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Chapter 5
“Could you lend me the clothes you’re wearing?”
Leah narrowed her eyes.
It was just after she had overheard the maids talking.
And since Evelyn was someone who almost never asked anyone for favors, Leah couldn’t help but be suspicious of the sudden request.
“Why do you need a physician’s robe? Don’t tell me…”
“You’re right. There’s something I have to confirm, and I absolutely need to get into the tower. The only way to get past the tight security is to disguise myself as a physician.”
After thinking for a long moment, Leah carefully shook the rainwater from the robe and handed it to her.
She had been a tomboy ever since she was little, but she knew that when someone urgently asked for a favor, there was usually a compelling reason behind it.
Besides, Evelyn was her lifesaver.
“Promise me one thing. As soon as you’ve confirmed what you need, you’ll come right back out. Places they call dangerous are always dangerous for a reason.”
Evelyn knew something others didn’t. The man everyone called a dangerous, ruthless monster was, in truth, remarkably thoughtful and composed.
“I will. Don’t worry.”
Wearing the robe embroidered with the symbol of the royal physician, Evelyn left behind Leah’s worried gaze and headed toward the tower.
Tiny footsteps echoed through a place as dark as the entrance to hell.
“Who’s there?!”
As hooded Evelyn emerged from the maze-like corridor, a guard stepped in front of her.
They weren’t the count’s private soldiers, but members of the Blackwood Knights of the North.
Although there was no way they could recognize her face, Evelyn instinctively lowered her head before speaking.
“I’ve brought medicine. I was ordered to attend His Highness until the priests arrive.”
“Medicine?”
A short while earlier, Evelyn had overheard the guards mention that they were waiting for priests.
There could have been many reasons for that, but she simply used it as the most believable excuse for her disguise.
“Yes. I don’t know if it will help, but…”
Silence settled over them.
Just as she felt she might suffocate beneath the scrutiny of four pairs of eyes searching for her true intentions, one of the guards finally spoke.
“Be careful. Examine his condition, but don’t get too close if you can help it.”
Finding nothing suspicious about the woman disguised as a physician, the guards stepped aside without further question.
Though their warning puzzled her for a moment, Evelyn quickly nodded and walked on.
The heavy door creaked open, and oppressive darkness swallowed her whole.
‘Has he already fallen asleep…?’
As her eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, a flash of lightning illuminated the room.
For a brief instant, she saw a figure crouching naked upon the bed, shrouded in black energy.
‘Kallian…’
Tears welled in her eyes.
The thought that she might finally see the face she had longed for so desperately made her throat tighten and her chest burn.
Wiping away her tears, she slowly approached him.
But something was wrong.
Clutching her pounding heart, she hurried to the bedside.
“My goodness…!”
The first thing she noticed was the wounds.
Deep gashes, as though torn open by the claws of a monstrous beast, split his flesh so severely that bone was exposed. Dark crimson blood flowed endlessly from them.
Then she saw the black scales covering his skin and the dark feathers erupting from his right arm like wings.
‘His berserk transformation has begun.’
It was the worst possible sign.
Once he completely lost himself, darkness would consume him, the evil god sleeping within him would take control, and only bloodshed could calm the raging power.
“What in the world happened…?”
Throwing back her hood, Evelyn immediately reached out to his wounds.
There was only one thought in her mind.
She had to save him.
No matter what happened to the future she had planned, she would never regret this moment if she could save his life.
The instant her hand touched him, a soft green aura spread from her fingertips.
At the same time, Evelyn’s eyes flew wide open.
The agony consuming his body flooded directly into hers.
It felt as though every limb was being torn apart and burned alive.
She clamped a hand over her mouth to stifle the scream threatening to escape.
Then something hot surged violently up her throat.
A piercing ringing assaulted her ears.
The metallic scent of blood filled her nose.
Bright red blood burst past her tightly clenched teeth, soaking the front of her dress.
“Blood…?”
A searing pain accompanied by unbearable thirst overwhelmed her entire body.
It felt as though someone had pressed burning iron into her chest.
‘Why is this happening…?’
This had never happened before.
Her vision flickered.
Instinctively, she realized his pain was being transferred to her.
The sensation of her senses shattering, of time and space coming apart…
It felt exactly like the agony she had experienced just before dying.
For a moment, overwhelming fear gripped her.
She looked at the man writhing in pain.
‘But if I stop now, he may die. And if Kallian dies…’
Her own purpose would disappear as well.
He was the only person who could freely enter the temple and take her north.
‘To learn whether my mother is alive… to break my curse… I need you.’
So please…
Endure.
Biting her lower lip until it bled, Evelyn continued pouring her healing power into him.
After what felt like an eternity, the razor-sharp scales and black feathers dissolved into wisps of dark smoke.
His terrible wounds stopped bleeding and, though not completely healed, had closed considerably.
His harsh breathing gradually calmed.
Relief washed over her.
More than anything, she was overjoyed to discover that her healing powers still worked on him.
‘Thank goodness… truly…’
Drenched in blood, sweat, and tears, Evelyn cautiously reached out to touch his forehead one more time.
Suddenly…
A powerful hand shot out of the darkness and seized her wrist.
Before she could react, her body spun violently, and she found herself thrown onto the bed.
“Ugh…!”
His grip was terrifyingly strong.
She couldn’t even struggle.
Kallian climbed on top of her, pinning down her lower body while imprisoning both of her wrists.
“Y-Your Highness…?”
As she finally managed to speak, the pressure forced the back of her head into the soft pillow.
Her trembling lips parted as she stared blankly at what looked like a crimson moon drawing closer.
Only moments later did she realize it was his eye.
‘…He’s still not himself.’
Madness burned within those unfocused crimson eyes.
Meeting that blood-red gaze felt as though she were being dragged beneath deep water.
“W-Why…?”
As if their souls were intertwining, an incomprehensible desire stirred within her.
The instant their bodies touched, an irresistible longing overwhelmed her.
She wanted him to consume her completely.
Startled, she grabbed his shoulder.
Darkness swallowed her.
His face descended upon hers.
Like a starving beast, he captured her lips in a fierce kiss.
His tongue invaded her mouth, taking possession of it with practiced intensity.
She could barely breathe.
It was too much.
Far too much.
Her thoughts melted away beneath the overwhelming sensation.
His kiss was intoxicating enough to erase every thought from her mind.
Unable to bear it, she turned her head and finally managed to gasp for air.
His large hand immediately gripped her chin, forcing her gaze back to his.
Flames seemed to flicker within his vertically slit pupils.
He kissed her again.
The gentle gaze and warm touch she remembered from the past overlapped with the face of the man consumed by darkness before her.
Perhaps because those memories remained, she couldn’t bring herself to reject the man she had loved for so long.
Powerless against his overwhelming strength, Evelyn surrendered.
By the time she regained her senses, she was already clinging to him, returning his desperate kisses.
Their breaths mingled.
Their lips remained locked.
Then his large hand slipped beneath her blood-soaked dress.
His touch moved slowly along the inside of her thigh.
“Y-Your Highness…”
She trembled.
His rough touch made her entire body burn.
She felt as though she had been intoxicated by the strongest wine.
“Ah… ah…!”
Her back arched involuntarily.
A wave of overwhelming pleasure coursed through her body.
“Y-Your Highness…!”
At last, their eyes met.
Reflected within his crimson gaze was her own disheveled appearance, tears running down her cheeks and soaking her hair.
“P-Please… come back to your senses…”
But the rest of her plea died in her throat.
“No,” he said.
“I can’t let you go.”
His flushed face was as cold and merciless as a reaper consumed by darkness as he continued to stare down at her.
Choose one: More Literal, More Natural, or More Formal.
