Villain, Let Me Touch You! - Chapter 64
“How about the pain?”
“I don’t feel any pain at all. Thank you, Doctor Rienna.”
Benz had recovered enough to smile. Speaking seemed much more comfortable for him now.
“Well then, would you mind sitting down? I have a few questions.”
As Benz sat against the headboard, Jamie and Vincenzo quickly brought over chairs for Helios and me. Helios continued to rest his head on my shoulder, showing no signs of discomfort.
“Just until you sit down, Your Highness.”
It was awkward to carry him around like this. At my request, Helios stood up stiffly.
At least he listens well.
A true golden retriever—smart and adorable. Other people would never understand.
Helios and I sat side by side near Benz’s bed. Despite the initial feeling that Helios would never separate from me, he surprisingly sat up with a proper posture, attentively listening to the conversation.
“Did you have another dream this time?” I asked.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“How was your condition before falling asleep?”
“Very good. Since I met Doctor Rienna at the Queen Mother’s palace garden a few days ago, my mind has been clear. I even read about fifty papers.”
Wow, I’m the complete opposite. I’ve only read papers in a state of panic, trying desperately to find a cure for one illness or another.
“The more I read, the clearer my head felt,” said Benz.
Isn’t it usually the other way around? I responded with a perfunctory smile—I really couldn’t relate.
“In summary, you experienced pain after falling asleep. Do you think it’s related to your dreams again this time?”
At the mention of dreams, Benz’s face darkened abruptly.
“If you don’t feel comfortable talking about it, you don’t have to,” I said very cautiously. “I haven’t found any correlation between dreams and pain. I’m just exploring various possibilities since we don’t know the cause.””
Being a doctor investigating the relationship between dreams and illness might make me look like a quack or a fraud.
“No, it’s alright. I can tell you. It’s just that the contents of the dreams are horrifying…”
“Are they horrifying every time?”
Benz nodded.
“How can dreams be horrifying every time?” I muttered under my breath.
Benz answered casually, “Because it’s the same dream every single time.”
“The same dream?”
My instinct screamed. There’s something here.
“Yes, before the pain starts, I always have the same dream. Words become weapons and fly towards me. I don’t know if you can imagine it…”
I’ve seen wizards attack each other with musical notes, so what’s to say I can’t imagine flying letters?
“I think I can try. Please continue.”
Benz, now reassured, continued to describe his dreams with a relieved expression.
“When words collide, it inflicts wounds. My body breaks. No matter how hard I try to escape, I can’t. As time goes on, the wounds on my body grow, until my whole body is covered in them, and just when I think I can’t take it anymore, the pain hits me.”
“You have this dream every time you experience pain?”
“Yes, Most of the time.”
“Even on the day we first met? That day, you wouldn’t have had time to sleep.”
“Ah! On that day, I took a short nap on the bench. The sunshine was particularly nice. But in that brief moment, I had the dream.”
“I see you don’t only dream at night.”
“That’s the first time I’ve ever had a dream during the day.”
I felt like there was a message hidden in the dream. What could it be? Why does dreaming cause pain? No matter how much I pondered, the answer remained eluded me.
I glanced at Helios, who had been silently listening to our conversation. His eyes were deep in thought. He looked so engrossed contemplating, I thought he might have found a clue in the story.
“What do you think, Your Highness?”
“….”
“Your Highness?”
“….What?”
Helios replied, a beat late.
“Did you sleep with your eyes open?”
Helios shook his head. The response was obviously from someone who had been jolted awake.
“What did you say, Rienna?”
About Benz’s dreams. I find them troubling. What are your thoughts on it?”
Helios’s expression darkened abruptly.
“Dreams, yes, dreams… that dream…”
Helios muttered to himself.