Chapter 114: Loneliness Of The Blue Bird

Elias walked down the corridor and soon reached Monica’s room. Without wasting a moment, he unlocked the door and stepped inside, only to find that she had already fallen asleep.

He didn’t show any disappointment. In truth, that had been the reason he came.

Whenever Monica was awake, her expression was usually filled with curiosity, amusement, or an indifferent calmness that made it difficult to determine what she was thinking. However, it was never sorrowful, never openly lonely, and never burdened by the despair that should have accompanied her condition.

Elias knew better than to believe that her usual expressions revealed everything.

He understood loneliness better than most people.

After all, he had spent years surrounded by people who shared his name, lived beneath the same family banner, and yet had never truly considered him one of their own. He had been lonely in a place filled with people who were supposed to be his family, so he could only imagine how much worse Monica’s solitude must have been.

Her master had abandoned her on the day she was poisoned, and neither of them knew anything about her family. Monica had been an orphan long before the Shadow Ghost Poison had destroyed her body.

The only things Elias knew about her were the rumors that had grown so widespread that even the Crimson Ducal Clan couldn’t prevent them from reaching his ears.

He approached the bed and looked down at her.

Magical formations engraved into the mattress glowed with a faint blue light, illuminating Monica’s pale figure beneath the dimness of the room.

She was shorter than both Natasha and Stella, and her body possessed a more tomboyish figure than theirs, but there was nothing lacking about her appearance. She still had a graceful figure, although her beauty was different from that of his other wives.

Natasha was the most beautiful, Stella was the strongest, and Monica was the smartest.

Her mind was so extraordinary that even the most complicated arcane mysteries could become objects of her comprehension. Yet, despite possessing such an exceptional intellect, she had been reduced to a woman who could barely feel anything beyond pain.

Elias pulled the chair from beside the wall and carefully lifted it toward the bed, making sure not to make any noise.

When he placed it down, it let out a soft thud, but he paid the sound no attention, keeping his eyes fixed on Monica’s face.

A bitter frown rested upon her beautiful features.

Once the chair was close enough, he sat down and leaned forward slightly.

"I am sorry..." he mumbled.

The sight of her expression tightened his chest and twisted his stomach. He had promised himself that he would take care of these three women and help them forget the misfortunes they had endured, yet he continued to fall short.

No matter how hard he tried, he could not make everything better.

The realization reminded him of his swordsmanship

’Why can I never do anything right?’ he asked himself, his expression darkened, and gradually he clenched his jaw.

His teeth ground together while he stared at Monica’s frown.

When he had first seen her sleeping face so closely, he had thought that a smile would suit it.

Her features were delicate, and there was a natural charm hidden beneath her usual sharp remarks and mocking expressions.

But she rarely smiled sincerely.

Instead, she wore that bitter expression as though she had long ago accepted that happiness was something meant for other people.

Elias did not know what had caused her to look like that at this moment.

Perhaps she was dreaming, perhaps the poison was tormenting her even in sleep. Whatever the reason, he couldn’t help feeling responsible.

It was his duty to protect her, yet he couldn’t even prevent sadness from settling over her face.

He took a slow breath, held it briefly, and then exhaled through his nose. Afterward, he raised his hand and gently touched her cheek.

His fingers moved softly across her pale skin before tracing the outline of her lips. He didn’t attempt to force her expression into a smile, nor did he disturb her sleep. Instead, he smiled himself and spoke in a low, gentle voice:

"Do not worry, my wife. I will make sure you never have to feel sad again..."

The words left his mouth with quiet certainty.

As soon as he said them, the pressure inside his chest seemed to ease, and his breathing became lighter.

He knew that the promise was far more difficult to fulfill than it sounded, but making it had still given him a sense of direction.

He lowered his other hand onto Monica’s abdomen and began patting her gently.

The movement was slow and rhythmic, almost like someone soothing a child to sleep. However, Monica did not react. Of course, she didn’t, as she couldn’t feel the contact.

Without Masterful Hands, Elias’s touch was no different from that of any other person. The constant pain had dulled her ability to experience physical sensations so thoroughly that even the warmth of his palm failed to reach her.

He knew that, yet he continued patting her abdomen.

The gesture wasn’t meant to calm Monica to begin with. It was meant to calm himself.

Elias lowered his gaze, watching the faint blue light spill across her body while his hand continued moving in a steady rhythm.

"I will figure it out," he whispered, his voice almost too quiet to hear. "I will find the cure... no matter what I may have to do."

Monica remained asleep, her expression unchanged.

Elias looked at her for a long moment, and then his expression softened.

Even if she could not hear his promise, he wanted to say it anyway. Even if she was not awake, he wanted to remain beside her. There was little else he could offer at present, but he could at least make sure that she would not wake up alone.

So he stayed there, silently patting her abdomen while keeping watch over her sleeping face.