Previously
Irenia is assigned to the remote Emerald Palace, a clear insult from the Empress, but she finds it preferable to her life with the Flores family. During dinner, Caesar is dragged in by guards, gagged and bound in chains like an animal.
“Caesar.”
“Ooooh…”
“Caesar.”
“Ah…”
I did not yet possess enough courage to unbind the iron chains wrapped around his body. Yet leaving matters as they stood was simply not an option. As I called to him repeatedly, the edge of his tension gradually began to soften.
“Caesar.”
At the third call, he ceased his groaning and whimpering. I reached out slowly to touch his brow, then addressed him in a slightly firmer tone:
“Aren’t you hungry?”
“Mmh…”
I could not be sure whether the rumble was an affirmation or an ongoing complaint.
I ran my fingers through his hair with painstaking gentleness, so deliberately slow it bordered on irritating.
“I’m hungry. Neither of us has eaten since yesterday, have we?”
“…Ah…”
In truth, I was starving. Since yesterday, I had not eaten so much as a single biscuit, occupied entirely with bridal adornments and having my corset cinched tight for the gown. And today, from early morning until this very moment, not a drop of water had passed my lips while I answered only one question: why was I still alive?
The moment that realization struck me, my stomach gave a loud, audible rumble. Caesar’s eyes widened with surprise at the sound.
“You heard that, didn’t you?”
“…Yes.”
I shifted my hands toward the heavy chains binding his body.
“I’m going to take them off now.”
Caesar flinched warily as my fingers brushed the metal.
“Ah!”
“It’s all right. Don’t be afraid.”
Just as I had done last night, I repeated that everything would be fine, over and over, until he gave an assenting nod.
“It might make some noise as they come off.”
I recalled how agitated the thunder had made him the previous night. It seemed he was exceedingly sensitive to sound. Unlike the muzzle, which had a simple lock, the chains seemed impossible to undo in complete silence.
“It will be… all right, won’t it?”
Caesar closed his eyes for an instant before opening them again, which I took as a sign of consent.
“Then I’ll begin.”
I set my hands on the chains, but they refused to budge, letting out only jarring metallic scrapes.
With each sound, Caesar’s body shuddered with dread.
“Damn it…”
I was not physically strong, and trying to undo the chains quietly proved an exhausting struggle.
Then everything happened in a flash.
Caesar wrenched his body with immense force, snapping the chains with a muffled clatter. The moment he broke free, he moved with breathtaking speed.
“Ah!”
A short cry of shock escaped me, and I quickly slapped a hand over my mouth. Looking toward him, I found he had retreated to a corner of the dining room, cowering behind the heavy drapes as though terrified of being seen.
Just how much agony had he endured to become this cautious and mistrusting?
“Caesar.”
“…Ooooh…”
He was still trembling, his eyes filled with guarded suspicion.
What should I do now? Speaking to him while he was like this was impossible. I had to draw near him first.
“Ooooh…”
He continued to emit low, guttural sounds from his throat, evoking the madness of last night and sending panic flooding through me once more.
The vial of sedative the guards had handed me still sat in my pocket. With every movement, I could feel its weight pressing against my thigh, a persistent reminder.
Cold sweat beaded on my forehead. The harsh clink of metal and the unnatural, beast-like rumblings… every detail was terrifying.
“We advise you not to touch the muzzle or the chains.”
Had I made a mistake? Had it been sheer arrogance to assume I could reach through to him? Should I have listened to them?
“This is for your own safety, Your Highness.”
If I had erred, the cost would fall on me. And this time, that price might be my very life.
“Aaagh, aaah!”
Suddenly, Caesar seized his head with both hands and unleashed a deafening cry of agony that made my blood run cold.
“What’s wrong? What is happening?”
He had lost control like this once before, hadn’t he?
“Aaah…”
He groaned continuously in pain, his voice drowning beneath the sound of claws scraping against the stone floor, followed by the sickening crunch of bones breaking and reforming. A heartbeat later, his body went completely rigid.
A dreadful sensation washed over me.
I could feel that something had altered.
I couldn’t name what it was, but I knew with absolute certainty that things were no longer the same.
Caesar lifted his head slowly. In his eyes, there was no trace of emotion—only a glowing crimson hue, yet cold as unyielding ice.
“Ah…”
Without thinking, my hand dipped into my pocket for the vial of sedative. Yet the moment my fingers closed around it, I froze. If I gave him this, how would I be any different from those who had bound him in irons?
While I was drowning in a sea of regret and self-loathing…
“Aaagh!”
A terrifying rush cleaved the air. The sleeve of my dress ripped open, and a searing heat flared across the back of my hand.
“Ah, aah…!”
Looking down at my hand, I saw a gash the length of a palm. The pain was vivid, pulsing like boiling heat through my veins.
I struggled to quiet the violent shaking in my hand. Yes, this time, the fault was entirely mine.
Still, fear held me captive.
How could a human being tear such a deep wound with bare hands?
I stared at his claws. One of his hands differed entirely from the other—long, dark, and terrifying, the limb of a genuine beast.
He stared at the crimson droplets clinging to his claws, then slowly licked them clean.
I remembered last night. When he had lost his mind and run wild, he had shown no interest in anything until my blood was spilled.
· · ·
I needed to gather my thoughts amidst the whirling chaos of my mind.
And so I reached a conclusion. I could not be completely certain, but it was a wager worth taking, based on the way he had regained his senses the night before.
“Here.”
I extended my wounded hand toward him.
I seemed to have caught him by surprise.
Perhaps that gave me a glimmer of fortitude. I spoke clearly:
“Is this what you want?”
He let out a noise resembling an affirmation. At that, I squeezed my fist hard to force out more blood, ignoring the stinging ache.
“I’ll give it to you.”
My hand trembled uncontrollably. A strange sensation swarmed inside me, like a hive of bees stirring beneath my skin.
I clenched my teeth to keep from fainting from dizziness.
Blood began to drip from my hand, dark and viscous. Caesar extended his tongue, following the droplets.
Blood…
Some creatures feed on the blood of others to survive, do they not?
Perhaps Caesar was one of them.
Perhaps the Dragon’s Curse afflicting him had transformed him into a creature that fed on human blood.
“Ah…”
A sharp pain pierced my thoughts, chasing them away. He was gently mouthing the cut on my hand, devouring it slowly.
If someone had observed this from afar, they might have mistaken it for a knight kissing his lady’s hand.
Yet some things can only be understood up close.
Many things only look beautiful from a distance.
It was fortunate that we were alone. To see the prince coveting my blood like this… had anyone witnessed the scene, there was no telling what rumors would have spread.
The wet sound of blood being lapped up echoed distinctly in my ears. Looking at him under the bright light, unlike the dim bridal chamber from before, brought on an even sharper bout of vertigo.
The sensation of his tongue gliding over the open wound… it was a pain one could never become accustomed to. And yet, for reasons beyond me, it didn't feel entirely unbearable.
Why was that? I did not know. Perhaps I was beginning to lose my mind as well.
In truth, everything I had experienced so far had veered so wildly off any normal path.
From a sudden political marriage to a beast prince, to remaining alive when everyone had expected my certain death.
“Ah…”
In that moment, the truth struck home.
I had… survived.
My chest tightened all at once. My heart hammered wildly as if it were no longer part of my body. My breath caught, and I pressed a hand over my mouth.
I felt… relief. Never had I imagined that I would live to this moment; even I had not believed it possible.
It was paradoxical and jarring, yet this very pain served as tangible proof that I was still breathing.
And so… I could not help feeling grateful.
Yet just how long did he intend to keep drinking my blood? It may have been my imagination, but the room began to spin, and the strength began to drain from my body bit by bit.
“That’s… enough now.”
“Mmh…”
My plea went unheeded. Instead, he drew closer, pressing his weight against me. By the time I realized I was leaning back, my spine had already met the floor.
This… this situation did not bode well at all.
FADE OUT