Stepmothers Are Not Always Evil

Chapter 127 Thud! A sharp piece of iron hit the floor. Helios supported Lenia, who had fallen in a hurry.“Lena, wake up! Lena!”Her body was as cold as ice. He called her name one after another in a desperate voice.The tightly closed eyelids trembled as the dripping drops of water rolled down her pale cheeks.“Hel-Helios?”Helios looked into Lenia’s eyes with a distorted expression.It was a bright emerald color.“Lena…”Helios finally let go and buried his face in her chest.“Thank god….”Hot water seeps through the thin hem. Helios was unable to raise his head and wept.Lenia recalled the memories she had before being taken away and gently stroked Helios’ hair.“I’m sorry, Helios.”Forgotten memories and unforgettable emotions came rushing in at once. Lenia gently caressed Helios’ cheek, who raised his head hard.A large hand gently covered the back of her hand as she continued to stroke his face, trying to warm his body temperature, which was almost as low as hers.“Is your body okay? Are you hurt….”“I’m fine, how about you?”“I’m fine too.”Contrary to the words, the blood that was wriggling from his side was drooping on the floor. She examined the wound with worried eyes.“Mom!”Escal ran across the slippery cave floor.“Escal.”“Mom, uh…”“I’m sorry, I was scared.”Bead-like tears were dripping down. Lenia patted Escal with a friendly hand.Every time the child sobbed, his small, skinny back shook. Helios tapped Escal on the shoulder.“Good job.”“Uh-huh, hic….”Tears that had stopped at the blunt praise burst out again. Lenia held Escal, who couldn’t stop crying, and hugged him to her chest.In the meantime, the black fog that had filled the cave with its last rage had completely cleared.“Duke!”When the fog that had blocked the entrance to the cave lifted, Dustin entered the cave with the knights.“Duke, are you okay?”“Fairly well, I think I survived.”Helios, who was getting up, let out a groan. The pain was excruciating because of his relaxed tension.“Are you hurt?”“A little.”Helios smiled bitterly as he covered the wound on his side with his hand.“Lat’s get out of here for now.”  ***** “You were lucky.”Helios’s wound was deep enough to defy the word fine.It didn’t stop bleeding until they unpacked at the nearest inn and called for a doctor. Eventually, they had to resort to unorthodox methods to staunch the bleeding.“Hold it tight so it doesn’t move.”“Helios, bite down on this.”“Just do it, it’s okay.”Helios resisted my urgings to hold on to the towel. Helplessly, I put the towel away and hugged him tightly.The doctor picked up a well-warmed pharynx.“It will be very hurtful.”I shuddered, the smell of burning flesh scaring me off my feet.Helios’s hand on my back tightened, and I frowned at the force of his grip.How painful it must be for this patient to be like this.“It’s over.”After hemostasis, the doctor applied medicine to the wound and bandaged it. Helios, who had endured the pain that would not be strange even if he fainted right away, let out a shaky breath.“I’ll give you some medicine, so don’t move for a few days and get a good rest.”“Enough with the medicine. What about her wound?”“I’m fine.”“You’re not fine at all. Come take a look.”At Helios’ urging, the doctor looked at my neck. The wounds from Charlet Melks’ self-harm were not very deep.“It’s not a serious wound, so I think you just need to apply the medicine properly.”“It won’t leave a scar, will it?”“Yes. She’ll be fine.”A light of relief appeared on Helios’ face upon hearing the doctor’s confirmation.“Are there any other uncomfortable places?”“Oh, I hurt my back…”I remember being stabbed in the back by Marquis Melks, and when I answered, the doctor carefully untie the straps and check the back.“Are you talking about these old scars?”“No. Not that.”“Excuse me, but I don’t see any other wounds. Do you have any discomfort?”Ah, maybe it disappeared.It looked like it was stabbed quite deeply, but there was no pain at all.‘When I was stabbed, nothing like blood came out.’It seems that Chalet Melks’s purpose was to take over my body, so I didn’t hurt her.“No, you did a good job.”I smiled and blurted out my answer. When the doctor finished examining me, he looked at Helios and spoke up.“By the way, Madam, maybe….”“I know, you can go back now.”As the doctor left the room, Helios leaned back against the bed, trying to ignore the pain.Despite his pale complexion, he stared at me with unwavering warmth.I looked at him, and put my lips to his lips. His lips, faintly smelling of blood, felt awfully good, I didn’t want to pull away.Helios pulled my neck naturally as usual. I pushed him away slightly, setting aside my disappointment“Helios.”“… Why?”“I have something to tell you.”“What?”Anxiety spreads across the smiling face. Without wasting time, I brought the subject straight up.“I’m pregnant.”“What?”“It’s been about four months now. I was going to tell you when you come back…”Helios raised his upper body and looked at me in disbelief.“You, our child…”I nodded towards him, who spat out words, and Helios embraced me with trembling hands. Then he raised his head and shouted.“Wait, then with that body….”His complexion turned pale in an instant, as if he remembered what had happened in the cave.“Dustin! doctor! Call the doctor back!”“Helios, calm down.”I managed to stop Helios from panicking.“It’s okay. The baby is safe.”“Is the baby really okay?”“Yes. The baby saved me.”“Can a baby save you? How?”“Because magic didn’t work for this baby.”   ***** This was the second time Charlet Melks tried to take my body.The first attempt was three years ago, when Charlet Melks, furious at the fact that Helios didn’t love her, decided to take my body and kidnapped me.Charlet Melks succeeded in separating my soul from my body by attempting a magic trick that took away the body of others by sacrificing humans and monsters, but failed to take my body.And she died as a result of that.My guess is the blood of Anthemion was the last key needed to complete the magic.As soon as the Marquis Melks dripped Escal’s blood, the ‘form’ of Charlet Melks, who died, took over my body.But Charlet Melks probably didn’t know. That there is a child who inherited the blood of Anthemion in my body.“The baby stopped Charlotte Melks.”“I was driven away, but the child’s consciousness was not, which is why I was able to stop Charlet Melks.”And while this child was blocking Charlet Melks, Escal managed to break the spell.“But if it wasn’t for Escal, it would have been difficult for this child and me to survive in the end.”Only Escal could break the magic.He was the only child born to Charlet Melks, the only one with Anthemion’s blood, and he was the only one who could break the terrible spell.“Perhaps I should repay him.”“There is no repayment between parent and child, only love.”I looked at Helios, who was still clumsy in fatherhood.   ***** With the death of Charlet Melks, everything seemed to be settled, but there was no time to rest.Because Marquis Melks was dead, we didn’t know how things would turn out if we didn’t move quickly.“Duke, as you have ordered, we have recovered the body of Marquis Melks and secured the evidence at the scene.”“Send a few of our quick men to the Marquis of Melks. There must be solid evidence that the Marquis did this.”“Yes.”Helios gave the instructions quickly. I handed him the map Count Tilburn had given me.“Count Tilburn has asked me to deliver it.”Helios looked at the map with cool eyes and quickly understood the meaning of the map.“Dustin, send messengers to the places marked on this map. We’re ready to go.”“Yes.”Dustin left the office. Helios took out the Royal Hastings Order that he had kept deep in the drawer.“While I’m gone—”“I will go too.”I asked, placing the order of Royal Hastings on Helios’ left chest.“Can I come with you?”“… Yes. You can come with me.”