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Chapter 31
The moment I faced him, my whole body froze.
Just yesterday, his face had been clean — but now it was smeared with thick, dark-red blood.
A chill of terror spread through me.
That blood… it wasn’t from his own wounds. It must have been from someone he’d killed.
“Yulia!”
My brother’s shout tore through my daze and snapped me back to my senses.
He threw off his hood, and the silvery hair — the mark of royal blood — gleamed faintly under the moonlight.
Then he drew his sword.
But if he revealed himself and unsheathed his blade, it could only mean one thing: he was prepared to die.
“Brother!”
“Go!”
He let go of my hand. The warmth that had lingered there vanished instantly.
“But—!”
“I’ll clear the path. Just run. Don’t look back, no matter what.”
Light rippled along the blade in his grasp.
The moment he swung, a burst of sword energy split through the air.
I turned and ran down the path that his attack had carved open.
“Yulia. You must survive. I’m sorry… this is the only way Father and I can atone to you.”
I heard his voice behind me — but I ran, clinging to his last command: survive.
The clash of steel echoed behind me, followed by the sound of something being cut apart.
I couldn’t look back.
If I did, I knew I wouldn’t be able to take another step.
Even as my legs buckled, my body reeled, and pain tore through me as if I would shatter apart, I kept running.
I wasn’t supposed to cry — but hot tears streamed down my face anyway.
Snow and rain fell together that night, chilling my skin until even my tears began to freeze.
There was only one small passage that led out of the imperial palace — a secret known to very few.
It was my last hope of escaping alive.
“Ha… Brother… I’m sorry.”
He told me to survive. But I… I don’t think I can keep that promise.
The moment I escaped the palace grounds, a group of knights blocked my path — their uniforms unfamiliar, not of the imperial guard.
How could this frail body, unable even to lift a sword, possibly break free from them?
Brother… Father… I’m sorry. You both wanted at least one of us to live. I’m sorry I couldn’t grant that wish.
The knights grabbed me by both arms and dragged me away.
Their grip wasn’t that of someone handling a person — it was like livestock being hauled to slaughter.
I didn’t even have the strength left to protest. I just let them pull me wherever they wanted.
The same palace I had escaped from — I was now being dragged back into it by the enemy’s hands.
I expected to be taken to the grand audience hall, but instead, they led me up the stairs — to the very top floor.
When they finally released me, my body collapsed to the cold floor.
Dried blood was everywhere on the marble tiles.
This was a place of slaughter.
“Your Highness, Princess.”
That voice — until this morning, I would have given anything to hear it.
I had thought I could listen to it every day and never tire of it.
But now… it was the most chilling sound in the world.
He stood by the open window, gazing outside. Then he turned and slowly walked toward me.
The closer he came, the more the thick stench of blood filled my nose.
From across the room, I caught a glimpse of silver hair — the same shade as mine — matted with dark blood.
I couldn’t bring myself to look directly.
“Why… why did you do this?”
Just yesterday, everything had been normal.
Tears streamed down endlessly. Inside the room, they didn’t freeze — they just dripped down my cheeks and fell to the floor.
I lifted my head to look at him.
My tear-blurred vision made everything hazy, but one thing was painfully clear.
“Chester!”
His jet-black hair was stiff with dried blood. His pale skin was splattered with dark red.
How many people had he killed with those hands?
Was my nanny safe? Please, let her be safe — at least her.
But then, from the doorway I had been dragged through, someone else was brought in — someone familiar.
“Sir.”
It was my nanny.
She was covered in blood, barely conscious, her eyes half-open.
“Nanny!”
Why didn’t you run? You could have escaped… so why were you caught?
He drew his sword and stepped forward slowly.
Would that blood-soaked blade now take my life too?
I squeezed my eyes shut in terror.
But instead of striking me, he walked past me.
“No…! Stop!”
I knew exactly where that sword was heading.
I forced my trembling legs to move and reached out to grab his cloak.
It was useless.
He looked down at me with empty eyes and brushed my hand away.
I fell to the floor.
Then, with one clean stroke, he severed my nanny’s neck.
I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t move.
All I could do was etch the sight of it into my eyes, trembling uncontrollably as I waited for death.
“Ugh…!”
Nausea hit me hard. My hands shook violently.
I was a powerless, hollow princess — one who couldn’t change anything. A woman who deserved to die.
The crimson blood dripping from his sword splashed onto the cold marble floor.
If I was going to die anyway… then before I did, I wanted to know why.
Why did everyone precious to me have to die?
“Why… why did you start this rebellion?”
Everyone around me was dead.
All of them — killed by the man I loved.
* * *
“Haah—!”
My eyes flew open.
My heart pounded violently in my chest, so loud it filled the room.
I clutched at my chest, forcing myself to breathe deeply.
“Haa… haaa…”
Why am I having dreams like this?
It wasn’t like I was dreaming about the novel’s story — the book never even described how Chester rebelled or what Yulia went through.
It was too vivid to dismiss as a meaningless dream.
No — it didn’t feel like a story I’d read.
It felt like a memory, like something I had experienced in another life.
No, that’s ridiculous.
In my past life, before I died, I lived peacefully in Korea, surrounded by my family’s love.
Yes — it’s just a warning.
A warning from my subconscious telling me not to trust Chester.
That if I do… my ending will be death.
“Why is this happening to me…?”
This is just the world inside the book!
And the story’s flow has already changed!
In the original story, Yulia had been obsessed with Chester, and he despised her for it.
But that’s already different now — everything changed from our first meeting.
Still… what if Chester is planning a rebellion even now?
My mind was a mess of tangled thoughts when I heard the sound of the door opening.
“…”
It was Chester.
But why was I trembling again?
My heart, which had just calmed, began to pound wildly.
Where was this fear coming from?
“Yulia, are you all right?”
A sharp pain shot through my head.
The moment I saw his face, my blood turned cold, and my body stiffened.
His face was splattered with blood.
His black gloves were soaked in it.
Those blood-red eyes fixed on me with a chilling calm.
The thought that these very hands had slaughtered my family — and my nanny — made my skin crawl.
I trembled violently.
As he slowly approached, I instinctively backed away to the corner of the bed.
Even though I knew it had to be an illusion, I couldn’t stop shaking.
Wherever he stepped, it looked as if blood pooled beneath his feet.
“Are you hurt anywh—”
He stopped mid-sentence and didn’t come any closer.
I squeezed my eyes shut against the vision.
When I opened them again, Chester stood before me — ungloved, clean, and spotless.
I’d been hallucinating.
Relief washed over me, and my trembling gradually subsided.
I carefully got out of bed and reached out to touch his face.
“Chester.”
Yes. This — this warmth in his gaze — this was the real him.
It was just a dream.
Just the novel’s story haunting me.
There was no reason to be afraid.
Chester wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close, burying his face in my shoulder.
His hair brushed softly against my bare skin.
“Yulia. I was so worried.”
“I’m fine now. I’m sorry for making you worry.”
“You shouldn’t have gone somewhere so crowded…”
“It wasn’t your fault, Chester.”
Yes — this was the Chester I knew.
The one who worried for me.
Not the cold, expressionless man from the story who had slaughtered everyone I loved.
Unlike the Chester in the novel, this one said he loved me.
“We should return soon,” he murmured.
“But…”
“I don’t want to see you in pain.”
I buried myself deeper into his arms.
His warmth spread through me, comforting and real.
I could hear his heartbeat against my ear — steady and strong.
With a heart that beat like that for me, how could his love be a lie?
So, one last time… I decided to trust him.
Not the vivid nightmare filled with blood —
but the warm, living Chester before me.
