After I died, Everything Changed - Chapter 64

“Is this how you treat someone who came out of concern for you?”

I tried to pull my arm free, but Abel’s grip was unyielding. Escaping his hold with my strength alone was impossible. If Abel truly intended to hold me, there was no way I could break free.

“Are you worried about me?”

“As you know, we’re family, aren’t we?”

“Family.”

Abel let out a breath that hovered between a sigh and a bitter laugh.

“Whenever I’m pushed somewhere, it’s always because of you. Do you realize that?”

“Me? I pushed you?”

His sudden accusation caught me off guard.

“Did I send you here?”

Abel remained silent.

“Then are you saying I was the one who drove you to the battlefield?”

The word “always” grated on my nerves.

His hand still hadn’t released me. I placed my other hand over his, attempting to pry his fingers off.

“Yes. It was always you.”

“…What?”

I hadn’t expected such a direct answer.

“You’re the reason I ended up here, the reason I was sent to war, the reason I keep running, the reason I’m dragged to the depths of hell… all because of you, Deborah.”

“…”

I was taken aback.

Even though I knew Abel was aware of my true identity, hearing that name still made my heart sink.

“I don’t understand.”

I forced a smirk.

“Do you even know what your emotions and words mean?”

“What should I call it? Longing, emptiness, affection, obsession, love, desire—name it whatever you like.”

Emotions that had been hidden beneath the frozen river of winter finally broke through the ice.

At least, that’s how it seemed.

“You’re mistaken. You were just jealous of me. You confused your desire for what I had with wanting me.”

“Think what you will. Even if that’s true, I’ll quench my thirst in my own way.”

“Why now? If you intended to hide it, you should’ve kept it buried forever! Your unchecked emotions are nothing but violence to me!”

At my words, Abel closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, his gaze was steady.

“If I become Irene instead of Deborah, what changes? No, things should’ve changed. Whatever feelings you had, you should’ve let them go when I died!”

Why was I getting angry?

Why, of all people, at Abel?

“You didn’t die.”

“I did. That day, when I drank poison from an unknown source, Deborah died.”

“Yet here you are, standing before me.”

“Can you prove to others that you’re not insane? Do you even believe what you claim?”

If eyes had temperature, Abel’s gaze had long surpassed boiling point.

“Even now, you don’t realize that you and I can never be on the same side?”

“I do. That’s why taking everything you have became the only option.”

“You’re the son of Chloe, who might’ve tried to kill me. You should know your place.”

“If it’s revenge you seek, just say the word.”

“Why? Planning to do it for me?”

“Do you think I can’t?”

He’s lost it.

This guy is definitely insane.

“…You’re crazy. This isn’t affection or obsession. It’s just childishness.”

“If you call my desire for you to look at me, to say my name, to remember me—if you call all that childishness, then so be it.”

“…”

The spot where he held my arm no longer hurt.

Even excruciating pain becomes familiar all too quickly.

“Seems I made this trip for nothing. The answers I sought aren’t here.”

My fingernails dug into the back of Abel’s hand.

Perhaps if his skin tore, he’d let go.

The sensation of scratching his skin was unpleasant.

A wound formed where my nails had been, and blood trickled down.

“…”

Abel’s gaze, which had been fixed on my eyes, slowly shifted to his hand.

The scent of blood mixed with the breeze.

In that tense moment, Abel’s expression twisted.

But he didn’t release my arm.

Instead, he pulled me into his embrace.

And that wasn’t the end of it.

The moment Abel held me, a force like being hit by a carriage surged through me.

Thud—!

“Ugh!”

Everything went dark as I was pulled into Abel’s arms. My head spun dizzily.

Something had definitely struck us.

We hit the ground hard and rolled.

Abel’s body, wrapped protectively around mine, must have taken the brunt of the impact.

“Are you all, right?”

My heart was racing like mad, but Abel’s voice was calm—so calm it was as if nothing had happened.

“…What… what just happened…?”

I couldn’t even tell where the pain started or ended.

At the very least, the part of my head shielded by Abel’s hands seemed fine.

I pushed myself up from the dirt.

Lifting my head, I looked back at the spot where we had just been standing.

“…Is that… a monster?”

It looked like a massive toad, roughly the size of a human.

Why would a monster show up all the way out here—so far from Hecla’s borders?

“Stay where you are.”

Abel unwrapped his arms from around me and stood up.

“W-what do you think you’re doing? You don’t even have a weapon!”

Even for Abel, there was no way he could take on a monster with his bare hands.

He ignored me and casually tore off one of his sleeves.

I stared in confusion—why would he ruin perfectly good clothing? But then, I realized.

He wrapped the cloth around his hand.

Right where I had scratched him earlier.

His movements—wrapping the fabric and tying it off with his teeth—were swift and practiced.

“Don’t move. Keep your eyes closed and stay still.”

He stepped in front of me.

The monster vanished from view behind his tall figure.

Is this really what blood smells like?

In all this chaos, the scent of blood was strangely strong.

It couldn’t be from a minor scratch—did I injure something else?

As I tried to figure out a way out of this, the monstrous toad let out a deep, guttural growl.

Then came a heavy stomp as it moved one of its front legs.

The ground shook beneath us.

What is Abel planning?

Was he seriously going to die with me?

And then it happened.

“Kwaak—!”

The massive toad spat out a stream of thick, green liquid.

Is that… supposed to be spit?

The color alone looked dangerous.

Just then, I noticed the patch of grass beneath its jaw, where the fluid had landed—it was melting into black sludge.

“Dodge it!”

If that hit us, we’d melt too. I was sure of it.

I lunged forward and grabbed Abel’s arm.

But he moved even faster.

He spun me around and used his body to shield mine.

I instinctively squeezed my eyes shut.

Splatter—

Whatever it was, it had come too fast to dodge. And I knew—it had hit someone.

That’s when my hands began to tremble.

The shaking started at my fingertips, quickly spreading up my arms and through my body.

“Abel…”

No… he couldn’t have been hit. He couldn’t have… melted.

I didn’t have the courage to look back.

But I couldn’t just stand there, either.

“Abel!”

I pulled away the arm covering my shoulder and turned to face him.

Hair disheveled, lashes lowered, and—

His heartbeat—calm and steady.

Abel’s body wasn’t harmed. Not even slightly.

Only his clothes had been eaten away by the creature’s spit.

“Abel…?”

He took a small step back.

Something wasn’t right.

His clothes had melted—but his skin was perfectly fine.

It’s glowing…

His skin was glowing faintly, almost ethereally.

The sight left me completely stunned.

“I told you to keep your eyes closed.”

Abel moved away from me as if nothing had happened.

The grass around him had melted in patches, but not a single part of me was hurt.

“Head back this way. And…”

He started to say something more.

But he didn’t get the chance.

The monster moved again.

“Go.”

His voice dropped, firm and commanding.

I obeyed without a second thought.

I turned and ran—raced toward the villa where Elliot was waiting.

“Elliot! Weapons! Get me weapons, now!”

I burst through the door, shouting in a panic.

“What’s going on? What happened?” he asked, startled.

“A monster! A monster appeared!”

I spoke in a rush, practically tripping over my own words. Elliot’s eyes widened as he looked around the villa.

“A sword, a spear—anything! Abel’s still out there fighting it!”

“If it’s Sir Abel’s sword, it’s right here!”

Elliot quickly spotted the weapon and grabbed it, still in its sheath.

Without wasting another second, we ran out of the villa—heading straight back to where I’d left him.

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