MCDB CH 05

Axel had never been told what punishment had been imposed on him. However, he had a vague suspicion.

And then something happened that strengthened that suspicion.

“A few weeks ago, that book was delivered to my house.”

It was a package with no sender’s name.

Inside was a copy of The Handsome Man and the Beast.

He could faintly sense his master’s magic on it.

“My master wouldn’t have sent me this book for no reason. There’s something he always tells me. To put myself in someone else’s shoes.”

To be more precise, it was, ‘Please, for once, learn how to put yourself in someone else’s shoes.’

And now Axel was under the exact same curse as Helens, being forced to experience her situation firsthand.

“So you’re under the exact same curse as me.”

“That’s right.”

“Then why aren’t you a beast? Why are you human?”

And a very handsome one at that!

“From a dragon’s perspective, there’s not much difference between a beast and a human.”

There was, though.

Wasn’t that just him being biased toward his own kind?

Helens felt wronged, but decided there was no point arguing. It would only make her mouth tired.

“We’re under the same curse. So why don’t we cooperate and break the curse together?”

At Axel’s suggestion, Helens narrowed her eyes.

What exactly was the curse they were both under?

The damned curse that could only be broken with a kiss of true love.

“……You want to kiss me?”

“Why are you skipping all the steps in between? The kiss isn’t the important part. True love is what matters.”

Right.

True love.

That was the point.

Helens unconsciously let out a long sigh.

True love?

Did such a thing even exist in this world?

It sounded more believable to say that there was a three-headed snake or a sheep with golden wool living somewhere.

“Dragon, listen carefully. Just because we promise to love each other from today onward doesn’t mean love will magically appear.”

When ordinary romantic feelings were already difficult enough to develop, true love was simply impossible.

This was basically a curse that would never be broken.

“I know.”

Axel wasn’t interested in something like love, but even he knew that much.

“But there are many kinds of love. I never said romantic love had to be a requirement.”

He had simply said true love.

“Friendship is also a kind of love if you think about it. So are comradeship and the bond between brothers-in-arms.”

Who could say that the love between comrades wasn’t true when one person crossed a battlefield through a rain of arrows to save another?

Axel’s argument was surprisingly convincing, and Helens found herself intrigued.

“Kisses can come in different forms too, right? It never specifically said the kiss had to be on the lips.”

“There are foreheads and cheeks too.”

Helens nodded as though she agreed with Axel.

‘Maybe the curse really could be broken that way. But somehow, this feels awfully suspicious.’

Axel didn’t need to make this proposal to her.

He didn’t need to talk about different kinds of love or different kinds of kisses either.

With a face so handsome that no one could forget it after seeing him just once, there were probably plenty of girls who would fall hopelessly in love with him just by seeing him walk down the street.

Even if he revealed that he was a dragon, that wouldn’t necessarily interfere with love.

If he met enough people, there was a chance that at least one of them would give him true love.

At the very least, that had to be easier than receiving true love from the princess who had been transformed into a beast because of the curse he himself had placed on her.

“Hm. So basically, you’re suggesting that the two of us try to share that broad definition of true love?”

“Exactly. Honestly, I’m much easier to love than some mediocre human, aren’t I?”

If you only looked at his appearance, sure.

Only his appearance.

‘But that dark, rotten personality of yours is the problem.’

Of course, if Helens actually fell in love with Axel, there could be no love more genuine than that.

After all, she would have fallen in love with the dragon who had cursed her.

But the chances of that happening were slim.

‘It doesn’t seem like he’s unaware of that. So why did he come looking for me? He must have some other ulterior motive.’

For some reason, Helens couldn’t shake the feeling that Axel was a con artist who had come to take advantage of her.

“And I think I can help you in other ways too. For example, I could help make sure you don’t get dragged off to the Magic Tower.”

Helens was tempted by his offer.

Axel was definitely useful.

In more ways than one.

As Helens racked her brain, thinking about all the ways she could make good use of Axel, she grinned.

“That’s an offer I can’t refuse. Fine. Let’s give true love a try.”

“Good decision, beast.”

The corners of Axel’s mouth curved upward.

It was a picture-perfect smile capable of making anyone fall for him.

A mere princess would be easy enough to charm.

If she ended up falling in love with him and the curse was broken, all the better.

But even if that didn’t happen, it didn’t matter.

What mattered was making his master believe that Axel was genuinely remorseful.

‘All I have to do is make it look like I’m devoted to helping her.’

As long as he could keep his temper under control, it wouldn’t be difficult.

His master’s secretary was already around the princess, so he would regularly report Axel’s actions to his master.

Then his soft-hearted master would soon forgive him and persuade the council of elders on Axel’s behalf.

“Hey, aren’t those people crying?”

Helens pointed at the water spirits cleaning the floor.

‘A person made of water is crying water.’

It was both fascinating and pitiful.

Cleaning must have been incredibly difficult.

Then again, trying to scrub ten years’ worth of grime away using nothing but water couldn’t have been easy.

“Maybe it’s because cleaning is so hard.”

“If you have even a shred of conscience, you shouldn’t be saying something like that, beast.”

Axel was still looking at her with contempt.

Was that really the face of someone who had suggested they try true love?

“Stop scratching yourself. Your fur keeps falling out. That’s why it keeps coming back no matter how much they clean.”

“Huh?”

Helens’s hand, which had unconsciously been scratching her head, suddenly stopped.

She had been scratching herself constantly because her whole body had been itchy all day, and apparently it had become a habit.

“I told you to stop scratching. You’ll die if you keep doing that.”

“I’ve never heard of anyone dying from scratching.”

“It would be quite an honor if you became the first, wouldn’t it?”

Although Axel spoke sarcastically, he was actually facing a serious internal dilemma.

He wanted to scrub that greasy fur until it was soft, fluffy, and completely clean.

But to bathe her, he would have to teleport them somewhere with water.

And for that, he would at least have to hold her hand.

It was only holding hands, but the thought of touching all that fur made Axel hesitate.

Punishment.

Just focus on escaping this punishment.

“Let’s go take a bath.”

Axel gritted his teeth and made up his mind.

He would sacrifice one of his hands and guide that filthy, filthy creature into the world of cleanliness and hygiene.

“I’ll wash you myself, so consider yourself honored.”

“What are you talking about?”

Helens frowned and wrapped both arms around herself.

“We’re both sixteen.”

“……”

Axel thought.

It wasn’t only the dirty body that needed to be cleansed.

At the edge of a crystal-clear lake.

Ripples created by Axel spread across the calm surface of the water.

After taking off the shirt torn by Helens’s claws, he began scrubbing himself thoroughly.

Axel diligently washed his broad chest and even his shirt, while Helens stood quietly by the lakeshore and watched him.

He had repeatedly warned her never to enter the water.

“……”

All right.

It was nice that he had used teleportation magic to bring them deep into the forest to the lakeside so he could wash her.

Helens had actually been desperate for a bath herself.

But the moment she saw the lake and tried to enter it, Axel stopped her.

He made Helens stand there while he went into the water and washed himself first.

Well, watching a beautiful young man standing under the moonlight with his upper body exposed and gradually getting wet was certainly enjoyable.

But his intentions felt extremely suspicious.

“All right. Now you can get in.”

After finishing his bath, Axel motioned for Helens to enter.

“You just didn’t want to get into the same water as me, so you made me stand here, didn’t you?”

“Of course.”

Of course?

Helens growled, and Axel frowned without backing down.

“If you have any conscience, take a look at yourself. If I got into the water with you and washed myself, would that really count as bathing? I’d be soaking in dirty water.”

“……That’s true, but still. Huh? How can you say it like that? Do you think I’m ever going to develop feelings for you if you keep talking like that?”

After all, he was the one who had suggested they develop true love, and now he was insulting her for being dirty.

“A genuine relationship means not hiding anything from each other, beast. Stop talking nonsense and get in already.”

There he went again, saying something that actually made sense.

What irritated Helens most about Axel was that his words were so annoying, yet she couldn’t argue with them.

Pouting, Helens stepped into the lake.

The water was a little cold.

She bent down, intending to wet the area around her heart first.

And then—

“Huh?”

The once-calm surface of the lake began to bubble, and several thick streams of water, resembling ropes, shot upward.

“Whoa—what? Huh? Mm!”

Before Helens could even react, the streams of water rushed toward her.

They burrowed through her fur, reaching all the way down to her undercoat and thoroughly rinsing it.

“Pfft! Cough, you—ugh!”

It felt as though she had turned into a stuffed bear being tossed around inside a washing machine.

“Yes, yes. Feels refreshing, doesn’t it?”

Axel smiled with satisfaction as Helens flailed around while streams of water attacked her from the front, back, and both sides.

“When I get out, you’re—pfft—just wait—ugh!”

“Once you get out, you’ll be grateful to me. Isn’t it great that you can get clean without lifting a finger?”

Axel gave her an irritating grin and snapped his fingers.

The streams of water vanished into droplets, while Helens’s bright yellow pupils glared murderously at him.

“Hmm.”

Looking dissatisfied as Helens wrung out her fur, Axel let out a displeased hum.

“You need soap.”

“What?”

“There’s grime that water alone can’t remove.”

Axel shook his head as he spoke as though he were advertising some kind of cleaning product.

Apparently, he wasn’t satisfied.

But Helens actually felt quite refreshed.

She shook her entire body to get rid of the water, then suddenly became gloomy.

‘Am I a dog or what?’

She had adapted far too well to her beastly body.

She could barely even remember what it had been like to live as a human anymore.

‘What a miserable fate.’

Helens let out a deep, sorrowful sigh and looked at her reflection in the lake.

Then she suddenly raised her head at the sight of a cabin reflected across the lake.

“Is that actually a cabin?”

“Oh, that? Humans built it when they were developing the mine and left it behind. There are several more behind it.”

As he explained, Axel remembered the conversation between Roman and Helens.

‘She said she was killed while being subjected to biological experiments after being dragged to the Magic Tower, and then woke up in the present.’

It was a difficult story to believe, but Axel didn’t particularly care whether it was true.

None of that mattered to him.

As long as he could break his curse, he wouldn’t care even if Helens died seven times and came back to life eight times.

As he stared at the cabin, a good idea suddenly occurred to Axel.

“Right. How about we move your residence over there, beast?”

An abandoned cabin where no one ever came.

If he took the princess, who was about to fall into danger, there and looked after her with all his heart and soul, it would certainly make him look remorseful.

“Humans never come anywhere near there. You can live freely there until the curse is broken.”

Escape.

Helens had considered that possibility too.

But—

“Thanks for the offer, but I’m actually planning to get dragged to the Magic Tower first.”