Chapter 113: Immensely
The chamber fell silent except for the soft sound of water shifting around them and the crackling fire beneath the bath. Lucrezia watched him carefully beneath lowered lashes, confusion twisting softly inside her because this creature—the one kingdoms feared enough to whisper about in terror—handled her as though she were something fragile worth preserving. And perhaps that frightened her most of all.
For a while, she stared at him in silence, wondering what exactly had gone wrong. Lucrezia knew she was supposed to be cautious and wary around him. Afraid, even. Every story whispered about creatures like Vaeron had taught her that much, that even her position did same too, and yet, instead of shrinking away from him, she found herself doing something far more dangerous.
She felt... safe.
Safe enough to let his impossible gentleness slip beneath her defenses, to allow his questionable kindness to overshadow every barrier that should have remained firmly standing between them.
It was foolish. Terribly foolish.
But as his hands moved carefully around her injuries, never once causing unnecessary pain, Lucrezia realized with quiet horror that some part of her had already begun lowering those walls long before she ever noticed they were falling. If this was what stupidity looked like, she crowned it all.
"I should warn you, little wolf—keep looking at me like that, and you may find yourself hopelessly attached," He said, his voice breaking her off her trance.
Lucrezia’s face burned in embarrassment. Although he spoke with a usual intensity, something within her felt his warning far from a tease.
Gathering what remained of her withering composure into something she desperately hoped resembled courage, she lifted her chin slightly to say, "I-I do not understand what you’re talking about, milord,"
Vaeron’s hand stilled briefly against the cloth before a low hum escaped him, sounding far too unconvinced. "No?"
"No," she repeated quickly, refusing to meet his eyes that turned to hers now.
The water shifted softly as he leaned back slightly beside the bath, watching her with that same infuriating calm that made her feel as though he could see straight through every thought she tried hiding.
"It looks terrible on you," he said.
Lucrezia raised a brow in question. "What?"
"Lying,"
She nearly inhaled water. W-Why does he have to make it sound that way?
Unlike the times they conversed, this one seemed entirely natural that caught her off guard. She’d known him to be a creature of less words, eager to conclude a conversation the moment it began, yet this one seemed as though he required a conversation.
For a moment, Lucrezia didn’t know how to react.
Sensing her reaction, he took it in an entirely different way, "And for someone claiming innocence," he said smoothly, returning to cleaning the dried blood from her arm, "you are remarkably easy to fluster."
Lucrezia glared at him instantly despite the heat still burning across her face. Careful not to ruin the little conversation between them, "And for someone feared across kingdoms... you speak far too much."
That earned the faintest smile from him, dangerous enough to make her heart stumble embarrassingly hard against her ribs anyway.
Gods help her. That was becoming a problem.
"My observations are never flawed, little wolf," he murmured, the faintest trace of amusement curling beneath his voice. "Especially when your reactions betray you long before your words do,"
Mortified beyond words, Lucrezia immediately looked away, sinking slightly deeper into the water as though it might somehow save her from the conversation. It did not.
"My reactions are quite natural for someone who can barely move," she argued quickly, though the weakness in her voice ruined whatever confidence she tried to summon.
Vaeron only hummed again, entirely unconvinced. His fingers remained steady as he scrubbed her, infuriatingly gentle despite the teasing look lingering in his eyes.
"If that comforts you, then by all means, continue believing it," He said smoothly.
Lucrezia frowned at him immediately, heat still lingering stubbornly across her cheeks. "You enjoy provoking me far too much."
A quiet chuckle escaped him then, low and dangerous enough to make her heart trip over itself once again. "And you are far too easy to provoke,"
Lucrezia didn’t know how to respond to that. Suddenly, the chamber fell in a deep silence that only the gentle sound of scrubbing, and water dripping against the stone floor echoed in the room, as the heavy scent of herbs and the divine scent of jasmine filled the air.
She’d always loved the scent of jasmine ever since she was little. It reminded her of her mother.
Lucrezia allowed the warmth of the silence find its way to the discomfort of her heart, until it felt peaceful again. For a while, the chamber bath in something similar to serenity, until a thought crossed her mind.
After much contemplation, she gathered enough courage and opened her mouth to speak. "How is she?" She asked softly. "Vespera,"
Vaeron paused for a moment, and though his expression was ever indecipherable, it was enough to give a hint. Her stomach sank.
He returned, eyes fixed on her arms as his got rid of the stubborn stain. "She’s recovering," he responded.
Lucrezia felt her body sink in sheer relief it made her dizzy. Thank goodness, she thought. She didn’t know what she would’ve done if... and she shook her head, refusing to think further. At least, she was alive. Breathing.
And she nodded at last, looking away. The chamber returned to its usual silence, yet this time, something about it felt different.
"You did all you could, little wolf," Vaeron said quietly, his voice lower now, stripped of its usual sharpness. "And perhaps... that is the reason she is still breathing."
Lucrezia stilled.
Her gaze lifted slowly toward him, caught off guard not just by the words themselves, but by the sincerity buried beneath them. Vaeron did not strike her as the kind of creature who offered comfort freely—if at all, yet somehow, hearing it from him made the tightness in her chest loosen.
For a moment, she could only stare.
Then her eyes lowered again, fingers curling slightly against the edge of the bath as emotion settled heavily inside her; relief, exhaustion, gratitude.
"I thought she was going to die," she admitted softly after a while, her voice barely louder than the water shifting around them. "When she fell..." Her throat tightened faintly. "I didn’t know what to do."
Vaeron’s hands paused briefly against her arm. Perhaps because she sounded disappointed, or she was speaking about it anyways.
"You acted anyway," he said.
The answer came simply, but something about it settled deeply within her. Because he wasn’t praising her strength, but he was acknowledging her fear.
Lucrezia swallowed quietly, her pulse strangely unsteady beneath the warmth of the bath. Steam curled softly between them, blurring the sharpness of the chamber, though nothing could truly soften the presence seated beside her.
Vaeron remained where he was near the edge of the bath, sleeves rolled slightly past his wrists now, darkened fingertips still damp from the water. The sight felt... oddly intimate, far too intimate that she looked away quickly before he could notice.
Unfortunately for her, Vaeron noticed everything. "You keep doing that," he murmured.
Her eyes widened instantly. "What—"
"That one would actually think you were preparing for battle,"
Heat rushed into her cheeks. She’d expected something else, and it was far from what she imagined. "T-That is because speaking to you feels exactly like one,"
A faint sound escaped him. Lucrezia could’ve swore it seemed close enough to laughter that it startled her into looking at him again.
The firelight from the adjoining chamber flickered faintly across his face, catching against the scars carved ruthlessly over his skin. She had seen them before, of course. Everyone had. They were impossible to miss. But now, this close... They no longer looked frightening.
They looked... painful.