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"…human…"
A sniffle caught his ears first, followed by something wet soaking his collar.
Shuffle
'…?'
Something wet was wrapped over his forehead too.
"Human!"
Fwish
Cale blinked once, seeing a teary dragon's face focused in his narrow vision.
"…Mm."
If he hadn't heard the sniffles first he would've flinched hard in surprise. Why was Raon hovering over his face anyway?
"Human, you woke up after 5 days, 2 hours, 25 minu-"
"Okay, okay."
The child would start counting the seconds next. It would continue until Cale patted his head, that much he had learned in the past few months.
Pat, pat
"Young master."
"Cale nya."
Next was the butler, and the two cats curled around his arm.
Pat, pat
Swish
Cale blankly patted the children's heads one by one as Ron changed the washcloth over his forehead.
"Your fever is still high, young master."
"Cale nya…"
"Human, keep sleeping! I'll wake you up when it's time to eat!"
"Yeah! We'll stay here nya, so don't worry!"
"…"
Pat, pat
Did the children think he would worry if left on his own? Wasn't that perhaps the only time he wasn't worried?
"Mm."
But he couldn't refute the children who were clearly concerned, their paws as if stuck to the sides of his shirt.
—Cale…
The redhead shut his eyes.
He didn't want to worry the children.
—Let them know, Cale. It's not-
'No.'
Pat, pat
He couldn't do that.
—…
A burn lingered in his throat. An urge to cough emerged again, but he couldn't do that, not here. The metallic taste spread over his tongue.
Cale briefly clenched his jaw, trying to breathe through the spasms, the urge to throw up everything.
—It'll take a week in the minimum.
The voices of his ancient powers, the ones he had heard before a faint sniffling, echoed in his ears.
The crybaby had, well, cried mostly. Super rock and the Sound of the Wind had explained instead.
—Your plate is too unstable, Cale. You'll die if this continues.
—Do you understand how much you're overworking your body? Your plate is balanced, but it's somehow no better than how it had been before.
—Cale…even Crybaby won't be of any help at some point.
—S,sob, Cale-
Shrieks filled his ears next, the roar of dead mana and blood red thunderbolts ravaging through the field, and a blow aimed at his neck he hadn't been able to dodge in time.
Was he supposed to be grateful he hadn't been decapitated instead?
—Don't speak until you recover.
The thief's voice was unusually firm. Cale ignored it.
If it hadn't been for the issue of his plate, crybaby would've healed his throat in an instant. Well, not an instant, but an injury he would have to endure for at least a week more made Cale feel frustrated to no end.
"Human?"
"Cale looks like he's planning to blow something up again, nya."
"Hehe, will we get to loot a bad guy again?"
".."
Tap, tap
Ron sent the redhead a sidelong glance. Cale wisely kept his eyes shut. He hadn't heard a word.
The ancient powers continued explaining, hoping the redhead would listen to some extent.
—It'll worsen if you ignore it, Cale. Even if you don't tell the children, inform your butler.
—He's right, you idiot. Do you even understand how much pain you'll have to endure all alone?
'…'
There wasn't anything new about it.
'It's not that bad.'
He remembered the many times he'd coughed up blood, or the unbearable agony he had to endure when retrieving the Sky Eating Water. Compared to all those times, the sting in his throat was hardly felt.
Besides, it wasn't as if he spoke a lot in the first place.
—Use healing potions. It'll lessen the pain-
'No.'
There were different grades of potions Alberu had sent, even though they had enough in the County. From highest grades potions capable of healing most internal injuries, though some required further treatment, to the lowest grade ones that he took often after minor scratches and wounds—there was hardly any lack in the many options he had.
But still.
'It's just a waste.'
Crybaby would heal him after fixing his plate yet again. Why would he use something like a potion when he could get better on his own?
—…
He understood the injury was serious. The insides of his throat, the nodules were inflamed, spasms emerging in irregular bouts. Maybe if it helped him recover instantly, instead of being used as a painkiller at best, he might've taken one. But even then, what excuse would he give the others to consume a highest grade healing potion, or call someone like Jack to help him?
Fwish
Pat, pat
It didn't make sense.
He didn't feel deserving in the least.
It was a minor issue, a small amount of pain at best, so it was fine.
—Cale…
It was fine.
****
Shuffle
"I've pushed back the award ceremony to a later date. When was the last time you slept anyway?"
"…"
Cale quietly looked at the smiling blond. He made sure to make the disrespect clear in his gaze.
"Haha, young master Cale does look tired…"
"Tired? He looks like he's on his deathbed."
"I won't die until I see you coronated, your highness."
"…"
Rosalyn chuckled quietly. The redhead didn't understand that his words would only be received as touching by the Crown Prince, rather than a snarky joke.
Tap, tap
Clink
The discussions continued, though Alberu was mostly seen glaring at Cale, who quietly sipped on the tea. Rosalyn watched the scene, amused, noting the redhead's effortless tactics to get on someone's nerves. She could really make use of it with her own family.
"That aside, how is your health now?"
"Raon-nim informed me that he didn't wake up for five days."
"... Five days?"
Alberu hadn't heard of the exact details in the aftermath of a recent battle. But when he looked towards the man in question, there wasn't a hint of concern on the redhead's face.
Clink
"I'm fine."
Tap
Rosalyn and Alberu watched quietly as the latter continued swirling the cup in his hand, not saying anything more.
"…"
Tap
If it was any other time they might've laughed, Alberu looking annoyed for most part, Rosalyn chuckling and offering the Crown Prince vague sympathies.
Clink
If it wasn't for Cale's arm that briefly shook, the pale, almost deathly complexion of his skin, and the irregular breaths they could hear even without consciously paying it mind.
A few, obligatory words were all he had spoken.
It was as if there was a distance, a wall that hadn't been there before.
Was it because of sickness?
The way Cale was avoiding looking at them, the way his eyes flickered to everywhere but to the concern in their gazes?
"…"
Clink
Alberu and Rosalyn quietly shared a glance.
The air in the room was heavy, still.
Cale, whose back was soaked in cold sweat, didn't notice either.
The meeting ended an hour before the expected time. If either of the two saw the relief in the redhead's expression they didn't mention it, hoping that he would return to rest if nothing more.
****
"He doesn't look well, nya. He's stopped eating too."
"…Mm. But he ate the apple pie I brought…"
"Wasn't that only a bite?"
"…Mm…"
"Cale nya must be sad, because he can't go out."
"Weak human hates going out, though…he likes sitting still all day…"
"He doesn't look happy, nya. Not happy at all."
"…Mm…"
The three children averaging nine-years-old collectively racked their brains. It was because Cale had started skipping any and all meals, only ever drinking the warm tea Ron prepared, or the soft and soggy apple pies Raon did.
Having already looked sickly before, his complexion had turned even worse, the bones nearly visible through his wrist. It hurt to see. More than that, it hurt that the redhead seemed oblivious to it all, his gaze more foggy than not these days.
"We should call him out to play, nya."
"He hates moving."
"I'll make him fly! Just to the garden outside, so weak human wouldn't be annoyed either!"
Pat, pat
"That's a good plan, dongsaeng."
"Hehe."
The children quietly giggled amongst themselves, rushing to Cale's room.
"Human!"
"Cale nya!"
Fwish
"Hm?"
A soft, soft gaze met their own. But Cale, who would've usually asked 'what's wrong?' or picked the siblings up in his arms, stood still in his spot, holding a book.
It was a bit odd, but the children didn't let themselves feel down so quickly.
"Human, human. Let's go out and play!"
"Just to the garden, nya. You can read there too."
"The weather is good too, nya! We'll only play until dinner!"
The two siblings climbed up the table beside, jumping over Cale's arms. The redhead's hand patting them didn't shake like earlier, but they were too cold to touch.
"Human, let's go!"
Pat, pat
Cale didn't smile.
They hadn't noticed it until now, but the children had grown too accustomed to seeing the redhead smile whenever they called him to play out.
Never once had he refused them.
"Later."
Never before.
"…Human…"
"…"
Raon and Hong were too shocked to respond, but Ohn asked quickly, concern clear in her gaze.
"Are you okay? Should we call grandpa Ron nya?"
Fwish
Pat, pat
Cale shook his head.
His arms were ice cold, and his face indifferent.
"No."
That was all he said, putting down the siblings again.
"I'll play later."
'…Huh?'
Raon noticed it only for an instant.
'Why does human sound so weak?'
His human had always been very, very weak, but never once had the young dragon heard him speak so quietly, almost as if he was in pain.
"Human?"
The redhead didn't hear the child's whisper, walking away.
Tap, tap
The voices of his ancient powers continued in his mind, over the ringing in his ears.
—Just inform Ron, Cale. Only him-
'No.'
It was etched in his mind. The concern and hurt obvious in the children's eyes, trying to focus on his health even when that was the last thing that should've crossed their minds.
Children were supposed to live and eat freely.
Tap, tap
And not waste their energy on someone like him, who couldn't even agree to a wish as simple as playing with them.
****
It was his fault.
'Why couldn't I…'
Click, click
The sound of a scabbard clicking over and over resounded through the empty hallway.
Tap, tap
If he hadn't been so useless, no, if he had pushed himself just a bit further, would Cale still be like this?
Tap
Fwish
Choi Han turned around.
Because Cale hadn't said a word, he realised the latter was there only when he sensed a familiar presence.
"…Cale-nim."
A brief nod.
Now, the redhead wasn't even calling out his name, let alone sharing any further words. It had been like this since the recent battle, where Choi Han had lost his footing briefly in the midst of an attack, causing Cale to deflect the same when he was already occupied with shielding the entire field.
It still rang vividly in his ears.
The bout of coughs that racked the redhead's body afterwards, the sound of his knees hitting the dirt too clear in his ears.
The fight had still continued.
And Cale had been hurt again, nearly ki-
"Choi Han?"
The swordsman's eyes opened wide.
It wasn't because the latter called him out, but because his tone sounded so cold when he did.
Whooosh
Choi Han stood still, trying to push the endless uncertainty and doubt in his own abilities aside.
Are you fine, he wanted to ask.
Have I done something wrong—the question burned his skin.
I'm sorry.
Ultimately, that was all he wanted to say. For everything, since the beginning. For the many times crimson soaked the redhead's coat again, and for his trust in Choi Han's skills that had never once receded.
"…it's nothing, Cale-nim."
Whoosh
The words scattered with a breeze, only regrets lingered.
"Mm."
Cale didn't prod further.
His expression, still indifferent and cold, remained the same even as he walked past the swordsman.
The chill breeze as if burned his skin.
Choi Han looked down, finding it harder than ever to raise his head back again.
****
"Cale."
Clink
The sound of a glass cup rang too loudly in the quiet space.
Cale met the other's gaze, holding his words.
Eruhaben wanted to call him an unlucky bastard again, with the way his shoulders hunched down, his gaze out of focus.
The ancient dragon had assumed the redhead would rest, even for a single night alone, now that he was back home.
"Is it to your liking?"
He'd heard from the children that the unlucky bastard was nearly starving himself, not even listening to Ron, when he usually did.
But he never skipped tea, the warm, sweet one his butler prepared, so the ancient dragon had tried searching for similar varieties in both continents. Varieties of tea leaves, that was.
Fwish
"It's good."
Cale nodded briefly, a hint of satisfaction flickering across his face.
It made Eruhaben sigh in relief, as ridiculous as the realisation was.
'Never in my thousand years of life…'
Just seeing the redhead sip on the tea he'd brought made him feel happy. Cale wasn't even smiling, let alone saying a word, like he usually did. He knew the latter wasn't one to babble, but never before had his words been so faint, so rare to be heard.
Tap
Clink
'Is it cold?'
Cale's breath was unusual, a bit ragged. A faint golden mana flickered in the air, making the space warmer.
The redhead's condition still didn't improve.
'Is he still hurt?'
Eruhaben had heard from Choi Han how bad Cale's injuries had been this time, the attack too lethal.
Was it that?
Tap, tap
The reason his figure was so thin now, his gaze so weak?
'Hmm.'
Eruhaben tried hard to think of it.
'Was it only the recent battle?'
Tap
'Or the one before that, when the little kid was almost hurt?'
Clink
'It's tough taking care of children too, so is it that?'
Eruhaben thought of it more and more.
'Or…'
The many reasons that might tire Cale to this extent.
Clink
Tap
'Too many.'
When he thought of the reasons that could exhaust the feeble human in front of him, there were too many.
"…"
He was a dragon, a race of pride and poise and dignity.
Tap
Eruhaben refilled the other's cup, stopping Cale from doing it himself.
Clink
It was the only thing he could do, anyway.
Until the time Cale departed, Eruhaben observed the other wordlessly, the slow movements, the quiet sips.
His own tea tasted too bitter, so he instead found relief in the redhead drinking the same.
'I should try looking for more.'
Better tea leaves, that was. Something that could erase the emptiness from one's gaze.
****
"Orabeoni!"
Fwish
Pat
Cale patted the head of the child hugging him, careful not to mess her hair, and the head of Basen who was standing awkwardly to his side.
"...hyung-nim."
Cale swallowed the blood rising to his tongue, nodding briefly.
"Have you two been well?"
"Yes!"
"…We should be the ones asking that, hyung-nim."
Pat
It was hard.
It was getting harder to focus on the conversation instead of the feeling of something clawing through his throat, swallowing the blood only making it worse. Cale had been avoiding eating for the same reason, but he didn't want to throw up blood in front of his siblings. He wanted to ask if their studies and practice were going well, but just opening his mouth felt harder than anything.
'…damn it.'
"Um, orabeoni…"
Lily and Basen shared a glance.
A similar conclusion formed in the minds of the two.
"Hyung-nim, please continue resting. We only wanted to greet you briefly, since you'll stay for more days this time."
"Orabeoni, let's meet at dinner! I want to show you how much I've learned!"
"…That as well."
Pat, pat
"Okay."
Cale nodded, looking at his siblings' bright expressions. Something about it felt odd, but the thought didn't linger in his mind for long.
—Cale.
'I got it.'
He'd spoken a few words at best, and it was already this bad.
"See you later, then."
The remaining words were left buried. He hoped he didn't seem like a nuisance to his siblings, now that he had started acting even more distant than what the original owner of his body had done once.
Tap, tap
'Was it the gift?'
Looking after the children averaging nine-years-old every day, he'd grown better at judging a child's expression.
Lily and Basen had clearly looked uneasy, even for a brief instant.
Cale wondered what the matter was, but no reason formed in his mind, except maybe the rather mundane souvenirs he'd brought home this time.
'…Mm. Probably.'
A sting rose in his chest.
Had he grown so careless he couldn't even keep a track on his siblings' likes and dislikes now?
Tap, tap
"Cough…"
Cale wiped the blood now freely trickling down his face. It didn't hurt any more than it already did.
****
The day had started wrong, that was the problem.
He'd woken up in the break of dawn and rushed to the bathroom, almost waking up the children. Usually, it wasn't this bad. No, for the last five days, the pain had only grown, but even during the worst bouts he could swallow the blood and pretend it was fine, that he was okay.
But from the morning he'd thrown up four times already, even before Ron came in.
Tap, tap
"Huff…"
The sweet tea which normally soothed his throat had made him wince, and that brief reaction had been enough to let his butler know that something was wrong as well.
"…Cough…"
Tap, tap
Hours after lunch had passed, and he'd only escaped his butler's keen gaze on a clumsy excuse to go out for fresh air for a brief moment.
And now, having held in the coughs for most of the day, Cale had doubled over before even reaching the garden, his figure sliding against the wall.
"…huff…huff…"
The spasms as if seized his neck. The suffocating feeling hadn't been this bad, even when he'd almost fainted from the pain a day before.
"Cough, cough!"
The redhead clutched his throat, digging his nails deep enough a bead of blood formed at the edges.
His eyes burned, blurring his vision.
Tap, tap
"Cough…"
The shouts of the ancient powers mixed with a quieter tone in his tone. Cale felt something pat his back. He wanted to throw it all up, but it was as if something was blocking his throat, something heavy and sharp.
Pat
"Cough, cough!"
It hurt so much he wondered when he would faint. It was similar to the past, except he couldn't even breathe properly this time.
"…!"
A hiss escaped his clenched jaws, as he grasped the sleeves of the arm supporting him.
"Ron-"
It was too hard and too annoying.
He hadn't expected it would be this bad, but even then, even then, it was only pain at best. He'd cough up blood and that would be it. His plate would mend and then his body would.
But what hurt more than the burn was the hand patting his back slowly in circles, the arm preventing his body from falling into a puddle of its own blood.
"Cough, cough!"
Drip
Something other than blood trickled down his face.
His vision morphed in shades of black and grey, the edges blurred between reality and pain.
Pat
He wanted to say something else.
To not tell the children, lest they skipped meals over a useless worry.
That he was fine, he would be anyway, after a week or more.
"Please-"
But a plea was all that formed, his body leaning against something warm, his own blood too cold to touch.
Out of the corner of his eye he caught it.
Just before Cale lost consciousness, the image of Ron's neat sleeves crumpled and soaked in his blood entered his vision.
"…Cough…"
He didn't deserve to utter an apology, let alone meet the other's gaze.
****
A faint shuffle was what broke him out of his daze. Because he hadn't heard a young dragon counting again, Cale thought he was still asleep, lost in a nightmare.
Fwish
His own breaths rang clearly in his ear.
'...fever?'
The burn lingered, duller now, and his skin felt scorching yet cold at the same time.
There was something covering his shivering arms. It was warm, but not enough to shake away the chill.
"Young master."
Cale didn't open his eyes, breathing faintly. Ron already knew he was awake, so there was no need to make an effort to say something.
Tap, tap
The butler didn't say anything for a while.
Cale quietly listened to a shuffling sound, the rhythmic change of the washcloth over his head. It was the only comforting part about this whole mess.
"Are you still in pain?"
"…"
A quiet sigh left his lips.
His eyelids weighed, heavy and limp.
Tap
"I've sent the children away for a while."
Shuffle
"So you don't have to speak unnecessarily, young master."
"…"
Cale briefly opened his eyes, gazing up at the ceiling.
It was slightly dim, just enough to feel comfortable.
Tap
A brief silence ensued before a cold voice was heard in the room. It was how Ron usually spoke, though Cale found himself paying more attention to it then.
"From the day you returned back, you haven't been speaking like usual."
He thought it was odd.
Ron spoke as usual, a hint of a clinical indifference in his tone, yet the redhead didn't feel it.
He didn't feel uneasy, not in the slightest.
"… There seems to be a problem with your throat as well. I've observed blood on your handkerchief quite a lot these days, young master."
The words brushed over his skin, quiet and steady. Not a hint of doubt could be heard, like it was meant more as an assertion than a confirmation.
Cale closed his eyes between the spasms. The intricate patterns over the ceiling appeared in the darkness of his vision, quivering briefly.
Tap
He took a quiet breath and then slightly, just enough that perhaps an assassin might notice it, nodded his head.
"…"
Silence ensued.
It wasn't uncomfortable, though there was weight, a kind of contemplation he could feel rather than see.
"I see."
That was all he heard.
The blanket over his arms was changed after a moment. Cale didn't understand how the butler had realised, about this or about everything else.
Just as he was about to drift back to sleep-
"Young master."
Cale opened his eyes, the pain dull enough to breathe now. There were many things, he supposed, Ron could ask or confirm. If he didn't speak a word Cale would understand that too.
"Is there anything you require in particular?"
'…'
He tried not to show the surprise on his face.
It was hard to maintain the indifference he had no difficulty putting up the last week.
He couldn't nod, nor could he say a word.
"Then."
Shuffle
The washcloth over his forehead was changed again.
It was cold, comfortable.
"Are you in a lot of pain?"
It was the same question Ron had asked earlier.
—Cale.
The voices of his ancient powers overlapped with the butler's.
It was getting harder to stay still.
'It's not a lot.'
He was only a bit surprised, having not expected the sudden intensity in the spasms, or the fact that he would end up fainting in the end.
So really, he hadn't intended it.
Cale hadn't intended it.
He really had no intention of staying silent for so long that his butler nodded on his own, understanding something he couldn't tell.
Shuffle
Thanks to the Crybaby, he really was in hardly any pain at all.
Compared to the first time he'd felt his throat constrict and spasm, the feeling of death approaching ever so near, this much was nothing.
"Please rest for now, young master."
But he couldn't say a word.
The fever was not letting him speak, that must be it. He could speak even when the ancient powers shouted in his mind, so the only reason he could think of now was the fever.
His focus drifted in and out of consciousness, making it harder to think coherently.
"…Young master…"
Cale heard the latter say something more, but he couldn't focus.
'…huh?'
—Rest for now.
Was it Super Rock, or was it his butler?
A brief, jumbled series of words caught his ears just before his consciousness drifted.
It was Ron informing him, that he would only inform the others of his sickness, and that he wouldn't be able to speak much from the strain for a few more days.
'…'
The butler's tone had still been cold.
Then why did Cale feel so relieved?
He didn't understand, but he pushed aside the useless thoughts, quickly drifting back to sleep.