The Psychopathic Beast Emperor-Chapter 52: Exildra Esteria

Exildra stared at the blindfolded boy who was skinning the beast with strange claws that appeared out of nowhere. In almost 30 minutes, he was done preparing the bear’s meat, separating the meat, the bones, and the fur.

Seated in front of her, his red eyes narrowed at her was Ren. She almost found it funny; a cute bunny was staring at her. It would have been funny if he were looking at her like any animal would, but this one was different.

"I hope you won’t tell anyone about this?" Bahamut asked in a cold tone, beckoning at the claws. They were claws of the bear they’d just killed. The bear’s ghost would puke blood if it saw this. Its own claws were being used to skin it.

"You believe I even have the strength to do that?" Exildra asked, her voice weak and strained, as she was struggling to even speak. The potion had kept her alive for some time, but it was clearly not enough.

"It’s a yes or no question," Bahamut said, completely ignoring her condition. It was like he was blind to her pain and pale face. Well... he was really blind, so no one could blame him.

"I won’t," Exildra answered, grunting slightly as fresh blood flowed out of the wound.

"Great!" Bahamut exclaimed with a smile as he turned to look around. His senses spread out, covering about 30 meters around them. His ears picked up sounds, some belonging to beasts, the wind...

"There’s a stream nearby," Bahamut suddenly said, as Exildra’s hand inched towards Ren, who looked at her in amusement. She stopped suddenly, shivering slightly as she felt a piercing gaze on her. Her head slowly moved to witness a monster standing in front of her.

Her breath hitched as she struggled to breathe under the suffocating pressure she was experiencing.

"What are you doing?" Bahamut asked in a chilly tone that made her blood freeze.

"I-I just wanted to pet it..." Exildra could barely talk at this moment. She was witnessing fear and horror, even more than the Treant Bear they just killed.

"I don’t trust you," Bahamut was blunt and straightforward. She felt her mood dampen at the direct rejection. She had never been rejected anything before. Even though she was from a very rich family, she mostly did things on her own. But anytime she asked for stuff, it was given to her instantly, so this rejection pierced her more than she could imagine. Her pain didn’t even feel bad anymore.

"Oi! Hey! Can you walk?" Bahamut’s voice entered her ears, bringing her back to her senses. Her face flushed after realizing how close their faces were. They were just inches away from kissing.

She used that time to observe the boy’s features. Beautiful lips that looked almost feminine for someone so brutal, sharp faces, not so chiseled jaw...

"Cute," she blurted out unconsciously.

"What?" Bahamut asked with a raised eyebrow, a bit confused at what she was saying. In his mind, he was thinking, ’Is this girl alright? Did she hit her head?’

"I... uh... No!" Exildra literally screamed, her face now as red as a tomato. Ren just watched from the side, clearly enjoying the show.

"You can’t walk?" Bahamut asked again, standing upright, allowing her to breathe a bit.

"Y-yes! I can’t walk!" she shouted again.

"You know I can hear you clearly, right?" Bahamut asked, covering his ears with an annoyed expression. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

"Sorry..."

Bahamut didn’t say a thing. He just turned slightly and crouched in front of her. He heaved her up, slumping her against a tree trunk, then his hands moved to her arms.

"Get on," he simply said.

"What?"

Before she could react, Bahamut reached back, grabbed her wrist, and hauled her forward with far more strength than his thin frame suggested. Exildra let out a sharp gasp as her body tipped toward him, pain flaring in her stomach. But instead of falling, she landed against his back.

He shifted smoothly, hooking one arm under her thigh and the other around her back, lifting her fully onto him as if she weighed nothing.

"Hold on," he added, already straightening.

Exildra froze. Her arms instinctively wrapped around his shoulders, her fingers clutching his clothes. Her cheek brushed against his neck, warm and solid. She sucked in a breath she did not realize she had been holding.

His scent was strange to her. He smelled of earth, blood, smoke, and something sharp... something unhinged, but controlled.

Ren hopped up onto the bundled leaves and fur beside them, watching with bright eyes as Bahamut bent briefly to gather the meat. Using broad leaves torn from nearby trees and strips of vine, he had already tied the Treant Bear’s flesh into a crude sack. He shifted it into Exildra’s lap without asking.

"Carry that," he said. "If you drop it, I won’t pick it up again."

Exildra nodded quickly, wincing as the weight settled against her stomach, but she clenched her teeth and tightened her grip. The warmth of the meat pressed into her, grounding her in a stranger way. Her long ears, though, were flushed red.

’Such a strong and broad back,’ her mind was in a different zone from her body.

Bahamut, oblivious to the elven girl’s thoughts, stepped forward.

Despite the uneven ground, roots, and scattered stones, his movement was steady. Every step felt like it was calculated. He walked with balance, even with Exildra on his back.

Exildra rested her forehead lightly against his shoulder blade, breath shallow. With every step, pain throbbed through her body, but it was distant now, dulled by exhaustion and the strange sense of safety.

She liked the feeling... the feeling of safety and protection. Something she always had back home.

"You’re bleeding," Bahamut said calmly, though inside, he was surprised. Surprised at her tenacity and level of endurance because she didn’t look like someone who could endure hardships. She looked more like a princess who always had everything at her beck and call.

Exildra stiffened. "You can tell?"

"Mm... more like I can hear and smell it," he replied. "Your breathing changed."

She swallowed. "I’m fine." Though her mind was in chaos. ’He... can smell...’

"That’s a lie," he said flatly, oblivious to her contrasting thoughts as he continued walking.

They moved through the forest in silence. Leaves crunched softly under his barefeet. Along the way, Ren had moved back to his position on Bahamut’s head. Somewhere nearby, the sound of water reached their ears, faint but constant. It grew clearer the farther they went.

Exildra’s grip loosened slightly as fatigue crept in. Her head dipped, her vision blurring at the edges, but she forced herself to stay awake, her fingers tightening around the sack of meat.

Ren glanced back at her once, ears twitching.

"Don’t sleep," he said lightly. "You’ll drool on him."

Her eyes snapped open in shock and embarrassment, mostly shock.

"Y-you can talk?!" she exclaimed.

"Oops..." Ren gasped in surprise at his own mistake and turned away from her.

"Please keep this one too a secret..." Bahamut said with a sigh.

"Mm," she muttered weakly, though she stared at the bunny from time to time. Ren himself was beyond embarrassed, especially since Bahamut didn’t rebuke him.

The sound of water grew louder as they passed through an opening.

A stream came into view through the trees, silver light reflecting between rocks and roots. Bahamut slowed only slightly as he approached the bank, then lowered himself carefully, easing Exildra down onto a flat stone beside the water.

The moment her feet touched the ground, her legs turned weak and buckled. Bahamut swiftly caught her before she fell, slowly helping her to sit.

"Rest," he said. "I’ll clean the meat."