CH 43

Rumbling….

“…..Did you hear that?”

Instead of answering, he lowered his head and looked down for a moment, as if making a decision, then strode over here. 

Meanwhile, there was another growling sound. The glass attached to the shelf shimmered and even a slight vibration was felt.

‘Is it an earthquake?’

However, I have never heard of an earthquake occurring in Roquette, let alone the Preseria Empire, since becoming Minuelle.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise, but I’m leaving.”

Before I could even blink, Esadien stood right before me. The situation was too serious to say anything about his approach. Besides, we were on the third floor. If the building collapsed, it would be disastrous.

‘Esadien came here solely because of me.’

My life was important, but if anything happened to Esadien, the Emperor’s grief would explode like a bomb and fall upon Karinen. 

I couldn’t let that happen. I hesitated for a moment, bitting my lips, but then I took Esadien’s hand and started running.

“Let’s go.”

I had not thought that Esadien would cooperate willingly, as I heard him take a deep breath but pretended not to. 

The door was somehow unlocked. I thought it would be easy to just run out, but it wasn’t as easy as I thought. We were still far from the central stairs leading downstairs, but my already out-of-shape body was already out of breath. The high-heeled shoes I stupidly wore today were attacking the soles of my feet.

“Wa—wait a minute.”

Since we were holding hands anyway, I took off my high heels with the help of Esadien’s strength. However, his expression didn’t look good for some reason.

“Minuelle, wouldn’t it be better if you hug me?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, um… I mean, wouldn’t it be quicker if I carried you?”

“….”

I knew Esadien was right, but I couldn’t bring myself to agree so easily. My face was turning red from the embarrassment of what I was thinking. I had been calmly persuading him a moment ago, and now I was acting foolish.

“Your feet might get hurt.”

Up to the lame excuses.

For reference, there was a soft carpet all along the corridor inside the temple.

“Never mind. It’s indoors, but what’s wrong with hurting my feet….”

It was when I refused and took a step again.

Rumble!

It seemed to be quiet for a moment, and then there was a crack in the wall with a much louder sound. It was a bonus that a piece of stone fell from the ceiling.

“Ah!”

I let out a short scream and tightly wrapped my arms around Esadien’s neck. Regardless of whether it was foolish or not, I just wanted to survive!

“Don’t worry, Minuelle. Calm down.”

But he was holding me around the neck in a somewhat awkward manner, as if he couldn’t just let go and run away!

But I had a conscience. It wouldn’t be right to switch my words in just a few seconds. I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed and ended up giving a quick pat on Esadien’s shoulder.

“Ah, don’t comfort me! Just run! Quickly!”

“With pleasure.”

With a laughable answer, his hand came under my knee. I closed my eyes tightly, feeling my body lift.

‘Wh—why do you like it when you get hit?’

He was a weird guy anyway.

‘By the way, there’s no sign of movement.’

There were bound to be people working even though half of the third floor was the Apostle’s personal space. 

Moreover, anyone could feel the vibration from earlier, yet there was not a single person coming out from the opposite end of the corridor. 

My heart was pounding. Perhaps due to the silence around us, the sound of Esadien’s heartbeat filled my ears.

Thump thump. The sound of Esadien’s heartbeat filled my ears, probably because the surroundings were quiet.

‘O—of course his heart beats, he’s a human after all. If it doesn’t beat, they die!’

Don’t be conscious. Don’t be conscious.

Thump thump!

“…..”

Is it my imagination that the more I try not to be conscious of it, the louder it sounds….?

At that moment, Esadien spoke in a troubled tone.

“Minuelle, if you keep struggling, you might fall off.”

“Yes?”

I opened my eyes at those words, realizing that I had been gradually lowering my head from him while unconscious.

“I, I’m sorry….”

What a strange turn of events for the conversation. As I started to apologize in a faltering voice, Esadien gently laughed and tightened his arms around me.

“It’s okay.”

“Why…”

“Hmm?”

“Ne—never mind.”

I almost asked why he was laughing so often today without realizing it, but I managed to hold back. 

Asking questions is an expression of interest. Obviously, if I showed ambiguous interest in a situation where I was pushing Esadien away, he would not sign the engagement annulment paper.

Thump.

My heart was pounding. Finally, a person’s figure appeared in my eyes, as I chewed on my lips with the warmth and heartbeat that I felt all over my body.

“There’s someone lying down over there, Your Highness.”

“Right… I can also see a few people on the other side.”

When we reached the second floor, we discovered the reason for the absence of activity. The priests were sprawled out, unconscious in various places.

“Alive. He seems to be just asleep, judging by his normal pulse.”

“This man, too.”

I felt a calm breath as I put my finger under his nose. Seeing the priests with high magic resistance lying defenseless made me feel uneasy.

Rumbling.

In the meantime, the sound of the building rumbling continued occasionally.

I fiddled with the pager, lost in thought.

‘Should I call the knights?’

Normally, I’d press it right away, but….

‘What if the building collapses when the knights enter?’

They weren’t members of the Knights’ Order, and I don’t want them to sacrifice for me.

However, I couldn’t ignore the priests.

Even though these people didn’t spend childhood with me, they were still like distant relatives. As someone who had lived in the temple for a long time, I couldn’t help but feel something for them. It was an eerie feeling to see the priests, who had high magic resistance, lying helpless.

“Minuelle.”

Esadien, who had gathered the noticeable people in one place, flinched when he saw me, who was crying.

“Why, what’s wrong?”

“What should I do, Esadien? I can’t leave them behind…..”

When I saw Esadien, I cried even more.

‘Esadien, no, this person too, I need to get him out of here quickly.’

But the reality was that I couldn’t move a single person with my own strength. I felt disgustingly powerless. As I clenched the scattered pieces of rubble on the ground, I suddenly felt a warmth approaching, enveloping my face.

“Minuelle, it’s okay, calm down.”

Esadien, who knelt in front of me, looked at me calmly.

“Your earring must be a potion like last time. If you wake up a couple of people with it, they are all priests, so they will take care of it.”

“Ah…”

My eyes opened wide.

“That’s right. Why didn’t I think of that?”

Since Ramande’s divine power was imbued, it was natural that it had the option to nullify abnormal conditions. I had forgotten that fact since I only drank it when I was about to die. 

As I stood up abruptly, Esadien grabbed my hand tightly. I honestly admitted that my trust in him had suddenly risen. I was relieved that he was by my side right now.

“…..thank you.”

Despite being a bit hesitant in admitting it, I could see from Esadien’s eyes that he was pleased with my acknowledgment.

‘Ugh!’

When I saw that sight head-on, it felt like my heart sank heavily to the bottom of my chest.

“This, take this.”

I feel like if I keep looking at this face, I’ll pass out after just one more glance!

Following my instincts, I hastily handed a potion bottle to Esadien and turned around.

“Ah, it’s dazzling.”

Why do you keep smiling all the time?

Actually, it’s not quite accurate to say ‘keep’. It happened less frequently than the laughter people usually make subconsciously. But still, it happened more often than when we were engaged, so every time I saw it, I found myself gasping for breath.

‘What is it, huh? Just think of it as a statue! Got it, Minuelle Karinen?’

How can you do whatever you want?

‘Minuelle, answer.’

Whoa! Got it!

It was a moment of self-reproach…no, it was more like being scolded by myself. The priest who had just drank the potion coughed and opened his eyes.

“Ugh… You are?”

“Do you come to your senses? I’m Minuelle Karinen. It’s dangerous, so wake everyone up and take them out.”

In time, the building also rumbled once again.

“Ah, I understand.”

After helping the priest stand up, when I turned around, Esadien was coming towards us. 

“Leave this place to these people and go down. Seeing that it’s quiet downstairs, it seems to be in a similar situation.”

“I was thinking the same thing.”

If even a knight like Esadien didn’t sense any presence, it was almost certain. I grabbed the hem of my skirt and started running down the stairs before he reached out his hand.

“Minuelle, danger…..!”

As soon as I thought to myself, “What danger? I can’t even walk down the stairs properly, how have I survived in this world without elevators?”

…That’s when it happened. One layer of the skirt slipped from my grasp and slid through a gap, getting caught under my foot and causing me to stumble.

“Ah!”

As a result, my body naturally leaned forward and I squeezed my eyes shut. It was certain that I would tumble down the stairs in a mess.

‘This body, is it too much to go down the stairs now…..!’

However, the following impact was felt in the stomach, not the head or shoulders that were braced for it.

“Gasp!”

“I’m sorry. I was in a hurry…”

The voice that blurred the end of the words was clearly Esadien’s. I couldn’t tell what he had done, but he caught me as I was about to fall.

‘Wow, you only act like a real prince.’

Upon seeing his shining beauty, my first impression was more of awe than relief for being alive.

“Ugh, cough, cough.”

As I hastily caught my breath and coughed, Esadien bombarded me with questions.

“Are you okay? Do you want to drink a potion? Is your ankle sprained?”

“I’m fine. It’s okay…”

It was so embarrassing that my face turned bright red. Fortunately, no one saw me.

“Ah, anyway, thank you. I feel like I owe you a debt.”

“You don’t have to say that, Minuelle.”

Esadien spoke softly enough to make my heart flutter, and then he hugged me again.

“I can walk!”

“I know, but I’m worried.”

“…..”

I couldn’t say no because I almost fell right in front of his eyes.

‘This is a statue! It’s not a person, it’s a statue!’

I had no choice but to hypnotize myself as much as possible.

However, the more I tried not to be conscious, the more I felt the presence of Esadien. It felt like the path from this floor to the first floor was as long as a mountain trail.

On the first floor, which arrived with such a comfortable body and uncomfortable mind, priests and paladins were mixed. Thanks to this, we could evacuate easily without waiting for everyone to wake up.

“I think we’re almost there…..”

Strangely, I couldn’t feel the vibration outside. Esadien carefully grabbed my shoulder, looking around.

“I think it’s better for us to leave it to the priests now, Minuelle.”

“Oh, yes. Thank you for today.”

“Just in case, should I escort you…”

“No, it’s okay. I’ll go back on my own. Thank you.”

Esadien’s shoulders drooped noticeably, but I bowed and quickly turned away.