"My daughter-in-law, of course. I suppose you haven't heard the good news from Klaus yet. Both Klaus's father and I have agreed to this marriage. Although in the future Klaus will still need to take another wife of noble origin to strengthen his position as the future count, you will not be treated any less. Initially, Klaus's father and I had thought of allowing you to be only his concubine, but Klaus strongly opposed it. He roared like a lion, stating that he would not accept his first love being disregarded in the future. Meeting you, it's clear to me why my son was so stubborn about this. It's not hard for me to believe that you would probably have refused the position of a concubine. But I must admit that Klaus truly has a good eye. Despite your modest origins, I can easily sense your power and determination. So congratulations. Welcome to the family!"

After this lengthy explanation, along with the final well-wishes, the countess stood up and embraced Kara, engulfing her in a softness from which, under normal circumstances, she would never want to escape. But the prior explanation erased all the erotic fantasies from Kara's mind. She couldn't appreciate the countess's ample bosom pressing against her body, nor the intoxicating scent of the countess's skin. All that remained in her mind was the thought of running away as far as possible.

'What the hell? How did this happen? When did Klaus fall in love with me? Don't tell me that a few tears made Klaus forget all the beatings he endured from me for so many months...'

Kara made an effort and broke free from the countess's arms, leaving her slightly unsatisfied.

"Is there a problem with what I said?" the countess asked Kara."No matter how much you two love each other, it's necessary for Klaus to take at least one more wife of noble origin..."

"But, countess, my relationship with Klaus is, at best, at the level of training partners. I don't mean to sound insolent, but this is the first time I've heard of such a thing..."

"You don't have to be ashamed in front of me, Kara. Klaus has described to me how much you've helped him without asking for anything in return. You didn't just help him become a better fighter, but you helped him become a better man. That's true love. To give without expecting anything in return. Maybe you never believed that your dream would come true, but both my husband and I believed that Klaus's happiness is the most important..."

And so the countess continued to assure Kara that her family would welcome her with open arms, and after several unsuccessful attempts to deny the love relationship between her and Klaus, Kara had no choice but to listen to the duchess's speech in the same way she listened to the monologues of actors performing in the main square during celebrations.

'Well, at least this time the actress is a beauty. Too bad she's a countess. And Klaus's mother...'

Kara managed to escape only after repeatedly promising that as soon as her father returned, she would go with him to discuss the details related to the marriage. Once she got out of the carriage, Kara had only one thought in her mind: 'I need to disappear from this town. No, I need to disappear from this country!'

Kara continued her way home as discreetly as possible, hoping not to encounter anyone connected to Klaus's family.

Once she arrived home, she barricaded the door as if she were being pursued by her greatest enemy.

'Damn it. How did this happen? It's truly ridiculous. It would be laughable if I weren't the main character of this story. What's going on in Klaus's mind? Was yesterday's episode the reason why he's head over heels in love with me now? Too bad I can't turn back time. If I could, I would beat him until he loses consciousness. No. From what I understood from his mother, Klaus claimed that the beatings he endured from me in the past months made him a better person. What normal person would say such a thing? What if Klaus is a masochist? Maybe he would fall even more in love if I beat him to the point of near death.'

Stolen novel; please report.

After drinking a large glass of water, Kara managed to calm down a bit.

'The situation isn't that bad. The influence of the count and his family is not so significant outside the city. If I move to the other side of the country, I can live happily without any problems. Plus, I don't think Klaus's family will humiliate themselves by searching for me all over the country. What would people say if they found out that Klaus's future wife chose to run away instead of marrying him? People would think Klaus has a problem. Probably Klaus's family will conclude that I'm a girl who doesn't know what's good for her and unworthy of Klaus's love. There might be another solution. To explain to Klaus that there isn't now and will never be a love relationship between us. But is there any chance of making him understand? Probably not. And even if he understood that I don't love him, I don't think I'll have peace in the future. Klaus is as stubborn as a mule. He followed me for almost a year to challenge me to a fight, only to be beaten by me every time. What will stop him from chasing after me for another year trying to win my love? I could tell him that I'm attracted to women, making it impossible for me to fall in love with him. But will he believe me? Probably not. Owwww!!! Too bad Klaus isn't a girl. If he were a girl and resembled his mother at least 90 percent, I would accept wholeheartedly. No, Kara! Bad Kara! Where are you going with these thoughts?'

The memory of the countess's appearance once again made Kara feel the need to drink a large glass of water to clear her mind. If the reason Kara was attracted to Alice was because Alice was, well, Alice, Kara felt a much wilder type of attraction towards the countess. An attraction that had the power to make her lose control. Kara didn't like this. During the hunt, you always had to be in control; you couldn't give up the advantage. Those were some of the words her father told her on the first day he taught her how to hunt.

'Huh, how did I cut my hand?'

As Kara poured herself another glass of water, she noticed that her left hand was covered in blood. She must have come into contact with something sharp while daydreaming about Klaus's mother.

'It is really great. The carpet is stained now. Wait a moment? What's happening?'

Looking at the floor for bloodstains, Kara noticed something unusual. A few drops of blood were moving.

'But how? The floor is level...'

Following the drops of blood, she arrived at the staircase leading to the cellar.

'What could be there? Some kind of magical device? As far as I know, my father only keeps broken traps and some stuffed animals in the cellar. I didn't see anything special the last time I was there.'

After a moment of hesitation, Kara decided to descend into the cellar to unravel the mystery.

'Heh. At least I found myself an occupation. Treasure hunting. It's better than thinking about the events that unfolded today.'

Once she descended into the cellar and lit a lamp, Kara noticed a 3-centimeter bloodstain on the left wall. Moreover, a few drops were heading toward the same spot.

'It's like a horror story. Don't tell me there's a vampire buried there. I have to check. I can't leave something so unpredictable under our house.'

Determined to investigate thoroughly, Kara grabbed a crowbar leaning in a corner of the cellar and started hitting the wall forcefully (like in those stories with eccentric detectives). After the dust settled, Kara saw a metallic object in the hole in the wall.

'Yes. There's definitely something there.'

Kara continued widening the hole until she managed to retrieve the hidden object from the wall. The object in question was a metal box with a half-meter diagonal.

'What could be in the box? Could it be a box hidden by my father here, or was it here before we moved into the house? It's best to wait for him to come. He said he would return either tonight or tomorrow night. I don't think it's an emergency.'

But it seems the box sensed Kara's intention and suddenly decided to open itself.

'Well, it seems the contents of the box really want to be found.'

Kara was immediately able to see the contents of the box, but it wasn't as impressive as she expected. At the bottom of the box, there was only a bundle of very old sheets of paper. As she held the sheets of paper in her hand, Kara noticed two things: first, they were written in an unknown language, and second, they were written in blood.

'What sick person would do such a thing?'

But as Kara looked at the sheets on both sides, she began to feel something strange. Suddenly, the written words she had never seen before started to make sense. Yes, now she could understand. Kara read the first line on the first sheet aloud:

"The Path of the Predator."