Chapter 26
“Gasp… Gasp…”
Like waking up from a nightmare, Jiwoo breathed heavily.
And she saw a man sitting on a chair next to the bed she was lying on.
Bright blonde. Green eyes filled with fresh green. A friendly smile that gently floated on the friendly face. As soon as his eyes saw Jiwoo, the long ears typical of children of Elandos moved.
“…Cal, Callandein?”
“Yes. That’s right. It’s Callan.”
Callan stroked Jiwoo’s forehead with his hand. The sweat-drenched hair was brushed away by his hands.
“Seo Jiwoo, you seem to have sleep apnea. Or did you have a nightmare?”
Nightmare? Was it a nightmare?
She did not know. What should be viewed in a nightmare and what should be viewed in an ordinary dream.
For Seo Jiwoo, a dream was just a reenactment of the past, not a fantasy world unfolding. But it was true that she could not breathe, and her head was a bit dizzy.
“I was going to let you sleep a little longer, but you weren’t breathing properly.”
The gentle touch of his finger continued to stroke Jiwoo’s forehead. The stroking hand was like a gesture to put a child to sleep, so Jiwoo quietly closed her eyes and then opened it again.
“…How did you just know that name?”
“I heard from Helka. You’re so mean. I introduced myself to you properly, but you didn’t tell me your name?”
Callan smiled softly while speaking like a rebuke.
Come to think of it, she was alone with Helkainis inside the old tree that had been barricaded, and one thing led to another. She seemed to have fallen asleep crying in his arms, but when she woke up, it was this.
Come to think of it, Helkainis seemed to have regained his sanity at the end, but after Jiwoo fell asleep, she had no idea what had happened.
“Is Helkainis okay?”
“…Yes. Surprisingly, he’s fine. Thank you. I’ll thank you separately and properly later.”
“Where is he now?”
“We have a friend in our group who lives far away. He went to pick him up. He’ll be back tonight. Maybe if he had known that Seo Jiwoo would wake up so early, he would have waited… When he comes back, give him a good flick to the head.”
Callandlein got up for a while, perhaps because Jiwoo’s hoarse voice was bothering him, and brought her a glass of cold water. Jiwoo, who was happy to drink the cold water, asked abruptly.
“How long was I asleep?”
“About two days. I saw that you recovered a little while you were sleeping. You’re malnourished, and you’ve lost a lot of stamina. Even if you’re the Akarna, staying in that state for a long time is dangerous.”
Callan said naggingly and tapped the center of her forehead with his finger. Then he bowed his head under the bed, picked up a strange-looking instrument and held it in front of Jiwoo.
“Come on, Seo Jiwoo. Come down and try it.”
“What’s this?”
When Jiwoo looked wary, he untied the apparatus and showed it. Leather was lined on a wooden bar. And, there were enough straps to wrap around it.
“It’s a brace. I heard from Lanceil that you broke your leg, right?”
Come to think of it, Lanceil went to Callan as soon as he brought Jiwoo here. Lanceil had referred to her injured leg. Callandein seemed to be the doctor here.
“Ah, yes…”
Jiwoo calmly replied. The gesture and tone were friendly but that teacher-like energy was strange.
Callandein smiled sweetly and nodded his head.
“It’s because your self-healing power is overworked, it’s now causing irregularities. The bones got attached incorrectly. I’m trying to see if it can be resolved with correction rather than surgery. Oh, can you stick your foot out? Let me help.”
“Yes.”
Jiwoo put her foot out as he told him to. Callan attached the wooden bar to Jiwoo’s ankle like a splint, and skillfully wrapped it up in leather without any fuss.
It was not a splint waiting for the fracture to heal, but rather a brace with a gentle feeling of pressure.
“It’s uncomfortable, right? It will take a few days. In the meantime, don’t walk and just move around while being carried in someone’s arms.”
“Ah… Is that okay…”
Jiwoo scratched the back of her head in embarrassment. She has only been with Lanceil or Helkainis, but it was clear that the people here were people who couldn’t stand it if her feet touched the ground.
“I’ll watch the progress and you can go back when it’s okay.”
Hearing those words, her heart seemed to sink.
She stuttered her words in surprise, not knowing that she would suddenly hear these words.
“G-Go back?”
“Yes, you have to go back. Seo Jiwoo, you are Akarna of Carnazion.”
“Ah… that’s right.”
“And I heard that Lanceil promised you. I’ll make sure to have you sent back.”
Her head went numb. Just like when she was holding her breath while grasping all the emotions. Her mind was clouded as if there was a fog in his head, and her trembling eyes couldn’t even see what was right in front of her.
That was the original plan.
She threw herself impulsively and fell down the cliff, so she thought she’d follow the rescue team or search team when they came. Because there was no other way she could live alone.
When she woke up, she tried to ask for protection as a reward, but these people originally rejected humans. Taking care of her condition, healing her wounds, correcting her leg, and returning her could only be counted as a sufficient reward.
But it was a little disappointing.
She seemed to have opened her heart to the warm atmosphere of this place without realizing it, to the kindness that called out her name.
No matter how accustomed she was to disappointing people, Jiwoo had a limit when her mind and body was exhausted.
Her lips trembled.
Temple. Party hall. Imperial palace. Crown Prince. Engagement.
When Callan said that she had to go back, only those things came to mind and she was suffocating.
“Seo Jiwoo? What’s wrong? You turned pale…”
Callan, who felt uneasy about Jiwoo’s condition, looked at her.
Tap. Tap.
That was then. Someone lightly knocked on the window.
“Ahhh… He’s here again.”
Callan got up immediately and slammed the window open.
“Lanceil! If you have something to say, come in and say it.”
“…Is she, is she awake?”
“Yes, hurry up and come in.”
“……”
As Lanceil didn’t say anything, Callan sighed and went out. Shortly, Lanceil, who was hesitating in his steps, was dragged in.
“I’d rather you come inside and wait, what are you doing by coming every hour? She’s awake, so come and greet her.”
However, Lanceil did not look directly at Jiwoo. His expression was not good, and above all, his ears, which had always been pointed towards the sky, were tilted at an angle.
“…That’s enough.”
Jiwoo was shocked by those words. She didn’t expect anyone else, but she thought Lanceil, who had brought her here and showed Callan the condition of her leg, would want to see what happened.
Didn’t he say that he was going to be the first or second?
Because he was going to send her back? Because they won’t see each other anymore?
Helkainis, the most important to them, was alive, so he could think that their business was over.
All the humans Jiwoo met in this world were like that. The Akarna was a mere resource, and such a resource should be used according to its purpose. And they had to put things back where they were after it was done being used.
If she had thought even a little rationally, Jiwoo would know that she was wrong, but Jiwoo, whose mind was weakened as her body was, stumbled more into the mishap.
In the end, transparent water dripped from Jiwoo’s eyes, who was making leaps and leaps on her own head.
“……!”
“Seo Jiwoo?”
They were both taken aback as they carefully looked Jiwoo’s condition.
Callandein slammed Lanceil on the back. And he brought Lanceil to the front of the bed, dragging him by the collar.
Up to that time, Lanceil’s ears were lowered at an angle and he was making a lot of uncomfortable signs, but he glanced at Jiwoo, perhaps worried about her crying.
“Lanceil, don’t be immature and tell the truth. Seo Jiwoo is crying.”
Even Callandlein, who had a friendly smile on his face the whole time, was flustered with embarrassment.
“……”
Lanceil forced his pouty lips to open.
“You…”
Lanceil, whose face had been blushing for a while, chewed his lower lip and said as if he was breathing a sigh.
It was a very sulky voice.
“You didn’t even tell me your name…”
“What…”
No, really. What the hell.
She couldn’t stop crying because it was ridiculous. She felt a burst in her chest, but she had no idea what it was.
In the end, Jiwoo cried out loud.
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