Odalisque - Chapter 249

Stefan believed Demus took the credit away from him.

The reason he, who had always pushed Demus into tough battles, suddenly took the initiative to lead the army was so that he could get some credit. He had always seen Demus racking up feat after feat from up close, so he thought he could do the same if only he could get out into the battlefield.

By the time Demus realized that Stefan had led his soldiers out to ambush the enemy, it was too late.

Stefan trampled through the village more brutally than necessary, as if to intimidate the enemy. Arriving late, Demus saw only pools of blood staining the ground, a sickening stench, and burning buildings.

Stefan, who had little field experience, was in high spirits after his one-sided killing spree, and his soldiers were convinced that what they had killed were enemy soldiers in disguise, and that their failure to fight was only due to the perfection of their ambush.

But the problem didn’t stop there. The real enemy soldiers attacked them in their triumph. It was then that Stefan realized he had made a mistake, a big bad one.

“De-Demus! Protect me now! I need to bring in reinforcements!”

Stefan was barely saved with the help of Demus, but instead of sending reinforcements, he stayed in the safety of the rear for days on end, guarding the perimeter of the camp. As if that weren’t enough, he even stopped Demus from going to help. Stefan ordered Demus to protect him.

In the end, the isolated soldiers were annihilated, and the blame for Stefan’s mistake and defeat fell entirely on Demus.

The last battle was the most humiliating and horrifying of all the battles Demus had fought. He should have killed Stefan by feigning he was caught in the battle. It would have been better to save one more soldier than such a useless commander.

The cost of a momentary lapse in judgment was too great. It was at this point that he began to suffer in earnest from a crawling sensation throughout his body. It was also when he began to be haunted by visual and auditory hallucinations of screams and blood at night.

“… S.”

When his knee would ache for no apparent reason, he would have a worse nightmare that day. On those days, even medication didn’t help.

“… Mus.”

It was a meaningless life. Not only had he lost his goal overnight, but Demus had also lost his value for life. Being forced to settle down in the quiet countryside after wandering the battlefields had also left him feeling lifeless. Thus, he lived in a dull peace.

No, it had been dull, but it had changed a bit.

“Demus!”

Opening his eyes in a flash, he found himself in a dark room. He could hear the faint sound of rain outside.

It had been a long time since he’d felt waking up from sleep. All the sleep he’d ever gotten recently was only a brief nap, which then quickly followed by a startled awakening.

Demus glanced to the side. He felt the warmth of a human body in his arms, which he unconsciously hugged tightly.

“Are you okay?”

Liv was looking at him with worried eyes. The room was dark, but the proximity made it impossible to misread her expression.

She was worried about him.

Worried, huh?

He brushed a stray strand of Liv’s hair out of her face, wondering if he was dreaming. The sensation of his hand against her told him that this moment was real.

Liv looked puzzled for a moment as Demus suddenly touched her face, then awkwardly cowered her neck.

“I woke you up because it looked like you had a nightmare.”

“… I see.”

The nightmare was no surprise to Demus, but apparently not to Liv. In Buerno, he had been at peace for a while with Liv by his side, and in Adelinde he had never slept long enough to have nightmares, so this was actually the first time she had seen Demus’ condition at night.

He’d never let anyone see the vulnerable side of him, plagued by nightmares every night. Even after he’d reunited with Liv, who had run away from him, he hadn’t been willing to show her this vulnerable side of himself.

But now, at this moment, he instinctively realized that his unstable state could be quite useful.

“This is why I’ve always taken medication.”

“Is that an aftereffect?”

“I guess, since I’ve been like this since I got out of the service.”

Liv’s complexion darkened even more. Demus barely suppressed an involuntary chuckle. She was so gentle, he couldn’t easily let her out anywhere. He thought he must have to keep her close so that she wouldn’t give her sympathy anywhere.

“But I never saw it in Buerno.”

“I felt at ease with you by my side.”

It wasn’t exactly a lie, so the answer flowed easily.

“And now?”

“I must be dreaming because I recalled the past again. But as long as you’re with me, I’ll be all right soon.”

It was a reply that implied he would always have uncomfortable nights like this without Liv by his side. Normally, Liv would have thought Demus was being unusual for whining, but since she had just seen him suffer through a nightmare, she nodded gravely.

“Is that all you need?”

Demus eventually pulled her into a strong hug, unable to hold back his emotions. Liv squirmed uncomfortably as she had to bury her head in his hard chest, but Demus didn’t loosen his embrace. Pressing his lips lightly to the top of her head, he murmured in a low voice.

“Yeah, it is.”

Demus had a feeling. If he fell asleep again, even if it was just for a few hours, he would be able to sleep comfortably.

And when he woke up, he would still have Liv by his side.

He was certain of that.

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