novelraw Chapter 74 – Did you love me?
Chapter 74 – Did you love me?
Sylvie had no idea that shortly after he and Loli left Roye's room, the Nightmare Mark launched its final attack on Roye, which was supposed to have subsided.
This attack was fiercer than ever, exerting all its power.
Having failed to crush the girl's will twice, the being behind the Nightmare Mark seemed to grow anxious, even wondering if the mark was malfunctioning.
It sensed that something was aiding the girl, turning the tide of what should have been a favorable situation, allowing her to repeatedly overcome the nightmares in her heart.
However, it didn't know what was helping her, and thus had no way to counter it.
Because it couldn't see anything within the dream, nor could it control the dream.
Everything in the dream stemmed from the girl's innermost vulnerabilities, possibly an event or a person, and the nightmare's development was based on the girl's mental shaping of these events.
It could only provide the Nightmare Mark with the energy to generate the dream, guiding the girl's perception of events towards a direction she didn't want to experience.
In fact, the Nightmare Mark had been quite diligent as a tool for creating nightmares.
In the first round of nightmares, it exploited the girl's indecisiveness and inner cowardice, combined with her deepest memories, to create one terrifying nightmare after another, rendering her powerless.
But this originally timid girl found courage from somewhere, seeing through the facade of fear, and with a sword in hand, she cut through the imperial army in the nightmare, leaving mountains of corpses and rivers of blood in her wake.
In the second round of nightmares, it found the man who left the deepest impression in the girl's mind.
It made them repeatedly encounter each other in a peaceful, serene town until they fell in love, and at the peak of their relationship, it cruelly crushed the man into a pulp.
The way to break this dream was to kill the man she loved.
However, there was no weapon in the entire town capable of killing.
Initially, the girl was gradually lost in the dream, from falling in love to losing her partner, her emotions shifting from sadness to numbness.
Logically, she should have been in despair, gradually sinking into the dream, unable to distinguish reality.
Yet something made her snap out of it, see through the truth, and endure the pain in her heart to kill her lover.
Now it was the third round of nightmares.
The being behind the mark was pouring more energy into it, trying to make the girl construct an even more realistic and cruel dream under the influence of the Nightmare Mark.
It wanted to destroy the girl's faith, no matter what was helping her, to make her collapse and let her soul completely sink!
Only then could it obtain the trace of divinity within the girl without any loss.
...
The sunset fell into the vast starry sky.
Winter came late, and the mountains and rivers dimmed.
In the room, Roye slowly opened her eyes, her pretty face pale.
A warm and comfortable feeling washed over her.
She found herself lying on a familiar velvet bed.
Above her was a luxurious crystal chandelier.
Roye looked around.
The tidy room, exquisite furniture, and luxurious animal fur carpet were exactly the same as when she first woke up.
"...Is it over?"
Roye murmured, a bit hesitant.
Had the recurring nightmare really ended?
Or was everything before her just a new nightmare?
"Click—"
The door to the room opened, and Roye glanced sideways.
A familiar man walked in.
Blue eyes, golden tousled hair, a gentle gaze.
Roye suddenly felt an urge to cry.
"You're awake? How do you feel? Is there anywhere uncomfortable?"
Sylvie came to Roye's bedside, looking at her with concern and asking gently.
Roye looked softly at the man and shook her head lightly.
"You were unconscious for a whole day. I brought you here from Morninglight Town."
"Those Outsiders tried many methods but couldn't heal you, so they finally had to turn to me."
"Luckily, I had some ancient relics here that were of some use to you."
So that's how it was, Roye felt a sweetness in her heart upon hearing this.
She knew she might have truly escaped those terrible nightmares this time.
She managed to maintain herself in the nightmare and break free from its shackles because she felt a very warm and familiar aura.
These auras had once transformed into a longsword and a short sword by her side.
It was because of him.
But for some reason, now that she was awake, she couldn't feel that warm, familiar aura anymore.
That relic must have been a very precious item, likely used up to save her.
"I'm sorry... for making you..."
Before Roye could finish her sentence, Sylvie stuffed an unknown fruit into her mouth.
She took a gentle bite, and the sweet juice filled her mouth, sweetening her heart like honey.
"Actually, the first time I went to Morninglight Town, I saw you. You were really beautiful, and I had a good impression of you then."
Sylvie looked at the girl on the bed with gentle eyes, his voice sincere and melodious, as if telling a story of a prince meeting a princess.
"But you know, the Outsiders with you did kill my mayor in my territory."
"If I don't punish them, wouldn't they just ignore me?"
Hearing this, Roye felt a bit embarrassed. She turned her head uncomfortably, avoiding looking at the man sitting by her bed, and shyly asked:
"Then... what about the second time? You even... you even didn't explain clearly in the contract..."
"And... and you even... you even stayed in my room..."
Roye couldn't continue, her mind filled with the scene from that time and the subsequent changes in her body, making her blush with embarrassment, her fair skin tinged with a faint rose color.
Though in the nightmare she and Sylvie had known and loved each other, even doing everything, it wasn't real. Now she was facing the real Sylvie.
"The second time, hahaha," Sylvie laughed heartily, looking very happy, and said with a chuckle:
"The second time, I was teasing you on purpose. Although I said I would collect Morninglight Town's taxes, I never actually went to collect them."
"And," saying this, Sylvie paused for a moment, then suddenly leaned down, placing his hands on Roye's pillow, his lips close to her ear, and said in a low, invasive voice:
"I just wanted an excuse to kiss you once, is that not okay?"
"You... you..."
Roye's pretty face turned even redder, and under the familiar aura of the man, tears of embarrassment welled up in her eyes, her entire skin flushing a more vibrant rose than before.
Sylvie's eyes flashed with a wolf-like gaze, and he smiled as he kissed her, a kiss that lasted a long time.
A kiss that went from the girl hesitating to welcome, to actively responding.
A kiss that ended with the lights in the room being turned off.
A kiss that left blankets and torn clothes scattered on the floor.
...
A month later, Eaglehold welcomed its first lady, a charming Demi-human girl.
Her beautiful, silky white hair reached her waist, her golden eyes like stars in the sky, and the satin-like tail behind her was like a cloud fallen from the heavens.
The territory's residents spread the news, praising how beautiful the lord's wife was.
Every tavern had bards singing songs of her praise.
Roye wore a pure and elegant white dress, and at that moment, she felt like the happiest girl in the world.
But her happiness didn't last long.
Sylvie was a complete madman, a scoundrel, a pervert; all his charisma and gentle elegance were just a facade.
After the initial sweetness, his inherent brutality and cruelty were laid bare, and he vented it all on her.
She was locked in a dungeon by Sylvie.
Tortured, whipped, insulted, utterly humiliated.
The battered Roye felt like she was back in a nightmare, only this time the nightmare didn't repeat.
This was reality.
From initial confusion, to anger, to actively trying to please, and now she had grown accustomed to the abuse.
Every day, Roye would ask Sylvie one question:
"Did you ever love me?"