I Am Trying to Divorce My Villain Husband, But We Had a Child - chapter 29
Chapter 29
“Over here!”
The knights immediately ran towards the direction where the screams were heard before Elisa’s command even fell. Elisa also followed them.
As they followed the path, they came upon a cliff.
A trembling boy, who had been looking around fearfully, caught sight of Elisa and the knights.
“Lady…?”
“It’s okay now, Jonathan. Let’s go back together. Your brother is waiting.”
The momentarily relieved boy’s expression turned thoughtful again even before Elisa finished speaking.
The frightened boy’s gaze was directed towards the tree where Elisa was.
As Elisa felt puzzled by this, she lifted her head, and at that moment, she met the eyes of a giant wolf lurking in the tree.
Chills ran down her spine at that gaze.
“Grrrr!”
At the same time, the wolf leaped down and attacked Elisa. It happened in the blink of an eye.
“Lady!”
The knights, realizing the situation a moment too late, rushed forward, but it was already too late to stop the wolf from pinning down Elisa.
The giant wolf opened its jaws as if to devour Elisa.
Elisa desperately tried to push the wolf away, but she couldn’t overcome the strength of a wolf larger than a grown man.
Elisa closed her eyes tightly in terror of the dreadful death.
“No…!”
Just as the sharp teeth of the wolf were about to tear into Elisa’s throat.
When Elisa’s struggling hand touched near the wolf’s heart, a faint energy emanating from her hand seeped into the wolf’s chest.
At the same time, the wolf’s movements ceased.
The knights and Agil, who hadn’t seen the energy flowing from Elisa’s hand, watched in astonishment as the wolf’s sudden change in behavior unfolded.
“Grrrr…!”
The wolf recoiled from Elisa as if burned by fire. Then it staggered and began to cough.
“Grrrr! Grrrr!”
“Now’s the time! Attack everyone!”
Taking advantage of the opportunity, the knights plunged their swords into the wolf’s body. Eventually, the massive body writhing in agony collapsed.
Agil checked on Elisa’s condition first.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine. But this wolf…”
“It’s a Direwolf. I’ve heard they don’t inhabit this area.”
Direwolves were monsters similar in appearance to wolves but were an entirely different species, possessing similar traits to wolves.
One of their traits is…
“Direwolves, like wolves, live together in groups when winter comes.”
Elisa recalled the contents she had read in a book and lifted her head. A foreboding feeling crept over her.
And that foreboding was not wrong.
Suddenly, amidst the thickening snowfall, she saw about a dozen Direwolves gathering.
“Lady, please step back.”
The knights pushed Elisa behind them to protect her.
The path ahead was blocked by Direwolves, and behind them was the cliff.
Elisa was pushed towards the edge of the cliff.
“Grrrr…”
The Direwolves circled the knights for a while, observing their movements, then charged.
Of course, the knights of Rubelin weren’t ones to be easily overwhelmed.
“Protect the lady and the boy!”
They fought fiercely against the Direwolves, larger than themselves.
However, no matter how victorious they were in battle, the difference in strength due to their physique made it difficult to overcome.
Meanwhile, the snowfall that had been falling turned into a blizzard, raging fiercely.
“Cough…”
As the visibility blurred, the knights, who were initially fighting fiercely, gradually began to be pushed back due to exhaustion. Consequently, Elisa found herself closer to the cliff.
At that moment, winds from the surroundings and other currents of wind blew in.
When Elisa, who had closed her eyes against the wind, opened them again, she saw a familiar figure.
“…Richard?”
Richard stepped forward and ordered the knights.
“Everyone, fall back.”
In accordance with his command, the knights stepped back one pace.
Richard took the forefront, while the knights behind him formed a second line of defense.
The Direwolves, momentarily wary of Richard’s sudden appearance, soon growled and charged.
The fierce wind around Richard protected him as if shielding him.
As the wind grew stronger, the surrounding structures began to shake.
As a result of the impact, the ground at the edge of the frozen cliff began to crack, but everyone was too focused on the battle before them to notice.
The storm-like wind swallowed up the approaching Direwolves.
The Direwolves at the rear, momentarily hesitating, then charged at the knights behind Richard.
At that moment, lightning emanated from the storm Richard created, striking the Direwolves.
“Grrrr!”
The Direwolves were struck terrifyingly by the lightning. Those swallowed by the storm also perished within the tempest.
The last remaining Direwolves finally collapsed. The ground vibrated with the impact.
Relieved, the knights approached Richard, breathing sighs of relief.
“Thank goodness. Thanks to Your Highness coming…”
As everyone breathed a sigh of relief, a cracking sound rang out from nearby.
Simultaneously, the ground at the edge of the cliff, which had been cracking, collapsed.
“Eh…?”
Elisa, who was standing on it, fell off the crumbling ground along with the cliff.
As Richard urgently turned around upon hearing the sound of the collapsing ground, he saw Elisa falling off the cliff.
His usually calm gaze began to shake violently.
“Elisa!”
Without hesitation, Richard leaped off the cliff.
Fortunately, he was able to catch up to Elisa quickly, but what happened next was a problem.
“Darn it, I can’t use flight magic…”
Due to the constantly changing altitude, using flight magic, which required a high level of concentration and calculation, quickly was not possible. The blizzard also obstructed visibility.
While he attempted flight magic, the river gradually drew closer.
Richard wrapped his arms firmly around Elisa and closed his eyes.
Splash!
Eventually, the icy river swallowed them both.
*
The northern region was finally experiencing the onset of spring, causing the accumulated snow to melt and the current of the river to strengthen.
Richard swam against the strong current, holding Elisa tightly to ensure he didn’t lose her. However, swimming with just one hand in the swift river was more challenging than fighting alone against a dozen opponents in war.
“If we don’t get out of here soon…”
The flight magic he had barely managed to cast just before plunging into the water absorbed some of the impact, but even so, it seemed like a significant shock to Eisa, who lost consciousness.
She was unconscious, drinking in water as if in a trance. It was dangerous to leave her like this.
Richard took a deep breath and gave Elisa mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. After breathing air into her lungs, he repeated the process of swimming.
Gradually, as oxygen became scarce and his mind grew dizzy, he couldn’t afford to lose the warmth in his arms, even if it meant risking his own life.
Just as he exerted all his strength to escape the river with Elisa, suddenly, the flow of the river changed, pushing Elisa and Richard towards the riverbank.
“The river’s current changed…?”
Richard, puzzled but seizing the opportunity, carried Elisa out of the river. First, he checked on her condition.
However, Elisa wasn’t breathing. At the same time, Richard’s heart sank.
“Elisa.”
His gaze as he looked at her shook with uncertainty.
“Darn it, no. No, Elisa…”
Richard desperately attempted CPR. He repeatedly blew air into her mouth several times.
“Breathe, please…”
How many times did he try?
Whether it was his desperation that reached her or not, Elisa’s chest rose and fell dramatically, and finally, she turned her head to the side and vomited water.
“Cough!”
“…Haah.”
Relieved that Elisa was breathing again, Richard finally embraced her.
Holding Elisa close, Richard took a moment to catch his breath and assessed Elisa’s condition.
Due to the wet clothes and the cold wind, her body temperature was dropping rapidly, and as a result, her complexion was as pale as a dead person.
“This is dangerous.”
Moreover, the snowstorm was intensifying, and snow was accumulating on the ground.
In this situation with poor visibility due to the blizzard, using flight magic was difficult, and even if used, there was a high chance of getting lost in the snow without clear visibility.
Meanwhile, Elisa’s body was being exposed to the cold wind and temperature of the high altitude, causing her body temperature to drop even more rapidly.
Furthermore, if the snowstorm continued at this intensity, the knights would likely be unable to conduct a search, making it difficult for them to be found.
First, they needed to find somewhere to shelter from this snowstorm.
Richard wrapped Elisa in his robe.
Although the wet robe wouldn’t provide much insulation against the cold, it would at least block the cold wind.
Following the river for a while, they came across a shabby cabin nestled among the rocks.
Although there were no signs of recent human presence, Richard knocked on the door.
As expected, there was no response, neither in voice nor presence.
Richard slowly pushed the door open.
The door opened easily, although it was a bit stiff.
The cabin seemed relatively clean as if someone had lived there recently, but there were no utensils or other items. Fortunately, there were some broken pieces of furniture, such as a worn-out blanket and a fireplace poker, that could be used.
“There’s a bit of a draft, but since it’s a house built behind the rocks, it shouldn’t be directly hit by the wind. This should provide some shelter from the cold.”
Richard laid Elisa nearby and covered her with the blanket.
However, that alone was not enough to warm their freezing bodies. He needed to remove the cause of her dropping body temperature.
Richard sighed as he looked at Elisa’s dress, clinging to her body.