‘It must be someone else’s blood stains, right?’

Even after lying on the bed, sleep wouldn’t come.

After tossing and turning for a while, Reus entered the room, having changed into his sleepwear. Instead of his usual nightgown, Reus was wearing long pants and long sleeves, both top and bottom, as he passed by the bed and headed straight to the bathroom.

As if he had something to hide desperately…

Seeing his appearance, my uneasiness grew even more, making it impossible to fall asleep.

Just then, the sound of running water ceased, and the click of a door opening could be heard. As the sound of footsteps approached from the bathroom to the bed, I slightly raised my body. Reus, whose eyes met mine, paused for a moment but then nonchalantly sat on the bed.

“Reus…”

“I will listen to what you have to say tomorrow.”

Even small movements were deeply laced with fatigue. So, for today, it was right to quietly back down. However, I couldn’t help but ask what I was curious about.

“Why aren’t you wearing your nightgown today…?”

Without turning his head, Reus leaned his back against the bed’s headboard. Then, he slowly replied in a slightly metallic voice.

“Do you want an explanation for even that?”

I could feel Reus’s mood getting worse and worse, but…

‘I keep smelling blood…’

After a brief contemplation, I mustered up the courage and abruptly lifted Reus’s top. Immediately, Reus swatted my hand away quite forcefully with a sharp gesture.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to do from earlier.”

Perhaps he was suppressing his anger for a moment, but there was a gap between his words. However, I had already checked the condition of Reus’s body underneath his clothes.

‘His injuries are so severe…’

Although it was just a brief glance, Reus’s body was a complete mess. It was no different from when he was severely injured in the Silence Forest last time… No, perhaps there were even more severe injuries. Yet, on top of those wounds, there were only crude treatments.

For a while, I couldn’t continue speaking and got up from the bed.

“The doctor… We need to call Loteo and get a doctor…”

As I tried to leave, Reus pulled me back and made me sit on the bed. A cold, low voice penetrated my ears.

“Didn’t I clearly tell you last time? Worrying is not your part.”

Even in the silence that followed his words, which were laced with irritation, a hint of annoyance could be felt.

His gaze had noticeably turned cold, making me frightened, but I suppressed my fear and said what I wanted to say.

“I know you don’t like me being concerned, but… the doctor…”

“I said it’s not necessary… Didn’t I?… I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t bother me any further.”

Just from moving his body for a moment, the pain seemed evident as Reus stopped speaking midway and frowned. He tried to mask the pain with a sigh, but the aftermath of the injuries wasn’t easily concealed.

But there was nothing I could do. Was this the price he had to pay for changing the order of the world?

It felt like my throat was densely stuffed with cotton, making it difficult to breathe.

* * *

He was now at his limit of tolerating the irritation.

Why did the usually quiet woman have to interfere at times like this? Even in the Silence Forest, she unnecessarily intruded into his life, and since then, she had been stimulating his nerves at every turn.

Reus thought that if the woman interfered one more time, he would definitely embarrass her, regardless of whether she got scared or not.

However, the woman didn’t continue speaking, nor did she budge from her spot. Was she hurt by something as trivial as this?

Anyway, this was also a very annoying aspect of her.

But then, Roel tightly grasped the collar of Reus’s clothes as he was about to lie down.

“If you don’t want to show your wounds to others… I… I can treat them…”

This time, he was about to mercilessly push her away. But when he turned his head to look, Roel had a dangerously pale complexion.

In the end, contrary to his intention, Reus suppressed his anger once again.

“I said it’s not necessary…”

Reus was already in a state where it was a feat just to sit upright.

The large and small wounds that tore through his flesh were injuries that an ordinary person could never endure while maintaining a clear mind.

Perhaps even a single breeze would make him collapse in agony. Even at this very moment, the cold and sharp pains from the wide-open wounds were seething, continuously testing his patience.

But the woman showed no intention of letting go of his collar. As she poured oil on his exhausted patience, Reus couldn’t hold back and fiercely swatted Roel’s hand away with a loud smack.

With this much, even that woman should stop.

Until now, she had always been like that, so he thought she would be the same today. However, Roel didn’t move as Reus expected.

As if not feeling embarrassed by having her hand harshly pushed away, she grabbed the hem of Reus’s clothes tightly again.

“Let me treat you… No, please let me treat you…”

Seeing the small hand desperately grasping the end of his clothes, Reus’s thin last thread of patience snapped.

“There’s a limit to being annoying…!”

But Reus abruptly stopped moving as he was about to sit up.

The woman’s face, which had been fine until just before, was now drenched in tears. Large teardrops continuously fell, passing through her reddened eyes.

It was an unfamiliar feeling, but Reus was definitely perplexed right now. Such days had become more frequent since meeting this woman. Even though that fact was once again displeasing, strangely, he couldn’t bring himself to scold her.

Even in the midst of this, Roel was still clutching the hem of Reus’s clothes with a hand that couldn’t threaten a passing small animal.

Her delicate hand was gripping the fabric with such force that the back of her hand had turned white. Moreover, perhaps because she was crying, her body was trembling.

But Roel endured until the end.

“Please let me treat you…”

It wasn’t even her own body, so what was there to get so worked up about? Everything about her was truly incomprehensible from beginning to end.

“Why are you the one crying?”

Although his tone wasn’t particularly sharp, Roel, who was already frightened, bit her trembling lower lip and had a determined look in her eyes.

“Until you say I can treat you… I… I will keep doing this.”

At this point, Reus was even curious. How did Roel Ivelle perceive him?

A trivial affection? He had known for a long time that she didn’t have such feelings.

It was one of the reasons why the damned Roel Ivelle stood out so much in the council. Her gaze was distinctly different from others. Most of the time, there was a faint dissatisfaction, and sometimes, there was even an inexplicable resentment in Roel’s eyes.

Ironically, it was also the reason why he had decided to use Roel Ivelle after much contemplation.

Because she didn’t seem like someone who would cling to him emotionally. Because it seemed like they could maintain an appropriate distance from each other and pursue their own benefits.

In the endlessly flowing tears, there was no trace of any trivial feelings like affection, so his thoughts remained unchanged.

Reus intently gazed at Roel.

‘…Guilt.’

He felt a sense of guilt in the rising tears. Why did Roel Ivelle feel guilty towards him?

Before the question could be resolved, Roel opened her trembling lips and stutteringly continued.

“Last time… when you got hurt in the hallway, Your Highness treated me… So, can’t you think of this as a way to repay that favor…? I will just properly stop the bleeding of the major wounds… and wrap them with bandages… I will only do that much…”

Roel seemed to be choking on her own sorrow, occasionally gasping for breath. Thanks to that, Reus had long forgotten his irritation and had been scrutinizing her for a while now, but she didn’t seem to notice.

“I really mean it… I won’t bother you any more than that…”

She might collapse from crying at this rate.

Seeing Roel’s pale complexion that looked like she could faint at any moment, Reus lightly clicked his tongue.

“…I understand, so stop crying.”

As soon as she heard the words of agreement, Roel, who had been pitifully shedding tears, abruptly raised her head. It wasn’t as if he was giving her something precious, yet she reacted so swiftly.

What was even more ridiculous was that the woman was now pondering whether what she heard was real or not.

Reus felt like laughing absurdly but barely held it back and slightly relaxed his body.

Roel then got up from her spot and hurriedly moved around. After bustling about, she somehow knew where the first-aid kit was located and skillfully found it, returning to the bed.

But unlike just a moment ago when she was moving like an agile squirrel, she suddenly hesitated noticeably.

From the touch that gently brushed against him like cotton fluff, he instantly felt the reason for her hesitation.

‘When did she have the freedom to look whenever she wanted?’

However, Reus didn’t point it out and took off his top. He could vividly feel Roel’s body stiffening at the sight of his wounds.

The woman, who had been standing still in a daze for a moment, soon began the treatment.

But her touch was so careful. His nerves had been torn apart by pain all day long, but now he felt a ticklish sensation. Was this woman planning to spend the entire night just applying ointment?

“Isn’t this enough?”

At those words, Roel’s body trembled, and she hastily reached for the bandages. Along with the bandages, Roel’s touch settled on Reus’s shoulder. It was as if she was asking if it was okay to just do this much.

How could her emotions be so clearly readable even from her gestures?

As the man sitting in front of her remained still, Roel began wrapping the bandages with utmost diligence. Although she struggled for quite a long time, Reus waited silently without showing any irritation.

Despite her clumsy efforts, the end result wasn’t bad. Anyway, even if he stayed still, his body would recover faster than others, so it was cumbersome, but…

For some reason, Reus swallowed his grumbling once again.

“Are you finished?”

“Yes, yes…! I’m all done.”

Roel seemed to want to make her words clear, even taking a step back. She was truly a amusing woman.