Chapter 42: Monthly Budget (1)

Chapter 42 – Monthly Budget (1)

Kyle’s shoulder wound was far more severe than I had anticipated. Previously, I had seen the injury only from afar and thus misjudged the severity. The sight that greeted me was horrific beyond words, to say the least. His shoulder bore a laceration that was both wide and deep, and I could see clearly into the flesh beneath. Fresh blood was still seeping from the wound, soaking his shirt.

How can I not be surprised after seeing something like this with my own eyes?

My stomach churned at the sight. I tried to calm myself down and focus on addressing the topic of his treatment.

“… The wound is deeper than I initially thought, so it will take a few days for me to heal it completely.”

Of course, I was perfectly capable of healing it all at once, but his injury was quite serious, and everyone in the mansion was aware of that fact. Surely I would have drawn suspicion if his shoulder was suddenly better after my visit, so I decided to spread the healing process over three days. Besides, this would also allow me to be extra careful and ensure that I can restore his shoulder’s full functionality.

“How many days will it take to heal?” Kyle asked.

“Hmm,” I tapped my chin as I pondered for a moment, “it’ll take about three days. Is that fine?”

Instead of answering me, he simply looked up at me with a soft expression which I interpreted as confirmation to proceed. I leaned over Kyle and began to reverse the damage using my divine strength.

Neither of us said a word to one another during the treatment, and we sat in awkward silence. Internally, I questioned why Kyle was staring at me so intently to the point where his stare was starting to suffocate me. I couldn’t stand how heavy the atmosphere was between us, so I tried to initiate at least some conversation to ease the mood.

“Doesn’t it hurt?” I paused to make sure he was alright.

“It doesn’t hurt.”

“Is it bothering you at all?”

“It isn’t.”

Is he only able to answer me with short answers?

Sometimes I felt like I was talking to a broken robot. Seeing as how my attempts at initiating conversation turned out to be rather fruitless, I again focused on his wound. The restoration process was going well, but the sight and smell of exposed flesh nauseated me. I wanted to pinch my nose to keep myself from gagging, but I managed to hold myself back and sped up the treatment. Once I stabilized the wound to a point I was satisfied with, I sighed and sat back.

“Now all I have to do is bandage it up.”

Rummaging through the box of medicinal supplies Jean had left, I picked out a roll of gauze and proceeded to bind his shoulder. I made sure to wrap the wound tightly so it wouldn’t be further aggravated by his work, but my hand brushed against Kyle’s arm as I went to tie the ends of the bandage together.

It’s cold.

The moment my skin touched his, Kyle hastily recoiled from me.

“What are you doing?!” he shouted angrily.

But that was what I had wanted to ask him.

What are you doing?

“… Why are you yelling?” I frowned. “Your skin only lightly grazed mine just now.”

“…”

“Do you really hate it when I touch you?”

“… It’s not like that.”

“Then why are you so angry?”

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“Don’t you think about what will happen to your hands if you touch me?”

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In my opinion, Kyle was overreacting. A brief touch like before would just feel a bit cold, hardly cause for any pain. The contact was so short that no frost had been able to form between us, anyway.

Even so, Kyle always acts like this.

“Excuse me, Archduke, were you perhaps worried about me?”

“Worried?”

“Worried that I’ll get hurt from touching you.”

“That’s nonsense.”

Kyle dismissively clicked his tongue at me. Clicking his tongue was a usual habit of his, but over the past few weeks, I also came to understand that it was his default answer whenever he didn’t know what else to say.

Ah, I don’t care if he answers me or not. I also think it’s impossible that he honestly worries about me.

“It’s alright if we touch for a brief moment,” my tone was casual as I reassured him. “I only felt a little cold.”

“…”

“But I wasn’t scared at all. As long as the contact isn’t concentrated in one spot for a long period of time, I won’t be hurt. So, it’s alright to touch me on other parts of my body. You don’t have to worry.”

What I said was the truth. As long as I don’t touch him for too long, the worst that can happen is a thin layer of ice will form on my skin, but even that will melt away rather quickly. Unfortunately, not many people knew this fact and were under the impression that any contact with the cursed Archduke would result in imminent death. Hence, they were afraid of Kyle.

At that moment, his eyes flashed darkly and I looked back at him in confusion.

Is there something wrong with what I said before? But he doesn’t seem angry, so what has gotten him so bothered?

Perhaps I should change the subject…

“Riddel.”

Before I could respond to him, Kyle’s fingers graced my chin and gently tugged me closer to him. When I tried to protest, he leaned his face toward mine.

Ah, he surprised me. Our lips are nearly touching.

He was too close for me to consider his actions a joke.

Only

Kyle stared at me with an immovably hot gaze that momentarily stunned me. Before long, I came to my senses and spoke up with some difficulty.

“Archduke, what are yo…?”

Before I could finish my sentence, Kyle pulled away from me.

“You said it was okay to touch you elsewhere.”

What’s wrong with him? Even though I said it was fine, he didn’t have to be that close to me to do so.

“If you’re finished with the treatment, you can go.”

Kyle walked back to his desk without giving me time to reply. I found it hard to move my body because I was still in shock, trying to process what just happened between us. Though his touch had been chilly, I wondered why I hadn’t really noticed the cold.

Do I have a fever?

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