Chapter 148: Between Dream and Dawn

Chapter 148: Chapter 148: Between Dream and Dawn

Elysia’s heart skipped.

The room suddenly seemed much quieter than before.

She looked at Cassiel.

He looked back at her.

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then Elysia remembered what Doctor Grey had told her.

Her cheeks slowly began to warm.

"If it is only a little..."

She hesitated.

"Then perhaps there is something I can do."

Cassiel’s brows lifted.

"What can you do?"

Elysia looked away.

She suddenly found it difficult to meet his eyes.

"Doctor Grey said there was a way to ease the effects."

Cassiel’s expression remained perfectly composed.

"Oh?"

Elysia nodded.

"He told you?"

"No."

Cassiel’s voice was innocent.

"What exactly did Doctor Grey tell you about curing the effects of that wine?"

Elysia’s cheeks grew even hotter.

She lowered her gaze.

"It is rather embarrassing."

Cassiel waited patiently.

After a long moment, Elysia finally forced herself to speak.

"Doctor Grey said... I need to be intimate with you."

Silence.

Cassiel looked at her.

"Intimate?"

His expression was so calm, so innocent, that Elysia nearly suspected he was deliberately pretending not to understand.

"Yes."

Her voice was barely audible.

Cassiel’s eyes remained on her.

Elysia took a deep breath.

Since she had already said it, there was no point retreating now.

She shifted closer.

Cassiel did not move.

The space between them slowly disappeared.

They sat facing one another on the bed, close enough that Elysia could feel the warmth of his body.

Her heart was beating so quickly that she was certain he could hear it.

Cassiel could certainly hear his own.

He had been the one to lead the conversation in this direction, yet now that Elysia was actually moving closer, his composure began to waver.

A faint, sweet fragrance drifted towards him.

Elysia’s scent.

His breathing grew slightly uneven.

She, meanwhile, was doing her best to remain calm.

She had treated injuries, faced assassins, and stood before people far more frightening.

Yet somehow, leaning towards Cassiel was the most difficult thing she had ever done.

Her face burned.

Still, she steeled herself and leaned forward.

Closer.

Closer.

Then her lips brushed the corner of his mouth.

Elysia froze.

Cassiel froze as well.

For one suspended moment, neither moved.

Elysia slowly drew back.

Her brows knitted together.

"Missed."

Cassiel stared at her.

She seemed genuinely concerned about the accuracy of her attempt.

Before he could say anything, Elysia studied his face, as though assessing where she had gone wrong.

Then she leaned forward again.

This time, her lips met his properly.

Cassiel’s entire body went still.

Her lips were impossibly soft.

There was a faint, delicate fragrance about her, and the warmth of her breath brushed against his skin.

For a moment, Cassiel could hardly believe this was happening.

He had imagined her taking the initiative more times than he cared to admit.

But imagination had never prepared him for the reality of it.

His hand slowly rose and cupped Elysia’s cheek.

Her skin was smooth and warm beneath his palm.

Far too warm.

Perhaps from embarrassment.

Perhaps from something else entirely.

Elysia kept her lips against his for several heartbeats before finally pulling away.

Her eyes were slightly unfocused.

She looked at him seriously.

"Are you feeling better?"

Cassiel’s gaze was deep and unreadable.

He swallowed.

"...No."

Elysia’s brows immediately drew together.

"No?"

She had thought that should have been enough.

She had been preparing herself to sleep again.

Cassiel looked at her for a long moment.

His throat moved as he swallowed once more.

Then his voice dropped.

"Shall I take the initiative?"

Elysia hesitated.

She looked at him.

Then, remembering that she had been the one to offer to help him in the first place, she gave a small nod.

"All right."

Cassiel’s fingers gently settled beneath her chin.

He tilted her face towards his.

Then he kissed her.

Unlike Elysia’s tentative attempt, his kiss was neither uncertain nor hurried.

It carried the same quiet certainty as the man himself.

Elysia’s eyes widened.

For a moment, she did not know what to do.

Then instinct took over.

She followed his lead as best she could, though her movements remained clumsy and inexperienced.

The world around her gradually seemed to disappear.

There was only Cassiel.

His warmth.

His familiar scent.

The steady hand against her cheek.

And the strange, dizzying feeling of being so close to him.

By the time Cassiel finally pulled away, Elysia was breathing unevenly.

She blinked several times, as though trying to remember where she was.

Cassiel’s forehead remained close to hers.

His voice was low and noticeably hoarse.

"...Now it is better."

Elysia slowly returned to herself.

She swallowed unconsciously.

Only then did she realise just how close they still were.

Her face immediately grew hotter.

She lowered her eyes.

"Oh."

Cassiel watched her for a moment.

Then, perhaps sensing that she needed a moment to recover, he gently released her.

"I shall go and wash."

He began to move away.

Elysia looked up.

"Shall I help you?"

Cassiel paused.

Then he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

"No need."

His expression softened.

"You should sleep."

He moved his wheelchair towards the bathing chamber.

Elysia watched him disappear through the doorway.

Only once the door closed did she slowly sink back against the pillows.

Her body still felt strangely warm.

She pulled the blanket higher.

Then she closed her eyes.

But sleep did not come immediately.

Instead, her mind returned to the kiss.

She remembered every detail.

The way he had held her face.

The way he had kissed her.

The change in his breathing.

The moment he had finally said that he felt better.

Elysia’s cheeks warmed all over again.

She had memorised it all.

After all, if Cassiel ever suffered from the wine again, she would know exactly what to do.

And there was another advantage.

She had always struggled whenever she needed to describe intimate scenes in the stories she wrote.

Usually, she simply avoided the details and moved on.

Now...

She might finally have some practical experience to draw upon.

A faint smile appeared on her lips.

Perhaps her next tale would be much more convincing.

By the time Cassiel returned from the bathing chamber, Elysia was already drifting towards sleep.

She heard the faint sound of the wheelchair approaching.

Half-conscious, she shifted towards the inner side and made room beside her.

Cassiel looked at her for a moment.

She was already nearly asleep.

He transferred himself onto the bed and settled beneath the covers.

Elysia stirred.

Without opening her eyes, she instinctively moved closer.

Her arm slipped around his waist.

She rested her head against his arm as though she had done it countless times before.

Cassiel’s body stiffened for the briefest moment.

Then he relaxed.

He looked down at the woman sleeping peacefully against him.

A faint smile touched his lips.

He gently adjusted the blanket around her.

Elysia murmured something indistinct.

Cassiel lowered his gaze.

"In a few days, it will be the formal betrothal celebration for Lady Deborah and the Crown Prince."

Elysia made a sleepy sound.

"We will have to attend."

Another vague murmur.

"My aunt is in Caelvyr after a long time..."

His voice gradually became softer.

"She will certainly go as well."

Elysia was far too drowsy to follow the conversation.

She gave another quiet hum of acknowledgement before sinking into deeper sleep.

Whatever else Cassiel said afterwards, she neither heard nor remembered.

---

The next morning, sunlight filtered through the curtains.

Elysia slowly opened her eyes.

For a moment, she lay still.

Something felt different.

She turned her head.

The space beside her was empty.

Elysia blinked.

She pushed herself upright and looked around the room.

Cassiel was nowhere to be seen.

Perhaps he had already risen.

Still half-asleep, she made her way to the dressing table.

Miriam was helping her prepare when Elysia suddenly remembered the previous night.

Her face warmed.

She cleared her throat.

"What time did His Grace leave?"

Miriam looked at her in confusion.

"His Grace?"

"Yes. What time did he leave?"

Miriam exchanged a puzzled look with Clara.

"Your Grace... His Grace stayed at the army camp last night."

Elysia froze.

"What?"

"He did not return to the manor."

For several seconds, Elysia simply stared at her.

Her mind went completely blank.

"He... did not return?"

Miriam shook her head.

"No."

Elysia’s face slowly paled.

Then she remembered the events of the previous night.

Cassiel sitting beside her.

The salve.

His voice.

The conversation.

His hand against her cheek.

The kiss.

Her eyes widened.

If Cassiel had never returned...

Then who had she kissed?

And who had kissed her?

Elysia’s cheeks burned.

Could all of it have been a dream?

She lowered herself slowly into the chair.

Her mind was in complete disarray.

Before she could make sense of anything, there was a knock at the door.

Doctor Grey entered shortly afterwards for the routine examination of her legs.

Elysia barely managed to pay attention to the examination.

Her thoughts were still trapped in the strange events of the night before.

Once Doctor Grey had finished checking her condition, Miriam suddenly remembered something.

"Doctor Grey, could you also take a look at Her Grace’s arm?"

Elysia glanced down.

She had almost forgotten about the burn.

More surprisingly, she realised that it no longer hurt.

"Let me see."

Doctor Grey held out his hand.

Elysia pushed up her sleeve and showed him the injured area.

Miriam gasped.

"Good heavens! How did it heal so quickly?"

Elysia looked down.

Yesterday, the burn had been swollen and red, with the skin threatening to blister.

Now, only a faint mark remained.

Most of the injury had already healed.

Doctor Grey examined it briefly.

Then his expression became thoughtful.

"His Grace came back last night."

Elysia’s heart stopped.

She stared at him.

Doctor Grey continued calmly,

"The salve I prescribed is effective, but it would not have healed a burn this quickly on its own."

Elysia’s mind returned to the warmth of Cassiel’s hand.

His voice.

His kiss.

Her face turned scarlet.