Extra S*ave Saves the Crown Prince Chapter 16

He got up, went to the bedside table, and brought something over. It was the medicine I took. He even poured water and handed it to me together. I didn’t want to take it, but as expected, I had no right to refuse something given by someone above me. I took a sip of water, swallowed the medicine, and then gulped down the water again. It really tasted awful. I desperately missed that corn from earlier.

 

“Does it taste bad?”

 

He was still expressionless, but I could see the corners of his mouth lift slightly. It looked almost like a smile, and it sent a shiver down to my hair. If a perfectly sculpted statue were to suddenly smile, would it feel like this? It was as if a bright light was suddenly shining from behind him.

 

『His Highness seems to care for you a great deal.』 

 

That statement suddenly rippled through my mind again. It kept making me look at the Crown Prince with that premise in mind. I felt my ears turning red for no reason and fiddled with one ear with my hand.

 

Once the traces of dinner were all cleared away, the window outside had turned pitch black. The Crown Prince left while the table was being cleared, then returned and unfolded some paper. Seeing that it was blank, it looked like he intended to write something down. I couldn’t sit or lie down, so I just wandered around and looked out the window for no reason.

 

“Um, Your Highness.”

 

I managed to open my mouth with difficulty. Honestly, my body didn’t want to, but even rationally, this wasn’t right.

 

“You may lie down.”

 

He said that without even looking in my direction. I almost staggered at his words. How could I shamelessly crawl into the bed in this situation?

 

“Um, Your Highness. I think I’ll sleep somewhere else tonight. My arm seems to be better now, too.”

 

He was casually undoing the top button of his shirt when he paused for a moment. I hadn’t done anything wrong, but I suddenly felt guilty. It was because his eyes narrowed slightly.

 

He stopped like that and stared at me quietly. I couldn’t bear to meet his gaze and dropped my eyes to the floor.

 

Ssssh.

 

A breeze slipped through the slightly open window, rustling the paper. I was wearing thin clothes, so I unconsciously hugged my other arm with one hand.

 

Scrape. The sound of a chair being pushed back, and then he got up and closed the window. With even the wind gone, an even heavier silence settled in.

 

“I’ll step out. Rest.”

 

He picked up the jacket he’d left draped over the sofa armrest.

 

“Your Highness!”

 

A slave kicking the Crown Prince out so she could rest in the bed—had the setting itself fallen apart ever since I possessed this world as a slave? Maybe that’s why the original author came after me in such a terrifying form.

 

As he was walking toward the door with his jacket, he paused and looked back at me.

 

I didn’t dislike spending time with him. In fact, I felt very comfortable. It wasn’t something I should say as a slave, but seeing the real-life version of the original male lead was quite satisfying and pleasant. And, to add, I didn’t want to be left alone in this room.

 

“Then, if I may be shameless and terribly rude, I’ll excuse myself first.”

 

He nodded.

 

“Thank you. For treating me so well. I’ll never forget this kindness.”

 

I bowed deeply at the waist. I almost prostrated myself, but I figured he wouldn’t like that, so I stopped. But my gratitude was genuine. I hoped it would be conveyed.

 

“Rest.”

 

It was an incredibly embarrassing experience. Getting into the Crown Prince’s bed right in front of him. Ssssh, when did the sound of the blanket rustling become so loud?

 

He told me to rest, but there was no way I could actually rest. The best I could do was lie there as still as a doll, holding my breath.

 

I saw him put his jacket back down and settle at the table. How could I, a slave, rest just because he said “rest” when he himself was sitting there? Of course, I took it as an order, but it could make things even more uncomfortable.

 

Surely, I’d freeze up and just stay like that… But maybe I should at least close my eyes…?

 

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

 

It’s hot.

 

I came to my senses because my body, wrapped in the blanket, was so hot. I thought I wouldn’t be able to rest properly, but somehow I’d fallen into a deep sleep. My mental fortitude was impressive.

 

Maybe my fever had spiked again during the night, because my body was hot. The blanket, which had absorbed that heat, was also hot. But I didn’t mind it. The warmth wrapping my whole body made me feel cozy.

 

Since coming to this world, this was the first time I’d felt so peaceful. Still half-asleep, a faint smile crept onto my lips. Who knows when I’ll feel such comfort again? I should enjoy it while I can.

 

I rolled over to face his side. I didn’t know how much time had passed, but in the quiet room, he was still writing something. Even the way he dipped his pen in ink and wrote was perfect. I’d never seen it, but I was sure his handwriting didn’t stray far from the standard.

 

『The Crown Prince wrote many parts himself.』 

 

That’s what the priest on Salt Island said when explaining the book about Beasts. He was probably recording his own experiences with Beasts even now.

 

“It’s still night. Sleep more.”

 

It took me a moment to understand what he meant. He said it without moving a muscle. How did he know I was looking at him? Was it because he was beyond the category of ordinary humans?

 

“…Aren’t you tired?”

 

Speaking while lying down was probably just because I had a bit of a fever. Since I was half-asleep, he’d forgive me for that much. Honestly, I didn’t want to leave the happiness this hot blanket brought for as long as possible.

 

The scratching sound stopped. I saw him slowly set down his pen. He lifted his face and looked at me.

 

Did I seem rude? He leaned back fully in his chair and crossed his arms in a slow motion. Should I get out of bed now? It was absurd to ask if he was tired while I was occupying his bed.

 

“You always say things I’ve never heard before.”

 

Right. No one would have ever asked if he was tired while lying in his bed. It’s absurd.

 

Ssssh. I tried my best to quietly pull the blanket aside and scoot myself up.

 

“Stay lying down.”

 

The moment I left that warmth, reality hit me. It was time to vacate this place. I steeled myself and was about to push the blanket aside completely.

 

Thud.

 

He strode over and pulled the blanket back over me. Then he gently pushed my shoulder so I lay back down.

 

“Huh?”

 

Ridiculously, his touch had no force, but I leaned back anyway.

 

He brushed my forehead with the back of his large hand.

 

“You have a fever.”

 

To check a fever, you’d usually grab the wrist or place your palm on the forehead. But he only passed the back of his hand lightly over my forehead, leaving the slightest gap. It was obvious he was trying his best not to touch me.

 

“Are you still… afraid of me?”

 

He tucked the blanket up to my neck, so I gave up and lay back down. Now that he said I had a fever, everything around me really did feel hot.

 

He watched me lie down, then sat in the chair beside the bed. He looked at me for a moment from a distance close enough to reach out and touch. Since he said nothing, I felt like I was melting into the heat. I thought I might fall asleep again at this rate.

 

“Yes. Very much.”

 

He spoke. That answer chased my sleep away in an instant.

 

“…Because you think I might hurt you?”

 

“No. Because it’s the opposite.”

 

The Crown Prince spoke each word slowly. So I understood his words slowly as well. And the moment I fully understood, a sharp ache ran through my heart.

 

For a moment, I recalled his past from the Original Story, which I’d forgotten under the weight of reality.

 

[You killed the princess.] 

 

He’d been told he was someone who should disappear by the Empress since he was a child. I couldn’t even imagine what it must have felt like to hear that from his own mother.

 

In the novel, it was just a tragic backstory, but seeing him in person, even his emotionless face looked pitiable. He was someone who had lived by cutting off his emotions since childhood. As a reader, I knew better than anyone.

 

Even as he said he was afraid, his face showed no expression. But that only made it feel more sincere. I could tell he meant it.

 

My eyes burned as if the fever had reached them.

 

“I can’t tell you everything, but… I actually have an ability.”

 

“An ability…?”

 

“So I’m not as weak as you think.”

 

Of course, the moment I used that ability, I’d have to disappear forever. That would be the moment the fact that I’m an Epilo was exposed.

 

“You mean, seeing the future.”

 

“…Ah.”

 

Oh, right. I’d completely forgotten that I’d told him I could see the future.

 

『I can see a bit of the future. I think this Salt Island is about to explode….』

 

 At the time, that was the only way I could explain it. I’d spoken carelessly, but he still remembered what I’d said. My throat burned again at the thought. When he believed my words, emotion welled up in me again.

 

He was the only one who believed me when no one else would. He must have been struggling with his own pain, unable to listen to others, yet he said, bleeding heavily, “I’ll come for you.”

 

Suddenly, my vision blurred and I couldn’t see the Crown Prince’s face clearly.

 

Sez. Get a grip. You endured everything, even when you were whipped.

 

Am I getting weak just because I’m hurting from a mere wound on my arm? I’ve been through worse, and yet I’m about to cry over this? I bit my lip hard.

 

I heard him take a deep breath. If I rubbed my eyes now, it would only be more embarrassing, so I just braced myself and tried to hold back the tears.

 

“…I’ll call the doctor.”

 

I saw him slowly get up from his chair. He was about to pull the cord by the bed. I unconsciously grabbed his wrist.

 

He looked down at my hand—no, at his own wrist—slowly.

 

“Ah, it’s okay. You don’t have to call.”

 

Excuse me…? Are you listening to me? I said he was like a statue, like a sculpture, and now he really had become a statue. He just stood there, staring at his wrist. The atmosphere felt so strange that goosebumps ran over my body.

 

“Oh! I’m sorry.”

 

I must be crazy. I quickly let go. I really wasn’t in my right mind. I should have just gone to sleep.

 

He’s been so indulgent that I’ve gotten too bold. If one day my head ends up displayed somewhere in the Imperial Palace, I’ll have no excuse. A slave grabbing a royal’s wrist—anyone in the Empire would scoff at that. They’d say, “Don’t joke, what kind of slave like that exists?”

 

The Crown Prince slowly sat back down in the chair. He held the wrist I’d grabbed with his other hand.

 

“Hoo.”

 

He exhaled deeply, like someone who hadn’t been able to breathe for a long time. Even the sound of him leaning back against the chair made my heart pound. No matter what punishment he gave, I’d have no excuse.

 

He closed his eyes and was frozen for a while, like someone enduring something. I clutched the blanket and endured the silence with him.

 

“Sez.”

 

He called my name in a hoarse voice, and only after a long moment did he open his eyes again. His golden eyes were so deeply sunken that just meeting them made me tense.

 

“Yes.”

 

My own voice was a little hoarse. My head felt heavy from constantly watching his mood. My throat stung even more.

 

“You—.”

 

His hand reached toward me. As if to grasp the ends of my fallen hair, his hand came close but then stopped abruptly. His fingertips trembled for a moment, then curled into a fist.

 

Every movement was slow and sank deeply into my eyes. In this deep night, it felt as if he and I were the only ones left in the world. Paradoxically, it wasn’t a lonely or frightening isolation, but a cozy and peaceful one.

 

“You have a high fever. Sleep more.”

 

I was focusing all my nerves on what he would say next, but the tension suddenly melted away. He suddenly stood up, pulled the blanket up over me, and left the room without meeting my eyes.

 

Click.

 

With the sound of the door closing, I melted into the blanket like liquid.

 

My breath came short for no reason. The deep, heavy golden gaze left my body tingling. My ears were definitely hot from the fever. I buried myself under the blanket up to my head and entrusted my body and mind to the darkness.

 

That night, I dreamed an absurd dream where the Crown Prince kept running away from me, saying he was too scared, and I chased after him.