“…Was that directed at me?”
Yujin decided to ask once more just to be sure. Did Princess Elysia really say she wanted him to accompany her?
…Nod.
And without a word, Elysia quietly nodded. Yujin felt an eerie chill run down his spine again.
『……』
It was due to Tiamat’s burning gaze. Wiping a bead of cold sweat, he asked Elysia.
“…May I inquire about the reason?”
“…That…”
Elysia hesitated for a moment, blushing while repeatedly opening and closing her mouth before finally speaking.
“Since you’re the professor… I thought it’d be alright…”
“…I see.”
Yujin paused to think. He replayed in his mind the time he had spent with Elysia and the late Crown Princess…
There might actually be some merit to this idea. After all, Yujin knows Elysia’s condition better than anyone else, so if he personally handles stabilizing her, it would be easier to monitor her state in real-time, adjust situations accordingly, and take care of her. It’d also make handling emergencies simpler.
Still, the reason Yujin hadn’t originally considered involving himself in Elysia’s stabilization process was because he doubted whether she could feel truly at ease with him.
After all, they’ve only known each other for three days. Though their relationship may have warmed up slightly after what happened earlier, he still didn’t think he gave off the kind of familial stability she needed.
But if she herself says so, then it’s worth trying. With that judgment, Yujin spoke.
“Since there’s no tea prepared for teatime anyway… How about we go for a walk? If we use illusion magic, we can move around freely even when there are many people out during the day.”
“I’d rather not draw too much attention from others… Maybe a time when there aren’t many people around?”
“In that case, let’s do an evening stroll. Given Your Highness’s condition, I’ll come to you. What time would be convenient?”
“About 10 PM…”
“Got it. Let’s plan it for then.”
After roughly setting the time for their walk, Yujin and Elysia continued chatting.
Mostly about Elysia’s condition.
“You’ve experienced various symptoms including hallucinations, auditory hallucinations, nightmares, and more… And you’ve been neutralizing them using an artifact imbued with the energy of a Transcendent, correct?”
“Yes, but recently thanks to your seal, Professor, I haven’t had to use them anymore.”
“Have you informed your family about the progress in your treatment yet?”
“Not yet… But I’ll tell them soon. They’ll probably be quite bewildered by my recovery method.”
“That’s understandable.”
As they exchanged necessary conversations like this, time flew by quickly. Checking his wristwatch, Yujin said,
“I suppose I should head out now. I can’t leave my post any longer.”
“Ah…”
Upon hearing those words, a hint of regret flickered in Elysia’s eyes.
Of course, Yujin understood. After all, Yujin has a schedule, and he did mention that this time he’d only conduct the diagnosis for about three hours.
“In that case, I’ll reapply the seal.”
Woooom.
Saying so, Yujin cast a spell and reapplied the seal on Elysia.
A high-dimensional magical circle resealed her once more. She felt her body grow lethargic and weak.
“…I felt pretty energized earlier, but now my body feels heavy.”
“It’s demonic mana—it’s the root of demons.”
In response to Elysia’s comment, Yujin replied thus before standing up.
“Then I’ll see you later… Around 10 PM.”
“…Ah.”
At that, Elysia’s eyes sparkled a little.
So, they’ll meet again at 10 PM.
It won’t take long. They’ll see each other again soon.
Thinking this way, she started looking forward to waiting.
“Well then, Your Highness, I shall take my leave.”
With that, Yujin departed.
『…Yujin.』
Meanwhile, as soon as Yujin stepped outside, Tiamat called out to him. Yujin hastily defended himself.
‘…Tiamat, first off, I have absolutely no ulterior motives toward Her Royal Highness. You know that.’
Though it might sound like a pitiful excuse, it’s true. Yujin harbors no such ulterior motives toward Elysia.
And Tiamat knows this too. Since they’re connected on a soul level, it’d be weirder if she didn’t* know.
Still…
『Hmph, then why didn’t you set clearer boundaries right away?』
Despite knowing, Tiamat didn’t seem ready to forgive Yujin easily. Yujin fell silent.
‘How could I? Especially since she already seems unstable enough as it is.’
『Sounds like an excuse to me.』
‘It’s not an excuse… Last time, I was too cold toward her. I figured she needed some loosening up.’
『Alright, one question then.』
‘…Go ahead.’
Yujin had no choice but to listen to Tiamat. She asked,
『Did you notice nothing of that girl’s feelings?』
‘…If I say I didn’t notice, wouldn’t that make me insincere?’
Yujin isn’t stupid. There’s no way he could miss something this obvious.
Granted, since Yujin hasn’t exactly been in romantic relationships before, he was initially a bit uncertain. But ever since Elysia hugged him and asked him to join her for a walk, he couldn’t help but catch on.
To the fact that Elysia felt some sort of innocent affection toward him.
This realization left Yujin somewhat troubled. While it wasn’t entirely incomprehensible, it certainly wasn’t a simple situation either.
Currently, the relationship between Yujin and Elysia is akin to that of a patient and their attending physician. Yujin intends to do his best to treat Elysia, and Elysia understands this.
Patients often develop feelings for doctors who take care of them. Even if it’s contractual, patients sense the efforts made by someone trying to heal their illness.
The issue here is that the relationship between Yujin and Elysia leans closer to that of a psychiatrist and a psychiatric patient. Of course, Yujin isn’t a real doctor, but still…
It’s not a trivial matter when a psychiatric patient develops romantic feelings for their therapist.
Unlike other medical fields where treatments mainly involve medication or surgery, psychiatry heavily emphasizes psychotherapy—specifically counseling. In fact, Yujin primarily uses counseling sessions to address Elysia’s psychological issues.
And the crux of these counseling sessions lies in the relationship between the therapist and the patient. When patients perceive that the therapist, as an outsider, focuses solely on helping them navigate their lives and struggles, they rebuild interpersonal connections. This process allows them to reinterpret past experiences and create new meanings, eventually leading to tangible changes in neural circuits.
Simply put, the patient must trust their attending physician for the treatment to be effective.
Given the nature of counseling therapy, it’s fairly common for patients to confess their love to their therapists. While love doesn’t necessarily create trust, trust can indeed foster love.
Even Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, encountered similar issues early on, which influenced his shift from hypnotherapy to psychoanalysis. Alongside this change came ethical guidelines regarding potential scenarios between psychiatric patients and doctors.
One of the most representative taboos is: “Do not engage in romantic relationships with patients.”
Because if a patient falls in love with their psychiatrist and suffers greater emotional harm upon the conclusion of that love, they may lose faith in counseling altogether when facing future mental health challenges.
Therefore, most psychiatrists avoid entering romantic relationships with anyone they’ve treated, even if it was just once. Breaking this taboo risks professional ruin and societal ostracism.
‘Don’t worry, Tiamat. I’m aware of ethical standards. I have no intention—or reason—to commit any misconduct against Her Royal Highness Princess Elysia.’
As mentioned earlier, it’s relatively common for patients to fall in love with their therapists. Most psychiatrists, in such cases, don’t respond to confessions directly but instead explore why the patient developed those feelings. Often, the source and solution to the patient’s suffering lie within this exploration. By the end of the treatment, the patient usually no longer feels romantic affection toward the therapist.
Yujin believed Elysia would follow a similar pattern. Although Yujin himself isn’t a specialist, he was confident that, having become a Dragon, finding answers wouldn’t be overly difficult.
『…Yujin, I trust you. However… I find it hard to trust that girl.』
‘…Are you referring to Her Highness Elysia?’
『…Yujin, by the time my methods succeed, that girl will transform into a Demon. And you cannot measure a demon’s psychology using human psychology alone.』
‘…Isn’t the goal to preserve her selfhood intact while transforming her into a Demon? If that’s the case…’
『Precisely because of that, it’s problematic. If she transforms into a Demon in her current state, there’s no guarantee her affections will remain intact.』
‘…’
『Resolve this as soon as possible. Her body is practically that of a Demon already. This might not be as simple an issue as it seems.』
‘…Understood.’
『And… Can you promise me one more thing?』
‘…What is it?’
Uncharacteristically serious, Tiamat’s tone prompted Yujin to respond gravely as well. She continued,
『…Don’t… Don’t have children with a Demon.』
‘…Huh?’
『I mean it. Never with a Demon… It’s just… impossible.』
Her eyes seemed unusually tinged with guilt as she said this.
