The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella-Chapter 149

She had been recovering steadily—at least until they left the Holy Kingdom.

And then, all of a sudden, she wasn’t.

‘It’s like he’s reverted to how he was before I started treating him...’

The condition he was in right before going berserk.

Back when his body was barely holding together.

It didn’t make sense.

This wasn’t just improbable—it was physically impossible.

Even if Nyx had captured Karon and tortured him nonstop for two weeks, it shouldn’t have come to this.

‘No matter what happened, it shouldn’t be this bad...’

Elodie’s face turned grave.

Just then, Karon abruptly let go of his cheek and took a step back.

He practically yanked her hand off him.

Elodie stumbled over her words, clearly flustered.

“W-wait a second, Karon. Let me see your hand again.”

Maybe she imagined it. She hadn’t examined him properly yet.

They’d only briefly touched.

Elodie took a step forward toward Karon, who was now trying to distance himself.

“No, we need to go to the infirmary right now. Your body is not okay.”

“Elodie.”

He spoke her name softly.

With a gentle smile that stood in stark contrast to her rising panic.

“I just want to rest today. Like you said.”

That was back when she didn’t know the state of his body.

Elodie was dumbfounded. Still, seeing that Karon didn’t seem to grasp the seriousness of the situation, she explained with a patient, vivid metaphor.

“Your body right now is like you’ve been stabbed and you're bleeding out in real time. You’re on the verge of bleeding to death. Are you really going to delay stopping the bleeding just because you ‘want to rest’?”

There’s a time and place to put things off.

Karon blinked slowly, and in a frustratingly calm voice, he gently quelled her rising fury.

“I’m just really tired.”

“You—!”

Elodie was about to scream but stopped herself with a deep breath.

‘Why is he being so stubborn all of a sudden?’

Come to think of it, Karon did have a bad habit.

Once he decided he was beyond saving, he would reject treatment—push people away.

‘Why the hell do you think you get to make that call?!’

Stay calm. He’s a patient. A critical one...

“Haa... fine. Then let me at least do some first aid. That much is okay, right?”

“A little potion should do.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

Her tone was ice-cold.

Karon gave a soft chuckle and suddenly collapsed backward onto the bed.

“...?”

Elodie stared, stunned into silence.

She stood frozen for a while before managing to speak.

“What are you doing?”

“I’ve tried everything else. This was all I could think of.”

“What are you, a child?”

Just lying down and refusing to move because he didn’t want a check-up?

...It was ridiculous. But it worked.

Elodie no longer had the will to drag him to the infirmary.

Karon reached out, grabbed her hand tightly once, then let it go.

“See? I’m fine. I’m controlling the poison just fine.”

“...”

It was true.

‘He’s... controlling it this well now?’

All of a sudden?

Karon used to be someone Elodie couldn’t take her eyes off for even a moment.

Every time the poison mutated, she had to absorb and purify it, then return it to him—again and again.

So he could build resistance faster.

And yet even after being left alone for nearly half a month, he showed no signs of being affected by the mutations.

And he didn’t seem to be in pain from the poison, either.

‘Is he already immune to all poisons?’

Wasn’t this too fast?

Not even Delia Ratson, the ancestor who first pioneered the art of training the body to resist poison, could have pulled this off.

It wasn’t something Elodie could just write off as genius.

While she was still reeling, Karon spoke again.

“My body’s fine. You probably just misread it because I’m feeling under the weather. I think a good rest will help.”

“...”

So he was saying she imagined it?

‘...Could that be?’

But if he really could control the poison, that would mean his body was functioning properly.

Thinking that, she felt a little relieved.

It meant her assessment had been wrong—but she didn’t feel bad about it at all.

If anything, she hoped she was wrong.

‘It’s possible.’

Karon didn’t have any visible wounds, internal or external. He hadn’t lost weight or muscle.

There were no signs of poisoning.

In fact, he was more proficient in handling his poison than before. His hair hadn’t turned white, either.

Most importantly, he showed no signs of being overwhelmed by it.

On the contrary, his control over it had improved dramatically.

‘So maybe I really did just misread his condition because he’s exhausted?’

Maybe he was just that tired...

She allowed herself to hope.

So Elodie decided to take a step back.

Just for one day.

“Alright. Then at least let me give you a little energy. Give me your hand.”

“...”

Karon hesitated, then slowly held out his hand.

Elodie took it and gently channeled her energy into him.

Just for today, she’d let it slide—but tomorrow, she was going to get the full story and examine him from head to toe.

‘Huh?’

Her brows furrowed.

The energy she was transferring into Karon... felt like it was leaking out.

Like she was pouring water into a cracked pot.

“Khak.”

At the same time, Karon coughed up blood.

Yes—blood.

Elodie couldn’t speak.

She blinked, stunned.

Because she felt it—the rejection.

Her energy was being repelled by his body.

She hadn’t imagined it after all.

Karon’s condition was catastrophic.

Worse than anything she had ever seen.

“Ah...”

“...”

“I couldn’t hold on... not even to this.”

Why was he saying that?

As if he had expected this outcome from the start...

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Karon lifted a clean sleeve and gently wiped the blood that had splattered on Elodie’s cheek.

With a quiet hiss, the fabric instantly burned and disintegrated.

“Sorry. I really thought it would work this time.”

This time?

“I don’t think I can turn it back anymore.”

Turn it back?

“I didn’t want you to see me like this. Not at the end.”

The end? What kind of joke—

“Guess I was being selfish.”

Murmuring softly, the boy called her name again.

“Elodie.”

She didn’t want to hear it.

“Don’t let any more outsiders into the Holy Kingdom. No one.”

“...”

“I know you’re a physician, but don’t treat just anyone because they’re hurt. Always find out who they are first. Always be suspicious.”

“W-what are you talking about? Why are you saying this like we’re never going to see each other again?”

As Karon poured out all the words he’d been holding back, Elodie instinctively grabbed his hand tighter.

She still had no idea what was going on.

Or why he was saying all this.

But something told her—she couldn’t let go.

So she held on with everything she had.

“Is it because your condition’s gotten worse? You can survive. I’ll do whatever it takes, I’ll save you. I just—this is all happening too fast, so I can’t think of a treatment right away—”

She began to ramble.

“You just need to get checked out. We’ll do a proper diagnosis and you’ll be fine. You know how skilled I am. I stopped your berserk state, didn’t I? I can fix this too. If I analyze the cause, and search the Healing Scripture for a cure—”

Karon looked down at their joined hands and quietly said,

“Don’t do anything stupid.”

“W-why...”

“Because sacrificing yourself isn’t treatment.”

Then he tightened his grip on her hand as if trying to push her away.

“What do you mean, ‘sacrifice’? I’m trying to help you—not throwing myself away.”

“You will. Eventually.”

“How would you know that?!”

Elodie shouted, desperate.

Not even understanding why she was so frantic.

Karon’s crimson eyes stared into hers.

“Since things have come to this, I’ll say it straight.”

“No...”

“Don’t come looking for me.”

“I said no!”

Where the hell are you planning to go?!

“Don’t try to run from this place. Just stay where the sun reaches, and live a happy life with people you care about.”

“...”

“That’s what I came here to say.”

The moment she heard those words, Elodie’s black eyes trembled violently.

She had heard them before, in her past life.

“In your next life... may you ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) always stay in the sunlight.”

The fairy godmother had said that before turning back time for her.

Only now did Elodie understand everything.

Why Karon had returned in such a broken state after only two weeks.

Why he rejected her treatment.

Why he looked at her like he was seeing someone he’d missed for a long, long time.

Why his words sounded like someone who already knew what the future held.

‘He... he turned back time.’

He must have gone through something huge after meeting Nyx Basilisk.

And he found a way to return—to this moment.

That explains everything.

Elodie’s lips parted in a rush.

“...!”

But she couldn’t say a word.

Because the next moment, something struck the back of her neck—

—and her consciousness faded to black.