Ch. 199
Maybe I didn’t notice him right beside me because I was sluggish, or maybe Ash moved quietly enough to hide his presence.
“How’s your body? Your insides must be a mess… want water first? Can you drink?”
“Where… is this?”
I straightened my body and brushed aside my messy hair. A shabby, unfamiliar ceiling came into view.
“We’re still in Helikke. Remember the abandoned houses we passed? This is one of them.”
His voice was unnecessarily gentle and polite—Ash treating me exactly like a patient.
“Yeah?”
“Chad worked hard to clean it. Gale and Enk gave up their sleeping bags…”
No wonder it felt so soft. No cold floor, no rocks digging into my back. I groped underneath—six layers of sleeping bags.
Since they piled all of it on me, the guys must have slept on bare ground.
Admirable for once. Though thinking this repaid their debt would be ridiculous.
“I’m thirsty.”
“Here.”
The moment I muttered it in annoyance, water appeared before me.
It wasn’t particularly cool, but it was the best they had. And since it was offered immediately, I drank without complaint.
Even drinking water made my throat sting.
“How many days?”
“When this night passes, it will be two.”
“Hm… woke up faster than I thought.”
My voice cracked. I cleared my throat and checked my condition.
Head still pounding from fever, stomach wrecked, starving, and worst of all—sticky with sweat and absolutely miserable.
“Geenie, do you need anything else?”
“I’m hungry… and I really want to wash.”
“I’ll make soup.”
As Ash hurried out the door, I looked around the place I was resting in.
A typical poor commoner’s house. Cramped, probably meant for two people. Even the best abandoned house they found had a huge hole in the roof where the stars showed through.
Still, having a roof was better than nothing.
I sat up and leaned against the wall.
My sticky hair felt awful, so I started braiding it loosely—then noticed something.
My clothes had been changed.
I’d been wearing a sturdy leather jacket and pants… but now… this wasn’t even mine?
Without thinking, I buried my nose in the oversized gray shirt. Ash’s, huh.
“Geenie.”
“Yeah?”
Ash stepped halfway into the house with an anxious expression.
“There’s fever medicine, but I’m not sure if it’s safe for internal injuries…”
“It’s not.”
“…Yes, I thought so…”
Even with the headache, his dejected reaction made me laugh a little.
“I’m boiling water, so wait a bit. I don’t think you can eat anything aside from soup. We have jerky and bread but…”
“I don’t think I can eat those. My stomach’s awful.”
“…Right. Lox and Chad went to get a doctor. They left this morning, so they’ll be back within a week at the latest.”
“What? A week? I’ll be fine way before that.”
Without me, they couldn’t cross the broken-ridge gorge. Even the nearest village was a three-day ride at full speed. So they went there? I was almost offended.
Ash approached me, gently fixing the sloppy braid I was fumbling with.
“We couldn’t sit still. You were in pain and… there wasn’t anything else we could do for you.”
“Idiots.”
“That’s how it is.”
When Ash smiled faintly, I thought—it’s when he smiles like that that he looks like a genuinely good person.
He finished braiding my hair neatly.
“We didn’t know when you’d wake up. Everyone wanted to help however they could.”
“What about Enk and Gale?”
“They went to get food.”
“…So it’s just the two of us right now?”
[Nope! I’m here too!]
A huge wolf bounded into the house like a cannonball.
Clearly, he hadn’t been worrying about his bedridden master at all—it looked like he’d been out having fun.
[Master, you’re awful! I thought you were really going to die! You fraud!]
I ignored the attention-seeker and grabbed Ash’s collar before he could get back up. I didn’t know how to smile nicely, so I used a sly one instead.
“Ash. It’s just us, right?”
“Yes…? Just us… but why…?”
“Good.”
“W-what is?”
“Now I can make you do whatever I want!”
“…Were you not doing that already?”
“Of course not! I’ve been holding back!”
Ash looked nervous for a second, then visibly relieved—only to tense right back up at my next question.
“So who changed my clothes?”
[Rai says it was Ash!]
“…T-they were torn… and you couldn’t breathe… I couldn’t leave you that way. You were covered in mud and soaked…”
“No way…!”
“I closed my eyes…”
“Meaning you groped me with your hands instead?”
Good grief.
The more my eyes widened, the more Ash’s face turned red with panic.
Teasing him was always fun. He was so good-natured and easy to fool.
“I save your life and this is how you repay me? Shameless! No gratitude!”
“…I’m sorry…”
“This won’t do! Take responsibility!”
It was supposed to be a joke.
“…Really? I can… do that?”
I froze.
NO. NO NO NO. Don’t answer like that. Don’t look that happy. His face lit up brighter than anything I’d ever seen.
“What are you doing?!”
“Huh?”
“You’re supposed to react like Chad! ‘Are you crazy?!’ or something! Why are you looking genuinely pleased?! Are you insane?!”
If I’m not crazy, then YOU are! I yelled with my ruined voice, and Ash immediately wilted again.
Then a realization stabbed me.
He… likes me?
[Rai! Ash is acting weird!]
[…Ash is the one who’s pitiful here.]
[What?]
[You’re the only one who didn’t know!]
[WHAT?!]
—
My stomach still hurt, so I could only eat two bowls of soup. When you’re sick, you have no appetite and can’t think clearly. I needed to clear my head.
“Ash.”
“Yes, Geenie.”
“I want to wash. Take me to the lake.”
The lake was too far to walk, and I didn’t have the strength to ride by myself.
Ash was packing supplies outside but immediately stopped what he was doing and brought a horse. Not a word of complaint. Suspiciously eager to serve me.
Was he always this obedient? Or just toward me?
I thought he was just polite and kind to everyone…
My doubts grew, but we reached the lakeside before I could sort anything out.
“Stand guard.”
“Yes.”
He obeyed instantly—and even drew his sword.
You don’t draw your sword that easily, do you…?
Normally he didn’t budge even when someone shoved him or tried to start a fight. Only when bandits threatened him with an axe did he reluctantly pull his blade.
What a completely unreadable man. I scratched my jaw watching Ash stand rigid with heightened awareness—then scratched my arm, shoulder, waist, and the back of my neck.
Damn it! If you’re going to change my clothes, at least wipe me down with a damp cloth!
Didn’t they know I was particular about cleanliness?!
Being caked in dried mud and sweat for two days was torture.
Unable to endure the itching anymore, I yanked off my clothes.
Thinking could wait until after I washed. Then my head would work properly again.
I glanced back once at Ash—rigidly facing the opposite direction—then stepped into the lake.
The cool water felt incredible on my fever-ish body.
“Phew.”
I submerged completely and resurfaced. Rai hovered beside me like a silent shadow.
He was small enough in wolf form that his whole body was underwater. But he didn’t need to breathe anyway, so he had no problem.
“Rai.”
[Bubble bubble?]
“Don’t mess around.”
[Why are you so serious?]
“You know how perceptive I am, right?”
I kept only my eyes above water, careful not to let Ash overhear, and spoke secretly with Rai in my mind.
[Ah… well, you ARE free to delude yourself…]
[Listen. Don’t you think Ash likes me?]
[Even someone with no perception could tell.]
[…You think so too?]
[I KNOW so. You’re the only one who didn’t.]
It wasn’t the first time someone liked me. There was Bright, and a few others whose names I barely remembered.
They were all told things like “don’t you value your life?” though.
[Well, I *am* cool and strong, beautiful, elegant, and highly capable, AND I saved his life multiple times.]
[And you’re extremely ill-tempered, overly picky, and kill enemies without hesitation…]
[The point is he likes *me*! Doesn’t he have classy taste?]
[Ash liking Master is something everyone but Master knew. It wasn’t even a secret—it’s obvious. When you were unconscious, he was so gloomy it was painful to look at. Didn’t drink a drop of water.]
“He did?”
He showed no sign of that when I woke up.
I slowly walked out of the lake.
[Yeah! He was so depressed I had to leave because it was too awkward. So I went exploring.]
“You little…”
[Don’t misunderstand. I didn’t WANT to leave. But there was a huge mine over there! Wanna go look later?]
“Your master is sick.”
I automatically dunked my shirt and undergarments in the water a few times to rinse them. Normally I would use Undine to dry them afterward…
“Oh right.”
In my current state, my body was as weak as Lox’s. With these internal injuries, summoning even Undine properly would take several more days. Rai was enough for safety, but still.
I pulled the wet shirt over my head.
Of course it stuck everywhere. Annoying.
I trudged back toward Ash.
“Ash! Let’s go.”
“Yes, let’s hea—”
“What’s wrong?”
“Uh—uhh…?”
Ah. The wet shirt probably clung to me too much. Might’ve been too stimulating for pure-hearted Ash.
[…Master, should start seeing him as a man.]
Rai said that, but emotions weren’t something I controlled.
No matter how big or strong Ash became, in my mind he was still the pretty boy I met long ago.
Knowing he liked me made him seem a little sweet and adorable… but that was all.
[Poor Ash…]