awoke in reality.
“Gasp…!”
With a rough exhale, her entire body tensed up.
Her body was drenched in cold sweat. But there was something else strange.
“Why can’t I move my body?”
The moment she opened her eyes, she thrashed as if trying to leap up, but she couldn’t budge from her spot.
It was as if she were wrapped in something solid.
Only upon realizing this did she feel she had truly returned to reality.
A heavy body supporting her from behind and strong arms holding her as if binding her.
And she knew exactly who they belonged to.
“You’re awake.”
A low voice, as if just roused from sleep, tickled Yerpi’s ear.
Her slender frame tensed at the mere sound of his words.
Even so, with her body unable to move, her eyes busily scanned her own form.
“What in the world is going on?”
Thankfully, she was clothed.
But it wasn’t the dress she had been wearing; it was an oversized men’s shirt.
Examining the hem, which clearly belonged to him, Yerpi’s face gradually paled.
Was it because the warmth in his embrace had faded?
With a low sigh, he explained the truth.
“You seem to be misunderstanding, so let me clarify: I didn’t do anything to you. I changed your clothes because you were drenched in cold sweat.”
“Cold sweat? Oh…”
Yerpi reflexively repeated his words, recalling past events.
It was when she was passing the entrance to return to her tent after dining at his quarters.
“That’s when I collapsed.”
Even before attending the dinner, her heart had been racing unusually, and she felt feverish.
She had thought it was just excessive nerves, but it seemed her body had actually been unwell.
Her frail body would fall severely ill at least once a year.
Perhaps the excessive tension had further weakened her already exhausted body.
Even after learning the truth, she remained flustered.
She needed to resolve this situation somehow.
Trying to rise to escape the situation, Yerpi was promptly rebuffed.
“I’m sorry for causing trouble. I’ll get up right away…”
“No need. It’s already been two days.”
It had already been two days since she lost consciousness?
But there was something even more surprising.
While she was unconscious, Raymond Growen had stayed by her side the entire time.
Was it because of the dragon’s blood in him?
The warmth emanating from behind her was unusually intense and heavy.
That solid body was warming Yerpi’s chilled frame.
Her stiff joints softened. But that wasn’t all she felt.
“My body feels light.”
After a severe illness, her frail body typically suffered aftereffects for at least two months.
Though not as potent as dragon’s blood, spices were also influenced by her fate.
The body embracing her from behind still felt unfamiliar.
But why did it feel like this?
“It feels like I’m being protected.”
The mental fulfillment from the cozy warmth raising her body temperature bolstered her frail form.
This was surely a special effect from the relationship between dragons and spices.
As Yerpi convinced herself, a hand reached out and brushed her forehead.
“Your fever’s gone down.”
Having checked her temperature, he rose from the bed.
To care for a body struggling with temperature regulation, physical contact was necessary.
Perhaps that was why.
His tanned skin and broad shoulders.
The clearly defined back muscles and the partially exposed hipbone above his black pants made his bare upper body stand out even more.
It was the first time she had seen a man’s torso this close.
Her cheeks flushed unwittingly.
Left on the bed, looking up at him, Yerpi hurriedly lowered her eyes to the sheets the moment their gazes met.
“I’m sorry.”
Flustered, she reflexively apologized.
Then, pulling on his shirt, Raymond looked at her and asked.
“What are you sorry for now?”
When he asked like that, she had no words.
The apology was reflexive, and even she couldn’t pinpoint why she said it.
Looking down at her, Raymond rubbed his tired eyes and spoke.
“Don’t apologize unless it’s a situation that genuinely calls for it.”
Was this a warning?
About to apologize out of habit again, Yerpi quickly shut her mouth.
As if expecting this, Raymond clicked his tongue and reached for his cloak.
Meanwhile, Yerpi kept her eyes fixed on the bed sheets.
With a short sigh, he began wrapping the cloak tightly around her body.
“…?”
Caught off guard, wrapped in the black cloak, Yerpi blinked.
“When you’re ready, come out. We’re leaving today.”
Having prepared himself, he left Yerpi behind and turned away.
Just before Raymond exited the tent, a delicate voice stopped him.
“Um…”
He could have ignored it and walked out.
But Raymond paused at the door, and his demeanor gave Yerpi courage.
“What is it?”
His short prompt urged her to speak.
Even then, the texture of the cloak wrapped around her was soft and warm.
So, it felt okay to say this much.
“Thank you for helping me.”
Raymond’s eyebrow twitched. But this time, he said nothing.
After watching Yerpi for a moment, he left the tent.
His final glance felt faintly like a glare, but to her, not being criticized felt like progress.
Yerpi slipped out of bed.
The low platform-like bed had several layers of blankets underneath, serving as cushions.
After gazing at the bed for a moment, Yerpi loosened the cloak and adjusted Raymond’s oversized shirt to fit her height and frame.
Draping the cloak back on, she didn’t look like an elegant lady, but at least she no longer appeared strange.
As she tidied her appearance and prepared to step outside, she suddenly paused.
In the empty tent, silence hung in the air.
Amid the still air, Yerpi recalled the dream she had before waking.
In this land of mythical beasts, there were dragon kin ruling over each domain.
They were the kings of mythical beasts, created by ancient dragons, governing each season.
To safely escape this land, Yerpi needed their help.
“So I can safely leave the Growen territory.”
In the near future, Raymond would be connected with the heroine, Charlotte Deilang.
But even so, he would surely need Yerpi as a spice.
In the original story, Yerpi, driven by jealousy, threw herself into becoming a mere tool.
But she was determined not to let that happen.
“The recognition of the kings.”
The kings of mythical beasts held special influence over the lands they ruled.
Those who earned the recognition of all of them could make one wish in this land.
In the original story, Yerpi read about this legend in the Growen castle’s library but gave up, deeming the conditions impossible.
She convinced herself it was just a legend.
But what she read was real, appearing rarely in the history of the Growen family.
Those who met and earned the recognition of all four kings were exceedingly rare but did exist.
Despite the slim odds, Yerpi had a clear reason to seek them out.
“Because I need to separate myself from my abilities as a spice.”
The ending she desired was a divorce from Raymond.
After passing her abilities to the heroine, Yerpi would leave the realm of mythical beasts to find a new life.
So, there was no time to dwell on love or lament her situation.
Not now, either.
“This isn’t the time for this.”
Snapped out of her reverie from the lingering dream, Yerpi came to her senses.
Already two days behind schedule, she couldn’t delay the entire group any longer.
Adjusting the hem of her cloak, Yerpi stepped outside.
There, she saw knights and aides already halfway through dismantling the tents.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
_____
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