The Guide Played Her Role as a Stand-in a Little Too Well - Chapter 8
It felt like catching a glimpse of an unexpected aspect.
But come to think of it, when a cat first guards against a person, it looks like this, doesn’t it?
It’s something I have to go through anyway.
Right now, let’s think of it not as dealing with a person but as dealing with a cute little cat.
Considering his circumstances, the hostility towards me slowly melted away as I spoke with a compassionate smile.
“But Lady Hedonia, you’ll become a guide too. You just need to accept my blood.”
He stared at me with an indifferent face.
His sunken eyes resembled a pile of ashes, his gaze showed no glimmer of hope, leaving a piercing feeling.
“…Blood?”
As Hedonia responded to my words, he visibly trembled.
Even as he engaged in conversation with me, he couldn’t endure the approaching pain, biting his lips or sweating cold sweats.
“Uhh…”
Barely regaining his composure, Hedonia muttered lowly. The refined curses he spat out matched his appearance in their subtlety.
Turning his head away after giving me a sidelong glance, Hedonia sharply said,
“Disgusting.”
Not a vampire and likely not someone who wants to drink blood. There was no thought of him willingly accepting it.
“But it’s the only chance for you to live…”
As I was trying to continue persuading him, I felt discomfort in his current look and hesitated.
‘…Strange.’
Hedonia had one hand inside the blanket, supporting his chin with the other.
A perfectly ‘natural’ posture.
Yet, after hearing his words, the hand inside the blanket seemed unsettling.
“Pardon me…”
I felt not only anxiety but also a growing sense of unease.
With a brief apology, I lifted the blanket. This kind of thing should be sudden.
“What are you doing—!”
As I expected, I found a knife in Hedonia’s hand.
‘From his mealtime?’
Trying to escape with the help of a maid, perhaps. It wouldn’t have been easy.
I quickly grabbed his wrist with a grimace.
‘Not particularly sharp for eating, but…’
It wasn’t difficult to guess what he intended to do with it.
“Let go of this!”
Hedonia struggled fiercely, but being both sick and in pain, it was difficult for him to push me away.
Especially considering that I had eaten a hearty meal to replenish my strength before coming here.
‘Stronger than I thought.’
But, in fact, he had quite impressive strength for someone who was sick.
I managed to wrest the knife away from him, but it wasn’t easy.
“This is dangerous.”
Having successfully taken the knife and letting out a relieved breath, I saw Hedonia, his teeth gritted, raising his hand towards me. In his fiery eyes, there was more despair than regret.
That’s why.
‘I’ll give him a slap.’
I decided to give him one. I closed my eyes firmly.
But I didn’t feel any pain. When I gently opened my eyes, I saw Hedonia with an indescribable expression on his face.
The hand clenched into a fist was trembling.
Hedonia turned his head away from me and threw a pillow.
Phew, fortunately, I wasn’t the target of his outburst.
Turning my head numbly, my finger throbbed.
There was a slight cut on my hand from the struggle to wrest the knife earlier.
“Why do you care if I live?”
True. I’m not particularly interested in other people’s lives. But… it would be different if it were connected to my future.
“I suppose I should show you myself.”
Placing the knife on a shelf far from the bed, I sat on the bed and approached Hedonia closely.
A very romantic atmosphere… yeah, right. I stuck my finger into Hedonia’s mouth before his rage could completely overturn my body.
“Uh—”
It was better to show the effects of the blood immediately. Having lived in pain every day, it was natural for him to want to die.
And in situations like this, actions speak louder than words.
Was he too surprised? Hedonia also seemed momentarily frozen. Confirming that he was swallowing something, I quickly pulled my finger back and stepped away.
“You’re insane…”
Hedonia, who was about to snort, stopped.
He brought his hand to his forehead.
His twitchy and nervous demeanor, with narrowed eyebrows and shouting, seemed to slightly fade away.
Just a few drops of blood, but the effect was clear.
I chuckled and added,
“Looks like you have already improved.”
Hedonia fell silent.
Of course, this was almost like a positive response.
“A life without pain, don’t you want to live like that?”
I presented him with the same offer again, expecting a different response this time.
However, Hedonia’s eyes hardened once again.
While his face was more serene than before, thanks to the disappearance of the headache, the expression remained emotionless.
“I don’t want it.”
He shook his head again. I was taken aback by his strong refusal.
…Wait, what if the protagonist refuses to live?
The sound of my bright future shattering reached me even here.