When Sharon hurried back to Zex’s room, it looked as if a storm had swept through—things were scattered everywhere.
‘What on earth had happened?’
She assumed the many servants had been running around for Zex, but the room was now empty.
“…Kuh, ugh.”
From the bedroom, Zex’s faint voice could be heard.
Sharon rushed toward the bedroom, ‘Zex-sama…!’
The curtains were drawn, shrouding the room in gloom.
But Sharon’s eyes could see well even in the dark.
Zex had taken off his jacket to treat his wounds.
There was a deep gash on his right shoulder.
‘This is terrible, such a dreadful wound…!’
Zex was sitting on the bedside, trying to wrap a bandage around himself.
At his feet, blood-soaked bandages, gauze, and disinfectant were scattered about.
It seemed he was using Ice Magic to staunch the bleeding, but it must have hurt a lot.
Zex was breathing heavily, and his hands shook as he tried to wrap the bandage.
His face was so pale, he looked like he could collapse at any moment.
‘Why is there no one here at a time like this…?’
There should be knights and servants around, and yet Zex, gravely injured, was tending to his own wounds.
It was strange.
And did the Halbügen Household not have an in-house physician?
Wincing in pain, Zex finally finished bandaging himself.
If only Sharon were in human form, she could have helped.
That thought unconsciously drew Sharon closer to Zex.
‘! Is that Cursed Mark, could it be a curse?’
On the left side of Zex’s body, a black Cursed Mark was spreading, as if eating away at him.
The black mark seemed to writhe in the darkness.
Her Instincts screamed that it was dangerous.
Her body started to tremble on its own.
But still, she couldn’t just leave Zex to suffer.
‘Zex-sama saved me. That’s why I want to help him too.’
Back then, when she was attacked by a Magical Beast, without him, Sharon would have died.
Thanks to Zex, Sharon was alive now.
She climbed onto the bed, using the furniture as support.
Up close, she could see a black haze swirling around his body.
She tried to brush it away with her wings as usual, but no matter how many times she tried, the black haze would not disappear.
‘Huh? There’s more black haze than usual today…?’
‘What even was this stuff, anyway?’ Staring intently, Sharon recalled.
When she’d encountered a Magical Beast in the Forest of Evil, a similar black haze had emanated from it.
Now that she thought about it, Zex always had these black traces on him after slaying Magical Beasts.
Which meant—this haze was the same as what clung to Magical Beasts, and it might be worsening the curse afflicting Zex.
Recently, Sharon had spent more time apart from Zex and hadn’t noticed, but as the frequency of Magical Beast hunts increased, Zex must have accumulated more and more haze.
‘I have to do something about this black haze…!’
Just as she tried to brush the haze away with her wings again, Zex noticed Sharon’s presence.
“Don’t come near me…!” Zex’s large hand swatted Sharon away.
‘Ow…!’
Her tiny bird body rolled across the floor from the impact.
At that moment, a white feather drifted down.
Zex stared at the little bird lying on the floor, frozen in place.
“…What have I done…” He murmured, his indigo eyes filled with despair.
Sharon could sense fear and dread deep within them, and her worry grew even stronger.
‘It’s okay. I can still move.’ She mustered her strength, checking her body.
The soft feathers had cushioned the fall.
‘Nothing hurt anywhere.’
Sharon took a step toward Zex again—at that moment.
“Aren’t you afraid of me? If you don’t want to stay here anymore, I’ll let Snow go. Really, I should’ve done this sooner…”
Zex stood up and opened the bedroom window.
It was a large window that led out onto the balcony.
She could leave and be free if she walked out.
But Sharon did not move an inch.
“Aren’t you going to run? I thought you wanted to get away from me.”
Zex sat down, peering at her.
Sharon shook her head, and the indigo ribbon swayed with her movement.
‘That’s not it. I didn’t want to run from you, Zex-sama… I just didn’t want to be a burden…’
Yet, her actions had hurt Zex in the end.
She didn’t want to hurt him any further.
He had protected her, cherished her—and Sharon cherished him just as much, if not more.
Besides, she knew well the pain and loneliness of being unable to reach out for help when weakened.
Though Zex told her to stay away, she felt as though he was seeking help in his own way.
He might reject her again.
Even so, Sharon steeled herself.
‘I will stay here—by Zex-sama’s side.’
She slowly approached and gently touched Zex’s bare hand.
His left hand, stained black, twitched the moment her feather brushed it, but he didn’t pull away.
The first time she touched Zex directly, his hand was shockingly cold.
She wanted to warm it, even if only a little, and wrapped it in both her wings.
“…You’ll stay by my side…?” Zex’s voice was a near-whisper, as if he were about to cry.
This was the second time Sharon chose to be by Zex’s side of her own will.
The first time, she had nowhere else to go.
But now, her desire to stay with Zex was stronger than ever.
Wishing to reassure him, Sharon tightened her wings around him.
Then, Zex cupped the little bird in both hands and lifted her close to his face.
He looked so weakened, the usual fierce presence had all but vanished.
‘He really does look pale.’
Sharon clung to Zex’s cheek.
As she pressed against his cheek, he nuzzled back.
‘It tickled a little.’
“Snow’s power really is soothing.” Zex spoke softly, the tension in the air easing.
Before she realized it, the black haze shrouding Zex had faded.
‘By ‘power’, does he mean Magical Power…? But I shouldn’t have any Magical Power…’
It had been clear since she was five that Sharon had no Magical Power.
She wondered about Zex’s words, but concluded it must be due to the little bird’s magic.
“Sorry about before. That must have hurt… When I get attacked by a Magical Beast, the curse flares up and I get on edge.”
She’d already forgotten about that pain.
To show she was fine, Sharon patted Zex’s cheek with her wings.
“Thank you. Snow, even after seeing me like this, you’ll still stay by my side.”
Zex looked at his blackened left hand, speaking with a touch of self-mockery.
The black Cursed Mark on Zex’s body wasn’t from this latest hunt.
Even knowing it was a curse, Sharon felt more worried than afraid.
“Could you… listen to me for a bit?”
With Sharon perched on his hand, Zex stood and sat in the chair by the window.
He seemed exhausted.
Taking a deep breath, Zex tried to steady himself.
‘Zex-sama, you should really rest now…’ Sharon pointed to the bed with her wing, urging him.
“It’s all right. Thanks to Snow, I feel much better.”
With that, Zex gently stroked Sharon’s head to calm her.
And so, he began to speak.
Of the cursed history of the Halbügen Household.