My Harem of Dangerous and Crazy Women as a Reincarnated Necromancer-Chapter 84: A Forced Rest

Mark and the others resumed the journey after leaving the semi-human camp behind.

Sunlight filtered through the treetops in irregular rays that drew golden patches on the ground of leaves and dirt.

The air was cool and the sound of birds filled the atmosphere.

It was a good day for walking, or it would have been, if Mark weren’t feeling like garbage.

It hadn’t been so bad at the start of the day. When they left the semi-human camp, Mark felt more or less the same as in the morning.

Throat a little irritated, nose slightly stuffed, and that general heaviness in his head that was annoying but manageable.

Nothing he couldn’t ignore, but as the hours passed, something changed.

’Damn, I’m exhausted,’ Mark thought as his legs kept moving automatically along the path.

It wasn’t the normal tiredness of walking for hours, it was more of a weariness that drained him more and more with every passing second.

Not to mention he was sweating more than he should be.

’Looks like the cold is getting worse...’ Mark thought, running the back of his hand across his forehead to wipe away the sweat.

Mark looked ahead, trying to convince himself that he didn’t feel that bad.

’Hold on,’ he told himself. ’You just have to hold on... one more day of walking and you’ll be in the dungeon.’

Mark kept walking as his gaze settled on the ground ahead of his feet and stayed there, fixed, without really registering what he was seeing.

Mark didn’t notice how long he had been like that.

But Rose did.

The vampire had been watching him out of the corner of her eye for several minutes, at first she hadn’t paid it much attention, but as time went on, she noticed things that didn’t add up.

The distant look that wouldn’t correct itself.

The breathing that grew more audible with every passing minute.

The sweat on his forehead despite the cool air.

"Master," Rose said, turning her head toward him. "Are you feeling alright?"

Mark blinked as if snapping out of a trance.

"Huh?" Mark said, turning his head toward Rose. "Yeah, I’m fine... just a little tired."

Mark paused and shrugged, trying to act normally.

"It’s been a pretty intense few days, you know?... I guess my body is making me pay for it."

"...You’re sick, aren’t you?"

"No, I’m not si—"

"I don’t believe you," Rose said without letting him finish.

Mark could keep denying it, but it was clear Rose wasn’t going to buy it.

And while he could make up another excuse, anything he said was going to sound exactly like what it was, an excuse.

So Mark went with the only option that remained: telling the truth.

"Alright..." Mark said, dropping his shoulders. "I might be a little under the weather."

Hearing that, Rose showed no surprise, it was obviously something she had already suspected.

"But it’s nothing serious," Mark hurried to add, raising a hand. "It’s just a cold... and honestly I’d rather walk through it for a day than spend another night out in the open."

Rose listened in silence, letting him finish, then stayed quiet for a moment as if carefully considering his words.

"I understand," Rose said, letting out a sigh. "I understand that you want to get there as soon as possible."

Mark nodded, thinking he had won the argument.

"But," Rose continued, and Mark immediately knew he hadn’t won anything, "the sun is already starting to set."

Mark looked up and saw that the light filtering through the trees had changed tone.

It wasn’t night yet, not by a long shot, but the day had passed its peak a while ago.

"There’s still daylight left," Mark said. "We can push for another couple of hours before it gets dark."

"You could," Rose conceded. "But if you rest more today, you’ll probably feel better tomorrow from the extra rest, besides, your body needs to recover and it’s not going to do that if you force it to keep walking until it gives out."

Mark opened his mouth to argue.

"Think about it," Rose said before he could speak. "If you keep walking and tomorrow you wake up worse, we’re not going to get there any faster, we’ll actually go slower, or worse, we’ll have to stop in the middle of the road because you can’t go on."

’Damn it...’

Rose’s logic was irritatingly solid.

"...You’re right," Mark said finally, in the tone of someone who had just lost an argument.

Hearing him, Rose smiled with satisfaction that Mark had made the right call.

"Yuki, come here for a moment please," Mark said through the mental link with the assassin.

Yuki appeared between the trees within seconds, followed by the others.

"What is it, Master?" Yuki asked.

"We’re stopping for today," Mark said. "Start setting up camp as soon as possible."

"As you command, Master."

"At your orders, my lord!" Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Epsilon replied in unison behind Yuki.

The group immediately sprang into motion.

Yuki headed between the trees looking for a suitable spot while the five followed her, already discussing among themselves who would handle which task.

But several meters behind them, Alice had been watching the entire scene.

While she hadn’t been able to hear the full conversation from where she was, the words were lost among the trees and the sounds of the forest, from her perspective, what she had just witnessed was clear as day.

Rose had told her lord to stop, he had said no, and she had insisted, until he ended up obeying.

Witnessing that made Alice feel something hot rise in her chest.

And that something was jealousy.

’Why does he listen to her?’ Alice thought, clenching her teeth hard. ’Since when does she have that much influence over my lord?’

She watched Rose stand beside Mark with that satisfied smile while the group organized itself to set up camp.

"That fucking manipulative vampire..." Alice murmured quietly, her eyes still fixed on Rose.