"Miss Cherry, are you all right? What exactly happened?"
Harrison’s usually kind green eyes were hard and unyielding, reflecting his tension.
Compared to my battle-worn and disheveled appearance, Harrison looked immaculate—his stiff vest, cravat, and jacket impeccably arranged. He appeared more like a noble than most aristocrats, and the crossbow in his hand oddly suited him.
He inspected me closely, brushing his hand over my hair and gently down my cheek before resting his large hand on the back of my neck, carefully checking for injuries.
Harrison’s green eyes traveled over me methodically before finally locking onto mine.
“You’re absolutely sure there’s no injury?”
“I’m fine, Harrison. Don’t worry.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I felt Ethan’s gaze searing into me. His fiery glare was so intense that my cheek, where his eyes seemed to land, felt almost physically hot.
...We’d need to discuss Ethan’s injury somewhere private, away from other people.
“It seems like we’ll need a proper explanation of the situation,” Nox said, his medical bag slung over his shoulder as he surveyed the surroundings. The hotel lobby was full of injured survivors.
Driven by his sense of duty, or perhaps the sheer number of people needing help, Nox rolled up his sleeves and placed his hands on his hips.
Before answering, I asked the two of them, “What about you two? How did you end up here?”
“When we didn’t hear from you or Ethan, we sent Amy and Jose, but then we lost contact with them, too. We figured something must have happened,” Nox replied, shrugging.
Ah, so that’s why they brought the medical bag.
Ethan explained what had transpired at the hotel.
“As you can see, Miss Cherry has taken over the hotel,” he said, checking his pocket watch periodically as he filled them in.
“Wait, you’re saying you killed the leader here? That Elliot scumbag?”
“You took over? Just the two of you? And you drove out the monsters too?”
Harrison and Nox, stunned by the explanation, questioned him in disbelief.
Ethan responded with a casual shrug. I glanced at the time and addressed them.
“We still need to gather our spoils. We’ll need to discuss the logistics of that, but first...”
Before anything else, Ethan’s wound needed attention.
The lobby was still abuzz with people chatting around Nick, who seemed to be settling into his leadership role. At that moment, Amy and Jose ran over to us.
“Sugar Star!”
“Where have you two been?”
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Jose held something out for me to see. “We found this lying over there.”
In Jose’s hand was a key. Engraved on it were the words:
Jeremy’s Herb Shop.
“Jeremy’s Herb Shop...?”
It was the name of a store mentioned in Elliot’s notebook.
“The monsters attacked earlier because of Elpinos. I saw it myself. A man came into the hotel with a bag full of drug powder, Elpinos, and other herbs,” Amy explained.
“It seems they raided Jeremy’s Herb Shop for Elpinos,” Jose added.
At last, I understood why the monsters had stormed the hotel. It was similar to the frenzied monsters we’d seen outside the stone gates of Happy House.
Of course.
I decided to hold onto the key and slipped it into my pocket. Then, I turned to Nox. There was a more pressing issue at hand.
“I need you to check Ethan’s injury, but let’s do it in private, just the four of us.”
Nox scanned the surroundings and nodded. We informed Nick, then moved to the laundry room.
Inside, a man Ethan had knocked unconscious earlier was still sprawled on the floor. I had Amy and Jose drag him out before shutting the door.
Click.
“So, what exactly do you want to say?” Nox asked, shutting the door. He knew there had to be more to this than just treating a wound.
Ethan sighed and revealed the injury on his wrist. Though minor, it was clearly a bite mark, unmistakable to anyone who saw it.
Nox’s eyes widened in shock, as did Harrison’s as he stood nearby.
“Lancaster, you—!”
Both of them instinctively stepped back, their postures tense and defensive as they eyed Ethan warily. Harrison even pulled me behind him, gripping my hand protectively as if to shield me.
Ethan remained unbothered by their reactions, his expression calm.
Peeking out from behind Harrison’s back, I spoke quickly.
“Wait. Yes, Ethan was bitten, but he hasn’t shown any symptoms of turning. He hasn’t lost control, and there are no other abnormalities. I think... maybe Ethan’s body is different.”
At the mention of Ethan’s body being “different,” Nox and Harrison exchanged glances, as though reminded of something. They probably recalled my superhuman strength.
Nox hesitated before approaching Ethan again. His face reflected disbelief as he examined the wound closely.
“When did the injury happen?” he asked.
“It happened while we were blocking the hotel entrance,” Ethan replied.
“So it hasn’t been long since the wound occurred?” Harrison snapped, his voice laced with reproach.
Nox rubbed his face, sighing deeply. After a moment, he inspected Ethan’s wound again, speaking in a calm yet troubled tone.
“As the lady says, it’s still too early to tell. The wound is small, so if you’re unlucky, it might take over a day for symptoms to appear.”
As expected, they were reluctant to accept the idea that Ethan might be different from others.
Regardless, I had to get Ethan back to Happy House without causing a scene. To do that, I needed to convince Nox, Harrison, and, of course, Ethan himself.
“If Sir Ethan really does turn into a monster, I’ve already promised to take care of it myself. So, let’s wait and see, okay? Ethan might be different. Don’t be so cold. He’s one of us.”
Unintentionally, my tone sounded almost pleading. All three of them turned to look at me simultaneously.
What... what’s with the stares?
Caught off guard, I tried to maintain my composure despite my embarrassment.
Nox sighed, pulling a cigarette from his pocket and placing it between his lips. He didn’t light it but instead furrowed his brow and stared at me intently.
“Miss Cherry, do you like Lancaster that much?”
“What?”
His question left me flustered, and I couldn’t even think of a response. My silence seemed to alarm Harrison, who grabbed my shoulders, looking as if he had been struck by lightning.
“Miss, you have to say no!”
As I stared at Harrison, dumbfounded, Nox nodded emphatically and added, “Miss Cherry has been through a lot of hardships lately. That’s all it is—she doesn’t actually like Lancaster.”
Excuse me? What is wrong with these people?
After a long silence, Ethan finally spoke. “Treat her first. Miss Cherry is injured.”
He suggested treating me before himself, but he didn’t bother mentioning the part where I had stuck my injured finger in his mouth. He just stared at me, his gaze clearly saying, Play along.
For some reason, I felt compelled to follow his lead and downplay the situation.
“Miss Cherry, are you hurt?” Harrison asked, his tone both concerned and scolding.
“Miss, didn’t you just say you weren’t injured?”
“Oh, well... it’s just a scratch,” I mumbled, showing them my finger. It wasn’t entirely untrue—though Ethan’s saliva on the wound did mean I needed to disinfect it quickly.
“Wait,” Nox interjected. “Before we do anything else, we should tie Lancaster up, just in case.”
Harrison nodded in agreement, and Ethan raised his hands indifferently. “Go ahead. I’d rather be tied up.”
Harrison ripped a long strip of cloth from a pile of laundry and tied Ethan’s wrists securely to a piece of furniture. Only after ensuring Ethan was firmly restrained did Nox begin treating my wound. He disinfected the area, applied ointment, and wrapped my finger in clean gauze.
Once the treatment was done, I stood abruptly and approached Ethan.
Despite everything, he acted as if there was no need to treat his own wound, likely because he believed he was already infected. How hypocritical. He insisted I get treated.
Grabbing his hand firmly, I called out to Nox.
“I’ll hold him still. Even if infection is a concern, we can at least treat the wound, right?”
Infections usually occurred when a monster’s saliva entered the body. Since his bite didn’t involve another infected creature, there was no immediate danger as long as the wound was disinfected.
Nox nodded. “It’s possible, as long as he consents. But after treatment, we’ll need to restrain him again.”
“Why are you even asking for his consent? Just treat him already! If we leave it, the wound could lead to secondary infection. At least disinfect it.”
“Miss Cherry, I didn’t realize you were this bossy. I don’t need treatment.”
“Shut up and take it. Yeah, I’m bossy—so what?”
Nox, who had been silently observing our exchange, let out an incredulous chuckle. Running a hand through his hair, he sighed. “Fine. I’ll treat him.”
But then, he added a condition.
“In return, Miss Cherry, you’ll need to let me treat you regularly. Physical or mental—whatever issues come up, I’ll give you routine checkups and counseling.”
“What? I’m not that injured.”
“Regardless. I want to make sure you’re in good shape, even if there’s nothing immediately wrong.”
Harrison chimed in. “It’s a good arrangement, Miss. You should agree to it.”
If Harrison approved, I couldn’t refuse. I nodded reluctantly. “Fine.”
“What’s this? You agree so easily when he says it? But you always glare at me like I’ve insulted your ancestors.”
“Insult my ancestors? How uncouth, Mr. Ludfordshire.”
“I learned it from Lancaster.”
Without missing a beat, Nox replied, his face utterly serious. Ethan, visibly offended, scoffed.
“Sure. Apparently, I’m to blame for every weird thing anyone says around here. Me, the walking excuse.”
Remembering how I had previously blamed my abrupt changes in speech on Ethan, I felt a twinge of guilt and kept my mouth shut.
In the end, Ethan allowed Nox to treat his wound without resistance. I quietly observed the process.
When Nox finished, Harrison finally spoke up. “We’ll monitor him for one day. But he must remain in isolation.”
Ethan’s expression turned incredulous. He had been eerily calm up until now, almost resigned to his fate.
“I’m clearly infected, so why don’t I just leave on my own instead of putting everyone else at risk— Ow! Hey, Ludfordshire, what the hell are you doing?”
Ethan winced and raised his voice when Nox applied pressure to his arm, causing blood to trickle from the wound.
That must hurt a lot.
Nox remained unfazed. “Lancaster, trust me, I’d rather not be taking this gamble. But after all we’ve been through, how could I just abandon you?”
“...”
“Look at Miss Cherry. For her sake, bear with it. We’ll keep your infection a secret between us, so quit spouting nonsense and stay put.”
Ethan fell silent at Nox’s words.
Why isn’t Ethan saying anything about the possibility that I might also be infected?
If he truly believed he was infected, wouldn’t he insist on quarantining me alongside him?
But he didn’t.
Then again, neither of us was infected in reality. Maybe Ethan was just following my lead, keeping quiet to avoid unnecessary complications.
“Fine. Whatever. I’ll stay in isolation if that’s what you want. But after that, I don’t care what happens.”
In the end, Ethan begrudgingly agreed to their terms.
Thank goodness.
Now, I needed to start thinking about how to handle the eventual revelation that Ethan wasn’t actually infected.