A Forbidden And Cruel Love (Genshin)

Part 4 - Mutterings Of A Friend

"My friend... Is in danger."

Karoline opened her eyes, and tried to get up, despite the nurses' persistent efforts to get her to say down.

"My friend...!"

"Karoline, you need to rest. You're in no condition to be moving around right now."

Jean said firmly, stepping forward to gently place a hand on Karoline's shoulder.

"My love...!"

Jean raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Love...?"

She murmured softly, looking down at Karoline's expression for any more clues.

Karoline looked into Jean's firm gaze with her own unfocused and detached ones.

"My friend... is in danger."

She repeated.

"Help him, please!"

Jean felt a pang of worry and confusion at Karoline's words. Who was this friend she kept referring to? And what kind of danger was he in?

"Who is this friend, Karoline? What kind of danger is he in?"

One of the knights tapped jean on the shoulder, his expression firm and absolute.

"Master Jean, these people say that Karoline's speaking nonsense... There is no friend."

Jean turned to the knight, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. No friend? But Karoline seemed so sure that there was someone in danger.

"Are you sure? Karoline sounds so insistent."

She said, her mind racing to try and make sense of the situation.

The knight looked at Karoline's protests against the nurses, getting weaker by the second.

"It would be best if we let her rest first."

She knew that the knight was right, that Karoline needed to rest.

"...You're right. We can figure out what she's talking about later."

Jean said, gently placing a hand on Karoline's chest to ease her back down onto the bed.

Karoline grunted as she was brought back down, and sighed when she was held down by the nurses.

"Help him, okay?"

She rasped weakly, her voice an echo of desperation around the room.

The knight looked at her with an expression of worry and pity, watching her as tears started to spill out.

Jean winced at the sight of Karoline's tears, her heart breaking at the young knight's distress.

"We'll do everything we can to help him, I promise."

Jean said quietly, her voice thick with an emotion that she couldn't quite put into words.

The nurses continued to work on Karoline, bandaging her wounds and tending to her injuries. Jean stood by the bed, watching them work and listening to Karoline's occasional mutterings about her friend. She racked her brain, trying to think of who this friend could be and what kind of trouble he was in.

Time seemed to pass both agonizingly slow and unbelievably fast all at once as the nurses worked and Karoline slowly slipped into a restless sleep, along with the exhausted Acting Grandmaster.

After a time, Jean, once asleep on the chair she was sitting on, was awoken by the sound of nurses walking in and checking up on Karoline and her condition. Jean recognized one of the most familiar faces: her sister, Barbara.

She tried to shake off the grogginess from falling asleep in the chair. When she saw Barbara enter the room, her expression immediately brightened.

"Hey, Barbara. What are you doing here?"

"Oh! Good morning, Jean. I came here to see how Karoline is holding up after what happened last night."

Jean nodded, a tired smile on her face as she looked over at Karoline, who was still sleeping soundly in her bed, lightly snoring with her mouth wide open.

"She's resting for now. The nurses have been coming in to check up on her every so often, but she hasn't woken up yet."

Barbara walked over to Karoline's bedside, quietly examining the bandages and checking her temperature.

"That's good. She needs as much rest as she can get. Did she say anything last night?"

Jean shook her head, a hint of frustration in her voice.

"No, not really. She kept mumbling about a 'friend' who was in danger, but she was too delirious to make any sense of it. And she refused to sit still, even when the nurses tried to hold her down."

Barbara hummed in thought as she checked Karoline's vitals, her eyebrows furrowing in thought.

"A 'friend' who's in danger? Did she say anything else about this friend? Where they were, or what kind of trouble they were in?"

"No, she didn't say anything else. She just kept repeating the same thing over and over again. 'Help him.' 'Help my friend.' It was like she was fixated on this person and nothing else mattered."

Barbara finished up her check-up and turned to look at Jean, her expression serious.

"I see. That is worrisome, indeed. But you shouldn't be stressing yourself out so much. You look exhausted, Jean."

Jean let out a weary sigh, her shoulders slumping as she realized how tired she was.

"I know, I know. I just... I can't shake this feeling that something else is going on here. And I can't just sit here and do nothing while Karoline is in this state."

"Of course. I understand your concern for Karoline. But you need to take care of yourself too, big sister. You won't be any help to her if you're exhausted and running on empty."

"You're right. I know you're right. I just... I hate feeling so helpless."

Barbara placed a hand on Jean's shoulder, giving her a gentle squeeze.

"You're not helpless, Jean. You're just tired and worried. You'll figure out what's going on with Karoline. But you need to take care of yourself first. You can't help anyone if you're not at your best."

Jean nodded, feeling some of the tension leave her body at her sister's reassuring words. She took a deep breath and straightened up in her chair.

"You're right. I'll try to get some rest, even just a little bit. Thanks, Barbara."

"Of course. That's what sisters are for! Now, get some rest. I'll keep an eye on Karoline and let you know if there's any change in her condition."

Jean smiled back gratefully, her heart feeling a little lighter knowing that her sister was there to look after things.

"Thank you, Barbara. You're the best."

She got up from the chair with a groan, her muscles protesting the movement after being stationary for so long.

"You sound like an old lady, Jean. Maybe you should get some rest and let a younger person take the reins sometimes."

Barbara chuckled lightly.

Jean rolled her eyes at her sister's comment, but couldn't help a small smile from forming on her face.

"Very funny. Maybe I should make you the Acting Grand Master and see how you like the job."

She stifled a yawn as she spoke, feeling her tiredness catching up to her again.

"Aha! Caught you yawning. See? That's what I mean. You're tired. Go get some rest, or I'll send you to bed like a little kid."

Jean smiled at Barbara's authoritative tone, feeling relieved that her sister was there to look after things until she was rested.

"Yes, ma'am. I'm going."

With one last glance at Karoline, she turned and walked out of the room, feeling the exhaustion weighing heavily on her as she dragged her feet towards her own room.