Chapter 54
Chapter 54
That was why the blatant mockery tumbled out. “You felt it, on your knees, no less.”
“Ugh!”
“Are you averse to tumbling in bed with me?” Benedict roughly seized her nape. “Is that why you were whimpering and crying like a pathetic wretch?”
“That’s… not it…” It was strangely irritating and infuriating. He’d dragged her here against her will, fully aware of her lack of consent, yet he was the one acting displeased.
Benedict felt himself unusually agitated. This was rare for him, a man generally apathetic, his occasional negative emotions never reaching great intensity. However, there was no reason to hide his foul mood, so Benedict let his raw emotions show. “You would have died that night, little wench, if not for my command.”
“…!”
The words, spat out like a curse, carried undisguised malice and warning. “Didn’t you think it was strangely quiet at the manor, the night you were taken captive?” Her small frame stiffened.
“Ah, has my slave suffered a shock?” A cruel smile played on his lips as he kindly explained, “Yes. I killed them all. Every last one, not a single ant left crawling.” It wouldn’t do to have unnecessary rumors spreading when he had a kingdom to conquer, Benedict added, baring his teeth in a grin. “In other words, I granted you your life as a bonus.”
He tapped her pale, bloodless cheek and whispered, “So, I am your master.”
Her silver eyelashes trembled, but Benedict didn’t care. His mood was already ruined; what did he care about his slave’s fear?
Now she would answer. Something like, I didn’t know, or Thank you for saving me, or I’m sorry. That was all she was capable of, wasn’t it?
Benedict waited patiently. After a moment, Hilde’s lips parted. “It… wasn’t unpleasant…” What emerged was an unexpected answer. “I… I was relieved.”
“What?” His grip loosened slightly at her unforeseen reaction.
Hilde, her neck now a little freer, slowly confessed with sincerity. “I… I have no other use to you, Master… so I was relieved to find something I could do, even if it’s this…”
“….”
“I… I don’t want to be chased away from here. Being sent somewhere else… is terrifying.”
It was a completely unexpected response. Benedict stared down at her, then spoke as if testing her. “Wouldn’t you be glad to be abandoned? You must be desperate to return to your homeland.”
Hilde shook her head. “I have nowhere to go. I’m an orphan…”
There was no one waiting for her, no place to welcome her. As her following words confirmed she had no roots in the fallen kingdom, Benedict felt his mood gradually improving.
“You have nowhere to go if you’re abandoned here?”
Nod, nod. Watching her small head bob up and down obediently, his taut nerves relaxed, and his sharp demeanor softened. A strange sense of satisfaction bloomed within him, but Benedict didn’t dwell on it. Instead, his unusual generosity stemmed from a feeling of contentment, like a well-fed predator.
“You’re not entirely useless.” The hand that had gripped her neck was gone. He shifted his body, giving her some space. “Do it.”
“Yes…?”
Benedict jerked his chin towards the table. “You seem to have chosen a tea I quite like.”
“Ah, this…” A troubled expression crossed her face. It was likely Greta’s choice. Benedict enjoyed her discomfort as he waited for her answer.
“The head maid gave it to me.”
An honest answer. “Hmm,” he murmured, sitting on the opposite sofa and nodding. Taking the cue, Hilde rose and carefully began to prepare the tea. A moment later, she poured the tea into a cup and stepped back. An enticing aroma rose from the crimson liquid.
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