When Leonel walked into the bathhouse, his rage flared again. If it wasn't because Aina was in such a bad situation and needed him by her side, he might have run out again to give Noah an even more savage beating.
Noah might have been his cousin, but the feeling Leonel had for Aina far outweighed whatever weak familial ties he had with him. Noah couldn't magically gain a higher regard in his heart just off the strength of their connection.
While Noah was just a lost family member he had only just learned about, Aina was a woman Leonel deeply cared about. As far as he was concerned, she was his other half. Only his father and mother could hold a comparable place.
The current Aina was far better than she had been just moments ago, but the struggle she was facing was still present. If it wasn't for Little Blackstar using ropes of darkness to hold her in place, she might have drowned herself by now.
The water splashed about, blackening under the secretions coming from Aina's body. Under some mysterious power, the Cleansing Water purified this blackness the further it traveled from Aina. But, unfortunately, the density around her only seemed to grow with each passing moment.
Leonel stripped off his robes and entered the waters, a deep frown on his face. He propped the back of Aina's head up while submerging the rest of her body.
'This isn't working…'
Leonel shook his head and brought Aina to the edge of the pool. Using it, he pulled Aina's military boots off.
When Leonel got a look at Aina's skin, he paled. He hadn't noticed before because the entirety of Aina's face and much of her neck was covered in those savage pulsing scars. But, after taking her boots off, he realized just how severe the situation was.
Aina's skin, which had always had a healthy tan hue to it, was suddenly as pale as a sheet of paper. As though this wasn't terrible enough, Leonel could see her veins popping out, completely filled with a vicious black liquid that slowed the beating of her heart and clogged her arteries.
Leonel moved quickly, propping up Aina's other foot to take her other boot off. But at that moment, something surprising happened.
When Aina's bare foot entered the waters once again, there was a burst as a torrent of foul blood was suddenly pulled out by the Cleansing Water. Beneath the surface, Leonel's senses could make out how Aina's pores had opened. In fact, her skin even broke, revealing the veins beneath before healing once again.
But, despite the injuries to her feet, Leonel immediately sensed a slight sigh of relief come from her lips.
'That's it…'
Leonel hesitated. Then, he furiously shook his head, this wasn't the time to be a prude.
"[Light Curtain]."
Leonel mumbled beneath his breath, causing a surge of light to cover Aina's body. The benefit of [Light Curtain] was that it obstructed one's vision by causing a large gathering of light. But, it didn't have a physical form, so it didn't impede Leonel's actions in the slightest.
Leonel realized at that point that Aina's military uniform and boots weren't normal. They protected her in battle and also had a series of spatial pockets hidden within. In that case, they were very likely impeding whatever help the Cleansing Waters were supposed to provide.
Under normal circumstances, they would be a protection. But at the moment, they were nothing more than a hindrance. Leonel hadn't noticed it before, but the uniform itself wasn't even wet.
Steeling his resolve, Leonel began to unbutton Aina's clothing.
'Focus… Focus…'
If those who had just been scared witless by Leonel saw him now, who knows how they'd react. A young man who seemed to have the strength to overturn a world in his hands was panicking at the prospect of undressing a girl. It was a sad sight to behold, indeed.
Above Leonel, the little mink skipped about, making a noise that sounded like snickering. His long whiskers bounced about, a lively light in his beady little eyes.
Leonel ignored the little guy, his normally nimble fingers fumbling about.
'Focus!'
Leonel shouted to himself, splitting his mind several ways. If others knew he was using such a profound ability just to dull his first ambiguous situation with a woman, Leonel's legend would surely become one big joke.
Leonel's hands reached the end of Aina's buttons. Grabbing hold of her waist, he gently pulled the fabric out from their tucked position. His gaze focused on Aina's face, trying to make sure that he wasn't harming her in any way.
When the waters flooded past the opening in Aina's clothing, the flood of black blood became more exaggerated. More of Aina's pores opened up, the foul liquid being pulled out by some odd osmosis.
Leonel's hands slipped. After untucking Aina's military garb, he realized that there was nothing beneath but her soft skin, causing his breathing to hitch.
Leonel had no idea that just moments before, Aina had snapped the bandages she used to cover her chest, leaving nothing between the fabric and her skin.
With a deep gulp, Leonel carefully shifted Aina in his arms, the blinding lights of [Light Curtain] blocking his view.
Carefully, he slipped her arms out of their sleeves and tossed the military uniform to the side.
Leonel laid her to rest in the waters.
As expected, the speed of her recovery accelerated. Leonel could even see the grotesque scars that had begun crawling toward her heart retreating at a speed a normal human would be able to spot. This left him breathing a sigh of relief.
'Alright, one more layer.'
Taking a deep breath, Leonel rested Aina's back against his bare chest and undid her pants, slowly sliding them off with a forearm wrapped around her waist.
'Soft…'
Leonel shook his head, trying to push such thoughts out of his mind. But, just the skin of Aina's back felt so supple against his chest. He felt as though he was on cloud nine.
But, at the same time, he felt guilty. Aina might have been quickly recovering, but she wasn't quite out of the woods yet. He didn't want to think about such things.
Aina's military pants finally slid off her slender legs, allowing Leonel to toss them to the side as well.