The fingers that had been stroking her hair slowly traced down the back of her neck.
Without realizing it, Talia tilted her head back. The tongue that never missed a chance to wound her with cruel words now gently swept through every corner of her mouth.
Their breathing gradually grew ragged, and her vision blurred. She could feel the body pressed against hers growing so hot that it was almost unbearable, yet neither of them could stop.
Following Varkas's lead, Talia languidly entwined her tongue with his.
How long had they remained like that?
By the time her lips had begun to sting, he finally drew back.
Talia looked up at him as she struggled to catch her breath. In stark contrast to the feverishly pounding body before her, the silent face gazing down at her bore not the slightest trace of desire. That incomprehensible contradiction unsettled her.
After calming her uneven breathing, Talia quietly turned away.
“I should... be going now.”
Just as she was about to climb off the bed, an arm wrapped around her waist.
“Stay a little longer.”
The mellow murmur against her ear seemed to melt her very bones. His body fit flawlessly against her back as he pressed his lips to the nape of her neck.
Talia's body stiffened.
The reason she had come here was to bear the heir of the Grand Ducal House.
Even surrendering herself to him in the darkness had been nothing more than a necessary step to accept him without pain.
Those lies—lies so close to self-hypnosis—threatened to crumble at the touch of a single gentle caress. She desperately steeled her resolve.
“There's no reason for me to stay here.”
“There's no reason for you to leave, either.”
He said it while absently stroking her hair.
“I'm the patient, aren't I? Just stay with me until I fall asleep.”
There was a faint drowsiness in his voice.
Talia bit her lip.
Why do you want me to stay beside you?
She wanted to demand an answer, yet she feared the disappointment it might bring.
After hesitating for a long while, all she managed to say was,
“...Then hurry up and go to sleep.”
She felt his lips move ever so slightly.
Did he... smile?
No, that couldn't be right. Those lips never moved except to sneer or curl into cold mockery.
Suppressing the urge to turn around, she stared fixedly at the rain-speckled window. At that moment, lightning flashed across the sky, followed by the rumbling growl of thunder.
“Are you afraid of thunder?”
He suddenly asked.
Only then did Talia realize that she was trembling.
She had never once feared storms or lightning, but she did not bother denying it. She had no desire to let him discover that it was the emotions he stirred within her that had left her shaken.
Not long afterward, his breathing settled into a steady rhythm. The heavy pounding of his heart gradually slowed as well.
Has he fallen asleep?
...Or maybe not.
She wasted an absurd amount of time silently wondering about something she could have confirmed simply by turning around. Before she knew it, drowsiness swept over her like a tidal wave.
Little by little, she drifted across the boundary between wakefulness and sleep.
Then, in an instant, she was dragged downward, sinking into a darkness so dense it seemed to swallow everything.
The warmth that had so comfortably enveloped her vanished in an instant.
Darkness became a crushing hammer that pulverized her entire body.
She struggled desperately toward the light, but all she heard was the pitiful clattering of shattered bones grinding together.
Then, amid that sound, she heard breathing.
A low, growling breath.
She saw a pair of eyes gleaming within the darkness.
A monster with crimson eyes slowly crawled toward her, intent on devouring her whole. The grotesque outline of a beast wrapped in scales gradually came into view.
It opened its jaws and crushed her mangled lower body between its fangs.
Not even a scream escaped her lips.
With eyes frozen in terror, Talia watched the creature hidden within the darkness tear her body apart.
Then something felt wrong.
The monster's shape gradually shrank.
Slowly, it transformed into a figure she knew all too well.
A woman wearing a strange, gentle smile cradled Talia's blood-soaked upper body in pale, luminous hands.
Then she parted her bloodstained lips and tore a mouthful of flesh from the nape of her neck.
At last, Talia recognized the monster's face.
It was her mother.
Senevier calmly consumed what little remained of her body, one bite at a time.
Soon only her severed head remained.
Tears streamed from Talia's eyes.
Delicate hands lifted her decapitated head.
Poor thing.
Whispering with what sounded like genuine pity, Senevier kissed her tear-soaked cheek.
“Talia!”
Someone violently shook her body.
Like a drowning person hauled out of the water, Talia gasped desperately for air as her eyes flew open.
The dark bedroom slowly came into focus through the haze of panic. For several moments she could not even recognize where she was.
She trembled uncontrollably.
Then someone gently stroked her hair.
“Shh... it's all right.”
Talia turned her head.
A beautiful face clouded with worry came into view.
He cupped her cheeks in both hands, gently brushing away the tears beneath her eyes with his thumbs.
“Calm down. It was only a dream.”
“...A dream?”
Her eyes wandered restlessly, trying to chase away Senevier's lingering image burned into her vision.
Her shoulders slowly slumped.
Yet the trembling refused to stop.
He wrapped both arms tightly around her and stroked her back in slow, steady motions.
The heart that had been pounding wildly, as though it would burst from her chest, gradually returned to its proper rhythm.
In a voice thick with tears, she murmured,
“Have you ever had a nightmare too?”
The hand patting her back paused for a moment.
“A very long time ago.”
“What kind of dream was it?”
“Well...”
Just as Talia noticed his voice had grown noticeably quieter and tried to lift her head, his hand gently pressed the back of it down.
“It was so long ago that I barely remember.”
Even so, you clearly remember that it was a nightmare.
It must have been a truly terrible dream.
“Go back to sleep. If another nightmare comes, I'll wake you.”
He whispered as he pulled the blanket up over her shoulders.
Without thinking, Talia nestled deeper into his embrace.
Only then did it occur to her that she had never intended to spend the night here in the first place.
The thought vanished almost immediately.
Right now, there was no way she could pull herself free from these arms.
Resting her cheek against his bare chest, she closed her eyes.
***
The following day, she finally learned exactly how he had sustained his injuries.
A large chest had been placed outside her room, containing a magnificently prepared silver pelt.
The servant who had personally delivered it proudly explained,
“It is the belly hide of a Drakar personally hunted by His Grace the Grand Duke. It is a supreme material that neither burns in fire nor yields even to the cruelest winter winds. His Grace ordered that a cloak be made from it for Her Highness, the Grand Duchess.”
The nanny stood with her mouth agape, her trembling hands gently caressing the fur.
Its silky white coat shimmered beneath the sunlight with a faint bluish glow.
“My heavens... it's so beautiful.”
Even the maids who had come to help Talia dress could not hide their admiration.
It was no surprise.
Among all dragon subspecies, the Drakar ranked among the most formidable.
Its only weakness was the soft, fur-covered belly.
Because of that, even the greatest hunters had to risk their lives to obtain an unblemished pelt without the slightest scratch.
Not even Mother had likely ever seen material of such extraordinary quality.
Yet Talia's expression, as she stared at the priceless treasure, was as cold as ice.
The thought of him recklessly throwing himself into battle merely to obtain something like this filled her with a rage that surged all the way to the top of her head.
She turned an icy gaze toward the servants.
“Where is His Grace the Grand Duke now?”
“Well... he should be attending to official duties in his office.”
Realizing she was in a foul mood, the servant answered timidly.
Without another word, Talia strode out of the room.
She intended to throw this ridiculous gift back at him and tell him never to do something so foolish again.
But the moment she descended the stairs, a sight unfolded before her that seemed to mock every ounce of her anger.
