From that day on, Karin sneaked out every sleepless night to help Jain practice.
In fact, there was a sense of urgency to say that he helped. Because the only thing Karin did was to make an unconditional accusation and then ask him to call more, saying that he would have to listen more to find out.
It took quite a while, but Jain had no choice but to notice this.
“Hey, you really don’t like this song, are you?”
One night, Ja-in stopped plucking the guitar strings and asked with a smile. Karin put her hand on her waist as if waiting, and snorted.
“Hey, are you even doing it right now? Is it really that bad?”
“Then why do you crawl to listen to that really bad song every night, you?”
“That’s right, well, it’s because you’re pitiful, and you want to help out somehow! What are you looking at with a suspicious eye?”
It was Karin who lied proudly, but the lie was quickly discovered.
Because of two incidents.
The first incident happened by chance.
On the way to the Demon King’s castle, it was the day he found an abandoned mansion with a bathroom. At the strong request of the female party members, the party decided to stay there for one day. Everyone couldn’t even take a shower, let alone a bath, for several days, so they desperately wanted to shower.
As soon as permission was granted, the female party members split into groups and were busy fixing the house, gathering food, and collecting firewood. Karin was particularly excited.
“Ah, I was worried about the smell of my hair!”
It felt so good to be able to soak in a bath after a long time. Karin, who split firewood to heat the bathroom like a mountain, returned with the firewood in her arms. It was so high that it was impossible to see in front of it. A hum was coming out of his mouth.
“Hmm, hmmm, you laughed, and I stayed up all night~”
“Hey, you’re not trying to heat the bath water, but what kind of soup are you making? You’ve been chopping up a lot of firewood.”
“Did you not know? You brought this much to boil and eat, right? Kwang!”
“I am. Give me half.”
Karin was still humming and handed the half of the wood in her arms to Jain. Then, the blinded vision was revealed, revealing Jain’s side face, and his excited spirit returned.
“ah.”
Having said that the song was not so good, I found out that Jain was humming the song he always sang. Realizing that, Karin’s face turned pale pink. As he bowed his head and glanced at Jain’s face, he was bitten by a strange sneer.
“Oh, no.”
“It’s not what.”
“Anyway, no.”
Jain smiled and spoke softly as he strode forward.
“Because I don’t like the song.”
“No, really, uh, it’s really bad! It’s just that you’re just sitting on your eardrums because you’re listening, isn’t it?”
Karin grabbed her skirt tightly and shouted. Embarrassed, he missed the firewood in his arms. He was hesitantly picking up firewood that had fallen from rainwater, but Jain ignored it and walked on. Of course, there was no explanation.
“Hey! Where are you going!”
Jain walked away without looking back. That night, Karin struggled with shame while soaking her face in the bath water.
The second was an injury.
One of the Four Heavenly Kings, the Succubus Queen, was once wounded while fighting to break through the gateway to her citadel.
It wasn’t that he was attacked by the giant who guarded the gate. He had been hit in the ankle by a sting from a goblin escorting the giant.
“Ik, why can’t this be deciphered with Cure?”
The goblin’s poison made from cave moss and corpse flowers that were full of magical power was not easily detoxified. Karin, who found her wounds only after the fight was over, was lame with detoxifying magic, when she heard Jain’s voice. The guy who finished the giant with that flame spear was briefing on the charred giant’s skull.
“Now, I broke through the gate with this, but there is no rest. The schedule is already very late. I will go to the ruined castle where the succubus queen awaits in three days.”
“In three or three days?”
“Before the Demon Kings noticed us and took proper measures, we need to move forward as quickly as possible and get all the executives out of the way. We took 3 days with ease.”
“Um, blitzkrieg? It makes sense.”
Leticia shook her head. Even to Karin’s ears, those words sounded right. Jain, who briefed the situation and extracted the essence of a giant, asked as if he had suddenly remembered.
“Oh, and tell me if there are any injuries. Do you have any?”
“I’m okay!”
“You can’t be a hero only if you get hurt in a fight like this.”
“I, too, thank you for protecting me earlier.”
“Um, no.”
“Elaine, are you?”
“The arrow touched me a little bit, but it’s already healed with healing magic!
“Okay, no injuries other than one chronic brain injury.”
“Hey!”
While Elaine and Zain were making stupid noises like that, Karin was wagging her fingers, enduring the throbbing pain. If it was said that he was poisoned by a goblin or something like that, so if the tight schedule was delayed, it would be a waste.
‘It’s only poison from the goblin. Yes, I can stand it. It’s tough to express yourself with this.’
“By the way, Karin didn’t answer.”
To the person who belatedly asked the question while looking at her face, Karin answered with a crawling voice.
“Injury, no.”
Zain stared at Karin’s face for a moment. Then he turned around and said.
“If you go a little further from here, there is an abandoned private house. Let’s set up a camp there and sleep well.”
*
And that night, Karin also couldn’t sleep easily.
It was because the ankle that was hit by the goblin’s sting was burning like crazy. Crouching down like a caterpillar in the blanket, she was moaning while continuously using ineffective detoxifying magic.
“Whew, heh, uh… Black.”
At that moment, the tent door suddenly opened with the sound of a drum.
“What, what?”
Startled, Karin stopped moaning and trembled softly while covering her whole body with a blanket. The one who opened the door and entered was Jain with a serious expression.
“No, you’re not even knocking, you’re coming in anywhere, you bastard!”
Jain, who walked in without taking off his shoes, grudgingly picked up Karin’s quilt. Then she rolled up her pajama skirt a little, looked at her ankles and sighed.
“I did, too.”
The ankle, which had been hit by the goblin’s sting, had swelled up to the point of pity. Karin hugged the blanket tightly and made a face mixed with various shame. Jain, who had been seriously checking the degree of injury for a while, suddenly grabbed Karin with both hands.
“You, what are you doing now!”
“kidnap.”
“Put it down! Put it down!”
“Don’t be silly, just be kidnapped quietly.”
I pounded my chest as if to swear, but to no avail. Perhaps he was also training physically for the subject of a mage, this guy’s chest was quite wide and hard. The place where the person who kidnapped Karin took her was a quiet lake filled with moonlight.
“here is?”
“It’s called the Old Moon Lake. If you soak your feet in this lake on a moonlit night, you will receive the blessing of a nameless god and your wounds will be healed.”
And Jain carefully set Karin down on the shore of the lake. Karin was dubious, and shoved her feet into the lake water that reflected the moonlight white.
“Wow, it’s real.”
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No matter how much detoxification magic was used, the ankle, which had not been able to recover, was relieved the moment it entered the lake water. The tingling that had been persistent enough to give me a headache has also subsided. I could feel it being detoxified through my skin. Zain sat down next to Karin with a strangely proud expression on her face.
“How do you know this place?”
“well.”
He was a really mysterious guy. This guy must have been the first on the Demon Continent, and as if he had experienced it once, he knew all the topographical features one after another.
“Can’t you be more specific?”
“no.”
“bad guy.”
“Don’t get wet with your sore feet! Ugh, your clothes are wet.”
“What can I do, you bastard?”
As Karin splashed water with her feet dipped in the lake water, Jain shook off her clothes as if she hated it. The expression on his face was somehow funny, so Karin burst into laughter. A pleasant night breeze blew and shook their hair. Jain, who looked at the night sky reflected on the lake for a moment, said softly.
“Tomorrow, don’t move, let’s rest well. Everyone seems to be exhausted.”
“No, you don’t have to. I have a tight schedule.”
“Let’s get some rest.”
“yes…”
At Jain’s resolute words, Karin bowed her head. In the end, it became a nuisance to my busy schedule. Guilt filled her chest.
“Are you disappointed? It’s okay to criticize me. I’ll make up for what I’ve caused you today…”
“Why are you disappointed? I did it if I was worried.”
At Jain’s indifferent words, Karin quickly turned her head and asked.
“Worried, did I catch my ankle?”
“What’s with the ankle grab? That’s because you put protection magic on the other kids so you don’t get hurt, but you didn’t get your protection magic. Rather, you should be praised.”
“Notice, chasing, there was…”
Karin bowed her head and wiggled her toes. I saw a small carp hovering around the pure white paws.
“Wow… you don’t pay?”
“What do you see me as? What kind of devil am I?”
“Ouch!”
Zain lightly pressed the chestnut to Karin’s forehead. And said in a harsh voice.
“But next time, if you try to hide your injuries like this again, then you will be really angry.”
“yes…”
Having nothing to say, Karin shrugged and looked at the lake. For some reason, it felt like a part of my chest was itchy. On a clear night without a single cloud, the view of the lake was beautiful. The moonlight whispered over the waves rising in the breeze, and the sounds of grasshoppers mingled to create a quiet harmony. The moonlight was so bright that even though it was night, the fresh color of the green water plants was visible. It was truly a lake blessed by God.
“pretty.”
the world is so pretty Karin thought for the first time. At that moment, he felt something covering his shoulder.
“Come on, take it.”
Zain took off his robe and covered it. He was suddenly kidnapped in thin pajamas, and he seemed worried about being cold.
“And then, drink.”
Jain took out a strange bottle and handed it a cup full of dark brown drink. I took a sip and it was cocoa. A sweet scent spread all over his mouth.
“Well, do you need anything more?”
Karin took a sip of the cocoa with both hands, and lightly rolled her eyes.
“What, why are you so sweet all of a sudden today. Are you dying tomorrow?”
“That’s right, because you’re sick now.”
“ah.”
Is it okay to be foolish because it hurts?
It was a natural logic for many people, but it was a very strange logic for Karin.
It’s not about being bitten when you show weakness, but being cared for. It had never happened in Karin’s life.
Until now, if Karin gave a weak tee, the return was always contempt and attack.
Somehow, one side of my chest swelled up. Karin, who was sipping cocoa with her head turned away because she didn’t want to be seen, raised her voice and said.
“Then, come here first. Come here and sit with your back on me.”
“To make you do something strange, again.”
Zain grunted, but sat back to back with her as Karin had said. After confirming that she could not see her face, Karin sips the cocoa again and asks for a small favor.
“Actually, I have insomnia. That’s why I can’t sleep well… So, sing me.”
“Song?”
“That’s the song you sing every day. You know…”
Zain grinned and returned with an acoustic guitar. That said, in fact, it was almost like admitting that the song was good to listen to.
Feeling the warmth radiating from her back, Karin fell into a comfortable sleep after a long time.