#88

What I discovered was a large, deep bruise on Ella’s forearm.

Ella gasped and hurriedly pulled down her sleeve to hide the mark.

“It’s, it’s nothing. I just fell.”

“You fell?”

“Y-yes.”

Ella bowed her head low, mumbling softly.

It was clearly a lie.

The bruise was too severe to have been caused by a simple fall. There was definitely another reason, but it was obvious Ella didn’t want to talk about it.

I had many questions, but it wasn’t the right time to push her. Acting as if I believed her, I murmured gently,

“You must’ve fallen pretty hard. That must’ve hurt.”

“It’s fine.”

“Let me see your hand. I just want to take a look at the injury.”

Unable to refuse my insistence, Ella reluctantly held out her arm. Gently, I touched her injury, glancing around the room.

There was no one else here besides Ella, Zerakiel, and me.

Confirming we were unobserved, I used my pheromones to heal Ella’s bruise. I couldn’t bear to see one of my favorite characters in pain.

And then—

Crash!

Ella jumped out of her chair, startled, causing it to clatter loudly. The abrupt movement made me wobble, but Zerakiel quickly steadied me.

“What on earth are you doing?”

Zerakiel shot Ella a piercing glare, his expression icy. But Ella seemed too shocked to even notice him.

Surprised by her intense reaction, I stared at her with wide eyes.

Her face was frozen in an expression of disbelief, as if she’d just witnessed something unimaginable.

“Ella?”

“H-how… how did you…!”

Ella stammered, her gaze darting between me and her now-healed forearm.

For a moment, I worried there might be side effects when using pheromones on someone without them, but fortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case.

‘She must just be shocked at seeing pheromones for the first time.’

Healing-type pheromones were an extremely rare phenomenon. Not only were they difficult to manifest, but even those born with them often had short lifespans due to their overwhelming power.

Witnessing such a rare ability firsthand, her reaction was understandable.

I had only intended to help, but it seemed I had ended up startling her as well.

Zerakiel, too, looked tense, likely unprepared for me to suddenly use my pheromones. He asked in a low voice,

“I thought it was supposed to be a secret.”

“Ella’s fine,” I reassured him.

“You’ve only known her for a short time.”

I smiled faintly at Zerakiel’s pointed remark. He was right; I hadn’t known Ella for very long.

Normally, it wasn’t wise to reveal such an important secret so easily. In Amataras, where survival of the fittest was the rule, exposing a vulnerability brought nothing but danger.

And right now, we were in Hebel, a place Ella was affiliated with.

If Ella decided to tell Isaac, it would undoubtedly cause problems for me.

If I hadn’t known she was the heroine, I likely would’ve been just as cautious. But I was the only one here who knew the original story.

Even though many parts of the story had deviated from the original, the Ella standing before me was undeniably the Ella I knew from the source material.

I believed my judgment was correct, but convincing Zerakiel, who remained in the dark, was no easy task.

As I wrestled with how to explain things to him, Zerakiel abruptly formed a blade with his pheromones and aimed it at Ella.

Ella, who had been muttering to herself, froze, her face drained of color as she stared at Zerakiel.

“!”

Startled, I jumped to my feet and shouted, “What are you doing, Zerakiel?”

“She’s discovered your pheromones. It’s better to deal with her here and now.”

The edge of Zerakiel’s blade glinted as blood began to drip from Ella’s neck.

Ella, trembling violently, turned even paler. I, too, felt my anxiety spike.

“Talk first.”

“Talking takes too long. A blade is faster.”

How could he think it was reasonable to point a sword at someone without warning?

I felt suffocated by Zerakiel’s inability to listen to reason.

This was Hebel, a place governed by a peace treaty. Moreover, Ella was the adopted daughter of Isaac, one of the Twelve Disciples.

Unlike with Bianco, this was someone we couldn’t afford to antagonize. Reckless actions would only invite disaster.

“Even so, not here. You know that, don’t you?”

“But you used your powers recklessly, didn’t you?”

“……”

“And I can’t?”

His unusually logical rebuttal left me at a loss for words. However, noticing the slight distraction our exchange had caused, I seized the opportunity to shield Ella by pulling her behind me.

“Put the sword down.”

“What if I refuse?”

Zerakiel tilted his head, his tone icy as he lowered the blade toward Ella.

Whenever my safety was involved, his reactions were always this extreme.

If I let my guard down, he might actually harm Ella.

This situation had arisen because I used my pheromones. Zerakiel, who regarded my pheromones as a tightly guarded secret, must’ve been deeply alarmed by their sudden use.

Though I felt guilty, I couldn’t let Ella die over this. Standing my ground, I stared him down. Zerakiel ruffled his hair in frustration and said,

“You’re the strange one. Normally, you’re cautious, but why are you so lenient with this rabbit?”

“That’s…”

“Could it be you knew her beforehand?”

His sharp question left me speechless.

Of course, I knew her. The problem was that I was the only one who knew her.

As I fumbled for a response, Ella suddenly dropped to her knees with a loud thud.

The sound was so startling I nearly thought we were under attack.

Ella shouted toward Zerakiel, “I swear I won’t say a word!”

“E-Ella!”

The force of her fall must have been enough to break her knees, yet her expression showed no hint of pain.

As I hurried to help her, she pressed her forehead to the ground and said, “I truly mean it. I’ll never speak of this.”

“What assurance do I have to trust your words?”

Zerakiel’s voice was as cold as ice, sharp enough to send chills down one’s spine. Yet Ella answered firmly,

“If you’re worried, you can poison me.”

Her unexpected response left me reeling.

“Ella! Do you even realize what you’re saying?”

I tried to stop her in a panic. Unlike other pheromone-based toxins, ones from seduction-type pheromones had an incredibly high mortality rate.

Without healing pheromones, someone like Ella wouldn’t even survive an attempt to neutralize it.

Carrying such a toxin would be like walking around with a time bomb.

Not to mention, Zerakiel might secretly use it to kill her without anyone knowing.

It was as if she were inviting a mad black lion to devour her.

At that moment, Ella grabbed my hand, which was blocking her path.

“I know,” she said, her voice trembling like a leaf. Despite this, her gaze was unwavering.

“Lady Cersia, you trusted me, didn’t you?”

“Huh?”

“That’s why you healed me, isn’t it? It was just a bruise, but you still took the trouble to care for me.”

Ella’s question left me speechless, my eyes blinking in astonishment. Her gaze, glinting with a faint light, seemed different now—steadier, more resolute.

Her previously dim eyes now shone with a quiet determination, leaving me with a peculiar feeling. It almost felt as though her affection for me had suddenly skyrocketed.

Faced with that steadfast look, I couldn’t resist. I loosened my grip on Ella’s arm and even took a step back, allowing her to step forward.

Seeing this, Zerakiel lowered his sword and said, “Fine.”

But then, with a chilling smile, he grabbed Ella’s wrist.

At that moment, I couldn’t help but recall a scene from the original story.

 

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