Extra S*ave Saves the Crown Prince Chapter 53

Shihien finished the meeting about Epilo and stood up first.

 

There was somewhere else he wanted to go, but he restrained himself and headed to his own tent. He felt that right now, she probably wouldn’t want to see him.

 

As soon as he entered the tent, he took out a cup and drank some water. Even though it was a tent he always used alone, he would sometimes feel as if something was missing. Especially, the small hand that used to pour water for him would suddenly come to mind.

 

He remembered that the water she poured always tasted better. Even though it was the same water.

 

Sitting on the sofa, Shihien slowly tilted his head back and leaned against it. The movement sent a sharp pain radiating from his shoulder throughout his body. It was a wound he’d received from a Beasts in a recent battle.

 

Of course, this kind of pain or injury was nothing. It was always with him, so there was nothing special about it. He only needed to endure for a while, and he would recover.

 

『Is your wound all right?』 『That must hurt….』 But after hearing those words from her, things changed a little. Every time he felt pain, her face asking “Are you all right?” would come to mind.

 

That gaze, filled with worry, would fill his head so much that he couldn’t think of anything else. It was as if he had drunk a medicine he shouldn’t have—dazed and languid.

 

With his head leaning back, he looked ahead and saw the bed. More precisely, he saw the image of her lying on that bed overlapping with reality.

 

Shihien slowly got up and sat on the bed again.

 

His large hand carefully stroked the surface of the bed. Sez’s sleeping face, her soft-looking hair, her small, constantly moving fingers—he remembered them so vividly he could picture them right now.

 

Just watching her sleep like that was enough to make him feel content.

 

He wanted to feel her warmth, to sense her breathing closer, and didn’t want anyone else to see this sight.

 

But in truth, just watching her was enough. The moment he watched over her, wishing time would stop, was satisfying.

 

『Do you want to avoid me.』 

 

When he asked that, he remembered those eyes that didn’t completely deny it. A sharper pain than the wound in his shoulder suddenly split through his mind.

 

She always showed her feelings honestly.

 

Those fearless eyes, the gaze that sincerely worried about him, her violet pupils always reflected everything about her.

 

When he asked that question, he could sense the affirmation that appeared in her eyes. He also saw the guilt that followed.

 

『That’s understandable.』 He meant it. In fact, it was almost surprising that she hadn’t felt that way until now.

 

『This child is a monster.』 『Please, spare me! Don’t kill me!』 『Don’t go near him.』

 

When he was restrained as a child because of his overwhelming power, there were words he remembered in fragments. He had killed people from birth, so it wasn’t wrong for them to fear him. Everyone who had been close to him knew.

 

That he was a being who could be a threat.

 

Of course, he could understand why someone would want to avoid him.

 

He just hoped that she wouldn’t feel sorry or guilty for such a natural feeling.

 

“Mm.”

 

Shihien pressed his palm firmly against his chest. Suddenly, it became hard to breathe, as if something was weighing down on him.

 

If only Noveni were here, maybe it could ease the pain a little. Sometimes, the pain he felt deep inside his chest was deeper and more intense than the pain of his skin being cut and blood pouring out.

 

Noveni was bitter, but thinking it was something she gave him made it taste sweet.

 

“Shihien. Are you going to the herb room?”

 

Shihien stopped in his tracks. When he came to his senses, he was standing in the plaza. Baslo had seen him passing by and called out.

 

He had only thought of Noveni, but had he unconsciously started heading to the herb room? For a moment, his body felt hot—he must have been running a fever.

 

Otherwise, it was hard to accept this situation. Wasn’t he supposed to be restraining himself out of fear that she would avoid him?

 

“Sez is probably in the chapel.”

 

“…The chapel?”

 

“Yes. I saw her enter with Oment the priest a moment ago.”

 

For a moment, he thought he’d just take a quick look at her and leave. If he could see her in the chapel as if by chance, that would be enough, he thought, as he turned toward the chapel.

 

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

 

“Shihien.”

 

Oment’s words echoed loudly through the chapel.

 

I was supposed to stand and show proper respect, but I couldn’t move. I was frozen, sitting and looking back.

 

Shihien stood still for a moment, then slowly walked over. The aisle between the chairs on either side was filled with light from the cross-shaped windows.

 

Just watching him walk through the center of that light made it hard to breathe. Even though he did nothing, I felt overwhelmed.

 

He looked down at me as I sat, then turned his head to look at Oment standing beside him. His golden eyes, filled with sunlight, were fixed on Oment’s clothes. To be precise, he was looking at the nearly undressed state.

 

“N-no, Shihien!”

 

Oment hurried to button up his shirt. Only then did I realize how strange this situation must look and caught my breath.

 

“It’s really not what it looks like!”

 

Shihien quietly stepped closer to Oment. Pressured by his presence, Oment backed away.

 

Even as he did, he was frantically buttoning his shirt. But it didn’t go well, and his face was clearly flustered.

 

In the end, with the wall at his back and nowhere else to go, Oment retreated until he couldn’t move any farther. The distance between him and Shihien was now about two hand spans.

 

Oment wasn’t particularly short, but Shihien was so tall that he was now looking down at him from right in front.

 

“I-it’s a misunderstanding, Shihien.”

 

“Sez.”

 

Shihien called me without looking back. The answer “Yes,” caught in my throat and wouldn’t come out. Oment shook his head slightly, still pleading that it wasn’t what Shihien was thinking.

 

“If you didn’t want it, say so.”

 

Shihien approached as if to grab Oment the priest by the neck with one hand. It seemed he would decide what to do with that hand depending on my answer.

 

“…I-I wanted it!”

 

I answered urgently. If I hesitated, I felt like he’d really put strength into that hand.

 

But as soon as he heard my answer, Shihien immediately lowered his hand and even stepped back a few paces. He looked so shocked that I was even more startled.

 

Ah, saying I wanted it… That could sound even weirder!

 

“No, it’s not like that, he said he would pray for me!”

 

“…Pray?”

 

“On my honor before the Goddess, I only meant to offer comfort, Shihien.”

 

Shihien turned his body toward me. I nodded, confirming Oment’s words.

 

“I’ve never seen a prayer like that before.”

 

His low voice spread across the chapel floor. No priest would ever unbutton his shirt and embrace someone while praying.

 

Oment wiped his face with one hand. But at that moment, I couldn’t think of anything but “prayer.”

 

“Raise your head.”

 

I must have been staring at the floor without realizing it. At Shihien’s voice, I quickly looked up. It sounded like a command, but as always, there was a gentleness within.

 

He gripped the backrest of the chair I was sitting on with one hand. Then he bent down, closing the distance between our faces.

 

His golden eyes quietly looked into mine, then examined my face here and there. As if checking to see if he’d missed anything.

 

My breathing grew faster. When Oment held me, I felt calm, but now, just having his face close made my heart pound.

 

“If you wanted it, then that’s fine.”

 

He spoke softly, almost like a sigh, then straightened up.

 

I wanted to interpret what he meant, but my mind went blank. I just looked up further, meeting his gaze.

 

“Sez.”

 

“…Yes?”

 

“I’d like to have some Noveni.”

 

“Ah, N-Noveni.”

 

“Is it difficult right now?”

 

“No!”

 

I jumped up from my seat. I had a good excuse to escape this awkward atmosphere, so there was no reason to refuse.

 

I always kept some in my pouch, but I wanted to give him the ones in the herb room.

 

If it was the scene of giving Noveni, even being with Shihien wouldn’t be suspicious. After all, it would just look like a slave giving herbs to the Crown Prince in the herb room.

 

I glanced at Oment the priest, and he gestured for me to go ahead. Normally, as the one in charge of the herb room, he might have come with us, but it seemed he was deliberately not joining.

 

He just bowed to see Shihien off. Shihien walked off as if he didn’t even see him.

 

As soon as I got to the herb room, I ground up Noveni and rolled it into a ball. During that time, Shihien sat quietly on a narrow chair, watching me.

 

When I handed him the Noveni pill, he popped it into his mouth and started chewing. It must have been very bitter, but his expression didn’t change at all. Instead, just imagining the taste made my own mouth bitter.

 

“Are you in a lot of pain?”

 

If he came to get Noveni himself, maybe his wound really hurt. I looked at his shoulder, but as expected, there was no sign on the surface.

 

“Should I call a doctor?”

 

“No.”

 

I checked his face to see if he was forcing himself to endure, but as always, it was just his usual sculpted face, showing no sign of wavering.

 

I poured him some water and handed him the cup. He looked at it for a moment, then drank.

 

“Sit.”

 

Honestly, I liked being alone with him in the same space like this. I’d given him Noveni, and water, and had nothing more to offer, but he didn’t leave, which reassured me.

 

I pulled up a small wooden chair and sat down. Shihien and I were facing each other. Even if someone saw us, I could just say I was giving him herbs.

 

Lately, being with him had made me anxious and nervous, but for the first time in a long while, I didn’t feel that way.

 

“Aren’t you tired? You haven’t rested at all….”

 

He’d been injured in successive battles, and I’d even seen him standing like a statue in front of his tent at night. It would be nice if he could lie down and rest in peace like this. If he was seeking Noveni because he was in pain, I wished I could be the one hurting instead.

 

“I’m resting right now.”

 

Shihien said, still looking at me. Sitting on a narrow chair that didn’t match his size, saying he was “resting.” And in this place filled with herbs on all sides. I wondered if maybe he didn’t really understand the meaning of “rest.”

 

At that moment, he reached out one hand beside my cheek. I could feel the heat approaching.

 

I remembered the warmth when he wrapped me completely in his cloak not long ago.

 

If only I could explain in words how much comfort I felt when his warmth touched me.

 

“Mm.”

 

But a satisfied sound came from him first. Without fully placing his hand on my cheek, he closed his eyes gently. As if the pain was fading away.

 

The warmth, just slightly apart, left me wanting more, so I moved my head to lean into it. When his large hand touched my cheek, he opened his eyes and pulled away again.

 

It seemed that, just as I hadn’t been conscious of my action, he had done it unconsciously as well.