You! Don’t Press that Button! - Chap 49

Karhan strode out of the stuffy hall with large steps, showing no consideration for his companion. However, Asmil followed closely behind without any indication of displeasure. The red-haired attendant also silently trailed at the end, forming a line of three.

As they walked down the corridor, a familiar figure appeared in front of a large door. The person who had been waiting while facing forward turned their head upon hearing our footsteps.

“Claude.”

“You’re back already?”

It seemed to be Karhan’s room. Claude raised his eyebrows, perhaps surprised that we had returned early. However, upon noticing Asmil grinning behind us, he displayed a suspicious demeanor. But like a professional butler, he quickly concealed his expression, bowed his head, and spoke.

“I will prepare some snacks right away.”

“No. We’ll be leaving soon, so there’s no need.”

It was a blatant statement of shabby treatment. Claude, without any sign of bewilderment at Karhan’s words, swiftly opened the door without making a mistake.

Karhan entered first, followed by Asmil, but suddenly, he stopped at the threshold. Without even turning around, Asmil parted his lips.

“I have something important to discuss. Would you mind waiting here, Asdion?”

“If that is what you desire, Master, I will stand by here.”

Master? At the familiar yet unfamiliar term, I poked my head out slightly. The attendant, addressed as Asdion, answered diligently without any change in expression.

The term carried a strong sense of subservience. Although they were equal individuals, no one expressed any surprise, as if such terms were not uncommon in this era. Claude and the other attendants referred to Karhan as “Your Grace”… It didn’t seem like a term an ordinary subordinate would use.

“Follow me.”

Asmil spoke in a voice filled with delight. It was unclear why he had stopped at the threshold to ask, but ultimately, the attendant also entered. Despite sharing the same expressionless face, the attendant’s countenance felt particularly rigid and cold, unlike Karhan, who always treated others kindly.

Upon entering the room, Karhan effortlessly unfastened the buttons of the jacket constricting his waist with one hand. Then, he carefully placed me, who had been sitting on his shoulder, on the table and somewhat irritably grasped the lapel, took off the jacket, and hung it on a chair.

Asmil, with one hand in his pocket, observed Karhan in a relaxed posture. It was a completely different demeanor from earlier when he had been displaying etiquette. Watching his behavior, one of Karhan’s eyebrows twitched. Thinking that I couldn’t lose here either, I tried to cross my wings in an attempt to fold my arms, but it wasn’t easy due to my physical structure.

“Chirp.”

It’s not working. Giving up on crossing my wings, I raised my head. Adjusting my sunglasses, I examined Asmil through the lenses. I didn’t like the way he was smiling all day. I hoped he would get a cramp in his mouth from smiling so much. Liras’s face also had a default smile. The two of them had an uncanny resemblance in that aspect, as if they were friends.

As I glared at him with a gaze full of wariness, Asmil seemed to sense my attention and turned his gaze. His red eyes were directed towards me on the table. He scrutinized me as if with a laser and then closed them in a graceful shape.

“Where did you learn to dance?”

“Chirp!”

If I had known he would be here, I wouldn’t have danced. This was the problem when I was in bird form. Acting on instinct and doing as I pleased without thinking deeply about the consequences and without any worries.

While dancing, I felt satisfied, but as time passed, a sense of discomfort gradually crept into a corner of my mind, wondering if I had done the right thing. If I were to hear any comments later when I returned to human form, I would be too embarrassed to show my face.

Asmil kindly bent down to meet my eye level. To indicate that I couldn’t reveal the source of the dance, I shook my head. Perhaps because my body was short, my bottom wiggled along with the movement. As Asmil watched me calmly, he reached out his hand.

“Chirp!”

Gasp! As he extended his hand towards me, memories from the Sabon region resurfaced, causing me to flinch in surprise, and my body stiffened. Forgetting even to breathe, I stared at him. His fingers, spread wide and approaching me, looked like the teeth of a beast. Overwhelmed, I remained rigid like a statue, only able to watch. Just before his fingers touched my head, something blocked my view.

“Chirp. Chirp.”

When the situation I had anticipated didn’t occur even after a few seconds, I finally exhaled the breath I had been holding. Blinking rapidly, I awakened my thought process, which hadn’t been functioning properly, and checked what had shielded me. Karhan’s large hand was protecting me.

“Cheep!”

Karhan! I called out loudly in a bright voice. Then, fearing that Asmil might leap over that hand at any moment, I flapped my wings rapidly and climbed onto his head. In the process, the sunglasses that had been precariously perched on my head fell to the floor, but I had no time to spare. I pressed my bottom against Karhan’s crown and buried my head. His warm body temperature slowly calmed my pounding heart.

“Chirp. Cheep.”

I rubbed my body against his lush hair. Asmil looked up at me, caressing the back of his hand, as I was utterly terrified. His lips, which had been licked by his tongue, glistened like a snake’s scales, and his eyes, which were examining me, glimmered in a strange way. Realizing that he wasn’t looking at me with good intentions, I huddled even more.

“Didn’t you need me?”

“Chirp?”

You need me? Me? I, who had been secretly peeking at the situation through the hair, slightly raised my head. What nonsense is he talking about? I definitely didn’t need Asmil. Not understanding, I blinked my eyes and looked at him, and Asmil parted his lips with an “oh” sound.

“I heard everything from Liras. That you need my blood.”

“Cheep?”

That was an even more incomprehensible statement. Why would I need Asmil’s blood? I’m not a vampire. I stared at him with a dumbfounded expression. Seeing me unable to comprehend anything, Asmil curved his eyebrows as if he pitied me.

“You still don’t know.”

Hmm. He chose his words in an unusual manner. He tapped his chin with his index finger as if pondering something. Before long, as Asmil was about to slowly open his mouth, Karhan intervened.

“I’ll tell the story.”

“Chirp?”

Is there something? It seemed like everyone except me knew about this matter. Even the red-haired attendant didn’t appear curious. What? Why are you talking about me without me? As I chirped loudly, Karhan grasped me, who had been sitting on his crown, and brought me to his eye level.

“Do you remember being sick on the third day of Atlena?”

“Chirp!”

Yes! I was in a lot of pain back then. I nodded my head quickly. Karhan watched me nodding vigorously for a moment and then hung a faint smile on the corner of his mouth. Then, hesitating slightly, he parted his pressed lips.

“To avoid getting sick on that day, you need a very special medicine.”

As Karhan was explaining, Asmil’s annoying voice interjected.

“The problem isn’t getting sick, but dying.”

“Chirp?”

Special medicine? No, to avoid dying…? What does that mean? Unable to immediately comprehend the story, I blinked my eyelids slowly. As if trying to relax my stiff body, Karhan gently stroked my back with his fingers.

“Shh, don’t worry. I’ll help you.”

Karhan didn’t deny Asmil’s words about me dying. He simply soothed me with a low, gentle voice. That soft tone made my heart feel precariously balanced. Karhan acted as if I would cry if he didn’t console me with that tone.

I opened my mouth to speak, but realizing that I was in bird form, I climbed down from Karhan’s hand. Quickly transforming into a human, I grabbed Karhan’s thick hand and pulled it.

“What will you help me with?”

I asked, furrowing my eyebrows. Karhan carefully brushed my disheveled hair and spoke.

“According to Lord Liras, you have a unique constitution. To fix that, you need a slightly special medicine.”

“Special medicine? Don’t tell me…”

I slightly opened my mouth and looked at Asmil with an ominous gaze. His eyes were curved like crescents. With a carefree demeanor, Asmil unfolded his index finger and pointed at himself.

“That’s impossible.”

Now I understood the situation. The reason I had been sick on the third day of Atlena was due to my unique constitution, and to fix it, I needed Asmil’s blood. If I couldn’t obtain it… My hand holding Karhan’s hand involuntarily tightened.

“Will I die…?”

I turned my head and looked up at Karhan, but he didn’t say a word. His reaction made my heart sink. My gaze trembled slightly. It meant that if that day came again, I would suffer in pain and die.

If I die here, what will happen to me? Will I die like this without being able to return? I had just left home and was on my way to finding freedom, but to die so absurdly in an unfamiliar place.

My eyes, which had been looking at Karhan’s face, gradually lowered. My breath was caught in my throat due to tension. I opened my mouth slightly and then closed it. Eventually, teardrops welled up in my eyes, and the flat-looking floor became distorted. My lips, which had been tightly closed to prevent any sound from escaping, twisted, creating a gap.

“I don’t want to die here like this…”

I said, gripping Karhan’s hand even tighter. My hand trembled slightly on its own. Tears that had been obstructing my vision fell with a plop onto the back of Karhan’s hand. His large hand quivered and then grasped my hand in return.

He pulled me closer as I stood still. Then, he gently wiped the droplets hanging from my long eyelashes. The damp moisture yielded to Karhan’s thumb and followed it.

“It’s okay. I know a way, and we can solve it.”

Karhan comforted me, but Asmil’s annoying voice interjected.

“Really? You can solve it? You?”

I slowly turned my head and shifted my gaze towards Asmil. He curved both eyebrows into the shape of the number eight and stroked his chin with his hand. With one corner of his mouth raised, he spoke.

“The special medicine is my blood, so how are you going to give it? Don’t tell me you’re trying to defeat me?”

His expression and voice were as if he had heard something preposterous. A slight chuckle was hidden between his words. The red eyes that had always shone brightly were now overshadowed and turned cold.

“You wouldn’t make such an arrogant claim, would you?”