My Slain Dragon Bride

Chapter 65: Chapter 65

Chapter 65 - Salt and Sand

Boom!

A deep explosive sound echoed from inside Abel’s body.

At the same time, Abel’s body went completely limp.

The groans of agony stopped, and even the trembling vanished.

"Ah..."

A gasp escaped Luri’s lips.

She thought...

That all of this was a dream.

That she was actually lying in her bed, trapped in a nightmare a demon had secretly shown her while she slept.

But she did not wake up.

The harder she tried to awaken, the closer the cold reality drew.

"Ah..."

Staggering unsteadily, Luri walked toward Abel.

She turned over his collapsed body.

His pupils had lost all focus.

His pulse was gone.

His body was already growing cold.

She tried to cast a healing spell.

But she knew it was impossible.

His heart had been shattered.

Once the heart was destroyed, no Dragon Spawn could survive.

Ferda had known that as well.

He had never intended to leave Abel any chance of living.

The sensation of this tragedy, unfolding in a cold, dark place amidst a raging blizzard, burned itself into her mind.

The Silver Dragon’s Spawn had died.

Another child of her father had died today.

And what that other child had seen...

She now saw as well.

The man responsible stood right before her.

"You..."

Her voice forced its way through her constricted throat.

"Do... do you realize... what you’ve done, Lord Ferda?"

"I do."

Ferda answered calmly.

"I committed murder."

His voice was as cold as the air of the Northern Tundra.

"This isn’t just murder... Lord Ferda."

Luri’s hands trembled.

"A child of Silverwind has died. You killed one who inherited his blood. Do you understand what that means?"

"I do."

"No. You don’t."

Luri raised her head.

She walked toward Ferda.

"You killed someone who carried a dragon’s bloodline. They will never stop seeking revenge."

"I know."

"They won’t stop... until you are dead."

"I know."

"If you truly knew!!"

Luri grabbed Ferda by the collar.

"You never would have made this choice!"

Everything she had built...

"Because of what you’ve done!"

Because of Ferda’s actions...

"The peace Lady Valdrova protected has been destroyed!"

It all collapsed into nothing.

"You... because of you..."

Luri lowered her head.

The hand clutching his collar trembled violently.

Her legs shook so badly they barely supported her weight.

She wondered...

Could this be salvaged?

Could this somehow be brushed aside?

What in the world was going to happen now?

She tried to imagine the consequences, but she couldn’t.

This was far beyond anything she could handle.

There was no peaceful way to resolve it.

"Haa... haa..."

The overwhelming tension squeezed her throat.

She gasped desperately for breath.

Her vision began to fade.

"It’s... all because of you."

The only thing that escaped her mouth was resentment.

"Lady Valdrova... was already perfectly happy... even without you."

Cruel words she never truly meant poured out.

"You...! Because you tried to enter her life...!"

Yet Ferda did not move.

He merely looked down at her.

His gaze resembled that of someone looking upon a pitiful child.

"Luri."

"Don’t say my name with that mouth! Don’t you dare...!"

"Luri."

His cold voice seized her wandering mind.

"Look at me."

Luri slowly raised her head.

Her silver eyes, lost and uncertain, looked up at Ferda.

"Abel had to die. There was no avoiding this choice."

"There was another choice. And I chose it."

"The choice where you abandoned yourself was the worst possible one."

"What does it matter whether I exist or not? As long as you have Lady Valdrova, isn’t that enough? Wasn’t protecting that peace all that mattered?"

"There was never any peace to begin with."

"There was! It was there! The peace I created was real!"

Luri shot back.

A doubt swelled deep within her heart—that perhaps she was wrong.

But she refused to acknowledge it.

She didn’t want everything she had done to become meaningless.

"Luri."

Ferda asked,

"Was it truly I who destroyed the peace you created?"

"Yes."

That was true.

"Was it I who placed my fiancée in danger?"

"Yes."

That was also true.

"Then... does that make me wrong?"

"..."

Luri couldn’t answer.

She couldn’t understand why she hesitated.

He had unquestionably killed Abel.

Because of that, the peace had been shattered.

Valdrova was now in danger.

So... was that wrong?

No.

Deep inside her heart...

She didn’t believe it was.

"Y-You’re... wrong."

She lacked the courage to admit it.

So she stubbornly insisted once more.

"I see."

Ferda gently removed her hand.

With a slight motion, he guided her trembling hand upward.

Luri’s eyes widened.

Her hand moved higher than his collar...

Until it rested around his throat.

"Then kill me here."

Luri asked in a trembling voice,

"...Are you serious?"

"That was the task I entrusted to you."

Luri remembered something she had long buried in the back of her mind.

After Ferda had selected all of his people...

The final name he had written down was hers.

And he had made her one request.

"If I ever place my fiancée in danger, or walk the wrong path... kill me without hesitation."

Of course, Luri had never believed him.

No living creature wished to die.

Not humans.

Not Dragon Spawn.

Not even dragons.

"If I die, the peace you protected will return."

Ferda was different.

There wasn’t the slightest hesitation in his eyes.

From the moment he killed Abel until now...

The resolve within him had never wavered even once.

Luri finally voiced the question she had kept hidden in her heart.

"Lord Ferda... don’t you regret what you’ve done?"

"I do not."

Ferda had thought about it countless times.

He thought before he acted.

He thought while he acted.

He was thinking even at this very moment.

The answer had always been the same.

"Even if time were turned back a thousand times... I would still save you."

"...Why?"

Unlike her own trembling eyes, his shone with unwavering clarity.

It was a light Luri herself did not possess.

"Because I have no doubt that this is for my fiancée, Valdrova."

That light gently brushed against Luri’s cheek.

"To her... you are more necessary than I am."

The moment she heard those words...

Everything that made Luri who she was collapsed.

"Why... why...?"

The hand gripping Ferda’s neck loosened and slowly fell to her side.

"Why...? I’ve lived longer... I’ve served Lady Valdrova far longer..."

Her voice became heavy with tears.

"So why... are you, a mere human..."

Luri hated humans.

Human greed had always done nothing but hurt Valdrova.

Ferda was different from those humans.

And yet...

She hated Ferda more than any human she had ever known.

Why?

He truly cared for Valdrova.

He genuinely possessed the power to protect her.

And yet she found herself hating him with all her heart.

"Why... can’t I... be like you...?"

Luri’s body collapsed forward.

She didn’t want to lean against the body of the man she hated.

But letting him see her crying was something she hated even more.

"Sob... hic..."

Luri desperately struggled to swallow the sound of her sobs.

But knowing she couldn’t, she buried her face in his clothes and forcibly stifled her cries.

As tears streamed endlessly down her face, Luri caught a faint scent.

A village that had long ago been reduced to ashes in a great fire.

The man who had taken in the lone little girl who survived that disaster.

It was his scent.

Ferda returned to Count Consilus’s castle together with Luri.

"Thank you."

"..."

Luri gave no reply.

She had not spoken a single word since she finished crying.

"You should go back now."

She neither nodded nor shook her head.

Instead, her hand answered for her.

She couldn’t let go of his clothes.

The anxiety lingering in her heart seeped into the grip of her hand.

"Luri."

"..."

"Are you afraid a war will break out?"

She gave a small nod.

She was worried, but that wasn’t the only reason.

"There’s no need to worry. If I’m right, there won’t be a war."

"..."

"Return to my fiancée’s side. Go back as though nothing happened, and prepare for the tea party."

"..."

"Can you do that... for your mistress?"

Only then did Luri release his collar.

Without saying a single word, she flew away.

Ferda straightened his clothes and opened the balcony door.

Inside the castle, complete chaos had already broken out.

"Kill that damned demon woman already!"

"Don’t just kill her! Burn her to death with holy light!"

The knights were furious beyond measure.

"Waaaaah!! I don’t want to dieee!!"

The pink-haired demon cried loud enough to shake the castle.

"No, everyone, calm down and just listen to me first!"

Caught in the middle, Zed was drenched in sweat as he desperately tried to mediate.

"Sir Zed, step aside!"

"Have you been bewitched by that demon woman!?"

"You worthless parachute knight! Hand that bitch over right now!"

"You people really don’t hold back, do you!? I’m not protecting her—I was following orders too!"

"Waaaaah! Sir Knight! Please save meee!"

"You crazy woman! Stop clinging to my leg and let go! Damn it... because of that man, why do I have to go through this hell?!"

People said no job was beneath anyone.

But accepting this assignment had been a mistake.

Zed regretted it over and over.

"Just kill her already!"

"Waaaaah!!"

"What in the world is going on here?"

"That demon bitch stole the gate His Excellency the Regent was supposed to use, and that’s why this whole mess happened... Huh?"

"Y-Your Excellency the Regent?"

The moment the very Regent at the center of the commotion appeared, the entire courtyard instantly fell silent.

"Are you alright, Your Excellency?"

"I’m fine. A few broken ribs and fingers, but nothing serious."

"That demon claimed Your Excellency personally allowed her inside..."

"Waaah! I wasn’t lying!!"

"She wasn’t lying. I did let her in. So put away your killing intent and return to your posts."

"Ah... yes, if you say so..."

"See!? I told you! Why does everyone keep calling me a liar!? Being a demon is so unfair—Mmph!"

"She’s been noisy this whole time, seriously!"

Penelope was just about to pour fuel onto the fire.

Zed stuffed a rag into her mouth before she could.

"I’m glad everyone returned safely from the sudden operation. I’m fine, so go and get some rest."

And with that, the disturbance finally came to an end.

Ferda shifted his gaze.

Only two people remained.

Zed, still wiping sweat from his brow.

And Penelope, with tears and snot running all over her face.

"You two have a separate task."

***

Early dawn at Count Consilus’s castle.

The black sky had slowly begun to regain its color.

It was the twilight just before daybreak.

Ferda remained awake, waiting.

His ribs had been broken, and several fingers had been snapped.

Although he had restored his body with healing magic, the aftereffects left him more exhausted than ever.

Even so, he endured the drowsiness and continued waiting.

A short while later, Ferda sensed a presence approaching.

"So, my darling, you’re back?"

The Great Demon, Sitri, crawled out from the darkness.

"I was so worried things had gone wrong, but it looks like everything somehow worked out?"

"..."

"Why are you looking at me like that? This wasn’t my fault, was it?"

"No. It wasn’t your fault."

Leaning back in his chair, Ferda folded his arms.

"But it seems you were hoping I wouldn’t return alive."

"As if. You can’t do business with a dead man, can you? I was waiting for your safe return more than anyone."

Sitri smiled seductively.

But her expression was quite different from the one Ferda had seen only a few hours ago.

She was impatient.

"One of your dogs is dead, Sitri."

"My dog? Whoever could you mean?"

"Stop pretending. I know Abel Silverwind was one of your dogs."

"Oh my, that’s so mean. Does everyone who hates my darling automatically become one of the demons? I really dislike that kind of prejudice..."

She feigned innocence with practiced ease.

Her eyes curved like a crescent moon.

"Even if that Abel really were one of my dogs, you don’t have any proof, do you?"

Sitri smiled broadly.

She was right.

There was no proof.

Those who made contracts with demons normally bore a seal or traces of demonic mana.

Abel had neither.

"If you accuse a perfectly innocent demon without evidence, do you really think that’ll work? If you insist so strongly, they’ll call me as a witness. And naturally, I’ll deny everything."

"That would put me in quite the difficult position."

"Regent Ferda illegally entered another’s territory, committed murder, and is now trying to avoid responsibility by blaming everything on demons..."

Sitri slowly crept closer.

"...That’s the story they’ll believe."

She leaned close to Ferda’s ear and whispered,

"It’ll look like my darling is simply struggling desperately to save his own life. And even if it doesn’t, do you really think humans will leave you alone?"

Then she revealed her true nature.

"And after all... the one who actually joined hands with a demon was you, wasn’t it?"

She smiled wickedly.

"You borrowed a demon’s magic to secretly infiltrate another territory... and even rescued a demon."

By now, Sitri had undoubtedly secured evidence of it.

The moment she offered him the Bending Bridge Magic, she had already laid countless traps, ensuring Ferda would have no choice but to walk into them.

"My poor, adorable Regent."

Sitri gently caressed Ferda’s face.

"Isn’t it strange? Why do you think people have repeated the warning not to make deals with demons for countless generations? No matter how many times it’s said, people always make the same mistake."

"..."

"The moment you used my Bending Bridge Magic, darling, you’d already crossed the point of no return. If only you’d asked one of my other children instead of me, wouldn’t none of this have happened?"

She mocked every decision Ferda had made.

The tide was turning.

Demons always waited for moments like these.

Sitri opened her mouth to make her proposal.

"If only..."

Ferda spoke first.

"’If only’ is nothing more than an escape for those who regret their choices."

He slowly raised his head.

"If you have no regrets, then there’s no need for the words ’if only’."

The atmosphere instantly shifted.

What Sitri had believed to be completely under her control disappeared in an instant.

Something about the look in his eyes felt profoundly unsettling.

He was far too calm for someone cornered.

For a moment she wondered if he simply failed to grasp the situation.

But that wasn’t it.

What shone in his eyes was unmistakable certainty born of absolute resolve.

"So what? Are you planning to start a war? Or perhaps annul your engagement with Valdrova? Neither option ends well for you."

"There will be neither war nor a broken engagement."

Ferda answered leisurely.

"Because the fact remains that Abel was a Demon Follower who cooperated with demons."

"Were you not listening to a word I said?"

Sitri was genuinely dumbfounded.

"I already told you. There’s no evidence. Without evidence, how can anyone believe you? Do you think they’re idiots?"

This game overwhelmingly favored Sitri.

She had prepared countless cards for this very moment.

No matter what move Ferda made, she was fully prepared to counterattack.

Ferda wasn’t a fool either.

To prepare for the consequences of dealing with a demon, he too had made every possible preparation.

"You’re right."

"There is no evidence."

However, the moment he killed Abel, every one of those prepared cards had slipped from his hand.

He no longer possessed a single card capable of opposing Sitri’s.

"So..."

Instead, what he now held was...

"...You."

"From this moment onward..."

"...You will create the evidence yourself."

What he intended to place around the demon’s neck...

Was a leash from which she could never escape.