TOPWL 74

“Ouch.”

“Stop pretending.”

Still, Diego’s touch became gentle again. Yudit thought this moment felt strangely familiar.

“What about the others?”

“They’re doing fine. You’re the one struggling the most.”

“That’s a relief.”

Diego, having finished his treatment, looked at Shane, who was still knocked out on the bed, grimacing.

“Do I have to treat him too?”

“I’ll handle it.”

Yudit extended his hand. Diego clicked his tongue, seeing Yudit’s swollen hand.

“Forget it. I’ll do it.”

Diego reluctantly took over, treating Shane with a scowl. Eden observed the scene with a smirk. Just as he was about to speak, there was a sudden commotion from the bed. Shane, who had woken up, threw a punch at Diego.

“You bastard!”

The punch wasn’t very painful, considering Shane was still groggy from being beaten up, but Diego didn’t hold back. He slapped Shane across the face with a sharp sound, making Shane’s head jerk to the side. Yudit rushed to separate them.

“I’m sorry, Diego. I’m sorry.”

“Who the hell did you bring with you?”

“Your… Highness?”

“It’s me, Shane. Yudit.”

Shane grabbed Yudit’s hand tightly in the darkness. Yudit could feel the quickening pulse beneath Shane’s skin.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah. They’re my friends. He was trying to treat you.”

“….”

Shane’s expression darkened as he processed the situation. He looked at Diego, who had taken a blow while trying to help, and lowered his head, glancing to the side.

“I’m sorry.”

“If you’re awake, treat yourself.”

Diego threw some medical supplies at Shane before storming out. Yudit sat beside the bed and started treating Shane.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“…I’m sorry.”

Shane spoke in a hoarse voice.

“Why are you sorry? I know you did your best.”

At Yudit’s words, Shane took a deep breath and bit his lip. Yudit treated him silently. Even though it must have been painful, Shane didn’t let out a single groan. It wasn’t until the treatment was over that Shane asked quietly:

“Are you Liruts?”

“…Yes.”

Yudit nodded in acknowledgment. The Lirut were a minority group that had been conquered by the Adanauer Empire over fifty years ago. Their black hair and red eyes were compared to rats by the Empire’s people, who used the derogatory term “Rat” instead of Lirut. Yudit was relieved that Shane had remembered the name Lirut. If he had called them “Rat,” Diego wouldn’t have hesitated to beat him, even he is a patient.

The Liruts had surrendered on the condition that their people be treated as citizens, but rumors about their cursed appearance had made them the subject of disdain. It was hard for them to find proper jobs, so they were often forced into the hardest labor or had to make money through street work.

“Diego.”

Yudit called him, placing a hand on Diego’s shoulder. Diego flinched, turning around. Yudit caught the brief expression on his face.

“What’s wrong? Did you get hurt?”

“It’s nothing.”

Yudit silently stared at him for a moment before poking at a different area of his body. Diego glared at him with an expression that said he wanted to hit Yudit. Eden chuckled softly beside them.

“Don’t push him too much. He had a bit of a run-in with the royal family today. You might end up getting a punch too.”

“Did you get badly hurt?”

Yudit asked, as if he was about to remove Diego’s clothes. Diego stepped back, covering himself.

“Fighting and brawling is part of the job.”

“….”

Yudit bit his lip. If only he had been in charge of this slum instead of Hiore. Hiore had no qualms about wiping out everyone in the slums and building new structures over their blood.

Yudit was filled with guilt, and Diego, sensing it, nudged him.

“Let’s have a drink.”

“You shouldn’t be drinking with your injuries.”

“Then just have water.”

Yudit and Diego exchanged their usual banter, and Shane looked at them with curiosity. Yudit noticed him and gave an awkward smile.

“We’ve been friends since we were kids.”

It might have been surprising to see the prince and a Lirut interact so easily, but Shane didn’t ask further. Perhaps that’s why Shane didn’t stop Yudit from drinking despite his injuries.

“Ah, this is the taste.”

Eden wiped his glass, making an uncultured gesture not typically seen from nobles. Shane, however, hesitated, staring at his own drink, then quietly set it down.

Eden raised an eyebrow.

“What happened to Moot?”

“He got married last year. He has three kids already.”

“Three kids already, and they married last year?”

“They were triplets. His wife nearly died giving birth.”

Although the food and drink were cheap, simply talking and sharing memories made the evening enjoyable. As the mood began to settle, Yudit cautiously brought up a topic.

“Hiore is planning to destroy this place.”

Both Diego and Eden furrowed their brows.

“Yeah, we’ve been worrying about that.”

“Can you stop him?”

“You know, the one who made him like this is Hiore.”

“Ah, right.”

Eden made a disappointed face at Diego’s comment.

“Sorry.”

“It’s alright, you don’t need to apologize, Yuli.”

Eden sighed deeply before taking another drink.

“Do you have any ideas?”

“I’m thinking of leaving this time. I’m tired of being treated like an outsider all my life.”

“Where will you go?”

“I haven’t decided, but I think I’ll head north.”

“North? Why?”

“They’ve been accepting a lot of Lirut for labor, so there’s less discrimination there.”

Yudit hesitated for a moment before asking.

“Do you think others might think the same?”

“Maybe not everyone. There are a lot of people here who see this place as both their workplace and home. But for me, wandering around is just part of my work, so it doesn’t matter where I go.”

Yudit thought deeply about Eden’s words. Could he stop Hiore from pushing the slums out? He was sure Hiore had discarded him here to make it easier to clear the slums. Thinking about solutions, Yudit rubbed his face. His injured face stung at the touch.

“Hiore won’t back down.”

“We know. But we won’t just sit back and do nothing.”

Yudit fell into deep thought, and Eden, seeing his tension, smiled and said,

“It’s been a long time since we’ve met. Let’s talk about something more fun. Yuli, don’t you have anyone you like?”

“What…”

Yudit shook his head in response, but Eden shrugged nonchalantly.

“Well, you are a prince. You should at least have a fiancé or something.”

“I can barely keep myself together.”

Yudit gave a bitter smile, and Eden sighed.

“Here, they already have one or two kids, you know. You better catch up.”

“I will.”

“Then do you have someone you like?”

Yudit nearly choked on his drink at the sudden question. Eden’s narrowed eyes suggested he’d noticed the delay in Yudit’s response.

“No, no one.”

“From the look on your face, I don’t think that’s true. Who is it? Is it someone I know?”

“He said no.”

The last words weren’t from Yudit. It was Diego, who shot Eden a disapproving glare.

“Just drink.”

Diego poured more liquor into Eden’s glass, filling it to the brim. The strong liquor flowed out of the glass, and Eden quickly drank it, growling.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“I thought you were running low on alcohol.”

Eden grumbled but drank quickly, only to have Diego immediately fill the next glass.

“Hey, I can’t drink like this…”

“Just drink.”

In the end, Eden downed the second glass in quick succession. He glared at Diego with resentment.

“I can’t stand watching you fill my glass.”

After finishing his drink, Eden grabbed his glass tightly as if he wouldn’t let anyone pour more.

Then, as if teasing, he asked,

“Why are you being so sensitive? Do you still like Yuli?”

“….”

Diego glared at Eden without answering, and the room went silent. The tension in the air seemed to clear the alcohol from Eden’s mind.