The Struggle

She didn’t think of anything in the face of her extreme fear of death. She didn’t care at all about the face that would have been ruined by tears. What does it matter how her face looks when her neck looks like it’s going to be blown off her shoulders right away?

“Walk straight.”

Despite the menacing order of the Royal Guard, her legs were not strong enough. It was hard to even stand properly, let alone walk, because her body just didn’t listen.

The other four servants except for her were decapitated before her eyes. She wondered why they didn’t kill her on the spot. She thought she would rather die early than go crazy after suffering from fear.

“Ugh, this bitch…!”

A soldier shouted beside Timmy, who was being dragged away by both arms. Temi, looking down at the sound of his outburst, was forced to blush with shame. It was because the yellow liquid that flowed down her thighs wet her feet as well as the feet of the people around her.

“Sorry, I’m sorry…”

Unable to keep up with her words, Temi bit her lips. No matter how soon her head was about to be cut off, the mistake of urinating on the bright street was very embarrassing. She thought there would be no more tears left for her to shed because she had already spilled so much, but her nose prickled again.

What did she do so wrong?

Daring to hurt the body of the Emperor’s cherished concubine? Was that petty reason enough to have five people killed for? Should they cut her down, too? Temi was just resentful of Ariel. Just because she was born beautiful, she could have everything without any effort. That’s what it looked like in Temi’s eyes.

She really hated it. Servants, such as herself, would not even reach the Emperor’s feet even if they were to die and reincarnate a hundred times, but she, too, naturally, wanted the emperor between her own skirts. The resentment of how the world could be so unfair and the lamentation of why she was not beautiful gradually centered toward a woman named Ariel and turned into ugly jealousy.

“I told you to stand straight. If you dare act like this in front of his Majesty too I will take out your eyeballs first.”

“Hiii… hiik… I’m sorry. I was… wrong.”

Unaware of what she was saying to herself, Temi shed tears and bowed her head down again and again. Then, her lower back was frozen to the word “His Majesty” uttered by the guard.

“What do you mean His Majesty…?”

“His Majesty will interrogate you himself about your wrongdoings.”

At his hard way of speaking that didn’t have any feelings on it, Temi’s lips were quivering again. What kind of emperor is Leandro Apolliner? A blood-thirsty tyrant. He was so cruel that he was called a monster, not a human being. She can’t believe such an emperor is interrogating her himself. Temi was more than willing to beg them to kill her right here.

“Please, just kill me.”

“Hold your mouth shut. Soon we will arrive at the emperor’s palace.”

Despite Temi’s miserable and desperate plea for death, the Commander of the Guards did not even look back at her. Looking at him staring straight ahead and walking with discipline, Temi felt as if her whole body was losing strength.

‘It looks like I won’t die a pretty death.’

* * *

The strangling hand became more and more forceful. She couldn’t breathe properly, so her vision blurred. Ariel looked up at Leandro with a struggle, floundering in pain.

Leandro already seemed half out of his mind. Ariel puffed her mouth as she looked up at him with rage. She wanted to answer, but she couldn’t get her voice out of her strangled throat. How can she answer when she can’t even breathe? Leandro’s face, which was dotted with anger and madness, even emitted a strong killing intent.

“Who is it? Who dares!”

It was driving him crazy. His whole body feels numb from head to toe. Faced with an unbearable anger, Leandro’s fingertips and toes were numb, as if the blood in his whole body was turning upside down. Even when he saw the wound on Ariel’s shoulder, Leandro had a hard time controlling his violent impulse. However, seeing clear traces of someone putting his mouth on the back of her neck, he could no longer think of controlling his anger. Not only did he plan on making the one who dared to lay his hand on Ariel suffer, he was also determined not to let Ariel off the hook. He clenched his teeth so hard that veins popped out in his temples.

“Uhg… Uhnn…”

It was not a situation where she could say anything. Just before she was out of breath, the original story came to Ariel’s head when she thought she had reached her limit. The reasons and circumstances were different, but Leandro once strangled Ariel similarly in the original story. Ariel was willing to face death, and Leandro saw the shadow of resignation in her eyes before he took the strength out of his hands.

Leandro can’t kill Ariel.