Chapter 81
Chapter 81
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: Unable to Escape
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Daphne stared with wide eyes at the vicious man looking down at her.
It had to be a dream, right? It must be a dream. If it was a dream, then it was a nightmare. Daphne clenched her fists tightly. The creaking sensation of her body moving was dull, but the sharp pain of nails digging into her flesh was vividly clear.
The monster was still blinking at her. Those insanely beautiful emerald eyes curved.
An incomprehensible situation. No—a situation that was hard to comprehend.
Daphne had definitely escaped. The memories of the corpse’s foul stench and the time she had taken the medicine and fallen asleep were so vivid.
This isn’t reality. This isn’t reality...
Tears welled up in Daphne’s eyes and spilled down. Her eyes burned hot, the tears dropping to her temples. That vivid sensation was driving her mad.
“You’re such a heavy sleeper.”
Asherad trailed his finger along Daphne’s face. Goosebumps prickled at the cold touch of his hand. Meeting Asherad’s green eyes, Daphne finally parted her lips.
“Kyaaaaaaa!”
It was a pathetic, desperate wail like a beast’s dying cry. As she screamed, realization hit her. She had been caught. Caught again—by this man!
The man’s smile deepened.
The plan had been perfect. Disguise herself as a corpse and slip out while Asherad was away on inspection. So why was she sleeping in this room now!
Asherad’s upturned lips turned down, his eyes glinting coldly. Daphne’s scream—mingled with despair, desperation, and fear—was nothing but noise to him.
“Get up. Before I rip that mouth of yours apart.”
Harsh words escaped Asherad’s lips. Her body began to tremble. Daphne pushed herself upright. She realized then that this was a bed. Her clothes had been changed, carrying that familiar soft scent. Which meant a long time had passed since she’d been caught.
“Why... why on earth...”
“Why did you get caught?”
Asherad drawled. He sat in a chair, locking eyes with Daphne. She flinched and recoiled. Watching the woman startle and flee from him, Asherad’s gaze darkened even further.
‘Your Majesty.’
The woman who had called him that with a smile had vanished like a mirage. Asherad glanced out the window. Though it was still daytime, dark clouds blanketed the sky, casting gloom. A fishy scent hung in the air, and then the rain began to fall. Asherad stared at it and murmured.
“You nearly got soaked.”
Daphne flinched at his words. Asherad let out a self-mocking huff at the sound of his own voice, then turned back to her.
“Before that, Daphne.”
“...”
“Why a coffin, of all things? You got scolded for the rotten corpse stench.”
“...”
“Next time you run, pick somewhere a bit more fragrant.”
“...”
“Of course...”
His green eyes darkened like a forest shrouded in night. Staring straight at Daphne with those sunken depths, he smiled seductively and said in a low voice.
“If you run again, this time I’ll cut off your legs.”
The words, laced with amusement, were brutally cruel. Daphne’s eyes widened as she gritted her teeth. Tears fell in steady drops.
Cut off her legs? Why? Why go that far?
Her face twisted in horror. Seeing the disgust filling it, Asherad spoke.
“I’ll ask you, Daphne.”
“...”
“Why did you run?”
“...”
“I treated you well.”
“...”
“I didn’t make you sleep in that rotten room. I gave you soft bread instead of moldy loaves. Pretty dresses instead of those stiff black rags...”
“...”
“I said I’d marry you, despite all the backlash.”
“...”
“I loved you so much.”
His expression was one of genuine bafflement, like he was staring at a betrayer. Seeing that innocent face, a flicker of anger began to color Daphne’s eyes. She parted her lips slightly and exhaled shakily. Then suddenly, a large hand seized her chin.
“I asked why.”
Asherad’s voice was chilling. His dark eyes pinned her in place. Facing the man’s murderous glare, Daphne’s lips curved upward. Tears brimmed in eyes now blazing with icy hatred. Sensing the shift, Asherad released her chin. Daphne spoke flatly.
“Because of this.”
“...”
“Because it’s you. Because you’re you.”
“...”
“Because it’s always been like this—you still don’t see me as a person, just a pet!”
Her eyes flushed red. He watched her without a flicker of expression.
“You’re not like that now.”
Those words squeezed the air from her lungs. Shaking it off, Daphne shouted.
“Don’t lie!”
“...”
“How long will you toy with me? How long!”
Her voice cracked with a tearing scream. Losing her reason and exploding in rage before Asherad was pitiful enough to inspire pity.
“Why don’t you know? Why don’t you understand...”
“...”
“It’s simple. Being near you felt like dying. Because tying myself to you is horrifying.”
“...”
“Because I hated you. You.”
Daphne wept. Her chest felt like it was ripping apart. She pressed down the hatred blooming deep inside.
Asherad said nothing, just watching her.
Daphne wished now that he would say something—anything.
No—what good would it do, whatever he said? It was already done.
“Please...”
Daphne crawled toward Asherad and clutched his large hand. His gaze dropped to it.
“Please, please. I beg you. Let me go. Please.”
“...”
“Please, I beg you. Asherad. Please, let me go.”
Dragging her unresponsive body, Daphne slid off the bed and knelt before him.
Yes, this was the proper dynamic.
Not equals meeting eye to eye—but one ruling, one submitting. Daphne accepted the hierarchy and addressed her absolute.
“Please. I’ll beg like this. I... I don’t want it.”
She sobbed harshly. Fleeing, chased, caught—like mouse and cat. A cat doesn’t catch a mouse to eat. It chases for sport. But to the mouse, that playful pursuit is a desperate fight for survival.
Daphne realized it. Theirs was a mouse-and-cat bond. Just as a cat wouldn’t die from a mouse’s bite, Asherad knew Daphne posed no real threat.
Trapped in his grasp. Forgetting to escape, playing cute. Blind to how he toyed with her. That’s how it had been.
But she was done with it.
So Daphne begged. Desperately, on her knees before him, pouring out every ounce of desperation.
“If it’s because of my mother that your life turned out this way, take it out on me. Cut off my legs. My arms, too. My life’s ruined just the same. Just end it here. Please.”
Cut off her limbs to vent, scar her face beyond recognition, gouge out her eyes—it didn’t matter. Anywhere but here, she could live.
She wanted to live. Daphne wanted to live desperately.
Her suicidal urge stemmed from a burning craving for a ‘normal life.’
Unbound by anyone. Unrestrained. Unpunished for crimes she never committed.
Daphne cried. Her face streaked with tears. She didn’t care how ugly she looked. Asherad gazed at the beautiful woman begging at his feet.
I want to kill her.
Murderous rage surged. Should he just kill her? If he devoured her flesh, would she live on forever inside him?
She was begging to escape him. Anywhere would do. Just not by his side—not next to him. Everywhere else was paradise, she dared to claim, yearning to break free.
For me, only your side is paradise.
Asherad was the opposite of Daphne. By her side, he could breathe. He craved that nearness, that embrace.
“I’ll teach you how to escape me.”
With that, Asherad drew something from his bosom. A slender rod. He extended his hand, offering it kindly—a dagger gleamed. Asherad tossed aside the sheath.
He leaned down and stroked her cheek.
“Stab your heart with it.”
Daphne stared at the dagger’s cold silver gleam. Trembling, she picked it up.
Then, agonizingly slowly, she gripped it with both hands. In the suffocating silence, Daphne approached Asherad. To plead one last time?
Asherad smiled at her actions. Daphne shuddered. Then she raised the dagger—and plunged it into Asherad without hesitation.