Chapter 80

Marive slowly approached Allo.

"Where are the medicine and bandages?"

Allo remained frozen, but they were soon found.

Allo's room was as empty as ever. The medicine and bandages were gently stacked on top of the chest by the window.

"Sit down."

Allo's room had only one small desk and chair.

Marive told Allo to sit there.

"U-um, Princess—"

"I'll apply the medicine. I can't heal it, so sit down."

When Marive said this, Allo's body moved before he could think and he sat down silently.

Marive took the medicine and applied it to Allo's wound.

"Princess, you'll get dirty."

"Just wash it off."

After all, Marive was so particular. Allo knew that she even disliked a little dirt on her hands.

Yet, Marive applied the medicine to Allo's wound without any concern.

Allo's left arm was swollen and red, with some parts festering. It was a wound so severe that one would want to look away.

Marive tried hard not to cry as she applied the medicine and wrapped the bandages.

If she cried, Allo would hide even more. She would blame herself for making him cry.

That's what she felt.

So, she wrapped the bandages as if it were nothing.

"I'm done."

Her tears had subsided a little because she was so focused on wrapping the bandages.

"If I had more magic, I could heal it beautifully."

Allo didn't answer.

Did he not want to be seen? Usually, he would always respond, no matter what she said.

Marive forced a smile.

"Have I gotten better at first aid? I learned from Mother."

"......"

"......"

When Allo fell silent, the room was immediately filled with silence.

Marive didn't know how to speak in such moments. She felt frustrated that she couldn't say anything clever.

She wanted to say, "Let's stop this," but she couldn't. She couldn't say it when she saw Allo's face.

"Don't make that face."

Marive touched Allo's face. He looked pale, and she wanted him to calm down a little.

"Allo, what are you thinking?"

"Princess's hands..."

Getting dirty, or being a bother, or both. Allo's voice was hoarse, and it faded before the end.

"I told you. I did it because I wanted to. I told you not to hide it."

"......"

If Allo didn't speak, there would be no conversation.

"Does it hurt?"

"—Yes."

He finally answered. Marive touched the wound through the bandages.

"Princess, the power is—"

He had already used his power today. It would be too much to use it again. He must have realized this.

"I won't use it. I'll just touch it."

Thinking about the wound she saw earlier, it couldn't possibly not hurt. All she could do was wish for this arm, which felt a little hot, to heal quickly.

"Does it really not hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt—"

Allo said and stopped.

Marive waited. After a while, he whispered again.

"It feels like a relief when it hurts."

When Allo said this, he wasn't looking at Marive. He looked down at his wound and placed his hand over Marive's.

It was unusual for him to touch her first.

Allo's hand, about two sizes larger than Marive's, was rough and calloused.

Allo looked exhausted.

He seemed completely drained.

This was the first time Marive had seen Allo so listless, like a drained battery. Usually, he was quiet, but his eyes always looked at Marive.

Marive felt scared and held her breath.

She felt like she was losing Allo—no, like she had already lost him.

She had to hold on.

She couldn't cry.

"Allo."

She squeezed his hand. Allo's brow furrowed for a moment, perhaps because the wound inside the bandage hurt.

"If you like the pain, I'll give it to you."

If Allo was hurting himself, then—

"If you want to make the wound worse, tell me. —Even if you can't say it, at least don't hide it."

Marive was desperate. She was confident that she could understand.

She wouldn't let it slip by again.

Usually, Allo would have said that he couldn't let her do such a thing. It would be ridiculous.

But Allo was exhausted.

His mind wasn't working properly.

He wanted to give up thinking. At that moment, Marive's usual command slipped into his mind.

"Do you understand? You have to tell me when you touch your wound."

"Yes."

Allo nodded weakly.

After that, a strange period continued.

Allo continued his overly strict training and had a lifeless expression.

However, he no longer dug into his wounds. This was partly due to the longer intervals between his meetings with Lennon.

Still, there were times when Allo felt so restless that he couldn't stand it.

He wanted to disappear.

He felt like he shouldn't be here.

He felt like he was a dark, dirty existence, while this place was bright, beautiful, and pure.

It was so painful that he couldn't calm down without doing it.

Whenever such times came, Marive would always come and speak to Allo.

"Allo, let's play together."

Marive would say this, make small talk, and play games or go for walks as usual. Eventually, they would part ways when Allo was tired.

By then, the urge to do it would have subsided, and he wouldn't need to do it.

When it became unbearable, Allo would visit Marive as promised.

"Princess..."

Allo, looking confused and unusually helpless, was let into the room without a word by Marive.

In the room, alone together, she had him sit across from her and gently touched the wound through the bandages.

"—How is it?"

"Yes."

The response was a slightly relieved voice, and Marive relaxed the tension she had been holding.

She touched the wound, not too strongly but with a little more pressure. Allo seemed to calm down just from that.

It wouldn't make the wound worse.

Honestly, Marive was afraid to touch the wound, which must have been painful.

But when she infused a little healing power, Allo visibly relaxed.

If this power could heal the heart as well.

—Hearts can't be healed...

Marive remembered Cynthia saying this sadly after visiting Eutos.

If even her mother couldn't do it, Marive couldn't heal Allo's heart.

But if it could make him feel a little better, she wanted to refine this power more and use it for Allo.

"Allo, thank you for accompanying me in my training."

When she said this with a smile, Allo looked even more confused.

She just wanted to keep him close.

Allo's behavior was escalating. He seemed to be getting addicted to the pain, and it felt like he was drifting away somewhere.

Marive felt this intuitively.

If he said the pain wasn't enough, she was prepared to pinch his cheeks or hit his head to give him pain without hurting him. She had secretly practiced with a stuffed animal. But it wasn't necessary yet.

Because Marive hadn't told him to stop, Allo didn't hide it and started visiting Marive when he wanted to hurt himself.

Over time, the number of times Allo relied on Marive decreased from five times a day to once a day, then to once every two days. It decreased gradually, but it did decrease.

Marive felt relieved, seeing a glimmer of hope.

Maybe Allo would return to his old self.

But then—Allo's visits suddenly increased again.

After much deliberation, Marive finally visited Cynthia.

Cynthia was working in her office, but when she saw Marive's face, she stopped and sat on the sofa, gesturing for her to come over.

Marive sat next to her.

"What's wrong?"

Thinking that she could talk slowly, Marive's troubles spilled out.

"Mother, Allo is... hurting himself again."

Cynthia understood just from hearing that.

Marive, who was closest to Allo, couldn't have missed his condition.

She must have known that he was hurting himself.

"—Ah, did you hear about the conversation with Eira?"

Marive nodded.

"—Hey, Mother, no matter what happens to Allo, you won't kick him out of this house, right?"

"Of course not."

Cynthia answered immediately and firmly. Marive felt relieved.

She had been more worried than she thought.

She was afraid that Allo would be separated if his self-harm was discovered.

Just that made her feel much lighter.

Encouraged by this, Marive spoke.

"I thought Allo was getting better... but he's getting worse again."

The disappointment was greater because she had held out hope.

She wasn't disappointed in Allo—she was disappointed in herself.

She had been overconfident, thinking she could heal Allo a little.

"Marie."

Cynthia gently pulled Marive into a hug.

"You were worried, weren't you?"

"I thought it was going well."

Marive said regretfully.

Allo's condition had probably worsened because of his recent meeting with Lennon.

Cynthia didn't want to send Allo to Lennon, but it seemed like Allo was being driven. He might have gone alone on a holiday.

She had thought he was getting better based on what Eira said about his wounds healing.

She didn't know that Marive was involved.

She wanted to hit herself for not knowing.

"You were healing Allo's wounds, weren't you?"

"I didn't do anything. I just tried to prevent him from making the wounds worse."

"That's still amazing."

"I thought he was getting better. It didn't work. What should I do... If this continues, Allo will break."

Marive shuddered as if she had just said those words, and her body trembled.

"Allo... will break."

Allo was desperately trying to protect his shattered heart by hurting himself.

But the act of hurting himself, which he did to live, was actually leading him closer to death.

Cynthia tightened her embrace on Marive.

All she could do was hold her.

Marive didn't know that Allo was meeting Lennon.

The fear caused by Lennon was a recent event. She didn't want to bring it up.

Marive, still so small in her arms, had tried to help the wounded Allo all by herself. It must have been terrifying.

"You were trying so hard on your own. For the Allo you love so much. I'm sorry I didn't notice. It must have been scary."

"U... uu."

Marive let out a sob.

Cynthia patted her back to comfort her.

"Marie, it's okay. No matter how much Allo is hurt, we will always be there for him. I feel the same way as you."

It should have been cut off. The relationship between Allo and Lennon.

She had only seen the surface, thinking Allo wanted to meet Lennon.

It was her responsibility as an adult.

"I'll talk to Allo. I'll try to make him feel at home here and live in peace. So, can you leave it to me from now on?"

Marive felt like she had finally passed on a heavy burden.

Nothing was resolved yet, but—