Save Me

34. A guest Who Came To The Bedroom In The Middle Of The Night.

 

If he were to think about it, it was strange from the beginning.

He was the owner of the vast southern territory called Cartan of Bounty and Cartan of Gold.

He lived his days surrounded by all kinds of precious and beautiful things.

However, the moment he first saw Bianca Termina was always as vivid as if it had just happened.

They didn’t make eye contact or even exchange proper greetings.

While heading to the reception room to meet the Emperor of Termina, he only saw Bianca passing by.

“……..”

Izar’s eyes narrowed as he recalled the past.

Although it was barely a passing glance, Bianca’s appearance was still vivid enough to be tangible even though the dark was already there and the sun had already set.

There wasn’t an ounce of life on her small, pretty face that looked like it could be held in one hand.

That may be why his heart throbbed and cried rather than the supposed admiration, even though she had a face so beautiful that it seemed as if it could captivate anyone.

He thought about it over and over again and decided to finally propose.

He also sent an undeserved ‘gift’ of as many as ten chests of gold.

He always thought that was the case.

Because he feel sorry for her.

But when he thought about it again, no.

The reason he was angry at Jeremy Termina’s foolish excuse was not because his own dignity as the owner of Cartan had been damaged.

It was purely a regret of losing Bianca, the woman who made his heart flutter.

So, it was right to get Bianca back.

“Lord Izar.”

Izar slowly rolled his eyes at the voice that interrupted his thoughts.

Salvar, who knew full well that he was suffering from the aftereffects of the magic circle, bothered to disturb his rest, which meant that a problem had arisen.

“What’s going on?”

“Not one person can get in because they are stuck in an unseasonable snowstorm.”

Although the words were completely devoid of explanation, they were enough to wake up Izar.

“How strong is it?”

“Before the magic circle pattern could be revealed, the snow piled up and the circle was buried right in front of their nose.”

“Trivial details, then.”

“They say there is no other way to enter.”

Idiots.

Although his irritation rose to the top of his lungs, Izar did not swear carelessly.

Even though they hadn’t yet reached the North’s centre, wasn’t this the disaster that everyone was talking about?

‘There is a saying that heavy rain in Cartan brings a flood of abundance, but heavy snow in Baloch brings death.’

It was said that there, a person’s height doubles in one night.

This could not be true according to human abilities.

He knew that, but maybe it was because the shock he received from the high priest hasn’t gone away yet.

It was quite bitter to hear the news that he couldn’t go to the person he was looking forward to the most.

“It will be difficult to infiltrate before winter ends?”

“It’s hard for anyone to be sure of that. It is said that this snowfall is also earlier than what was originally anticipated, so it could stop anytime..….”

“It may be so, or it may not be so. All they ever say is maybe. Now that you have reported it, you can go.”

Izar roughly waved his hand and dismissed Salvar.

It’s been quite a while since he felt this helpless.

Was it five years ago?

The throne, which had never been easily handed from one’s grasp to another due to greed, was decided by a single word from his mother and regent, Passetra.

Wes he happy to get the throne he had been waiting for?

Not at all.

What dominated Izar that day was a feeling of extreme helplessness and discomfort.

No matter how hard he tried to make it known that he was fully capable of taking over the vacant throne as the rightful heir to the throne, it was no use.

The ministers treated him only as a ‘prince’ and thought he was still young.

The same was true no matter what feats he achieved.

Even if he formed a faction, developed a waterway, and achieved remarkable results right in front of their eyes, all he could amount to was nothing more than…

A great prince.

He was always supposed to be a prince.

No one understood Izar’s sense of loss and helplessness as he had no choice but to always be a prince even when his throne was right in front of him.

No one except Salvar.

What he was doing this time was a dangerous move that could easily lead to a continental war.

However, Salvar obediently followed without any opposition.

This was because he knew that the situation of losing Bianca was the same as in the past when he was struggling to regain the throne.

But that high priest…….

“Greed and regret?”

At that moment, something he had suppressed all his life burst out of his heart.

Stray anger.

A feeling of injustice that had no place to go.

It would have been nice to call it anything.

Izar surrendered to this sensation that was consuming him.

Whether it was greed or obsession, anything was fine.

If only he could get back what should have been entirely his.

When he close his eyes, he remembered the beautiful black hair that fluttered as if it would tickle his cheek.

‘People tend to regret and laminate over what they lost.’

It was a soft feeling that swept away even the high priest’s voice, which had been unpleasantly troubling his thoughts the whole time.

 

***

 

“Uh?”

‘What is this?’

The knight patrolling the ice wall took a step closer to the white smeared marks.

Every winter, when extreme cold waves began accompanied by snowstorms, the ice wall cracked.

And through that gap, monsters poured out.

Usually, the crack progressed over three or four days with a loud noise, splitting the ice whose thickness could not be guessed.

But what about these white spots?

This was the first time he had seen something that looked like a stain or frost over the wall.

It wasn’t just the driving snowstorm that sent shivers down his spine.

After a long time of nervously examining the stain, the knight breathed a sigh of relief.

Before the crack appeared, he was very wary, thinking it was an atypical reaction, but it seemed to be a simple stain.

No matter how much he looked, the ice was fine.

There was no sign of incontinence or anything.

He was just about to turn around after feeling relieved.

Suu.

Behind the white crystal, something dark moved vertically.

“What!”

As soon as the surprised knight drew his sword, the movements were ‘seen’ a little more clearly.

Suu.

This time it moved sideways.

As if following the knight who took a step to the left.

The knight screamed with all his might as his hair stood on end and his stomach felt cold all at once.

“It’s a monster!”

Although there was no tangible evidence, the knight who had already lived as a knight of Baloch for seven years was confident.

That thing moving behind the ice was a monster.

As the knight’s shout rang out, a very dull sound, as if waiting, came out faintly, and the white stain spread even larger.

Oh my god.

The knight quickly retreated.

Thud.

Now he knew that it wasn’t a stain or anything.

Thump, thump.

“It’s a monster! A monster is hitting the ice wall!”

The white stain he saw was the mark left by the monster hitting the ice wall.

And he was sure that the monster almost broke through the ice wall.

Unlike the transparent part, the whitish part was not only steadily expanding due to the pounding sound, but also making the shadow behind the ice wall appear more clearly.

Thud!

After sometime, the sound became a little clearer.

“Call Captain Blatt!!”

The knight quickly walked backwards, widened the distance between himself and the ice wall, and screamed non-stop.

Since he never knew when the ice wall might break, he didn’t forget to aim the tip of his sword at the white stain.

How many times did he have to walk backwards through snow that was deep down to his knees?

His faltering heel tripped over a stone and he fell.

At that moment, beyond the pale marks, something dark came down to the floor as if chasing him.

“An eyeball.”

The knight who saw it groaned and muttered.

That thing chasing him now was a monster’s eyeball.

“The ice wall will break soon!”

A sound rang out from beyond the ice wall, as if responding to the voice rumbling across the snowfield.¹I hate to admit it, but this is so exciting (⁠≧⁠▽⁠≦⁠)

Thud.

It was an ominous sound that felt like it was squeezing his heart.

 

***

 

Smooch smooch.

Please please.

It was already the third time.

Bianca returned to her room and washed her face with cold water repeatedly.

Smooch smooch.

Her hands were sore from the cold water, and her cheeks were all tingling, but the loud sound that was stuck in her ears did not go away.

But there was no other way to get rid of it.

It was hard to turn the pages of documents properly with that sound ringing in her head.

“Madam, is there anything wrong with you?”

Julie, who couldn’t see her thoughts, asked, holding her red, frozen hand as if to warm her, but Bianca couldn’t answer.

‘I keep thinking about Jillian kissing me.’

No!

That was not a kiss, it was on the forehead!

On my forehead!

My two cheeks, which had been calm for the most part, turned bright red instantly.

“Your face keeps turning red. Madam, if you’re not feeling well, please don’t hold back and let us know. The Duke’s doctor is really good. Even if your limbs fall off, he can easily put them back together.”²What!!(⁠⊙⁠_⁠◎⁠)

Bianca, who was embarrassed about the terrible sound in her head, could not say anything for a moment, but Julie was serious.

“If you just ask for it, it will be as neat…….”

“Julie. Wait a minute.”

Bianca, unable to bear the prolonged scary conversation, opened her mouth, but the ‘knock knock’ sound on the door was heard at the same time.

“Yes, who is it so late at night?”

Julie’s mouth, which had been grunting as if to complain, closed tightly the moment she saw the armed figure of Jillian.

“Are you going on a campaign?”

Julie was so agitated that she didn’t even realize she was speaking in a harsh tone that was unbecoming of a maid.

The cold and merciless energy radiating from his entire body was intimidating.

She had forgotten, but Jillian Baloch, or rather the Dukes of Baloch, were always like this.

He was so cold and intimidating that it was difficult to even make eye contact with him, and he often made her feel like she wanted to run away.

His current appearance didn’t go well together with his recent kindness, and laughter.

She had forgotten that Bianca had changed him since she came to this castle, but this was Jillian Baloch’s original appearance.

“Is she sleeping?”

“No, please come in.”

Julie spoke politely and opened the bedroom door wide to welcome Jillian.

“Jillian?”

The guest who visited Bianca in the middle of the night was Jillian.

This was her first time seeing him fully armed.

Bianca was not stupid.

Her two cheeks, which had been flushed all this time and never cooled down, turned pale in an instant.

“Is it today?”

“Yes, it is.”

He said it would be next week, but he also said that wasn’t entirely accurate.

But I thought there would be at least a little more time left.

I was filled with regret and embarrassment, and my mouth was clenched.

“I’ll be back.”

While I was hesitating because I had so much to say, he smiled sweetly at me as he went straight to the point.

“Be careful……and see you soon.”

“Of course. I promised.”

“You haven’t heard my answer yet.”

“Of course. It’s something I’m looking forward to.”

Their voices as they spoke to each other  were clear, but unlike Jillian, who had a faint smile on his face, Bianca had been teary-eyed for a long time.

“How long does it take?”

“It depends, but I will probably come back sooner than you expect.”

“I want to know what to expect. When the sun comes up, I might be complaining and wondering why you’re not coming if I don’t know.”

“No wise and thoughtful person would do that. The round trip alone takes half a day.”

“But don’t be too late. If I get tired of waiting, the answer may change.”

“That’s scary, so I’ll make sure I’m never late.”

Because his answers were good, Bianca was relieved even though she was crying.

Because he was always a man who kept his word.

I really had no doubt that he would come back soon.

However, Bianca forgot something.

That there were no good days allowed to her in the first place.

Just three days after Jillian went on the campaign trail, a messenger arrived.

It was a request for military support.

 

***

TL:

Surprise! This one was earlier than I thought, but I felt like doing it before getting busy, so enjoy ~