Holy Night: My Husband is Definitely a Paladin - Chapter 237
What had fallen to the floor was a bundle of fabric.
It rolled over on its own, revealing what had been hidden insideā
A pair of blue underwear.
Michael, puzzled, picked it up.
He recognized it immediately.
It was the very same piece that had allowed him and Irene to share an unforgettable night togetherāso why was it here?
As Michael stared blankly at the underwear, Irene rushed forward and snatched it from his hands, shouting,
āW-Why did you suddenly go through my bag?!ā
Hurriedly, she wrapped the underwear back in the fabric, stuffing it into her bag as if she were hiding contraband.
Michael, watching her with a bewildered expression, finally asked,
āā¦Why are you hiding it?ā
āB-Because if you see itā¦ youāll probablyā¦ do something againā¦ā
Her voice grew smaller and smaller, laced with embarrassment.
Michael silently looked at her for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh.
āSo thatās what I was sensingāmy own miasma.ā
Even though it had been washed, it had been drenched and soaked through while in his mouth, meaning his energy had likely seeped into it.
But it wasnāt just hisāIrene had soaked it too.
As that thought crossed his mind, Michael subtly turned his body away.
Even if he tried to suppress his reactions, he couldnāt fully control how his body responded.
He could easily pull her into his arms againā
But seeing how desperately she was hiding it, he figured it would be too cruel to push her any further.
The only option left was to deal with it himself.
āā¦Iāll go wash up for a bit.ā
He spoke as casually as if he were just going to rinse his hands, then stepped into the bathroom.
As soon as the door clicked shut, Irene let out a deep breath of relief.
āThat was closeā¦ā
She couldnāt help but recall what had happened just before Michael returned.
***
āHey, youā¦ thatās already your third plate.ā
At Ireneās words, Chomp-chomp, who had its face buried in a dish, lifted its head.
Its newly formed mouth at the tip of its tentacle was still chewing on vegetables.
[Wait! Iām almost done! Just a little more!]
Mumbling with its full mouth, the tentacle swallowed down the last bite.
[Alright, Iāll go earn my meal now!]
It had clearly wanted to ask for another plate but knew better than to push its luck.
Instead, it licked the last traces of dressing from the dish, then vanished behind the sofa.
Since it had been so confident about fetching the fragment this time, she figured it would return quicklyā
[Iām back!]
āAnd less than a minute later, it reappeared, holding Ireneās metal fragment in its mouth.
āā¦Youāre really fast.ā
Impressed, Irene took the fragment as Chomp-chomp swayed proudly.
[This is nothing! If you ever lose anything, Iāll find it in no time! Lost items, stolen goodsāno problem! If you want, I can even get rid of the thief!]
As Chomp-chomp boasted about its usefulness, Irene dug through her bag, pulling out the other fragment that it had brought her earlier.
She pressed the two jagged edges togetherā
And they fit perfectly.
āSo they were originally one piece.ā
She wasnāt completely certain, but the fragment she had carried for so long was likely tied to her resurrection.
If that was the case, then the new fragment might hold similar power.
Irene fitted the pieces together again and again, watching howā
Once aligned, not a single gap remained.
It didnāt even look like two separate fragments anymoreāit appeared as a single piece of metal.
The only difference was the color.
Unlike her fragment, the one Chomp-chomp had first brought her had a faint red glow around the engravingsā
Almost like miasmaā¦
āChomp-chomp, do you know what this is?ā
Just in case, she decided to ask.
Chomp-chomp, who had been licking the last traces of dressing from another plate, shook its body.
[No idea. But I do know one thingāitās definitely not edible.]
āā¦Yeah, I figured.ā
She was tempted to say āIsnāt that obvious?āābut she held back.
After all, monsters could probably eat metal for all she knew.
āStillā¦ what do I do with this?ā
Once they returned to the fortress, she planned to take it to The Hand of Appraisal.
But until then, she needed to figure out how to store it.
āItās not like I can just carry it around all the timeā¦ā
Even though it wasnāt heavy, her bag was already packed with other things.
As she absently fidgeted with the metal fragment, she suddenly realizedā
And her eyes widened in shock.
She finally understood what had truly been bothering her.
Irene was hesitating to show Michael the fragment.
