IPDT 19

The flower field on the volcanic island had a completely different feel from the flower field in the elf village.

The volcano here would not erupt as long as the flowers were not in full bloom, but instead, it maintained its old, scorched black appearance. Because of that, the flower field situated in front of the lifeless volcano looked as if it had sucked all the life force from this land. It was quite a ghastly sight.

“Goodness, I should take a quick look.”

Of course, whether this place was ghastly or not had nothing to do with me. I strode around the flower field. Fortunately, there were no cracks.

After confirming that the flowers were fine, I also checked the stone blocks surrounding the four corners of the flower field. These stone blocks were artifacts created with dwarven technology and my power, and they had been set up because dwarves were not a race that would diligently manage flowers like Lauren.

“This is fine, too.”

When I tapped them, tok tok, the patterns engraved on the stone glittered as if in resonance. Seeing that they were still fine even though they were set up a long, long time ago, the dwarves’ technology was truly amazing. If they make Yul’s weapon with this kind of technology…

I smiled with satisfaction and stood up. I had looked over the whole flower field, so I was thinking of heading back now.

“…But I wonder if Yul is awake?”

The moment I was about to use teleportation magic, a sudden sense of foreboding struck me. A premonition that perhaps Yul was causing a commotion in the dwarf village again.

In the elf village, he bit off an elf’s ear, so in the dwarf village… Ah, no. The chief hasn’t made the weapon yet! I quickly used teleportation magic.

“Yul, where’s Yul?”

As soon as I returned to the dwarf village, I whipped my head around to look. But the dwarf village was peaceful, as usual. Instead of screams, it was filled with the sound of hammering iron, and instead of the smell of blood, only the smell of sizzling hot steel wafted up. It seemed Yul hadn’t woken up yet.

“Phew, that scared me.”

I needlessly wiped my forehead with the back of my hand and started walking with a refreshed heart. I should hurry back to the lodging and wake Yul up. What kind of reaction would Yul show if I teased him for being a sleepyhead while looking at his drowsy eyes? No, no. Should I just give him a kiss instead?

I smiled foolishly and flung open the door to the lodging. I was expecting to see the sight of Yul peacefully sleeping in. But what I faced was not a scene of a peaceful nap.

“…”

“Uh… uh…?”

There was blood on Yul’s lips, and his arm was covered in it. His left arm, wounded to the point where blood was beading and flowing, had a rough wound as if it had been bitten by teeth. I found myself looking back and forth between Yul’s lips and the wound. The smile vanished from my face.

“Yul, did you… did you bite yourself? That arm—”

“Why were you late.”

Yul cut me off. His cool, sunken black eyes stared directly at me. It was a gaze that seemed to be questioning me as if I had done something wrong. I furrowed my brows.

“You came to me when you were hurt.”

I parted my lips. Because I want to take care of you when you’re hurt, but that’s not something you can demand. It was at that moment when those words were about to rush out. Something fell from Yul’s eyes. Plop.

“It hurts.”

“Yul, Yul.”

It was a tear. The moment a single teardrop fell and touched Yul’s left arm, I felt my heart drop. I rushed to Yul in a single bound and cupped his face with both hands. Yul didn’t shed any more tears, but strangely, he looked as if he was crying.

I hesitated before stroking the corner of Yul’s eye. My chest ached, so I couldn’t even wipe away his tear easily.

“Yul, don’t cry. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t abandon me.”

What? My eyes widened at the unexpected words.

“Who said something to you?”

“You’re free. But me, I… I can’t do this without you…”

Yul wrapped his arms around my waist and buried his face in my chest. Yul, who let out a weak voice, was breathing roughly. He looked completely terrified. I held my hands up in confusion for a moment before I managed to pat his back.

“Yul, I don’t quite understand what you’re saying. But it’s me who’s making you anxious, right? Then how about this? I’ll cast a spell so that you can feel me, and I can feel you. Then you’ll be able to feel me wherever I am. In exchange, I’ll be able to feel you, too.”

In truth, this was a spell one would only cast on a mate. Because if a mate was in danger, one had to go and save them immediately. But until now, I had never used this spell. I had no mate, and above all, I thought sharing sensations with someone was dreadful. Until this very moment.

“I’ll do it if you want.”

“…”

There was no answer from Yul. As the silence grew longer, my lips felt strangely dry. Why isn’t Yul answering? Is a spell where we can ‘feel each other’s presence’ too much of a burden? I thought this was the only way to get rid of Yul’s anxiety. Ugh, should I say I misspoke right now?

“You know, Yul, if you feel like I’m monitoring you too much, you don’t have to do it. So…”

“Illy.”

Yul called me. I stopped talking and looked down at Yul. Yul, who had been burying his face in my chest, had at some point raised his eyes and was looking at me. His black eyes were full of life.

“Do it. I want to.”

“Then Yul, close your eyes.”

I covered Yul’s eyes and began to mutter the incantation. A magic circle began to be engraved on Yul’s heart and my heart. The spell circle, shining with a golden light, emitted a tremendous radiance. It was a light that might have blinded a normal human if they had seen it.

Kwoong!

A shockwave that others couldn’t hear struck my ears. It was the sound of our hearts connecting. The fiercely burning golden light went out all at once. The magic circle also vanished. The spell connecting Yul and me had ended successfully. Huu, I let out a sigh of relief and was about to remove the hand covering his eyes.

“Ah?”

I looked down at my left arm. The same spot as the arm Yul had bitten himself.

“It hurts.”

My arm throbbed with pain. I opened my eyes wide and turned my arm this way and that.

When was the last time I felt this much pain? I had felt minor pains when Yul bit me, but it had been a long time since I felt such a clear pain. As I blinked blankly, Yul grabbed my left arm.

“Yul?”

He kissed my smooth arm. The sight of it looked just like an herbivore licking a wounded area. It felt strangely ticklish, and my fingertips trembled. Yul glanced up at me.

“I can hear your heartbeat.”

“…Is it loud?”

“I like it.”

Yul smiled without a sound. Looking at Yul like that, I also pulled my lips into a wide smile. If Yul liked it, then I liked it too. I preferred Yul smiling over him crying.

Just because our hearts were connected didn’t mean I could know everything about Yul. This was just a spell that allowed us to feel each other’s presence even when we were physically apart. So… I couldn’t know what Yul was thinking, and Yul also couldn’t know my thoughts.

Also, even if one heart were to stop, the other person would not be affected at all. If such a thing were to happen, the connection would simply be severed.

For a spell cast on a mate, it was a rather trivial one. Nevertheless, why was it? I felt strangely happy to feel Yul’s condition as if it were my own.

“All done.”

I slathered the herbs on Yul’s arm and even wrapped a bandage around it. Then, when I glanced up, Yul avoided my gaze.

A smile crept onto my lips without me realizing. It was because I could faintly feel Yul’s emotions. You’re embarrassed, aren’t you? Hmm, I can see why. Biting your own arm because you missed me. He was surely regretting doing something so embarrassing.

“Yul, Yul, shall we go for a walk?”

I shuffled on my knees to get into Yul’s averted line of sight. Only then did Yul look at me. I smiled softly and mouthed the word ‘let’s go’. I thought it would be better to get some fresh air outside rather than just sitting still in the lodging. As if he sensed my inner thoughts, Yul nodded his head.

As I walked with Yul along a deserted path, I felt a bit strange today. It wasn’t as if it was the first or second time I had gone for a walk with Yul… Why was that? Was it because our hearts were connected? I raised my eyes to look at Yul.

Yul seemed to be in a good mood right now. Because an emotion I shouldn’t be able to feel was fluttering in my heart like a spring breeze. It was all an emotion that Yul was feeling.

“…”

I blinked slowly. Yul’s black hair swayed in the wind, and the warm sunlight filtered through the leaves, pouring down. Everything surrounding Yul seemed to glitter like summer sunlight reflected on a lake.

“Illy?”

Yul looked back at me. I blinked a couple of times and then smiled.

“Yul, it feels good being connected to you.”

It was enjoyable and good before, but after being connected to Yul, it became even better. Every time a fragment of Yul’s emotions was transmitted, my heart would tingle as if being tickled by a feather. What was this ticklish feeling called again? Was it being moved? Overwhelmed? Ah, was it a thrill?

“…”

“Yul?”

For some reason, Yul’s face was flushed red. His ears were noticeably red, so much so that they looked like they would be hot to the touch. It seemed like he was embarrassed… but I couldn’t figure out the reason at all. As I blinked blankly, a thought suddenly popped into my head. Could it be that he has a fever even though it’s daytime?

“Do you have a fever?”

“No.”

When I took a step closer, Yul quickly stepped back. Then he completely covered his face with one hand.

“[Trash]…”

Yul muttered an unknown word. Seeing as I couldn’t understand it, it was probably Yul’s native language. As I tilted my head, Yul let out a sigh.

“I don’t have a fever. Nothing’s wrong.”

“Okay.”

Yul hesitantly came to my side. With Yul, whose ears were still red, I walked around the dwarf village more than ten times.

Yul went to bed particularly early today. He seemed so determined to sleep that he insisted even when I tried to stop him, so I didn’t bother him.

“He’s asleep.”

I confirmed that Yul was asleep and lay down on the rug. The fluffy and soft rug always felt comforting whenever I lay on it. After fully enjoying the texture of the rug like a monkey grooming itself, I closed my eyes.

Even with my eyes closed, I could feel Yul’s presence as if he were right next to me. It was quite a pleasant feeling. I turned my body toward the bed where Yul was lying and yawned. Perhaps it was because quite a few things had happened today. It felt like I could fall asleep quickly.

“…”

How much time had passed since I had fallen asleep without realizing? For some reason, I felt a stinging sensation down there, that is, around my groin. I frowned and pouted my lips. A very unpleasant feeling.

I tried to endure it for a bit, but the continuous unpleasant sensation was hard to bear. In the end, I shot up from my spot.

“…Yul?”

In a daze, I found Yul sitting with his back to me. At my call, Yul’s shoulders flinched. In that moment, the unpleasant feeling in my groin intensified. Huh. Could it be… that the sensation Yul is feeling is also being felt by me?