ALL NOVEL Chapter 89
Huuuuu—
The wind blowing through the ravine was still fierce.
I was snuggling into the cave, warming myself with some hot water.
“Brings back memories.”
This kind of terrain was common in the Demon Realm, the land of Demons.
Compared to then, it was a much better condition since there was no need to be on guard against Demons.
I filled a suitable dent in a stone with snow and boiled it up, and it warmed quickly.
It wasn’t hard to generate heat. I grabbed various kinds of stones, slightly modified their chemical formulas, and synthesized them for a reaction.
Hmm, hmm.
Without having to worry about others’ gazes, I found myself humming a tune to match the sound of the wind.
What was this song? Was it one I knew before the possession?
It had been a while since I spent time completely alone.
I had just taken some time off, but Acella had been glued to me the whole time.
Not to mention in the Inner Palace.
Well, it was busy without a moment to breathe.
“It’s something I wanted to do.”
Even though I had a task of erasing a bad ending, I think being a doctor is quite enjoyable.
“I’ve already deleted quite a bit.”
The probability has overall decreased significantly.
Especially concerning things related to Acella.
… I wonder what Acella is doing right now.
As her attending physician, I had been away for quite a while, so she might be facing severe consequences.
I hope she doesn’t have any episodes.
Chloe is around, but without my diagnosis and emergency treatment skills, immediate response would be difficult.
“Wow, have I become too dedicated to my profession?”
Thinking about Acella even during my alone time.
Despite her being the woman who had killed me countless times.
Still, thanks to becoming her attending physician, I feel like my relationship with Acella has changed a bit concerning the future.
At least, she might think of me as a loyal subject.
Although the subjugation of the Eastern Fortress remains, Tanya can’t possibly be trying to search for me.
… Would she really?
That wouldn’t be good.
Please don’t do that.
“I’ve started to miss you a bit, Acella.”
What is wrong with me?
I can’t believe I’m starting to miss the woman who killed me countless times.
How long has it been?
It hasn’t been that long. It was probably around four hours since I started waiting, as the sun was setting.
—Young Master!!
A familiar voice echoed in my ears.
It was indeed Tanya.
It must have been difficult to come down here, yet she had already formed a rescue team and found me.
“Ouch.”
With my numb behind, I decided to sneak out of the cave.
As I wriggled through the gap, she must have followed my footsteps, as she was already running up to me.
However, I couldn’t help but be a little surprised.
Standing before me was not Tanya, but…
“Royal Princess?”
It was Acella, her nose bright red from the cold, her lips trembling.
White steam escaped from her mouth.
The tightly tied rope around her waist told me she had climbed down the cliff herself.
The new gloves she wore were already tattered.
Her face was a mess, stained with sweat and dry remnants.
“Haah, haah.”
Acella approached me, unable to even catch her breath, too exhausted to say anything.
Crunch, crunch.
With each step she took, her legs sank into the thick snow.
Looking as if she might fall at any moment, she somehow managed to get right in front of me.
“… Haah.”
She stretched her hands toward my face.
Was I seeing a hallucination? She felt around as if to confirm if I was real.
And then, she collapsed into my arms.
Pulling me in with both arms securely around my waist, it seemed like she didn’t intend to let me escape.
I was certain it was Acella.
It was the same sensation I felt when we shared a bed.
“Royal Princess.”
Acella mumbled something. I couldn’t hear her precisely as her face was buried in my chest.
Was it from surprise?
Somehow, I couldn’t help but smile.
In response, I wrapped my hands around her shoulders.
*
“The Communication Sphere has arrived! It’s the 2nd Regiment!”
The message from the communication soldier was immediately relayed to the commander, Heike.
“The 2nd Regiment has captured the Central Fortress. The Count has also been rescued.”
“At last.”
The siege at the Eastern Fortress by the 1st Regiment had been ongoing for nearly half a day.
Heike had devised a strategy to narrow the deployment of over a thousand troops and circulate them along the bridge.
However, the knights were increasingly fatigued, and their combat effectiveness was waning.
“Acella, you did it.”
Though I was prepared to fight all day, I hadn’t trusted her much on her first appearance on the battlefield.
“Move to the rear and prepare a defense line.”
“Yes!”
Now, the only line connecting to the enemy was this Eastern Fortress.
The plan was simple.
Feign a retreat and lure the enemy as much as possible.
With the grand magic of the court wizards, wipe out the entire Eastern Fortress.
Once the 2nd Regiment joined in, we’d have overwhelming numerical superiority.
By establishing a siege line, we wouldn’t miss the remaining enemies either.
“Victory is right at our doorstep. Raise your swords!”
The knights followed Heike, who commanded boldly like the goddess of war.
*
“Royal Princess, the 2nd Regiment, which has completed its preparations, has left for the Eastern Fortress.”
Lars reported, gazing out the window.
“…….”
However, Acella, seemingly uninterested in anything else, still clung tightly to Lars’s waist like a leech.
“Mmm….”
Upon returning to the Southern Fortress, Lars was perplexed.
Acella hadn’t released him since he was rescued from the ravine.
‘I didn’t expect such a warm welcome.’
Lars was somewhat touched when he realized that Acella had come to find him herself.
It was an indication that Acella held him in high regard as an excellent subordinate.
Still, wasn’t this a bit much?
After all, she was the Royal Princess of the Empire and a commander on the battlefield, maintaining her dignity.
He tried to avoid showing Acella clinging to him tight as a waist band to the other knights.
“Royal Princess, as for the command…”
“Heike is there. Let it be.”
It was an irresponsible statement.
Even if Acella was the ultimate commander, if it left the impression that Heike was leading the field, her hard-earned accomplishments could lose their weight.
“It’s the Prince’s fault.”
“Falling down the ravine because of a raid by the barbarians?”
“Yeah.”
I was the one almost dying.
I didn’t expect any kind of comforting words, and Lars thought that typical of Acella.
“I truly regret causing you any strain. But it wasn’t like I enjoyed it…”
“Endure it. Just endure it going forward.”
How long was “going forward”?
Lars silently prayed he would be free before falling asleep.
‘Well, maybe this is Acella’s way of showing she cares about me.’
Now, Lars was somewhat accustomed to Acella’s expression method.
Acella often treated her beloved, Max, quite coldly as well.
He decided to be grateful for just not being addressed in an unfriendly tone.
Thinking so, Lars found Acella a little more approachable and unconsciously smiled.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Nothing. My nose is just ticklish.”
“…Huh.”
And Acella, of course, couldn’t comprehend Lars’s inner thoughts.
Right now, she was quite angry.
There were many reasons for that.
She couldn’t conduct the operation to the end for what should have been a successfully concluded subjugation, and she had just displayed a clumsy appearance in front of many people.
What made her angriest was that she had come to find herself peculiar, thinking that since Lars was alive, all those trivial matters seemed to be insignificant.
‘Lars is so calm.’
For some reason, she couldn’t think of him as someone who had just survived a death threat.
As if he had brushed off such experiences as nothing noteworthy from dying several times.
She didn’t like how he could easily erase it from his memory and act as if it hadn’t happened.
‘Am I the only foolish one making a fuss?’
Thinking back, she couldn’t recall ever seeing Lars scared.
Even when Camilla threatened, when he was hit by real magic, when Georg tried to kill him, or even when an assassin had a dagger pointed right at him.
‘It’s terrifying.’
Acella understood very well how much pain torments a person.
The fact of dying is less scary than the pain inflicted on the way to death itself.
It’s a natural instinct for any living being to survive.
You can overcome it, but you cannot defy it.
‘Why isn’t Lars scared?’
He remained composed even in front of her, who had the power to take his life in an instant, or even before the Emperor.
According to the information Acella possessed, Lars did not seem to have any extraordinary childhood experience.
There was only a report that, after his biological mother gave birth to him and passed away, he lacked much attention from the Marquis and had become twisted.
It was also suspicious as to when he had learned anything like medicine, having been known as a prodigal.
Still, he had written extensively about death in his notebook.
Lars remained a substantial enigma to Acella.
Acella raised her head and looked at Lars.
His carefree smile as he gazed at her did not sit well with her.
Without filtering, Acella spoke the words that rose up from her heart.
“Lars, do you have any secrets you’re hiding from me?”
At her question, Lars’s eyebrows twitched slightly.
Acella seized the opportunity, not letting it slip.
“What is it?”
“Ah, how could I dare to tell a shameful story to the Royal Princess?”
“Why won’t you tell me?”
“To protect your ears. I doubt you’d want to hear about the habits I have when going to the bathroom, would you?”
“Ha, you spoke so casually. My ears hurt.”
“Right?”
Lars skillfully changed the subject, adeptly dodging it.
Really, how annoying.
“Then, does the Royal Princess have any secrets you’re hiding from me?”
Acella, who had not anticipated a counterattack, found herself dumbfounded.
The future she saw through Clairvoyance shouldn’t be shared with anyone.
Especially not with Lars, who would be the very subject.
If she got too complacent about receiving a clue about the future, she almost lost him today.
‘If Lars knew, he’d surely make things worse.’
He tends to meddle even in things not assigned to him, and he’d act even more aggressively regarding issues relating to her family.
“I don’t.”
Acella answered calmly, and Lars easily accepted it.
“Please continue to do so. An attending physician must always accurately know the condition of their patient.”
“Attending physician….”
For some reason, that term made Acella feel oddly uncomfortable.
Suddenly annoyed, she jabbed Lars in the chest with her forehead.
“Ow, what was that for?”
“Though you are my attending physician, at the same time…”
For some reason, it was hard for her to say the words that followed today.
Thump, thump.
Her heart was racing for some reason.
Worried that it might be revealed to Lars, she subtly withdrew her body from him.
Though her arms still clung to his waist.
“Prince.”
“Yes?”
Acella hesitated a little, then asked Lars.
“There was something that the chubby girl mentioned.”
“Princess Freda Schwarzschweikh? What story are you referring to?”
“…She said that the two of us are political betrotheds.”
“Oh, that’s right.”
Acella bit her lip slightly, unable to meet Lars’s gaze, and asked.
“Do you think that too, Prince?”