Chapter 629 The Wound That Refused To Heal

Irina was already turning away from the group when Liam’s voice stopped her.

"Wait."

She glanced over her shoulder.

Liam was still sitting on the rock where he had dropped himself a few moments earlier, his back slightly hunched and one hand resting against his side. Despite the blood covering his clothes and the exhaustion that was becoming increasingly obvious, there was still that irritatingly calm expression on his face.

Irina sighed.

"What now?"

"Come here."

She stared at him.

"Why?"

"I need to tell you something."

Irina narrowed her eyes.

There was something about the way he said it that made her suspicious, but after everything that had happened, she figured it was probably important. She reluctantly walked back toward him, her boots crunching against the loose stones scattered across the ground.

"What is it?"

Liam didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he looked down at himself.

His clothes were practically destroyed.

The black shirt he had been wearing was torn in several places, soaked with blood and covered in dust from the battle. One sleeve was hanging almost completely off his arm, while the lower half of the shirt had been shredded by the Gargoyles’ claws.

He grabbed the ruined fabric.

Rip!

Irina froze.

Liam tore the remains of the shirt away from his body and dropped the ruined cloth beside the rock.

For several seconds, she simply stared.

She hadn’t expected that.

She had seen Liam before, obviously. She had watched him fight, eat, sleep and walk around with the group. But she had never actually seen him without a shirt.

And unfortunately for her, Liam was the kind of man who looked unfairly good even when he looked terrible.

His body was lean but heavily defined, every muscle shaped by the absurd physical strength he possessed. His shoulders were broad, his chest and arms were covered with the marks of battle, and his abdomen was sharply defined despite the exhaustion. Blood and dust covered parts of his skin, while several bruises and cuts made it obvious that the fight had been anything but easy.

His face was already annoyingly attractive.

Now, combined with the battered state of his body and the intense look in his deep blue eyes, he somehow looked even more striking.

Irina’s brain briefly stopped functioning.

She immediately became annoyed with herself.

Seriously?

Now?

Of all times?

She quickly looked away.

A few steps behind her, Mary had also taken one glance at Liam before immediately turning her face toward the mountainside.

Neither woman said anything.

Tatiana, on the other hand, had no such problem. She had seen Liam in far more vulnerable circumstances than this, so she was more concerned about the blood covering him than anything else.

Irina forced herself to look back.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Her voice came out louder than she intended.

Liam blinked.

He genuinely looked confused.

"What?"

"Why did you just take your shirt off?"

Liam looked down at the shredded remains lying beside him.

"It was ruined."

Irina opened her mouth.

Then closed it.

Of course.

That was his answer.

She had somehow managed to turn a completely normal action into something embarrassing in her own head.

"You could have warned me."

Liam raised an eyebrow.

"Warned you that I was taking off a shirt?"

Irina’s face tightened.

"Forget it."

She turned away again.

Liam stared at her for a moment before shrugging.

"Women are strange."

Irina heard him.

She almost turned around and hit him.

But she decided she had suffered enough embarrassment for one morning.

She took a breath and tried to calm herself down.

Unfortunately, another memory suddenly flashed through her mind.

Back inside the cavern.

When she and Liam had fallen during the chaos, he had caught her before he hit the ground. In the confusion, his hand had accidentally landed on her breast as he tried to grab onto something.

It only lasted for five seconds.

But apparently her brain had decided that five seconds was enough to preserve the memory forever.

Her cheeks warmed.

She immediately shook her head.

No.

Absolutely not.

She wasn’t thinking about that.

She refused to think about that.

Meanwhile, Liam seemed completely unaware of the internal crisis happening beside him.

He finally looked toward Irina again.

"I need your help."

She turned back.

"What?"

"I need you to freeze my wounds."

Irina blinked.

"Huh?"

That finally made everyone pay attention.

Until that moment, the group had been distracted by Liam’s unbelievable claim about defeating the Gargoyles and his ridiculous behavior afterward. Now that he had removed his ruined shirt, they could finally see what he had been hiding.

Liam had been holding his side the entire time.

He slowly moved his hand away.

The mood changed instantly.

Tatiana’s expression dropped.

A nasty claw wound stretched from beneath his ribs down along his side toward his waist. The injury was deep and jagged, with several overlapping claw marks crossing the same area. Blood had soaked the remaining fabric around his waist, and unlike the smaller wounds scattered across his body, this one wasn’t healing.

Not properly.

The flesh around the wound remained open.

Every few seconds another thin line of blood slipped down his side.

Liam’s jaw tightened slightly.

That was the first real indication that he was in serious pain.

Everyone stared.

Gregor’s expression became pale.

Agatha’s eyes narrowed.

Mary immediately stepped closer.

Even Irina forgot her embarrassment.

"That’s..."

She stopped.

The wound looked terrible.

Liam had been sitting there joking around and proudly telling everyone how he had defeated nearly thirty Gargoyles while carrying an injury like that.

Tatiana rushed toward him.

"Liam!"

She reached his side and carefully looked at the wound.

Her eyes filled with concern.

"How bad is it?"

"I’m fine."

Tatiana looked up at him.

"You are obviously not fine."

Liam smiled faintly.

"It’s not as bad as it looks."

She stared at him.

"You’re bleeding."

"That happens."

"Your wound isn’t healing."

"I noticed."

Tatiana’s expression hardened.

"Liam."

He gently patted her shoulder.

"I’m alright."

She didn’t look convinced.

He then turned his attention toward Irina.

"That’s why I called you."

Irina looked at him.

"My ice?"

Liam nodded.

"You can freeze the wound, right?"

Irina’s expression became serious.

"Yes."

She had always possessed the abilities of a werewolf, but unlike Tatiana, her powers weren’t limited to physical strength and regeneration. Irina could manipulate ice, and under the right circumstances, she could use it both offensively and defensively.

Liam looked down at his injured side.

"I don’t know why it’s not healing."

He touched the edge of the wound carefully and immediately frowned.

"The Gargoyle’s claws did something to it."

Leonid stepped closer.

"Probably the corruption."

Everyone looked at him.

Leonid’s expression was thoughtful.

"Those creatures weren’t normal. Their attacks might have some kind of effect that interferes with regeneration."

Liam nodded.

"That’s what I was thinking."

Irina looked at the wound again.

"Freezing it won’t heal it."

"I know."

"But it’ll slow the bleeding and numb the pain."

"Exactly."

Irina sighed.

"Fine."

She stepped closer.

Liam remained seated on the rock while Tatiana stood beside him, watching carefully.

Irina raised one hand.

A faint chill immediately spread through the air.

Tiny crystals of frost began forming around her fingers.

The temperature dropped.

Liam felt the cold brush against his skin.

He looked at her.

"Try not to freeze me solid."

Irina rolled her eyes.

"I know what I’m doing."

"Just checking."

"You’ve been fighting monsters all day and somehow you’re still annoying."

Liam smiled.

"That’s one of my talents."

Irina shook her head.

Then her expression became focused.

She placed her hand near the wound without touching it.

The air around Liam’s side began to shimmer.

Frost slowly spread across the bloodied skin.

The bleeding began to slow.

Liam released a quiet breath as the cold numbed the burning pain.

Tatiana watched him carefully.

She simply stood beside him, her eyes fixed on the wound.

The others remained quiet as well.

The Gargoyles were dead.

The passage was finally safe.

But the battle had left Liam with something far more troublesome than a few cuts and bruises.

Something had happened to that wound.

And judging from the way it refused to heal, the consequences of Liam’s fight might not be over yet.