Chapter 14: Decided to Disappear (Part 1)

Kiern did not hesitate to bite and lick Elizabeth more persistently than usual. When he came to his senses, they were on the bed in the bedroom attached to the drawing room. n*ked, they had embraced like beasts countless times. Seeing Elizabeth trembling, unable to endure anymore, Kiern gave a low command.

“It’s not over yet.”

“Please……”

Elizabeth begged as his hot hands spread her legs again. She had no idea how much time had passed. Her entire body was sticky, covered in his fluids. The bed was a complete mess, and the two of them, still n*ked, continued to move against each other.

She had no time to worry about missing the Ingrid gathering or about being caught by others. Kiern was so relentless, like a madman, that she had no room for such concerns. Elizabeth’s body was already covered in marks, as if branded.

The repeated licking and biting of the reddened spots left her skin stinging. Her entrance, stretched wide, quivered, and his member, still exuding a menacing heat, moved in and out of her. Her lower abdomen felt as though it was filled with his seed.

The act, carried out behind the locked door of the bedroom attached to the drawing room, resembled nothing more than a beastly coupling. Kiern, like an enraged man, drove into her mercilessly, and Elizabeth had reached her limit. Covering her eyes with her arm, she pleaded.

“Please stop now, I beg you.”

“……”

“I can’t take it anymore……”

At her faint, pleading voice, Kiern finally stopped. His blue eyes burned like flames. Looking at the ruined bed and Elizabeth, Kiern let out a bitter laugh. Only then did he realize how madly he had embraced her.

What on earth was I doing?

The fact that he had abandoned all his plans to focus solely on holding this woman disgusted him. No matter how much he embraced her, the fire inside him didn’t seem to die down.

He was angry. Furious to the point of madness, yet he didn’t know exactly why. It was clear that it was because of the woman in front of him, but he couldn’t pinpoint what exactly about her made him so angry.

Where the emptiness had subsided, only fear remained. Elizabeth looked at Kiern with a face filled with fear. The vivid terror in her golden eyes only enraged him further.

When Kiern stepped back, Elizabeth showed a hint of relief. At the same time, she curled up, wrapping herself in the blanket. Even though she knew that flimsy blanket couldn’t protect her, she clung to it desperately. Kiern stared blankly at her.

When she was not only alone with Theo but also embracing him, Kiern couldn’t help but clench his fists in trembling anger. And when Elizabeth kissed him while pitifully gazing at Theo, it had driven him mad, to the point of despair.

It felt as if emotions he should never have harbored for the daughter of his enemy had silently consumed him.

“Ha, ha.”

As Kiern burst into laughter, Elizabeth’s face turned pale. She was frightened of him, recalling how mercilessly he had cornered her before. If she could, she would have bolted from the room, but her legs lacked the strength to move.

After countless acts of intimacy, Elizabeth’s body and mind were exhausted. Even so, she didn’t want to stay in the same space as Kiern for another moment. She feared him.

It felt as though he would devour her completely. She was terrified of him, who seemed unsatisfied even after taking everything from her.

Elizabeth, clutching the edge of the blanket, mustered her courage and spoke.

“Please let me go.”

“……”

“Isn’t it enough already?”

Without answering, Kiern stared at Elizabeth. When their eyes met, fear glimmered in her golden pupils. As if all her courage had vanished, Elizabeth lowered her head.

Her red hair, damp with sweat, looked as beautiful and alluring as a rose wet with dew. Her flushed cheeks and the marks left on her body because of him were all stimulating.

‘I’m bewitched.’

Kiern had no choice but to admit it. The act he had initiated to hurt Elizabeth had entirely backfired on him. He thought he had been the one firing the arrows. But as he looked into Elizabeth’s fearful eyes, he realized otherwise.

At some point, all the arrows in this relationship had turned toward him. Though he intended to hurt her, he was also getting hurt. The more he saw her breaking, the deeper his wounds seemed to grow.

The reason for his anger was simple. No, it wasn’t simple. It was because he had developed feelings for someone he should never have.

How foolish.

‘Do not trust the Lua mother and daughter.’

The voice of the late Sophia echoed ominously in his ears. Kiern found himself unable to answer the proposition he once thought he could easily promise.

He had tried not to trust them but ended up trusting them. He had sought revenge but found himself sinking deeper into the mire. At this rate, it was no longer revenge. This relationship needed resolution. But Kiern didn’t know what or how to resolve it.

For the sake of revenge, he had broken Elizabeth’s wings and grounded her. To destroy her, he snatched away her life and turned Agaphel Castle into hell for her. 

He had thought that doing so would bring him relief. According to his plan, Stella had been driven out as a pauper, and her daughter Elizabeth had withered like a dying flower.

Everything went as planned.

Elizabeth no longer smiled, nor did she express concern for him with any emotion.

So he should have felt relieved.

He should have been pleased.

But he wasn’t. He wasn’t happy or relieved. Instead, he was furious. He was so consumed by anger that he didn’t know what to do.

***

At some point, Elizabeth had curled up at the edge of the bed, watching Kiern with fearful eyes. Her trembling body bore his marks. Despite having shared heated intimacy moments ago, the bed felt cold.

After exploiting Elizabeth’s feelings and trampling on them to his heart’s content, Kiern now found himself wanting her heart. He couldn’t help but laugh at himself.

Elizabeth seemed to despise sharing the same space with him. No, it went beyond hatred—she appeared terrified. That made Kiern feel even more pathetic. It was a feeling he wished he had never realized. It felt as though nothing was left in the mess he had created. Truly, nothing.

“You’re always trying to run away from me.”

“……”

“Even after your wings were clipped.”

When Kiern reached out his hand, Elizabeth flinched and withdrew further. Despite the wall behind her, she desperately tried to retreat, making him feel even more wretched.

“You can leave.”

At Kiern’s permission, Elizabeth hurried to get up but immediately collapsed. Her body was so utterly ruined that she didn’t have the strength to take a single step.

Seeing this, Kiern began picking up his scattered clothes and putting them on. Meanwhile, Elizabeth continued her pitiful attempts to leave the room. Yet, even after he had fully dressed, she hadn’t managed to take three steps before collapsing again. As she fell to the floor, Kiern caught her and spoke.

“I’ll leave. Just stay here.”

“……Really?”

“Yes.”

Kiern gently sat Elizabeth back on the bed and opened the locked door. Eddie, who had been guarding the surroundings outside, stormed in and shouted.

“Your Grace! If you’re going to act alone like this, at least give me a heads-up……!”

“Call a trustworthy maid to look after Ellie.”

“Sigh, what is going on with you, Your Grace? Do you even know how many days you’ve been in this room?”

Eddie sighed and grumbled as he summoned a maid. Elizabeth, relieved that Kiern was leaving, collapsed onto the bed and watched him as he walked away.

His blue eyes briefly glanced at Elizabeth before stepping out the door. His gaze was forlorn, but Elizabeth turned away. Soon after, the maids entered and began attending to her.

Elizabeth couldn’t move a single finger. Even her eyelids felt heavy, and she couldn’t muster the energy to resist or even twitch as the maids tended to her body.

She just wanted to sleep. Peacefully, without any torment. But Elizabeth knew. When she awoke, it would be the same hell all over again. Unless she entered eternal sleep, there would never be peace in her life again.

And so, she decided to disappear. More decisively than running away. She was convinced that was the only way to escape him.