The Wolf Lord is Enduring (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 16
El, who had been sleeping curled up in a corner of the large bed, opened her eyes groggily.
Rubbing her slightly swollen eyelids and blinking, she realized something was different from usual.
This wasn’t the eaves where she always slept, wrapped tightly in herself.
Her round eyes scanned the ornate ceiling and the bedding enveloping her body, one after another.
‘I’m still at the Duke’s estate.’
Startled by the realization that she was still in such an extraordinary place, El abruptly sat up.
Well, to be precise, she sat up so suddenly that her vision spun, and she flopped backward onto the bed again.
‘What is this?’
El let out a silent cry of frustration.
Her body, now that the medicine’s effect had worn off, ached all over again and refused to move as she wished, leaving her feeling pitiful.
On top of that, her plan to run away had ended in complete failure.
‘Nothing’s going right at all.’
El pressed her arm against her forehead and groaned, “Ugh…”
Then, suddenly, she found herself wondering, ‘How did I fall asleep last night?’
As she continued this thought, El raised her hand and stared at it.
One hand, in particular, felt strangely different from usual—as if someone else’s warmth still lingered upon it.
“Could it be…?”
She was alone in the spacious room, yet she didn’t feel alone.
‘Did someone stay by my side all night?’
El thought it must be a truly joyful thing to hold onto someone else’s warmth.
A smile naturally formed at the corners of her lips, and a faint blush returned to her dry, bruised cheeks.
‘I must have been able to sleep because someone held my hand.’
“What a… kind person.”
El looked toward the chair where he must have sat.
She had always been terribly afraid of thunder and lightning.
When she was even younger than now, she’d been captured by slave traders and put aboard a ship bound for an unknown destination.
That ship had wrecked in a typhoon, and El had drifted ashore clinging to a broken plank of wood.
Until her feet finally touched solid ground, she’d endured waves that seemed ready to swallow everything whole, along with the pouring rain and crashing thunder and lightning.
That experience had left a deep trauma, making rainy days utterly dreadful for her.
El had believed she’d never escape this fear and would live with it her whole life.
Yet last night, she’d fallen asleep as if by a miracle.
“He really is such a kind person. If he keeps treating me this well… oh, maybe I’ll—”
Her face, which had nearly glowed with joy, instantly twisted, and her small hands covered her eyes.
She realized that if she left this place, that fear would surely return.
Ignorance might have been bliss, but the relief she’d tasted once was unbearably sweet.
Only now, in this silent space, completely alone, did El understand just how profoundly this experience would affect her.
Look already—
Hadn’t her heart shifted its shape so quickly, even though just moments ago she’d been lamenting her failed escape?
‘This is terrible. I wish I’d lived my whole life without ever knowing this.’
When she’d never experienced it, she hadn’t known any better, and life outside had seemed fine.
But after feeling such comfort, she’d grown greedy.
And now, the fear of losing all this came rushing over her.
‘It was never mine to begin with. Since it isn’t mine, it can’t last forever. I shouldn’t want more.’
El exhaled sharply and slapped her cheeks.
It stung enough to dry her tears instantly, but it also cleared her thoughts neatly.
She held no regrets over things she could never possess.
She’d been abandoned since birth and had never truly owned anything.
This was merely a stroke of passing luck.
El decided it would be better not to hold onto something only to lose it later—better to let go of it herself from the start.
‘I don’t want them to suffer because of me, and this kind of life doesn’t suit me anyway. I need to get a grip.’
With her eyes covered, El clenched her teeth tightly.
After taking a deep breath, she made up her mind to leave immediately and stepped down from the bed.
At that moment, her foot landed on an oversized pair of slippers that didn’t fit her.
“What should I do…?”
El hesitated over whether to wear the soft, furry slippers or not.
But her hesitation didn’t last long.
Since wearing slippers seemed like proper etiquette here, she quickly slipped her feet in and began to walk.
Yet after only a few steps, one slipper came off.
“See? This is exactly what I meant.”
The ill-fitting slipper seemed to be telling her she didn’t belong here.
It reminded her that she’d be swept away and crushed if she overstepped her bounds.
‘Since when did I start wearing things like this? They don’t suit me.’
Thinking it wasn’t hers anyway, El briskly took off the slippers and set them down neatly. Just removing a single pair of shoes made her steps feel suddenly lighter.
She realized once again that this—being unburdened—was far more comfortable and suited her better than trying to properly equip herself.
What she’d experienced here was merely a brief diversion in her harsh life.
She decided to treat it like meeting an angel in a dream—just a nice memory to carry with her.
‘I met incredibly kind and thoughtful people, and thanks to them, I’ve lived like a real person for the first time in my life. That’s enough. Besides, I even got a truly beautiful name and was called by it.’
El padded softly across the spacious room with her small feet, stopped before the door, and bowed deeply.
“Thank you for the gift.”
Though she didn’t know where the Duke’s household members were, El sincerely expressed her gratitude.
Then, with a light heart, she turned around and opened the door.
“Oh.”
Behind the gently sliding door, he appeared.
Though she hadn’t done anything wrong, El stumbled backward like a startled kitten.
Raphelian woke up in the morning thoroughly bewildered.
‘Did I really sleep that deeply?’
And not only that—he’d been sitting in a chair, holding someone else’s hand.
Even when lying comfortably in bed, he rarely fell asleep easily, yet he’d slept soundly through the night in such an awkward position.
Thanks to this rare, restful sleep, his mind felt clear and refreshed, leaving him in a rather pleasant mood.
Finding the situation absurd, Raphelian chuckled softly and performed a dry wash with his bare hands.
‘Is this also because of El?’
Ever since becoming entangled with this small, unfamiliar being, he’d been caught in a series of inexplicable situations. She’d first given him breathing room in his chaotic life, and now she’d even granted him rest through the long night.
He gazed at El, who was breathing slowly and evenly in her sleep.
This moment felt similar to that earlier instant of perfect stillness she’d brought him.
‘Right… I didn’t bring El here just out of a sense of duty… I brought her because of this very feeling.’
Amid the flood of recent events, he’d momentarily forgotten this truth—but now it resurfaced clearly.
‘Indeed, this was no mere coincidence.’
After spending the night with El, Raphelian was certain.
There was definitely something special about this delicate human girl.
And he absolutely could not let her go.
It was the first time he’d ever felt such selfish desire and longing to hold onto someone so tightly.
‘I simply can’t fathom why this is happening.’
Floundering in this unfamiliar emotion, Raphelian wondered what exactly about El could be affecting him this way.
He carefully recalled the library’s catalog, trying to figure out which book might answer this question.
Just then, El gently interrupted him.
“Mm…”
Murmuring sleepily, El fidgeted and tugged at his hand.
Raphelian, setting his thoughts aside for a moment, let himself be pulled toward her before gently slipping his hand free.
The spot where her warmth had lingered felt strangely empty.
He stared at his own hand for a long while before turning his gaze back to El.
“Sleep well.”
Smiling gently, Raphelian watched El quietly for a moment, then rose, feeling it would be impolite to linger longer.
Just as he’d quietly stepped away from the bedside, he suddenly stopped.
“Oh.”
As he grew farther from El, an unexpected wave of unease washed over him.
Along with the anxiety, a sudden thought struck him.
‘If you were to leave me, what would I do?’
Raphelian turned to look at El and let out a slow sigh.
The source of his unease was clear.
The peace he’d tasted through El was so sweet that he feared losing it. The man who once feared nothing in the world was now afraid.
‘I never imagined a human girl I’d only just met could affect me this deeply.’
Covering his lips—on which an involuntary, hollow laugh threatened to escape—with his hand, Raphelian quickly left the room to shake off this feeling.
“Young Master? What brings you here…?”
Just as he closed the door and turned around, Irina stood before him.
“To check.”
“It seems it’s noisy outside—you must have woken early.”
“Oh, well…”
Though he showed no sign outwardly, Raphelian was flustered.
‘Was it noisy?’
Pushing the thought aside, he feigned normalcy.
“It seemed like rain last night, but it actually snowed—only over the Duke’s residence, though. They’re clearing the snow now, so it’s noisier than usual. My apologies, Young Master.”
“Riello must have used his ability in his sleep again. What brings you here, butler?”
Raphelian replied casually, as if this were an everyday occurrence.
Yet for some reason, his eyes flickered strangely.
“I was about to wake the young lady for breakfast.”
“Young lady… That doesn’t sound bad at all.”
“His Lordship gave the order himself.”
“Let her sleep—she’s sleeping so peacefully, unaware of the world.”
“Understood.”
He passed by Irina, who bowed in obedience to his command.
Once he stepped out of the corridor leading to the guest room, the sounds of daily life reached his ears.
Only then did Raphelian realize that when he was with El, his senses remained perfectly controlled without any conscious effort.
‘I’ve always had to keep my nerves on edge just to control my senses…’
Eager to find an explanation for this phenomenon, Raphelian quickened his pace.
Thus, he spent a long while rummaging through the library.
But unfortunately, he found nothing of note.
Around eleven o’clock, Raphelian left the library, gathered some food suitable for El, and headed toward the guest room.
He remembered the servants’ idle chatter: ‘The one who brings food is the kindest of all.’
As he stood before the door, a soft voice reached his ears.
“Thank you for the gift.”
‘What does that mean?’
Curiosity piqued, Raphelian raised his hand to knock.
Just then, the door opened.
“Oh.”
El let out a short, startled sound, as if she’d encountered someone she shouldn’t have.
Seeing El’s reaction, Raphelian wondered, ‘Did I come for nothing?’
Nevertheless, he adjusted the tray in his hands and offered the gentlest, most amiable smile he could muster.
“May I come in?”
“Uh… Y-yes, yes!”
Momentarily dazed by his bright smile, El belatedly stammered her reply.
As if ashamed of her earlier blank stare, she quickly stepped back to make way.
“Were you on your way somewhere? Did I interrupt you?”
“No, not at all.”
El couldn’t bring herself to speak plainly.
The moment she saw him, for some reason, the words ‘I don’t want to stay here. I want to leave’ simply wouldn’t come out.
‘It’s strange—whenever I look into those eyes, my words get stuck. I even forget what I was thinking. It’s as if I’m enchanted.’
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
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