TMHR - Chapter 43

Episode 43: The First Night in the Snowfield, Sanctuary of the Northern Beasts

At the very moment when two beasts were tearing each other apart until they were covered in blood over a rotten piece of bread in the foul-smelling slums of the Imperial capital, the most dazzling and noble night of peace was deepening at Winter Castle, a massive black-iron fortress in the Northern Grand Duchy, the highest point on the continent.

The magnificent and enthusiastic banquet, held all night long by the Northern vassals and subjects to welcome the arrival of the new Grand Duchess, had finally come to an end. 

Leaving behind the pouring oaths of loyalty and toasts of the Northerners, Eleanor entered the Grand Duke's most private space, the massive bedroom on the top floor, under the escort of Caelon. As the thick oak door closed, the boisterous noise of the banquet hall was completely cut out. Only the sound of the characteristic Northern icy wind whipping fiercely outside the window indicated that this was the continent's most barren snowfield. Yet, the air inside the bedroom was terribly warm, making the fierce cold outside seem insignificant. 

The floor was covered with the finest black bear fur from the North, and from the massive fireplace occupying an entire wall, oak logs emitted red heat accompanied by a pleasant crackling sound. 

"The banquet was quite noisy and long. I am sorry I could not escort you out earlier, Madam, knowing you must be tired." 

Caelon whispered in a low, smooth voice as he approached Eleanor from behind. He reached out with his large, hot hands and very carefully and affectionately removed the dark navy Northern uniform coat that weighed heavily on Eleanor's shoulders. 

Before her regression, the despicable Valdemar had treated Eleanor's body roughly and violently, even when undressing his wife, solely to satisfy his own vile greed. However, the touch of Caelon, known as the continent's strongest beast, was completely different. 

Perfectly concealing the beast's sharp claws, his fingertips were imbued with blind adoration and absolute respect for Eleanor, as if handling the world's most precious and fragile sacred relic.

As the heavy uniform coat slid to the floor, Eleanor was fully revealed in a thin, smooth black silk slip. Catching her ragged breath, Eleanor slowly turned around to meet the golden eyes of Caelon, who was looking down at her. The ferocious killing intent that had scorned the Empire and wielded his greatsword in the High Court was nowhere to be seen. Only a desperate sense of accomplishment, that after a deep love for her and a long wait, he had finally brought the woman he loved completely back to his fortress, was seething within him. 

"You need not apologize, Grand Duke. Rather, the rough welcome of these Northern warriors, clinking glasses and laughing boisterously, suited my heart more perfectly than the whispers of those snake-like, insidious, and hypocritical nobles in the capital." 

Eleanor smiled languidly, twisting her red lips alluringly. It was true. During her time at the Duke of Castillo's estate in the capital, her nights had always been like hell. However, here in this northern winter castle, there were no longer any bundles of paperwork, debt collectors' demands, or the pathetic inferiority complex of her ex-husband to bind her. All authority and capital had been completely handed over to her trustworthy daughter-in-law, Liliana. 

The terrible shackles that had weighed down Eleanor's shoulders had finally evaporated without a trace. 

"Thank you for letting me into your world, Caelon. I cannot even remember the last time you greeted the night with such light shoulders, thinking only of me." 

Eleanor reached out her white hand and gently caressed Caelon's rough, firm cheek. With that single small touch, the thin thread of Caelon's reason snapped completely. The deep lust of the man, which had been silently sharpening his blade behind the scenes for Eleanor's perfect revenge, finally burst forth like an unbridled beast. 

"I will completely erase those terrible hours of solitude. I will make sure that all your remaining nights are filled only with this warmth and breath." 

As if he could no longer hold back, Caelon wrapped his rough hands around Eleanor's slender waist, lifting her body high and pressing her tightly into his massive embrace. Before a short moan could escape Eleanor's lips, Caelon's hot, thirsty lips devoured her red lips. Caelon's kiss was rough and violent, like a fierce blizzard outside the window, yet it was infused with his heart-wrenching longing for Eleanor. Even amidst the dizzying suffocation, Eleanor stretched out her arms and tightly embraced Caelon's broad back and firm neck. Her fingertips dug deep into Caelon's short, coarse black hair, responding to his rough kiss with greater depth and initiative. 

She, known as Castillo's heartless witch, had lost all control and was melting hotly, at least in the arms of this one man. Without lifting his lips, Caelon lifted Eleanor and walked toward the massive bed in the center of the room. Eleanor's body lay down on the plush bed, covered with the finest goose down and soft silk. Caelon climbed on top of her like a giant predator, completely blocking her vision. His lips passed over Eleanor's red, swollen lips, traced down her smooth jawline, and began to pound hot kisses onto her white, slender neck. 

"Caelon, I can barely..."

Eleanor's black silk slip slid gently down below her shoulders under Caelon's hot touch. Under the red light of the fireplace, her dazzlingly white skin was fully revealed. Caelon's gaze lingered intently on the old scar faintly remaining near the cleavage below her collarbone. It was a wound sustained while defending the Castillo territory during a past battle to subdue monsters. 

Her ex-husband, Valdemar, had turned his head away in disgust, declaring that a hideous mark remained on a woman's body. However, to Caelon, this scar was a sacred badge of honor symbolizing Eleanor's sacrifice and nobility.

"My Eleanor, my great liege." 

He stroked the faint scar deeply and intensely, like a wounded beast caressing its mate's wound.

"Caelon..."

At the hot touch resting on her deepest wound, Eleanor arched like a bow and clutched the bedsheets tightly. It was a terrible salvation that transcended mere physical pleasure, providing perfect solace to the very depths of her soul. At the blind affection of this man who worshipped her entirely as a woman, as the most precious and sublime being in the world, Eleanor shed a few tears she had been holding back and let out a deep sigh. 

"The shackles of that terrible Duchess that once bound you are now completely shattered." 

Caelon whispered, lightly pressing against Eleanor's earlobe. 

"You are now the great Grand Duchess ruling the northern part of the continent, and the sole and eternal companion of this Northern Beast. My heart, my territory, and even every single drop of my blood are all yours." 

Caelon raised his upper body slightly and stared intently down at Eleanor's beautiful face, flushed red through her disheveled silver hair. His golden eyes held a purity more arrogant, dignified, and absolute than any Emperor in the world. 

Catching her ragged breath, Eleanor gently cupped Caelon's firm cheeks with both hands as he looked down at her. A perfect divorce, followed immediately by a remarriage to the continent's strongest. 

"I will hold that leash you offered me tight for the rest of your life." 

Finally, the deepest and most beautiful, sincere smile bloomed on Eleanor's lips. 

"Prove for yourself, Grand Duke, just how terrible your burning vow is by engraving it directly onto my body before this Northern night passes."

"I will engrave it into your very bones so that you cannot retract that command." 

Caelon's patience had finally run its course. In the pitch-black darkness, only the flickering red light from the fireplace illuminated the silhouettes of the two. 

*** 

The passionate Northern night was slowly receding. The pure white, clear morning sunlight, seemingly ready to cover up all the sins and filthy greed of the world, poured dazzlingly through the gaps in the windows of the winter castle.

Eleanor languidly opened her eyes from under a duvet of the finest goose down. Beside her lay Caelon, his body scarred with the rough marks of a beast, fastened in a deep sleep, holding her tightly in his arms like a child cradling the world's most precious treasure. 

The red marks he had etched like a wild beast last night bloomed chaotically across Eleanor's white collarbone, nape of the neck, and waistline. Carefully slipping out of Caelon's firm embrace, Eleanor roughly picked up his thick shirt lying on the floor and draped it over herself before approaching the balcony window. 

Outside, the blizzard that had raged all night had ceased as if by magic. Beneath a cloudless, clear blue winter sky, the vast northern estates stretching endlessly shone in the morning sunlight, sparkling brilliantly as if hundreds of millions of diamonds had been scattered across them.

"...Now it really begins." 

Eleanor pressed her forehead against the chilling window and muttered softly. It was her first morning as the absolute Grand Duchess ruling the northern part of the continent, having completely cast off the old facade of the Duchess of Castillo. 

Although the despicable checks by the Imperial Household and the Emperor's ambition to swallow the continent were not yet entirely over, she was no longer afraid. Behind her stood Caelon, the continent's most ferocious beast, and in the capital, her genius daughter-in-law Liliana, who held the Imperial Household's purse strings in her grasp, served as a perfect shield. 

"The morning air is cold, Eleanor." 

Just then, Caelon, who had woken up at some point, approached from behind, wrapped his arms around her waist, and perfectly blocked the cold seeping in from the window with his broad shoulders. His chin rested affectionately on Eleanor's shoulder.

"Do you see that vast and beautiful snowfield? That territory and the millions of people living there now all serve you as their liege. You just need to fully enjoy the peace of the North while being escorted by me."

At Caelon's reassuring and sweet whisper, Eleanor leaned deeply into his embrace and smiled elegantly. Eleanor's dazzling resurrection-having left her harsh past behind and been reborn as the true mistress of a new family. The morning of that brilliant second act was perfectly dawning upon the brilliant snowfields of the North. 

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