Episode 10
“Hmm, fine, I’ll do it.”
“Of course, even if you refused… really?”
Enoch blinked slowly, as if certain I’d refuse as usual.
“Yes, I’ll try to be your cure or whatever. But I don’t know anything, so I’m not sure if I’ll be helpful…”
“…Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Riana, if you ever need me, use me as you wish.”
“What? No, how could I exploit Your Majesty? And I’m not doing this expecting something in return.”
“Then why suddenly…”
“Just because. Even if I refused, it kept nagging at me. Maybe my true feelings burst out because of the wine, who knows?”
I fiddled with my bandaged hand that Enoch had wrapped and yawned lightly.
Was it because the tension was gone? Or the wine, really?
My eyelids grew heavy, as if someone had hung weights on them, and started to droop.
“Oh, right, I found out who Ariel is. Eli… ah…”
I rubbed my eyes, but sleepiness swept over me like a flood, seeping into every corner of my body.
“It seems she’s Elisha’s daughter. But Elisha doesn’t know about her… maybe…”
I tried to keep my eyes open, but my words fell powerless, as if mocking my efforts.
“So… I need to tell… Elisha… should I…”
As I fought the sudden sleepiness, Enoch placed his large hand over my eyes.
“I understand what you’re trying to say. If you’re sleepy, rest.”
“I still have more to say…”
“I’ll listen tomorrow. Rest.”
“I need to put ice packs on my face…”
Otherwise, I’ll wake up tomorrow with a swollen face. But I’m so sleepy…
Five minutes. I’ll sleep for just five minutes.
Then I’ll ask about how to be his cure and decide what to do about Ariel.
Oh, and I need to thank him for saving me too.
As I mentally organized what to say, I slowly sank into sleep under his gentle, soothing touch.
—
Riana’s eyelashes stopped fluttering under Enoch’s palm. Realizing her small, pink lips didn’t respond to his call, he knew she’d fallen asleep and slowly lifted his hand.
“She’s asleep.”
Enoch gazed at Riana, lost in deep sleep, and unconsciously reached toward her transparent eyelashes. But when she stirred slightly, he flinched and pulled back quickly, more surprised at himself.
“Hmm…”
“…Heh.”
Afraid of waking her, he froze in an awkward position, and a mocking laugh escaped his lips.
“What am I even doing…”
Really, what was he doing?
He, who didn’t care about the Duke, caused an unusual commotion and sent him to war. And now, here he was, frozen in a ridiculous pose, afraid of making the slightest sound. Even he didn’t understand why he was acting like this all of a sudden.
Laughing wryly, he lifted Riana to move her to the bed but frowned slightly.
“She’s too light.”
He knew she was thin, but her lighter-than-expected weight made him uneasy. That feeling worsened after placing her on the bed.
“Hmm.”
He tucked her scattered platinum hair behind her ear, revealing her red, swollen cheek and torn lower lip. Seeing this, he felt a lump in his throat. Riana was the one who drank, so why was his mood so upset?
He pressed his forehead in frustration at the strange irritation and turned. He thought he should request ice packs before her face swelled more and headed toward the door.
But at that moment, he saw Ariel toddling toward the bed.
“Ariel?”
“Abu, sleep!”
Do children grow this fast?
“Last time I saw her, she wasn’t speaking clearly.”
His head tilted in surprise at the girl’s rapid growth, and Ariel grabbed his trousers, shaking them.
“Sleep!”
“What?”
Thinking she wanted to play, Enoch shook his head.
“Sorry, I have to go now.”
“No! Sleep!”
Ariel clung to his trousers and pulled him toward the bed.
“Ariel! I’ll fall like this… ah.”
Her strength wasn’t great, but he hesitated to move, afraid of touching her skin. In the end, Enoch lost his balance and fell onto Riana, making the bed shake heavily.
His gray eyes widened like full moons, shocked at how dangerously close their lips were.
“Hmm…”
“Ah!”
Riana frowned slightly from the impact, and Enoch held his breath, only exhaling after a moment.
“Ariel!”
He scolded her in a whisper, and she covered her mouth with her tiny hands, giggling. She climbed the steps beside the bed and slipped in next to Riana.
“Sleep! Snore!”
Then she hit his arm, which was propping him up, as if shooing away a doll.
What was happening?
Enoch blinked in surprise, finding himself lying beside Riana with Ariel between them.
The ceiling lights swirled before his eyes in a dizzying haze.
Was it the brightness? His mind felt empty.
After staring blankly for a while, Enoch snapped out of it at the sound of Ariel’s soft snoring and tried to get up.
“Hmm…”
But Riana, hugging his chest, made it impossible.
Enoch closed his eyes tightly as she clung to him, as if escaping the cold.
He heard his heartbeat quicken in his ears.
Why was his usually calm heart racing like this all of a sudden?
Was it because the ice was melting from Riana’s touch?
“Annoying…”
If it’s like this now, what would it be like if it melted completely? If it got noisier, that’d be troublesome…
Then, it should melt moderately, just enough not to be annoying. Enoch sighed deeply as he thought.
—
“Hah…”
In the room filled with quiet breaths, a faint sigh echoed, and Enoch’s black eyelashes trembled.
“I can’t sleep…”
He couldn’t sleep, perhaps because he wasn’t used to sleeping beside anyone, so he lifted his eyelids and turned.
“Mama…”
He saw Ariel’s chubby cheeks as she clung to Riana’s back, clutching her lips.
Her small, delicate features amazed him, but his attention quickly shifted to Riana.
Under the moonlight, her red, swollen cheek stood out more vividly against her transparent skin.
He removed his glove and placed his hand on her cheek, feeling the warmth transfer to his palm.
“Tch.”
He frowned in discomfort, remembering the ice pack he forgot.
He considered requesting ice but hesitated, afraid of waking her.
“If left like this, it’ll swell more.”
He reached for the servant’s bell cord, but it was too far.
After failed attempts, he gave up, turned back, and gently poked her cheek.
“It seems to have swollen more in moments…”
He knew it was a silly thought, but he worried her cheek might burst if it swelled further.
For someone small and fragile like Riana, maybe it could happen…
His brows furrowed as he seriously considered an impossible scenario.
“It needs to be cooled before it swells more, but the ice…”
He stared at his hand with cold eyes, as if struck by a thought.
“Ice… can’t I be enough?”
He muttered, and when his eyes glinted blue, a cool breeze swirled around his pale hand.
Since he was seven, after his power caused his mother’s death, he hadn’t used it, out of fear.
But now, after decades, he summoned it to reduce Riana’s swelling.
“If the elders knew, they’d be shocked.”
He kept marveling at himself but controlled his power precisely.
It shouldn’t be too cold to wake her but enough to reduce the swelling.
After several tries, he found the right degree and placed his hand on her red cheek, feeling the warmth transfer to his palm.
Unlike his mother, whom his touch froze, he felt her warm, soft skin and sighed in relief unconsciously.
“Hmm… cool…”
“Is it cool?”
“Mm…”
Riana smiled faintly, as if the coolness was soothing, and her delicate features looked enchanting.
That smile was so beautiful that Enoch smiled quietly too.
He repeated his power several times until the swelling subsided.
He patted the treated area with satisfaction, then realized he was smiling along with her and covered his mouth.
“If anyone saw me, they’d think I’d lost my mind.”
Relieved to be the only one awake, he forced the corners of his mouth down and closed his eyes.
“Let me sleep, let me sleep.”
