Mr. Kadan in the Deep Forest - Chapter 31
All the grief she had accumulated since childhood spilled out in hot tears. As the tears rolled down her cheeks, they froze in the cold, turning into white frost.
Kadan, who had been silently watching Luna, lifted her up again.
“Let’s go back. Let’s rest.”
Watching Luna wipe her tears with her gloves made his heart ache. Kadan wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. It was a place that made Luna sad.
As Kadan was about to turn back, he suddenly stopped. He sensed something unusual.
He quickly turned his head to look behind him. With the rustling sound, a suspicious shadow moved between the tall fir trees. It wasn’t a beast. It was human.
This was the first time Kadan had encountered a person in the deep forest. Sensing something strange, he pulled the dagger from his belt and threw it toward the figure.
The dagger flew quickly, grazing the man’s arm before embedding into a tree with a loud thud. Normally, someone would have fled in fear, but the man stepped out into the open instead.
『Could it be… Lord Kurua? Lord Kurua right?』
The man, who was as large as Kadan, wore unfamiliar clothing. The foreign language he spoke was also one Kadan had never heard before.
‘But how do I understand what he’s saying?’
Kadan felt something was off and cautiously eyed the stranger.
“Get lost.”
『Don’t you remember me?』
“I said get lost.”
Kadan bared his teeth at the stranger. With one hand still holding Luna, he gripped his sword with the other. Normally, he would have put Luna down to use both swords, but he couldn’t just let her go.
Even without drawing his blade, Kadan could tell that the stranger was stronger than most beasts. He was a troublesome opponent.
“I said get lost.”
Kadan swung his sword with menacing intent, and the sharp wind from the blade barely grazed the stranger’s clothing. Startled, the stranger raised both arms in surrender.
『I don’t wish to harm you.』
The man emphasized that he meant no harm as he stepped back.
『You seem surprised. I’ll greet you properly next time.』
The stranger disappeared into the same fir forest where he had come from, vanishing without a trace. Kadan stared in the direction he had gone for a while before letting his tense shoulders drop.
“Who was that?”
Luna, still clinging to Kadan, looked up at him. The man, who had remained calm in the face of beasts, had been tense when dealing with the stranger.
“I don’t know. But he’s dangerous.”
Let’s go back first. Kadan quickened his pace, keeping Luna in his arms until they reached the cabin.
＊ ＊ ＊
Kadan took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart. He helped Luna remove the fur cloak he had wrapped around her, and assisted her in changing into more comfortable clothes.
“I’ll heat up the bathwater for you…”
He was about to tell her to wait here when Luna suddenly threw herself into his arms.
“Luna?”
Kadan caught her, holding her close as he looked down. Her expression was troubled.
“Why… why was I so hated?”
Memories of her cursed childhood—of being shunned as the “unwanted child”—flooded back. A wave of sorrow rose in her throat until she could no longer hold it in. Hic. Silent tears spilled over.
Kadan offered his chest as a refuge until her crying subsided. Luna buried herself in his solid, broad frame. The steady rhythm of his heartbeat, as gentle as its owner, soothed her.
In the days that followed, Luna often stared blankly into space.
Kadan didn’t disturb her with unnecessary words. When tears fell, he quietly hugged her shoulders. When she couldn’t sleep, he climbed onto the bed and rubbed her back.
And when his body, oblivious to the mood, grew aroused, Luna would wordlessly shed her chemise and climb onto him without hesitation. Her fumbling hips made insertion difficult, but Kadan waited patiently. Once she’d taken him to the end, he took over.
Each time, she bit his shoulders and wept violently—until exhaustion pulled her under after multiple climaxes. This was how Luna purged her grief.
Tonight, Kadan watched Luna sleep beside him before getting up slowly. He brushed his shoulder where her teeth had left marks that were already fading. Disappointing. Though they were scars of her sorrow, he cherished them.
After tidying up, he prepared a warm soup for when she woke. Beads of sweat dotted his forehead, but he didn’t rest. Instead, he readied his hunting gear. He’d gather snowberries she loved and wild boar to roast.
‘If that nuisance tails me again today, I’ll teach him a lesson.’
The stranger from the beast gate appeared like a ghost every hunt. Just yesterday, he’d encountered the man in foreign garb again:
『Don’t be so wary. If I visited Lord Kurua’s house directly, you’d distrust me more—so I wait here. I mean you no harm.』
True to his word, the man didn’t seem to show any hostility. Only familiarity and odd warmth.
