54. Why didn't you die?
Asherad looked at the corpses with a cold face. The corpses seemed to have died instantly, with their throats cut open. The knights died without a sound. They were all knights who had been ordered to guard Daphne.
“Tell me... what happened.”
There was an unbearable rage in his hard voice. But Asherad did not get angry because he was blocked by the dam of reason. But if that dam were to break, many would be swept away by his anger.
The knights looked at each other. One of the knights who was escorting the women to the canopy ran over, knelt down, and said.
“It seems like the plan has been exposed.”
“Expose? Huh? That woman even exposed her plans? Did you have any information about that?”
Madness crossed Askelad's face. By 'that woman' he meant Kalista. Kalista was incapable of discovering the plan and killing Daphne's escort knight.
The knight's face turned pale. This was the Emperor's secret plan to exploit the Empress Dowager's weakness.
A classic bait-and-switch tactic to ensure Daphne's safety while also capturing and tracking down the hapless assassin.
He knew all about the assassination group that Kalista had commissioned.
Because there were a small number of people, Asherad was confident that his plan would not fail. No, it should not fail.
Otherwise, Daphne will get hurt.
He knew that Kalista was trying to kill Daphne. He had already heard from Duke Turbol that she was making unsettling moves.
But it was stupid of him to do something like this even though he knew it. It hurt his pride as a perfectionist.
“So, what about that woman?”
“It looks like she ran away over there.”
Asherad looked in that direction. Sure enough, he could see signs of trees being torn apart. He reached out his hand, and the hounds and knights all headed into the forest.
Ran away.
He knew that it was a situation that he couldn't do anything about. However, when he heard that she had run away, his hidden anger suddenly boiled over. His eyes turned bright red.
First, Asherad approached the knight who was originally supposed to escort Daphne and asked him.
“Why didn’t you join the formation?”
“The road was very narrow, so there was a risk of being caught. So we decided to have one of them escort the girls.”
Asherad nodded. Indeed, it was a reasonable statement. Asherad raised his sword and stabbed the knight in the chest.
Phu, blood spread out. Askeraad said as he looked at the astonished knight.
“Isn’t it because you were in the same group?”
“Ahhhhh!”
The knight, clutching his chest, rolled on the dirt floor. His eyes were wide open, and he trembled in excruciating pain. Asherad watched the creature's movements indifferently. The knight shouted at Asherad with hatred.
“This dirty little bastard...!”
The knight writhed in pain and glared into Asherad's eyes.
It was overflowing with murderous intent, as if it would pierce through Asherad. The knights who saw it tried to approach him, but he blocked them. It wasn't a fatal wound anyway, since he was wearing a breastplate.
“Go to hell.. You devil!”
As the knight opened his mouth to draw out the poison from his molars, Asherad kicked the shoe into his mouth. His blood-soaked teeth bit into the shoe. Asherad moved his foot and turned the knight’s neck, pushing his foot further into the ground.
“Akekekekekeke!”
The knight struggled as a large shoe entered his mouth. He could have gotten out immediately, but he couldn't move. As he watched him gag, Asherad spoke affectionately.
“Where are you from?”
“Ugh, ugh!”
“If you don’t speak, I will rip your mouth off.”
The knight's face turned terrified at Asherad's cold words. He didn't even think about the fact that his jaw would be ripped off by a shoe and his mouth would be torn apart.
The knight gritted his teeth as Asherad took off his shoes. As Asherad nodded, urgingly, he spoke with blood streaming from his lips.
“Talking to a dirty-blooded guy like you...”
Asherad kicked him.
“The children of Shimer.”
“What the heck!”
“Just where the hell are those sons of bitches from Shimer?”
Those who say that the royal family is of dirty blood are only the children of the subversive force, Shimer.
Asherad came to one conclusion: Kalista had no network of information to gain access to such an operation. Also, from what she could gather, the assassins were not so great as to have recognized Daphne's escort knights.
The knights' faces turned pale. Children of Shimer? Why on earth would a group of anti-Emperor factions come to the hunting competition?
Moreover, this was outside, not in the Emperor's courtyard. Other knights had muzzled the knight belonging to the 'Children of Shimer'.
“Call reinforcements! Escort His Majesty!”
The knights surrounded Asherad, but he shook his head.
“The reinforcements are ready. First, protect the women as much as possible, and call all the knights. Also, Count Esta’s group will not go too far, so ask them to be your escort. And Sir Henry, follow me.”
The knights were impressed by his attitude towards women first. Asherad willingly entered the forest where Daphne had gone.
Daphne shivered. What are these people? They were strange. Those dressed in black seemed to be a third force.
They killed all the assassins who had chased them, dragged Daphne here, and suddenly tied her to a tree.
“Now I see that face.”
Daphne's lips trembled. His voice was thick with unbearable hatred. It was not a young voice. It was a man's. It was not a young man's voice.
“Miss Daphne, I wanted to see you. I would have seen you sooner if that bastard Emperor hadn’t been there.”
The man's voice was murderous, as if he had swallowed boiling iron. The murderous intent in his voice gave her goosebumps.
“I’ve heard a lot about your story. People around you die, right?”
“...”
Daphne bit her lip. Was he trying to mock her right before he killed her? Daphne stared blankly at the masked man.
“So many people around you have died. They died because you said a word to them, they died because you made a fuss, they died because you harassed them, and they died even when you treated them well.”
He chuckled, his voice low.
“How does it feel to be loved by the god of death?”
The man raised his dagger and scratched Daphne's neck. It didn't hurt. It just stung. Daphne looked pained.
“The reason I brought you here alive was because I wanted to kill you in the most painful way possible.”
“...”
“Killing women is not my hobby, but I intend to make you suffer as much as possible.”
Daphne trembled. She looked at the man with tearful eyes. Her bloodshot eyes formed crescent moons.
It was clear, this man had a grudge against her. Tears welled up in Daphne's eyes.
If it had been a vulgar anger, he would have left Daphne alone, whether she died or not. But he had gone to the Emperor's Forest and brought her back alive. According to him, it would be miserable. All sorts of imaginations were eating away at Daphne.
“No, no, that’s not the kind of thing a naive young lady would think of.”
He taunted Daphne. He wanted to ask for her life, but his voice wouldn't come out.
“Why, spare me?”
“...”
“You have no shame in asking to be spared, right?”
He chuckled.
“You are truly beautiful. Your eyes are as dazzling as your mother's. Is it because of your beauty that you have been able to control the Emperors for generations?”
He spat at Daphne's feet, but she felt no sense of humiliation. Of course not. What good was a spit when she was about to die in agony?
“Yeah, I had a question. I’ll start with that.”
“...”
The cold metal felt sharp. Daphne looked at the man with a tearful face, and her bloodshot blue eyes appeared. Finally, the man opened his mouth.
“Why didn’t you die?”
The words pierced her brain even in the face of death. Daphne opened her eyes wide.
“The person who cared about you the most died because of you, but you didn’t die because of him.”
“...”
“While the one who loved you died trying to save you, you were having sex with that Emperor, enjoying being held by him!”
“...”
“Dirty, vulgar!”
He raised his hand and strangled Daphne. Tears fell from Daphne's eyes. She was facing her sins. She had thought that this day would come someday.
Daphne noticed it now, too.
This person was Fabian's family.
Fabian's family was alive and waiting for an opportunity to kill her.
Asherad looked at the corpses with a cold face. The corpses seemed to have died instantly, with their throats cut open. The knights died without a sound. They were all knights who had been ordered to guard Daphne.
“Tell me... what happened.”
There was an unbearable rage in his hard voice. But Asherad did not get angry because he was blocked by the dam of reason. But if that dam were to break, many would be swept away by his anger.
The knights looked at each other. One of the knights who was escorting the women to the canopy ran over, knelt down, and said.
“It seems like the plan has been exposed.”
“Expose? Huh? That woman even exposed her plans? Did you have any information about that?”
Madness crossed Askelad's face. By 'that woman' he meant Kalista. Kalista was incapable of discovering the plan and killing Daphne's escort knight.
The knight's face turned pale. This was the Emperor's secret plan to exploit the Empress Dowager's weakness.
A classic bait-and-switch tactic to ensure Daphne's safety while also capturing and tracking down the hapless assassin.
He knew all about the assassination group that Kalista had commissioned.
Because there were a small number of people, Asherad was confident that his plan would not fail. No, it should not fail.
Otherwise, Daphne will get hurt.
He knew that Kalista was trying to kill Daphne. He had already heard from Duke Turbol that she was making unsettling moves.
But it was stupid of him to do something like this even though he knew it. It hurt his pride as a perfectionist.
“So, what about that woman?”
“It looks like she ran away over there.”
Asherad looked in that direction. Sure enough, he could see signs of trees being torn apart. He reached out his hand, and the hounds and knights all headed into the forest.
Ran away.
He knew that it was a situation that he couldn't do anything about. However, when he heard that she had run away, his hidden anger suddenly boiled over. His eyes turned bright red.
First, Asherad approached the knight who was originally supposed to escort Daphne and asked him.
“Why didn’t you join the formation?”
“The road was very narrow, so there was a risk of being caught. So we decided to have one of them escort the girls.”
Asherad nodded. Indeed, it was a reasonable statement. Asherad raised his sword and stabbed the knight in the chest.
Phu, blood spread out. Askeraad said as he looked at the astonished knight.
“Isn’t it because you were in the same group?”
“Ahhhhh!”
The knight, clutching his chest, rolled on the dirt floor. His eyes were wide open, and he trembled in excruciating pain. Asherad watched the creature's movements indifferently. The knight shouted at Asherad with hatred.
“This dirty little bastard...!”
The knight writhed in pain and glared into Asherad's eyes.
It was overflowing with murderous intent, as if it would pierce through Asherad. The knights who saw it tried to approach him, but he blocked them. It wasn't a fatal wound anyway, since he was wearing a breastplate.
“Go to hell.. You devil!”
As the knight opened his mouth to draw out the poison from his molars, Asherad kicked the shoe into his mouth. His blood-soaked teeth bit into the shoe. Asherad moved his foot and turned the knight’s neck, pushing his foot further into the ground.
“Akekekekekeke!”
The knight struggled as a large shoe entered his mouth. He could have gotten out immediately, but he couldn't move. As he watched him gag, Asherad spoke affectionately.
“Where are you from?”
“Ugh, ugh!”
“If you don’t speak, I will rip your mouth off.”
The knight's face turned terrified at Asherad's cold words. He didn't even think about the fact that his jaw would be ripped off by a shoe and his mouth would be torn apart.
The knight gritted his teeth as Asherad took off his shoes. As Asherad nodded, urgingly, he spoke with blood streaming from his lips.
“Talking to a dirty-blooded guy like you...”
Asherad kicked him.
“The children of Shimer.”
“What the heck!”
“Just where the hell are those sons of bitches from Shimer?”
Those who say that the royal family is of dirty blood are only the children of the subversive force, Shimer.
Asherad came to one conclusion: Kalista had no network of information to gain access to such an operation. Also, from what she could gather, the assassins were not so great as to have recognized Daphne's escort knights.
The knights' faces turned pale. Children of Shimer? Why on earth would a group of anti-Emperor factions come to the hunting competition?
Moreover, this was outside, not in the Emperor's courtyard. Other knights had muzzled the knight belonging to the 'Children of Shimer'.
“Call reinforcements! Escort His Majesty!”
The knights surrounded Asherad, but he shook his head.
“The reinforcements are ready. First, protect the women as much as possible, and call all the knights. Also, Count Esta’s group will not go too far, so ask them to be your escort. And Sir Henry, follow me.”
The knights were impressed by his attitude towards women first. Asherad willingly entered the forest where Daphne had gone.
***
Daphne shivered. What are these people? They were strange. Those dressed in black seemed to be a third force.
They killed all the assassins who had chased them, dragged Daphne here, and suddenly tied her to a tree.
“Now I see that face.”
Daphne's lips trembled. His voice was thick with unbearable hatred. It was not a young voice. It was a man's. It was not a young man's voice.
“Miss Daphne, I wanted to see you. I would have seen you sooner if that bastard Emperor hadn’t been there.”
The man's voice was murderous, as if he had swallowed boiling iron. The murderous intent in his voice gave her goosebumps.
“I’ve heard a lot about your story. People around you die, right?”
“...”
Daphne bit her lip. Was he trying to mock her right before he killed her? Daphne stared blankly at the masked man.
“So many people around you have died. They died because you said a word to them, they died because you made a fuss, they died because you harassed them, and they died even when you treated them well.”
He chuckled, his voice low.
“How does it feel to be loved by the god of death?”
The man raised his dagger and scratched Daphne's neck. It didn't hurt. It just stung. Daphne looked pained.
“The reason I brought you here alive was because I wanted to kill you in the most painful way possible.”
“...”
“Killing women is not my hobby, but I intend to make you suffer as much as possible.”
Daphne trembled. She looked at the man with tearful eyes. Her bloodshot eyes formed crescent moons.
It was clear, this man had a grudge against her. Tears welled up in Daphne's eyes.
If it had been a vulgar anger, he would have left Daphne alone, whether she died or not. But he had gone to the Emperor's Forest and brought her back alive. According to him, it would be miserable. All sorts of imaginations were eating away at Daphne.
“No, no, that’s not the kind of thing a naive young lady would think of.”
He taunted Daphne. He wanted to ask for her life, but his voice wouldn't come out.
“Why, spare me?”
“...”
“You have no shame in asking to be spared, right?”
He chuckled.
“You are truly beautiful. Your eyes are as dazzling as your mother's. Is it because of your beauty that you have been able to control the Emperors for generations?”
He spat at Daphne's feet, but she felt no sense of humiliation. Of course not. What good was a spit when she was about to die in agony?
“Yeah, I had a question. I’ll start with that.”
“...”
The cold metal felt sharp. Daphne looked at the man with a tearful face, and her bloodshot blue eyes appeared. Finally, the man opened his mouth.
“Why didn’t you die?”
The words pierced her brain even in the face of death. Daphne opened her eyes wide.
“The person who cared about you the most died because of you, but you didn’t die because of him.”
“...”
“While the one who loved you died trying to save you, you were having sex with that Emperor, enjoying being held by him!”
“...”
“Dirty, vulgar!”
He raised his hand and strangled Daphne. Tears fell from Daphne's eyes. She was facing her sins. She had thought that this day would come someday.
Daphne noticed it now, too.
This person was Fabian's family.
Fabian's family was alive and waiting for an opportunity to kill her.
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