Chapter 201: Lysandra Winter
• ELOISE •
I wish I had a picture of her, something to know what she looked like or remind me of her. I have always had hope that one day I’d.
But that was yet another dream that wasn’t coming true.
I set the vase by the window and positioned it properly, my sad eyes on the flowers. I wondered what her likes, dislikes, and personality were. Even now, after learning the truth, she was still a stranger to me.
I thought my closure would be a fulfilling one, but it got me starving for more, my heart clenching each time I thought about it.
Lysandra Winter.
I knew only her name, and by Drevon’s explanation, I could tell she was a devoted woman, a snowblood, a supernatural creature. She married a human and suffered for the sake of her people. She was bound by duty.
A life of nothing but suffering, living beneath a manor with a sole purpose, to bear an heir. If only she knew the man she married wasn’t just a human but a monster. A monster that became her downfall.
Through the months of carrying me in her womb, as she slowly rotted away and died. I wondered how I survived. Maybe I clung to the little life I had and clawed my way out of her womb. Even as a baby, I was very persistent. Perhaps I was destined to be alive so that I could torment my so-called father.
I finally understood the reason he had neglected me and acted as if I didn’t exist; it was like putting the pieces together and finally reaching fruition.
I must have looked so much like my mother, and he couldn’t bear the sight of me. Every day was like a reinvigorated terror of the secret he tried so hard to bury.
Watching me walk the halls, clinging to my little life, was a nightmare, a recollection of when he came back after a week of leaving me at my mother’s rotting corpse.
He loathed me while I yearned for his love. He saw no trouble as the rumors spread that I was a whore’s daughter, condemned by his people, abused by his wife and daughter.
Now... the truth was known to Beloria. Agnes and Fiona have returned. I wanted them alive to live with truth bleeding in their faces, knowing that the husband and father they thought was their savior and cherished so much was the devil.
He betrayed their marriage and twisted the minds of its people.
Every day will be their misery; what was once my misery will be theirs now. They had been stripped of all leadership, making them no less than peasants.
Beloria was under the rule of Drevon until he found a worthy human leader.
I looked out the window. The sky was bright with the sunlight at its highest peak, filtering into my study and illuminating everything in a warm glow.
The winter season has ended, and we’re blessed with some nice snow for a change. It wasn’t hot like in Beloria, just warm like the light caressing your skin.
I closed my eyes, loving the sensation.
The Winter Clan.
I walked up the stairs leading to the second floor, eyes searching for the books I had. Drevon has amassed many for me, and by my guess, it wasn’t only about erotics and literature; there had to be something here I could find that’d help me.
I climbed the ladder, lining my fingers on the spine. When I didn’t find what I was looking for, I slid the ladder to another spot.
After doing the same thing three times, I was already dizzy. I suddenly thought it wasn’t a good time to keep going like this, or I might fall off my ladder.
"Whoa..." I murmured when I wobbled.
I spoke too soon.
"Your Majesty," Celia neared me.
I climbed down carefully, already gasping for breath like I had sprinted. I was certain I had eaten this morning, even though I had no appetite. Drevon was determined to spoon-feed me despite my protest.
Why do I feel so lightheaded? It was soothing to my brain to think lightly, but it was dangerous because I didn’t have muscle action in my body.
"Are you okay?" Celia asked with concern, eyeing me closely. "I heard you were feeling under the weather. You shouldn’t strain yourself."
"Lady Celia, what are you doing here?" I questioned, rubbing my temple.
"I came to give the monthly reports. Princess Diana sent me since she had so much to deal with."
I felt bad that Diana had been handling everything on her own for the past week, while I had been resting. I didn’t want to give her all the load to carry. I need to step up.
"Don’t worry, I was already on my way to—"
"Goddess!" Celia was quick to catch me before I hit the floor.
"W-What happened?" I asked, suddenly confused why I was in her arms.
"You just momentarily fainted!"
"What?"
"You should still be resting, Your majesty!"
I groaned, closing my eyes as the spin got worse.
"You should have stayed in bed if you’re not okay!"
"I’m fine, I just rode the ladder too much, that’s why. I’m looking for a book, and it’s important."
Celia sighed, helping me stand. "Whatever it is, let me help you find—"
"What is it?"
She slowly leveled her gaze at my hand and tilted my wrist, applying a little pressure to that area with her thumb.
Was she checking my pulse?
I knew Celia was a person of science, and after my change in the system, she could openly practice it.
"Celia? What’s wrong?" I grew nervous when her silence was prolonged.
It was suddenly deja vu to the time when Richard asked a doctor to check me before I left for Valkanor. I didn’t know what was happening then, and the doctor’s expression was just like Celia’s... bewilderment and fright.
Was I dying?