Chapter 257: Guardian of the Northern Ducky of Avalon

Emily walked along with Angelica, and Lala followed after them with her head held low. Emily's dress trailed behind her as she walked up to the door, one with many intricate designs, combining at the center to make a rune, something magical and profound. She knew that magic and stuff existed in this world, but she was illiterate and didn't know how to read or write, much less understand a rune.

One of the servants opened the door for them, and they stepped out of the mansion.

There were dozens of shiny cars, all fully equipped with the latest technology. Some had anti-gravity properties; some had jet propellers attached to their sides. The best one had both. However, Emily wasn't going to be using any of them to get to her husband's home.

Instead, she was going to use an outdated vehicle!

There was a carriage at a short distance, here to take her away. Such was the custom of the House of Crimson. A man sends a carriage to his bride's home, and she uses it to start the journey of getting to her groom by night—when the moon hangs high in the sky. Otherwise, rumors have it that the bride would go missing or that misfortune would befall her if she missed the auspicious time of marrying a man of said family. Emily didn't believe in such rumors; however, she didn't want to take a risk. Better safe than sorry, she thought. That's why she needed to start her journey right away.

Her stepmother and elder step-brother weren't here to see her off. They didn't see her as a part of the Godwin Family, after all. Not that she expected them to, and thus she wasn't disappointed at all. The fact that they were not here secretly came as a relief to her. If they were here, it would've been weird, and that would've undoubtedly weighed on her heart.

Her father, the man who was partly responsible for her birth, had been waiting for her outside the mansion. When he saw that she was alive and well, his beady eyes lit up. He walked up to her, a smile on his face. Her sister and maid stepped away as he wanted to talk to her in private. Emily greeted him meekly, her head down low and her eyes facing the ground.

"Ah, my good daughter." Marquis William Godwin was all smile and laughter as he lovingly hugged his daughter and patted her on the head. There was no sorrow in his eyes, only joy, so much pleasure that it was dripping out of his eyes. This member of his family: he had never once looked at her as if she were his daughter and had always turned a blind eye to all the injustice done to her. He could've never thought that she would end up as the ultimatum for the survival of his family. "Today's the happiest day of your life, so smile widely and keep your head high."

She raised her head to look at her father. He was a fat man with beady eyes, and there were strands of white hair mixed with black on his head. This man, she didn't even want to call him her father. He treated her like she was air, as if she didn't even exist, after all.

"Father, I am happy following the path you had laid for me, but I am a bit reluctant to leave everything behind." She tried to smile widely but wasn't able to. There was rage and anger inside her heart, corroding it and making her want to lose her reasons and lash out at them, but she didn't and kept a slight but warm smile on her face.

"I believe the Guardian of the North, fourth of his name and the defender of the Avalon Empire, will shower you with eternal happiness. You should look forward to the future, not remain attached to the past." William said, in a sense telling her that there is no need for her to feel reluctant in walking towards her death, that she should stop wasting his time.

Emily was not dumb nor a deaf person. Who had not heard the rumors about the Guardian of the Northern Duchy? The records of him having existed for a hundred years itself was enough to tell anyone that he was no human. Add on the rumors; one would be able to conclude that he's a devil disguised as a human. Still, her father was actively engaged in sending her off to him. It was clear as day that he hated her!

"I wish it would be as you say, that my husband would cherish me dearly," she excused herself and started walking towards the carriage, leaving her happily smiling father behind. Her sister accompanied her. Whether she was trying to appeal to the crowd or taunt her, it was hard to discern. Angelica was smiling, though, meaning she was happy to see that the one about to sit in the black charcoal carriage wouldn't be her but her sister, Emily.

Emily knew that there was no going back. She hurried her steps towards the carriage.

"You've made the right choice." When she was standing next to the carriage, Her father's voice came from behind her.

Emily felt disgusted with him, but she suppressed it and didn't allow it to show on her face. He was treating her, his daughter, as a pawn, a thing he could use to get the duke off of his back. A person with no patience and practice would've already taken out a knife to draw a red line on his neck.

Why did her father hate her so much? She knew it all too well.

Her mother had a complicated delivery. She suddenly started puking out blood the day she was about to be born. The doctor told them that he could either save the mother or the child inside of her. Marquis Williams, who cherished his wife for her beauty, wanted her to survive. However, her mother was adamant about giving birth to her.

As it happened, her mother, Liliana, died just moments after giving birth to her, holding her in her arms and landing a kiss on her forehead. Emily found out about all this from the midwife in secret. Of course, it's because her stepmother forbade everyone from even saying the name of her mother. Anyway, her father hated her, a mere newborn child, as in his heart, she was a monster that killed his beloved to come into being.

And he did all in his power to remind her that she was the murderer of her mother every year. Emily, you're the reason behind the death of my beloved. If it weren't because of you, your mother would've never died; that's what he would tell her. He accused her of killing her mother every year on her birthday after taking her to her mother's grave, tripping her with guilt and sadness, almost causing her to believe that she was a monster, that she doesn't deserve to exist, that she should pick up a dagger and plunge it into her heart.

He also paid others to spread the rumors that she was a devil. He allowed his first wife to direct her hatred from mother to daughter, silently watching from the sidelines as she made her life miserable. If that wasn't enough, he even treated all his children differently. Angelica and Lucas get everything while Emily gets nothing; that was his disposition towards his children, his flesh and blood!

"What's wrong, sister? Are you feeling cold feet because you're going to marry a monster and don't want to get inside the carriage?" Angelica said, her eyes narrowed into a frown.

"No," Emily shook her head and stepped forward.

There were only two knights of Godwin standing guard around the carriage while a driver was sitting in the front seat. The servants had long since stuffed her stuff inside the carriage, and the door opened by itself when she decided to step inside it as if magic, enticing her to come and take a seat.

Under the smiling eyes of her sister, Emily helped herself into it as there was no one to help her.

"Now, you are officially the property of the House of Crimson. Whether you live or die, the House of Godwin no longer needs to concern ourselves with that." Right at that very moment, her sister said some words that came as a shock to her. She said it in a way that signified misfortune was going to catch up to her in the middle of her journey.

Emily inclined her head towards Angelica. "What are you trying to say, sister dearest? Can you be more clear?"

Angelica's eyes narrowed, and evil glints flashed in them!