I Became a Barbarian's Bride - Chapter 102
And in his arms, a woman with wide, rabbit-like eyes was frozen, reaching out toward him.
Kagan slowly exhaled, trying to erase the surreal scene he had just witnessed from his mind.
“…….”
Without a word, he gently rested his forehead against her awkwardly outstretched hand.
“Oh, my powers just…”
Nisha mumbled, flustered, but Kagan slowly shook his head.
“It’s fine.”
His face betrayed how far from fine he really was, making his words all the more bewildering.
Nisha silently watched him for a moment before shaking her head and attempting to use her abilities again. However, it seemed that every last bit of her strength had been drained—nothing came out.
“I’m sorry.”
On top of that, a deep sense of exhaustion weighed on her body, heavier than she had expected.
It was as if she now fully understood what it felt like to not be able to move a single finger.
Though, in truth, she had always known that feeling in some way, it was different this time.
This time, it felt like the exhaustion one experiences after sprinting all day, only to collapse the moment they finally stop.
Unable to explain the strange sensation, she lightly rubbed her forehead against his shoulder.
“There’s nothing to apologize for. You couldn’t have saved him in the first place…”
“Ugh…”
A groan came from the bed, and Kagan slowly lifted his head.
His eyes, filled with shock, gradually shifted into astonishment, trembling slightly as he stared.
Looking down, he gazed at the woman in his arms, who blinked wearily, unable to even hold her head up properly, leaning against him in complete exhaustion.
“Kagan…?”
The frail voice sounded as if it might fade away, but it wasn’t laced with pain.
Rather, it was simply the result of having not spoken for so long, his voice merely a bit hoarse.
He looked at Nisha, then lifted his head again to glance at the bed.
Kagan scanned the astonished doctors and his subordinates, then slowly rose from where he had been sitting, still holding Nisha in his arms.
As he stood, he took in the sight of his subordinate, whose face and body, once crushed and bloodied, had returned to normal. He inhaled slowly.
“…How’s your body?”
“My body? Oh, it seems fine. Nothing hurts in particular… I feel really good, actually.”
The man, who had clearly been gravely injured, murmured in disbelief, even clenching his fist and lightly lifting it to demonstrate his strength.
Kagan recalled the moment when this very subordinate had been brought back, slung over the back of his horse, near death.
But now, the shadow of death that had clung to him had completely vanished, as if death would never claim him again.
‘…He was dead.’
Kagan tightened his grip around the woman in his arms as the thought sank in.
There was no doubt—he had been dead. This wasn’t some guess; it was a certainty. Kagan had heard the sound of his last breath, had seen the shadow of death engulf him, and watched as the man’s chest no longer rose or fell.
When a person breathes, their chest moves up and down.
But he had seen it stop completely.
Everything indicated that he had died.
And yet, there he was, alive.
‘Is it possible to bring the dead back to life?’
Could a human, a person, truly revive someone who had died?
Kagan shook his head. It couldn’t be. While people said that abilities were gifts from the gods, that didn’t mean one became a god.
‘Reviving the dead?’
It was unbelievable enough, and for the cost to be merely a single day of sleep?
It made no sense.
If there had been any doubt before—whether this was possible, or if they had simply been lucky—now Kagan had absolute certainty.
Yes, certainty.
It was impossible. Such a thing couldn’t exist. In this world, there were no miracles without cost.
There was no such thing as an ability without a price, either.
And the more powerful the ability, the greater the cost it demanded.
‘…Is she lying?’
Nisha had always claimed that sleep was the only price she paid.
She seemed to genuinely believe it, or at least wanted to believe it.
‘…Now is not the time to say anything.’
However, it was clear—either she didn’t fully understand the consequences of her powers, or she knew and was hiding it.
Either way, the cost could not be as simple as she thought.
It could very well be that whatever was happening, it only occurred while she was asleep. It was something he would need to investigate, but it wasn’t urgent enough to press her now.
“For now… I’m just glad you’re back to your senses. The Tun doesn’t seem to be feeling well, so I’ll take her inside first.”
Rather than interrogating or questioning his subordinate, Kagan decided that hiding her and allowing her to rest took priority.
Of course, he didn’t think anything drastic would happen immediately, but…
‘She still looks exhausted.’
The most important thing now was letting her rest.
