Chapter 8

Chapter 8

When Aelock opened his eyes, he thought for a moment whether there was a barn in the fiery pit of hell. But he soon changed his thoughts. The place where he was lying was not the shed he had been using until now. It was a small humble cottage, and he was lying in what could be called a bed, albeit a rough one, and was covered with a clean blanket.

He slowly got up. The last thing that came to mind was cold water. But now, the place where Aelock opened his eyes was obviously a dry room. He didn’t understand how it happened. Under the sliding blanket, his naked body came into view.

Though he washed his skin hard with soap, he still couldn’t get rid of the old grime but the smooth and clean skin did not look like that of a street bum, even with the scars and bruises. When he brought his nose close to his arm, he could smell the scent of fragrant flowers. It was as if he entered and came out of the water with high-quality bath salts.

He brought my legs together neatly, placed them on the floor, and got off the bed. He found a table by relying on the faint light that came through the tightly closed wooden window shutters. There was probably a sturdy and large table around here.

Also.

On top of it, he felt a soft fabric that smelled like the sunlight. Aelock hugged it and inhaled its scent deeply. There was no smell of the gutter. For some reason, his heart swelled. It was not a forced mask-like smile, but a genuine smile of joy, buried in the cloth and remained there for a long time. Then, slowly, he put it on.

As expected, it was a little short in length. However, it was not so uncomfortable since he was so skinny. As long as he didn’t button up the sleeves and the neck, it was fine. His wrists and ankles were sticking out through the ends, but it didn’t bother him because there was no one who would make fun of him here. VIssịT n0(v)eL/b(i)(n).com for the best novel reading experience

Aelock, fully dressed, rubbed out the soft texture with his palms and opened the closed window shutters. A bright light streamed in and he had to cover his eyes with his hand. After blinking a few times, his eyes began to adjust to the light with a feeling of drowsiness. Right then, he could see the scenery outside the window.

Due to the heavy labor, he was very tired today. Unfortunately, there were no lamps, so when the sun went down, there was nothing to do. Truthfully, even if there was a lamp, there was still nothing to do. The physical fatigue pushed away all the painful memories of the past that came every night and allowed him to sleep soundly without thinking about anything.

It felt like a cool breeze brushed his cheeks in his sleep. He had to get up to check what it was, but he was too tired to open my eyes. If it had been a barn or a street, he would have woken up before the wind blew and crawled into the deep shade, but this was a cottage. No one came here except for that person. He isn’t coming, is he? It must be the wind in the garden coming through the closed shutters. The cool breeze made him feel good. Aelock seemed to have smiled a little even in his sleep.

He woke up suddenly in the dark of dawn. He rubbed his eyes and got up, and reached for his clothes, but then something else came into Aelock’s eyes. A lamp, soap, and clean towels were placed on the table. It was clear that someone had come and gone. As far as Aelock could remember, only one other person had been in and out of the cottage besides himself. Other servants would bring various items outside the door, but they never came inside. Aelock, unable to wear anything, ran out of the cottage with nothing on.

“Klopp!”

He quickly ran to the cedar wall. Along the wall to the path leading to the rose garden on the other side. But he couldn’t go any further than that. It was difficult to get out of here. If he was nearby and saw Aelock stepping into the mansion, he might throw him out again. It was forbidden to wish for anything other than what was given. The only thing he was permitted was a cottage. Aelock stood on his tiptoes to find the figure of a tall, broad-shouldered man. No matter how many times he put his head out, he couldn’t see anything. He called him again.

“Klopp!”

No response came back. No one seemed to be there. Then, when a brisk wind blew and he realized again that he was not wearing any clothes, he quietly returned to the cottage.

The embers that still hadn’t died out were so painful that he tried to extinguish them by sinking into the river, but this time too, he was pulled out and a bellows was used to make them flare up again. He didn’t even have any flesh left to burn anyway. Now, Aelock looked forward to the heat that even made his bones hot.

He saved his life, so if Aelock were to keep staying alive, someday he would look back on him at least once. That’s why he didn’t want to miss this chance by being selfish like before. One day, when the time comes when he wants to talk face-to-face, he would come and wake him up. Until then, all Aelock could do was wait for a better look.

He tried roasting carrots for breakfast but cut himself in the same spot he did the day before. He put his bleeding finger in his mouth and opened the box that Klopp had brought him at dawn. He saw a white bandage. He cut a small piece of thick fabric and wrapped it around his finger. It did hurt a little. In addition, he also closed the wounds from yesterday that were quite long. When he looked down at his hands, he suddenly remembered the white band that had touched the smiling lips of that person. In doing so, he could still vividly see the image of the two lovely people with one kissing the other’s fingers as if his wounds heal quickly.