I Want To Die One Day Before You - Chapter 82
He opened his eyes.
A sharp light pierced through the hazy vision. A faint smell of medicine tickled his nose.
Where is this?
Suppressing the burning pain in his chest, Rufus instinctively searched for the sword he usually kept at his waist. However, his hand grasped at nothing.
Where’s his sword?
In a moment of panic, Rufus abruptly sat up, and his eyes met those of a woman.
“Ah.”
The woman sitting beside the bed where Rufus lay blinked her eyes.
The woman, who made eye contact, looked terribly flustered. Rufus felt the same.
He had seen that face before. Who was it?
As Rufus scrutinized the woman’s face, she moved closer, tears welling up in her eyes.
“Lord Rufus! My goodness, you’re awake! Are you lucid?”
Her voice carried an unexpected urgency.
Rufus, enduring the pain in his chest, stared blankly at her.
“You… Who were you again?”
“It’s Fertina! Doctor Fertina!”
Fertina…
He remembered now. The doctor who had insisted on following Rufus to save Prince Tarek.
“I must tell everyone about this! Everyone, Lord Rufus is awake!”
Doctor Fertina sprang from her seat.
Rufus was bewildered.
“Hey…”
“Sir Iruel! Lord Rufus is awake! Quick, call the soldiers!”
Without waiting for a response, Doctor Fertina rushed to open the tent entrance.
“What? The Lieutenant’s up?”
Iruel, who had been dozing off at the entrance, jumped to his feet.
“Oh, Lieutenant! You really made it back! I thought you were gone for good! Do you know how worried I was?”
Iruel hurriedly entered and threw his arms around Rufus, who was sitting on the bed, causing Rufus to emit a low grunt involuntarily.
“Sob, Lieutenant! I missed you!”
Iruel embraced Rufus with feigned sobs, creating a reunion scene that could be viewed without tears.
“Lieutenant, I’ve kept all our squad members safe, you know? But to think that you were in a coma! You don’t know how much my heart has been burning all day.”
Rufus involuntarily grimaced.
“Iruel.”
“Sob, thank you so much for calling my name so kindly. Do you need anything? I’ll fetch it right away.”
“My sword.”
“Ah, your sword, Lieutenant? I’ve been keeping it safe. I made sure it was well polished, shining bright. Did I do well?”
“Get lost.”
Rufus snatched his sword back from Iruel and spat out bluntly. With those words, Iruel was dragged away by Doctor Fertina, who had been standing behind.
“Let go, Doctor Fertina! I haven’t finished communicating with the Lieutenant yet!”
Iruel, seized by Doctor Fertina, struggled and protested.
“You’ve seen he’s safe! Lord Rufus is still a patient!”
“No! I want to feel the Lieutenant’s warmth a bit longer! Though of course, there’s no such thing! Lieutenant!”
Iruel’s outcry eventually led to him being driven out by the soldiers who crowded in.
“……”
Rufus was bewildered.
What’s with that guy?
What kind of medicine did Iruel mistakenly take? Or is he causing a drunken scene without a drop of alcohol in his system?
Doctor Fertina sighed and laid Rufus back down on the bed.
“Don’t move for a while. Your injuries haven’t fully healed yet.”
“Injuries? What are you talking about…”
“Don’t you remember? You were severely injured in the battle with the demons yesterday.”
Doctor Fertina covered Rufus with a blanket again. Only then did Rufus realize the source of the intermittent pain spreading through his body.
Beneath the lightly draped shirt, his skin stung. Pressing with his hand, he felt a deep cut that was still present.
The wound was well closed. It seemed someone had used magic to cauterize the bleeding area while Rufus was unconscious.
‘I was stabbed in the heart.’
The strike Prince Tarek had swung at him flashed before his eyes like a hallucination.
His spine still chilled. It was a miracle he hadn’t died on the spot. Rufus himself couldn’t understand how he was still alive.
The last thing he remembered was the sight of Prince Tarek staggering and coughing up blood. Rufus had swung his sword at him.
After that.
What happened?
“Where is the Demon King?”
Rufus asked cautiously.
How had the attack by the demons ended?
According to the original plan, Rufus should have declared to the subjugation army that he had killed the Demon King. Afterward, the demons, having lost their leader, should have acknowledged their defeat and fled. It should have ended in human victory.
Did it end that way?
Rufus waited for the doctor’s answer, clutching his throbbing heart. Instead of replying, Doctor Fertina offered a meaningful smile and turned to the captains standing behind her. By now, one by one, having heard the news, they had gathered in the tent.
“Lord Rufus.”
The captains knelt before Rufus in quick succession.
“We congratulate you. The merit of beheading the Demon King is immense. The glory of victory belongs to you, Lord Rufus.”
The unit’s captains said to Rufus with trembling voices.
With that declaration, Rufus felt a heavy drop in his heart.
It was a success.
