Beast of the Frozen Night

“Anne!”

The Grand Duke shouted in astonishment as Anne was tilting backwards towards the stairs. The faint sound of Emily’s screams followed behind. Anne shut her eyes tightly in fear.

The moment she hugged her stomach, thinking that she would fall down the stairs soon, something pulled at her body.

She thought she would fall all the way down… As she slowly opened her closed eyes, Emily’s face was in front of her.

“Kyaaaah!”

Moments later, a piercing scream cut through the silent Grand Duke’s castle.

She blinked my eyes with a puzzled face. The Grand Duke’s face was nowhere to be seen. She could only see her maid holding her and shedding tears.

“…”

Anne, swallowing the words asking where the arrogant man had gone, slowly looked back. Her arms trembled.

Slowly lowering her gaze, she saw him lying in front of the central staircase on the first floor. His black hair, resembling the night sky, was dyed bright red.

The blood on the marble floor turned his head as white as a snow field.

At that time, while the employees were gathering by the Grand Duke’s side stiffened from shock, her eyes met with Marie who was looking up at the top of the stairs. Her heart sank as she looked at Anne, as though asking what she had done.

“Madam… Let’s go to the room.”

Emily pulled Anne to the other side, so she moved her stiff legs, taking step after step.

Why was he there? She couldn’t forgive him just for doing this. Why did he do something useless? Something that she didn’t even tell him to do?

All the way down from the third floor to the first floor. His unconscious face grew clearer, with each step she took. A face as pale as a corpse.

Her lips trembled. The puddle of blood that filled the main hall was so wide that it couldn’t even compare to the blood that flowed when she pierced his palm with a needle. The smell of blood dripping from his head made her twisted stomach throb.

Anne’s face went pale.

At that moment, someone whispered in her head.

It would have been better if he’d died.

She hated him so much that she ordered him to die. It had become a reality, so it should make her feel good. Yet Anne didn’t feel refreshed at all.

* * *

“Bring a clean towel, hurry!”

“I need warm water. There is too much blood, stop the bleeding quickly!”

“Why is the doctor so late? Call him again!”

Even in the middle of the employees who were running around busily, Anne stood blankly by the bedroom door, staring at the Grand Duke lying motionless.

Because of his closed eyelids, his red eyes were completely invisible. Whenever she raised her eyes, she would always see his pupils first, so it felt strange to not see them.

Ashton, who was giving instructions, stood in the way. Thanks to this, her view was blocked and the Grand Duke’s face disappeared. Ashton, thinking that Anne had stiffened in shock, raised his glasses with a complicated expression.

“Please go back to your room first. I will separately report on His Grace’s condition.”

Anne’s unfocused eyes moved slowly. She had only one word to say to Ashton who was worried for her that was pregnant.

“Is he dead?”

12. Twisted Seeds

They said it was a miracle that he was alive.

The Grand Duke hadn’t opened his eyes for over a week, but he wasn’t dead. The doctor explained that he hadn’t regained consciousness due to a serious head injury.

Still, people believed he would wake up sooner or later. Inexplicably, no one in the Grand Duke’s castle doubted that the Grand Duke would soon be up.

Anne did not go to see him, but the doctor visited her room every day and reported the Grand Duke’s condition.

“His Grace is more resilient than others, so a cracked arm or a fractured leg is nothing to him. However, not all injuries are harmless. There is brain damage, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”

A deeper voice resounded quietly in the room, which was submerged in heavy air.

“Does that mean that His Grace will die?”

Anne asked the doctor who had relayed the Grand Duke’s condition. The doctor already had a record of breaking his promises to her once before, so there was no need to be polite to him.

“That… It’s hard for me to say anything.”

“I am not interested in your opinion. I am asking the truth if His Grace will be able to wake up. Don’t you dare lie to me.”

Anne waited for the doctor’s words. At the same time there was a contradictory thought that she didn’t want to hear it.