A deflection, then another one, but he couldn't protect himself from the third jagged blade properly; a failed attempt to move out of the way earned him a shallow cut to his side.
Shit, that stings. Not an issue for now, but if more land, it'll be bad.
Suddenly he felt the flesh knit itself together. A warmth filled him.
"It is all right, Liam. I am here to patch you back up; you do not have to fight with worry."
Her voice rang from behind, though it felt off in a manner he couldn't quite explain.
It's most likely just because she just used her magic to heal me; she is strained. More importantly, I am feeling better now.
The trio of creatures attacked once again; this time, he reacted better and managed to avoid the strikes, but he was still getting pushed back.
The cave isn't narrow enough to lure them into a situation where I can nullify the numbers.
Another small cut caught him whilst he was distracted trying to strategise instead of focusing fully on the goblins. Another heal spell, and he was fine again.
She is healing me through every cut... I know she can heal worse, so I just shouldn't care for safety until I cull the numbers.
He deliberately adjusted himself to actually receive the next cut, doing his best to minimise the depth of the upcoming cut, and swung in return instead of defending. The cut he received was deeper than the last and hurt like hell, but it had worked; his sword dug deep into the green skin and drew black blood from the creature's neck. The healing spell was already there, yet he received another hit before fully recovering.
Fuck that wasn't in the plan. That one was deep; it hurts. She is healing me so fast, doing her best to keep me going. I won't fail her.
His mind raced while his body reacted to the swing of the third one with an instinctive dodge. His blade wasn't in position to hit either of the two remaining goblins, but his fist was perfectly serviceable, so he swung that instead. His hand caught the nose of the goblin that had given him the surprise cut; a satisfying crunch echoed in the enclosed space.
He took a step to the side, freeing his sword from the first goblin, who was now a corpse by his feet. The third goblin attacked mindlessly, undeterred by the broken nose of the second and the dead body of the first, only for its blade to be redirected by Liam's own sword.
Got you!
The redirection made the monster wide open for an attack. He thrust his sword into the creature's chest with a satisfied smile. The flesh gave way with a sharp, wet thud. He felt his own nerves scream in agony as the crude dagger of the second goblin, the very same one he had ignored after breaking its nose, latched itself into his shoulder. That was a deep one. The only thing that kept him going was sheer stubbornness as he returned the favor with a tackle. The thrust, followed by the piercing of his sword arm's shoulder, had made him drop the blade. He didn't care; he still had his fists and face. He bashed in the creature's face using his good arm and head with repeated sickening thuds against its skull.
The adrenaline wore off. He collapsed next to his handiwork.
This is a familiar sensation.
His chest heaved as he struggled to breathe; the very action once again felt like torturous swallowing of glass. A few moments of struggle and then he felt the warming touch of Melissa on his cheek. Her magic flowed into him, giving him the same comfort her smile did.
"You did so well, Liam. Three on one, and you stood your ground, took them out where most in your position would simply have run away. I am proud of you, my brave knight."
The words filled him with more gratitude than the healing did; he wasn't used to praise from a peer.
Is this what it feels like to have someone actually give a shit about you? It's... nice.
The healing had taken longer than for the other, shallower cuts from before, but by the end of it he felt like the cut had never happened at all.
We should take it slow now; her healing is getting slower; she is probably running on low mana. She needs to rest up and recover.
He was too preoccupied inside his own mind, too busy thinking about her comfort to properly look at his gentle guardian angel's face and notice the satisfied smile of someone who looked like they had just watched their favorite event while he suffered cut after cut.
"We should step outside and rest for a couple of hours, preferably hidden by trees and bushes. Better to play it safe than risk you running out of mana in case we get another encounter like this."
She nodded in agreement as she stood back up and fixed her robes, which to him still looked as pristine as ever.
"That is... a good idea."
Was that pause disappointment? Nah, she is probably just tired; she did so much to keep me alive after all; any beginner would be drained after that. She could have just run and left me to die; most would've done just that.
He led the way back out to the forest; this time she didn't match his pace. In his mind, the fact that she was just following confirmed his suspicion that she had tired herself out to keep him breathing. The spot he picked was under the shade of a few trees and relatively well hidden thanks to the bushes surrounding it.
We should be safe from other adventurers here.
He had pissed off a party of higher-level adventurers just the day before, so being as far away from sight as possible was most definitely the choice of action to take.
She isn't saying anything. Why isn't she talking to me?
The silence stretched between them, and the unease settling in his stomach grew with every word she left unspoken.
"Thank you for not leaving me alone down there. I know a fair number of others would have if they were in your position."
His voice was a low, vulnerable whisper.
Melissa turned to face him, her face once again the same soothing comfort he had grown far too accustomed to within just a day of knowing her.
"Why would I abandon you when you had not given up and believed you could pull it off, Liam? As long as you believe in yourself, I will do my best to make sure you survive whatever fight we get into."
She let out a sigh and a chuckle.
"If I ran away whenever there was danger, I would be the worst healer alive. I have no intention of being that, so do not worry yourself thinking I will just ditch you one day. While there is still fight in you, I will make sure your flame does not go out, Liam, so keep it burning as you desire."
She scooted closer to him. Before he could process what was happening, Liam felt himself get pulled, and then his cheek was resting on her soft chest.
"I have you, Liam. Let your worries drift away with the breeze of the woods; let the air cleanse you of the burdens, even if just for now; just while I hold you."
Her breath ghosted over his ear as she whispered, her voice a siren's beckoning call. He could smell her more clearly now; she smelled of flowers he couldn't name, sweet and utterly intoxicating. He looked up at her face just for a moment, and he could have sworn the way the afternoon sun from above the cave shone onto her hair made it look like a halo framing her devastating face.
An angel of perfection.
There was a warmth that burgeoned deep in his chest, a result of the comfort she meant for him. There was also a warmth on his face that had nothing to do with comfort but was caused by something else entirely, a feeling he hadn't felt before and was completely foreign to him. It was a feeling he didn't hate.
He made no attempts to pull away as she held him there. One of her hands gently brushed through his hair in repeated, rhythmic, tender strokes, gliding through the short, black strands.
This feels so nice. I can get used to this. I hope she does it again another time.
He allowed his eyes to close as the movement of her hand through his hair brushed away his worries for this moment. Right now, all that mattered was the soothing comfort the woman embracing him provided; everything else simply seemed to fade out.
His eyes were shut. He was content. He was completely oblivious to the way the crimson eyes looked at him with something that resembled hunger. He had no clue about how Melissa's pristine nails on her other hand were stabbed into the dirt underneath.