CH 159

I’d been sleeping soundly for the first time in a while, but the sound of raised voices jerked me awake. Out of habit, I kicked the blanket off me, sweating all over.

“Iona!” cried a voice.

“Miss Iona,” said another.

I got up just in time to see the owners of the voices charging toward me.

“What—what’s going on?” I wanted to know.

“How are you feeling? Are you hurt?” asked the first newcomer.

“Are you hurt?” the second added at the same time.

I couldn’t help feeling out of myself for a moment. Carefully, I examined my body. I seemed perfectly fine.

“I—I’m okay,” I said.

They each let out a sigh of relief, the worry fading from their faces. Ridrian sat on the edge of my bed and took my hand in his.

“I’m glad you’re okay,” he said, brushing my cheek.

The memory of what had happened right before I passed out hit me all of a sudden. It had been right before the second demon half came at me. Ridrian’s arm had been grabbed by the other half.

“W-what about the demon?” I asked. “Ridrian, are you okay?”

As I examined his arm and back, he scoffed. “I’m fine.”

He flashed me a bright smile and I blushed, feeling a sudden urge to relax in his embrace. I shook my head, realizing what I was thinking.

“It’s great that you’re ok, Miss Iona.”

“Ravis.”

I hadn’t realized before, but Ravis was not in great shape. His cheek seemed to have been scratched, his hands covered in bandages, and he had a cast on his arm for some reason.

“Ravis, why are you…?” I blinked at him. “Did someone attack the mansion?”

I started to get up, but Ravis stopped me.

“No, it’s not that,” he said. “Don’t worry.”

“How could I not!” I exclaimed. “You’re all bandaged up!”

“He’ll be fine,” Ridrian assured me.

“I know he will, but he looks like he’s in a lot of pain.”

For some reason, he was suddenly avoiding my gaze. He hadn’t beaten up his own brother, had he? Who in their right mind would beat up the pretty Ravis like this?

“Now now…” Ravis held up a hand as though to placate me. “Calm down, Miss Iona.”

“No but seriously—who did this?”

“More than that, I wanted to check something.”

“Huh? Check what?”

He motioned for me to calm, down and brought a chair to sit next to me, waving a hand to dismiss everyone as he sat down.

“Excuse us for a moment.”

Once all the attendees had left, he placed his index and middle fingers against my forehead. Although Ridrian didn’t like anyone else touching me, he didn’t stop him this time.

What is he doing?

Ravis looked like he was searching for something, his eyes close to me, his face serious as ever. His fingertips were warm. A moment later, he lowered his hand, his expression brightening.

“I knew it!”

“Ravis?”

Without any further explanation, he held out his bandaged hand. “Does it look hurt?”

“Of course.” What was he getting at?

Ravis smiled. “You can heal it.”

“What?”

I shot him a quizzical look. Heal injuries? Couldn’t that only be done by Ravis as a priest? I was just a regular person, without any special powers.

“Unfortunately, divine power cannot heal its owner. Its basic function is to heal others, or to filter out what is ominous.”

“How can I…?”

“Right now, your body used divine power. Did you feel it?”

I blinked at his words. I had divine power within me? That sounded as foreign as though someone had told me there was social skill hidden deep within Ridrian.

Divine power?

“Iona,” Ridrian said, his voice low, “just as you were about to be attacked by the demon, a light shot out from your body and instantly destroyed it.”

“Light?” I frowned. “From me?”

“Didn’t you smell something terrible?”

“Huh? Yes, it was so bad I almost had a headache.”

I was bewildered and Ridrian looked uncomfortable, but Ravis had a proud expression on his face.

“That smell was because of the demon. People with divine power react to demons. And from what I’ve observed, your body holds quite a lot of divine power—enough to match that of the Pope.”

“What?”

Ridrian frowned. “That’s not good,” he said. “Let’s keep it down for a while.”

“Of course. I have no intention of putting Miss Iona in trouble. And then there’s what Theres told me as well.”

I had no idea what he meant, but before I could ask, Ravis held out his bandaged hand again.

“So,” he said, “to check it, why don’t you heal my hand?”

“Me?”

I gulped. I wanted to heal him, but how could an ordinary person like me use divine power? I didn’t even know how to use it. But for sure I felt something flowing inside me. It was weird. I lowered my gaze, and the memory of the original novel filtered into my mind.

There was a section about how to use divine power. I didn’t think I’d ever use it.

Tentatively, I held my hand over the bandaged hand without touching it.

It said to picture an uninjured form and really hope that it heals.

It was very abstract, but it fit the word “healing.”

Just then, a faint light shone in my palm. It was golden, unlike Ravis’s blue light.

“Huh?” I exclaimed, flinching in surprise.

I kept my hand in place in order not to stop the process I’d already begun. The golden light wrapped around it until it was slowly absorbed. I was so lost in concentration, I almost didn’t notice the startled look on Ravis’s face.

“Enough,” Ridrian said suddenly, grabbing my wrist.