Chapter 95
“There he is.”
I quickly followed the direction of his pointing finger. The battle seemed to be over, and the soldiers were preparing to return.
In the middle of them stood Dedrick, covered in blood.
His expression was one I had never seen before—completely void of emotion. My heart sank.
Without thinking, I tried to run toward him, but Novembris quickly stopped me.
“I told you, you can’t!”
I struggled in his arms, but then I shivered and stopped.
“…Dedrick looks like he’s in pain.”
“….”
I stared blankly at Dedrick. His deep, shadowed eyes looked lifeless.
“And… the earring I gave him…”
Even though he was covered in blood, the earring remained clean.
It dangled from one ear, swaying slightly. I let out a small, shaky laugh.
“Dedrick, that earring looks good on you. I knew I had good taste.”
Just then, a red-haired boy ran up to Dedrick, carrying a water bottle.
“Hey! Drink some water!”
“Get that away from me.”
“You haven’t drunk anything since yesterday! Just take a sip!”
Eugene was fussing over him. I was glad someone was there for him.
‘Oh, Jacob is here too.’
He must have come along as a servant, worried about Dedrick.
Seeing that there were still good people around him made me feel a little relieved.
“I want to give him some blueberries…”
“He won’t take them. He’s too guarded.”
“Even if he doesn’t eat them, I just want to leave them for him…”
“….”
I hesitated, then carefully asked, “I just want to do something for him…”
“He will throw them away.”
“I don’t mind.”
I just wanted to give him something. After everything, he must have lost all trust in people. I didn’t expect him to eat them.
‘But if he does, that would make me really happy…’
Blueberries were something I used to give him when I worried he was studying too hard.
“Then let’s go back to his dormitory. There’s no way to give them to him here, but we can leave them on his desk.”
“…Thank you, Novembris.”
“….”
He looked at me for a moment before turning away.
Novembris and I arrived at Dedrick’s room.
The small dormitory was cold and empty, as if no one lived there.
My eyes stung, but I held back my tears and quietly placed a small box of blueberries on his desk.
“Is it okay for me to touch things in here?”
“You ask that after bringing the blueberries?”
“….”
“You can touch them. As long as you don’t touch a human directly.”
I struggled to climb onto a chair, my much shorter body making it difficult.
“He’s still so tidy!”
On one side of the desk, his notes were neatly organized.
“I learned how to read and write because of Dedrick. He taught me!”
“Did he?”
“Yeah! If he weren’t a noble heir, he would have been an amazing teacher!”
“…I wonder.”
Novembris sounded doubtful, but I ignored him.
I picked up a small notebook nearby, flipping it open—then froze.
“…Did you know?”
“Know what?”
“Dedrick is good at everything.”
I slowly turned the notebook toward him.
Inside was a sketch of me, smiling so beautifully it made my heart ache.
The edges were smudged, as if someone had touched it over and over.
I flipped through the pages.
Each one was filled with drawings of me—pouting, laughing, being playful.
It was as if he had recorded every little thing about me, afraid of forgetting.
The last page was filled with my name, written over and over.
I couldn’t hold it in anymore.
I burst into loud, uncontrollable sobs.
“Huuaaahhh!!”
Novembris quietly walked over, picked me up, and patted my back.
“Why are you crying again—”
Click.
The door opened.
Dedrick walked in.
I gasped and instinctively covered my mouth.
“It’s fine. Humans can’t hear our voices,” Novembris reassured me.
I awkwardly lowered my hands and looked at Dedrick.
He silently walked toward his desk.
“A-Ah, the notebook!”
Novembris flicked his fingers, and the notebook quickly returned to its original place before Dedrick could see it.
At that moment, Dedrick’s sharp gaze landed exactly in our direction.
“…D-Did we get caught?”
“No. His instincts are just sharp.”
“…”
Soon, Dedrick looked away and turned his attention to a small box on the desk.
When he opened the lid with a click, his blue eyes trembled slightly.
“…Ha.”
A sigh of disbelief escaped his lips.
“Who would play such a ridiculous prank…?”
He moved to throw the box straight into the trash.
“At least eat one…”
I watched him with disappointment, but then his hand suddenly stopped.
His fingers trembled, and I saw tears drip down. My heart ached.
I bit my lip and hesitantly asked,
“Uh, can’t I… stay by Didi’s side while I recover? I’ll only go back to the sanctuary when I need to absorb the flowers…”
Novembris cut me off with a firm, cold voice.
“I already told you, no. Your body is so weak right now that it can barely maintain the form of a five-year-old. You are only surviving because of the sanctuary’s energy. If you leave for too long, you will disappear. Even now, two days is the limit. And that’s only because I’m here helping you.”
“Then… when can I stay in the human world longer?”
“You need to grow stronger. That means getting lots of sleep and staying in the sanctuary as much as possible.”
I couldn’t argue anymore, so I just nodded.
Dedrick would graduate from Herba Academy in one or two years.
During that time, he would have to fight countless monsters, but with Jacob by his side, I wasn’t too worried.
So, for the next two years, I would stay in the sanctuary and focus on recovering.
That way, I can come back to you sooner.
I stared at him intently.
Dedrick, unable to eat or throw away the blueberries, just set the box aside and opened a book.
I stepped closer.
“Didi… I’m sorry.”
“…”
“We’ll be apart for a little while. But I won’t take too long to come back.”
Until then, eat well, smile often, and take care of yourself.
“It’s just a temporary goodbye.”
Novembris was preparing to leave. I took one last look at Dedrick.
I hope you won’t suffer too much.
I promise, I’ll come back to you.
Delani anxiously bit her nails.
As she looked around nervously and prepared to board the carriage, a man suddenly lunged at her.
“Kyahh!”
“My lady!”
The White Hawk knights reacted a bit too late, caught off guard by the man’s silent approach.
Delani started to scream, but when she saw the man’s face, she suddenly stopped.
Her pupils shook violently.
The man, hands trembling, tried to give her something.
“D-Duke Bu— Guh!”
He coughed up a thick clot of blood, splattering it all over Delani.
Drenched in blood, she let out a shrill scream.
“AAAHHHH!”
“What are you waiting for? Get rid of him at once!”
The White Hawk knight hesitated despite Gemma’s sharp command.
Gemma bit her lip. Even after she had gotten rid of their former leader, Dowell, the White Hawk knights still harbored resentment toward Delani.
Before the knight could remove the fallen man, Gemma swiftly snatched the note from his hand.
The White Hawk knights didn’t ask what it was. They knew she wouldn’t tell them anyway.
“My lady.”
Delani, pale as a ghost, was helped into the carriage by Gemma.
As soon as the door shut, Delani spoke in a trembling voice.
“It’s happening again…”
“My lady, you need to see this note.”
Delani snatched it irritably and unfolded it.
[See you soon.]
Her eyes widened in terror.
She ripped the note to shreds and let out another piercing scream.
“AAAHH! That bastard…!”
Delani was on the verge of a complete collapse.
She had learned that Dedrick graduated from Herba Academy in just one year and had sent countless assassins after him.
But he had easily escaped every attempt—mocking her by sending the mangled corpses of the assassins back as a warning.
This had been happening for three years straight.
Seeing those gruesome bodies had shattered her nerves, and the fear that Dedrick would kill her next grew stronger every day.
Still covered in the dead man’s blood, Delani frantically bit at her nails.
“He must never return to the Grand Duchy.”
Dedrick was disturbingly quiet. There were no reports, no news—no way to know how strong he had become now that he was twenty-two.
He had graduated safely from the academy but refused to receive a noble title and simply vanished.
If that was all, she might have believed he had left the empire like other students.
But since he kept sending back dead assassins, she knew—he was hiding, watching her, waiting for the right moment.
“What about Somerset?”
“…He hasn’t returned.”
“Drag him back if you have to!”
During Dedrick’s absence, Somerset had gotten arrogant, drowning himself in alcohol, gambling, and luxury.
When Joanna’s family rejected his engagement proposal, he got so drunk that he stormed into their mansion, making a disgrace of himself.
Now, everyone whispered that the Blackwood family’s future was doomed.
Some even suggested that Axel should take over as heir.
But Delani knew better than anyone—that could not happen.
Her eyes, bloodshot with anxiety, burned with rage as she screamed,
“That bastard must never return here! There can be no place for him!”
She had no idea that it was already too late.
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• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Freya• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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