Extra S*ave Saves the Crown Prince Chapter 31

A sudden silence descended. It felt as if all the sounds in the world had vanished, leaving my ears ringing.

 

“Haa, haa, haa.”

 

I knelt down, bracing myself on the ground with both arms. I could feel the dampness of the petals beneath my palms.

 

You’re alive. You’re okay.

 

It felt as if those petals he had brushed off me were now telling me that. Plop, plop. Tears fell onto them.

 

“Ugh.”

 

My breathing grew so ragged that I started to gag. I slowly toppled over onto my side. It felt like I had used up every bit of strength I had just to focus.

 

A heavy pain surged from my side and waist. The Beasts had tried to bind me with all its strength in that instant.

 

I wanted to be indifferent to the pain, but my body trembled from time to time. I wanted to scrub clean the parts of me that had touched the Beasts, but I couldn’t muster any strength, not even in a single finger.

 

“Haa, haa, haa….”

 

It was that fleeting moment when the huge black foot was coming at me to do harm. It was that time when the Beasts was so focused on me that it didn’t move its body for a moment.

 

I squeezed my eyes shut and pictured the tranquil lakeside. The place where white petals piled up like snow—I drew and redrew it in my mind. I wanted to remember every single scene, so I etched it into my memory as if stitching it in.

 

The more detailed the image, the faster the teleportation ability worked. If I’d hesitated even a little to recall the place engraved in my mind, I wouldn’t have made it here. It was truly by a hair’s breadth.

 

Ah, thank goodness.

 

As if nothing had happened, the moonlight calmly illuminated the lake and the petals. It felt like I had come to a world completely different from that place where life and death hung in the balance. The petals, fluttering in the gentle breeze, settled once more on my legs and fingers. I wanted to rest for just a moment, leaning on that small softness.

 

『From now on, when it’s just the two of us, let’s call each other by name.』 The one who brought me here to show me this beautiful scenery. Because he showed me this view, I was able to survive. Just thinking of his face made the pain recede for a moment.

 

I pictured again the gentle curve of his lips as they rose. I cherished even the act of picturing it, afraid it would wear away. Of all the things I’d seen with my own eyes in this world, it was the most beautiful. His smiling face.

 

Flutter, flutter. The red cloak fluttered in the wind. That image of him running toward me with fierce urgency overlapped in my mind.

 

I couldn’t see his expression perfectly, but his urgency was clear from his bearing alone. I remembered the spear that had plunged straight into the Beasts’s mouth.

 

Was he searching for me now that I’d vanished? But even if I wanted to go back, I had no strength left. I couldn’t even twitch a single finger.

 

At least I was relieved that my teleportation probably hadn’t been discovered. I’d felt the shadow of the Beasts looming completely over my head.

 

I hoped everyone in Enafork was safe. I hoped no more Beasts would appear. I shouldn’t be hiding in safety like this. He absolutely must not be hurt….

 

My eyes kept drifting shut….

 

The breathtaking lakeside scenery became more and more blurred. I needed to go back soon. My eyelids felt so heavy.

 

Just for a moment, really just a moment, I’d close my eyes and get up. I’d recover at least a little strength and then go back. I’d count to exactly one hundred, then get up again.

 

One, two, three, four… five….

 

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

 

My feet were usually cold, but now a strange warmth lingered. And my side felt heavy, as if someone were sitting on it.

 

“Ah.”

 

I opened my eyes.

 

The soft moonlight was gone. The sunlit lake sparkled as if it held jewels. The fresh green leaves mingled with the white petals, bringing a coolness to my heart.

 

Rustle.

 

I barely managed to sit up, and the petals followed me. It was a lovely sight, but I first wanted to quench my burning thirst. Even with the dazzling scenery, I felt as parched as if I’d been dropped in a desert.

 

I had no strength to stand, so I crawled to the lakeside. I brought my lips directly to the rippling water. Coolness flowed down my throat and spread through my body. Things that had been at a standstill began to creak back into motion.

 

“Haa.”

 

After drinking, I rolled over and sprawled out on my back. My mind felt hazy, as if I’d just woken from a long dream. My head, legs, and arms all felt heavy. Most of all, my side was the heaviest. It felt like something was hanging from it. I brushed my hand over it unconsciously, but there was nothing there.

 

Should I just sleep again like this?

 

The spot where I lay was shaded, but the sunlit lake alone made me feel warm. If I could take a nap while feeling this warmth, I thought I’d be truly happy.

 

‘Sez!’

 

Suddenly, a sharp voice flashed through my mind. I didn’t know whose voice it was. It sounded desperate and urgent, almost like a scream. My heart began to race.

 

Startled!

 

“Am I crazy!”

 

I shot upright and looked around wildly. The lakeside scenery by day was even more beautiful than at night. Everything sparkled, shattered by sunlight. I felt as if I were surrounded by thousands of jewels. The problem wasn’t the scenery, but me being here.

 

“Haa.”

 

I’d meant to get up after counting to a hundred, but I’d fallen asleep without realizing it. I must have completely passed out after using up all my strength.

 

I knelt by the lakeside and washed my face. The cold water jolted me awake. As my mind cleared, the pain in my side returned as well.

 

“Ow. That hurts.”

 

I lifted my clothes and saw a riot of colors. Red, purple, and even blue skin. It would probably turn black soon and become a bruise. Just imagining what would have happened if the Beasts’s strength had been a little greater made me shudder.

 

Still, I survived.

 

A bruise was nothing, really. Compared to surviving. I drank a few more sips of water and took a deep breath. My body still felt weak, but it was manageable. I had to get back quickly.

 

I had to appear as if I’d just woken up somewhere in the camp. Honestly, I wanted to teleport, but I didn’t dare in case I got caught. Besides, my strength hadn’t fully returned yet.

 

“Let’s go back.”

 

I wanted to see those golden eyes, warmer than sunlight. I hurried along the path I’d taken before.

 

＊ ＊ ＊ 

 

Enafork had changed a lot in just one night. It looked as if a massive storm had swept through.

 

Collapsed tents were left abandoned here and there, and a lingering, acrid smell still hung thick in the air.

 

Usually, mornings here had a lively energy, but now everything felt oppressively heavy. Even the faces of the passing knights looked grim and dark.

 

“Hm?”

 

Among them, I made eye contact with a familiar knight. He had a splint on his arm, apparently injured during the night. The shadows under his eyes were even deeper than usual, and it was clear at a glance that he wasn’t in good shape. Seeing someone I knew hurt made my heart race.

 

“Hmmm?”

 

Baslo rubbed his eyes repeatedly, looking tired. He furrowed his brow deeply and approached me. He seemed unable to open his eyes wide, as if the light hurt or he was in pain. He looked like he needed to rest immediately.

 

I was about to ask if he was all right, but I bowed first. Ugh. My side throbbed painfully for a moment, but thankfully I was already bowing, so I could hide my expression.

 

“You….”

 

He looked me up and down with narrowed eyes. Then he rubbed his eyes with his hand. After roughly rubbing his eyes for a moment, he looked me over again, as if inspecting me.

 

“You, you!”

 

He inhaled, and his eyes opened wide. His uninjured arm trembled as he pointed at me. His lips parted several times, but he couldn’t seem to form proper words.

 

“How! How are you—!”

 

Baslo even stomped his feet. He ruffled his hair and wiped his face as if washing it. Finally, he even poked my arm with his finger. It didn’t hurt at all, but I didn’t know how to react, so I slowly rubbed the spot with my other hand.

 

“Sez.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“You’re… alive?”

 

“Um, Sir Knight.”

 

“Aaaaagh!”

 

Baslo looked as if he was angry that I was alive. He muttered curses under his breath, unable to control his emotions.

 

“Oh, God.”

 

Then suddenly his face grew serious, and he offered a short prayer to the sky. His mood swings were so rapid it was hard to keep up.

 

“How! Where have you been until now!”

 

I thought he’d calm down after praying, but he suddenly exploded again.

 

“Well, when I opened my eyes, it was already morning….”

 

“Opened your eyes? What does that mean?”

 

“I don’t really know either. I can’t remember what happened.”

 

No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t come up with a better excuse. Pretending to have lost my memory seemed the cleanest option.

 

“You… can’t remember?”

 

“Yes. It’s like I… flew away.”

 

“Flew away?”

 

“…Ah.”

 

I looked up at the sky, wondering if that made any sense. Even to me, it didn’t.

 

But there was no helping it. I’d just have to give the same answer to anyone who asked. I wanted to say the Beasts threw me and I flew away, but judging by Baslo’s expression, he wasn’t buying it at all.

 

“Haa, whatever. It’s fine. You’re alive.”

 

Fine, fine. He took several deep breaths. There was genuine warmth in his gaze as he looked at me. My nose stung with emotion.

 

“If something had happened to you….”

 

He couldn’t finish his sentence, and his throat bobbed. He shook his head as if he didn’t even want to imagine it.

 

“Ah! This isn’t the time for this. Come with me.”

 

I wanted to say yes, but my throat was tight and I couldn’t answer. He didn’t say where we were going, but I could read it clearly in his eyes.

 

‘To His Highness.’

 

The urgent expression on his face as he’d run toward the Beasts flashed through my mind again. Just remembering that face made something in my chest burn. I felt like I’d never forget those eyes, not for a long time—maybe not for the rest of my life. My heart pounded with the urge to tell him I was all right.

 

I prayed desperately, over and over, that he hadn’t been hurt during the night, that he was safe.

 

As I followed Baslo through the camp, a strange smell kept wafting by. Amid the acrid scent, there was a metallic tang. It was far from pleasant, and I instinctively covered my nose with my sleeve.

 

“Ugh.”

 

“Ah, that.”

 

Baslo glanced at me, then jerked his chin as if he knew the cause. Looking closely, the source of the smell seemed to be a Beasts’s corpse. Usually, Beasts corpses were burned immediately, so it was the first time I’d seen one so exposed.

 

It was so revolting I couldn’t bear to look at it. Even at a glance, I could tell how huge it was.

 

“Ugh, that needs to be burned soon. We even searched inside it, just in case you’d been eaten.”

 

“What…?”

 

“His Highness personally split it open and searched. We couldn’t even burn it just in case, so it’s been left like that.”

 

Baslo spoke bitterly, and for a moment, my vision blurred. My throat burned.

 

The corpse was already so mangled, it was impossible to tell if it was the Beasts that had grabbed me. Beasts were usually burned immediately after being killed, so I couldn’t immediately understand what he meant by searching inside it.

 

In case I’d been eaten. In case I was inside.

 

They split open the Beasts’s corpse and searched inside? My vision blurred instantly.