“What have I hidden?”

Charlotte brushed her neck. Her reddish hair tangled messily.

“You have nothing to hide?”

“I’ve never hidden anything with lies.”

I never intended to hide anything. That said, I’ve never directly spoken about it either.

‘So did you hide it?’

Every beginning was my own death, and if it’s not a matter of saying, ‘I have died once,’ it’s better to keep silent.

Benjamin touched Charlotte’s shoulder and leaned in.

“Your breathing has slowed.”

“Ah… has it?”

“You also seem listless.”

“I’m a little drained. The medication is strong.”

“Is it the sedative from the palace?”

Aron had provided a breathing stabilizer, and thanks to the medication, my breathing had become much more comfortable.

“The medicine is potent but effective.”

“I didn’t know the human body could be this weak.”

Benjamin gently touched her frail shoulders. They seemed so fragile they might crumble if squeezed too hard.

“Is the investigation over?”

“Just a few more things.”

“……”

“Did you ever go to the southern continent when you were young?”

“No.”

“Or did your father frequently go to the southern continent?”

“No, not him either. My father thought the southern continent was uncivilized.”

I know why he’s bringing up this topic.

The Lupetic disease.

He had discussed it with Aron outside.

“Was your father often away when you were a child?”

“Yes. He was not around.”

“So, you have been…”

“Mostly alone.”

Strength flowed into his arms.

“You look a bit bitter.”

“I wanted to be ordinary, but my ordinary life is difficult even in this life.”

Nothing significant has changed since my last death.

“You seem to cross between past and present.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Your tenses are mixed. That’s probably why my perspective and yours diverge.”

Charlotte swallowed. A groaning sound sank down her throat.

A past forgotten as if it never existed.

A previous life only I remember, forgotten by everyone else.

“Char.”

He pressed his lips against Charlotte’s collarbone. His hot breath tingled her skin.

“Charlotte.”

Benjamin murmured her name, savoring it.

No. It wasn’t just her name that he was savoring.

Benjamin gently bit her skin. A tingling pain spread across her collarbone.

“Um.”

Charlotte groaned as if scratching her throat.

Stimulation rose from her waist. Her muscles tensed.

He firmly supported her side. His large hands held and supported her waist.

“Why are you constantly trying to slip away?”

“I’m feeling a little stiff.”

“You used to kiss me in your sleep and tangle our breaths…”

Charlotte stretched her arm and blocked his mouth.

“What will you do if you still act awkward and freeze up?”

He took her wrist.

He gently bit her palm and pressed it with his lips. The sensation was hot and tender.

“Even your pulse is small and delicate, like you.”

He bit her wrist’s skin again.

“I will be away for a few days.”

“Is it because of the monster activities?”

“Likely so. I’ll be gone for about three days, but don’t skip meals because I’m not there.”

Immediately after, he knocked on the bedroom door. At that moment, their conversation also ended.

“Your Majesty, it’s Roskella. The captain of the knights has come to the office.”

And then.

The next day, Benjamin was gone.

Poputa border Zone 1.

The monster Kraken stretched its tentacles.

“Don’t touch the Kraken’s ink!”

The commander of Poputa shouted.

“Create distance if their ink sacs swell!”

Kraken ink was poison itself. It corroded the skin upon contact.

As the ink splattered, the deck of the warship turned black.

“These creatures have such stubborn tentacles.”

“Cut them off well. If you get caught by those tentacles, you’ll be dragged to the sea… What are you doing there!”

The Kraken tightly gripped a foot soldier’s waist. His body shot into the air, and dozens of Kraken tentacles surged from the sea below.

At the same time, Kraken tentacles plopped down onto the deck.

‘Heeek!’
The soldier who fell on the deck, pinned by the monster’s leg, struggled and managed to crawl out from underneath the carcass.

A man in a robe stood next to him.

A… an officer?

Shadows loomed large, thanks to the overcast skies.

“…Is this your first deployment?”

“Yes, this is my first time!”

“You’ll have it rough. Don’t show your back on the deck. They’ll drag you into the sea and feed you to their young,” Benjamin said as he removed his robe.

“My secretary almost died being dragged into the sea on his first deployment.”

“Your Majesty, is that incident still mentioned? There have been no such incidents since the first deployment.”

Roskella argued, feeling unjust, but the intelligence officers interrupted him.

“They are hiding below. It’s endless like this, so it might be best to blow them up and pull them up all at once.”

“Take out the explosives and assist the soldiers.”

The soldier looked like he was about to die.

“Just go.”

The soldier ran off quickly after hearing this. Rushing with a sword towards the monster was a part of his duties in Poputa.

Soon after, the commander of Poputa approached.