Extra S*ave Saves the Crown Prince

The silence suddenly came.

It was deafening, as if the sounds of the world were suddenly gone.

“Ha, ha, ha, ha.”

I dropped to my knees and gripped the ground with my arms.

I felt the moisture of the petals beneath my palms.

‘You’re alive, it’s okay.’

The same petals he’d plucked off seemed to be saying that to me now.

Thud, thud.

Tears fell on it

“Ha–Aack.”

My breathing became ragged and I gagged.

I slowly collapsed onto my side.

It felt like I had used every ounce of strength I had to concentrate.

A heavy pain shot through my side and back.

It was the result of the demon’s momentary attempt to bind me with all its might.

I shuddered as I tried to fight the pain.

I desperately wanted to wash the area where the demon had touched me, but I could barely lift a finger.

“Ha, ha, ha, ha….”

It was a split-second decision before the big black claw reached out to harm me.

It was the time when I stopped moving for a moment as the demon focused all its attention on me.

I closed my eyes tightly and imagined a tranquil lakeside.

I imagined every detail, even those snowy white petals of the flowers.

I didn’t want to forget a single scene, so I stitched it all together in my mind like I was sewing it.

The more specific I imagined them, the faster my teleportation ability became.

If I had been any slower to recall the place in my mind, I wouldn’t have gotten here alive.

It was a close call.

‘Ah, thank goodness.’

As if on cue, the moonlight calmly shone on the lake, illuminating the petals of the flowers.

The petals fluttered in the light breeze and settled back down on my legs and onto my fingers.

I wanted to lean against the little path and rest for a while.

‘In the future, when we are alone together, just call me by my name.’

The voice of the man who had brought me here, and who wanted to show me this pretty landscape suddenly echoed in my mind.

He was the reason I was alive now.

Just thinking of his face made the pain seem to fade away for a moment.

I tried to picture the gently upturned corners of his mouth again in my head, not wanting to wear them down.

It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen with my eyes.

His smile.

Flutter, flutter.

I remembered the image of him rushing towards me, with his red cloak fluttering in the wind.

I couldn’t see his expression perfectly, but his momentum alone conveyed a sense of urgency.

I remembered the spear that had once plunged into the demon’s mouth.

I wonder if he’s looking for me now, but I can’t find the strength to turn back.

I didn’t have enough energy to lift a finger.

The only saving grace was that my teleportation hadn’t been noticed.

I could feel the shadows overhead, as if the demon had completely covered me.

I wish everyone in Einfork were safe.

I don’t want any more demons to appear.

I don’t want to be the only one hiding in this safe place.

I don’t want him to get hurt…

My eyes kept drooping as if wanting to close….

I can’t get over the blurry view of the lakeside.

I have to go back, but my eyelids felt so heavy.

I need to close my eyes for just a moment, really just a moment, and then get up.

I need to regain some of my strength before I go back.

I’ll count to one hundred and then get back up.

‘One, two, three, four…. read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.Five ….’read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.

⚘

My feet, which were originally cold, felt strangely warm, and I felt a heaviness on my side, as if someone had climbed all over it.

“Ah.”

I opened my eyes.

The faint moonlight had already faded.

The sunlit lake sparkled like a jewel.

Fresh leaves mingled with white petals, cooling my chest.

Flutter.

I barely raised my upper body and the petals followed with a fluttering sound.

As lovely as it was, I wanted to resolve the burning sensation in my throat first.

Despite the dazzling scenery, I felt so thirsty as if I’d been dropped into a desert.

I didn’t have the strength to get up, so I crawled to the shore of the lake.

I put my mouth directly into the rustling water.

The coolness ran down my throat and through my body instantly.

Things that had stopped creaking began to turn again.

“Ha.”

I drank the water and rolled over again.

My mind was foggy, as if I just had a long dream.

My head was heavy, my legs were stiff, and my arms felt like crap.

I think my side was probably the heaviest of all.

It felt like something was hanging off of my body.

I unconsciously swept my eyes over it, but there was nothing.

I should go back to sleep like this.

The place where I was lying was in the shade, but I felt warm with only the lake shining in the sunlight.

If I could sleep in this warmth forever, I would be very happy.

“Seth!”

A sharp voice pierced through the air.

I don’t know whose voice it was.

It sounded like a scream of desperation and urgency.

My heart started pounding fast.

‘Stand up!’

I mumbled.

“It’s crazy..”

I scrambled to my feet and looked around wildly.

The view of the lake in the daytime was different from the night.

Everything shimmered and sparkled in the sunlight.

I felt like I was surrounded by thousands of jewels.

The problem wasn’t the scenery, it was me.

“Ha.”

I counted to a hundred and tried to wake up, but I fell back to sleep again.

⚘

I’d used up all my energy and was completely out of it.

I knelt down and washed my face in the lake.

The cold water hit my face hard and I came back to my senses.

With the return of consciousness came the pain on my side.

“Ouch. read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.That hurts.”read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.

I pulled my shirt up and saw the skin underneath emblazoned with different colors.

Reds, purples, and blues.

They were bruises that would soon turn black.

I shuddered to think of what it would be like if the demon’s strength were any greater.

Still, I survived.

A bruise was nothing compared to survival.

I took a few more sips of water and took a deep breath.

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I didn’t feel strong, but I felt better.

I had to get back.

I wanted to appear as natural as if I had just fallen asleep somewhere in the barracks.

Actually, I wanted to teleport, but I didn’t want to get caught.

Besides, I wasn’t back to full strength yet.

“Time to go back.”

I couldn’t wait to see those golden eyes, warmer than the sun again, so I hurriedly walked back the way we came.

⚘

Einfork had changed so much in just one night.

It looked as if a great storm had swept over it.

Collapsed barracks were left standing here and there, and the acrid scent of burning still lingered in the air.

Normally there would still be a certain liveliness to the place in the mornings, but now it just felt heavy.

The faces of the passing knights were also somber and dark.

“Hmm?”

I made eye contact with a familiar face.

His arm was splinted, as if he had suffered an injury overnight.

The circles under his eyes were even more pronounced than usual, and he didn’t look well at all.

My heart raced as I realized that someone I knew was injured.

“Huh?”

Vaslow rubbed his eyes tiredly, then turned to me with a furrowed brow, unable to open his eyes as wide as someone who was dazzled or in pain.

He looked like he needed to rest right now.

I’m about to ask if he’s okay, but he bent down first.

‘Ouch.’

My side winced in pain for a moment, but fortunately, my head was down, so I was able to hide my expression.

“You…”

He squinted his eyes, and looked me up and down.

He then rubbed his eyes with his hand.

He rubbed his eyes harshly for a while, then looked me up and down again.

“You, you!”

He sucked in a breath, and his eyes went wide.

His un-splinted arm trembled and pointed at me.

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His lips opened several times, but no words came out.

“What the hell, how could you—”

Vaslow rolled to his feet.

He ran his hands through his hair, scrubbed his face several times as if he were washing his face, and finally poked me in the arm with his finger.

It didn’t hurt at all, but I didn’t know how to react, so I slowly rubbed the spot with my other hand.

“Seth.”

“Yes.”

“Are you… Alive?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Aaaah!”

Vaslow looked as if he was angry because I was alive.

He was unable to control his emotions, he muttered a few curses.

“Oh God.”

Then his face suddenly turned serious and he said a short prayer to the heavens.

It was hard to keep up with the ups and downs of his emotions.

“Where the hell have you been? Why did you just show up now?!”

I thought the prayer would calm him down, but then he burst out again.

“That’s because I opened my eyes and it was daylight….”

“You opened your eyes? What do you mean?”

“I don’t know, I can’t remember what happened.”

I couldn’t think of anything to say. read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.It seemed to me that the best thing to do would be to pretend to have lost my memory.read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.

“You… Don’t… Remember?”

“Yeah. read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.I feel like I… flew away.”read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.

“Flew away?”

“… Oh.”

I stared at the sky in confusion.

It didn’t make sense, even to me.

But I can’t help it.

I have to give the same answer no matter who asks.

I want to say that the demon threw me and I flew away, but Vaslow doesn’t look convinced at all.

“Haha, whatever. read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.At least you’re alive.”read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.

“That’s it, that’s it.”

He took another deep breath.

His gaze was hot and sincere as he looked at me.

The tip of his nose twitched.

“If you knew what would happen….”

He trailed off, his throat moving wildly.

He shook his head as if he didn’t want to imagine it.

“Ah! This is not the time. read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.Come on, follow me.”read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.

“Yes.”

I said, but the words choked in my throat.

He didn’t say where we were going, but I could read enough in his eyes.

‘To your highness.’

The look of urgency in his eyes as he ran toward the demon replayed in my mind again, and just remembering it made me feel hot somewhere in my chest.

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I don’t think I’ll be able to forget those eyes for a while, maybe never.

My heart pounded in my chest, wanting to tell him everything was okay.

I prayed fervently and desperately that he hadn’t been hurt all night, and that he was okay.

As I followed Vaslow through the barracks, I kept smelling a strange odor.

A fishy odor mingled with the pungent incense, never a good scent, and I found myself covering my nose with my sleeve.

“Yuck.”

“Oh, that.”

Vaslow glanced at me and jerked his chin as if he knew the source.

Upon closer inspection, the source of the odor appeared to be the carcass of a demon.

It was the first time I’d ever seen a corpse this close, they were usually burned immediately.

It was so disgusting that I didn’t want to look at it.

At first glance, I realized that it was huge.

“Oh, we should burn that, too. read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.We’ve been rummaging inside it, just to see if you were eaten so…”read only at salmonlatte . com. This annoying watermark is not there.

“What…?”

“His highness ripped it apart himself, but he left it there, unable to burn it, just in case.”

The image of Vaslow speaking bitterly blurred for a moment.

I felt a lump stuck inside my throat.

It was too disfigured for me to recognize that it was the same demon that had captured me.

I didn’t immediately understand what he meant by rummaging inside it, since they usually burn it upon death.

‘Maybe I’ve been eaten.’

‘Maybe I was in there.’

‘Rummaging through a demon’s carcass?’

My vision quickly blurred.