His gaze looked like that of a man staring lovingly at his beloved. "May I come in first? It's not proper to keep talking at the doorway like this."
Tsana flinched for the second time, snapping out of her daze.
She stepped aside, allowing Cayn to enter.
Cayn gladly walked into the modest wooden house and took a seat on the simple sofa made of the same material, cushioned with a soft pillow on top.
Tsana closed the door slowly.
She couldn't understand why, every time she met Cayn, her behavior became so strange. Her mind drifted, her thoughts wandered to odd places.
'What was wrong with me?'
Could it be that Cayn was using mind-control magic on her?
No, that was impossible. She couldn't feel any trace of magical energy coming from him since the beginning.
Then what was happening to her?
For hundreds of years, she had never felt this way toward anyone, not even toward the supreme rulers of any kingdom. Yet, in front of this man, Tsana felt like a completely different person.
She sat across from Cayn, with a wooden table separating them. That was when she noticed, Cayn's gaze had been fixed on her neck.
Instinctively, Tsana touched her neck, checking whether her robe was still fastened properly.
It was perfectly in place.
When she looked back, his eyes had already shifted to her face.
A drop of sweat slid down Tsana's cheek.
'What is this? Why am I getting nervous?'
Outside, the sky was beginning to darken, the blue fading into shades of gray and black.
This was truly a new feeling for Tsana, something she hadn't experienced in centuries, and yet, strangely, it felt familiar.
'Have I ever felt like this before?'
Tsana finally spoke. "At first, I gave you that mana pill so I could talk to you about the Light Dragon. But now that the Dragon has appeared on the surface, our conversation will take a very different turn."
Cayn nodded. "I understand. I came here to deliver a message. News about the Light Dragon being inside the Nightmare Forest has spread quickly. Every kingdom has sent their strongest envoys to hunt it down. At least fifty kingdoms have dispatched their elite monster-hunting parties here."
Tsana replied, "Even if they come, I can't allow them to enter. The forest's structure has already changed since the Dragon's arrival, it's too dangerous. They'd only be throwing their lives away if they insist on going in."
Cayn smiled faintly. "Of course. If the Guardian of the Nightmare Forest herself does not permit it, then even the entire continent is powerless."
Tsana's brow twitched. She couldn't tell whether he was praising her or mocking her. And oddly enough, that bothered her.
"But…"
Tsana looked at him, waiting for the rest of his words.
"When those fifty hunting parties arrive and fail to enter, then return home empty-handed, it will provoke anger among the nations. The Kingdom of Zivilia will be blamed. And the one who bears their wrath will be the Guardian of the Nightmare Forest, the one who forbade them entry. You'll be surrounded by countless enemies."
"I don't care, even if my enemies number a billion. They're nothing but ants in my eyes."
Cayn ignored her cold tone. "The worst possibility is that they'll try to destroy the forest's barrier. And if that happens, chaos will be inevitable."
Tsana narrowed her eyes. "What are you really trying to say?"
Cayn smiled. "As his dear friend, the Dragon asked me to deliver a request. If you wish to meet him, you must open the gates of the Nightmare Forest completely. Let them all enter, no matter how many."
Tsana abruptly stood up. "What do you mean by that?"
Cayn's expression turned serious. "This forest is no longer the same. It has become a battlefield, a realm entirely different from before. Dimensional rifts have formed in several places, connected directly to your past. The Dragon said, the cure for your curse lies within the bonds of your past, O Witch of Songs. You must untie those knots, one by one, if you wish the curse to disappear."
Tsana's throat tightened. "I knew it from the first time we met at the bar, you're no ordinary man. The Dragon is your friend, huh?"
She took a step back.
Suddenly, her stomach churned violently. A searing heat spread from the cursed mark on her abdomen.
Sweat began to form on her forehead, though she struggled to remain standing tall.
On the outside, she looked calm, but inside, it felt as though her body was being torn apart.
Her voice trembled. "Lord Cayn-... is there anything else you wish to say?"
Cayn looked at her with concern. "Are you all right?"
'Damn it, I can barely speak.' Tsana gritted her teeth.
The curse's effects were taking hold. She glanced outside, the sky had turned completely dark.
Of course. The curse always activated at night. And now, with Cayn here, she had to make him leave.
Immediately.
She looked down at her own hand. Black tendrils were crawling from her wrist to her palm. Every time the curse activated, those tendrils would emerge from the mark on her stomach and spread throughout her body.
She couldn't let anyone see this.
Not even a friend of the Dragon.
She was the Witch of Songs, the Guardian of the Nightmare Forest. If anyone saw her weakness now, she would no longer be worthy of the title. The Guardian of the Nightmare Forest was supposed to be strong, not fragile.
Tsana turned her back on Cayn. The black tendrils had already reached her chin, almost touching her face.
Whenever the curse activated, she would usually retreat into the Dungeon to hide. It wouldn't matter if it was Zephyr here. But with Cayn present, she wasn't sure how long she could endure.
Her legs weakened. She tried to support herself on the sofa, but her hand kept slipping. Her body wavered again and again, her breath ragged, her vision blurring. Her whole body burned, as if pierced by hundreds of shards of glass, and her head rang with unbearable pain.
'It hurts… It hurts so much… Someone, please help me…'
Tsana heard footsteps behind her. It must be Cayn, probably leaving since she had ignored him.
'Good. Leave quickly.'
But suddenly, she felt someone grab her wrist, pulling her around.
Standing before her was Cayn.
He towered over her, much taller than Zephyr in his adult form, forcing Tsana to tilt her head all the way up to see him.
Her vision was hazy. She hadn't lit any candles, so she couldn't even tell what expression he wore.
Tsana's breath trembled, tears welled in her eyes, and her free hand clutched her abdomen, trying to suppress the pain.
Cayn reached for the collar of her robe, pulling it aside, revealing her pale skin, already overtaken by black tendrils writhing like living things.
His free hand slid beneath her clothes, over her stomach, until his palm rested on the cursed mark.
He pressed his hand gently against it. A golden light flared, and warm magical energy flowed from his palm. Slowly, the black tendrils began to fade. Tsana felt warmth spreading through her abdomen, the pain gradually subsiding.
After hundreds of years nights upon nights spent enduring the agony of her curse until she wished for death itself, for the first time, Tsana felt relief.
Her body was weak, her balance unsteady, she almost collapsed into Cayn's broad chest, but somehow, she managed to hold herself back.
But for some reason, Cayn's grip on Tsana's wrist grew even tighter.
Tsana felt something was off.
When she realized what Cayn was actually doing, her eyes widened. "What are you doing?!"
She tried to push him away, but his body didn't move an inch. "Let me go! Don't do this! Are you insane?!"