With the help of the direct heat from Esther's body, it did not take long for Prince Theron to stop his restless tossing and groaning in his sleep. The shivers on his bandaged body eased, and his shallow breathing had returned to normal. As Esther continued to hold him close, her eyes could not help but appreciate the handsome sight before her.

A well-sculpted face, a slender and sharp nose, thin lips that were slightly parted and those thick eyelashes which were still fluttering a little as if he was on the verge of waking up—the profile of his face from the side still didn't lose its trademark royal charm, even though the skin was pale from the severe blood loss of its owner. As she continued to observe each and every line of his face she noticed how much his face resembled his mother's more than his father's. The cold elegance in it was a male version of Queen Theodora's appearance, although the brown colour of the Crown Prince's hair and the strong line of his manly jaw surely came from the Ivanov bloodline.

Esther let out a shaky breath. 'What am I doing? I must have gone crazy after that unexpected night swims in the river.'

Now that the Crown Prince was at ease, Esther wanted to return to her initial position against the wall. However, just as she was about to move, the unconscious young man's hand squeezed her hand, and this time, his grip was not from a man in pain—it was gentle, seemingly intimate like a lover's caress.

Esther gulped as she felt her heart beating a little faster.

'How can I be flustered due to…?' Her body shivered as she denied what her thoughts were telling her. 'No, I shouldn't be surprised. This is a normal reaction because I am a female, and it is my first time to be this close to the opposite gender, even though he is only a weak human male.' She grumbled under her breath as she narrowed her eyes at the cause of this all. 'This human is a pervert even when he is hurt.'

She was about to move away again, but he held her hand tighter. He even had the audacity to turn to his side and face her, as if testing the limits of her patience.

"What are you doing?! Don't move! Your wounds will—"

Before she could finish, his arm reached out and wrapped around her waist, treating her body like his personal pillow.

Esther was trapped in his arm.

"Y-You…! You cannot be serious! You have to be awake and are taking advantage of my kindness!"

She unconsciously raised a hand, wanting to slap him into oblivion, but then it paused mid-air when she realized that the young man was still truly asleep. She could obviously free herself, but she changed her mind as he seemed to be sleeping more comfortably now compared to earlier.

'Ugh, this insolent human!'

She let out a shaky frustrated sigh and simply pretended that being treated like a pillow did not bother her.

Prince Theron continued to sleep peacefully while the sulking young woman in his arms stayed wide awake for the rest of the night, not even closing her eyes as she took full responsibility for protecting him.

Although they were underground, Esther had counted the hours and knew that morning had come. Esther thought that her pillow role was finally over and she could free herself from him. She slowly moved his hand away from her waist, trying hard not to wake him up, but she swore she saw a light smile hanging on his lips just for a moment.

'Is he awake?' Esther peered closely with a frown on her face. 'Was I mistaken? He still seems to be in deep sleep. Perhaps, he smiled in his sleep because he is dreaming about something good?'

She was about to get up from the mattress, but all of a sudden, she felt a tugging force on her hand, causing her body to fall on top of a certain young man instead of falling back into the mattress. She nearly put her hands on the bandaged part of his chest out of reflex, but thankfully, she was mindful of opening his wounds again and thus she was able to put her arms on the sides of his upper body to break the fall.

"Who gave you permission to sleep beside me?" an icy cold voice echoed within the cabin.

Esther raised her head and met gazes with a pair of dark eyes that shone with a dangerous glint. He was expressionless, but the way he looked at her, she felt like she had committed a terrible crime and was being questioned about her guilt.

"I…Your Highness…You were feeling cold…" She wanted to explain why she slept next to him, but for reasons she could not understand, her words were failing her. It was as if all rational thoughts in her head were wiped out as soon as those dark eyes gazed at her.? 'Why am I always so flustered when it comes to this human…?'

Even though she was stuttering and tripping over her words, Prince Theron did not say anything more. He simply observed her face closely, and it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

The awkward scene was timely interrupted by the sound of a door opening, and Esther took that opportunity to move away from the young man and jump back to her feet. She arranged to compose her expression, but the guilt was still written all over her face.

The old woman with a cane stepped inside the room and looked at the young couple with disapproving eyes. "It's not good to be adventurous when you are hurt."

Knowing that there was a great misunderstanding about what the woman witnessed, Esther felt flustered but she decidedly didn't comment over it. "Once he is able to move, we will leave."

"Good. I don't like guests in my home," the old woman replied as she eyed the young prince who was trying to sit.? From the frown lines and sheen of cold sweat on his forehead, it was obvious he was still in deep pain, but he seemed to be unbothered by it.

"Where are we?" he asked while he observed the bandages on his body, as if trying to recall the events that transpired the night prior.

"We are in a forest outside of Blackhelm," Esther replied. "We are currently hiding in this underground cabin to heal your injuries after falling into the river."

Before Prince Theron could ask more, the old woman tapped her cane on the wooden floorboards., "Your lady friend forgot to mention you intruded into my home, and I was gracious enough to let you rest for the night. It is morning already. I believe I won't see you overstay in my home." It was her way of saying that they should leave her home today.

Esther frowned and mumbled, "This old woman…"

"Thank you for letting us stay in your home. We will leave as soon as possible," Prince Theron assured.

He was a smart person, and from a quick glance over the situation inside, he could understand the general gist of what happened while he was unconscious. He fumbled over his clothes, but then he realized he was no longer dressed in his peasant clothes for the year-end festival, but rather, in unfamiliar robes similar to the old woman's. He then decided to take off one of the rings in his hand and gave it to the woman.

"It is not much, but I hope you will accept this as repayment for the kindness you bestowed us even though we are strangers."

Though he was the Crown Prince of Megaris and as such, he did not need to lower himself in front of a commoner, Prince Theron knew that he should show his gratitude to the person who helped them.

"This young man seems wise. I wish the young woman with you is the same," the old woman commented as she threw a glare over at Esther.

Esther narrowed her eyes at her and looked at her own fingers, 'I wish I could just use my powers and punish her a little. She doesn't know who she is dealing with.'

The old woman chuckled and as if reading what was on her mind, she said, "Save it for later, young lady." She then walked towards the door leading to the tunnel. "I have to go out. If you are hungry, feel free to eat whatever you can find here. Prepare something on your own. You are unwelcomed guests; don't expect me to serve you as your host."

Once the old woman left, the prince looked around the place. There were no windows, and the entire place that was made of wood smelled heavily of damp earth. His guardian knight was nowhere to be seen. Prince Theron recalled the conversation they had earlier, and he figured out that something else must have happened after Esther and him fell into the river.

It seemed the two of them were only able to escape danger due to the help of the old woman, although the woman was unwilling to do so in the first place.

"So, this is an underground place?" the Crown Prince probed as he tried to understand the situation.

"It is," Esther replied and looked at his shoulder and waist where his clothes had bloodstains. Seemed like his wounds opened when he tried to stand up. "Don't move," she instructed.

He looked at her questioningly as she was talking casually to him.

Esther realized her mistake. "I mean, Your Highness. Your wounds seem to be bleeding again. Please do not move while I dress your wounds."

Seeing her worried face, he only nodded and stayed seated on the mattress.

"I will have to get fresh bandages and make a new herbal paste," she said after checking the extent of bleeding.

Prince Theron observed each and every movement of hers. Even though she had her back on him, she could feel that his gaze didn't leave her for even a moment.

Her actions piqued the Crown Prince's interest. She was graceful and quick at what she was supposed to do like she was a skilled person who had done this many times. She pulled a fresh set of clothes from the wooden cupboard, brought a wooden box filled with herbs, prepared to boil water, among many other things. After her preparations were done, she sat facing the prince to dress his wounds.

Unknown to the Crown Prince, his gaze made her unbelievably nervous.

'Is he still suspicious of me?' she frowned inwardly.. 'I should have left him in the water then. Ungrateful human!'

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