Chapter 130 

Alexa slowly pushed herself up, her body feeling heavy. She thought it was from crying, but it wasn’t. The weight came from the arm draped solidly over her waist.

“Ysu?”

“You can sleep more if you want.”

A drowsy voice murmured in reply. Blinking, Alexa curled up instinctively before suddenly bolting upright.

“Ysildus! That, that thing!”

“That… thing?”

The smartphone!

She’d had it with her when she entered the room, she was sure of it. But now her hands were empty. If she was the one who had created this binding spell, then surely she could also break it. The answer had to be in there somewhere. Desperate, Alexa shook Ysildus by the shoulders.

“You’re looking for the square-shaped thing you had earlier? The one you said belonged to the Red Clan?”

“Yes! Do you know where it is?”

“I left it on the table.”

Ysildus slid gracefully out of bed. Alexa’s eyes followed his every movement. The moment he picked up the smartphone from the table, her memories from right before she fell asleep came rushing back.

Gasp!

Her breath caught in her throat.

‘Oh no oh no oh no oh no!’

She couldn’t help but stare at Ysildus’s pale hand. It wasn’t a conscious choice, her gaze was simply drawn there. Breathing hard, Alexa rustled the sheets as she shifted anxiously on the bed.

“Alexa?”

“H-Huh…?”

“This is it, right? The thing you were looking for?”

“Y-Yeah!”

“Hm… You’re acting weird. What’s wrong?”

Ysildus reached out to touch her. As his hand brushed against her forehead and then pulled away, her heart dropped with a heavy thud.

“You don’t have a fever, but your face is bright red. Are you feeling sick?”

“N-No!!”

Alexa stared at his hand like a flounder, barely managing a response. If she could, she would’ve fled the room that very second. She forcibly tore her gaze away and looked toward the door.

Of course, Ysildus had noticed everything she was thinking. He even knew exactly what she was looking at. He also knew just how much effort it had taken to bring about this very situation.

Alexa had treated him like a rock, utterly unshakable, emotionally invulnerable. Watching her try to drive him out of the bed had been oddly endearing.

It had taken persuasion, coaxing, and endless patience to get her this far. But now, at last, Alexa was truly aware of him. Just as he had wished. And how could Ysildus possibly let this golden opportunity slip by?

Wearing a mischievous smile, he leaned in and said, “Alexa, are you seriously having dirty thoughts the moment you wake up?”

“W-What?!”

Alexa shook her head furiously, trembling. Sure, her thoughts had wandered in that direction, among other things, but…! Her eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings as she bit her lip, completely at a loss for what to do.

“Then what? You were thinking about me?”

Alexa froze. Her nose began to sting and then… 

Splat!

A nosebleed burst out.

“…Alexa?”

“…Hhhhnnnnnnngh…”

Her shoulders slumped in defeat. It was over. She was doomed.

* * * 

And so, Alexa became the shameless girl who had dirty thoughts about Ysildus the moment she opened her eyes. Of all moments for her nose to start bleeding!

Dragging her feet, she made her way toward the study, trying to avoid Ysildus, who kept smiling at her every time their eyes met.

“Aaaaaah! Alexa… your image! It’s ruined forever…!”

There was no room left for excuses.

“What must Ysildus think of meeeee…!”

“Alexa?”

“Eek! Oh my god!”

Startled, Alexa flung herself against the wall like a startled cat. The one who had called her name was Terrun.

“What’s wrong? Did Ysildus do something to you?!”

“Huh? No, of course not!”

It couldn’t be further from the truth… The shameless one here wasn’t Ysildus, it was Alexa.

“Are you sure?”

Terrun narrowed his eyes suspiciously, looking ready to march over and demand answers from Ysildus that very instant. Alexa quickly doubled down.

“I swear, nothing happened.”

Only then did Terrun seem convinced by her solemn vow.

“Then why are you pressed against the wall like a cicada?”

“It’s just… the wall’s cool. Ahem.”

Muttering nonsense, Alexa peeled herself off the wall.

“Where were you headed, Terrun?”

“It’s almost time for dinner. I was coming to wake you up.”

“Oh, I see.”

In truth, he had volunteered to wake her. Thanks to that, he got to monopolize Alexa for the first time in ages. Humming cheerfully, Terrun walked shoulder to shoulder with her.

“Where are you going now?”

“Oh, to the study. I wanted to take a look at this.”

“Hmm… Hey, Alexa.”

He had something he’d wanted to ask, now that they were alone.

“What is it?”

“Do you only like Ysildus now? Are you only going to hang out and talk with him from now on?”

“What? Of course not! I like you too, Terrun. I still talk and hang out with you, don’t I? See? Like we’re doing right now.”

“But lately, you’ve only been with Ysildus. I was… really worried.”

“Oh…”

She could see why Terrun felt that way. With everything going on, she’d been constantly swept up in chaos and hadn’t had a chance to pay much attention to him.

“I’m sorry, Terrun. But I promise, it’s not because I dislike you. I really do like you, too.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Then… no matter what I do, you won’t hate me?”

“Of course not. But why do you ask?”

Now that she was away from Ysildus and with someone else, Alexa felt more grounded. She subtly turned her head away from Terrun and pulled the tissue from her nose, rolling it up in another clean one to hide it. Ugh, how embarrassing.

“It’s nothing… I just wanted to ask.”

Terrun glanced at her, gauging her reaction. He often acted childish, but he had a strong awareness of who he really was. He felt alive when he was crushing the Magic Tower or standing on the battlefield. It stirred the blood of the wolf in him.

But Alexa was not a wolf, just an ordinary human. If she learned the truth, she might fear them. Fear him.

That idea had been planted by Jeremiah, another human like Alexa. When it came to Alexa, Jeremiah’s instincts might be more accurate than those of Terrun or Ysildus.

Jeremiah had warned him: ordinary humans would be afraid of a wolf’s violent nature. And when Terrun heard that, he immediately thought of Alexa, of her pulling away in fear, growing distant.

Of course, this had been part of Jeremiah’s plan all along, a subtle manipulation to make Terrun confess the truth to Alexa himself. Completely unaware of that, Terrun had once again played the role of the well-meaning fool.

“The truth is… we’re different from you. We’re wolves.”

“Yeah. So?”

“Have you ever been afraid of us?”

“There’s no way I’d be scared of you or Ysildus.”

Terrun took a deep breath and looked serious.

“We’ve killed people, Alexa.”

Alexa stopped in her tracks at his heavy confession.

“And the strange part is, it doesn’t feel wrong. I don’t lose sleep over it. I think of it as something that needed to be done. Still… are you okay with that?”

In Terrun’s eyes, Alexa saw Ysildus and Thersion, who loved her. Terrun was right. If Thersion had attacked the Magic Tower and was now in conflict with the royal family, then yes, he had surely taken lives. And their enemies had no doubt killed wolves in return.

“Terrun.”

“Yeah?”

He looked at her like a man awaiting judgment.

“I’m not a good person.”

“What do you mean?”

“I want my side to win. If you and Ysildus have to go out and fight, I want you to crush everyone and come back without a scratch.”

“Alexa…”

Terrun’s face lit up with emotion again.

“If you were killing people for no reason, that would be wrong. But in war… sometimes, it can’t be helped. If you hadn’t killed them… then it would’ve been you or Ysildus coming back cold and lifeless. I don’t want that.”

Alexa spoke clearly, without hesitation. She was not some delicate flower raised in a greenhouse, like the wolves imagined.

She knew the weight of war. She understood the consequences of killing and of not killing. She also understood that, for all their violence, the wolves of Thersion had been her protectors. She wasn’t coldhearted enough to enjoy the benefits while ignoring the cost.

“So don’t waste time worrying about that, Terrun. No matter what happens, I’m not going to hate you.”

Terrun beamed and nodded.

“Okay!”

Leaning against a pillar nearby, arms crossed, Ysildus had been listening to the entire conversation. He turned to Jeremiah and said, “Another failed attempt?”

Jeremiah let out a soft chuckle.

“Seems like I underestimated Alexa.”

As Jeremiah turned to leave, Ysildus gave him a chilly warning.

“Play your little games only within the limits I’ll allow, Jeremiah.”

Jeremiah turned back. A murderous blue aura swirled around Ysildus.

“I won’t let you be the reason Alexa cries. You understand?”

And with a smile as beautiful as that deadly aura, Ysildus grinned.