After Putting the Slayer of the Night to Sleep, I Ran Away - Chapter 35

Ayla and Leo’s eyes met directly as her face peeked into the room.

For a brief second, Ayla’s eyes widened in shock. Then she froze in place, completely still.

Only then did Leo realize he still had his familiars summoned. He let out a quiet sigh.

A massive wolf, a hawk, and a crow were gathered around him, and he was sprawled out right in the middle. It must have looked strange to anyone.

This was going to be a problem.

He still hadn’t decided how much he could tell her. Dismissing them all at once felt awkward, so Leo chose the next best option.

“All of you, leave.”

Startled by his voice, Ayla rushed into the room in a panic.

“Wait, you don’t have to do that.”

But it was already too late. Cro and Wiltus had flown out the window, and Wolf had leapt out effortlessly right behind them.

“No, wait.”

Ayla leaned out the window, clearly alarmed.

Leo quickly reached out to stop her, but she didn’t even flinch. She leaned farther forward, peering down from the window ledge.

Her bright blue eyes searched the garden below, clearly worried.

It looked like she was genuinely afraid for Wolf. But Wolf was a familiar, not a real animal. That height meant nothing to him.

Only after she saw Wolf crossing the garden unharmed did she finally sigh in relief. She then turned to Leo with a scolding glare.

“Your Highness, what were you thinking, letting him jump from this height?”

“What?”

“This is the third floor. Birds can fly, but that wolf doesn’t have wings.”

“Are you seriously worried about him?”

“Of course, I am. What if he had gotten hurt jumping down from here? That would be awful.”

“Lady Ayla, maybe you didn’t notice, but he is one of the largest wolves that exist. He could take down a beast, and still not lose. He’s not someone you need to worry about.”

“But he’s your friend, isn’t he?”

Friend.

The word caught him completely off guard, and he had no response.

Ayla didn’t wait. She looked right at him and continued her firm scolding.

“If he came all the way here just to see you, then you two must be really close. Even if he can’t speak, he still has feelings. You can’t treat him like that, Your Highness. You need to be kind to him.”

“That’s not what I meant…”

“Then don’t do things like that again. No more tossing them out from high places. Promise me, alright?”

“…Fine. I promise.”

Leo gave a reluctant nod but couldn’t help asking the question on his mind.

“Weren’t you scared? Cro might not look like much, but the other two could easily kill a person. They’re predators.”

“Of course I was surprised. And yes, I was scared. But you were right there with them. They looked comfortable around you.”

Comfortable.

He hadn’t thought of it that way.

Leo imagined how he must have looked, resting with his face buried in Wolf’s fur. The image made him let out a crooked smile.

“I’m a little jealous, honestly. Animals seem to really like you, Your Highness.”

“What did you say?”

Leo couldn’t help it. He burst out laughing.

“Animals liking me? That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard, Lady Ayla.”

Not once had he thought of himself that way.

Even when he wandered through the mountains alone, no wild animal ever came near him. Not even the smallest insect approached him.
When he had collapsed in the snow-covered peaks, freezing and dying, the creatures nearby had only watched him from a distance.

Feeling slightly embarrassed by Leo’s reaction, Ayla pressed her lips together and murmured quietly.

“I don’t know if it was that funny, but Bami seems to like you at least.”

“I see. This cat…”

Leo looked down at Bami with a puzzled expression, the laughter gone from his face.

Bami, still perched comfortably on his lap, stretched out and licked his shoulder gently.

It was the same spot where Wiltus had landed earlier and left a wound.

Leo’s brow furrowed sharply.

The cat was licking his blood.

“Was it a demonic beast after all?”

He muttered to himself.

“My goodness, you’re hurt.”

Ayla leaned in, alarmed as she noticed the injury on his shoulder.

Leo flinched slightly when her breath brushed close. At that exact moment, the cat jumped down from his lap and walked out the open door with an elegant sway of its tail.

Leo watched Bami go with a confused look, but quickly turned his head again when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“Take it off, Your Highness.”

“What?”

“I need to see the wound, don’t I?”

“It’s fine. It’s not serious.”

“You’re bleeding. How is that not serious? Just take it off and wait here. I have ointment in my room, I’ll bring it right away.”

She spoke firmly, as if scolding a child, then turned around and left the room.

Left behind all of a sudden, Leo stood there with a dazed look, now seriously wondering whether he was actually supposed to take off his shirt.

“This is ridiculous.”

Grumbling, he shook his head and began to unbutton his black shirt. He stood up, thinking he could just say he already treated the wound before she came back. As long as he changed his shirt, it should be fine.

At least, that’s what he thought.

Until Ayla returned with a basket of medicine and her expression changed.

“Let me see.”

“See what?”

“Your shoulder. You said you already applied the ointment, right? Then let me check.”

“This is getting strange. Are you saying you don’t trust me?”

Leo looked at her with disbelief, but Ayla met his gaze with a firm, slightly annoyed look and spoke clearly.

“Your Highness, on the first day I arrived here, the ointment your butler brought smelled strongly of mint. I only put a small amount on my finger, and the scent filled the entire room. But now, there’s no scent at all.”

Leo said nothing.

“Do you want me to take your shirt off for you?”

“You really are not easy to deal with, Lady Ayla.”

Leo sighed and muttered under his breath, unfastening the rest of his buttons with a resigned expression.

As he finally removed the shirt, Ayla let out a quiet breath of relief, thinking she could finally treat his wound. She walked over to the table, picked up the ointment and bandages from the basket, then turned toward him.

“Please come sit here.”

But the moment she saw him sitting in front of her with his shirt fully off, her eyes widened slightly, and she quickly looked away.

She had only meant for him to lower the fabric around his shoulder, not to take it all off.

But now that he was already half undressed, it felt even more awkward to tell him to put it back on.

She had no idea where to look.

Swallowing hard, flustered and embarrassed, Ayla tried to act as if nothing was wrong. She opened the lid of the ointment jar.

“Just treat the wound quickly and go. He probably couldn’t reach it properly on his own, that’s all.”

Ayla focused her eyes on his wounds, and her eyebrows instantly furrowed.

“This must be so painful. What happened? Was it those animals from earlier?”

Blood was still seeping from three sharp cuts that looked like they had been made by claws. Just in case, she leaned in to check more carefully. As expected, there was another wound behind his shoulder.

“My goodness. So that big bird that was sitting on your shoulder really did this?”

“I told you. Wiltus is a bird of prey. His talons could tear a person apart.”

“But still, what kind of bird leaves a friend’s shoulder like this? You should scold him properly.”

“That is a little…”

Leo hesitated. He was not sure where to start correcting her.

The fact that she had casually called the familiars his friends was already strange, and now she was telling him to scold them.

He gave a short laugh. The situation felt completely unfamiliar to him.

He had only ever given commands to his familiars. The idea of scolding them had never even occurred to him before.

“I should disinfect the wounds first.”

Ayla turned away from him and reached for the basket.

She took out a clean white cloth, soaked it in alcohol, then carefully reached toward his injured shoulder.

“This will sting a little. Please hold still.”

The moment the cloth touched the wound, a sharp pain shot through the area.

The injury was deep, so the pain made sense. But Leo’s expression remained calm and still.

“Does it hurt?”

Her voice was gentle with concern, and warm breath brushed over the wound a moment later.

Startled, Leo turned his head to look at her.

Ayla was softly blowing on the wound after disinfecting it.

So, this is what it feels like to be treated like a child.

He gave a faint, awkward smile. His gaze landed on Ayla’s face. Her brows were deeply knit, even though she was not the one in pain.

Without saying a word, Leo lifted his hand and gently tapped the space between her eyebrows.

“Why are you the one frowning, Lady Ayla?”

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