Chapter 85: You’re Precious To Me, Too

"....is that you, Lydia? Why are you here?"

Lydia barely had time to react before Russell dashed toward her.

Even inside his own Spiritual Domain, Russell had somehow recognized her.

"Wait, Russell—!"

A mutated polar bear suddenly lunged from behind her. Before Lydia could turn around, Russell thrust his spear forward and pierced the monster’s body.

The polar bear collapsed with a sharp cry and dissolved into a cloud of dark particles.

Russell grabbed Lydia’s wrist and pulled her away from the fallen creature.

"Watch out!"

Another gigantic mutated bird dove toward them from the other end of the corridor.

Its enormous claws struck the floor with enough force to shake the walls, and its beak opened wide as it rushed toward them.

Russell immediately raised his free hand to blast an ice wall between them and the charging monster.

The mutated bird slammed into the barrier, sending cracks spreading across its frozen surface.

Lydia almost fell from the impact but Russell caught her and pulled her behind him.

"I’ve got you. Stay close!"

Russell tightened his grip on his spear and faced the monster. His Resonance gathered around his weapon as he prepared to attack again.

The bird screeched and struck the barrier with its massive claws.

Cracks spread farther across the ice, threatening to shatter it at any moment.

But Russell didn’t wait for that to happen.

He swept his spear forward, sending a sharp blast of ice through the opening in the barrier.

The attack struck the mutated bird squarely in the chest, freezing part of its feathers and slowing its movements.

He followed up with another strike and shattered the bird into black cloud.

After making sure everything was safe, Russell lowered his weapon and turned to Lydia.

"Are you okay? Did you get hurt?"

Before either of them could speak, a large figure emerged from the swirling darkness.

"You’re still here, huh? We could keep this civil, Prince Russell. Just die and let me rule this kingdom."

Its long, serpentine body moved through the ruined corridor, and its upper half resembled a human’s.

A naga.

Wait. He looked quite similar to that assassin.

"Lydia, hold on to me!"

He slithered toward Russell and hurled lightning bolts at him.

Lydia tried to make sense of what she was seeing, but Russell grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the end of the corridor.

Before she could ask what he was doing, Russell pulled her into his arms.

"Don’t let go!"

He rushed toward a nearby window and jumped through it with Lydia in his arms.

The glass shattered around them as they plunged into the ravine below.

They plunged into the freezing river, and the current swallowed Lydia whole.

She tried to open her eyes, but everything had become a blur of darkness and pale blue light.

The last thing she felt was the cold water closing over her head, and then everything went black.

When Lydia opened her eyes again, she was in her familiar room again.

"I’m back?"

Lydia immediately turned toward the bed beside hers.

"Rishe!"

Her roommate was still lying beneath the blankets, but her condition had improved considerably.

The fever that had burned through her body earlier had finally cooled, and her breathing was much steadier.

Relief washed over Lydia.

Lydia tapped into her mental power and checked on Rishe’s condition.

[Resonance Stress: 5%]

"Thank goodness..."

Her guiding had worked. Lydia reached for Rishe’s hand and held it gently between both of hers.

"Rishe..."

The name felt different now.

"No, you aren’t a she." Lydia frowned at their joined hands. "How should I address you? Rishe? Russell? Which one now?"

Lydia had so many questions that she didn’t know where to begin.

Unfortunately, her muttering proved rather effective at waking the person she had been talking about.

Rishe stirred awake and tried to sit on the bed.

"Lydia...?"

The person lying before her was no longer simply her roommate, Rishe Arestionne—or whatever name she had used at university.

This was Russell Arestionne, the missing Crown Prince of Arestionne.

Russell blinked several times before slowly sitting up. His gaze drifted toward their joined hands, then returned to Lydia’s face.

"Lydia... you guided me, huh?"

He let out a dry laugh and shook his head.

"I never expected things to turn out like this."

"Don’t move too quickly." Lydia immediately helped him sit more comfortably against the pillows. "You were burning with fever earlier. Here, drink some water first."

She fetched a glass from the table and handed it to him.

Russell accepted it with a quiet nod. After taking a few sips, he rested the glass in his lap and stared down at the water.

"I never knew you’d find out about me this way, but I have to thank you for guiding me when I almost lost it."

He paused, then offered Lydia a faint, apologetic smile.

"And yes, my real name is Russell Arestionne. The Crown Prince of the Arestionne Kingdom."

Lydia had already reached that conclusion, but hearing him confirm it still felt surreal.

Her roommate had been the missing prince all along. Okay, to be precise, her roommate wasn’t a woman—but a man—all along!

"Did I make you feel upset for lying about my gender for this very long time?" Russell sighed. "I’m really sorry about this, Lydia."

"I know you had your reasons. Rishe—" Lydia stopped herself. "No, I mean Russell. We have captured an assassin from Luanna a few days ago, and the naga man did mention you."

Russell’s expression immediately changed.

"....that must be Larkas."

He lowered his gaze, seemingly lost in thought.

"To think that his father would send him to chase after me... he must have grown desperate."

Lydia watched him carefully.

She wanted to ask more about Larkas, the Prime Minister, and the terrible scene she had seen inside the Spiritual Domain.

But before she could ask another question, Russell suddenly began packing his things.

He reached for a few items on the bedside table and started putting them away.

"Wait, where are you going, Russell?"

"You must be disgusted by me. A man posing as a woman, then being your roommate for months." His voice grew quieter. "I should find another place to stay..."

Was he being serious?

After everything they had been through together, he thought Lydia would simply throw him out because of his gender?

Before Russell could pick up another item, Lydia snapped and hugged him.

"Stop!"

Russell turned toward her, startled by her sudden movement.

"Rishe or Russell, it doesn’t matter to me. You’re still my precious friend, my dear roommate." Lydia held him closer.

"You’re precious to me, too, Lydia."

Lydia felt him pull her closer, his embrace gentle was at first.

But when she tightened her arms around him, Russell held her a little more firmly.

Russell had never expected Lydia to embrace him so warmly, even after learning who he truly was.

Lydia rested her cheek against his chest. His heartbeat was steady beneath her ear, and the warmth of his embrace made her feel strangely at peace.

"So don’t go, okay? Stay here, Russell. Let me help you, too. Please."

Russell had believed that he had to face everything alone for a long time. He had lost his family, his kingdom, and the life he had once known.

Even after finding a place at Belfort University, he had kept so much of himself hidden.

But Lydia had seen it all and she still wanted him to stay.

A faint smile touched his lips as he closed his eyes and rested his cheek against her hair.

"You’re always like this," he murmured.

His voice was soft, almost a whisper. "Thank you, Lydia. There’s so much I want to tell you... I don’t even know where to start."