âWhat happened here?â Kim Olim, who came to my hospital room at dawn, adopted a scary expression when she saw the Mage sleeping in my arms.
Actually, her scary expression wasnât the most frightening thing; one of her arms shone before a shieldâher weaponâmaterialized in her hand. Worried that she may break the hospital room, I hurriedly shook my hands and made an excuse, âNo, wait! Thereâs a lot of complicated things going on hereâŠ!â
ââŠâŠâ
Unfortunately, at that moment, Seo Dawon burrowed his head into my naked chest which my unbuttoned top did nothing to hide.
Actually, I had been a little embarrassed ever since the gown had come undone a few hours ago; plus, the room was chilly. I tried to button myself up again, but I couldnât because the Mage was in the way. I was in the middle of trying to shake the Seo Dawon awake when Kim Olim walked in on us.
I could hardly bear to lift my flushed face and apologized to Kim Olim in a pleading voice, âThatâsâŠS-Sorry⊠However, donât misunderstand! Itâs only the buttons!â
âThe buttons?â
ââŠI was hot, so I unbuttoned them a bit.â
Kim Olim snorted, âReally? Then why are you cuddling Seo Dawon?â
âD-Donât you know? You guys areâŠreally cool to the touch.â I answered, turning my head away. How embarrassingâwere these the best excuses I could concoct?
As expected, Kim Olim clicked her tongue as if she found me pathetic. Then, she vented her frustrations onto Seo Dawon, who still had his eyes closed. âHow long are you going to pretend to be asleep and grope at Choi Lee-kyung?â
ââŠWhat?â I stared down at the Mage, dumbfounded.
Eyes still closed, Seo Dawon shamelessly said, âDonât you know that youâre being a nuisance here, Olim-ah?â
âW-What! Seo DawonâŠyou!â I sputtered.
âDonât get me wrong. I woke up when the door opened.â Despite the audience, the Mage kept leaning against me. I blinked at him, stunnedâŠI was surprised to see a hitherto unseen expression on his face. How should I put thisâŠThe Mage looked like an office worker who didnât want to get out of bed and go to workâŠ
I wanted to stay in this momentâto continue to hug him like this, but Kim Olimâs gaze was so burdensome. I carefully pushed the Mageâs head away.
Only then did Seo Dawon lift himself from my embrace. Then, out of nowhere, he rolled himself up like an ammonite shell and plastered himself to my back; the Mage lifted Lackey, who had been clinging to the back of my neck, and dropped the skeleton to the ground.
[Clack Clack!]
âWhat are you doing!?â I shrieked.
âI want you to be able to rest.â
âWhat theâŠâ
Lackey, whose sleep had been disturbed, stood up to try and bite at the Mageâs feet; I stared at them, still dazed.
However, the Mage didnât stop there; he lightly took a hold of the skeleton and raised it up. He even ignored the skeletonâs attempts to bite his arms. âSleep well. Iâll be back.â
ââŠW-Wait a minute! Why are you carrying Lackey away?â
âLackey should also earn the right to eat.â
[Clack Clack Clack Clack!!!!]
HonestlyâŠLackey doesnât even eat foodâŠ
However, Seo Dawon vanished in a bright light immediately after waving his hand. I briefly contemplated summoning Lackey back, but I decided to leave them for now.
ButâŠ
âI think weâll need to talk for a long while. Necromancer.â
âHaahâŠâ
As soon as the two disappeared, the hospital roomâs atmosphere felt icy. I had no choice but to acquiesce and smile clumsily at the Paladin.
* * *
âI had definitely thought Seo Dawonâs attack strategy had become more cautious, but⊠I didnât think he was so exhausted and wearyâto the point he couldnât control his impulses.â
I briefly explained to Kim Olim what had happened yesterday. (Though⊠I omitted things like the KâŠissâŠand such for the sake of my dignity and her peace of mind.)
""
Kim Olim did not verbally express her agreement but listened to me very carefully while nodding her head. Then, she gave her own opinion. The issue, though, was that she was far more conservative than even Seo Dawon on matters of my safety.
She had admitted that the Mage was a bit excessive, but she did defend his assertions. âHowever, Necromancer, I donât think Seo Dawon was being overprotective. I think his judgment on the matters of your safety is correct.â
âBut⊠Seo Dawon thinks heâs going to kill me?â
âIf youâre talking about his âimpulse for blood,â then Iâve felt it a few times as well. All the servants, probably, feel that desire to some extent.â With that said, the Paladin stared at the torn skin on the back of my hand. It felt like the atmosphere in the room changed as she eyed my wound.
I was a little flusteredâthis was the first time that Kim Olim had reacted to my blood in my presence. Instinctively, I used my other hand to cover the wound; only then did the melancholy bloodlust that permeated the room subside.
In front of my anxiety-frozen self, the Paladin had stood with her eyes closed for a long time. Her complicated expression returned to normal after a moment; that abrupt change made my mind even more flustered.
The Paladin looked directly at me, âI was able to resist my impulses because Seo Dawon instructed me not to act according to instinct⊠Youâre too naive and narrow-sighted.â
I was shocked and speechless. I had thought that Kim Olim would be the least likely person to hurt me.
However, I soon felt that the current situation was similar to Seo Dawonâs. That was to say⊠It felt like she was intentionally scaring me into hiding awayâretreating.
However, if Seo Dawon was the type to yield to me because of his affections, Kim Olim was the type to be more strict because of her affection for me.
ââŠWhat should I do?â
Still deep in contemplation, I stared at Kim Olim. Her face was sternâthere were no gaps. Not even a crack. It was clear that any possible retort would be destroyed.
""
In the end, I answered frankly, âBut⊠Iâve never thought that youâd hurt me. YouâreâŠI meanâŠYou wouldnât suppress someone weaker than you.â
Kim Olim opened her mouth briefly at my words, then clamped her mouth shut without saying anything. Then, she adopted a complicated expression before sighing deeply. âOf course, Iâm someone that values honor, but⊠I havenât lived a noble lifeânot as much as youâd expect. I wasnât strong enough to not compromise my values.â
ââŠâŠâ
âYou seriouslyâŠthink of me as some kind of knight. I appreciate it, butâŠâ She looked at me as if she were looking at a child.
I couldnât understand her complicated expression. Scratching the back of my neck, I replied, âYou are a knight though.â
Kim Olim has always lived such a righteous life; I couldnât understand her denial of her character. Even the other guild members in [Red Lotus] agreed⊠Even a bastard like Bae Jaemin had said that he regretted being unable to sway Kim Olim to his side.
However, Kim Olim seemed surprised by my firm belief in her. Disconcerted, she asked, âWhy do you think so highly of me? Iâve never done anything great in front of you.â
Though the [Vengeful Ghost Memories] came to mind, I decided not to say anything. These memories werenât topics I ever wanted to discuss with the Servants.
However, Kim Olim must have assumed somethingâwhatever it may beâfrom my brief silence. She scanned my face before eventually retreating one step. ââŠThatâs right. Even though I feel that urge, I have no desire to bite you. I agreed with Seo Dawonâs order; thatâs why he and I always took turns staying by your side.â
âThatâs what I thought.â I smiled.
However, Kim Olim frowned at my smile. I knew what she would say when I saw the Paladinâs expression. I was sorry to describe it as nagging, but that was the face she would make just before she went to nag at me.
The words that came out of her mouth was just absurd.
âHowever, putting aside me and Seo Dawon, youâre still too un-vigilant. Not just Koo Hui-seo⊠But, for example, Jung Garam has bitten and licked at your skin.â She suddenly started to pressure me by bringing up the Assassin.
âYeah, but Jung Garam has always been mischievousâŠâ
âThe most worrisome part of all this is your easy-going natureâyou think Jung Garam has a playful personality. Jung Garam isnât someone who jokes around often.â With that said, she encouraged me to carry [Sylphâs Fall] on me at all times. âRetrieve [Fall] from Seo Dawon again. If youâre left alone with Jung Garam, and youâre seriously hurt, youâll need it.â
âIâm telling you, thatâs too much. I canât do that.â
âYou donât even need to swing it. Itâll be enough to keep him in check.â Kim Olim looked so serious.
Become a Patron!
TL: ThatâsâŠreally scary. Kim Olim is so grave right now. Also, Itâs strange to see the way Kim Olim speaks about herself. I wonder what you guys think of her dynamic with Lee-kyungâŠand what sheâs said to him. In a way, I do think Kim Olim is someone Lee-kyung idolizes, but I would do the same???