Chapter 10

Chapter 10

“Weed, what are you doing all day today?”

“…I can’t show a disorganized appearance when I meet a precious person.”

Saying so, he quickly changed his expression from when his face had blushed. And in this situation, he showed a pitiful expression as if the priest had asked an absurd question. For a moment, Weed quickly turned his gaze to the mirror.

The priest tilted his head again.

“You look neat no matter what you wear.”

“Really?”

“Yes, well. Wouldn’t it be nice to wear red?”

The priest said that because he usually wore red for formal occasions. However, Weed slightly revealed his expression and asked a little strangely.

“Really? Does the color red suit me?”

Again, the priest nodded in the same sense and said yes.

Wearing red clothes was appropriate for formal occasions, while the decorations were gold or silver. While the priest was tilting his head as he couldn’t understand why he was asking for common sense, Weed left and reappeared with several stylish dark red clothes.

It looked like he would not leave in front of the mirror for a while. After roughly estimating the time, the priest informed Weed of something simple.

“The food should be prepared by now, but if you keep doing that, you will be late.”

“Ah, right. Yes.”

Only then did Weed hurriedly put on his clothes. Finally, even after examining his braided hair, collar, sleeves, and pants, he pursed his lips as if he didn’t like it. After procrastinating a few more times, he finally went out the door.

The priest, who was looking at his back, was worried that his outfit was too flashy rather than neat. Weed, who dressed exceptionally nice, was unusually eye-catching today.

The sanctuary was the home of only the tribes of the forest. However, it did not mean that other races were not allowed to visit at all. Occasionally, if the outside politely requested a visit, it would be granted.

Occasionally, a leader of a country or someone with a position equivalent to that came.

Those who didn’t seem to have any business would tell a lot of stories that only they know, and come with countless treasures. Rarely, if even one of the tribes in the forest showed curiosity about their story or even followed them, they would tear up and be happy.

Usually, outsiders bowed their heads first and came in, but guests were guests. Since most of them were treated with great respect even outside, the tribe of the forest had their own form to suit them even inside the sanctuary.

Among the forms, food in the sanctuary has always been highly praised…

So, Weed was a little nervous about this situation.

“…You don’t seem to have much of an appetite.”

Since there was only one person to serve, the table was not filled to the brim. Even so, he was confident that the food was not lacking at all, either in quality or quantity.

However, Hana didn’t look enticed at the food that looked appetizing in front of her. Besides, she didn’t look very good either. She seemed to be breaking out in a cold sweat as he looked at her black hair clinging to her forehead.

He called her anxiously.

“Hana?”

“Oh, sorry, sorry. You must have worked hard to prepare for it.”

“Are you okay?”

There was no strength in her voice.

As he examined her closer, he could see that her hand that was holding the tableware was shaking. She couldn’t seem to focus on the food at all. Hana lowered her head and bit her lip before she opened and closed her lips and hesitated for a long time to say her words.

Weed raised his body from the other side of the table, as he was so worried and Hana also raised her head. He moved closer and confirmed her pale face.

“Hana, are you not feeling well?”

“We-Weed, by any chance, what I asked you before…”

“What?”

“…The painkiller, did you bring it? Will it take a long time to prepare?”

Weed came to his senses.

Hana asked for medicine as soon as she woke up.

It must have been a pretty important matter to her. Having painkillers that she took consistently meant that she had constant pain. He shouldn’t have been procrastinating as soon as she asked for it, and he should’ve had it ready right away.

It was obvious that she was suffering from some kind of pain now. Not only that she was pale and stiff, Hana was exhaling her breath intermittently, as her shoulders, arms, and fingertips trembled.

Weed pulled her shoulders to calm her trembling.

As she was being dragged helplessly, she made a groaning sound as she put her forehead on his shoulder and groaned. He supported Hana, who was leaning on him and hurriedly put his hand in the pocket, trying to retrieve the bottle of painkillers handed to him by the priest.

Then, their eyes met.

She bit her lip slightly as she breathed heavily. It was thick and swollen and looked redder than the roses. In the meantime, he seemed to be able to see her breath that was slowly leaking out of it. Somehow, it felt like she could feel the sweet scent on her breath.

Weed followed her and bit and licked her lips before he answered her question.

“The painkillers… Is still not ready.”

He was surprised even after he said it. He had lied without realizing it.

He lied.

Before Weed could escape from the shock, Hana spoke again.

“Is, is that so? What, what should I do…”

Her eyes were moist. Soon, droplets of transparent dew began to form. She had been holding back the pain for so long, but when she heard that there was no painkiller, her patience ran out. The pain was so unbearable that she couldn’t even straighten her back properly.

As soon as she showed her tears, Weed’s heart sank. His throbbing heart made him think he would stop breathing for a moment. He must have been tormented by his guilt for lying to a noble guest.

He wasn’t used to lying.

Because he has no reason or need to deliberately deceive others, it was a very strange move for him.

‘Still, Tifolia is too addictive.’

The experience didn’t matter. As always with liars, Weed naturally came to rationalize his lies.

Although Tifolia worked well for pain relief, it was true that it was highly addictive and that, with consistent use, she could experience withdrawal symptoms. No matter how trivial the withdrawal symptoms are, such as poor sleep or mild anxiety, side effects were side effects.

Also, as it was a medicine that was taken periodically, the amount of Tifolia had to be carefully controlled. If she took even a little more than the prescribed dose, that minor side effect could become a problem.

It was natural for him to be concerned.

There was no way the priest in charge of preparing the medicine wasn’t careful about these things, but Weed was obsessed with weighing out the risks of side effects.

After thinking for a while, he soon came to a conclusion.

This was a much better way.

“Hana.”

A small voice like a whisper, he called Hana, who was leaning on him. Perhaps she couldn’t hear him, so she didn’t answer right away.

“Hana.”

When he called her one more time, she grunted and finally spoke.

“Uh… I’m sorry. I-I won’t be able to ta-talk, talk today… The food is delicious, but I’m sorry…”

There really was no strength in her voice. She seemed to be trying hard to speak calmly, but every word kept getting cut off as if it was too much for her.

Weed became out of breath as well. When he saw Hana leaning against him and breaking out in a cold sweat, his heart raced. His guilt seemed to pierce his chest. He couldn’t just wait and see her being like this.

It all happened because someone on his side summoned her by mistake. She lost all of her belongings, including her medications and her schedule was ruined. She must have been quite nervous in an unfamiliar place and without anyone to talk to.

He had promised to treat her with great hospitality during her stay, so she could not continue to endure pain, at least before sending her back.

As he thought about it, this was the only way.

“There is another way, even if there is no medicine.”

“Really?”

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