Chapter 92
“Good job, Estella.”
“Was it a good idea to save one?”
“…”
I hid behind him and showed him the remaining elixir vial.
“Yes. Good job.”
“I’ll use this to heal your wound…!”
“We’ll use this to awaken Anna. Your body.”
He pushed me aside and swung his staff, summoning more golems. The Crown Prince, having lost the elixir, was flustered.
Victory seemed to be within our grasp, but I couldn’t be happy. The young master’s clothes were stained with blood.
“You’re bleeding! Do you think you’re a zombie?! Fighting while bleeding!”
As if fueled by my nagging, he continued to press his attack.
They clashed again, sword against staff. The Crown Prince was also injured, but did I care?
I only had eyes for our young master!
“I’m telling you one last time, I don’t care about your plans, whether you succeed or not, whether you become Emperor or not.”
He pushed the Crown Prince back with brute force.
“Ugh, Lupin! Are you going to make the same foolish choices as your father? Giving up power and honor for mere affection?!”
Magic circles appeared behind the Crown Prince. Multiple ones.
“Young Master! As expected! You weren’t just being pushed around, were you?!”
He had been secretly preparing the magic circles while fighting. That’s why he had been using his magic so sparingly. He had been saving it for this.
“Your Highness Umbram, our next meeting will be… in prison.”
He smirked and kicked the Crown Prince into one of the magic circles. The key to winning a fight was staying calm, that’s what the old bully had taught me.
The moment the Crown Prince lost his composure after seeing the elixir vials explode, his defeat was inevitable.
Black hands emerged from the magic circle and bound the Crown Prince. I thought he was going to be obliterated, but that didn’t happen. The hands, having bound his limbs and gagged him, solidified into black rocks.
“Aren’t you going to kill him, Young Master?”
He approached me, frowned, and shook his head.
“Why would I kill him?”
“He’s the one who caused all this.”
“That’s why I can’t kill him. I want to see him suffer at the hands of angry citizens and humiliated by the nobles. I’ll decide whether to kill him later.”
He stumbled and leaned against me, bleeding.
“Are you hurt?”
“You’re the one bleeding.”
“The elixir?”
I took the last vial from my pocket.
“Can we use this to heal your wound?”
He took the vial with his bloody hand, smiled weakly, and said,
“We can heal the wound later. Let’s use this to revive you. It’s not the complete elixir, but… I can figure out how to awaken you if I study this.”
I snatched the vial back.
“Don’t be absurd! You’re saying that while you’re injured? I’m alive! Well, I guess I should be alive. You’re the one in danger!”
“It’s not that serious…”
“Don’t be stubborn! We’re using this elixir to heal your wound!”
“You’re the one being stubborn. Do you know how much effort I’ve put into, ugh…”
His face contorted in pain. I couldn’t just leave him like this.
Was there anyone nearby who could use healing magic? I looked around, but there was no one who could help.
Knight Commander Edna and her subordinates were escorting the Crown Prince away. Miss Baba was chatting with Castor, who had arrived late. The raven was dejectedly counting jewels.
Everyone else was either dead, more injured than the young master, or trembling in fear. There was no one who could help.
“Let’s heal your wound and go home. I want to go home.”
“We can heal it when we get back, ugh…”
“You look pale.”
“I’m fine, I’m fine… We don’t even know how to use the elixir.”
“How about we just… pour it on?”
“That’s ridiculous, ugh… I have so much to say, but… I can’t breathe…”
I helped him over to a nearby tree. As we sat there, the sun began to rise, casting a soft, yellow light on his pale face.
“Then how about this? We share the elixir.”
“…”
He couldn’t even speak properly because of the pain.
I opened the vial. The popping sound was strangely cute and a bit anticlimactic.
“We have to experiment to find out how to use it, right?”
I poured the elixir into my mouth, then cupped his face in my hands and leaned closer.
I should have said something romantic before putting the elixir in my mouth. Like, “Let’s get married.”
He seemed to know what I was about to do. He smiled faintly and closed his eyes.
I gently kissed him, our lips touching. He opened his mouth slightly, and the elixir flowed from my mouth to his.
Even after he had swallowed it all, he didn’t pull away. We kissed for a long time before he finally moved his head back.
“You’re supposed to ask for permission before doing that.”
He said with a chuckle. I checked his wound, lifting his clothes. It was hard to tell with all the blood.
I pulled back the wet fabric and saw that the wound was healing much faster than a normal human’s. Even our young master, despite his unusual durability, couldn’t heal this quickly.
“Young Master! The elixir is effec…”
Before I could finish, I felt dizzy.
Wait, I’ve felt this before…
“Estella!”
“…The elixir is effective!”
I screamed and sat up.
Where was I?
This was becoming familiar. I looked around. It was the garden again. I was back in Anna’s body.
“The elixir had this effect too?”
But I hadn’t drunk it in Anna’s body. It was strange, but it was a good thing. He would be happy.
I tried to get up, but the chain…
“It’s still there?! Young Master!”
I shouted, but it was no use. He was probably shaking Estella’s unconscious body.
“I have to tell him I’m alright…”
I sighed. Sparrow fluttered over and snuggled against me.
“Chirp, chirp!”
“This isn’t the time to chirp. The young master might have a heart attack after seeing Estella collapse. He’s very fragile.”
“Chirp!”
Sparrow chirped nonchalantly and preened his feathers. Was it molting season? Feathers were falling out.
“Are you going bald? Or is this just normal molting?”
“…”
I picked up a feather and examined it. It was so soft, it would be perfect for the young master’s pillow.
“Grow big and strong, little bird. Grow lots of feathers. I’ll make a pillow for the young master and also use them for the eli…”
Wait, weren’t phoenix feathers ingredients for the elixir?
“Sparrow! Are your feathers imbued with magic?”
“…”
“Answer me instead of just preening! No, wait. I’ll find out myself.”
I held the feather and wondered what to do. Should I eat it? That seemed wrong.
“How about tickling my nose with it? Like this…”
I wasn’t sure what effect it would have, but I tickled my nose with the feather. It had a warm, sunny scent.
“Sparrow, you smell nice.”
As I said that and blinked, my vision blurred. And I felt that familiar sensation again.
The feeling of drinking the elixir and returning to Anna’s body.
Did the feather have an effect? I grabbed Sparrow.
“Chirp?”
“Excuse me!”
And then I buried my face in his small, round, warm body. Had he been rolling around in a flowerbed? He smelled so soft and sweet.
I took a deep breath, and my vision darkened, or rather, was tinged with the colors of dawn.
“Estella!”
I opened my eyes, and it was the young master. I looked down at my hands. Estella’s hands. But I didn’t feel completely back.
It was as if only a fragment of my consciousness had returned, while the rest remained in Anna’s body…
I might faint again. I had to tell him the important things first.
“Young Master, is your wound healed?”
“I’m fine. You? Are you awake? Please, don’t ever leave me again.”
Tears fell from his blue eyes. I wiped them away, but my hands were bloody, so I only made his face dirtier.
“Let’s go home. And then…”
“I’ll fix you! I’ll fix you right now, no matter what’s wrong. I’ll make sure you’re not hurt, never hurt again.”
“No, that’s not what I meant… Anna is…”
“It’s okay if you don’t want to live in Anna’s body. Just stay with me. I’ll… I’ll do everything. I can do everything, so please, don’t leave me again.”
“No, that’s not it… Oh, whatever…”
The feather’s effect was fading. I leaned against him and pointed towards the mansion.
“Let’s… go home.”