Home/I Saved the Villain and Fell Asleep/ch 84

Chapter 84

"The youngest?"

"Kaze, young lady."

Kaze smiled with a face drenched in sweat. Seeing his youthful face left me with mixed feelings.

"How long have you been a shadow?"

I kept patting Kali's back as I asked the shadow.

"Ten years now."

"Right, ten years—wait, ten?!"

Kaze's face looked no older than his early twenties. Ten years would mean he'd been a shadow since he was a preteen?

"Yes! Ten years!"

"Kaze, how old are you?"

"Twenty-two!"

"Then you've been a shadow since you were twelve?"

"Yes! I developed early and was pretty quick, so I became a shadow at twelve."

"B-but you're the youngest..."

I remembered—I'd sent the youngest person on a task, but I'd never asked the actual youngest!

"By age, I'm still the youngest..."

Kaze's face drooped. No wonder he kept eyeing Leo.

"Hmm."

No one must know about my teleportation. It's on a completely different level from storing and retrieving objects or using stored magic.

Realizing he had to keep what he'd seen secret, Kaze knelt on one knee and bowed his head.

"If you wish to eliminate the witness, you may do so, young lady."

"What?"

He's offering to die now? What kind of extreme person is he?!

Even as he spoke of his own death, his eyes sparkled.

"I'm not eliminating anyone! What are you saying!"

"But Hari, it might be better to kill him. You know—if dark mages find out about that ability, they'll swarm like drooling dogs."

Kali extended his right hand, and a dark magic circle with ominous mana appeared in his palm.

Kaze didn't argue. He just bowed his head silently, like someone waiting for orders.

"Kaze."

"Yes, young lady!"

"Besides you, were there any other shadows here today?"

"Only me. No other mana-bearing presence was nearby—just me, you, the young master, and Bibi."

"How can you be sure?"

Kali asked in a dark voice.

"My unique magic specializes in detection, young master. I can sense even the smallest trace of mana."

So the only witnesses to my teleportation were Kali and Kaze.

"Ha, I suppose there's no choice. Get up, Kaze."

"Yes!"

Despite having just spoken of death, Kaze was still spirited. I soothed Kali, who was overreacting to every move Kaze made, and spoke.

"I'm going to place a second binding seal on you."

"What?!"

"Why, don't you want it?"

"Shadows are already sealed against disclosing ducal information. Isn't that enough? Why not just kill me instead..."

"Ugh! Stop talking about death!"

He kept insisting on dying even though I wouldn't kill him. Shadows are supposed to be blindly loyal to the ducal family, but isn't this too much?

"You, you're younger than me, young lady..."

He muttered, seeming to have regained his senses.

"I'll place an overlapping seal. It will be painful—I'm sorry."

I'd heard that being sealed was excruciatingly painful. I was asking Kaze to go through that again.

"Don't apologize, young lady. It's the right thing to do. But if the Duke orders me eliminated as a witness, I won't be able to follow your command."

"I'll talk to Father, so it's fine. And from now on, you're my personal shadow, Kaze."

"What? Me? Yours?!"

"Why? Don't you want to?"

"No?! I'd love to! I'm itching to brag to the other brothers already! They've been nagging me so much about not talking to you!"

Kaze really did talk a lot. How did he manage to stay a shadow with that mouth?

"We'll handle that. But why is he like this?"

"Ah, well..."

Kaze's expression turned visibly worse. Whatever happened, he looked nauseous—he covered his mouth and looked away.

"After you disappeared, the young master... his eyes..."

"Lost it?"

"Yes. I told him you'd vanished rather than gone somewhere, but..."

"It's okay—just say it comfortably."

I covered Kali's ears with both palms. It wouldn't block everything, but it might make Kaze feel better.

"He kept muttering not to leave him. His mana went wild and flames shot up—thankfully Bibi ate most of it, so it didn't spread far."

"...Alright. You can go. I'll talk to Father about your position."

"Yes, young lady!"

After Kaze left, I grabbed Kali's shoulders and pulled him back to meet my eyes.

"Would I leave you behind?"

"You disappeared."

"It wasn't intentional. I had a strange dream, and when I woke up, I was far from the lakeside."

"Throw that club away. It's ominous."

Like a doll from a horror movie—no matter how many times you throw it away, it comes back.

"Is teleportation really that easy? If this gets out, dark mages will be a hassle."

"Never use it in front of people, Hariella."

"I'd like to, but..."

I had a bad feeling. It was just like those situations where you inevitably end up using it.

"I'll wipe out the dark mages for you. Until then, at least."

Kali's eyes flared. Even with his appearance-altering artifact, his dark red eyes seemed to be looking at me.

"What's with the unusually admirable talk?"

I finally looked around—traces of wild burning were everywhere, showing just how shocked Kali had been when I disappeared.

Kali was afraid of me getting hurt or disappearing. It wasn't just familial affection. Definitely. Was this dependence on me, or...

"Kali, you know what? If I ever disappear again against my will, let's promise you won't react like this next time."

"What?"

"Because no matter what, I'll always come back to you."

Was it fixation on me?

"Don't be afraid. Don't despair. So please, don't make that face."

From the moment tears welled in Kali's eyes, my heart wouldn't stop racing. As if sharing his senses, I felt his anxiety throughout my body.

"If you don't want me to lose my mind, don't disappear in front of me like that. I won't listen to your words."

"Our little Kali—since you won't listen, I guess you're hitting puberty! That is the right age for it."

"Who's the one not listening right now?"

Kali pulled away in disgust. Now he felt like the Kali I knew.

"Seems like we never get to actually relax at the lake."

Last time, Dateon and Kali had a fight and we were dragged back down without rest—and today, I hadn't expected a dream visit from the previous goblin.

I took Kali's hand and headed back to the lakeside. Bibi, belly full, was sprawled on the mat.

I walked to the water and looked at my reflection. In the dream, the goblin had horns on his forehead when he teleported... My forehead was smooth. Maybe each goblin is different? Since the club chooses the goblin, and the goblin chooses the club—it means I'm a goblin.

"Where would you find such a pretty goblin?"

"You didn't hit your head, did you?"

Kali placed his hand on my forehead.

"No fever."

"No, I'm fine. That person was also incredibly beautiful, so goblins are just naturally beautiful!"

"That person?"

"Someone~ super handsome, great voice, and looked over two meters tall."

"What?"

Kali's eyebrows twitched. As I walked toward Bibi with my hands behind my back, Kali followed, grilling me about "that person."

"When did you see someone like that? Over two meters?"

"There is~ someone you don't know."

Kali's face instantly filled with disappointment.

Ah, I'd better stop teasing. Seeing that face, my heart softens too easily.

"Just kidding! I saw him in a dream—must have been the previous owner of my Goblin Club."

"What, then he's dead."

He said it was a consciousness, so he's not really alive.

"Let's head down, Kali. We've got a lot to do."

When Father returns, I need to ask about the palace, and I need to tell him about teleportation to place the seal on Kaze.

I could already picture Father clutching his head and collapsing.

...Sorry, Dad. Your daughter's a goblin.

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