On a late night when even the moon was obscured by clouds, Sharti got up from her bed and was massaging her heavy limbs. But no matter how much she rubbed, her tense muscles wouldn’t loosen.

Sharti shook her head.

‘I knew this would happen.’

After pounding a whole sack of herbs all day, it was no wonder her wrists were sore.

On top of that, her legs were stiff from hastily fleeing the unexpected appearance of the Tower Master.

‘My body and eyes are tired, but I can’t sleep.’

Sharti sighed and hugged her knees.

The village of Ashu was now safe. The Tower Master had come personally to promise protection for the village, and the mercenary group would now coexist with the village and be responsible for the safety of its residents. Fortunately, the results of her meddling worries had been successful.

Now Sharti could focus solely on helping patients recover their weakened strength as a doctor.

‘Ah, I don’t know…’

Sharti flopped over onto her side.

Apart from things going well, Sharti had felt frustrated and confused all day.

‘Who can I blame for being foolish?’

Sharti tossed and turned, groaning. As she did so, she unconsciously twirled her disheveled hair on the blanket.

In the darkness, her wheat-colored hair looked like the black hair it had briefly transformed into by magic earlier that day.

Naturally, Ren’s confession reflexively came to mind again.

[I wanted to remember only the face I remember, the face I like.]

Sharti pulled the pillow over and pressed it tightly against her face.

Her ears began to feel hot again.

[Just to avoid any strange misunderstandings, the face I find pretty is the one hidden under that hood right now.]

Sharti suddenly lifted the pillow and swung it at the air. Not just her nose that had been pressed against the pillow, but her entire face was flushed red.

In the darkness, along with the sound of her heavy breathing, the rapid beating of her heart could be clearly heard.

Sharti finally let the pillow drop onto her face.

‘Ren said not to have any strange misunderstandings.’

But why was she making such a fuss, unable to sleep in the middle of the night, attaching unnecessary meaning to his words?

Ren had simply confessed his preferred face. He had only clarified Sharti’s misunderstanding with a plain, matter-of-fact meaning.

Sharti hung her head.

‘But it was the first time.’

It was the first time she had been told her face was pretty. Above all, it was the first time someone had expressed romantic interest in her.

‘And saying he wanted to remember it as the face he liked.’

At first, she thought Ren was just being kind, saying flattering words for her low self-esteem. She thought he was clumsily trying to comfort her with white lies.

But in that moment when the wind blew, Sharti was unable to respond to the sincerity conveyed before she could even avoid it.

The blue-green eyes of Ren that she met then remained vividly in her mind.

‘This won’t do. Maybe if I get some night air, I’ll be able to sleep.’

After being in a cold place and coming back inside, the warmth under the blanket would surely feel cozy.

Then sleep would certainly come easily.

But as Sharti got up, she immediately changed her mind due to the aching pain in her legs.

‘Well, I can still get some night air just by opening a window.’

With that quick decision, Sharti crawled over, leaning on the wall to stand up.

She pulled back the short curtain and unlocked the window latch. Just as Sharti opened the window—

“…!”

A pair of large eyes were staring at Sharti right in front of her face.

With heart-stopping fear, Sharti stumbled backwards as her throat was seized. She struggled, grasping at the arm and hand of her assailant that had reached out before she knew it.

‘Can’t… breathe…!’

Sharti squinted her eyes, choking. Taking advantage of the darkness, the intruder who had climbed through the window into the room had their entire face covered except for their eyes.

Swish, the masked figure silently increased the strength in their grip while drawing a dagger from their waist. Sharti’s face was reflected in the cold, sharp blade.

Physiological tears welled up in Sharti’s eyes.

‘—The window again!’

In this moment of crisis, Sharti inwardly cried out in indignation as she grasped the small pouches in her bosom.

Then without hesitation, she burst the powder from the pouches towards the masked figure. Poof! As green powder sprayed in front of their eyes, the masked figure reflexively flung Sharti away.

‘…!’

Released from the masked figure’s grip, Sharti pressed herself against the wall, clutching her throat.

‘H-how did they get into the village?’

The pair of chilling eyes were becoming bloodshot. Though they must have felt the searing pain in their eyes, the masked figure only staggered, not letting out even a small groan.

Though knowing she should run away, Sharti’s legs had no strength. From the moment she opened the window and met those eerie eyes right in front of her face, her legs had given out.

‘I need to call the mercenaries, o-or Grandmother.’

Sharti trembled as she took out a small pouch filled with paralysis powder and clutched it in her hand.

She had only one chance. And that was a gamble only possible if the masked figure didn’t throw the dagger and kill Sharti in one blow.

‘They’ll probably kill me and escape to somewhere else faster than I can call for help.’

Gulp. She swallowed dryly.

“…”

As if growing accustomed to the pain, the masked figure smoothly turned their body to glare at Sharti with murderous intent.

The pair of bloodshot eyes glaring at her made Sharti’s knees weak. She gasped for breath and squeezed her eyes shut.

‘—Now!’

Just as the masked figure closed the distance in one breath to swing the dagger, Sharti hurriedly sprinkled the paralysis powder.

And she shouted with all her might.

“Reeeeeeen—!”

In moments when one’s life is threatened, various thoughts tend to arise.

Scream.

Cry for help.

Call for Grandmother.

Alert the mercenaries.

But her brain with its emergency lights on couldn’t follow rational judgment.

[Sha—.]

Instead, her brain had learned through previous experience.

It unconsciously told her who she should seek in times of danger.

That’s why.

In that moment when she might die, when she closed her eyes, Sharti thought of only one person.

The one person who had been angrier than anyone at not being able to protect her from Dodint.

“Sha!”

There was a thud, followed by the sound of something crashing and breaking.

At the same time, a soft blanket was draped over Sharti’s head.

“Just a moment, keep your eyes closed. Cover your ears too.”

His voice sounded even more clipped than usual, probably because he was gritting his teeth. Oddly enough, Ren’s voice like that made Sharti feel reassured and safe, so she quickly covered her ears.

Of course, that didn’t completely block out the sound.

Thud, thwack—. Thud! Thud thud thud!! The sound of merciless beating echoed like drumbeats. Turning her eyes away from the scene of rampant violence, Sharti tried to focus only on her pounding heart.

And soon after, Sharti sensed someone approaching beyond the blanket.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“N-no, I’m not. No, really.”

Sharti nodded. She wanted to lift her head to reassure Ren, but she was in her nightclothes without a hood, and there might be marks left on her neck from being choked, so she tried her best to answer without her voice shaking.

‘The bruises will probably show up on my neck soon.’

She could tell without even checking her neck.

Her voice, which already sounded like a frog’s croak, was a bit hoarse.

As Sharti was feeling around her neck, Ren embraced her along with the blanket.

“R-Ren?”

“…Thank goodness. Really.”

A tremor could be felt in Ren’s slightly cracked voice.

As that trembling was transmitted through Ren’s embrace, Sharti finally realized she was alive.

The tip of her nose stung, and Sharti bit her lip hard.

What a truly wretched and unlucky fate.

How long had it been since they got rid of Dodint, and now she faced another threat like this?

“I’m sorry…”

A muffled voice escaped from Sharti’s lips.

She had dragged Ren into danger again. By this point, she was losing face to look at Ren.

“You must have been really scared. You’re talking nonsense.”

Ren ignored Sharti’s apology as if it wasn’t even worth responding to.

“It’s not nonsense…”

“At times like this, you’re supposed to get angry. Not talk nonsense.”

“But when did I talk nonsense…?”

As Sharti was about to protest indignantly, Ren chuckled.

“That’s right. Like that.”

“…”

Sharti was at a loss for words.

Get angry, he says. Who was she supposed to get angry at?

‘Does he mean I should complain to the heavens about why these things only happen to me?’

Sharti glared at Ren and sniffled quietly.

Ren pulled the blanket up to wipe Sharti’s face.

“I mean you should get angry that your servant didn’t come running immediately when you were in danger. Next time, tell me to sense it and come running even before you call.”

Sharti, who had buried her face in the blanket, looked up with round eyes as if dumbfounded.

It should have sounded like humor to lighten the mood, but Ren was clearly serious.

‘He keeps calling himself my servant.’

Ren seemed to like addressing Sharti highly and lowering himself.

At first he had seemed reluctant about being treated as an assistant or slave, but now he had gotten used to it.

Having heard it from Ren so often, Sharti too was less embarrassed by it now.

“But you did well.”

Ren’s stiff expression softened a little.

“This time you called for me.”

“…”

“A slave is definitely better than a patient.”

He meant that a slave he could protect was better than a patient who needed protection.

Seeing Ren’s pleased expression, Sharti let out a silent laugh. Only Ren would say a slave is better.

Indeed, the more she heard Ren’s voice, the tension in her body gradually melted away.

“Were you awake?”

“It seemed like you weren’t sleeping.”

Unlike her who couldn’t hear Ren’s presence despite her confidence in her hearing, Ren apparently could hear her tossing and turning even with a wall between them.

Sharti inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

‘Good thing I didn’t say any strange things to myself out loud.’

She resolved to only think to herself from now on when Ren was nearby.

“I was waiting to give you a massage.”

“Waiting? There’s no way I would ask you for a massage at this hour.”

Moreover, Sharti had thought Ren was sleeping, so no matter how much her legs hurt, she wouldn’t have called for him.

Sharti looked at him quizzically, knowing Ren couldn’t possibly not know such an obvious fact.

“That’s right.”

Ren calmly acknowledged it.

“So I waited.”

“Until I called for you?”

“Sha, until your thoughts were sorted out.”

Ren unwrapped his arms that had been embracing Sharti along with the blanket. As the pressure that had enveloped her body and given her a sense of security disappeared, Sharti strangely felt cold.

Before Sharti could shiver, Ren quickly found a robe and put the hood on her first.

“I thought once that complicated mind of yours since this afternoon was sorted out, you’d feel a bit less awkward.”

His hands were rough as he carefully closed the robe for her.

“Then I thought by morning you’d be able to look at me normally again.”

“…”

“Or it would have been fine if you came out of your room from frustration and ran into me.”

What an accurate judgment.

Sharti rolled her eyes slightly. She felt self-loathing, wondering if she was simple enough for Ren to easily figure out.

Then suddenly, she realized something.

‘…He’s gotten used to it.’

The more time they spent thinking about each other, observing each other, and being together, just as Sharti had, Ren too had grown accustomed to her.

[Because you, Sha, are there in the place I return to.]

She recalled what Ren had said before.

At the same time, his smile that had bloomed with the wind today flickered in her mind.

The trembling that had always been transmitted from him now tickled Sharti’s chest.

“…Sha?”

Unconsciously, Sharti grasped Ren’s hand.

Her slender fingers that couldn’t even grip tightly were just urgent.

‘It’s a misunderstanding.’

Their gazes intertwined in the darkness.

Thoughts of denial without conviction continued.

‘Don’t attach meaning to it.’

In the darkness, only Ren’s eyes were clearly visible.

As if entranced by his blue-green eyes, Sharti slowly opened her mouth, ignoring the signals her brain was sending.

And finally, Sharti asked.

“Ren, do you like me?”

Sharti didn’t know what answer she wanted to hear.

But one thing was certain.

“If I answer—”

Ren had no intention of avoiding it.

“Can you handle it?”