Chapter 24
No One Is Born a Hero (9)
What was he trying to say?
Honestly, I wasn’t even sure if Ethan Behemoth had any weaknesses.
He was the type who never showed his vulnerable side to others.
“……”
“Edith Crowell.”
Despite my ignoring him, he firmly called my name once more.
At this rate, he might even make up a non-existent middle name to call me by, so I had no choice but to answer.
“…Yes.”
“Are you afraid of caves?”
“No. I’m just feeling unwell. Could you please be quiet for a moment?”
I tried my best to shut him up with sharp words, but he only fell silent for a moment before continuing in a low, easy-to-hear voice.
“Then just listen.”
No… Be quiet! You shouldn’t be talking right now.
Surely, he’ll regret telling me such an honest story.
However, being carried on his back, there was no way for me to stop him from speaking.
I don’t know. I clearly tried to stop him. My eyes squeezed shut involuntarily.
“Just as you fear caves, I fear seeing someone take their own life in front of me. I hope you won’t do that.”
So he’s still thinking about that.
Blinking my heavy eyelids, I spoke in a small voice that scratched my throat.
“…I see you’ve definitively decided that I’m afraid of caves.”
Somehow, I felt deflated. In contrast, Ethan Behemoth’s voice had a hint of laughter.
“Having faced you even once, I know. There’s no way you’d be this exhausted from just this much.”
“You flatter me…”
“You kept breaking out in cold sweat. Why did you even enter the cave in that state?”
“Obviously, I thought I had to help.”
The words came out without hesitation.
“It was a moment that required help, wasn’t it? Didn’t you desperately need someone’s assistance?”
That was all there was to it.
At that, he fell silent for a moment. Then, he began with a brief introduction.
“My mother.”
“You mean the Duchess?”
…This was the first time I heard about his family history from his own mouth.
He was quite a reticent lover, and I was someone who didn’t ask many questions.
It was a characteristic of both him and me to always keep a corner of our hearts hidden.
That’s why our interests aligned, and in my madness, I fell in love with him intensely and quickly.
Thinking back now, it was a strange thing.
Even in moments when I never thought I would fall in love with him, I occasionally did.
Even after anticipating and understanding all these cases, it still happened.
Love isn’t something you can prepare for just because you know about it.
Perhaps that’s why Ethan Behemoth’s voice sounded somewhat unfamiliar.
It seemed calm, yet there seemed to be an undeniable emotion seeping through some corner of it.
…I wonder what expression he’s making right now?
“Yes. Edith, she was a person with noble intentions, just like you. But she knew it was impossible to save everyone.”
“…And so?”
Noble intentions… like me?
I’ve never had intentions that could be called noble.
There were many points I wanted to refute, but I held back. I was curious about what he was trying to say.
Ethan continued to murmur.
“So when it came to choosing who to sacrifice, she always put herself at the front.”
“……”
“One day, I was terribly dissatisfied with this and dared to ask my mother for guidance. I asked why she always put herself in the most dangerous situations.”
“…Did your mother give you an answer?”
“She said it’s just that those who can protect, protect. Simply because I was stronger than you. That’s what she said.”
…It overlapped somewhat with my words about thinking I had to help. Is this why he suddenly brought up this story?
The Behemoth Duchy, famous for producing outstanding sword prodigies. Duke Behemoth, who handled political affairs, and the Duchess, an excellent spear wielder.
I knew that the Duchess had passed away on the battlefield when Ethan Behemoth was young, so I never had the chance to know what kind of person she was before the regression.
To think she left behind such words.
The thought crossed my mind that perhaps Ethan Behemoth’s wandering on battlefields might be to carry on her will.
Ethan Behemoth spoke in a voice that sounded as if he had swallowed a handful of sand.
“Edith, I hope you won’t do that. This is the last time I’m saying this.”
“Why…”
I swallowed the saliva pooled in my mouth. I felt the magic that had been stinging the root of my tongue dissipate.
“Why are you saying such things to me?”
“Because of you.”
Whether it was due to carrying me for a long time or for some other reason, Ethan took a heavy breath and whispered.
“Sometimes you look uneasy.”
“……”
Even though my forehead was pressed against his back, somehow it felt like our gazes met—his navy blue eyes. My hair stood on end.
He calmly continued.
“Saving a student who fell off a cliff is no small feat.”
“That was just…”
“Not giving up on the subjugation practice despite the criticism from foolish people is your courage, and not falling far behind in a duel with me, who’s two years older than you, is clearly your talent. You’re also the one who suggested ways to survive in here.”
“…So?”
“So. Don’t give up. If you need to, you can rely on me.”
…Was my condition so bad that I had to hear this from a kid?
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“…Haha.”
But strangely, I didn’t feel that bad about it.
Yeah. Rather than being unpleasant, it was more like… a novel sensation of something tickling somewhere in my chest. A light feeling I hadn’t experienced in a very long time.
I answered cheerfully.
“Yes, I understand.”
“Good. Then that’s…”
Ethan, who had been praising me at length and moving me, suddenly seemed to feel uncomfortable with his own honesty and trailed off.
“……”
“……”
A moment of silence fell.
…I didn’t intentionally feed him the Dean’s butter cookies, so why am I suddenly feeling scared?
Surely, he hasn’t realized that the cookie he just ate was essentially a truth serum.
Dean, you’ve been pretty competent so far. You’re confident it won’t be discovered, right? I’m counting on you.
To prevent him from falling into deep thought, I deliberately tapped his shoulder twice quickly to call him.
“Hey, you can put me down now.”
“…Are you sure?”
“Yes. You’ve been carrying me for a long time, haven’t you? The wind seems to be getting stronger too. We must be nearing the end. I can walk the remaining distance.”
After my persistent requests to be put down, Ethan reluctantly stopped and carefully lowered me to the ground.
“Ugh.”
I felt a bit dizzy when my feet touched the ground, but after taking a deep breath, I could stand properly.
Perhaps thanks to resting on Young Master Behemoth’s back for so long, my condition wasn’t too bad.
Even my stomach, which had been causing me to cough up blood earlier, seemed to have settled down a bit.
Maybe Camilla’s tea really helped. I’m glad I could save the elixir.
I nodded to him while increasing the size of the flickering light sphere.
“This is just fine. Thank you. I’ve recovered a lot thanks to you. Let’s go.”
“Haahh. Wait a moment.”
This time, Ethan requested a short break. It was understandable.
After all, running for tens of minutes without rest in a bumpy cave while carrying a person would be quite challenging even for ‘the’ Ethan Behemoth, especially since he’s still not fully grown.
‘I wonder if I was too heavy.’
I felt a bit sorry. Although I hadn’t asked for his help, if he hadn’t helped, we would have been delayed for quite a while.
He wiped his sweat with the back of his hand and took a drink from the canteen at his waist. Then he leaned against the cave wall.
Hiss!
There was a chilling sound of steam and the smell of melting iron.
Ethan quickly pulled away from the cave wall he had been leaning on, looking at the wall once, then at me.
Why are you looking at me?
“…You didn’t tell me about this.”
As if I had just remembered, I hit one palm with my fist and started speaking,
“…Ah. I forgot to mention it.”
“…What?”
This is inside the mimic’s digestive system. Even if the mimic is dead and has stopped digesting, the digestive fluids that were previously active remain.
“There might be acidic fluids left, so you shouldn’t touch the cave walls.”
“You’re telling me this…”
Ethan Behemoth’s incredulous gaze, as if saying “now?”, fell directly on me. I shrugged my shoulders while avoiding his gaze.
“This is inside a mimic’s stomach, after all. It’s kind of obvious, isn’t it?”
“Most people don’t usually find themselves inside a mimic’s stomach.”
“You were setting the mood and giving a long speech, so I missed the timing to mention it.”
So, it’s your fault.
🥀
Thank you for reading! ♡
