CHAPTER 143
Past midnight, the sentries stationed in front of the Coralld Count’s mansion struggled to keep their heads from nodding.
A young sentry, battling drowsiness, managed to force his heavy eyelids open.
The moment he saw the figure standing before him, his eyes shot wide open in surprise.
Realizing he hadn’t sensed anyone approaching, the young sentry’s face showed his alarm. “Who, who’s there?” he stammered.
The other sentries, shaken from their slumber, hastily straightened their posture.
The figure was wrapped in an old, threadbare robe, a dark gray cloak that hung loosely from head to ankle.
The hood cast a shadow over their face, making it impossible to see their features.
The figure appeared lost, wandering through the area where the mansions of the capital’s high nobility were concentrated.
“Turn back before the Imperial Guard arrests you. This is not a place where you can wander without identification,” one of the older sentries said sternly. The Coralld Count and his son did not tolerate their soldiers mistreating commoners. There had been instances where soldiers were dismissed for such behavior.
But the hooded intruder remained motionless, paying no heed to the warning. Sensing something was off, the older sentry stepped forward, extending his hand.
“I need to verify your identity. Show me your identification,” he commanded.
Usually, at this point, suspicious characters would flee in a hurry.
But the outstretched hand remained unacknowledged, as the intruder took no action.
At first, they thought this person was merely a beggar who had lost their way, but an eerie atmosphere surrounded the figure, making them uneasy.
Lowering his voice a notch, the senior sentry ordered, “Show me your identification, or I’ll have you arrested and handed over to the Imperial Guard.”
The intruder slowly reached their right hand into the left sleeve of the robe.
“What are you doing? Stop!” the sentries shouted, simultaneously drawing their swords and pointing them at the figure.
Instead of a weapon, the figure pulled out something else, showing it to the soldiers.
Their eyes widened in astonishment at the sight of what was resting on the figure’s palm. The light from the torches reflected off the object, causing the soldiers’ eyes to shimmer.
The massive ruby took up more than half of the palm, radiating a magnificent glow. None of the soldiers had ever seen such a large and beautiful gem before.
The woman’s voice, unexpectedly melodious, rang in their ears.
“Show this to the Count. He’ll summon me without hesitation,” the intruder said.
The soldiers were stunned to realize that the intruder was, in fact, a woman. And then…
Their pupils, already wide with surprise, expanded even further. The hood had slipped back, revealing a woman of such beauty that they were momentarily struck speechless.
Her long, lustrous silver hair, pale and flawless skin, eyes deeper and clearer than any lake, and full, red lips slightly parted—it was as if a goddess of love had descended from the moonlight to stand before them.
The sentries, unaware of the rudeness of their intense gaze, stared at her, their swords now lowered to the ground.
“What are you doing? Show it to the Count,” the woman urged. The young sentry, snapping out of his daze, quickly took the ruby and dashed through the mansion’s gate.
***
Inside the study on the third floor of the Coralld mansion, Count Coralld paced back and forth. His brows were furrowed in frustration as he wrestled with an unsolved mystery.
The Count walked over to his desk, placing his fingers on an open map. His eyes traced the path across the Ekol Mountains once more.
“Hm…” A shallow sigh escaped his lips.
He was in the midst of tracking the black panther beast that had killed Crown Prince Luca and kidnapped the Crown Princess.
For years, he had scoured the Ekol Mountains in search of clues.
The Forest of Spirits in the Ekol Mountains was a place where monsters had frequently appeared in the past. It was also a hideout for lesser ogres, goblins, and witches who sought to avoid human eyes.
Two years ago, they had found traces of the black panther beast in the Forest of Spirits.
After learning about the Emperor’s curse, they had assumed that the traces found in the Forest of Spirits belonged to the Emperor, who had turned into a beast. But...
During his conversation with the Emperor, he had uncovered new information.
“His Majesty wasn’t in the Ekol Mountains at that time,” Count Coralld muttered, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
“If that’s the case, then the traces of the beast found near the Forest of Spirits don’t belong to His Majesty…”
An astonishing realization dawned on him, making his head spin.
Just then, a knock sounded at the study door.
“Count, a visitor… has arrived,” the young soldier stammered as he entered the study and presented the ruby.
The Count’s eyes widened, not in surprise, but in caution.
A witch with goblin blood running through her veins. Besilkia.
She was the one who had translated the ancient text about the curse on the Heltered royal family and the Lumen Savior. In return, she had been given a raw ruby from the valuable Sycamore Mine on the continent…
And now that very gem was in the soldier’s hand, shimmering brightly.
***
Not long after, the young sentry who had vanished through the mansion gate came running back, panting heavily.
“You may enter,” he announced.
It was with some reluctance that Besilkia left the admiring gazes behind. She cast a lingering look at each of the soldiers who had gathered around her.
As she licked her lower lip with a crimson tongue, the soldiers’ Adam’s apples bobbed in unison, as if on cue.
To the soldiers, it seemed like a flirtatious, provocative gesture from a stunning woman. But…
In reality, Besilkia was appraising the plump, healthy prey, already imagining how they would serve as sustenance.
‘I’ll take two or three of them with me on the way back. That should be enough to feed my little ones for a week,’ she thought with a plan already in mind.
The thought of her pets contentedly gorging themselves brought a smile to her lips.
Unaware of Besilkia’s true intentions, the soldiers couldn’t tear their eyes away from her as she walked toward the mansion.
***
“Father, you summoned me?”
Timothy entered the parlor as he spoke. He had just been about to retire for the night when he received his father’s summons.
Almost at the same time Timothy entered the parlor, Besilkia slowly turned her head.
The moment Timothy saw Besilkia for the first time, his face flushed.
He was a young man who couldn’t tell a lie, not even in comparison to someone his age within the Imperial family.
Timothy realized that he had been staring intently at the beautiful woman before him.
Feeling that he had committed a great rudeness, his innocent eyes lowered to the ground.
“Kuhuhu.”
Besilia let out a sultry laugh.
The attention she received from the young man was incomparable to what she had just experienced, and it heightened her spirits.
When Timothy’s gaze returned to her, she slowly ran her long fingers down her neck.
“Stop playing games,” Count Corald's stern voice cut through the connection between Timothy and Besilia.
“I’m disappointed that you've hidden such a fine son from me all this time,” Besilia pouted her lips.
“Next time, bring Sir Timothy along with you, Count. Or better yet, if he visits me alone, I will be even more delighted.”
Timothy, entranced, nodded his head without realizing it.
“Then, as a promise that you’ll visit me, will you pluck a strand of hair for me?”
It was a ridiculous request, but Timothy, still spellbound by Besilia's lake-like eyes, reached for his head to pull out a strand of hair.
Shwaaash.
A dark purple liquid splashed over Besilia’s head.
Count Corald had poured red wine over the witch.
“Aaagh!”
“Father!”
The room echoed with Besilia and Timothy's horrified voices in unison.
Timothy’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Through his blurred vision, he watched as the beautiful woman’s skin began to melt away.
It was like watching a wax figure burn and melt under flames.
As a layer of skin peeled away, the witch's true form emerged.
The once lustrous silver hair turned into a filthy yellowed mess.
Her smooth, ivory skin transformed into the rough, rotting color of a decaying tree, with bumpy texture and lifeless eyes that continuously darted around with no focus. Her lips, which had once been full and red, turned thin and bluish.
Her hunched back, crooked posture, and dirty, claw-like nails came into full view, shocking Timothy.
Realizing he had been deceived by the witch, his face flushed crimson with embarrassment.
Count Corald handed his son a pinch of dried mint powder, instructing him to place it on his tongue.
He shot Besilia a cold glare, issuing a warning.
“If you attempt to use hypnosis again, I’ll bathe you in wine.”
Besilia flinched at the mention.
‘Damn monster hunter. He knows my weaknesses, so I can’t act carelessly.’
Besilia silently cursed Count Corald.
A promise made when giving a strand of hair to a witch must be fulfilled, or the witch is entitled to one favor of her choosing.
She had intended to sprinkle hypnotic powder into the air while teasing the count's handsome son, but the damn count had caught on immediately and thwarted her plan.
If only she could take him to the Ekol Mountains, she thought, she could lavish him with affection to her heart's content.
Besilia licked her lips as she eyed the pure, innocent face that contrasted so sharply with his father’s stern demeanor.
But Count Corald stepped in, blocking Besilia’s view of his son.
“You’re not here to return the ruby because it’s too generous, are you?”
“Of course not. Keh keh keh,” Besilia cackled, exposing her yellowed teeth.
The count’s sharp gaze bore into the witch.
He knew Besilia wouldn’t descend into the human world without a reason.
It took an enormous amount of energy for a witch over three hundred years old to transform as she had done just now.
And the count knew all too well how Besilia had likely sourced that energy—by sacrificing countless young wild animals.
A frown creased his brow at the thought.
Besilia flicked her tongue out at Timothy.
Unlike his father, who had been boring even in his youth, the son was a delight to tease with his innocent looks.
But the sharp glare from Count Corald made her retract her snake-like forked tongue.
“You must have a reason for risking your life to leave the Spirit Forest?”
There was a reason why Besilia, who enjoyed stirring up trouble and deceiving humans, could not leave the Spirit Forest.
The further she ventured from the forest, the more her lifespan, already long due to her goblin blood, would shorten.
Goblins were among the creatures in ancient myths who had accompanied the ancient gods as they crossed the Aether River when leaving the human world.
Besilia, with her mixed blood, half-human and half-goblin, had not been able to cross the Aether River but had instead gained an extended lifespan, although she could not stay long in the human world.
The fact that she had taken such a risk to come into the human world meant...
Besilia’s artificial eyes rolled back and forth as they focused on Count Corald.
“I want to meet the Emperor and Empress.”
Count Corald didn’t even bother to respond to such an absurd request, feeling it wasn’t worth his time.
He was about to tell her to stop causing trouble and return, but Besilia spoke first.
“If you want to know where Crown Prince Luca and his wife are, you will have to meet me.”
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