Chapter 12
“I can do everything… I can do everything… I can do everything…”
Lucy’s words echoed through the forest.
Edward’s smile slowly deepened.
A chill ran down Tepe and Gorgo’s backs.
They exchanged glances.
‘His Grace is really going to teach her a lesson.’
No one knew better than they did what happened to people Edward singled out.
No matter how suspicious she seemed…
She looked far too small and fragile to endure it.
‘She’s really unlucky.’
The anger and suspicion they had felt toward Lucy gradually turned into pity.
Lucy, however, had no time to notice.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The sound of horses galloping grew closer every second.
‘We don’t have time for this!’
As if he couldn’t hear her thoughts, Edward simply kept smiling.
“You’ll do everything?”
“Of course! You think I’d stop at a kiss? For you, Your Gra… no, Master, I’d do even more!”
“…”
“So please, just stamp the contract… or you can sign it later! Let’s get moving firstā”
The smile on Edward’s face suddenly disappeared.
“‘You’ll do anything for your master,’ huh.”
“Is… is there a problem?”
“Then what if your master changes?”
For a brief second, Lucy almost smiled.
‘That would be great for me.’
But she quickly forced the smile away.
Edward suddenly looked frightening.
“So you’d do everything for someone else too.”
I’m not even the heroine! Why does that matter?!
Of course, she couldn’t say that.
Lucy sighed inwardly.
‘Well… maybe he just feels uncomfortable about it.’
Considering Edward’s personality, it wasn’t surprising.
He hadn’t tried to strangle her earlier.
Instead, he’d come up with the strange idea of covering her nose and mouth.
‘This guy is creatively awful.’
Someone like him could easily think sharing a purifier with someone else was disgusting.
Many male leads in dark romance novels were like that.
They hated touching people.
They thought intimacy itself was filthy.
Then suddenly…
Only the heroine became an exception.
Remembering all the mature dark fantasy novels she’d reread countless times in the shelter, Lucy quietly shook her head.
‘As long as I’m a purifier, physical contact is unavoidable.’
Fortunately…
Since he’d touched her himself earlier…
He seemed willing to accept that much.
He probably just couldn’t stand the thought of a purifier who had been physically involved with other men.
“So…”
“Who exactly have you purified before that makes you so confident?”
…The fact that he asked made it obvious.
‘I’ve never even had a boyfriend in either life.’
Who would I have purified?
Lucy stopped herself from frowning.
Edward was irritated too.
‘She supposedly likes me.’
Then what man has she purified before to make her so confident?
She was even bragging about it in front of the man she liked.
‘Is she perceptive or completely clueless?’
She’d been acting adorably enough that he’d simply watched her.
But…
The moment another man crossed his mind…
He found himself annoyed.
‘Who dares touch my little mouse…’
Just thenā
Clop! Clop!
The horses were right behind them.
With no time left to think, Lucy blurted out,
“Who else would it be? You, Your Grace!”
“…Me?”
“You already know I was Lady Sepina’s test subject!”
“All those passionate moments you’ve had until now…”
“They were powered by my purification!”
…My purification…
…My purification…
…My purification…
Once again, her words echoed through the forest.
Lucy flinched.
Even to her…
That sounded strange.
It almost sounded like she was saying that through Sepina…
She and Edward had been physically involved too.
As if all three of them had somehow shared those moments together.
‘What kind of ridiculous mature novel setting is this?’
Of course…
Back then, the other children had also been supplying holy power.
But that wasn’t important right now.
Edward looked completely stunned.
Before he could recover…
Lucy gently took his hand.
Then she whispered,
“I’ve only ever known you.”
“And from now on…”
“I’ll only ever know you.”
“…”
“So just keep your promise…”
“Duke Edward de Tesseron!”
A loud voice suddenly rang out from beyond the trees.
“We have something to discuss with you!”
It was one of the temple’s Holy Knights.
“…Just get the carriage moving already, you stupid Master!”
Frustrated, Lucy tried to grab Edward by the collarā
Then froze.
He wasn’t wearing clothes.
He was wearing armor.
There was no collar to grab.
Still…
She knew she had to stop him from staying.
So instead…
She threw both arms around his neck.
‘He isn’t going to throw me away now… right?’
But as always…
Once she’d started something…
Backing away now would only be stranger.
Instead of letting go…
Lucy clung tightly to him.
“…Fine.”
Edward whispered quietly.
“Huh?”
The next moment…
Lucy’s feet suddenly left the ground.
Edward had effortlessly lifted her into a princess carry.
“How troublesome.”
“I’ll be leaving first.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“We’ll handle things here.”
Tepe and Gorgo drew their swords as calmly as if nothing unusual had happened.
‘Wait…’
‘They’re seriously going to fight the temple’s Holy Knights?’
‘Even if he’s the Dragon Incarnation, won’t that make everything worse?’
Lucy stared in confusion.
Thenā
Golden particles gathered behind Edward.
They shimmered like a mirage.
Slowly…
The illusion of enormous golden wings appeared behind his back.
A massive skeletal frame…
Covered by membranes like a bat’s wings.
‘A dragon?’
She barely had time to think it.
“Ahhh!”
Whoosh!
Still carrying Lucy…
Edward shot into the sky like a rocket.
Lucy screamed as they soared upward.
Then…
She fainted.
Whoooooosh…
Even with her eyes closed…
She felt strange pressure surrounding her body.
The wind rushed past.
Gravity seemed to disappear.
It felt…
Like riding a roller coaster.
Ah…
In her fading consciousness…
A memory from her previous life surfaced.
‘I really wanted to ride one…’
“Big Sis! Next time let’s ride the roller coaster too!”
“Of course!”
“Our little sister should wear cute ears too! We’ll take pictures!”
“And after we get off, we’ll buy churros over thereā”
“Wait.”
“What’s that?”
“Run!”
Before she was reincarnated…
The very first Gate disaster happened on Lucy’s twentieth birthday.
She had been standing in line for a famous roller coaster with her sisters.
Then…
The Ferris wheel flipped over.
A Gate opened inside it.
Monsters poured out.
Naturally…
They had fled instead of riding anything.
The amusement park closed forever after that.
Still…
Her cheerful, outgoing sisters had smiled and said,
“When everything’s over…”
“Let’s come back together.”
“We’ll spend the whole day here.”
“And stay until the evening parade!”
That promise…
Was never fulfilled.
Neither were her sisters.
They never came back from the neighborhood defense force.
Why?
Why did you leave only me behind?
Because I was too weak?
Because I was a burden?
Because I got in the way?
You shouldn’t have.
I studied hard too.
You could’ve taken me with you.
Or if you were worried because I was weak…
You should’ve stayed with me instead.
See?
Now I’m riding the roller coaster all alone.
I don’t want this…
“Wake up.”
A calm voice instantly pulled her back to reality.
“Huh?”
Lucy slowly opened her eyes.
Everything around her was blue.
Blue over there.
Blue over here.
And white over there.
‘What’s that?’
‘It looks just like cloā’
“AAAAAH!”
The moment she realized those were actual clouds…
And that she was high in the sky, being carried by Edward with nothing beneath them…
She screamed.
“Don’t drop me!”
Then she wrapped both arms tightly around Edward’s head.
