#26
The scope of “helping” allows for subjective interpretation.
Since it’s done within the range that both parties acknowledge as help, if he thought it was unfair, he could refuse.
If he ‘perceived’ it not as help but as conspiracy, he wouldn’t suffer any harm.
But what I had to do for him was different.
Because the word “all” was attached.
I immediately understood what he had in mind when he said it.
‘The Archduke, Marcus hyung, and Sercil haven’t revealed their curses to me.’
But if Theodore hyung told me, I would have to lift their curses too.
‘It’s fortunate he didn’t attach a condition about when to do it.’
Because I couldn’t lift them all at once.
Anyway, it was a success.
“Then I’ll stake this soul.”
I felt like cheering, but I couldn’t. I hadn’t completed the contract yet.
“Hah…”
I sighed pretending to smile while catching my breath, and I think I briefly made eye contact with Marcus hyung.
I naturally looked away from him to Theodore hyung, but…
‘I can’t see well.’
Actually, my vision had been getting blurry and then fine repeatedly for a while now.
I think I could smell blood scent too.
Ah… perhaps there was still poison remaining, and it was causing chaos together inside while my body was in poor condition.
Considering mana depletion syndrome, it wasn’t a very good sign.
I need to conserve blood.
‘There isn’t much time.’
If I cough up blood in front of them, they might say they have no intention of contracting with a weak human with something wrong with their body.
‘Quickly. Quickly…!’
Red mana carved a mark on my heart.
If I broke the contract, I would lose my heart along with my soul.
I carefully reached out and found a spot on Theodore that he could quickly restore even if lost, yet wasn’t too conspicuous normally, and placed the mark there.
My breathing was about to become rough.
That’s when it happened.
When Sercil said such a thing.
“Um, I’ve been curious since earlier. That body… can’t it feel pain?”
Huh?
“I thought the broken parts had healed already, but looking now, that doesn’t seem to be the case either.”
What is he suddenly talking about? We just made a contract with mana between the son of a demon and this country’s Crown Prince!
‘Wasn’t the next step supposed to be hearing words about managing me so I don’t do anything foolish?’
“Your stomach is torn too…”
Was only Sercil in a different room? Maybe I was too out of it to notice…
That doesn’t seem to be the case. I realized no one was stopping him and tilted my head.
So, we made the contract, and Sercil said my body hadn’t healed.
‘…What does this have to do with anything?’
I’d like to give the answers they want as smoothly as possible if I can.
Since I was getting feverish and it seemed like there really wasn’t much time, I had no choice but to ask.
“Why is that?”
“Huh?”
“…Ah, perhaps.”
My head finally started working a bit.
‘So that’s it.’
I opened my eyes slightly wider and spoke as if I understood.
“Right. I didn’t think of that… That would have been curious, fairy-nim.”
“…Your Highness?”
“You’re curious about this body’s durability, right?”
Sercil froze in the same position he’d been calling me.
“Haah. Fairy-nim. Being so kind, how do you plan to live in this world… Look. I just made a contract with His Highness the Crown Prince. In this situation, you don’t need to speak so indirectly.”
“…Ah?”
“You knew about unique magic. How clever, fairy-nim?”
“I, uh, I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
Sercil asked hesitantly.
I smiled cheekily and spoke as if humming while hugging my folded legs.
“Unique magic can overload the body if you’re inexperienced with its use… You were worried about that, weren’t you?”
“Oh, I see. Then that’s even more of a problem!”
“Don’t worry. I’ve never used this magic on anyone else, but I’m skilled at using it. There’s no chance my body will be overloaded…”
Since it’s magic that requires blood, actions to draw blood are necessary, but hmm… I can’t call that an overload.
It’s just a necessary condition, right?
“No way!”
“You hesitated!”
“No way. Really!”
“That sounds like a lie! Besides, what on earth are you talking about right now? Why is this conversation flowing this way…?”
As Sercil jumped up and shouted, Theodore hyung, who was beside him, calmed him down.
“Sercil.”
“Ugh…! But, Your Highness.”
“It’s fine, so calm down first.”
While looking intently at me, not Sercil.
…Come to think of it, Marcus hyung too…
‘The Archduke?’
Why does even the Archduke have that expression?
Marcus hyung looked both bewildered and as if he was looking at something that made him angry just by seeing it. I could understand that.
But seeing the Archduke’s expressionless face wasn’t something you could see easily.
That was a face I’d only occasionally seen before when I’d made very big mistakes.
‘Like when I publicly revealed Sercil’s identity, or when Marcus hyung’s lover fell into a coma due to my mistake.’
Or the expression he’d make when the protagonists got hurt.
In other words, an expression that came out when he felt no need to manage his facial expressions.
‘Was this not it…’
The protagonists weren’t hurt, so it would be right to think I made a big mistake.
But I don’t understand. I think I handled the nonsense well, and I gained the right to interfere in their affairs…
‘I made a profitable deal that didn’t look too suspicious.’
And no one got seriously hurt.
What should I do? I don’t know what I did wrong, Archduke.
‘…Why am I so stupid?’
I hurriedly composed my expression that was about to crumble at the thought that crossed my mind.
If I did something wrong, I need to fix it.
But they probably wouldn’t believe me if I said I’d fix it anyway.
‘If it wasn’t an issue of trust in my abilities, it’s probably that with high probability.’
I’m a villain right now.
A villain with ulterior motives…
I met each of their eyes one by one and smiled wryly.
…My head is too dizzy, so I don’t know if I’m doing well.
“You know. I don’t know how to use curses.”
Among curses, there were occasionally cases where one’s own recovery ability or lifespan was used as a substitute for a medium.
Actually, there are too many rumors about curses to clarify them one by one, but if they’re anxious even though they know why my current body condition is like this, I should tell them once more!
I chose my words carefully and spoke as clearly as possible.
“So the worry that I might curse you all…”
“Ah, enough.”
Marcus hyung suddenly cursed inaudibly, then slid smoothly to sit in front of me, forcibly lowered my legs, and snapped at my drooping self.
“Sit up straight. Just endure for a moment.”
“Huh?”
And he started unwrapping the bandages on my stomach.
I tilted my head in confusion.
“Hyung?”
“Shut… No. Your Highness can babble as you please. I’ll do as I please too.”
“We need to disinfect first. You’ve been moving around so much that your ribs might really be broken. …Should I also get you a chest binder?”
And the Archduke really brought a chest binder to show me and smiled beautifully.
“You seem to like directness, so I’ll accommodate that, Your Highness.”
“…Archduke?”
“From now on, Your Highness is our precious curse-lifting person in charge.”
My eyes widened without my knowing.
“Precious! Person in charge, he says.”
Sercil, who had been watching from the side, quickly interjected.
Leaving out only the important word.
The Archduke looked at Sercil with a displeased expression for a moment, then looked at me again and said.
“Since we’ve made a contract, I’m telling you this, but right now, Your Highness is the only person who can lift His Highness Theodore’s curse.”
“Yeah. That’s obvious, right?”
“You also said it’s not completely lifted yet. Right?”
“Mm-hmm. It takes some time…”
Ah, is that what I did wrong? But the Archduke clapped his hands once.
And said.
“It’s not just that curse you have to lift, but it takes time. It will probably take a lot of time until you lift all the curses His Highness Theodore wants. Then you’ll have to… not get hurt… please.”
“…”
I quietly looked up at him. It felt like the first time I’d seen him without putting on a villain’s face.
The Archduke’s eyes were still cold and even held displeasure, but he wasn’t angry at me.
Relieved by that, strength slowly began to leave my body.
My eyes kept trying to close.
The Archduke’s eyes sank another layer deeper, but this time I wasn’t worried.
He said he was worried about my body.
Then Marcus hyung said.
“All done. There’s nothing more damaged. …Your Highness, when you wake up later, you’ll have to tell us why recovery magic doesn’t work well on your body.”
“Ah, that’s…”
It’s the same principle as not being able to use unique magic on Ersen’s own body, but before I could say that, someone interrupted my words and lifted me up.
“Then let’s lay you down again.”
It’s Theodore hyung.
‘He, he hugged me?’
Though it was a position where only two palms touched, I felt like I might lose my mind.
As I was instantly moved to the side room in a position like carrying a cat, I came to my senses and looked at them.
They’re worried about my body.
Not only is my ability really necessary to them, but because they’ve decided to use that ability!
What should I do? I wanted to grin foolishly.
To think I’ve really become a good item to them.
An item that needs to be well-maintained!
While I wanted to laugh, my throat got a little choked up. I hadn’t known that the handful of attention I’d so desperately wanted would be given so suddenly.
‘It’ll probably change when I really come to dominate the half-demons, but…’
I hadn’t expected it in the first place anyway.
‘I really have to do well. I think I can do it.’
Now I’m a little confident. I think I can really prevent your misfortunes.
I think I can end the episodes after the High Priest’s downfall with only me getting hurt like this time.
‘I should tell them in advance that I don’t die that easily anyway.’
They’ll worry! They’ll worry!
Before losing consciousness.
I slowly gave Theodore hyung, who had laid me on the bed, a villain’s suspicious smile and whispered.
“Your Highness, don’t worry. I’m an item that doesn’t break easily.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
