Chapter 98
Yuanna and Sir Diego barely regained their senses.
But the problem was the Red Flower's gruesome reproductive ability.
As they prepared and set off again, the Red Flowers followed behind them, multiplying like footprints in the snow.
"This is a bit scary."
Yuanna looked back at the Red Flowers with a shudder.
"Don't talk, just plug your nose tightly."
At Kaiden's words, she nodded and immediately pinched her nose shut.
But the bizarre phenomenon occurred then.
The group was moving in the order of Kaiden, Yuanna, and Sir Diego, when suddenly the flowers, blooming at a terrifying speed, bypassed Sir Diego and followed Yuanna to her ankles.
Then, roots wrapped around Yuanna's ankles, and soon stems grew, and Red Flowers bloomed.
"Kyaa! What is this! Ack!"
"J-Just stay still for a moment!"
Sir Diego tried to tear off the flowers entwined around her ankles, but he inhaled the scent and became intoxicated again.
Kaiden grabbed Yuanna's ankles and barely managed to tear off the flowers, but Yuanna was already intoxicated.
"Damn it, what the hell is this!"
Surprisingly, the Red Flowers stopped multiplying the moment they became intoxicated.
It was as if someone was watching them and manipulating the situation.
Moreover, this time the condition was somewhat different from last night.
Sir Diego was spaced out with unfocused eyes, and Yuanna was in a state of panic.
Kaiden first lifted Sir Diego and Yuanna, one in each arm, and moved away from the flower field. As expected, the Red Flowers did not follow, as if they had done their job.
"Aah. Aaaaaah."
Yuanna, hanging upside down on his right shoulder, tore at her hair and let out a strange moan.
"What's wrong? Endure it."
Kaiden hurried to run. Sir Diego's lack of response was very unsettling. And finally, a huge river appeared.
He thought that even the Red Flowers wouldn't follow them to this gravel field.
Kaiden first put the two down on the gravel field.
Sir Diego seemed relatively okay, perhaps because he had inhaled less of the scent. He was still in his right mind. As soon as he got down on the gravel field, he grabbed Kaiden's wrist.
"It seems easier to breathe only when I have contact with someone."
Kaiden understood Sir Diego's words, but he didn't want to share body heat with him, so he shook off his hand.
But Sir Diego, who grabbed his wrist again, shook his head with pitiful eyes.
"Please... Lord. Save me."
"I'm going crazy."
Kaiden looked at Sir Diego with a displeased face and then checked Yuanna's condition. Yuanna's side seemed to be somewhat serious.
"Hey, Saintess. Are you okay?"
Kaiden ended up giving one arm to Sir Diego and squatted down in front of Yuanna, who was sitting on the ground.
Then, as if she had been waiting, she urgently reached out and placed her hands on both of Kaiden's cheeks.
Soon, she gently stroked his cheeks. As if treating a lost lover with pity.
"...D-Don't... D-Die..."
She was muttering something quickly, like someone possessed. Kaiden frowned with an annoyed face and tilted his head, listening carefully.
"What?"
"...Don't die. Don't die. Don't die!!"
"Ah, damn it, you scared me!"
"The Saintess."
Sir Diego, who was listening, was startled and let go of Kaiden's hand and approached Yuanna, grabbing her shoulders.
"The Saintess! Come to your senses!"
"Aaaaaah!!"
Yuanna cringed her shoulders, covered her ears, and screamed. Then Sir Diego stepped back with a bewildered face.
"Don't die. Don't die. I don't want to live alone..."
She burst into tears and screamed. Even Kaiden was embarrassed and stared blankly at her.
Yuanna seemed to be seeing hallucinations. Perhaps it touched her deep trauma.
"Ah, maybe that flower earlier. Is it Tentationem?"
At Kaiden's muttering, Sir Diego turned to him with an urgent face.
"What is Tentationem? Do you know the flower? Please do something about the Saintess!"
"It's a flower developed by the Rohade family. The appearance of flowers is all similar, so it's difficult to distinguish, but looking at the symptoms, it seems to be correct. But that's a flower that can't bloom naturally..."
"Is there a cure?!"
At Sir Diego's question, Kaiden shook his head.
"You need equipment to make an antidote. You can't make it here. But if you have physical contact, the symptoms will disappear after a certain period of time."
As soon as Kaiden's words were finished, Sir Diego grabbed Yuanna's hand. But he soon looked up at Kaiden with a tearful face.
"What, why?"
When Kaiden asked back with his arms crossed, Sir Diego sighed and got up from his seat.
"I think it's not effective because I'm also an addict. When I held Lord's hand, I felt my head clear, but I don't feel that at all."
As Sir Diego said, Yuanna was still crying and suffering.
Kaiden bit his lower lip for a moment. He knew that he could solve the problem by giving them his body, but he wasn't moved.
"Lord."
Sir Diego sighed and knelt down on one knee in front of him and bowed his head.
"Please. Please hold our hands."
If he just closes his eyes and gives them his body, the future will be easier. That way, he'll have something to say to Margaret too.
After a moment of consideration, Kaiden finally decided to lend them both of his hands.
I dipped the whetstone in a large wooden basket and looked out of the hut through the open door.
"The scheduled return date has passed a lot, right? Could something have happened? Shouldn't we go?"
I asked Enoch, who was sitting quietly next to me watching.
Yuanna and her party, who said they would be back in five days at the latest, had not been heard from for a week.
"It's very late."
Enoch answered in an insincere tone and then stroked my hair.
"Don't worry. Sir Diego's skills are needless to say, and Lord also has considerable Monstrous Strength."
Well, Yuanna isn't an ordinary person either. I agreed with Enoch's words and took out the whetstone dipped in water and put it on the floor.
I laid a cloth on the floor and fixed the whetstone so that it wouldn't move, then reached out to Enoch.
"Give me the sword."
I said, looking at the sword stuck in Enoch's waist. He tilted his head with a puzzled face, but willingly handed me the sword.
I sprinkled water on the whetstone once more, then pressed the blade with my left hand and sharpened the blade, maintaining a constant angle of the blade with my right hand.
At that time, Luzef and Asdal, who had returned after scouting outside the hut, gathered around me with amazement.
"My goodness, Lady Flone could work in a blacksmith shop if she escaped from the island."
Here we go again.
Asdal rested his chin on his hand with an interesting face and watched what I was doing.
"How rude is it to tell a noble lady to work in a blacksmith shop?"
Luzef scolded Asdal for his words. Then Asdal pointed to me with a dumbfounded face.
"No, can't I even joke? Blacksmith work is also a noble job that contributes to the country."
It was sophistry, but Luzef stared at me silently as if he had nothing to say. Asdal shook his head.
"Anyway, this guy and that guy are all possessed by Lady Flone."
"Watch your mouth."
Enoch's voice was terribly low. That meant he was very angry.
"That's what I'm saying. I have a knife right now, you know? You shouldn't provoke someone with a knife. Watch your mouth, Crown Prince."
I sharpened the blade sharply and held the sword up to Asdal.
Asdal, who stepped back with his hands behind his back, said with a smile.
"Lady Flone, don't misunderstand. It was definitely a compliment."
"I know it wasn't a compliment."
"I guess I have no one on my side."
When I spoke coldly, Asdal pretended to wipe away tears that didn't even flow. Aren't you tired of always picking a fight first and then backing down?
Anyway, I sharpened Enoch's dull blade sharply, then sharpened the Wooden Knife and Stone Knife, and tidied up my seat.
It was around the time the sun rose above their heads that Yuanna and Sir Diego regained consciousness.
In the hot midday, Sir Diego, who regained consciousness first, threw Kaiden's arm away as if throwing it away and jumped up from his seat.
"When did you kneel and beg, and now you don't even know grace?"
Kaiden sneered with a dumbfounded face, and Sir Diego straightened his clothes and answered calmly.
"Thank you for holding my hand."
It was a dry thank you delivered with a face that wasn't thankful at all.
And then, Yuanna also came to her senses and startled, pushing Kaiden's arm away.
"Ha, these guys..."
Kaiden suppressed his bubbling anger and glared at Yuanna this time.
She was looking around, not knowing what was going on.
"What's going on right now?"
"Don't you remember?"
Sir Diego approached her and checked her complexion. Kaiden, whether he did or not, rubbed his forehead with a tired face.
Yuanna's face turned pale after hearing the explanation from Sir Diego.
"Did I say anything strange?"