IHMEB - Chapter 12 < Benefactor >

IHMEB - Chapter 12 < Benefactor >

Having An Enemy's Baby

As the large prey it was targeting was pushed out of sight, the crocodile's eyes twinkled and looked at Claudel.

She was lying on the floor along with the collapsed remains of the poorly constructed wooden platform they had just been standing on.

It was a split second before the alligator bit her.

“Ahh!”

The crocodile, biting off her leg, which was barely a handful even with her boots on, grabbed its prey and turned her towards the wetlands where it lived.

When Kaian saw the scene, his eyes turned white for a moment, and then his blood boiled inside him and he felt like his heart was going to explode.

"No!"

He pulled out his sword at once and rushed towards the crocodile.

“Everyone take cover!”

However, not a single knight moved at his command. The women seemed to be in a daze as they ran away screaming towards the forest where the rest tents were spread out.

Kwasik.

Kaian followed the crocodile, jumped on its back, and stabbed the crocodile precisely into the back of his head between his eyes.

Blood spurted from the crocodile's head.

Quasik, quack, quack.

Kaian drew his sword and slashed it repeatedly.

Then, the body of the crocodile, which had held on even after burning his body, lost strength and fell to the side.

Kaian habitually shook off his sword, shaking off the blood and dirt, and turned to face Claudel.

Claudel's condition was a mess.

The woman was instantly dragged for over twenty meters, her entire body scratched so messily that she looked like a rag.

Still, the crocodile's mouth wasn't wide open, so he gritted his teeth and opened the dead crocodile's mouth with both of his hands.

“...”

He closed his eyes tightly.

The crocodile bit Claudel with all its might and dragged her entire body, leaving her leg chewed torn and some bones exposed.

The light deer skin, which was sleek and neat, did not function as protective gear.

It was when Kaian was devastated by the terrible sight.

People who were busy running away in the opposite direction when called suddenly came to watch.

"Thank God!"

Someone said among them.

'Relief? Thank goodness?'

The sound of them chatting and buzzing reached Kaian's ears as the accident came to a halt due to shock.

“Vermont gets bites. You’re welcome!”

Relief?

“Heaven helped me. What a relief."

Are you glad?

“I’m glad my Lord is safe...”

Wow.

Kaian didn't even look at the person who was shouting happiness next to him and knocked him away with his fist.

Kayan's voice filled with anger fell through the silence that suddenly became as if cold water had been poured.

“Bring a stretcher.”

***

The crocodile hunt that everyone had been looking forward to for the first time in three years ended in a mess.

Crocodiles were a precious commodity.

Although it was cumbersome to catch, a lot of meat came out of its large body, and when the skin was peeled off, the pattern was unique and beautiful, making it very useful.

The crocodile hunt was a big event in the Temnes domain that filled the men with a desire to win and the ladies with their vanity and expectations of future luxury goods.

In vain, the bride from Vermont, who had been married for less than a month, was bitten by an alligator while the Lord was giving his opening speech.

"What the...That's what Vermont does. She ruined the hunting competition.”

“Still, how lucky are we that the Lord didn’t get bitten?”

“Vermont got bites. I guess they thought it was okay for alligators to eat Vermont."

“That’s what I heard. Because she has red hair, she stands out easily and is perfect if used as hunting bait.”

Outside the castle, there was a lot of noise about this incident.

However, the atmosphere inside the castle was a little different.

This is because the Lord, who had personally undermined and humiliated Madame in front of her subordinates, was personally caring for Claudel.

Inside Claudel's bedroom, Hannah cried, rubbing Claudel's hand on her cheek as she lay on the bed with a devastated face.

"Miss. Uhhuh.”

Hannah also had bandages applied to her cheeks and arms, with medication applied here and there.

When Claudel was dragged away by the crocodile, it was Hannah who was the first to throw herself at her, trying to catch her.

She bravely caught Claudel's leg and kicked the crocodile's mouth, but it wasn't enough.

Kaian looked at the doctor with a frown.

Although the doctor had not committed any sins, it was deathly painful to convey Claudel's condition to him, who was giving off a sinister energy.

“First of all, the wounds on the body may look large and serious, but they are just abrasions and there were no other injuries such as stabbings.”

“What about the legs?”

Yes. The problem was the legs.

“A procedure to reconnect torn muscles and skin with an assistant...”

“Keep it simple and to the point.”

Instead of Claudel's healed leg, the doctor's heart was torn apart. However, Kaian, who had rescued her personally, must have already seen the condition of Claudel's leg, so the doctor swallowed a dry saliva.

“The treatment that can be done is over. You must be careful to prevent infection like this. If necrosis occurs and the skin or muscles begin to rot, additional surgery to cut out that part is necessary.”

“Ahh! No. Our lady...”

Hannah's wailing grew louder as she heard the doctor's words.

“...It may be difficult to walk again.”

"Right."

Kaian answered without a change in his expression.

“Go away now.”

"Yes. Yes."

The doctor who had been called from the mansion clinic and stayed up all night for two days to treat Claudel was struck by the look on his face.

“Huh. Ah, Lady. How to do..."

"Noisy."

Kaian scolded.

“You too, please leave now.”

"I don’t like it!”

“Because I will be here.”

As he glared at her, Hannah finally gave up and left Claudel's room, crying so hard that her hallway rang.

When the room became quiet, it was only then that Kaian was able to take a proper look at Claudel.

Strangely enough, Claudel seemed to get smaller every time he saw her.

Last time, he thought her face would fit in the palm of his hand, but today it seemed even smaller than when he held it in his hand.

How long has it been since she was seen sleeping peacefully?

While being bitten by the crocodile, her delicate skin was scratched and her cheeks and arms were covered in blood crusts.

But this was no problem.

Her leg.

The anxiety Kaian felt when he saw a crocodile tooth embedded in a leg so thin that he thought it would be a handful.

The words that even if all was well and recovery could be difficult to walk fell heavily on Kaian's heart.

“Why on earth did you save me?”

Didn't she hate him?

He thought she was blaming himself for what happened after she came to Lowen Castle.

She saved him.

She was a benefactor.

Considering the relationship between Vermont and Temnes, who were unable to kill each other, the Duke of Vermont would have greatly praised her if Kaian had been seriously injured or had been left to die from infection or something like the doctor said.

If Temnes' assets were officially inherited as his wife's, she would have been able to think about a fresh start.

“Maybe you ...”

Did she like him?

No matter what she said, she was a woman who would not leave his side with an expressionless, almost indifferent face.

Could it be that she was actually attracted to Kaian, to the point of sacrificing herself and risking her life to save him?

...She likes me.

“Ugh.”

The last, vague thought that came to him was blown away when Claudel groaned and narrowed her eyes.

“Ugh.”

Claudel moaned softly.

However, because her physical condition was at a level where she was screaming and crying, he felt that her reaction was too weak compared to her injuries, which made him feel a little disconnected.

"How are you feeling?"

"Sick."

As Claudel answered weakly, one side of her chest throbbed.

"Yes."

“Am I hurt badly?”

"A little."

"I see."

Kaian was still concerned about Claudel's reaction.

'Are you the kind of person who doesn't get into trouble?'

On the battlefield, Kaian saw many injured people.

It was an uproar, with even grown men dying.

In particular, noble ladies considered appearance to be a major criterion for attractiveness, so their position was very different from that of men, who could consider a scar or two from the battlefield as a medal.

And yet, this is the only reaction.

Should she be bold or indifferent?

But how can she be so indifferent even to herself? She's a person.

However, Kaian, who didn't really want to talk about Claudel's broken leg because he didn't think it would help her recover, felt fortunate on the other hand and silenced her.

Kaian had the doctor's assistant waiting outside the door to bring the medication.

Claudel took the medicine in one go, which the doctor had told her to give in large quantities as it was too bitter and might make her vomit.

Why is she so bad that she doesn't say that she's sick when she's sick, or that she's sick when she's sick?

Kaian ignored the fact that something about her kept getting on his nerves in an uncomfortable way.

“Try to rest some more.”

"Yes."

Kaian sighed as she closed her eyes.

“Don’t worry too much about your legs.”

He gently squeezed the sleeping woman's small hand.

“I will somehow make you better.”

***

Kaian has changed.

He tried to be kind to Claudel as if he had forgotten the times when he was rude to her and got angry and scolded her every time he saw her.

Hannah grumbled and organized the flowers that Kaian had sent.

“I thought he was trash, but he was still a person. He has a conscience.”

The criteria for judging him as trash was whether he was good or bad to Claudel. After the accident, Kaian's attitude toward Claudel became toxic, and Hannah, who had been full of complaints, seemed to raise her harsh evaluation of Kaian a little.

"How is it?"

Hannah put an abundance of roses in a vase and showed them off. Claudel nodded his head.

"Pretty."

“Because flowers are innocent.”

She smiled happily as if she liked it after she cleaned it up.

“Which do you like between these and the flowers that came yesterday?”

“Today’s one.”

As Claudel spoke, Hanna took down the vase that was on the nightstand next to the bed and put up a new one.

Claudel's bedroom now looked like a flower shop. Because Kaian sent flowers every day.

“It’s almost time for lunch.”

Hannah organized the table and chair next to the bed.

“I was worried because you haven’t been able to eat much for a while. I feel relieved because you're eating more these days. Eat well and you will get better quickly.”

Now I only had bandages on my legs.

It had been a while since the wounds on my body had completely healed.

The wound on my leg was deep, but luckily I was able to avoid any worries.

Hannah was relieved to hear that only the scar remained and that it was healing well.

Knock. Knock.

"Yes. Come on in."

Hannah answered cheerfully.

However, contrary to her expectations that it was the maids who had brought her food for lunch, the person who entered the room was Antjone.

Antjone wore ballet shoe-like shoes with a ribbon tied around her ankles as if she was deliberately showing off. She saw me with a smile, wearing a calf-length dress that exposed her ankles so that they could be clearly seen.

“I heard you got a bad leg?”

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