While I was expecting Mayer to feel pain to some extent, I didn't think he'd lose his senses like this. Was he intoxicated by the mana circulating in him after such long dormancy? Or was his mana recoiling because it was a product of demonic power?

The latter case was more probable. Things were getting bad; I had to feed him holy water and neutralize the demonic power inside his body. But, because he had dragged me onto the bed, I couldn't reach the holy water anymore. In the end, I had to wiggle my way out from beneath Mayer Knox.

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Captain, could you lie down this way? Yes, good boy. Mm. Good, this way Don't let go of my hand now. I soothed the groggy Mayer into movingit was startling to find myself treating him like a child. To my luck, he didn't seem to be hearing my words properly. I didn't know whether it was a coincidence or if his mind was clear enough to understand me, but Mayer turned to the side. Barely squeezing my torso out, I managed to snag a bottle of holy water. I had to stretch my arm as much as I could since my lower body was still being smothered by the captain. I opened the bottle and held it to Mayer's mouth. Here, Captain. It'll feel a little better if you drink holy water.

However, Mayer was barely capable of drinking. In fact, he couldn't even raise his head properly. Holy water trickled down from the corners of his mouth. With a click of my tongue, I propped his head up with difficulty. Every part of this man's body was heavy, even his head. It would've been perfect if I could open his mouth with one hand and pour in the potion with the other. Unfortunately, I had to keep one hand in contact with him to continue the mana exchange. I tried to feed him with one hand by leaning his head against my chest, but it wasn't easy. After doing this for a while, all I achieved was wasting holy water. It was obvious he hadn't drunk much from how his feverish eyes looked glazed and unfocused.

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This was my first time seeing Mayer so vulnerable, like the time when we drank wine together. The man was surprisingly unwary and I didn't know if this was because he truly trusted me. The thought of being the only one to see this side of the strongest man in the world was strangely moving.

No. This is exactly the time I need to get a grip This guy's a patient, this guy's a patient I muttered to myself as if trying to self-hypnotize. I had to stop my idle thoughts about Mayer and be as rational as possible. The process of fixing Mayer's mana was extremely delicate. Even the slightest distraction would spell trouble. Ugh, seriously. I didn't want to do this. I scrunched my face into a grimace.

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If Mayer knew what I planned to do, he would've been more shocked and disgusted than me. Since he had lost his senses, he had no right to reject this. Wouldn't it have been nice if he had drunk it himself? With a sigh, I took a mouthful of holy water. There was one way in a situation like this. As Mayer gasped for breath, I put my lips against his and slowly poured in holy water to minimize the backlash. Our breaths entangled as the liquid flowed into his throat. Urgh

It did feel a bit wrong as it looked as if I was forcing a kiss on an unconscious person. But then I felt better once I started thinking of it as resuscitation. Surely he wouldn't come asking later why I did something like this, right? It might be better if he didn't remember. Worst-case scenario, the holy water and demonic power would collide and backfire, but keeping a balance was my specialty. As was always the case with those who lacked mana capacity, I had a pride-worthy control over my mana, which came from living a frugal life.

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Once again, I took another mouthful of holy water and passed it over. The discomfiting method aside, the water definitely did its job. Then, suddenly, Mayer pulled my head toward him. Mph? I garbled.

If before he was taking holy water as a baby bird feeding, now he was like a beast with its fangs in a goat's throat. W-wait. I tried to push Mayer away in bewilderment, but as expected, I couldn't make him budge. I couldn't handle his weight when he was slack, so how could I stop him when he put his mind to it? Mayer still looked dazed and out of his mind. And yet, he seemed to have instinctively realized that the holy water I was giving would give him comfort. He desperately clung to me to ease his suffering.

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Mph Hmph. It was nothing like CPR anymore. Although his actions derived from pure desperation, I was too shaken inside to dismiss it as such. I could smell iron from the man who was clinging to me. The sharp tang of armor, blade, and blood was so keen that it was chilling. Perhaps that was why I managed to barely keep a grip on myself, even as I was on the verge of losing it to the heat of the moment. What tear-deserving sense of responsibility I had, not shaking his hand off through it all. Time passed and, with the ingestion of holy water, Mayer's rough breathing gradually subsided. His grip on me, so tight as if hanging on to a lifeline, likewise eased.