I Became a Barbarian's Bride - Chapter 174
Her eyes darted from side to side.
“Ahem. Kagan.”
“Mm?”
“To restore all of Shaman Territory, I think I’ll need to use my power twice more.”
“…”
As expected, Kagan’s expression immediately hardened before she had even finished speaking.
“…Do you have to?”
“At least we’re together now.”
Besides, Nisha had seen it in her dream.
The view spread beneath the volcano had been filled with green, all of Xieman covered in life and growth.
She didn’t know whether it was a vision of the future or a dream Adin himself was seeing, one she had glimpsed by chance.
But one thing was certain. It meant that one day, she would create that very sight.
In the end, Nisha would move to bring it into being.
No one had ordered her to do it, yet when she saw that image of Xieman, she simply wanted to make it real.
It was the future seen by a god. Even if she didn’t intend to make it happen, there was a high chance that somehow it would come to pass.
That was what it meant for something to be willed by a god.
So Nisha wanted to do it by her own strength. If Kagan stayed by her side, she felt she could.
“…I don’t like it.”
“Kagan. You promised.”
“I know. I know, but still, I don’t like it.”
Kagan muttered sulkily, then pulled Nisha close and lay back on the bed with her still in his arms.
The warmth and the sound of his breath against her back made her squeeze her eyes shut.
The touch of his lips on her neck was enough to make her pulse race. She forced herself to hold her breath.
Thump-, thump-, thump-. She only hoped he couldn’t hear the sound of her rapidly beating heart.
He always drew close as if it were nothing, always pressed his lips to her as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Her rapidly beating heart made her vision flash white again and again. She slowly rubbed her face and pressed her palms against it to hide.
“Why are you hiding your face, Princess?”
“…Just because.”
“How cute.”
At Kagan’s quiet laugh, Nisha let out a sigh. He was saying things he normally never would.
“I understand what you’re thinking, Princess, but not tonight.”
“Ah… then tomorrow?”
“…Tomorrow, even if I say no, you’ll do it anyway.”
Nisha gave an awkward laugh at his words. Kagan pulled her tightly into his arms and bit lightly at her shoulder so as not to hurt her.
“Why can’t my Princess ever stay still?”
“…It just feels like I have to.”
“Even if you don’t, maybe someone else will do it someday.”
“If I can do it, there’s no reason not to.”
At her words, Kagan narrowed his eyes.
“Princess.”
“Yes?”
“There really aren’t any other side effects, are there? No price to pay or anything like that?”
At his question, Nisha’s body stiffened slightly before relaxing again. She curled the corners of her lips into a faint smile and nodded slowly.
“There aren’t.”
At her firm answer, Kagan looked at her quietly for a moment, then gave a small smile.
“Good. Then that’s something, at least.”
At least she meant nothing would be lost permanently.
Even so, he couldn’t understand why he still felt so uneasy.
‘I don’t know why I feel this way every time I hear her answer.’
Kagan quietly looked down at Nisha, then pulled her into his arms. Even as he held her like this, it felt as though she might slip away at any moment.
“Princess.”
“Yes?”
“Rest well tonight. And tomorrow… do as you wish.”
Kagan intended to watch over her until the day she decided on her own to stop.
Until the day she no longer felt the need to use her power.
He wanted her to know that even without it, she could still be loved, that there was a place for her to belong.
He would stay by her side in silence until the morning came when she no longer felt the need for that burden.
It was what she wanted, and he would endure it for her.
“…I still don’t like it.”
“…”
“I hate having to watch you suffer.”
Kagan said it quietly, but in the end, he did not tell her to stop.
