Chapter 3 – The Mysterious Appearance (Part 6)

“Hey, is anyone there? Hello!” 

A man’s shout was heard from outside. 

Startled by the human voice, Ellerdin stood up. 

Looking down, she saw a man covered in blood, anxiously standing in front of the door. 

She thought he might be a noble who survived the earlier commotion, but judging by his appearance, he seemed to be a commoner. 

“Celine! Please prepare some food in the dining room.” 

Ellerdin hurriedly went downstairs. When she opened the door, the cold air outside and the stench of blood wafted in simultaneously. 

Nevertheless, Ellerdin greeted him with a warm smile without a hint of a grimace. 

“You have a lot of blood on you. Are you hurt somewhere?” 

“Ah, well, I…” 

Liam lowered his head, his face turning red. 

‘An angel… there’s an angel here. Why?’ 

He never imagined that such a bright person could exist in this den of monsters. 

He assumed everyone would look like the monster he had just met. 

“Well… let’s talk inside.” 

As Liam remained motionless, Ellerdin smiled awkwardly and gestured inside. 

He hesitated but eventually took a step forward. The door closed, and the servants who had approached guided Liam to the bathroom. 

Sitting in the bathtub, washing himself, Liam rolled his eyes, scanning the surroundings, unable to understand the situation. 

The exterior seemed on the verge of collapse, but inside, everything sparkled with expensive items. 

‘I didn’t expect to be treated like this.’ 

It was the first time in his life as a commoner that he had been treated so well. 

He had been thrown into a bathroom before, told to wash because he smelled, but never treated as a guest. 

Especially, he had never seen such a harmless and clean smile. 

Liam, in a daze, pictured Ellerdin in his mind. Then suddenly, the words of the monster-human who had saved him came to mind. 

Could that woman be Ellerdin? 

After finishing his bath, he found new clothes prepared outside the door. 

Dressed neatly, he left the room, and a maid waiting outside guided him to the dining room. 

In the dining room, warm food was prepared. Smelling the food, Liam, who was starving, sat down and began to eat voraciously. 

Soon after, Ellerdin came in and sat across from him. 

Celine, who stood beside her, spoke to Liam. 

“Greet her, she is the Duchess.” 

At those words, Liam’s hands froze. 

The Duchess? So she’s not an angel but a human. 

‘No, that’s not the problem right now.’ 

He prostrated himself on the floor. 

“I am a lowly person with little knowledge and did not recognize you. Please spare my life.” 

If the person in front of him was the Duchess and her name was Ellerdin, then the monster-human he had just met must be the Duke. 

Realizing this, cold sweat began to run down Liam’s back. 

He had heard that those who trespassed into the Duke’s estate met their end in death. 

“Pardon me, but may I ask your name?” 

Liam’s voice trembled. He prayed it wasn’t true, but reality was heading for the worst. 

“Ellerdin Keallad.” 

Liam tightly closed his eyes. He had escaped the fox only to enter the tiger’s den. 

“I apologize for not recognizing you, Madam. I am Liam, an architect from the capital!” 

“There’s no need for that. Please stand up.” 

Ellerdin, flustered, waved her hand. 

Though she tried to stop him, Liam apologized repeatedly. After a commotion, Ellerdin asked Liam, 

“But why are you here? The blood from earlier…” 

“The Duke… saved me earlier. And he told me to tell you he would return the next day.” 

“Did he say that?” 

“Yes, that’s correct…” 

Ellerdin’s expression quickly turned somber. Seeing her expression, Liam felt as if he had committed a crime. 

“I see…” 

She replied bitterly. 

“Sorry, but I’ll go up first. Please rest.” 

Ellerdin calmly stood up. She walked perfectly to her room. 

Once alone, she wobbled and collapsed to the floor. 

Though she had an empty stomach since she had already digested the food from hours ago, she felt nauseous. 

Though she knew Liam had done nothing wrong, facing another man instead of Fernan brought back terrible memories. 

Trying to hide her queasy feeling, she clenched her fist, causing her palm to bleed from her nails. 

She had tried her best to hold on, but thinking she wouldn’t see Fernan, she had come up first. 

She should have entertained him until the end. But she would see him tomorrow, so she had to stay strong. 

‘But… will I really see him tomorrow? What if something happens and I can’t see him?’ 

Thinking that, all her strength drained, and her vision blurred. 

‘…I have to finish the documents.’ 

So I could stay here. 

If she couldn’t prove her usefulness, she would be abandoned. 

Ellerdin staggered to the office, lifting her body. 

*** 

Dealing with the fleeing monsters, Fernan sighed inwardly. He had fully transformed into a demon. 

‘It’s going to burst soon.’ 

He didn’t like transforming into a demon. 

It wasn’t because it was unsightly, but because frequent transformations made his body want to remain in the demon form rather than the human one. 

Recently, he had been using his power unintentionally, so he might transform into a demon form uncontrollably. 

He couldn’t show that form to Ellerdin. 

If she ran away in fear, Fernan felt he wouldn’t want to exist in this world anymore. 

Just thinking of her clear eyes turning to hate made his heart ache. 

‘To prevent that…’ 

He had to reduce the instances of transforming into a demon. For that, he needed to eliminate those monsters. 

Fernan’s red pupils searched for the monsters hiding around. 

*** 

‘I really didn’t see him even once today.’ 

Ellerdin bit her lip, sitting on the bed. 

When she confirmed that the dining room was empty at dinner time, her heart felt so empty. 

In the end, she couldn’t comply with Nisroch’s request to eat more, saying she had no appetite. 

Returning to her room and staring at the dark sky, she felt overwhelming longing. 

Denying the wave of emotions, Ellerdin flopped onto the bed. She didn’t even want to look at the sky now.

She turned her back to the balcony and pulled the blanket up to her head. The familiar darkness came. 

Perhaps because he wasn’t there, strangely, her body felt heavy. Even though she wasn’t sleepy, her eyelids kept drooping. Lying in bed, she soon fell asleep, breathing softly. 

*** 

“Did you do it properly?” 

“Yes, Master! She must be sleeping comfortably by now!” 

Mollek answered in the empty field. The wings on his back were flapping. 

Since Nisroch had mixed a relaxation agent made from herbs found only in the north into the food, Ellerdin wouldn’t wake up. 

‘She will fall into a deep sleep, so I don’t have to worry about getting caught in this form.’ 

Fernan looked down at his monstrous form with a somewhat sad expression. At that moment, Mollek exclaimed in an excited voice. 

“By the way, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you like this, Master! You look magnificent as always!” 

Mollek winked and gave a thumbs up. 

“Stop the useless talk. Did you bring the man?” 

“Ah, of course. What do you take me for?” 

Mollek stretched out his arm and pointed behind him. 

Liam was standing there, trembling and clasping his hands together. 

He met eyes with the coiled Fernan and hurriedly bowed his head. 

“Thank you for sparing my life earlier! Duke! I won’t say a word about anything!” 

“A quick-witted human.” 

Fernan exhaled roughly and collapsed to the ground. Having run around all day, he was exhausted. He spoke, panting. 

“As you can see, everything is sorted, so I hope you make it to Ellerdin’s liking.” 

“Leave it to me! The moment I saw Madam’s face, ideas came to mind.” 

Liam, who had been trembling, now exclaimed with sparkling eyes. Fernan turned his head with an indifferent look. 

Well, he could understand that reaction. Seeing Ellerdin’s face would spark ideas in anyone. 

Fernan didn’t respond to such an obvious statement and stared blankly into the air. 

It had been a busy day, but perhaps because he hadn’t seen Ellerdin, a corner of his heart felt empty. 

How did she spend her day? Did she have an empty day like myself? 

Half of him hoped she did, and half hoped she didn’t. 

Caught between these contradictory feelings, Fernan struggled to maintain his composure. 

“Bring the design by tomorrow. Mollek will prepare the necessary materials.” 

With that, Fernan raised his massive body. He wanted to rest quickly. 

As he moved deeper into the forest, he turned his head to look at the castle. 

‘Should I just take one look?’ 

She wouldn’t wake up anyway. Wouldn’t it be okay to just take one look and go? 

Fernan slowly walked toward the castle. Wanting to see Ellerdin, he soon found himself in front of her room. 

Hesitating for a moment, Fernan quietly opened the door. As he carefully entered the room, her scent enveloped him. 

He saw a small mound rising and falling on the large bed. 

With each step, his scales made a noise. Moving even more cautiously, he lifted the blanket, revealing her peaceful sleeping face. 

‘…What should I do…’ 

She was so lovely he could hardly bear it. Seeing Ellerdin made him feel even more miserable. 

It was as if God was telling him that he wasn’t worthy of her. 

As he blankly admired her face, Ellerdin, perhaps feeling cold with the blanket lifted, turned her body. 

Startled by her movement, Fernan quickly lowered the blanket back over her shoulders. 

“Have sweet dreams, my wife.” 

Unable to hold or kiss her, this was all he could do. 

With that, Fernan turned and grabbed the door. 

At that moment, a clear voice came from behind. 

“Fernan?” 

Fernan gasped and hid his face. Ellerdin, just waking up, looked curiously at the black fur filling the doorway. 

“Is that you, Fernan?” 

Could he have returned? 

She rubbed her sleepy eyes and sat up. 

‘No, don’t come! Not in this form…’ 

Fernan rushed out of the room and ran downstairs. 

The door closed with a strong gust of wind. 

Startled by the sudden event, Ellerdin stared at the closed door in confusion. 

Something fluttered and fell at her feet. Looking down, she saw black feathers scattered from the bed to the door. 

Ellerdin knelt and picked up a black feather. As soon as it touched her hand, the feather dispersed into nothing. 

‘…Am I still dreaming…?’ 

Ellerdin blinked blankly.