The next morning had come.
The other night, Natalia had loosely fixed up his wound and bandaged him. They were all tired and felt that Yezekael wasn't all that important. So they left it at that and went to sleep.
But Natalia felt it was smarter to check on the wound, out of the kindness of her heart.
The two of them sat in front of a lake.
"You're annoying. You know that, Yezekael?"
Natalia stood behind him, observing and analyzing his naked back and the bandage that wrapped around it.
Delt had landed a shallow cut across his abdomen.
She commanded. "Turn around."
Yezekael slowly turned around.
The white bandage was pinker at the front.
"How am I annoying?"
"You've given us another enemy that we have to worry about. Some self-proclaimed bandit king who beat your ass. Why didn't you pay him, huh? Do you know how much money I have?" she whined.
Yezekael looked to the side. Seeing his dismissal, she poked his stomach, where he had been injured. He let out a stifled moan.
"Stop... that hurts. You're supposed to be helping me!"
"Why are you making those noises? Are you some kind of damsel?"
She poked him again, and he made the same noise.
"Although... I can't say I hate it..." she quietly added. A small maniacal giggle followed even quieter.
"Stop tormenting me! Are you still mad that I called you weak? If so, I'm sorry!"
"I'm not mad about that. Why'd you do it? Get yourself injured like that. And don't say it was because he insulted me."
"So what if that was the reason?"
"..."
"..."
"Turn around, Yezekael. Nevermind. I'll never be able to sew this right, unless you're leaning against something."
Understanding this, he leaned against a tree.
Natalia placed a hand on his chest before lowering it onto the bandages.
This is the body of a knight.
The body... of a..
Agh! What kind of thoughts am I having?
This has to be some kind of syndrome... right? I need to focus.
"What if that was the reason? You never answered my question."
"If that was the— I guess I have to give you thanks, then. Thank you for defending me, even though I didn't need it. We would've been fine just giving him some money."
"Sorry…"
"He could be lurking through this forest, watching. Waiting to kill us at the perfect moment. He beat your ass once. How will you protect me the second time?"
"He just caught me off guard… that's all. Like I said, I'm stronger than the Hero Alexander."
"After this war, if no other jobs work out, you should definitely become a comedian. That would work out really well."
"…"
Yezekael stared at Natalia as she worked carefully on his injury. Besides slight flinching, the stitching of his wound did not cause him to feel much pain.
Her hands are gentle. Meticulous and thoughtful. These are the hands of a seamstress..?
I… wonder.
No! What are you thinking, Yezekael!
Yezekael turned his head to the side, averting his gaze from her.
.
While Yezekael was being treated, Caelum had left for a little bit to explore the wilderness. His idea was to scavenge for some extra food that they could snack on during their journey.
Slsh!
Wind whirred.
A shallow cut formed on his right cheek. Blood trickled down, droplets splashing.
"Didn't I tell you that if I saw you three again, I would kill you all?"
The cocky, almost a bit high-pitched voice came from the elf boy on his right.
How did he… catch me off guard like that?!
Caelum slowly lifted his hand, touching the fresh blood with his fingers.
"You actually didn't say that."
Delt's blade was open in his hand.
"I'm telling you that right now. So I'm gonna kill you. Right now."
Agh… how did I get into this situation? I'm pretty far from where we encamped… will they even be able to hear me if I yell?
How unlucky…
This whole situation is absurd. But, as a king, I should know how to get through situations like this!
Caelum raised his arms in surrender. He bowed his head.
"… Wow. I hit you first, and you didn't fight back. You're… interesting."
"…"
Delt sized him up. He looked at the clothes he was wearing, his shoes, and the color of his hair. His eyes wandered until they landed on his AHMC rifle.
"What's that… little thing you've got there?" Delt asked, pointing at the brown leather sling of the firearm.
Caelum hesitated.
"Hand Mana Cannon. Magic is used to shrink the size of a mana cannon."
"…"
The simple and short description destroyed all suspicion he had. His narrowed eyes returned to normal, and he stuck his hand out as usual.
"If you're surrendering like this, I assume you have money, right? Well, hand it over."
The rustling of leaves through the two boys off. They didn't move. It was coming from their right. Following the sound with limpid eyes, Caelum stopped on a young boy.
His head was bandaged, in a way that showed a single light blue eye.
Delt yelled.
"Abel!"
He ran toward him at a normal speed, pulling at his ear. The young boy yelped out in pain.
"Ow… ow… ow!" he said in quick repetition.
"I told you… to stay inside the house!"
He quietly dragged him by the back of his shirt.
Caelum watched in confusion, the sound of the leaves dragged. But there was something especially confusing.
When the boy came by, it was easy to pinpoint him. As if his eyes were magnets and that boy was metal.
An odd connection.
For some reason… I feel so compelled…
When something like this happens, I can't just let it pass by. Especially if… that child could have a relation to the manabeast or my demon origin!