Chapter 90
Kazhan let out a hollow laugh. After a chaotic dawn where his heart had been shredded repeatedly, how could he possibly say he felt good?
Yet, Kazhan was sincere. Even though despair clung to him from Ysaris’s rejection, he found himself faring much better than when he had been alone.
At the very least, he no longer saw visions or heard phantom voices. At his worst, if Ysaris had utterly rejected him, he might have crumbled and opted to die alongside her—perhaps even tried to take her life with him.
After all, he’d often dreamed of meeting his end alongside her.
“…Come to think of it.”
‘Why does my body feel so light?’
Kazhan suddenly noticed the change. He stood abruptly and moved his arms and legs. The sensation of being weighed down as if by heavy chains was gone. The eerie feeling of countless souls he had killed clinging to him and dragging him down had vanished.
The haze that clouded his mind, the whispers that tickled his ears like mockery, and even the pounding headaches and the stench of death—all of it had disappeared.
There was only one reason all of this could have changed.
“Ysaris.”
Kazhan stared blankly at the cottage where she was staying. He didn’t know what exactly had happened, but one thing was clear.
Kazhan Tennilath needed Ysaris. In every sense of the word.
* * *
A crimson hue fell between the sky and the earth as dusk settled. True to his word, Kazhan returned to Ysaris’s cottage, knocked politely on the door, and waited for her to answer.
In his hand, wrapped in a large leaf, was an assortment of fruits he had picked in the forest. Unable to enter the nearby village, he had wandered the woods to find food, gathering provisions not only for himself but also for her.
Though her internal injuries weren’t severe, Ysaris had sustained critical wounds. It was unlikely she could cook or manage her daily needs properly, so he had taken it upon himself to collect food for her.
“Ysaris.”
But the door didn’t open. He knocked several more times, but there was no response.
‘Had she fled? Had she forced herself to move, despite her injuries, because she knew he would return?’
“Ysaris!”
A sense of unease surged within him. Raising his voice, he called her name loudly, his knocking turning to pounding.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Open the door this instant! If you don’t, I’ll—”
Click.
“Making threats when you’re powerless to act… isn’t a good habit, Your Majesty.”
The door creaked open, and Ysaris appeared with a scowl. Beads of cold sweat dotted her forehead, and her labored breathing betrayed her condition. Her clipped speech made it evident that she was holding back pain.
“Are you all right? Is the painkiller not working?”
“I haven’t… applied the medicine yet. Thanks to Your Majesty, I’ve only just woken up.”
It was only then that Kazhan realized she must have gone to sleep in the morning after staying up through the night with him. He hadn’t considered it, as he himself had not slept at all since yesterday.
In fact, he hadn’t felt the slightest bit of fatigue. Though he was naturally strong, his sudden improvement in health had made it so that he didn’t even notice his lack of rest.
“My apologies for waking you. But it’s better to eat something than to keep sleeping.”
“I know. That’s why I opened the door.”
Her words, though tinged with irritation, showed that she was fully aware of her situation. Dressing her wounds or handling her meals on her own was beyond her ability. She had likely decided to make the most of the circumstances and put Kazhan to work as her caretaker. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have opened the door.
Faced with the prospect of being reduced to a nursemaid, Kazhan nonetheless gave a slow smile. For the first time in years, his lips curved softly.
And so, under the orange glow of the setting sun, Kazhan smiled—a rare, unguarded moment.
“Very well.”
Yes, Ysaris. I’ll take care of you.
Though the words remained unspoken, the warmth in Kazhan’s demeanor reached her. For a brief moment, Ysaris’s eyes widened as a vague, blind devotion seemed to overlap with his expression, reminding her of someone else.
“Shall we go inside first?”
Kazhan bent slightly to meet her gaze, seeking her permission. When no response came even after several seconds, he took it as consent and carefully lifted her into his arms.
His touch was too familiar. Familiar care, familiar eyes, familiar build…
Ysaris froze in shock, unable to give form to the thoughts racing through her mind. She buried them deep.
There was no way that Cain, who was dead, could have returned.
Certainly not in the body of Kazhan Tennilath.
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