28 Green-eyed Monster (1/2)
”CAPTAIN Kiho,” Captain Denver greeted him with a serious look on his face. ”You're scaring me.”
Tilly noticed that even Captain Denver said that Kiho scared him, she didn't look scared at all. The captain of the Red Phoenix Knights didn't even flinch even though his hand and arm were now covered with ice.
And she realized why right away.
An orange flame engulfed Captain Denver's hand and arm until the ice melted. She could see that the flame came from the metal arm band that he was wearing.
[Right. Captain Denver is a Fire Wielder. He can't produce fire from his body but he can use items that produce fire.]
Tilly didn't have the time to process that because the next thing she knew, she was already leaning against Kiho's solid chest while a protective arm was wrapped around her shoulders. Everything happened so fast that she didn't know how exactly Kiho ”snatched” her away from Captain Denver's hold.
”Are you okay, Tilly?” Kiho asked her. His voiced was laced with a mix of worry and anger. But she knew that his anger was directed at Captain Denver and not her. ”What did Captain Denver do to you? Don't be afraid to talk. I'm here.”
”Hey,” Captain Denver complained. ”You make it sound like I assaulted your fiancée, Captain Kiho.”
Kiho turned to the other captain with a very, very cold stare.
[It's cold enough to freeze the entire mountain.]
”Kiho, Captain Denver was just trying to help me,” Tilly explained to calm Kiho. When he turned to her, she placed a hand on his cheek. His face instantly softened up. ”My chest suddenly felt like it was burning. Captain Denver noticed that and tried to help.”
[I just don't know how.]
Kiho turned to Captain Denver, his face cold again. ”Captain Denver, how do you plan to help my fiancée by trying to touch her chest?”
”I just wanted to absorb the heat in her chest,” Captain Denver said. ”I can't produce fire within my body but my Mana allows me to absorb it. Same with body heat.”
Kiho didn't comment on that but he turned to her. Then, he placed a hand on her forehead to probably check her temperature. ”Are you having fever again?”
”I'm not sure,” Tilly said. ”I think my body is acting weird these days.”
Was it because she kept on making her temperature rise? In her past life, she rarely used her Mana. Maybe the side-effect of continuously using it was only showing now that she was kind of ”abusing” it.
”Tilly, we should go to the hospital,” Kiho said. ”I think this has something to do with your Mana.”
The hospital in the empire had ”Mana Doctors.” Like its name, a Mana Doctor was someone who specialized in treating Mana that was harming its owner's physical health.
[If a Mana Doctor takes a look at my Mana, they would find out that I'm using it to fake my sickness.]
”We don't need to go to the doctor, Kiho,” Tilly said. Then, she wrapped her arms around his waist. ”Your body is cool. The burning in my chest is starting to disappear.��
And that was true.
Kiho's cool temperature seemed to help her.
”Are you sure?” Kiho asked while wrapping his arms around her body. ”Should I lower my temperature more?”
”You'll die if your body temperature dropped down any more than this,” she lightly scolded him. ”This is fine. Let's stay like this for a while.”
”Okay.”
Captain Denver cleared his throat but they just ignored him. That was probably why he turned to Blake instead. ”Vice Captain Blake, are they usually like that?”
”Yes, Captain Denver,” Blake answered politely. ”Captain Kiho and Lady Prescott get into their own world when they are together.”
***
TILLY was now perfectly fine. The burning in her chest was gone as if it never happened. But now, she had learned her lesson.
[I will not abuse my Mana again.]
”Kiho, this is Baby Julian,” Tilly said to Kiho. ”Pretty, isn't he?”
She was carrying the baby in her arms while showing him off to Kiho who was standing protectively in front of her. To be precise, her fiancé was blocking Captain Denver's view of her.
Captain Denver was helping Flint pack his things. Blake left for a while to walk Grandma Rosa to home. They were waiting for the vice captain to return before they left. And of course, she wanted to properly send off Flint and Julian, too.
”He's pretty,” Kiho said while looking down at Julian. ”But tiny. Very tiny.”
She giggled at his remark. ”Julian is only fourteen months old. Of course, he's tiny.”
When Julian giggled, she smiled and gently rubbed her nose against his little nose.
[He's so cute!]
”Kiho, try holding him,” she told him.
Kiho backed away while shaking his head. ”I'm afraid that I might actually crush him. I think my hands are bigger than him.”
She laughed softly at that. ”No, you won't crush him. Just try it, Kiho. You need practice anyway. Will you not hold our son once he was born?”
That seemed to change his mind. ”Y-You'll guide me, right?”
She smiled and nodded. ”Of course.”
He gulped before he agreed. ”Okay. I'll try…”
Tilly carefully guided Kiho to hold Julian in his arms. Once he was carrying the baby, he froze. If it wasn't for the heaving of his chest, she'd think that he had turned into an ice sculpture. His face also looked as pale as a white canvas.
[Who knew that the mighty captain of the Black Serpent Knights is afraid of babies?]
Well, more like he was afraid of holding a tiny human being.
”Don't worry, you're doing great,” she assured him. She had one hand on the baby's back while the other was wrapped around Kiho's waist. She held onto him so he wouldn't panic. ”How is it?”
She knew that he would easily get used to holding a baby because in her past life, Kiho practically raised Winter on his own. Because during that time, she was a spoiled little girl who didn't have the patience to take care of her son.
”He's very light,” Kiho said. Now he was looking at Julian like he was the most precious thing in the world. ”I want to take him home.”
She giggled. ”Right?”
”Hey!” Flint complained. Then, the child stood in front of them while glaring at Kiho. ”Mister, you can't take my brother away from me.”
Kiho's face reddened in embarrassment. ”Sorry.”