Chapter 58

Moreover... no matter how he thought about it, the bed seemed too narrow. It even creaked as if it might collapse at any moment whenever Asad moved. It was remarkable that it had survived the previous night.

At the very least, he should provide a new bed. Having made this decision, Asad wrapped one arm around the waist of the human he had placed on top of him and sniffed his nape. The human's pheromone scent wasn't very noticeable due to his own pheromones that he had covered him with, but doing this allowed him to smell it.

"For a human, you don't smell bad."

As Asad sniffed like a dog, his eyelids grew heavier and heavier. For some reason, he felt sleepy. Come to think of it, he hadn't been able to sleep properly for a while due to the continuous nightmares since the selection began.

Asad yawned long and closed his eyes.

He would just sleep for a moment and then get up.

Anyway, since he was picky about his sleeping place, it would be difficult to sleep for long in a place like this.

So he'd just close his eyes for a bit and then return to the main palace. Thinking this, Asad drifted off to sleep.

***

Kinaine's eyes flew open. His body felt strangely light.

He tried to sit up immediately out of habit, but something felt odd. The bed was moving up and down. No, it wasn't a bed.

'Why am I here...'

Kinaine was lying on top of Asad's body. Moreover, Asad had one arm tightly wrapped around his waist, making it difficult to break free.

After struggling for a while, Kinaine finally managed to get off Asad's body, almost rolling off.

Could he have woken up? He hurriedly checked, but despite the commotion, Asad didn't even flutter an eyelash, sleeping deeply and quietly like a child.

"..."

Kinaine blankly looked down at that face. It was hard for reality to sink in.

The words Asad had said before he lost consciousness swirled in his mind.

'When I was in the human realm, I didn't look like this. This appearance is the result of my transformation after realizing I was a dragon.'

'When I was in the human realm, about half of my body was covered in black scales, and seeing that, you humans called me a monster and treated me carelessly.'

A man with half his body covered in black scales, called a monster.

It was a story all too familiar to Kinaine.

Had he misheard due to the pain? Was he still dreaming? He kept doubting and denying it.

If it wasn't a dream, how could such a thing be possible?

The guild master had shown him Helio's corpse. Though it was too mutilated to recognize, he hadn't doubted it because of the ring on the finger.

Above all, the man before him didn't recognize him. Even when he heard the name Helio, he had only thought it was someone else.

'But how could you be Helio.'

Kinaine's eyes shook greatly.

'How could you...'

However, this was neither a hallucination nor a dream, but reality.

The sense of déjà vu he had felt when he first met the dragon's eyes wasn't a mistake. Asad was indeed Helio. It was unbelievable, but that was the truth.

He had just forgotten all his memories of being Helio. Including Kinaine, himself.

'Why did you forget me?'

It hurt more now than the pain that had felt like his entire body was on fire.

'Was I such a painful memory to you?'

There was no trace of his former appearance left in the sleeping Asad. The black hair that used to darken even under light had changed to a bright color like moonlight, and there was no trace of black scales on his flawless skin.

What was before Kinaine's eyes now was not the man people called a monster, but the beautiful dragon that everyone revered and held sacred. Like a butterfly that can only fly after shedding its unnecessary shell, he had discarded his previous self and found his true form.

Perhaps he too was just one of the shells that needed to be discarded. Accepting this fact was as painful as having his heart torn apart, but...

Kinaine carefully placed his ear on Asad's chest.

Thump-thump.

The strong heartbeat made all the pain Kinaine felt seem insignificant.

'He's alive.'

Helio was alive.

That was enough. If Helio was alive, what did it matter whether he remembered him or not?

Moreover, wasn't he a dragon? Wasn't he a being loved by the gods? With divine protection, nothing in this world could harm him.

'Thank goodness...'

In the past, it had been his job to protect Helio, but he had not only failed but had also become the cause of pushing him into the abyss of misfortune. How powerless and stupid was he, unable to protect even one lover? But the gods would not make the same mistakes as humans.

Kinaine felt relieved. Now no one would dare insult Helio or threaten him with worthless arrows or spears. His lover was in the place furthest from misfortune.

'Why did you forget me... how foolish.'

He must have forgotten because he needed to. One cannot fly far with a heavy shell attached. Even with just fragments of memories from the human realm, Asad had been in pain. How much more painful would it be if he remembered everything?

He should have felt sorry that he hadn't forgotten everything, not resent him for forgetting only himself. How vile and selfish was that?

The gods might have been dumbfounded if they knew. They granted his wish for his lover to be alive, and now he was greedy enough to want his memories of him restored as well.

Asad was right. Humans are greedy and selfish, always wanting something else once they have one thing. He had thought he wasn't such a person, but now he wasn't even sure of that.

Kinaine lifted his face from where it had been resting on Asad's chest. At that moment, he felt a burning sensation inside his nose.

"Ah."

When he wiped under his nose with his hand, he felt a moist liquid. Only after seeing the red blood with his eyes did the pungent smell of blood belatedly rise.

"Haha."

Inappropriately for the situation, he felt like laughing for some reason. He thought the timing was impeccable.

Wasn't it as if the gods had responded? Saying that even if Helio regained his old memories, the future wouldn't change. As if telling someone who was about to die not to be greedy.

"Mmm."

At that moment, the tip of Asad's nose, who had been sleeping quietly, twitched.

"What..."

Muttering as if talking in his sleep, he slowly opened his eyes. Kinaine stared blankly at the only remaining trace of Helio.

"Why do you look like that?"

It was a rather surprised voice. It was understandable to be surprised, seeing someone with a nosebleed as soon as he woke up.

"Ah, this is..."

Before Kinaine could finish speaking, Asad sat up and grabbed Kinaine's chin, examining him closely.

"What's wrong? Is there a side effect from the medicine?"

Come to think of it, he had said that poison was medicine. The memory that had been momentarily forgotten due to the shock of realizing Asad was Helio came back.

"No, it was good medicine. All my wounds have healed."

The strange lightness of his body was because all his wounds had healed. It was truly an amazing medicinal effect. Though it was accompanied by tremendous pain, not unworthy of being called a poison.

"Then why are you bleeding?"

"Ah, that... I accidentally bumped into something while sleeping."

"What? Are you an idiot?"

Fortunately, Asad didn't doubt the words Kinaine said with an embarrassed laugh. As Asad clicked his tongue and looked at him as if he were pathetic, Kinaine didn't know whether to be glad that he had fallen for his lie or to be sad.

"Well, never mind. Take off your clothes for now."

"What?"

Asad didn't repeat himself. With a gesture of his hand, Kinaine's top came off as if it were a living creature.

"W-wait a moment!"

Kinaine desperately cried out while grabbing and blocking the bandages that were unraveling as if he had turned into a snake.

"Why are you doing this?"

"I need to check if you've fully recovered."

"I've recovered! I told you I've recovered!"

"The selection has been delayed because of your injuries. We need to be certain."

"Ah!"

In the blink of an eye, the bandages slipped from his hands. In the end, Kinaine was subjected to Asad's inspection with his upper body completely exposed.

"Hmm, you have healed."

"That's what I said, didn't I?"

The shirt Kinaine had been wearing stuck to the bed covers as if they were one, refusing to come off. When Kinaine tried to tear it off forcefully, it even hid behind Asad's back as if running away.

What kind of magic is this?

Meanwhile, Asad quickly scanned Kinaine's body and clicked his tongue.

"You really look unsightly."