As soon as I left the room, the entire building began to shake.
Tat-tat-tat.
The light from the magic storm dimly lit the interior, so there was no problem getting out.
I ran forward without looking back.
I wanted to run faster, but I couldn't because of the two books I had tucked inside my clothes.
But at that moment.
Thump, thump, thump!
"Ugh..."
Unfortunately, I tripped over the leg of an overturned chair and fell flat on my face.
"Ugh..."
Tears welled up in my eyes from the sudden surge of pain, but I gritted my teeth and got up.
But...
Thud!
I immediately collapsed again.
I took off my shoe and checked my ankle, furrowing my brow.
'My ankle...'
It seemed I had twisted it badly while falling, and my ankle began to swell up.
Of all times, this has to happen...!
I cursed myself for not being more careful and struggled to get up.
"Ugh..."
As soon as my foot touched the ground, I bit my lip at the shooting pain.
But I couldn't just stop like this.
I grabbed onto a table and chair, struggling to move forward, when.
"...Huh?"
Someone is standing ahead.
But...
'Am I seeing things?'
Because his identity is...
"...Duke, sir...?"
It was Duke Ego Rodbel.
He was even holding a sword.
'That, isn't that it?'
His cherished sword, the special treasure sword passed down only to the heads of the Rodbel family, Nox.
Why does he have that now...?
'Is he trying to kill me?'
I know that's not the case.
To him, I am an item to be used, so he can't dispose of me even if he wants to.
I have been boldly dealing with him until now, trusting in that.
But right now, I'm too hurt and exhausted, so rational judgment is difficult.
My breathing became rapid, pain spread throughout my body, my vision blurred with sweat, and at the end of it stood... a duke with a sword.
Everything assumed the worst.
'I'm scared.'
It felt like that grim reaper-like man was about to kill me.
It felt like everything I had struggled for to survive would be reduced to nothing in an instant.
"Save..."
It was dark, so I couldn't see what kind of expression he was making, but I felt like I knew without seeing it.
'He must be looking at me terribly.'
With scornful eyes, with the eyes of looking at the dirtiest thing in the world, he must be staring at me like that.
In the past, each piece of that gaze became sharp glass and pierced me, but it doesn't matter now.
Because no matter what eyes you look at me with, I won't be hurt anymore.
Just.
"Please save me..."
Just don't kill me.
I pleaded desperately.
To that thing that I didn't know was a hallucination or real.
I didn't even know if my voice reached him.
He simply stood there motionless, staring at me.
It was then.
Kwaaaaang-!!
Finally, the ceiling began to collapse.
To make matters worse, it was right above my head.
'I'm going to be buried!'
It was already too late to run.
I reflexively squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the impact that would soon engulf my body.
But...
Wham!
Something wrapped around me.
At the same time.
Crackle, crackle, crackle-
The ceiling collapsed.
The eerie sounds of the wreckage of the collapsed ceiling breaking and piling up around me echoed in succession, but my body was fine.
It doesn't hurt at all.
'...What is it?'
It all happened so fast that I couldn't grasp the situation.
So... what wrapped around me?
I cautiously opened my eyes.
The front was completely blocked.
I slowly raised my head.
Only then could I understand what was embracing me.
...But that doesn't make sense.
Why.
"Du... Duke?"
Why are you holding me?
Moreover, he was holding me so tightly that I couldn't move at all.
Amidst all the unreal things, I could only be sure of one thing.
Thanks to him embracing me, I avoided being buried or injured by the debris.
But that means, conversely, that the Duke took my place...
"Du, Duke..."
"Stay still."
He whispered softly.
His voice was so calm that it felt like all of this was a dream.
It was as if nothing had happened at all.
"Are you hurt?"
He asked in an indifferent tone.
"Ah, well..."
Just as I was about to say something, his gaze moved first.
He seemed to scan my body once, then stopped right at the bottom.
What is he looking at like that?
Puzzled, I followed his gaze and soon realized what the Duke was looking at.
My ankle. It was already dyed purple and swollen as big as a fist.
"I, I'm okay."
I fidgeted and hid my foot behind me, feeling like I had shown a weak side.
"More than that, how did you get here, Duke..."
I was about to ask.
The moment I raised my head again to ask.
I couldn't say anything anymore.
Drip... Drip... Drip...
Something fell on my forehead and cheeks.
It's hot. No, it's cold. It's ticklish and also stings.
This is...
'Blood?'
I blankly stared at the stream of blood dripping down his forehead.
And only then did the harsh reality that I had momentarily forgotten come crashing in.
If you think about it from the beginning, it was obvious.
The ceiling fell on my head, and the Duke embraced me.
There's no way the collapsing debris would have disappeared midway, so they must have all fallen on top of the Duke.
I knew it, but... his appearance was so calm.
He was no different from usual.
Above all.
'Because it's you.'
So I vaguely thought it would be okay.
I thought that the Duke would be safe even if he was buried in the debris.
That he would be fine...
Actually, there's no way he would be fine.
'Because you are also human.'
Of course, that was obvious.
But what should I say...
'I don't feel any humanity.'
Except for Miracle, he always treated everything with a blank expression, merciless eyes, and a cold voice.
He was a human who didn't feel any humanity at all.
It's not for nothing that Bansis is afraid of his father.
But, why would you, like that.
"...Why would you do this?"
I couldn't help but ask.
I belatedly regained my senses and was startled, but I didn't withdraw the question.
Because I was really curious.
Why would you risk getting hurt to protect me...
The Duke still looked down at me with a dry face and replied in an indifferent tone.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
If it weren't for the blood that was still flowing, I wouldn't even have known that he was hurt.
I was dumbfounded by his shameless appearance, answering with an indifferent face.
"You don't know?"
I know the answer to the question I asked.
'Because I can't die.'
But that couldn't be the answer at the same time.
Because it literally meant 'as long as I don't die.'
That couldn't be the reason why he risked his body to save me.
There were other ways to preserve my life.
But why...
"You didn't have to go this far."
I know this attitude is not good.
In fact, it didn't matter why he threw his body to protect me.
What matters is...
'I survived this time too.'
That alone is enough.
But...
"I... I don't know what you're thinking."
My heart is so heavy.
I had an ominous feeling that something was going wrong.
'What?'
I successfully obtained the qualification of the direct line, and I also found <Ayla's Book of Medicine>.
I also found the pendant necklace that was the source of the magic clash, and thanks to that, I can prevent the complete collapse of the archive.
It seems pretty smooth, it seems like I'm doing well, so why am I so uneasy?
Above all.
"You don't care what happens to me, do you?"
Why is my mouth saying these words?
What answer do I want to hear?
In fact, I know the answer to all of this.
The reason why I feel uneasy despite the smooth sailing, and the inexplicable stuffiness.
I'm confused.
'I'm confused by that man's change.'
The Duke I know is definitely not this kind of person.
He is definitely not someone who would throw his body to save someone.
"...Well."
"..."
"I don't know the reason either."
He wasn't even a human who would give such a stupid answer.
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