Chapter 76
Green eyes blinked slowly. Blix, lying on a bed, clenched his fists with an angry face.
As he lifted his heavy hand, he saw a young man’s thin fingers wrapped in a bandage. He was not the last young man he had seen.
“You’re finally awake.”
Elnos, who was reading a book with his legs crossed, observed Blix. But a laugh came out as he saw the regret on his face.
“Hyung lost. You almost died.”
“It’s a tie.”
A tie. Elnos clicked his tongue and recalled the chaotic capital. If he had not gone there masked and intervened, Blix would not have escaped death.
Elnos’ black eyes shone dangerously. Blix, who had sold his soul and gained a new body, was a monster, but now the Count had joined the fight. It was no exaggeration to say that the sword skills that cut Blix’s hand were crazy.
It was definitely worth it. An image of Hizen angry came to Elnos’ mind. A righteous knight who declared that he would not forgive him for putting Max in that state.
‘It could’ve gone completely wrong. I’m glad the Emperor did something stupid.
His black eyes closed slowly. Thanks to the Emperor who openly coveted the dragon’s power, Elnos was able to relax a bit. His greed had become so excessive that Hizen was needed to deal with the situation.
In order to strengthen his power, the Emperor had tried to imprison Leasis and Iddahak. He was thinking of hypnotizing him with black magic so he could take him out whenever he needed him.
Hizen had strongly opposed the Emperor. However, the Emperor had ignored his opinion, and it was Elnos who had drawn the line by agreeing with Hizen.
Are you sure it’s a tie? Elnos closed the book in his hand. Then, Blix asked carefully.
“Well, Elnos… Is the breadman okay?”
“The breadman? Max?”
“Yes. The guy with brown hair.”
“Sigh. He has gotten a lot better.”
As Blix’s face brightened, Elnos felt strange. He was a man who never blinked even if one person died. But he was making this face because of one guy he was using?
As if to add to the ominousness, Blix said in an excited voice.
“That’s a relief.”
It was really fortunate. If Max had died, Hizen’s eyes would have turned back to him immediately.
Elnos clicked his tongue, looking at Blix. Of course, it had not been free. Hizen’s anger had disappeared thanks to a expensive treatment that allowed Max to recover.
Blix also asked about Leasis. It was useless questions, inquiring about her condition and whether she was very angry.
Elnos answered half-heartedly and got lost in his thoughts. The people in the capital were already praising Leasis, calling her ‘a priest chosen by God’.
In fact, Leasis had contributed greatly to calm down the dragon, treat the wounded, and help with the collapsed buildings.
A month later, Leasis was promoted to an official member of the Imperial Elite Knights and also took on the role of taming the dragon.
‘Let’s wait and see.’
Elnos licked his dry lips and raised one corner of his mouth. He had still many cards left. He could watch the situation a little leisurely.
Also, he was looking forward to seeing Leasis grow. As much as he was waiting for the moment he would dye the throne with blood.
*
*
*
Knock knock
“Come on in.”
Max, who was lying on the bed, raised himself up. Then he saw Leasis smiling brightly. Her hands were full of yellow flowers, and Hizen was next to her.
However, there were also three Silver Bird Medals hanging from the uniform that Leasis was wearing. Max’s expression brightened.
“Congratulations, Miss Leasis!”
“Thank you.”
Leasis blushed, happy. Tomorrow, she would be promoted to a member of the Imperial Elite Knights. This was because her skills, personality and performance in the 1st Division had all been recognized.
Of course, there had been a lot of noise in the process. But when Hizen got involved, things got surprisingly organized in an instant,
Among them, the biggest change was the management of the red dragon. The dragon was a great power for the Empire, and was taken over by the Imperial Elite Knights.
However, Hizen could hardly get close to him. He was hostile to everyone except Leasis.
Max stared at Leasis. She removed the wilted roses on the table and replaced them with yellow flowers. Her skills were still as good as when she was a maid.
As Leasis changed the vase, Max asked kindly.
“Miss Leasis. May I ask you for a cup of tea?”
“Yes, Max-nim.”
As Leasis left through the door, Hizen sat on the chair next to the bed. The two looked at each other without saying a word.
It was Max who broke the silence first.
“It turns out Miss Leasis is also a descendant of the Berman family.”,
Hizen looked at the flowers that Leasis had brought. His eyes were slightly shaking.
Whatever Leasis’ identity was, it did not matter now. He was thankful for her existence alone.
But Max was worried about something else. He said with a low sigh.
“If that’s the case, the two of them must be connected in some way. Commander-nim, what happened to your fiancee… I believe she doesn’t know.”
“No. Sooner or later, I will tell her directly. Nothing should be hidden from Leasis.”
A sincere voice rang his ears. Max was lost in thought as he looked at the yellow flowers on the table. As Hizen said, it was better to confide in advance than to hide it.
“And Prince Blixrond… I will deal with him for the time being.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Well, actually. I met him yesterday.”
“What?”
“That’s… the prince came here.”
Last night, Max had an unexpected visitor. The green-haired boy came with a bunch of flowers and bread. Of course, he ate all the bread by himself, but he seemed to be genuinely worried about him.
But no matter how concerned Blix was, Max was still worried about the boy who looked like his little brother. He said, thinking that he should learn more about the two brothers soon.
“For the time being, you’d better hide your hostility from Prince Elnos.”
“I know.”
For Leasis’ sake. Hizen closed his heavy lips and got lost in thought. As soon as it was discovered that she had Berman blood, the Emperor began to be wary of her.
It was natural. He had been holding hands with his father Calibaut. And Elnos knew what was going on, so it was natural that the Emperor was nervous.
At that time, Max brought up unexpected words.
“Commander-nim. Stop talking about that.”
“I wasn’t going to continue.”
Creak. The door opened and the main character of their conversation entered. Leasis brought a tray with a smile brighter than the sun.
“Max-nim, Count-nim. Here, have some tea.”
“Thank you.”
Oh, my God. I can’t believe our Commander-nim has such a sweet smile. Max sipped the tea, feeling warm.
After that, Hizen and Leasis headed to the outdoor training ground of the Imperial Elite Knights.
The red dragon Iddahak with shining red scales was sleeping on the training ground. He was sleeping so quietly that Hizen frowned.
However, Leasis’ smell caused a big nostril to move, and his huge tail shook like a puppy’s.
“Iddahak.”
The mysterious golden eyes widened at her low call.
[Berman!]
He raised his huge body, but he could not move freely because of the black chain tied around his neck.
Iddahak bit the chain with his sharp teeth. He did not like anything. Neither the chain that was strangling him, nor Hizen staring at him next to Berman.
Hizen had recently used an ancient seal so that he could communicate with him, but he had no manners.
[Dratius, how dare you look at me like that! Why do you keep staring so much?]
“Noisy.”
[If it weren’t for Berman, I would have torn your limbs with my teeth by now.)
“The same goes for you. If it weren’t for Leasis, you would have already been sentenced to death for the destruction of the capital and imperial properties.”
[W-what?]
Hizen and Iddahak stared at each other. Hizen also did not like this immature dragon. This was because he kept whining like a child, and they were seeing each other often as most of his daily routine was done here.
And how shameless he was. He did not even blink an eye after making such a mess in the capital.
It was a shame that no one died thanks to the priests’ work, and that he did not know the location of the treasure hidden in the Dragon Mountains. Otherwise, he would have be sent to the underworld by now.
Leasis patted Iddahak’s head. Hizen’s eyes looking at them became more complicated.
Now that her outstanding skills had been revealed to the world, she would no longer be able to live quietly. People would try to use her everywhere, clinging to her ankles.
While feeding Iddahak, Leasis noticed it. Hizen was looking somewhat nervous, lost in thought with his arms folded.
Leasis sneaked up on Hizen and gave him a back hug. At that moment, Hizen took a big breath. She was just against his back. But why am I so nervous?
Hizen swallowed dry saliva, feeling the heat all over his body.
“Count-nim, what are you thinking about?”
“No… nothing.”
A lie. In a whisper so tenuous that it only tickled his ears, Hizen was reciting the fourth verse of the Harknon Empire. Then Leasis said, while still hugging his back.
“Let’s have dinner together tonight.”
What? Startled, Hizen jumped in place. Then Iddahak, who was still eating, looked at him strangely.
Leasis removed her arms and stood in front of Hizen. She saw his face that was redder than a tomato. She asked in a curious voice.
“Count-nim?”
“Huh?…”
“Our dinner. I made a promise at that time, but I could not keep it.”
The two had been given a vacation in recognition of their contributions, but they could not take a day off. They helped restore the capital, took care of Iddahak, and answered calls here and there.
So Leasis was a bit disappointed. I wanted to eat Count-nim’s favorite food with him, but we couldn’t because he was only considerate of me every day. Now that I have saved quite a bit of money, I want to do something for him.
Her head was full of these thoughts. So today, she really wanted to make a dinner appointment with him.
Reading her mind, Hizen’s face turned red beyond control. He coughed, blaming himself for his useless imagination.
“It’s… not a bad idea.”
How exciting! Leasis smiled brightly and grabbed his hand. Hizen’s heart seemed to melt at the unexpected touch.
Her sweet voice rang in his thumping ears.
“There is a restaurant I know. I heard the dishes are really delicious there.”
“Okay.”
Hizen looked at her and slowly nodded. Her red hair swept by the wind, her sparkling eyes, and her white, neat teeth, everything grabbed his heart.
“That’s weird. I’ve never been possessed by magic. What’s wrong with me?’
“Let’s go to Liduré for dessert!”
“Okay.”
What? Something felt odd. Leasis was a little puzzled, but she continued to chat. She kept wanting to talk because it had been a long time since it was just the two of them.
“I heard that ice cream is also popular these days. I found the recipe that Count Ichrissen-nim’s ancestors made…”
“Okay.”
Hizen was looking at her blankly, nodding. Leasis burst into laughter like a mischievous child.
She reached out her hand in front of him.
“Count-nim, how many fingers do you see?”
“Okay.”
Count-nim must have had a hard time. Leasis stretched out her arms and hugged him tightly.
As a result, his blue eyes widened. He felt all the heat reaching his face. Plucking up courage, he hugged her tightly.
Badump badump. He was so nervous that he did not even know whose heart he was hearing. The two closed their eyes and stayed like this.
“Since we skipped lunch, I think we can have dinner a little earlier. What do you think, Count-nim?”
“Good.”
The two smiled at each other. He even thought that he wanted to run out of the Imperial Palace right now.
Then, a growl rang in their ears.
[Take me with you.]