The only significant gain was a blanket so worn it had holes in it.
Blair put it on as a cloak, for lack of anything better, and went to sit in a corner of the cabin, away from the window.
At that moment, something crunched under his feet.
—This is…
What was under his feet was a lighter.
From the sound it made, it seemed like it had a little bit of oil left in it.
In the cabin there was a fireplace, and also broken wooden furniture that could serve as firewood, and most importantly, she had a lighter in her hand.
But...
But the fire, which was the most important thing, could not be lit.
Just thinking about it made his breath stop and he saw everything blurry.
Blair squeezed the lighter with hands shaking from the cold.
As if squeezing that thing, which he couldn't even use, was going to make him warm.
In his slowly fading consciousness, he suddenly remembered a night from some time.
That warm winter night when she had fallen asleep feeling the warmth of the fireplace after a long time, and the face of the man who had watched her in silence.
Blair, who had remembered that voice involuntarily, sneered at herself.
That he was the first person that came to mind in this situation...
It seemed so ridiculous to him that it made him want to laugh.
Not even able to laugh, Blair smiled weakly and leaned her head against the wall.
His body, frozen by the cold that had been slowly infiltrating, no longer felt cold.
Far from feeling cold, he felt his body getting warmer.
At the same time, he became sleepy and his consciousness became clouded.
At that moment when, in the middle of that quiet cold that even seemed cozy to him, he sensed his own death.
<…Herdin>
How pathetic, I really wanted to see it.
Just when, holding on to that last wish, he was about to give up.
The closed door of the cabin opened and he appeared.
With a disheveled appearance, unusual for him.
—…Blair.
Ah…
Why, always, every time I'm about to collapse, do you appear?
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"Blair!"
Herdin approached the unconscious Blair and lifted her into his arms.
Although since it was still spring the fabric of the clothes was not very thin, I did not feel the warmth that a person should have.
As if it were a corpse.
His heart skipped a beat.
—…Blair, don't fall asleep.
Wake up.
But the eyes that until a moment ago were looking at her were closed, without moving.
A disturbance occurred in his eyes as he looked at her.
Herdin wrapped her in several layers of his own coat and those of the knights, and spurred the horse to quickly leave the forest.
At the entrance to the forest, already darkened, only the imperial knights that Ivan had posted and the Delmark knights that Herdin had called remained.
He gave an order to one of the waiting Delmark knights.
—Go to the mansion first, have the imperial doctor ready, and light the fireplace in the bedroom.
When Herdin got into the carriage with Blair, the carriage left immediately.
Herdin did not stop holding her in his arms.
As if, unless he transmitted his warmth to her like this, the woman in his arms would really die.
That couldn't be.
He still needed this woman.
Herdin took off his gloves and brought his hand to Blair's cold cheek.
The woman's cheek was colder than her own hand, which had been inside the glove.
Despite being buried in so many clothes.
While watching to see if Blair was breathing, Herdin reached into her clothing and reached for her hand.
Even within the warmth of the clothing, he was able to quickly find that cold hand.
Grabbing his hand, he discovered something that the small fist was clenching tightly.
He had probably been holding it since before he passed out in the cabin.
Herdin carefully took out what he had in his hand.
Upon confirming his identity, his eyes shook violently.
What she had been holding so lovingly while she was dying was an old lighter.
A desperate feeling came over him.
Slowly, he pressed the lighter and the flame flared up.
—…Ha.
An empty laugh escaped Herdin's mouth.
His wife might not have reached this state.
If only I had turned on this lighter, if I hadn't lost my body temperature.
So until he found her, she could have been waiting to be rescued, warming herself by the fire, in perfect condition.
But...
Because of that damn trauma, I almost lost her?
For something so insignificant?
…Because of me.
Herdin squeezed the lighter as if he were going to break it and ground his teeth.
Anger, without destination, wandered through the silent carriage.
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An assistant has nothing to do in a hunting competition.
Therefore, Ruth, who had been lounging all day in her residence, rushed to the duke's mansion upon hearing the news like a bolt from a clear sky.
Just as the imperial doctor, who had finished the examination, left Blair's bedroom.
—Your Excellency, I'm going in.
As she entered the room, she felt the heat warming her.
On the bed, in the middle of that warm room, lay Blair.
His face, as he coughed, was so pale that Ruth's heart skipped a beat too.
At her side, Herdin watched over her alone.
In his blue eyes, which looked at Blair, an emotion stirred that was scary to approach.
It was an anger that seemed to devour him himself.
Ruth, hesitating for a moment when she saw him so unstable, approached and, before she could ask anything, Herdin spoke first.
—…He says his body temperature has dropped a lot.
If he arrived a little later, he would have been in danger.
—Is it okay now?
Herdin looked at the sleeping Blair for a moment and responded slowly.
—It seems so.
—You say you had an accident?
How did you get to that state?
—It wasn't really an accident, she was kidnapped and escaped.
Hearing Herdin's words, Ruth's face hardened.
—Kidnapped?
Who dared to do something like that…!
—Who do you think?
Herdin, instead of giving him the answer immediately, asked a question.
Ruth, after thinking for a moment, deduced the answer without difficulty.
—Perhaps that individual from the Marquis Baldwin's family?
-If you and I think the same...
—What a sinister guy...
Ruth involuntarily muttered a curse, and then, glancing sideways at the sleeping Blair, she involuntarily cleared her throat.
—That guy won't have moved directly, has he caught the kidnapper?
-No.
The priority was to find Blair.
…To be continued