Chapter 11
Flap. Flap.
The banners of the Grand Temple fluttered in the distance.
Lucy’s jaw dropped.
Already?!
At the same time, she was bewildered.
Even if the temple guards saw the Duke taking me away…
Edward had driven the carriage at an incredible speed.
He had even avoided the main roads, taking mountain trails instead.
Yet somehow…
They had located them in such a short time.
Did those bastards put some kind of tracking spell on me?
…
The more she thought about it, the more plausible—and terrifying—it seemed.
Right…
I’m the last remaining experimental subject.
Finding another child with holy power was practically impossible.
She should have expected the temple to become obsessed with getting her back.
I refuse to become the baby deer hunted by an obsessive temple…
Lucy’s eyes began trembling.
Tepe and Gorgo weren’t much different.
Both had gone pale.
“Your Grace.”
“It appears they’re coming, just as we expected.”
“…But they’re moving much faster than anticipated.”
“Their numbers don’t look insignificant either…”
Whoosh.
As soon as he finished speaking…
A sharp gaze landed squarely on Lucy.
I’m doomed.
The two knights hadn’t liked her to begin with.
Lucy swallowed hard.
That look…
Anyone could tell.
They were wondering whether they should abandon her.
“Hic!”
Perhaps because she was so tense…
Lucy hiccupped.
It was so loud her entire body shook with it.
Seeing that…
Edward frowned.
At this rate, she’ll cough up her heart.
She was already so tiny and frail.
Yet a single hiccup made her whole body tremble.
“H-hic! Your Grace…”
“You’re… taking me with you, right?”
“…”
“Your Grace… hic!… You promised you’d take me!”
You said you’d keep me! You said you’d raise me!
Her pitiful pleas never reached Edward’s ears.
His attention remained fixed on the way her entire body shook every time she spoke.
At least she eats well.
That much was fortunate.
Edward quietly decided he’d continue feeding her properly from now on.
Meanwhile…
An earthquake was occurring inside Lucy’s head.
She was widening her eyes pitifully.
Doing everything she could to appeal to him.
Yet…
Edward didn’t seem to be listening to a single word she said.
Damn it.
I should’ve tricked him into signing the contract first!
Just as regret overwhelmed her…
Tepe and Gorgo, who had been watching Lucy with narrowed eyes, finally spoke.
“This woman may be an even more important experimental subject than we assumed.”
“Huh? No!”
“It may be that we’ve stolen one of the temple’s greatest assets.”
“I’m not valuable!”
“If they make an issue of that, it could become troublesome for us, Your Grace.”
“Where else would you find someone as weak, tiny, adorable, and completely useless as me?!”
She couldn’t let herself be abandoned.
Clasping her hands together…
Lucy looked at Edward with desperate eyes.
For a brief moment…
Edward’s expression became strangely subtle.
Then…
His usual wicked smile slowly appeared.
“You think you’re that useless…”
“And yet you presented me with a contract?”
“Hic!”
The look he gave her clearly asked,
How dare you lie to me?
“N-no, Your Grace, o-of course… hic!”
In her panic…
Lucy completely failed to notice how entertained he actually looked.
“I’m… hic!… extremely useful! Valuable! Hic!… A truly excellent resour—”
Before she could finish…
Edward reached out.
His large hand gently cupped her face.
Covering both her nose and mouth.
There was no force behind it.
It didn’t hurt.
Yet simply feeling the firmness of his palm…
Simply having half her face completely covered by his hand…
Hng!
Lucy froze on the spot.
Ignoring whether she’d frozen or not…
Edward lightly squeezed her soft cheeks before tilting his head.
Then…
“Ten.”
“…”
“Nine…”
He calmly began counting.
He vaguely remembered hearing somewhere that holding your breath for ten seconds stopped hiccups.
Since he’d covered both her nose and mouth…
She wasn’t breathing anyway.
If she keeps hiccupping like that, she’ll break something.
She already looked so fragile.
Her whole body had been shaking every few seconds.
Of course…
He could simply have told her to hold her breath.
But…
Edward had long since stopped explaining his actions.
It had become an old habit.
The longer he spent explaining…
The less time he had to save people.
What an exhausting species.
Help me.
Save us.
You’re a hero, aren’t you?
People always demanded everything from him.
Yet somehow demanded even more explanations.
“These are the knights protecting our nobles! Why should we send them elsewhere?”
“Why should our high priests enter the danger zone?”
“What? Jump down there? Absolutely not! I’m not moving until you explain why!”
The time they wasted demanding explanations…
Was time Edward could’ve spent saving another life.
Eventually…
He stopped explaining altogether.
Anyone who refused to obey—
Regardless of rank—
He simply threw them where they needed to go.
Actions were faster than words.
Ironically…
Life became much easier after that.
“They say the current Dragon Incarnation only does whatever he wants.”
“He’s so beautiful… is he really that dangerous?”
“Well… his instincts are those of a dragon. Why would humans matter to him?”
“Still, they say he’ll absolutely save your life. That viscount who got thrown by him only broke an arm.”
No one dared say such things to his face.
But Edward always knew.
Everyone thought he was insane.
Fortunately…
Most people had no desire to provoke a madman.
Very few possessed enough authority to challenge the Dragon Incarnation.
Even if they disliked him…
Eventually they either convinced themselves he was right…
Or simply hated him in silence.
Edward was never hurt by those misunderstandings.
Nor did he feel any need to explain himself.
This woman will figure it out on her own.
Even if he told her to hold her breath…
She seemed far too busy chattering to listen.
So he had simply chosen the more helpful approach.
Meanwhile…
Lucy’s mind had gone completely blank.
Was I talking too much?
Her thoughts instantly leapt to the worst possible conclusion.
…He’s annoyed.
He’s going to kill me!
Lucy knew very well…
You never provoked the strongest person in the world—
Especially when that person was powerful, ill-tempered, and hopelessly unpredictable.
Even if she was an invaluable purifier with holy power…
That wouldn’t necessarily save her.
I’m so scared!
Completely opposite to Edward’s intentions…
Her entire body trembled even harder.
Even while Edward frowned slightly…
Lucy desperately steeled herself.
I finally got a second chance at life.
I can’t die here!
“One…”
Slap!
The instant Edward reached one…
Lucy squeezed her eyes shut…
And grabbed the hand covering her mouth with both of hers.
It looked like a tiny mouse clutching an almond someone had offered it.
“…”
Edward flinched.
Then slowly withdrew his hand from her face.
Even afterward…
Lucy continued holding onto his hand like it was a precious snack.
…What is this?
Edward silently stared at the tiny hands wrapped around his own.
Before either of them could react…
Tepe and Gorgo shouted first.
“Your Grace!”
“Woman! Step away from His Gra—ugh!”
Just as they tried to pull Lucy away…
A single glance from Edward froze them in place.
Cold sweat instantly ran down both their backs.
That look…
He’s telling us not to interfere.
Is she irritating him that much?
Does he intend to deal with her personally?
The two knights clenched their teeth.
Meanwhile…
Still keeping her eyes tightly shut…
Lucy remained completely unaware of everything happening around her.
She hadn’t even noticed…
Her hiccups had already stopped.
Instead…
She desperately cried out,
“Your Gra—no… Master!”
“…”
Then…
Slowly opening her eyes…
She looked directly into Edward’s.
“I take back what I said.”
“…Take it back?”
“Yes!”
“I’m not just small and cute.”
“…”
“I’m an amazing purifier!”
So please don’t kill me! Just take me with you!
Listening to her frantic declaration…
The corners of Edward’s lips relaxed.
He’d already been satisfied simply because her hiccups had stopped.
But now…
This tiny little creature was saying something even more amusing.
“How amazing?”
“I can hold hands really well!”
“What about kisses?”
“Wh-why would we need kisses…?”
“…Of course!”
Lucy shouted desperately before forcing another smile onto her face.
To her…
This also felt like another test.
Maybe he’s checking how far I’m willing to go for purification.
The Edward Lucy knew had been obsessed with efficiency.
Perhaps he was measuring her resolve.
Trying to determine just how useful she could be.
Desperately wanting to pass…
Lucy immediately changed tactics.
“Do you think I’d stop at just kisses?”
Then…
Without the slightest idea how much those words would change the course of her future…
She boldly declared,
“This purifier does everything!”
