Free Web NovelChapter 353: I’m glad it was you
That night, Idir carried Nina into his tent.
The interior was quiet, illuminated only by the soft glow of a lantern. Outside, the sounds of the camp gradually faded as everyone settled in for the night.
He carefully lowered her onto the bedding before lying beside her. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he pulled her gently into his embrace.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Idir intertwined his fingers with hers.
"Nina," he said softly, "would you like to hear my story?"
Nina squeezed his hand in return.
"If you want to tell it, then I’ll listen."
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
He stared up at the tent ceiling, his thoughts drifting back through the years.
"I was born the heir of the Serpent Clan. My father was the highly respected City Lord, and our family lived a peaceful, comfortable life."
His voice was calm at first. Almost nostalgic.
"Everything changed one day when my mother went out and encountered a group of high-level demonic beasts."
The memory darkened his expression.
"When my father learned what had happened, he rushed out of the city to save her. The beasts were far stronger than expected. In the end, he had no choice but to partially unleash the power of the curse."
His fingers tightened slightly around Nina’s.
"That was the only reason he managed to bring her home alive."
A bitter laugh escaped him.
"And that was when everything began to fall apart."
He closed his eyes briefly.
"My father was extremely careful, but people still discovered traces of the curse."
The bitterness in his voice deepened.
"They pretended not to know for a long time. Then they secretly joined forces with my mother."
Nina frowned. "Your mother too?"
Idir nodded.
"They drugged both of us and suppressed our powers. Their plan was to kill us while we were weakened."
At the time, he had not understood why.
Not completely.
"Later, I learned the truth. It was all because of the curse."
Hatred flickered briefly in his eyes.
"They blamed every disaster that had ever happened on us. They called us omens of misfortune."
His voice became colder.
"And my mother believed them."
The words seemed to wound him even now.
"She stood beside them and helped hunt us down."
Nina’s fingers immediately tightened around his hand.
"You were never a curse." Her voice was firm. "They lied."
Idir turned toward her and rubbed his cheek lightly against her shoulder.
A small gesture of comfort he had unconsciously developed around her.
"Mm." His expression softened. "I’ll believe you."
The tension in his body eased slightly before he continued.
"The truth is that the curse could be controlled."
His gaze drifted toward the tent ceiling again.
"As long as it didn’t fully erupt, there were secret methods to suppress it. Under normal circumstances, it rarely activated on its own."
A trace of pride appeared in his eyes.
"My father had already mastered complete suppression. Even if something went wrong, he had plans in place. He would have left on his own before allowing anyone else to suffer because of him."
Nina frowned thoughtfully.
"So they were still afraid of you."
"Yes." Idir nodded. "Part of it was fear."
Then a mocking smile crossed his face. "But I think greed played a role too."
He laughed softly, though there was no amusement in it.
"My father’s strength, his status, his authority."
He shook his head. "Many of them wanted what he had."
"That sounds far more believable."
Nina’s voice carried quiet certainty.
Idir’s eyes darkened.
"But none of that was what hurt the most."
His voice became almost inaudible.
"The thing that truly broke my heart was my mother."
Pain flashed across his face.
"My father adored her. He gave her everything. And yet she never even asked him for the truth."
A deep sadness settled over his features.
"Without listening to a single explanation, she joined the others."
The memory still felt like an old wound that had never fully healed.
"She looked at me with disgust."
His voice roughened.
"She said I wasn’t worthy of being her son."
For a moment, silence filled the tent.
Nina’s heart ached for him.
"I can understand her fear of the curse," Idir admitted quietly.
"If she wanted me gone, I would have left. If she never wanted to see me again, I could have accepted that too."
His eyes lowered. "But what she did..."
He swallowed. "It still hurt."
No child wanted to be rejected by the mother they loved. No child wanted to be hated by the person whose approval mattered most.
Looking back now, Idir understood that part of his own fear had come from her influence.
The rest came from ignorance.
His father had protected him from many truths. He had never fully understood the curse. Not until much later.
Nina squeezed his hand.
"Your mother listened to the wrong people."
Her voice was gentle.
"That’s her failure, not yours."
She hesitated before offering a small, self-deprecating smile.
"I was poisoned when I was younger. It left me disfigured for a long time."
Idir immediately turned toward her.
"I know. My mother couldn’t accept it either."
Nina’s gaze softened.
"She never gave me much love to begin with, and after that, she wanted even less to do with me."
A quiet shrug followed.
"Eventually, I stopped expecting anything from her."
Her eyes met his.
"Some people simply aren’t worth our tears."
Idir stared at her for a long moment. The ache in his chest shifted into something warmer. Something gentler.
"Then I don’t want her anymore either."
His voice was quiet but certain. Looking at Nina, his eyes filled with tenderness.
"Nina." He brushed a strand of hair from her face. "No matter what happens in the future, no matter what you become, I will always stay by your side."
His voice carried absolute conviction.
"I’ll protect you. I’ll cherish you. And I’ll never leave."
In that moment, he felt even more protective of her than before.
Despite growing up surrounded by rejection and disappointment, she had remained kind.
She had become the loving mother he wished he had once known.
She showered her cubs with affection. Protected them fiercely. Loved them without condition.
That kind of heart was rare... And precious. He intended to spend the rest of his life treasuring it.
Nina smiled and nudged him lightly.
"Then you’d better not run away with Momo again."
The teasing remark immediately made Idir’s ears redden. A look of embarrassment crossed his face.
"That will never happen again."
He groaned softly. "I was an idiot."
Looking back, he wanted to bury himself in shame.
The curse had fully erupted. The Serpent Clan’s lies had poisoned his judgment. And in his panic, he had nearly abandoned the very person he loved most.
What kind of fool did that?
His arms tightened around her.
These days, being apart from Nina for even a short time felt unbearable.
Leave her? He couldn’t imagine it. If anything, he wanted to stay beside her every moment of every day.
Resting his forehead against hers, he closed his eyes.
"Nina." His voice was filled with gratitude. "Thank you for never rejecting me."
A faint tremor entered his words.
"Thank you for accepting both Momo and me."
In the quiet stillness of the tent, those simple words carried more weight than any grand declaration.
Because for Idir, they were the truest thing he had ever said.
"Only you have ever said we weren’t harbingers of disaster," Idir murmured softly. "Only you never looked down on us because of the curse."
His voice was low and filled with emotion.
Nina looked up at him and smiled.
"Momo is my child, and you’re my mate. Why would I ever reject either of you?"
Warmth flooded Idir’s chest.
Meeting Nina had been the greatest stroke of fortune in his life.
He tightened his arms around her before continuing.
"After our powers were suppressed, we couldn’t fight them. We had no choice but to run." freewёbnoνel.com
His gaze grew distant as old memories resurfaced.
"They hunted us relentlessly."
Pain flickered across his face.
"My father died protecting me."
For a moment, silence settled between them.
The memory still hurt. It always would.
"I escaped to Sin Beast City and hid there to avoid the pursuit."
A deep sadness lingered in his eyes.
Sensing the weight of his grief, Nina wrapped her arms around him and gently steered the conversation elsewhere.
"Then how did you end up being captured and taken to Barbarian City?"
The question seemed to pull him from the darker memories.
A faint blush crept across his ears.
"After arriving in Sin Beast City, I discovered there was another group searching for me. Because of that, I became extremely cautious."
He hesitated.
"Then one day, while I was out hunting..."
The redness deepened.
"...I caught the scent of your heat."
Nina blinked. Idir looked away awkwardly.
"I followed it to that cave."
His voice lowered.
"And after I left, I accidentally exposed my whereabouts. That’s how they found me."
Nina stared at him.
"So it was because of me?"
"No." He denied it immediately. "It wasn’t your fault."
Then he cleared his throat.
"I was weakened at the time."
Nina looked at him suspiciously.
"Weakened?"
Given the strength he had displayed later, that explanation felt somewhat questionable.
Idir’s ears turned even redder.
"Our clan is different."
He coughed lightly.
"The first time a Teng Serpent male mates, the female absorbs a portion of his energy."
His expression grew increasingly embarrassed.
"It leaves us weakened for a period afterward."
Understanding dawned on Nina’s face.
"So that’s why."
She had briefly wondered whether she possessed some mysterious ability she didn’t know about.
Apparently not.
Still, she had been indirectly responsible.
"Only the first time?" she asked curiously.
Idir nodded. "Only the first time."
His expression finally relaxed.
"It doesn’t happen again afterward."
Nina let out a small sigh of relief.
That was good news. Otherwise, life would have been considerably more complicated.
Idir leaned down and brushed a kiss against her forehead.
"Nina." His eyes softened. "I’m glad it was you."
If it had been anyone else, things would have been different.
Perhaps he never would have had the chance to stand beside her now.
Even though he had eventually been captured, he had never regretted that day.
Not once.
Because it had led him to her.
Nina smiled faintly.
"But if it weren’t for my scent, you might never have been caught."
Idir chuckled. "So what?"
His gaze was full of affection.
"If meeting you required being captured a hundred times, I’d still consider it worthwhile."
His fingers traced lightly along hers.
"Besides, you rescued me afterward."
A teasing smile appeared on his lips.
"I should be the one thanking you."
Nina’s eyes shifted away slightly.
In truth, she had gone back for Momo. Saving Idir had merely happened along the way.
Unfortunately for her, he knew exactly what she was thinking.
Idir laughed softly.
"Regardless of your original reason, you still saved me."
He tightened his embrace.
"That makes me yours."
His voice carried quiet certainty.
"For the rest of my life."
Whether he had benefited from Momo’s existence or not did not matter.
The important thing was that he was here now.
With her.
He buried his face against her shoulder.
"Nina, after everything that’s happened, you’re all I have left."
Nina rested comfortably against him.
"You still have me." Her voice was gentle. "And Momo."
The warmth of her body and the sincerity of her words eased something deep inside him.
"Mm." His eyes closed briefly. "I’ll stay with you too."
As for that little ungrateful snake cub, he could take or leave him.
Having Nina was enough.
They remained like that for a long while, simply enjoying the comfort of each other’s presence.
Eventually, Idir shifted and leaned over her, his dark eyes filled with unmistakable affection.
A playful smile curved his lips.
"Well, Female Master."
His voice dropped to a warm murmur.
"The story is finished."
Nina smiled and slipped her arms around his neck.
"And now?"
Idir lowered his forehead to hers.
"Now I’d like to spend some time alone with my mate."
Their eyes met.
The distance between them disappeared.
As the lantern light flickered softly against the tent walls, they drew closer, wrapped in quiet affection and the peaceful intimacy that came from trust, love, and finally finding a place where they belonged.
