"Get away from my wife."
Jeremiah wrapped his arms around Karina's shoulders and pulled her towards him. Just then, David grabbed Karina's other arm and said,
"Your Highness. Don't you think it's ridiculous that you're suddenly acting like a husband during the divorce mediation period?"
The two men's fight for power has been rekindled.
"Just in case."
Suddenly David lowered his voice and asked calmly.
"Do you feel sorry for the Grand Duchess now?"
"What...?"
At that moment, Jeremiah's eyes sharpened. It was noisy and the people around him couldn't hear it very well, but Jeremiah heard it clearly.
"For example, you might ask, 'Is there something you don't want to keep but would feel bad about giving it to someone else?"
"...!"
Jeremiah's face twisted into a fierce expression at David's innocent question. He glared at David with a murderous look in his eyes as if he were about to swing a knife at any moment.
"Watch what you say?"
He threw away his honorifics and gave a cold warning. Despite his reaction, David Just smiled as if he found it amusing.
"You are the one who treats my wife like a toy and acts disgustingly like she is not doing well."
"Hmm. Is that what you see?"
David took the blow with a sly expression and a completely unaffected expression.
"Don't talk nonsense to Karina."
"What if you don't like it?"
They were in a sharp confrontation, not backing down even a little.
***
Clang! Creak. Creak.
The tents and steel frames on the edge collapsed and became tangled.
The only thing holding them up was a thick iron pillar in the center of the concert hall. But it didn't look like it would last long. She could see it slowly leaning to the side.
'If I keep doing this and make a mistake, I'll really get crushed to death!!'
Karina looked back in shock and quickly turned towards the entrance to the concert hall.
"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"
"I told you to get out quickly!"
"Stop pushing!"
It was still chaotic with crowds of people trying to get out.
"Wait for a sec!"
"Ugh! Mom!"
"Someone please find my child!"
There were many parents around her who were looking for their children who had been torn apart by the chaos. It seemed like it would be easy to get out on time even if she got stuck in between them. If she had known this would happen, she regretted not asking Mikhail when she was on the magic tower and buying an artifact that could protect her.
'I didn't know I would get involved in another accident like this as soon as I got back.'
It was a pointless thought now.
'What should I do?'
Karina began to rack her brain to come up with a solution. Whether she knew what was going on or not, Jeremiah and David's war of nerves continued. Because of the shouting and surrounding noise, it was hard to hear exactly what they were saying to each other. However, it was clear that they were arguing.
'No, you're arguing uselessly even in this situation?!'
Every second counts, so how can this be a waste of time?
"Stop it. We have to get out of here right
now!"
"..."
"..."
But they didn't budge. It seemed like the current situation wasn't a big threat to them. Despite Karina's urgent shouts, the two men's fierce stance toward each other, like sharp blades, didn't soften one bit.
'These humans! They just came back from the Cursed Forest and they don't care about this situation, what the heck?!'
Of course, they wouldn't die even if the steel frame collapsed. It would be natural for them to save their own body. But Karina wasn't like that.
'I'm not! If I get hit, I might really die!'
The frustration was building up. Karina, who was finally frustrated with the situation that was not getting any better, couldn't control her anger and screamed.
"Let's go, both of you!"
Karina shook off their hands and tried to head towards the entrance where people were gathered, thinking that she was in a desperate situation. Then...
"Karina. It's dangerous. Don't leave my side!"
Jeremiah caught her again.
"No. Don't leave my side. I have a protective artifact, so if you stay by my side, you won't get hurt."
David was the same. They were busy talking about themselves. Karina sighed deeply and spoke in a firm voice.
"Listen carefully, both of you. If you're going to do whatever you want, then leave me out. I have no intention of getting involved."
Jeremiah made an awkward expression at her appearance, which seemed like she would jump out at any moment. David also didn't like it, but when Karina showed great resistance, he shrugged his shoulders as if he had no choice. At that moment.
Creak.
The various structures and tents hanging from the ceiling swayed dangerously. It seemed that if she got caught in them, she would never be safe.
"Hey!!"
A few people who noticed the situation looked up and turned pale.
"It's going to fall soon!!"
“Gyaaaah!”
"Get out of the way quickly!"
As chaos returned, the screams of the people grew louder and pierced the eardrums.
Crunch. Kukung!
The central steel frame that had been barely holding on began to bend and the ceiling began to collapse.
"Help!"
"Ugh!"
"Save me!"
The people below were in a panic, panicking. Karina also looked up at the collapsing ceiling and gasped for breath. At that moment, both Jeremiah and David took action. David quickly took out the artifact in his arms and activated it. With a 'whiing' sound, a translucent protective shield swelled around him. And the collapsing steel and materials could not penetrate the shield. David looked at Karina with a relaxed expression. However, there was no one where Karina had been.
“?”
Instead, behind where she was, the entire ceiling had blown away and fallen through.
"Ha. Oh, my."
David had to swallow a bitter laugh with a dumbfounded expression on his face.
'Ugh.'
Karina was now in Jeremiah's arms and had arrived near the empty square fountain. While David was activating the artifact, Jeremiah pulled out his sword and cut off a part of the ceiling, and he took Karina and escaped. His swordsmanship and agility were beyond the human level. It seemed like he had planned to escape like this from the beginning.
'I've been watching you for ten years.:
Karina let out a sigh she had been holding back. This time, she had barely managed to escape from a near-death situation.
'I don't know why I keep getting involved in these kinds of shitty cases!'
To be honest, it was a bit unfair. It was something that had never happened before. But it didn't get any better just because she was upset. Her heart, which had been surprised, didn't calm down easily. Karina's heart was still pounding.
"Karina."
Jeremiah called her in a soft voice that was pleasant to hear. Their bodies were close together, so he seemed to feel her rapid heartbeat.
"It's okay now."
He reassured her by gently stroking Karina's back.
"So calm down."
"...?"
'Are you already calming down?'
Karina came to her senses in a puzzled manner. However, it was only her own illusion that she had thought she was calm. When she looked closely, she saw that her fingertips were trembling slightly. She didn't realize it, but she must have been quite scared.
'Ah.'
Karina took a deep breath to calm herself down. She still didn't realize that she was completely locked in with Jeremiah, and she accepted the sense of security he gave her. She felt comfortable in his arms, which were tightly wrapped around her and warm. A familiar scent filled her senses. An irresistible sense of peace and comfort surged in. Karina savored it until her condition calmed down.
How long had it been like that? Karina, who had returned to her usual state, finally realized that she was naturally in his arms.
"...!"
Even though there weren't many, people passing by were glancing at them. Her face turned red with embarrassment. As soon as she realized it, she tried to get out of his arms, but her swollen feet made it difficult.
"Ugh...!"
As soon as she tried to move, a groan escaped her lips without me knowing. After she calmed down a bit, the pain finally came. A hot, throbbing sensation spread from the swollen top of her foot.
'When I got swept up in the crowd earlier, I got stepped on really hard.'
Karina reached out to examine the condition of her foot in more detail. Jeremiah carefully sat her down on the edge of the fountain, knowing her intentions. He lifted up the hem of her skirt slightly and slowly took off her right shoe. A blue bruise was rising on the skin of her foot. It was painful at first glance.
'I won't be able to walk properly for a while!'
That thought lasted only a moment.
“Ah.”
Karina's body trembled slightly. Thinking about it, it was the first time she had shown her bare feet to someone.
'Even if that opponent is Jeremiah.'
She was very embarrassed and embarrassed by this situation. She suddenly felt the urge to hide in a hole. However, Jeremiah, perhaps misinterpreting her reaction, asked with a slightly stiff face.
"Are you in a lot of pain?"
"Ah... No. That's not it..."
No. It's embarrassing, but it's also painful. Wouldn't it be better to just say that it hurts and pretend not to know? Karina didn't want to make it even more awkward by saying that she was embarrassed to show her bare feet. Karina, whose mind was complicated, quickly lowered her head so that her blushing face wouldn't be seen. After a brief moment of deliberation, she decided to just change the subject.
"But how did you know I was there?"
She asked indifferently, hiding her feelings as usual.
"There's no way I'd leave you alone and defenseless."
Jeremiah answered in a slightly irritated tone.
'Torajidani... I must be mistaken?'
Karina quickly shook off the fleeting thought. And contrary to her thoughts, the topic quickly returned.
"If it hurts, don't hold back, tell me."
Jeremiah caressed her feet with careful hands as if he were handling something very precious.
'No, why do you keep...!!'
Every time his hands touched her, she felt a tickling sensation, and she was becoming increasingly uncomfortable. Just before she pulled her foot away, Jeremiah, who had put his foot down first, took a handkerchief out of his pocket and approached the fountain. He soaked the handkerchief in water and squeezed it so that no water dripped down.
"I guess it would be good to at least have this for now."
He wrapped her swollen instep with a handkerchief that had become cold from the water. The series of movements was neat and clean without any unnecessary details. The cool feeling on her swollen instep slightly eased the burning pain.
"..."
Karina, who was blankly watching what he was doing, felt a little unfamiliar.
'Why are you being so nice to me?'
It felt like a corner of her heart was slightly relieved, but she still felt a tingling sensation somewhere. An emotion she couldn't quite pinpoint grew inside her. Suddenly.
'Did I look that pitiful?'
She had that question. Otherwise, there would be no reason for him to be so kind to her. She had no intention of lying about her situation, but she also had no intention of revealing everything.
'This time, I saw the whole situation, so I couldn't help but know.'
Somehow, a bitter taste lingered in her mouth. Her eyes met with Jeremiah's, who happened to be looking up at her.
"..."
She felt strange because she felt like there was concern and worry about her in those sunken, pitch-black eyes. Maybe that was why. The words that were inside her came out without me knowing.
"Is this sympathy?"
"What?"
"You are being nice to me."
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