Chapter 156
"Thank you."
"......"
"Because everything you did for me was salvation."
Tears flowed down before she knew it.
The straight line that crossed her white cheek was wetting the pillowcase.
Likewise, the rose's dew touched the boy's palm.
The girl bit her lip and spoke.
"I'm happy... so I'm anxious."
The rose blooming in the night sky was precarious.
As if hoping for some answer, wet eyes fully contained the boy's golden hair.
"What if this is all a dream?"
"Your Highness..."
Elise was anxious.
Afraid that if she fell asleep tonight like this, nothing would remain.
That the sweet reality would scatter between dreams, and she would open her eyes once more in a dark room.
That Yuda wouldn't be by her side.
"......"
Clear loneliness.
The boy who had been taking his time for a moment. Then whispered to the delicate flower petal.
If what was reflected in your eyes was just a dream...
"...Then, I will protect your dream."
So that you don't wake from the dream.
So that your paradise continues eternally even like that.
"I will stay the night."
A calm voice.
Sentences that were even precious in some ways.
The rose's heart was dyed by such resonance.
The snake spoke while wiping her cheeks full of tears.
"Didn't I tell you? That I would surely make you happy."
"Fufu... That's right. You were always like that."
Elise burst into small laughter.
The smile blooming between tears resembled forget-me-nots at dawn.
Because dewdrops were gathered.
-Well.
-Because I want you to be happy.
-A happy ending for you, for sure.
The girl recalled the promise.
The savior who came to her life.
At the same time, the person who reassured her said he wouldn't leave.
Her lips pronounced what she had suddenly realized.
"Thanks to you... I came to love the world."
The world she had only hated.
He was everything that had given her life, overturning the perspective full of resentment.
To the extent she could no longer even imagine a world without the boy.
Elise's heart sank deeply.
She slowly raised her sprawled body.
"So."
"Your Highness...?"
The distance narrowed.
Following him, body heat, scent of flesh, voice becoming clearer.
Though they had close contact every time during treatment, it was the first time she approached like this herself.
The rose embraced the boy's shoulders along with idle impressions.
Of course, she didn't stop there.
"Chu..."
She kissed his neck.
Lips lightly touching then separating.
Nevertheless, the moment felt long enough to be an eternity.
The sensation making her cheeks flush, the boy's addictive warmth, the body scent brushing her nose bleached her head white.
Her pounding heart was already about to burst.
As if resembling her own red hair, Elise's cheeks were bright red.
Drip-.
A fallen tear dropped on Yuda's neck.
She didn't want to let go of such a scene.
The rose carefully separated her lips.
Their gazes crossed.
"Yuda."
The girl now knew.
What was the name of the emotion making her so dizzy, so happy.
It was something learned from the person before her eyes.
"Someday, I have something I want to tell you."
"...What is it?"
"It's still a secret."
But
She shouldn't convey it rashly.
'I still don't know you.'
Yuda had many things he hid.
He wasn't the type to reveal himself to others.
She couldn't even know what kind of story it contained.
In such a situation, she had no intention of complicating the other person with needless greed.
She intended to take time.
-Do you know about taming?
-It's a word that fully weaves relationships between people.
Yes.
As the boy had taught her once.
Slowly taming, forming relationships.
'I... came to love you.'
Spring's freshness filled a corner of the flower petal.
The girl held a faint smile.
Completely swallowing her own inner thoughts, she again leaned her body on the boy's shoulder.
Lips overlapping on his neck as if repeating just before.
Her mouth opened slightly.
"Chu..."
This time she stayed a little longer.
At most about 1 minute.
Sticky saliva.
Sweet thrills spread on the tip of her tongue.
Teeth marks remaining on skin, and reddish traces as if implying something.
Then, Elise, who separated from the boy caressed her own lips as if recalling the warmth.
And then whispered in his ear.
"I'll always be by your side."
Just as you were for me.
Well.
"My life... is yours."
A bed where dawn had sunk.
The boy and girl were waiting for the starlight outside the window to fade while embracing each other as if mixing.
The rose would never forget such a beautiful night for her whole life.
The mark she left on his neck.
***
The night right before dawn.
After confirming Elise had fallen deeply asleep, I was finally able to leave the bedroom.
The sky without a single cloud was full of only starlight.
As the dawn air was also cool just then, I headed to a nearby garden.
I intended to take a light walk.
"......"
Step step-.
Grass leaves rustling following my steps.
Though it was a garden where snow would have been stepped on until just a few weeks ago, now it was a nest of life with sprouts budding.
Just by exhaling deeply, I could feel the thick scent of earth and the season.
Spring is really coming.
I smiled at the childish impression.
"Hmm."
As I chewed over a moment of leisure, suddenly my hand went to my neck.
It was the part where a mark remained due to Elise.
"I didn't expect it would turn out like this."
It was quite unexpected for the rose to approach.
I thought I would leave marks even if marks were left, I didn't know she would bite my neck first.
I muttered while stroking the reddish trace with my fingertips.
'A lot happened.'
Especially today, she must have been psychologically shaken a lot.
Even if she acted spoiled, it was within the allowable range.
"It doesn't matter."
Whoosh-.
I brushed my bangs back along with the passing wind.
Only I was alone in the scenery where stars fell.
At times like this, I had a habit of becoming needlessly sentimental and sinking into various thoughts.
In today's case, it was ruminating on a certain scene.
The scene from a few hours ago.
-Charlotte. Elise.
-Can I... hug you for a moment?
-Thank you for growing up so well... I'm sorry I couldn't be by your side...
An ending that transcended tragedy.
It was also a beautiful moment because they didn't give up in the end.
It was enough to be the climax of the episode.
But there was a bitter point.
'Perhaps the fact that tears didn't flow.'
Clearly.
My heart was cut piercingly.
Memories were about to overflow, and emotions caused even more foam than that.
Nevertheless, not even a trace of moisture gathered in the corners of my eyes.
Was it because of dry emotions?
Had I become numb to sadness?
Or if not that...
'...No.'
I shook off needless thoughts.
There was no progress in constantly paying attention to this side.
Now it was enough to just have relief that things had worked out smoothly, and pride in the children who had deviated from the original work.
I stopped in the background where stars were falling.
"Huu..."
My insides churned.
Was it the backlash from forcibly consuming life force belatedly coming?
Though I was fine until lying in bed, it seemed that reactions came immediately after moving a little.
I crouched down with staggering legs.
And then coughed while holding my breath.
"Cough...!"
Blood marks falling on the grass.
It was light hemoptysis.
It seemed to be internal injuries suffered in the process of breaking the curse.
Though it was time that would have already recovered and more normally, recovery was slow perhaps due to precarious life force.
It seemed I would have to drink some potions for a while.
I had to regain my original body condition within a week at least.
There were many things to face ahead.
"Haa, haa..."
Rough breathing after a long coughing.
Only after completely vomiting the blood flowing back could I calm my insides.
I lightly washed the dirtied mouth and sleeve with lies.
'Fortunately no one saw.'
It was fortunate that there were no watching eyes at least.
If the other children had been there, they surely would have made a fuss putting me in a wheelchair like last time.
I quietly felt relieved.
Step-.
Like that, after roughly finishing the aftermath, when I was leisurely raising my body from my seat.
As if mocking my carelessness, a presence was heard from behind.
"Yuda."
A familiar voice.
I involuntarily stopped and answered the call.
"Your Highness...?"
Charlotte.
When I turned around, the platinum blonde girl was looking at this side.
It seemed she had approached in the brief moment I had let my guard down.
"Did your body get bad again...?"
"Ah."
Blue eyes with a strangely sad light.
That gaze was fixed on the sleeve where hemoptysis had been stained until just before.
"......"
I had no choice but to remain silent.
While muttering resentment with an unopened mouth.
No.
Why do you pop out at a time like this?