Chapter 39
He didn’t know when this small being had stolen his entire heart. But on another level, it felt inevitable.
Was it because she wasn’t human that he let his guard down? He had never let another person into his own space and boundaries before.
Yet, Hermie was the first to step inside his space, his boundaries, the walls around his heart. And she settled there without any resistance.
“Hermie.”
He thought he would call the mage if she still hadn’t regained consciousness by today. Even though recalling that insolent man who came wanting to take Hermie back made him seethe, Hermie’s health was what mattered most.
After taking the fever reducer, her temperature gradually subsided. It felt like a return from the brink of death.
Hermie struggled to lift her swollen eyelids. Very close by, she saw Froy looking down at her.
“Hermie, are you okay?”
Her mind was hazy from being ill all day, so Hermie slowly took stock of the situation.
‘Why is Froy so close?’
The iron bars that always blocked her view were also gone. With the long horizontal lines that had been blocking the world now vanished, the view before her eyes felt bright and clear.
‘Could it be… outside the cage?’
A surge of joy rose from the depths of Hermie’s heart. She had gained the freedom she couldn’t obtain even by acting cute, playing coy, or confessing her love, all from catching a fever.
‘I should have gotten sick sooner.’
She felt a pang of regret. For the past two months, no matter what ridiculous things she tried, Froy hadn’t budged, but after getting sick just once, here she was, outside the cage.
At the same time, her mind raced. If she looked okay, he might put her back into that dreadful cage, so she needed to keep pretending to be sick.
“Ugh…….”
After finishing her scheming, Hermie subtly let out a pained groan.
Startled, Froy bent down and lifted the entire fabric-cushion bed. He even lifted the cloth cover, seemingly to check on Hermie’s condition.
“Are you okay? If something hurts, tell me. I’ll call a doctor.”
“Ugh, um…….”
As Hermie tried to move her lips to say something, she saw her own state and her expression stiffened.
‘Why did he take my clothes off? Even if he thinks I’m a fairy! Can he just observe someone’s naked body like that?’
She wanted to flare up in anger and cover herself, but since she intended to keep pretending to be sick, she forcefully swallowed her rage.
‘I am a fairy. I am a fairy.’
Now, there was no choice but to resort to this kind of mental victory. The long confinement had given her the mental fortitude and shamelessness to easily overcome any sense of shame.
“I’m cold…….”
To get the cloth back, she shivered and reached out her hand, but Froy, completely oblivious, covered her with his own palm instead. The warm body heat enveloping her entire body made Hermie stare blankly with her mouth agape.
“Are you very cold?”
“Ugh, yeah. I think I’m okay.”
Flustered by the sensation of skin contact, she hurriedly shook her head. She fidgeted, showing discomfort, but far from letting her go, Froy kept his hand there and even pressed it against her cheek.
Then, as if showing affection, he pressed his lips to the crown of Hermie’s head. Hermie’s face flushed bright red.
“Why is there a bump on your head?”
“A, a bump? I fell……”
“You should have told me if you were hurt.”
“……”
“I thought something terrible had happened.”
Hermie, speechless, could only roll her eyes. Being coddled and carried around in his cupped palm was utterly embarrassing.
Froy held Hermie like that for a long while, letting out deep sighs.
From his reaction, she could imagine how worried he had been. Looking at his eyes, dripping with affection, a faint hope began to bloom.
With a desperate look, Hermie hugged Froy’s finger. Being naked didn’t bother her anymore.
“…Are you going to put me back in the cage?”
“……”
“I hate it inside the cage, it’s stifling. And my head still feels dizzy.”
Froy nodded with a pitying expression.
"Did you hate it that much?"
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