It was then, in a calm Seedling day, that the Earl’s house was awakened by a woman’s scream, followed by the loud clash of wooden objects. Startled, Jade reactively woke up, seeing the bucket on the ground, its lukewarm water spreading into the carpet, drowning it with its essence.
“Ivy?” When his attention fell on the bed, his heart clenched, chest as tight as a sailor’s knot. The warm sheets had been pushed to the wooden framing, partly falling onto the floor, and their host, Ophelia, was nowhere to be seen. “Where is she!?”
The slave’s loud yell was enough to wake up Bradley, who had exhausted most of his energies dealing with the curious eyes lingering around. His usual fierce appetite had travelled to a faraway land, not showing any intention of returning, and the fair complexion on the skin was paler to the point dark circles caused his bright green eyes to contrast further.
His fingers passed through his eyes, attempting to awaken his senses. “What... what’s happening?”
“I don’t know, Jade! She was here when I left...! I...!” Ivy pitifully attempted to explain herself, but the firm grip of the slave’s hands on her upper arms made it impossible to.
“I swear to God, Ivy, if something happened to her...!”
Bradley’s attention shifted to the empty bed, feeling the lack of warmth emanating from between the sheets. Instinctively, he rose to his feet and headed out the door, leaving both of them alone. His wicked mind thought of many possibilities, yet none harbored a happy ending.
Could Terrel be here...!? As the noble’s figure flew through the extensive set of stairs, the slave rapidly surpassed him, darting into the servant’s exit. It seemed like their minds thought of the same horrifying threat that persisted in the shadows of their hearts.
Arriving at the entrance of the estate, further down the mansion, a hint of relief passed through their souls. There was no carriage in sight, nor wheel marks left behind. Ophelia was still within the Earl’s territory.
At this point, other questions began running through everyone’s minds. Ivy had awakened most of the maids and butlers, creating a large search group to scatter all the hidden places inside the mansion and its surrounding woods, yet Jade and Bradley had other plans. They’d seen how much the poison had affected her, how ill her body had truly become, surely, she couldn’t have left the bed on her own. And, even if she did, with the remnants of the substance in her, Ophelia couldn’t have gone far.
As Bradley wandered through the estate, peeking through every tree surrounding the terrain, checking behind any small hill or bumps in the dirt, screaming her name at the top of his lungs, a sense of despair settled in - the exact same feeling he’d gone through when she consumed the poison. He was right there with her on both occasions, but he had been too powerless to do anything, to protect his only rival. At that moment, the noble had already come to terms with his fate, preparing himself to ruin Alvin Criswell and his bloody daughter for such impertinence, for meddling in a challenge that didn’t belong to them.
However, neither of the self-made knights found the girl, no matter how hard they searched. In fact, it was the young maid, Ivy, who spotted her master’s raven hair between the green leaves of the trees, her face as pale as if she’d returned from the dead.
“Milady! There you are!” Ivy’s yell echoed through the grounds as she raced towards the figure leaving the woods. Exhausted, her torso leaned forward, hands using her knees for some time of support as the poor woman tried to catch her breath. “We were all so worried... you disappeared and...!”
“I am perfectly fine, as you can see.” Ophelia coldly responded, not understanding why she appeared so preoccupied; after all, it was not like her little stroll took more than a couple of hours.
“We should return. Your body is still weak, milady.” Rapidly, the maid’s arms attempted to slither into the noble’s waist, hoping to provide some sort of support. “You’re freezing! Yes, we must go at once!”
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Much to the woman’s surprise, Ophelia didn’t move, yet her discerning gaze fell upon the bruise on the maid’s wrist. Understanding her underling was attempting to slither away, the girl grabbed her arm, raising it enough to pull down the fabric and to reveal the deep purple bruise on her skin. If one looked closely enough, the shape of a hand was clearly displayed, as if this had been no accident but intentional.
“Who did this to you?” Her voice was icy, pressuring the maid to respond.
Ivy shuddered as her guilty eyes attempted to hide themselves in the rattling bushes and rebel birds, stopping in the tree branches. Deep down, the maid wished to conceal the truth if not for a moment longer, to prevent her master from learning what had transpired during the past week, yet such hopes were futile because God had already abandoned this hopeless land long ago.
“Milady, that’s...” She tried to slither away from the noble’s grasp, but every time her body moved, the stronger the grip became. “Lord Terrel.”
Of course, between monsters and men, there was little to no difference, especially when it came to the greed and lust of a single individual. Unsurprised, Ophelia let go of her maid, understanding such action was but another warning, another way of that bastard to tell her he could take everything she owned with a mere click of his fingers.
His message was a clear warning to her power, stating that no matter how much his fiancée struggled or tried to achieve a standing of her own, she would fail, as everything and everyone was bound to the will of the heir.
“That bastard...” She mumbled between her teeth, mind already pondering on the best way to respond to such a romantic gesture.
Terrel thought any woman in the realm was his for the taking, as if they were mere objects, animals created by the ones up above to satisfy his selfish desires. And yet, such thoughts were dumb and ignorant, the perfect fuel to cause his upcoming demise. Reminded of what had come to pass during the tea part, Ophelia’s knuckles clenched as a wide, painful grin spread on her lips.
“Go apply some ointment. I’m sure you haven’t gotten it treated.” Her words hit the bull’s eye, causing the maid’s cheeks to flush and her gaze to avert to the daisy flowering next to one of the trees. Of course, Ivy couldn’t go treat it so casually in this mansion as questions would only arise the moment they realized the wound held the shape of a man.
At that moment, both Bradley and Jade passed through the building, hoping to find the source of the earlier yell. Glimpsing the girl they’d been searching for, their voices unconsciously called for her before their bodies darted, with all their speed, to her reach.
Exhausted from wandering through the estate, they took a moment to catch their breath as the handful drops of sweat that slithered from their pores dried up. Recovered, their gazes immediately darted to the side as if they’d just gazed upon something they shouldn’t have.
Within her overly pale complexion, the white nightgown falling onto her weakened body caused her goods to shape themselves into the thin fabric, leaving its form almost completely exposed. Her feet, filled with dirt and some grass, had been completely consumed by a deep brown color which made the lightness of her skin and bony figure contrast even further.
It had truly been a miracle, according to the Earl’s doctor, that she had survived the poison while keeping some of her basic reflexes alive, making it possible to feed her through small spoons several times per day.
“Why are all of you searching for me so frenetically?” Ophelia chuckled slightly, knowing this situation was rather peculiar. “It’s not like I’ve been asleep for ages.”
“Actually, milady...” Ivy’s voice was low as she wished to deliver the news as calmly as possible. “You’ve been asleep for a full week...”
“What!? One week!?” Reactively, the young girl grabbed her upper arms strongly, trying to process the information. How could she have been asleep for an entire week? This was completely unprecedented.
Wait... does that mean Terrel has returned to the estate? A sudden realization hit her, causing her grasp to grow stronger.
The maid flinched, feeling her master’s nails penetrate her frail skin. “Milady...? You’re hurting me...”
“Forgive me, Ivy.” Ophelia’s attention turned to Jade, who kept on averting his gaze, unable to face her in such attires. “Go back to the Duke’s mansion immediately.”
“Are you sure, Master?” The slave questioned but quickly came to regret such a decision as she shot him a bitter glare. Time was not on her side and the preparations still had to be made. “As you command.”
And just like that, he left, running to the stables in order to borrow a horse for his travels. However, as Ophelia’s mind was consumed by distress and worry, Bradley simply observed her with both curiosity and fascination, attempting to understand what made her become so unsettled.