CH 108

My point of view changed to following the drifting boat.

The boat that could not be burned was swept away by the current, caught up in the rapids and overturned. The box containing the dead sank along with the white flowers.

Just before the coffin completely sank, black smoke rose from the water. An ominous haze wrapped the coffin like a chain and dragged it ashore.

The black smoke soon turned into an elongated monster.

There were broken restraints on its bare limbs. It was the evil spirit that Natalia had hidden in the ducal castle.

The demon raised its clawed hands on the wet coffin. When the coffin lid was forcibly opened, the firmly hammered nails were flew out forcefully.

Natalia’s body, with her hands clasped together, was revealed.

The evil spirit stroked the body’s cheek with its sharp claw hand.

It remained in that position for a while, like recalling memories of a dead friend. Then, suddenly, it crouched down.

The evil spirit that had pushed its face up to the nose of the corpse was again scattered like black mist.

The black smoke flowed through Natalia’s slightly opened mouth. In the place where the evil spirit disappeared, the worn-out restraints and chains fell with a light sound.

After a while, Natalia’s fingers, which had not moved, flinched.

At that moment, I was frozen in place as if struck by lightning.

‘…Ah.’

Boom, boom, boom.

The soulless corpse twitched like a marionette on a new string. The sound of cracking bones irritated my ears.

‘No.’

Krrr, crack… ckkkk.

The unfamiliar sound subsided. A shriveled hand protruded from the coffin and touched the unattached upper plate.

Natalia, who I thought was dead, raised her upper body.

She turned her head around and opened her eyes.

I lost my strength in my legs and slumped in place.

Natalia’s white eyes were as black as beasts.

The emerald-colored pupils waved like a snake’s tail. I didn’t mean to focus. The movement of ‘that’ was closer to turning a doll’s eyeballs back to look good.

Natalia’s eyes turned white as her eyes regained their places.

On the outside, it looked nothing like a normal human face. Except for the short hair, it looked exactly the same as the portrait. Her red and flushed cheeks were more lively than when she was alive.

But that’s no longer Natalia.

“…No.”

I muttered, with my hands on my cheeks.

The unavoidable truth hit my head like a hammer.

An evil spirit dressed in the skin of the dead duchess walked out of the coffin. The indifferent eyes without feeling any emotion were never Natalia’s.

A monster in human disguise. That was the identity of the ‘demon’.

“…I have to run away, out of the barrier.”

I muttered with my soul lost. Without realizing it, my hands scrambled, scratching my cheeks that still had some baby fat.

“So… if a demon was born like that… No.”

I hugged my body. The pounding, the throbbing… the vivid heartbeat was painful.

“I am not Lily.”

I’ve always wanted to become Lily.

But it was a wish that didn’t come true.

It was a wish that should not come true.

“It shouldn’t be…”

This body must not belong to Lily to run away.

“Na, ta, lia.”

At that time, the demon that revived Natalia’s body stuttered.

“Instead of receiving the body… I will set you free…”

Its pronunciation was slurred, as if its tongue had been cut off. However, the demon cleared its throat a few times and finished its speech with amazing clarity.

“I promised.”

The demon looked upstream of the river. Over the dense forest, the Duke’s Castle towering like a mountain could be seen.

“Your baby is dead.”

The duchess’ dead child.

There was only one person who could use such words.

“At this rate, even if you die, you will be unable to leave… at ease.”

The demon turned its feet and went upstream. It stumbled often and all over, but it didn’t fall.

“The promise… I’ll keep it.”

Soon the sun went down and night came.

The scenery of the past did not wait for me; it moved on to the next scene.

This time it was a stormy night. I sat down in the pouring rain.

My head was blank. It felt like someone other than me was holding my hand and rubbing it.

At that moment, men with magic stone lanterns ran out from my side, soaked in water.

“It’s an intruder!”

“Damn it, Of all things, at this time! When Sir Pedro went to the garrison…!”

The men’s epaulets had the Duke of Bauner’s emblem drawn on them. If I looked closely, this was the courtyard of the Duke’s Castle.

“We need to bring in the knights.… Arggh!”

A man appeared from behind the tree and beheaded the guard. Drops of blood mixed with the flowing rain water like a flood.

“To your positions!”

The other guards grabbed their swords and fought the enemy. The mask of the intruder in the lead was torn off by the deflected blade.

Whoosh, bang! 

Lightning lit up the spot on his chin.

I came back to my senses. There was no way I could forget that face.

“…Thomas.”

Michael’s biological father and the bandit who kidnapped Lily.

He was the culprit of all the tragedies that occurred in the Duke’s Castle.

At least that’s what I thought so far.

“Oh…”

I alternated my gaze between bandits and the Duke’s Caastle, exhaling a lost groan.

It was the memory of the day Lily was kidnapped, judging by Thomas’ intrusion. During the four years I spent at the Duke’s Castle, I heard a little bit about that night.

The bandits were skilled, and the duke had little internal military power due to frequent civil wars, and the pursuit was interrupted by storms.

It was an understandable story at first glance, but seeing it in person, I knew for sure. There were many strange things about the abduction of the princess.

The bandits, who specialized in escaping, pierced through the defense of the Duke’s Castle by force?

Even kidnapping the Duke’s precious daughter?

“…Something is strange.”

Thomas’ bandits fought against the guards and went wild, but no effort to infiltrate was seen.

This wasn’t about going to the princess’ room, but rather… 

“He seems to be wasting time…”

I got up slowly. I shook my head once like a drowning mouse and ran towards the ducal castle. 

I had to see it with my own two eyes.

Who was the real culprit who kidnapped the princess?

If it was Lily’s bedroom, I could find it with my eyes closed.

I rubbed my wet face with the back of my hand and went into the room.

The child’s room surrounded by toys was dark and quiet. It was possible that some soundproofing magic had been put on the window — even though the thunder and lightning did not stop, not even the sound of rain could be heard.

As I was walking slowly, something caught my foot.

I screamed as soon as I looked down at my feet.

“Verney!”

Red blood flowed from the nape of Verney’s neck as she laid on the floor.

Even though I knew it was useless, I got down on my knees and tried to shake Verney. Then I realized something important.

‘The wound is not deep.’

The clean cut on the neck was closer to stopping Verney from screaming than trying to kill her.

At that time, I could feel a presence by the window. I slowly raised my head.

Someone was standing next to the cradle on which the mobile was hung.

Clad in a robe, the person pulled the baby out of the cradle. The baby did not cry at all, even when the suspicious person rolled it up with a cloth.

Lightning struck outside the window, silently illuminating the person’s face.

I saw the face of Lily’s kidnapper.

Red hair and emerald eyes. The face of me in the adult version.

Natalia… No, the demon who took over Natalia’s body was kidnapping the baby princess.

The sound of footsteps approached through the open door. The demon was not surprised and murmured.

After a while, black smoke rose from its feet. An eerie energy swallowed the body of a woman and a child.

When the door in the background opened, the demon had already disappeared with the baby.

Again, the landscape changed.

Bright sunlight pierced my eyes.

I reflexively put my hand on my forehead, placing it in blurred focus.

This time, I knew immediately where I was. This was the trash mountain of the ant cave.

“Damn it, she’s dead!”

A loud swearing was heard from nearby.

When I turned to the side where the sound was heard, I saw Thomas pointing at the demon wearing Natalia’s skin.

“You should have brought her here in a way that she wouldn’t get hit by the rain! You can’t kill her before we get the ransom!”

Thomas pulled down the sack around the baby.

As the demon took a step back, a small head protruded through the thick cloth.

I inadvertently covered my mouth.

That baby must be Lily. And that baby…… was dead.

The corpse, with its eyes closed helplessly, was as pale as porcelain. I saw many corpses as a child, so I knew right away that Thomas was wrong.

It was a corpse that had long since died. Lily must have been dead before she was even kidnapped.

“Sir, what should we do now?”

The men who were washing their weapons behind Thomas murmured anxiously.

“Is it a fruitless attempt?”

“St, still, if it was the Duke, he would still want to find the corpse…”

“How much is the ransom for a dead bastard!”

Thomas yelled out in anger and took the dagger from his subordinate. He held out the tip of the dagger at the demon as if he was going to stab it at any moment.

“You were the one who suggested the kidnapping! We did what you said!”

“It takes time to revive. In the meantime, you guys draw attention.”

The demon, who had not spoken all the time, finally did, but it was as if it was an afterthought.

Thomas was taken aback by its words, and then burst into laughter.

“Revival? Do you want to get attention or pretend to fight again? What nonsense are you talking about?”

“Usually it takes some time for a human to become an adult, but… I can’t afford to wait right now.”

The evil spirit stroked the baby in the swaddling cloth. Carefully, like how one would treat a living child.

“One year.”

Strong determination stood in the emerald-colored eyes that had been indifferent all along.

“You only need to hide for a year.”