Chapter 134
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Ivan was relieved that Ruby had opened her eyes. Watching over her as she failed to wake, he had felt as if his heart were truly shrinking.
Worried she might go through a forced heat like before, he hadn’t left her side for a moment, but when she showed no heat, no reaction of any kind, he kept watch all the more anxiously.
“Are you coming to your senses?”
“…I slept for two whole days?”
“Yes. It wasn’t sleep, you were unconscious. There was no response, so I lost count of how many times I called the attending physician. I thought I’d lose my mind because you wouldn’t wake.”
At his tone, so full of worry it almost sounded like anger, Ruby felt a strange sentiment. Why did this man tremble in such fear over her well-being?
Of course, there was the trust and affection they’d built up between them. But could that affection, gathered over such a short time, really make him wear an expression like that?
His expression right now looked exactly like that of a male worrying over his mate.
“Aside from a rather strange dream, I don’t think my body’s in bad shape.”
Her yin energy had grown a little stronger, but not to the degree it had when she raised the barrier, so no heat came over her.
“Your pheromones have grown denser. Are you really all right?”
Ivan, unable to settle, pressed his nose to the nape of her neck and sniffed.
“Hmm, I do feel a little sluggish.”
She wasn’t so worked up that she’d die of it, but the thought that she’d like someone to soothe her down below did fill her head.
“Haa, I wish I had a suppressant.”
When she’d fled the village, the situation had been so urgent that she hadn’t brought anything with her. She really had run off with nothing but a single carrot.
If she hadn’t had even that, she might have suffered serious starvation on the way here.
In the worst case, she might not have made it to Negro territory at all and would have had to look for some other way.
Then she wouldn’t have met Ivan, would she? And Ivan would still be tormented by the spirits, not even knowing how serious his condition was.
Letting her thoughts drift as they pleased, Ruby felt that all of this seemed like a well-arranged design. And the ancestor and Louis she’d seen in her earlier dream came to mind.
She was staring blankly into the air when all at once a handsome face blocked her view.
“…What is it?”
Ivan, who looked as if he had much to say and parted his lips several times, picked up the bowl that sat on the bedside table.
“First, let’s get something light into you.”
He speared a piece of fruit and put it into her mouth.
“Mmh.”
The moment it entered her mouth, Ruby’s eyes went round at the sweet fragrance and cool taste that spread across her tongue. It was a fruit she was tasting for the first time in her life.
“What is this?”
“A fruit called melon. It’s mostly grown in the south, but it’s a variety that can also be raised in greenhouses, so we produce a small amount as well.”
“It’s so sweet and delicious.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
The brow he’d kept furrowed the whole time eased a little. Ruby readily ate up every melon piece he speared on the fork and fed her. It was full of juice too, so her thirst was quenched.
“Is there anything you’d like to eat? Tell me anything. I’ll have the head cook prepare it right away.”
“Mm, for now I think the melon alone is fine.”
She had been hungry, but the melon filled her up to some degree. More than that, lewd thoughts kept coming to her, which was hard to bear. On top of that, with Ivan, who had spent her heat with her, hovering right in front of her, her eyes kept following him without her meaning to.
“…Why are you looking at me like that?”
“How was I looking at you?”
“You’re staring at me like you’re about to eat me up.”
“…As if.”
“An herbivore beastfolk trying to eat a carnivore beastfolk. Isn’t this against the natural order you’re so fond of?”
“I told you it isn’t, so why don’t you stop?”
Having found a little strength, perhaps from the melon, Ruby retorted sharply. If the other servants had seen it, they might each have clapped a hand over their mouths in shock.
But far from finding her impertinent, Ivan was rather pleased.
Yes, this was what a bold little rabbit should be like.
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