Chapter 72

Whew. I thought I'd die.

Catching my breath, still racing, I looked back behind us.

"Now, phew. No one around, right?"

"Doesn't look like it."

At Cain's quiet answer, the tension finally drained out of me. Thank goodness.

"That run was worth it."

The moment I said that and lifted my head—

My eyes met Cain's.

Unlike me, gasping for breath with my throat burning, Cain looked perfectly composed, as if a full sprint like that hadn't even counted as light exercise.

Was it the sheer gap between us that struck me as funny, or maybe it was just that running so hard had left me feeling strangely refreshed?

The moment my eyes met Cain's, a laugh burst out of me for no clear reason.

"Buhaha!"

He looked puzzled, as though he couldn't understand why I was laughing all of a sudden.

"...I don't understand what's funny."

Even at his…