KFBRV Ch 106
- Mar 8
- 6 min read
Early dawn on the third day of the Tour of Athena Island.
Mrs. Becker, who had monitored Odette with sleepless eyes for two days, finally succumbed to a deep slumber tonight.
Odette had lit a sleeping incense known to be beneficial for pregnant women. Of course, she herself had consumed Aqua Mint to stay awake.
Click, clack.
She walked through the empty corridor and opened the door to the infirmary. A sigh escaped her lips.
There were four patient beds, yet Karl lay on a blanket spread directly on the floor.
To think he'd be treated like this. It was a good idea to come.
The moment she set down the gas lamp on the nightstand, Karl, drenched in cold sweat, opened his eyes. With a swift, lethal movement, he snatched her wrist.
[Odette] "Ah!"
[Karl] "......Master?"
Recognizing her immediately, he relaxed his grip.
He asked in a worried tone.
[Karl] "I apologize. Did I hurt your wrist?"
Yes. I thought it was going to break.
She wanted to say that, but she offered an elegant smile. Seeing him wrapped in bandages from head to toe sparked a pang of guilt.
I thought four assassins would be nothing for him. I didn't expect him to be hurt this badly.
She had overestimated his strength, causing him unnecessary injury.
[Odette] "Why are you sleeping here instead of on a bed?"
[Karl] "Because I am a slave. That isn't important. How is your wrist? Is it broken? If Master is injured—"
[Odette] "Stop. I'm fine, so stop asking questions."
He wore a hurt expression at her reaction.
[Karl] "It seems I am indeed an ungrateful wretch. To injure the Master who saved me from my father......"
Even if the Command is broken, isn't this level of self-pity extreme?
[Odette] "No, calm down. That's not what I meant. I meant I wasn't hurt at all, so don't worry."
[Karl] "Master."
[Odette] "Get on the bed for now. If anyone criticizes you for sleeping on a bed, use my name."
She took his hand to help him up. In that instant, she gasped in surprise.
[Odette] "What is this? Why are your hands so hot?"
His body temperature was like a furnace.
[Karl] "Master's hands are quite small."
He sat heavily on the bed, a bizarre trace of amusement in his voice, but Odette failed to notice.
With his body in this state. It will be difficult to order him to do anything.
She was lost in thought due to Karl's unexpectedly poor condition.
She had visited him today to involve him in her plan for Doly.
Although Karl had been obedient since the Command broke, Odette didn't trust him completely yet.
Karl was no longer the Karl from <The Only Savior>.
The liberated Karl was a complete unknown to her. Information from the setting guide was useless, and neither hostages nor gifts could bind him now.
Is a liberated Karl even useful? Can I trust the loyalty of a man with no leash?
She had intended to test his usefulness by using him in the plan for Doly. But seeing the boy trembling with a pale face, her resolve vanished.
Even Odette couldn't bring herself to exploit a boy in such a state.
[Odette] "Your fever seems to be getting worse."
She placed her hand on his forehead. He seemed flustered for a moment, but soon rubbed his forehead against her hand like a child seeking comfort.
Perhaps, his parents were wrong about him.
She sighed. If he were genuinely devoid of emotion, would he rejoice so much at the warmth offered to him?
The parents who commanded a child to 'Become a weapon for Fenrir' and raised him as a slaughter machine were the ones without emotion.
Well, I'm not in a position to criticize parents, since I came here to use him too.
At that moment, he pleaded in a weak voice.
[Karl] "Please change my bandages, Master."
She unwrapped the bandages on his arm and gasped in horror. Shards of glass were embedded deep into the long, jagged wound.
The way multiple pieces had been forcibly shoved in revealed a clear intent. Malice aimed at rendering his arm useless.
[Odette] "Heavens! What bastard did this to you?"
[Karl] "Master."
[Odette] "No. That isn't the priority. First, let's remove the glass shards."
Startled, she frantically searched for tweezers.
When she stripped his shirt to expose his shoulder, the situation was even worse. Glass shards were embedded in his shoulder as well.
If things went wrong, amputation might be necessary. Body parts lost before awakening as a Transcendent could not be regenerated. Karl might lose the use of his arm permanently.
Fortunately, the wounds appeared fresh.
[Odette] "You must endure the pain, Karl. We can't leave the glass like this."
[Karl] "Ugh, Master."
[Odette] "If you can't bear it, bite my left arm."
Instead of answering, he lightly bit her left arm. The bite was far too weak for someone enduring agony.
Is his strength so depleted that his bite is this feeble?
She wrestled with the glass shards for nearly an hour. After applying disinfectant, she wiped the sweat from her brow.
[Odette] "I removed everything visible. But tiny fragments might remain, so you must demand treatment from the Imperial Physician......."
She paused mid-sentence, frowning.
If these were wounds from the assassins, the physician would have treated them long ago. That means these injuries happened after he was brought to the infirmary.
She pressed a hand to her forehead.
[Odette] "Karl, was it the physician who did this?"
He spoke in a voice hoarse from suppressing his pain.
[Karl] "Master. Rather than that, my wish......."
[Odette] "Hm?"
[Karl] "You said you would grant my wish if I followed your orders well."
[Odette] "Go now. If you complete this task well, I shall grant you another wish."
She recalled their conversation.
[Odette] "I did."
[Karl] "I want to state my wish now, Master."
[Odette] "Let's discuss the physician first—"
[Karl] "Now, Master. I want to say it now."
He spoke pitifully, feverish and weak. She wrapped fresh bandages around his arm and asked.
[Odette] "Fine, tell me. What is your wish?"
[Karl] "Do not discard me, Master. I will be a good slave, so please let me remain your slave forever."
His pitiful eyes stared intently at her. His choice of words was extreme.
[Odette] "Forever...... Karl."
[Karl] "If I cannot live as Master's slave, my life loses its purpose."
Why go that far? Why is a boy raised as a Crown Prince so obsessed with being a slave?
[Karl] "Master, I am too anxious now that my father's Command is gone. I lived my entire life as my father's slave. I am a being who cannot live without orders."
He appealed desperately. He claimed he had lived bound by commands from birth. He had upheld the order to live as a weapon for Fenrir for seventeen years.
[Karl] "You know what happens to an animal raised in chains when it suddenly gains freedom."
Odette took a short breath at his words, which sounded like he was holding himself hostage.
[Karl] "If you abandon me like this, I will live a life worse than death. I am powerless before freedom, and I never learned how to think without orders. Being liberated from my father's command is enough, Master. I want to live as your slave. Please let me choose."
[Odette] "......"
[Karl] "You said you would grant my wish if I completed the order well. Please keep your promise."
She sighed.
Check Loathing.
[Karl's Loathing: 0]
Fine. If I discard him when he hates the idea so much, his Loathing might actually increase, and having a future Transcendent loyal to me isn't a bad thing.
Indeed, hadn't he listened well to her after the Command broke?
I'll use him for Doly's plan, and if his usefulness is proven, I'll use him for my revenge. If he's useless, keeping him as a combat slave isn't bad either.
But she failed to realize something. She was being persuaded by Karl far too easily. The thick, cloying aura filling the room was interfering with her rational thought.
Odette, who planned to leave, did not need an 'eternal' slave. If he wasn't useful for revenge, it was better not to enslave him at all. Yet she sensed nothing strange in her own reasoning.
[Odette] "Understood. A promise must be kept. I will grant your wish. I won't discard you."
Eventually, she spat out the words.
[Karl] "Thank you, Master."
He pulled her into a tight embrace. She was slightly startled but hid it.
[Odette] "Your body is still burning up, so sleep comfortably for now. I'll come again."
[Karl] "Yes."
He answered obediently and closed his eyes.
It's good that he's easier to handle. He's become much more human, too.
However, she felt an odd unease at that last thought.
Really? Has he become more human?
Strangely, the more she chewed on the thought, the more chills she felt. Her intuition seemed to scream at her to be careful.
At that moment. A quest notification appeared before her eyes.
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