Chapter 11
Flap. Flap.
The temple’s banner waved in the distance.
Lucy stared at it with her mouth hanging open.
‘Already?!’
She was shocked.
‘Even if the temple guards saw the duke taking me away…’
Edward had driven the carriage incredibly fast.
They had even avoided the main roads by taking mountain paths.
Yet somehow…
The temple had already found them.
‘Did they put some kind of tracking spell on me?’
The thought was so believable that it sent chills down her spine.
‘Right… I’m their last remaining test subject.’
Children born with holy power were extremely rare.
She should have expected them to be obsessed with getting her back.
‘I don’t want to become the temple’s precious little deer…’
‘Or their obsessive target!’
Lucy began trembling.
Tepe and Gorgo had also turned pale.
“Your Grace.”
“It seems they came exactly as we expected.”
“…But they’re moving much faster than we thought.”
“And there are far more of them than expected…”
The moment he finished speaking…
Both knights looked sharply at Lucy.
‘I’m doomed.’
They already didn’t trust her.
Lucy swallowed nervously.
‘Those looks…’
Anyone could tell they were wondering whether they should abandon her.
“Hic!”
She was so nervous that another hiccup escaped.
It was so strong that her whole body shook with it.
Seeing that…
Edward frowned.
‘At this rate, she’ll cough her heart out.’
She was already so tiny and frail.
Yet a single hiccup made her whole body tremble.
“H-Hic! Your Grace?”
“Y-You’re taking me with you… right?”
“…”
“Your G-Hic-race!”
“You promised you’d take me!”
You said you’d keep me!
You promised!
But Edward wasn’t listening to a single word she said.
His attention was fixed on how violently her body shook every time she hiccupped.
‘At least she eats well.’
‘I’ll have to make sure she keeps eating properly.’
Meanwhile…
Lucy’s mind was in complete chaos.
She was doing everything she could.
Making herself look pitiful.
Trying desperately to appeal to him.
But Edward looked like he wasn’t listening at all.
‘Damn it.’
‘I should’ve tricked him into signing the contract first!’
Just then…
Tepe and Gorgo stepped in.
“This woman may be an even more important test subject than we expected.”
“W-What?”
“No!”
“We may have stolen one of the temple’s greatest assets.”
“I’m not important!”
“If they make an issue of it…”
“It could become troublesome, Your Grace.”
“I’m just a tiny, weak, cute, completely useless nobody!”
She couldn’t afford to be abandoned.
Lucy clasped her hands together and looked pleadingly at Edward.
A strange expression crossed his face.
Naturally…
A crooked smile appeared.
“So…”
“You think you’re that useless.”
“Then why did you hand me a contract?”
“Hic!”
His eyes seemed to ask,
“Were you lying to me?”
“Your G-Hic-race!”
“Of c-course I’mā”
Lucy was too panicked to notice that although he looked amused…
He was actually enjoying himself.
“I’m very h-Hic-helpful!”
“And valuable!”
“And excellent!”
Before she could finish…
Edward reached out.
His hand gently covered her face.
His palm covered both her nose and mouth.
There wasn’t any force behind it.
It didn’t hurt.
But…
Simply having half her face covered by his large hand…
Made her freeze.
‘What?!’
While Lucy stood completely still…
Edward casually squeezed her soft cheeks.
Then he tilted his head.
“…Ten.”
“…”
“Nine…”
He started counting.
He had once heard that holding your breath for ten seconds stopped hiccups.
Since he’d covered both her nose and mouth…
She was probably holding her breath now.
‘If she keeps hiccupping like this…’
‘She might break a bone.’
She already looked so tiny and fragile.
Her entire body shook every time she hiccupped.
Of course…
He could’ve simply told her to hold her breath.
But…
Edward had long since stopped explaining his actions.
It had become a habit.
The longer he explained…
The more time was wasted.
And wasted time meant fewer people he could save.
‘Humans are such troublesome creatures.’
“Save me.”
“Help me.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be a hero?”
Everyone wanted something.
Yet everyone demanded endless explanations.
“These knights exist to protect us nobles!”
“Why should they be sent somewhere else?”
“Why should our high priests enter dangerous areas?”
“What?”
“You want me to jump from here?”
“No!”
“I’m not moving until you explain why!”
Every second they wasted demanding explanations…
Was another second he could’ve spent saving someone else.
Eventually…
He simply stopped explaining.
If someone refused to listen…
He threw them aside.
No matter their status.
Actions were faster than words.
Ironically…
Life became much easier after that.
“They say the current Dragon Incarnation doesn’t care about anyone.”
“He’s so beautiful.”
“Is he really that dangerous?”
“Well…”
“He’s a dragon by instinct.”
“Why would ordinary humans matter to him?”
“Still…”
“They say he’ll always save your life.”
“That baron whose arm he broke after throwing him survived, didn’t he?”
Nobody dared say it to his face.
But Edward knew exactly how they looked at him.
Like he was insane.
And most people preferred not to provoke crazy people.
Especially when that crazy person was the Dragon Incarnation.
Edward never cared about being misunderstood.
Nor did he feel any need to explain himself.
‘She’ll understand eventually.’
Even if he told her to hold her breath…
She looked like the type who would keep talking anyway.
So he simply decided to help her himself.
Meanwhile…
Lucy’s mind had gone completely blank.
‘Did I annoy him by talking too much?’
Her thoughts immediately jumped to the worst possible conclusion.
‘He’s… going to kill me because he’s annoyed!’
Lucy knew perfectly well.
The strongest person in the world…
A completely unreasonable and unpredictable male lead…
Wasn’t someone she could afford to anger.
No matter how valuable her holy power was.
‘I’m so dead!’
Completely misunderstanding Edward’s intentions…
Lucy started trembling even harder.
Even while he frowned slightly…
She desperately gathered her courage.
‘I finally got another chance at life!’
‘I can’t die here!’
“…One.”
Slap!
The moment he reached one…
Lucy squeezed her eyes shut.
She grabbed the hand covering her mouth with both of hers.
Like a tiny mouse holding onto an almond someone had given it.
“…”
Edward froze.
He slowly removed his hand from her face.
Yet…
Lucy still clung tightly to his hand.
‘What’s this?’
Edward silently stared at the tiny hands wrapped around his.
Before he could react…
Tepe and Gorgo shouted first.
“Your Grace!”
“Miss!”
“Step away from His Graceā”
But just as they moved…
Edward shot them a warning look.
The invisible pressure instantly stopped them.
Cold sweat ran down both their backs.
‘That look means…’
‘Don’t interfere.’
‘Is he that irritated?’
‘Does he want to deal with her personally?’
Both knights stiffened.
Meanwhile…
Lucy still had her eyes shut.
She had no idea her hiccups had already stopped.
She desperately cried out,
“Y-Your Grace!”
“No…”
“Master!”
“…”
Then she slowly opened her eyes…
And looked straight at Edward.
“I take it back.”
“…Take what back?”
“I was wrong.”
“I’m not just tiny and cute.”
“…”
“I’m also incredibly good at purification!”
So don’t kill me!
Just take me with you!
Hearing her desperate declaration…
Edward’s smile softened.
Stopping her hiccups had already been satisfying enough.
But now…
This tiny little creature was saying something even more entertaining.
“How good?”
“I can hold your hand really well!”
“And kissing?”
“W-Why would we need to k-kiss…”
“…Of course!”
Lucy hurriedly corrected herself with a bright smile.
To her…
This felt like another test.
‘Maybe he’s checking how much I’m willing to sacrifice for purification.’
The Edward she knew…
Always valued efficiency above everything else.
Maybe he wanted to see exactly how useful she could be.
Desperate to pass…
Lucy quickly changed tactics.
“Do you think kissing is all I can do?”
Without realizing how much these words would change her future…
She proudly declared,
“This purifier can do everything!”
