Reasons to Protect the Witch's Son

Now that he was thinking about it, it seemed to be a nightmare or something unpleasant. With the headache similar to when he has his other nightmares, he was wondering if it was the same dream he always had. Or it could just be because he had woken up after a long time. He was unsure.

In the meantime, Elaine put down the now empty glass on the nightstand and spoke.

“You collapsed due to the poison from the Laikios. You’re alright now that you’ve taken the antidote, but…”

As soon as she had arrived at the mansion, she went to see the doctor. Once the ingredients were ready, the doctor quickly created the antidote. After giving it to Ash, she had stayed by his side the whole time.

“The doctor had said that it was fortunate there would be no permanent damage. Although you suffered internal injuries due to the poison, you would be fine as long as you drank a recovery tonic regularly.”

She then held out a bowl filled with dark liquid. It had a strange scent that was mixed with various medicinal herbs. Ash took it and drank the concoction calmly. It didn’t taste as bad as he thought it would. He glanced out the dark window questioning Elaine.

“What time is it?”

“It’s a bit past 5am.”

Day would soon break. While everyone else was asleep, she was by his side.

“Have you been here the whole time?”

His gaze landed on her hands. She was holding a damp towel. She must have been nursing him by the bedside.

Elaine nodded slightly.

“I wouldn’t be able to rest comfortably until I confirmed you would be okay.”

Ash had been sweating profusely the whole time. She could have left his care to a maid, but she didn’t. She couldn’t leave him alone, so she nursed him all night.

When he had finally woken up, she felt like she had been released from hell. There was an immense feeling of relief and she was then able to breath properly again.

He was okay now. Ash’s complexion was still pale, but he was conscious again. Her voice sounded like she was genuinely relieved that he was okay and at the same time, her eyes softened.

“I’m so glad you’re okay now.”

His pupils shook for a moment, and he tore his gaze away from her. Then he calmly spoke.

“The survivors…”

As he spoke, he started to feel tired again. Pausing for a moment, he frowned, rubbing his eyes. After seeing that, Elaine spoke after seeing his action.

“The medicine is starting to take effect, it will make you drowsy.”

She then answered Ash’s unfinished question.

“All survivors are safe. Right after you collapsed, the other members of our unit, along with the rescue team, moved everyone to the medical ward. I came back first to take care of you.”

She carefully rearranged the blanket to cover his whole body.

“For now, sleep. I’ll tell you all of the details once you have gotten some rest.”

Ash lifted his heavy eyelids and stared at Elaine. She smiled faintly once more and lowered her head closer to him, speaking in a whisper.

“Sleep well.”

As the soothing voice quieted down, the lamp went out. The darkness was silent and peaceful. With that, sleep came like a tide.

This time, he knew there would be no nightmares.

***

The next morning, Sophia Rozlis opened her eyes.

She had lost consciousness while being carried back to the mansion by Elaine. When she had opened her eyes again, she was laying on a hospital bed. Her injuries were severe. Although they were not life threatening, she had many broken bones and required special care.

At least, that was what the maid had told her a moment ago. One the maid had finished speaking, she left saying she would bring a meal quickly.

Sophia was now staring blankly into the space of the empty hospital room. The scenes from before still vivid in her mind. Laikios running wild and Elaine easily cutting off its head.

The moment was stuck in her mind, and would never be forgotten. At the time, she had been so shocked her mind had gone blank, but the more she thought about it, the more amazed she became.

‘What on earth was she doing? Where did that ridiculous amount of mana come from? Was she actually human?’

Confusion and questions followed filling her head until all that remained was a jumbled mess. Then, she calmed down. There was one thing that she understood, naturally.

The reason Ash chose Elaine as his guard.

‘…Did he already know?’

That’s why he accepted Elaine. Without knowing anything, she had ben expressing her dissatisfaction with Elaine becoming his escort. She had wondered what the difference between them was. She let out a self-deprecating laugh. It was so embarrassing she had even thought such a thing.

In the first place, Elaine was not someone she could compare herself with. Comparisons were only meaningful when on a similar level.  Was there anything more foolish than comparing two things that when the differences were so obvious?

She had shouted loudly in front of Elaine without even knowing their differences. She had said Elaine was unqualified to be an escort knight. Her past actions all came to mind. What had Elaine thought when she saw her acting like that?

It must have been laughable. She would have thought the same had she been in Elaine’s shoes. Sophia wanted to find a hole to crawl into and hide.

“Ugh…”

She groaned as she buried her face into her palms. At that moment, there was a brusque knock on the door. It seems the maid who had left earlier had returned. However, the voice she heard in the next instance did not belong to the maid.

“Dame Sophia, may I come in?”