Chapter 12 Part 3
Feeling the spiritual power entering me, I began to speak to him without hiding my narrowing eyes.
That’s when it happened.
With a coughing sound, bright red blood trickled from between Hyle’s lips.
His sudden bloody cough temporarily froze my mind.
“Hyle!”
As I reached out to him in panic, Hyle shook his head and pushed me away.
Seeing this, I suddenly recalled what Xenoph had told me.
“The Marquis of Feros possesses little spiritual power. He is not a suitable person to stand beside the Holy Maiden who needs purification.”
This was the painful result of my complacency.
Since Hyle had been giving me spiritual power so effortlessly, I thought he was fine.
Spiritual power is a pure force that blooms from the vitality of the body.
How could Hyle, who naturally had little of this power, be fine when he was regularly giving me a certain amount, or even more, of his spiritual power?
So all along, was it an act when he touched me with that calm face?
If that’s the case, perhaps even his claim about not feeling discomfort when touching me was also…
The harsh coughing continued for a while.
Hyle’s hand that had been pushing me away gradually lost strength.
I carefully supported him as he leaned against the wall. Hyle looked at me with surprised eyes, taking short, deep breaths.
“Rosiel, I’m fine, you don’t need to do this. I know it’s hard to believe… but it’s not serious.”
“Shut up, I’m not fine.”
Fortunate or unfortunate, I had the power to replenish Hyle’s depleted energy.
The problem was that the means involved black magic…
…Hyle wouldn’t want this. So there was nothing I could do.
He gave everything to me, but I had nothing I could give to Hyle.
This unfamiliar sense of helplessness made my lips feel cold.
Perhaps, as Xenoph suggested, it would be better if I received spiritual power from Abel instead of Hyle.
At least then, Hyle wouldn’t suffer like this.
Though he clearly looked too weak to stand alone, Hyle wasn’t particularly welcoming of my support.
Of course, I understood that being caught in this state couldn’t be entirely pleasant for him.
But now was not the time to worry about that.
“Hyle, how long have you been like this?”
“…Not long. But Rosiel, I really am fine. So please…”
A quiet voice followed, asking me to let go.
Seeing Hyle’s flushed face up close, my scattered thoughts suddenly returned.
Without realizing it, I had been practically embracing him.
I had grabbed him to prevent him from falling backwards in case he lost consciousness… was that too much?
“Even so.”
After reluctantly letting him go, I reached for his face again with concern.
Then Hyle caught my hand and struggled to speak.
“Don’t do this.”
…For someone rejecting me, his expression seems too honest. Perhaps I should pretend not to notice?
“What, you want me to just watch you bleeding?”
At my words, Hyle quickly regained his composure and took out a handkerchief to wipe his mouth.
I could see the bright red blood darkly seeping into the pitch-black handkerchief that seemed so unlike him.
“I’m fine.”
Hearing Hyle repeat the same words again, I started to get irritated.
How dare someone who was coughing up blood just moments ago claim to be fine?
He doesn’t look fine at all; there’s a limit to shamelessness.
What does he gain by hiding his pain from me?
Just as I was about to confront him, he spoke first.
“There’s something the High Priest didn’t tell us about the latter part of the prophecy.”
“What? So there was… additional content after all. What’s your source?”
It was impossible to ignore such a statement.
He had vehemently denied it before, but look now. I knew there was more.
The reason I was abruptly designated as the Holy Maiden must be in that hidden part.
“I got it from a high-ranking priest, so it’s reliable. But only the High Priest and the Pope know the content. They’ve been instructed to keep it secret even among themselves.”
“…Since he previously told us he ‘delivered all the prophecies,’ even if we know about the existence of additional content, Xenoph won’t easily open his mouth.”
Hyle and I both made a thoughtful “hmm” sound as we sank into deep contemplation.
Honestly, there was only one method I could think of.
A way to discover the true nature of the additional content more accurately and quickly than anyone else.
“Hyle, I think we should…”
“No.”
Before I could finish, Hyle cut me off sharply.
His green pupils were directed at me, filled with immense distrust and caution.
…Even without Hyle speaking, I could see right through what he was about to say.
I wasn’t sure about the details, but one thing was clear… it wasn’t going to be pleasant.
“I haven’t even said anything yet, you know?”
“Don’t say it in the future either. I’ll find a way myself.”
“What confidence! When the High Priest is openly rejecting you. With you being kept in check by them, I have no choice but to step up. Above all… you need to rest.”
After briefly sighing at his vague response lacking any real solution, I quickly spoke before Hyle could say anything more.
“I really think it’s best if I look into the High Priest’s mind. But this time, I won’t collapse like before. I’ll just see the necessary information and get out.”
“No, there’s no guarantee you won’t collapse for days like last time.”
Hyle immediately rejected my opinion with a face that said he had expected this.
After hearing that I had collapsed at the Imperial Palace party and spent several days in Abel’s bedroom, Hyle had become excessively concerned about me fainting.
If the same situation occurred again, Hyle would have no choice but to hand me over to Abel, my fiancé.
He probably disliked that scenario… though even apart from that, if I collapsed, it would waste precious spiritual power, so I can understand his reluctance.
“But Hyle, you know this is the fastest and most accurate method, right? This time, I won’t collapse like before. Here, I promise.”
I deliberately smiled brightly as I forcibly linked my pinky finger with his.
After shaking our hands vigorously up and down, I faced him affectionately with my most healthy-looking smile.
Hyle, who had been looking at my exaggerated behavior with disbelief, finally sighed.
Seeing this, I smiled with triumph.
When Hyle exhaled such a deep breath, it meant he had ultimately decided to go along with my wishes.
“…Haah, you always think a pretty smile will get you everything.”
“I was pretty?”
When I raised the corners of my mouth slightly and asked in response to his quiet words, Hyle, who had just realized his statement was somewhat explicit, placed his hand on his forehead with a despairing expression.
“A smile doesn’t work for everything.”
“But you always give in when I do this.”
At my blunt response, Hyle seemed to realize something again and narrowed his brows with a dumbfounded expression.
“So it’s my fault, you’re saying.”
“That’s what you always say to me.”
Now do you understand my frustration! With this feeling, I smiled softly as I met Hyle’s green gaze.
After constantly blaming me, he seemed genuinely perplexed now that the positions were reversed.
For a moment, Hyle’s expression was tinged with a dark shadow once again.
“Word games… ugh.”
Suddenly, a bout of coughing erupted again.
Bright red blood occasionally glinted through his fingers as he covered his mouth.
Another bloody cough. I thought he had gotten a bit better for a moment…
“This won’t do. We should call a physician. Your condition is too severe. There must be a hospital nearby…”
I couldn’t just stand by and watch Hyle in this state with a calm mind anymore.
With a short sigh, I straightened my posture and looked toward the outside of the alley.
Though it was quite late, being in a bustling area, there should be places offering night medical services.
Well, even if there weren’t, in the worst case, I had a plausible method… though Hyle probably wouldn’t like it much.
