Chapter 69

She could hear regular footsteps, and she could feel a strong arm holding her in its arms. Her head hurt like it was going to break, and her wrists and legs still hurt so much.

Elysia frowned her brows and came to her senses.

Looking at the body, it didn’t make sense. She lifted her head to see who was holding her.

“Hmm. You woke up early.”

The man with a smile on his face immediately smiled sweetly and kissed her forehead.

Who is this man…?

What is her name, and why was she here?

Her memory was hazy, as if there was a fog in her head.

It wasn’t that there were no memories at all. It was just that they were so fragmented that it was impossible to discern what kind of memory they were.

For example, kissing someone or sucking blood…

Memories that do not even come to mind, and only the feeling of that time were buried like an afterimage.

He looked at her confused face and said with a look of understanding as if he had noticed something.

“You fell down the stairs and hit your head hard. You said you didn’t remember when you woke up a little while ago.”

Elysia, who for an instant would have answered that it was nonsense, frowned lightly.

Did she have such poor agility that she bumped her head when she fell down the stairs? What kind of vampire loses her memory when she hits her head?

She can’t remember everything else, but she knew one thing for sure.

That she was a vampire.

“What’s the relationship between you and me?”

“I’m Peloit. We were lovers… Elysia called me Pel.”

Elysia raised her eyebrows at those words, and she met his gaze head-on.

A realization flashed through her mind as if possessed.

“Ah…”

He was the man she loved.

As she glanced into his eyes, she felt like she was possessed. She wondered if this was what humans felt when faced with the seduction ability of a vampire. It was strange.

She realized that she loved him even though she didn’t even remember Peloit properly.

Besides, isn’t Peloit human?

Elysia called out his name softly.

“Peloit…”

“Yes, Elysia.”

“Pel…”

“Yes, it’s me.”

He acted like he could answer any number of calls. The name that followed that answer, Elysia, seemed to be her name. She couldn’t remember her name, but it was love.

Then, as she felt the weight on her wrists, she looked down. She could also recognize that the thing on her wrist was a restraint.

‘It’s a mess.’

All of a sudden, it felt like someone had messed with her head, so her discontent soared.

Peloit opened his mouth, seeing her staring at the restraint.

“I’ll release you soon, so be patient.”

Elysia nodded her head dryly and stared at Peloit carefully.

Broad shoulders, hard chest, sharp eyes and jawline were visible. He was handsome enough that even the long scars around his eyes couldn’t be seen.

‘No matter how you look at it, it’s not my taste.’

She could see teeth marks left through the collar of the shirt he was wearing.

After looking at the teeth marks, the word ‘lover’ didn’t seem like a very absurd word. Then, the man in her fragmented memory was more likely to be Peloit, and she felt strangely uncomfortable.

“Then, why am I so hungry?”

The scar on Peloit’s neck had just happened.

It hadn’t been long since she drank, so how could she be so hungry?

No matter how injured her body was, it didn’t look like she starved for a long time…?

As she tried to recall her memories, the surroundings became brighter. Elysia opened her lips blankly as she looked at the tower from where she had just been.

What the hell was she doing in such a dismal place?

“….?”

Elysia glanced around at the sudden presence she felt. It was a feeling she couldn’t describe, though she was just certain someone was around.

Peloit gently grabbed her chin and made her look at him.

“Elysia.”

She watched Peloit’s eyes that met her go down to her lips.

It felt blatant that she wanted to kiss her, but so suddenly?

She thought someone was there. It didn’t matter. Among her fragmented memories, kissing was quite…

She thought it felt good.

Peloit’s lips met her and his thick tongue parted between them. At that moment, she could feel the strength in the hand holding her body.

The sound of saliva mixing echoed in her ears, followed by a deep kiss.

By the way…

‘This bastard, why are you so bad at kissing?’

Elysia wiggled her eyebrows, and she complained to herself.

To put it precisely, it wasn’t that he couldn’t. It was a kiss that seemed to eat her up. The kiss that covers all her lips and fights with her, like he was going to devour her was nice, although it wasn’t a very good feeling.

Elysia could feel the presence, which she had felt a moment ago, come closer to her more clearly.

Now that she knew exactly which direction they were going, she tried to lift her lips as Peloit entwined his tongue more tenaciously.

“Pel… um. Wait a minute.”

“Ha… It seems like an intruder has come.”

Saying so, he clasped her cheek, preventing her from turning her head and spoke with a serious expression on his face.

“It’s a dangerous situation, so don’t ever get away from my side.”

Now, even at this moment, she could feel that she was getting closer to that person. She wasn’t looking in that direction, and she didn’t just feel that someone was there, but that that person had such a clear presence.

She wondered how this was possible, so she kept trying to turn her head in that direction.

“Elysia.”

“Okay.”

She looked at him, wishing he could let her go.

Peloit lifted his hand with a look of reluctance to let go.

A little bit of anger came up.

***
Although Cassian led the knights from the capital and departed for Lowell’s estate, now, he was alone.

It was because the knights could not keep up with his speed.

Even though his reason was telling him to wait for Ramote and Ryan and go together, he couldn’t afford to do that anymore. So, he wandered for a long time even after arriving at the forest that Lumiere had told him.

It took a long time because Peloit cleverly crafted it to go astray.

In addition, it also took quite a while to move while breaking the magic one by one.

When he arrived at the place where Elysia seemed to be, Cassian had no choice but to let go of the reins he was holding from his hands.

In front of the tower, giving a bizarre feeling, he saw Elysia in Peloit’s arms.

He thought that it was enough that she was safe, and he struggled to shake off the emotions that flooded his eyes when she was held in the arms of another man. However, watching her even kiss his lips seemed unreasonable.

There was no way she could kiss him like that.

It must be because she was either in a situation where she had to change his mind, or else she had no choice but to kiss.

He had never once doubted Elysia’s heart. Even up to this moment. Cassian knew there was a reason to push her, but he didn’t think she would change her mind.

Then, what the hell is the situation?

“Uhhh… that’s crazy.”

Cassian dismounted from his horse, drew his sword, killed his sounds, and walked in Elysia’s direction.

There was no room for Peloit to get out of here.

With that thought, he struck his sword, controlling his attack to not fly at her.

Peloit grabbed Elysia and rolled her on the floor.

‘How dare you avoid that.’

He had to attack by judging Peloit’s skills, but it was a mistake.

Cassian quickly approached him and swung his sword.

Peloit pushed Elysia and rolled one more turn, barely avoiding her sword before raising the corners of his lips sarcastically as he saw the sword that was slung down next to his pelvis.

“This is scary.”

He had a sarcastic tone, but he wasn’t in a position to respond to each of them.

Cassian quickly scanned Elysia’s figure. She was wearing a cream-colored dress, different from the purple dress she was wearing the day she disappeared.

Through her pale face, the scar on the nape of her neck, and the blood dripping down the hem of her skirt.

It looked like it was grazed off as she couldn’t reach it because of the restraint on her wrist.

The fact that she was in such a state and thought she was safe gave strength to his hand holding the sword. He could only think of it as a wound made by Peloit.

Elysia frowned and let out a moan.

“Uhh…”

And, she struggled to get her body up, and she walked over to Peloit.

She clasped Peloit’s cheeks and squeezed it.

She didn’t even give him a single glance.

“Pel. Are you okay? What is this…”

The body that was about to attack Peloit stopped when he heard the voice he had been waiting for.

‘Did she take any potion?’

Otherwise, there was no way she wouldn’t look at him.

If Elysia drank the medicine that Lumiere had told him to take, it was an understandable situation.

He didn’t know exactly how the potion worked, though. Cassian thought he should run and hug Elysia right now, although he didn’t move as if his body had hardened at the gaze that didn’t look at him.

It was because of seeing the tooth marks on Peloit’s neck.

Even as he thought she was under the potion, he felt a rush of anxiety.

Maybe, she was angry because he was too late, or maybe her heart had turned towards Peloit…? How long had it been since he had no doubts, the image of her lips kissing Peloit kept coming to mind. Just imagining it made his heart stop, so it was difficult not to be shaken.

Peloit wrapped his arms around her waist as he looked at himself, holding a blatant sneer.

Finally, the red eyes turned to him, and their eyes were intertwined. Elysia didn’t say anything, and she stared at him for a few seconds.

‘Is it right?’

She opened her mouth.

“Duke Esteban?”

‘Then, isn’t it?’

Then, she murmured and looked at Peloit.

Cassian was relieved and convinced that she was really under the potion, though he felt pain as her gaze turned to Peloit.

He stroked Elysia’s cheek and curled the corners of his eyes, smiling.

***
Ryan was driving the horse quickly with Ramote in front of him.

Although Ramote was complaining that he was too fast, he ignored it.

“Are you planning to kill me?”

“Sir Ramote. Why can’t you use movement magic?”

“Puh. How many times do I need to say it’s impossible unless it’s a space where the magic circle is engraved in advance!”

“It’s really useless magic.”

At Ryan’s sarcastic remark, he wiggled his eyebrows.

“This guy. At first, you had a hard time, but now you’re just reckless.”

“It is still difficult.”

Ryan clenched his teeth with an anxious face. From afar, knights were seen wearing familiar clothes.

“Isn’t that the Esteban Knights?”

“That’s right. But the Duke isn’t there.”

No matter how much he looked, Cassian was nowhere to be seen. Thanks to Ryan’s fast driving, they quickly caught up with them.

Bug hardened his face as he looked at Ryan and Ramote, who suddenly appeared.

“Looks like he went first. Sir Ramote, if you are having a hard time, please transfer to another horse. I will go first.”

“Fine. Let’s go first.”

Bug opened his lips blankly as he watched the two disappear without even greeting him.

They were obviously riding the same horse, though what was the difference between the horse His Excellency rode and Sir Ryan rode?

Of course, there was a difference in the breed, but it was difficult to understand that there was such a difference in speed. Sir Ryan clearly knew that they were farther than the distance from the capital to Lowell’s estate.

Bug shouted loudly at the knights behind him.

“Speed up!”