36.
“…….”
Diego’s gaze fixed intently on the bridge of Irene Rios’s nose, where a subtle crease had formed. It was so faint that had it not been for him, no one would have noticed.
Each time her brow twitched, the pressure she applied to his cheek grew slightly stronger.
Ah.
Only then did Diego give a silent nod of acknowledgment. She was cleaning the bloodstains from his skin with the repetitive, clumsy trial-and-error of someone who had no sense for how much pressure to apply.
To think the person wearing the most solemn expression in the world was doing nothing more than wiping away a speck of blood.
Diego suppressed a laugh, keeping his eyes locked on her. It was even more ridiculous when he recalled how she had stitched up a corpse’s abdomen without a single moment of hesitation.
“…….”
*Is it funny?*
Suddenly, Diego’s eyes took on a serious gleam. She knew about his hereditary disease.
That was why she was examining his face with such meticulous care. She couldn’t afford to overlook even the smallest wound.
In the end, she was just like everyone else. Like his parents or his siblings, she was walking on eggshells, terrified that Diego might get hurt.
That was truly…
“How boring.”
Muttering a comment no one else could hear, Diego intentionally tugged at the corner of his mouth. Then, he stretched his arms out to the sides.
While his mouth was smiling, his eyes were not—a fact only Javier noticed.
“If my physician wishes, I shall remove my clothes as well. Shouldn’t you check if there are any wounds on my body, too?”
The mischievous words were meant to tease her. Any other noble lady would have dyed her face crimson and lowered her gaze. Perhaps she might even have retreated with tears in her eyes.
But Irene Rios was different. She scanned Diego’s body with an indifferent expression. It was as if she were coolly imagining the bare skin hidden beneath his clothes.
“Eek!”
It wasn’t Irene, but Mia who let out a low shriek. Glancing briefly at Mia, Diego stared at Irene with deep, heavy eyes.
His gaze was as rich and ripe as a well-mellowed quince, and his voice was deep, as if echoing from the bottom of a well. He sounded just like a rake seducing an innocent lady.
But regardless of his intentions, Irene’s complexion did not change in the slightest. After a moment, she nodded.
“Yes.”
The momentum died. Diego lowered his hands, a flicker of disappointment crossing his face.
“To want to see the naked body of another man—what a wicked physician you are.”
“Your Highness is not ‘another man’; you are my patient. Just as I am not a flower of high society, but a competent surgeon.”
Irene’s expression remained indifferent as she spoke. No heat or longing could be found in her eyes.
“Aha.”
Suddenly, a very interesting thought occurred to him. How amusing would it be if Irene Rios looked at him not as a patient, but as a man?
To have Irene flush red instead of getting goosebumps when holding his hand, or to have her lower her eyes in confusion when seeing his naked body.
Yes, that would be truly amusing.
“…….”
Diego smiled, his eyes narrowing into slits. Would it be more thrilling to watch Irene Rios fall in love, or to have the sword of an Alvar soldier graze his neck?
Well, since there would be no war for the time being, it would at least serve as a pastime.
Diego popped the button of his military tunic with a flick. He kept his eyes fixed on Irene’s face as he moved his hand downward.
His leisurely gaze and slow movements were dreadfully erotic. Enough to make Mia, who was merely a spectator, hold her breath.
It was as if they had forgotten that they were in the middle of a battlefield, or that they were inside a dry, barren tent.
*Click.*
The second button came undone. His black eyes sank deep, fathomless, and the reflection of Irene within them flickered along with the lamplight.
*Click.*
The third button came undone. A languid smile touched Diego’s lips, and his fingers moved with even greater leisure.
Bowing his head slightly, Diego scratched the tip of his eyebrow as if troubled. A soft, airy laugh escaped from between his teeth.
The sight was so decadent that Mia couldn’t help but swallow hard. Her mouth felt parched.
“It makes me nervous, having my physician staring at me so intently.”
Diego muttered it like a soliloquy, yet there was no hint of tension in his relaxed demeanor.
*Click.*
Diego undid the fourth button, all while still staring at Irene.
His long eyelashes cast shadows over his face, and his languid smile created a strange atmosphere. The shadow stretched across the wall of the tent rippled whenever the wind blew.
Yet, Irene remained unmoved. The more she did, the deeper Diego’s smile grew. He was even starting to feel a sense of defiance.
Through the gap in his clothing, his firm chest was revealed. The muscles he hadn’t noticed while fully clothed cast deep shadows under the lamp. A faint heat radiated from within.
The air grew tense, as if something might happen at any moment. The instant Diego narrowed his eyes and pulled back his lapels,
“Your Highness!”
Miguel dashed in, lifting the tent flap in a flurry. His hair was disheveled and he reeked of alcohol, as if he had been dead to the world in a drunken stupor.
*Halt.*
Diego turned his gaze very slowly. Along with it, the dense atmosphere between the two dissipated.
The corners of Diego’s eyes, which were smiling thinly, twitched slightly. He asked in a dry voice,
“What is it, Physician Flich?”
“Your Highness, congratulations on your victory!”
After greeting him with a loud voice, Miguel finally noticed Diego and Irene standing together and tilted his head. He saw Diego’s partially exposed chest and Irene standing right before him.
Aha.
Clapping his hands together once, Miguel turned to Irene with a stern expression.
“Physician Rios, you may leave now. I shall attend to His Highness’s body.”
Irene fell into thought for a moment. Miguel was Diego’s chief physician, and he was more than qualified to say such a thing.
She had wanted to confirm that Diego hadn’t suffered any trauma, but seeing him so confident, it seemed there were no injuries.
She could leave the rest to the Ocean Sunfish.
“Yes.”
Having finished her thought, Irene turned around without a trace of lingering attachment. The one with lingering attachment was, in fact, Diego. He clicked his tongue under his breath with a look of regret. Then, he glared at the oblivious Miguel.
“Physician Flich is unusually motivated today, unlike his usual self.”
“I am always motivated, Your Highness. I am filled with nothing but concern for you, day and night.”
Mia left the tent while glancing back repeatedly, filled with regret. Her resentful gaze landed on Miguel’s back.
Miguel, having suddenly received piercing glares from two people, blinked with a confused expression. From outside the tent, he could hear Mia’s voice saying, “Please head back first. I’m going to go dump the dirty water.”
Diego, who had glanced toward the entrance, stared at Miguel with a smiling face.
“Concerned day and night, you say.”
“Of course, Your Highness. If not for me, who would worry about you?”
“So it seems you’ve been worrying about me up until now.”
“Yes?”
Miguel, tilting his head as if he didn’t understand, replied, “Of course.” Diego’s smile deepened even further.
“How worried you must have been, to have fallen asleep without even knowing the allied forces had returned. Reeking of alcohol, with your hair turned into a magpie’s nest. Your loyalty is truly unfathomable.”
“Your Highness, th-that is……”
Miguel, flustered, licked his palm and pressed down on his unruly, messy hair. He then glanced up at Diego with just his eyes.
A coldness, for some reason, was radiating from the man who was smiling so gently. Swallowing hard, Miguel took a step forward.
“I shall examine Your Highness’s body.”
“That will be all. I have no injuries, so be off.”
Diego waved a hand, making no effort to hide his annoyance. Miguel scurried out of the tent like a mosquito being swatted away.
As Diego was buttoning his shirt, he suddenly stopped. It was because he remembered something she had said once.
―I used to get lost in the school grounds often, even when I was a third-year.
The next moment, he stood up.
“Good grief, what a high-maintenance physician.”
* * *
After leaving Diego’s tent, Irene parted ways with Mia and headed straight for her own.
“I intended to head straight to my tent, but……”
The path wasn’t difficult. The problem was that every tent in sight looked exactly the same. They called this ‘finding a needle in a haystack,’ she supposed.
Irene, who had the talent to stitch flesh with a needle but not the talent to find the needle, looked around with a troubled expression.
She had no idea which one was her tent.
Especially since it was night, and the sun had vanished. The torches lit here and there flickered, struggling to drive away the darkness, but they were insufficient to brighten the night.
“Hey, miss.”
So, if Diego’s tent was the reference point, was it the right… no, was it the left?
Let’s just go this way.
Diego had told her to wait in one place if she ever got lost, but that didn’t apply to her. Irene bravely took a step in the direction her instincts led her.
“Geez, playing hard to get, are you? Can’t you hear me?”
*Grab.*
Someone grabbed her by the wrist.
“!”
The touch of another person, arriving in a moment she least expected, was enough to freeze Irene. For that moment, she couldn’t even think to pull her hand away.
The memory, which had been buried in the deep sea, surfaced in an instant from just a similar situation.
A pitch-black night. A strong hand gripping her wrist. Hot body heat. Blood flowing stickily.
Blood.
“…….”
In an instant, her vision blurred. The world swayed from side to side.
The tents disappeared, and her memory was dragged back to that house from long ago. She couldn’t breathe. Her lungs felt like they were shriveling up.
*Must run away. Move. Must get out of here. Run!*
A warning alarm blared loudly in her mind, but her two legs didn’t budge from the spot. Just like that day, just like that time.
*Haa, haa.*
No matter how deeply she inhaled, her lungs wouldn’t expand. Her shoulders heaved rapidly with her labored breathing.
“What’s with you, acting like a block of wood? Why is a woman wandering around a place like this? Looking for some fun?”
Who is this fool 😠