The Guardian Knight of Affection-Starved Young Ladies

13 – Eliana (02)

014.

They reached the north.

What that meant was simple.

A place more isolated than anywhere else in the empire.

It meant there were no inns to be found around.

Of course, there were no restaurants either.

They had no choice but to endure the increasingly cold weather by leaning against the carriage.

Kallen, who was looking for a suitable resting place, stopped the carriage.

Driving the carriage, preparing meals, and soothing Eliana’s anxiety in between.

There were more than a few things to worry about.

On top of that, he couldn’t rest immediately and had to wait for Eliana to fall asleep, and he had to sleep in the driver’s seat.

Thanks to the consideration of Duke Everchan, it wasn’t uncomfortable, but it wasn’t something that could be easily endured.

After carefully examining the surroundings and confirming that there were no threats, Kallen got into the carriage.

But not to the driver’s seat, to the inside where Eliana was.

“Kallen…”

The place had changed, but the scene was not much different from the room in the Rakatus mansion.

Seeing Eliana’s gaze directed towards the opening door, Kallen moved to her side.

How long had these days continued?

It started about a week ago when Eliana, feeling bored, invited Kallen into the carriage.

When the sky darkened and it was time to rest, Kallen had to go to Eliana’s side and keep her company.

It wasn’t an unpleasant task.

Listening to Eliana’s past was quite an unusual pleasure.

One of the reasons was that, due to the old childhood memories, very minute details changed slightly.

When Kallen sat next to her, Eliana hurriedly adjusted her eye level.

The method she chose, as she couldn’t see well, was to gently hold Kallen’s face and align it with hers.

Eliana had no external problems.

No, rather, in terms of appearance alone, there wasn’t a man who wouldn’t be captivated by her delicate beauty.

Especially if such a woman held his face and stared at him intently from such a close distance.

But for Kallen, the fatigue accumulated in his body took precedence.

No matter how accustomed he was to a wild life, continuing it for several weeks was bound to take a toll.

After aligning their eye levels, Eliana naturally started to speak,

and Kallen quietly responded, intending to stay by her side until she fell asleep.

The only slightly different thing was,

Eliana’s voice was a bit hoarse.

*

“Haa… Haa…”

Kallen noticed something strange around that time.

“Miss?”

“Haah…”

Flushed red cheeks.

Ragged breathing.

Trembling hands and lips.

The deep eyes that should have been looking into mine were cast downward,

and the voice that once carried her story had stopped.

What echoed was Eliana’s weary sigh.

Cough!

As Eliana coughed once,

Splat-

Blood splattered onto Kallen’s face, who was looking at her.

“Ah, ah… I’m sorry… Kallen…”

Kallen’s expression hardened as he wiped his face and confirmed the blood.

Quickly, he touched Eliana’s forehead to check her temperature, and it was burning hot.

More than anything, the severe pain from ‘mana overheating’ that she had endured until just a moment ago was intensifying.

The waves of mana began to ripple around Eliana.

Hematemesis and high fever, symptoms of mana overheating worsening in those around her.

The most serious issue was Eliana’s condition.

Was it fortunate or unfortunate?

Kallen knew what this abnormal phenomenon meant.

-Just in case, be aware.

-What do you mean?

-It only happened once, but it’s unusual for my daughter to go outside, so it wouldn’t hurt to be cautious.

The warning from Duke Everchan before he left.

The singular phenomenon that occurred when Eliana contracted an incurable disease.

-If mana ripples around my daughter, keep your distance and watch.

-…I must have misheard. You want me to keep my distance if there’s a problem while I’m supposed to be guarding her?

-You heard correctly. Yes. It hasn’t happened since then, but if it does, keep your distance.

-Why is that?

– Because that’s not something a person can do. Could it be different if it were you? Well, I don’t think so. When that incident happened, everyone around died. The cause of death was the explosion of mana within their bodies, crushing their internal organs.

– …

– Should I have not ignored the cries of that fragile child asking to be saved? I don’t know about that either. As I said, I am the head of the family. I couldn’t lead my family members to a meaningless death.

The chronic heart pain I had a few years ago was different.

Now, it felt like something was boiling not just in my heart but throughout my entire body.

– It takes a long time for the symptoms to stop on their own, but they will definitely stop, so just watch from a distance.

– Master.

– What is it?

– Do you also experience symptoms of mana overheating when you approach the young lady?

– Of course. If not, would I leave my beloved daughter suffering alone?

Even then, Duke Everchan was smiling heavily,

but to Kallen, that smile seemed to have a slightly different meaning than usual.

Kallen broke away from his thoughts and looked at Eliana, who had collapsed onto the bed.

He hadn’t heard about hemoptysis and high fever, so it must have been a much more serious situation than before.

He couldn’t be sure that leaving her alone would make her better.

Cough! Cough!

The once white bed sheet was now soaked with blood, turning bright red.

“Hic…! Hic…! Cough…!”

Looking at Eliana’s trembling back, Kallen quietly moved his hand.

There was a conversation they had when Eliana’s attitude had rapidly shifted from caution.

When Kallen asked if she felt lonely in the room, Eliana answered that she did.

The biggest reason was the absence of family.

Eliana, who occasionally talked with Emma, said she was very curious about the love parents give.

Even if it wasn’t parental love, she wanted to talk to someone.

She was curious about affection.

She wondered what it felt like to grow up loved by parents.

Even now, having given up on that, the loneliness hadn’t gone away.

The small and fragile young lady was waiting for the day she would die, locked in her room.

“It hurts…! Hic! I don’t want this…! It hurts!!”

Kallen carefully supported Eliana’s body and held her in his arms.

Eliana was already out of her mind.

Her mouth and nose were drenched in blood.

It was only natural that Kalen, who was holding Eliana, would get blood on him.

But Kalen remained indifferent.

Or as if nothing had happened.

He just held Eliana.

“Shh…”

“Haa…! Ugh…! It hurts…!!”

Crunch-

What is it that a person on the brink of death desperately wants?

Of course, the best way would be to remove the cause, but that is impossible for now.

The answer is to provide something to lean on.

If they have to endure pain, give them something to hold onto.

If their emotions are heightened, be someone they can confide in.

Kalen volunteered to be that support.

“Ah…! Huh…!”

Eliana’s lost hand wrapped around Kalen’s body,

and her sharp nails tore at his flesh.

It was hard to believe that this was the body of someone who had become so weak from illness.

When life is at stake, people exhibit superhuman strength.

The wounds torn by Eliana’s hands, and the blood she spat out.

Kalen’s body was soaked in blood, and the pain from the scratches and the mana overheating came in waves.

Kalen, offering his body as Eliana’s support, thought.

‘She said it was somewhat better when I was by her side.’

When Eliana first met him, she said she felt as if her mind was clearing up for some reason.

Because her illness caused her mana to overheat and run wild, his unique constitution had a counterproductive effect.

Kalen concluded as such.

In other words, holding Eliana was not just to provide her with something to lean on.

When he struck his body with second-rank magic to save Sinat.

And now, trying to do something about Eliana’s illness.

It felt like there was a slight resemblance.

Kallen chuckled, which was unlike him.

As his body was torn apart and the smell of blood filled the air, Kallen patted Eliana’s back.

“Shh…”

“-!!”

The northern border of the Claire Empire continent.

Around the shabby carriage left in the middle of the plain,

A world tinged with dark colors was unfolding.

According to the plan, there were exactly three days left until they reached the north.

*

Stench.

The stench was overwhelming.

In fact, it could be said that it was a world different from that of a noble lady like Eliana.

But the inside of the carriage was filled with the stench.

“Ugh… Hic…! Ah, it hurts… It hurts…”

Chaos.

It would be a fitting word to describe the surroundings of Kallen and Eliana.

The surroundings were filled with blood and vomit, and Kallen was no exception.

Although it was better than at first, Eliana was still coughing up blood every few hours.

With the addition of vomiting, it was Kallen’s job to clean it up.

The cleanliness magic tool had become useless.

Kallen didn’t know how to use it,

And Eliana was not in the right state of mind to use it.

In the end, it was Kallen’s job to wipe off the blood and vomit.

In fact, Kallen was not in good shape either.

Receiving Eliana’s struggles with his whole body, wounds and scars increased all over.

But the medicine seemed to be effective.

Eliana occasionally regained her sanity.

Thanks to that, Kallen started to have time to clean up the surroundings.

From day to night.

Not sleeping, all day long.

When Eliana whimpered in fear and pain,

Kallen, who held her in his arms, spoke quietly.

He talked about the big and small stories he had shared with Eliana.

He spoke of Eliana’s memories, which she vaguely remembered from the past,

and the things he wanted to try if a miracle happened in the future.

In other words, he was giving her a reason to live.

Eliana, who was not in her right mind,

uttered whatever came to her lips.

The most frequent words were “It hurts,” “I’m scared,” “I hate it.”

Next were “I want to die,” “I’m lonely.”

Very occasionally, when she came to her senses, it was even more so.

“Why… why me…”

“I don’t know either.”

“…”

Although Kallen was assigned to guard Eliana, there was no particular reason for him to go through such hardship.

That was what Kallen had said himself.

In Sinat’s case, there was grace, there were memories.

Eliana did not have that.

Still, the reason was the same.

It was what Kallen had said to Blamia, who had scolded him when he saved Sinat.

He didn’t know the reason.

If he had to think about it, it was because he didn’t want to see Sinat in pain.

There was no particular reason to save Eliana either.

Maybe it was because she resembled himself, who had struggled to live before meeting Blamia.

Just, she looked like she was going to die, so he saved her.

Kallen knew better than anyone that Eliana had a desire to live.

“Miss.”

“Haa… haa…”

“Shall we make a bet?”

“What…”

“Whether the young lady will live to see Winter Island or not.”

Eliana felt dazed by Kalen’s sudden bet proposal.

Her body was in such a wreck, and yet he was talking about a bet.

He could have blamed her enough.

Eliana matched Kalen’s eye level with her trembling head.

For a moment, Eliana felt as if she saw Kalen’s clear lips, not the shadowy figure she had been seeing.

She soon lost consciousness again.

But it seemed that the corners of his mouth were definitely raised.

What lingered in her mind was still the image of herself that Kalen whispered and the bet.