Chapter 5

“Are there any uncomfortable places?”

“Yes…… .”

In conclusion, this situation was burdensome for Yuri. Not long after arriving in the room, a couple of doctors and priests came in to examine her. Then, after talking with each other for a while, they politely greeted each other and left the room.

“Is the water temperature okay?”

“Ah, yes… .”

After that, the hospitality of the maids began. They poured the medicine they had received from the doctors in the bathtub and started bathing Yuri. Even though Yuri knew nothing, she could tell that it was a very expensive drug.

‘… It doesn’t itch anymore.’

The itchy skin was calming down just by soaking in the medicine.

“If you feel uncomfortable, please tell me.”

They were really experts. It was really comfortable to receive a bath with attendants. Receiving a bath service for the first time would be embarrassing, but rather than being shy, it was very comfortable for Yuri.

“What would you like to wear?”

“Ah, anything… … .”

“Then, let’s wear this indoor suit.”

As soon as the bath was over, they dried Yuri’s hair and put her clothes on.

Why were the clothes of high-ranking people so difficult? It was impossible to put it on alone. Yuri looked at her reflection in the mirror.

‘My hair was this color…… ’

It was the pink creamy hair that was decorated on the wedding cake. In the past, her hair was so damaged that it lost its original color and looked ugly, but after washing it and cutting off all the damaged hair, it looked better.

‘If only my skin was better, I might look really fine.’

Her skin was blotchy and messy, and the body that the gown couldn’t cover was messed up with scars. It was the traces of the asceticism repeated every month in the temple.

Yuri gently hid her arms that were covered with marks. This look was so ugly. She remembered her father, Aslan, who looked at her with displeasure.

“Uh, excuse me……”

“Yes. Please tell me.”

“Uh, by any chance, long clothes……”

“Here it is.”

They said so and wrapped a long robe around her.

She didn’t like showing her skin. Aslan also stared at her scars for a long time.

‘It must be hard to see this.’

When the long clothes hid all her skin, Yuri was finally able to relax.

***

“Master. This is a letter from the imperial family.”

At the northern end of the empire, Erentail territory in the cold northern continent. It was often attacked by demons, but with strong military power and mines, it was a huge estate belonging to a very wealthy person.

A beautiful man with long red hair, whom anyone could fall in love with at first glance, reached out and received the letter. It was a different face from the rumors that he looked ugly because he was mixed with demon blood. He was the famous Northern Knight, Larkshid Arsel Erentail.

“Did that person send it?”

“That’s right.”

Then he immediately began to read the letter. As he read each letter, his face began to harden coldly. He immediately sneered as he read the letter.

“Marriage….”

“….”

He referred to the emperor as ‘that person, but no one pointed it out.

The emperor was openly talking about ‘treason’ and arranging marriage talks. It meant that the emperor would not back down. Larkshid knew the emperor’s greed. If Larkshid refused, it was clear that the emperor would use it as an excuse to start a war.

“We are not yet ready to attack the imperial family.”

“I think it would be difficult to say no.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“What do you have to apologize for?”

The current emperor was coveting magic crystals and mines that only exist in Erentail. Larkshid could have given him everything he coveted, but the emperor was coveting even the things he couldn’t have.

And, to obtain it, he did not care about any means and method.

“It’s a joke. ‘That’ emperor.”

“John.”

Erentail was a family that existed before the beginning of the Empire. They were the noble guardians of the north, and were one of five families who helped the goddess restore light to the world. What the emperor wanted was to take away the power that descended from the lineage of Erentail.

“…… I am angry, yes. He killed your wife, and now he shamelessly ordered Master to marry.”

“Stop.”

The emperor did everything by means. Five years ago, the Countess of Erentail was murdered.

He was so clever that Larkshid couldn’t find any solid evidence, but all the remaining evidence pointed to the emperor.

Larkshid closed his eyes. Until now, he could still vividly see the image of the person he loved who died in agony.

‘Don’t worry. Sena. I will definitely avenge your death.’

Larkshid opened his eyes. It was still difficult to pretend to be with the imperial family. The first Count Erentail claimed to be the protector of the north. Although he had honor, he did not have strong political power because he did not actually go out into politics and get involved in politics.

‘There are still a lot of nobles who follow him. Even if the others are…… ’

Among the nobles who supported the emperor was the Duke of Slevard. Slevard, the king of the East.

The Duke of Slevard was behind the emperor.

Since the estate of Erentail was barren, the food supply was not enough. Therefore, food was dependent on trade with other territories.

A place that produced the most food in all the provinces of the empire, and was not far from Erentail in the north was Slevard in the East.

“Are you going to get married?”

“We are still weak. Not even the food problem has been solved.”

“You always get caught up in food.”

“I can’t help it. Even knights cannot fight without bread.”

Larkshid held the letter from the emperor in his hand. His hand holding the letter began to gain strength. His butler, John, was watching it silently.

‘If it’s a woman who can be helpful, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get her on my side.’

“Do you have any information about the princess?”

“That’s ………….”

“Speak comfortably.”

“…… The information is surprisingly scarce.”

“Really?”

“This is the information about the daughter of the Duke of Slevard.”

Crackle.

The firewood was burning in the fireplace. The master of the Cold North, Larkshid Erentail, read the papers his butler John had been researching.

It was a report of the marriage partner arranged by the emperor, a woman who would soon become his wife. For a woman with splendid status, the length of the document was too short.

“Yuri Slevard…”

“Even though she is an illegitimate child… she is a direct descendant of Slevard.”

“The Emperor is not an idiot. There’s no way that he doesn’t know what Slevard means to the North.”

The northern part was vast, but barren. And it was located in the relatively close eastern part, for this reason, they had no choice but to rely on trade with Slevard.

‘Are you going to send that Slevard’s daughter to be my wife?’

Larkshid laughed coldly. It was nonsense. It was clear that the emperor was trying to ridicule him.

“There are probably two reasons.”

“What?”

“First. The very existence of that woman poses a threat to Erentail.”

“…”

“Second. That woman must be a spy on the Emperor’s side.”

Butler John nodded. John could not gather much information. The woman’s rumors could be investigated, but that was over 10 years ago. Rumors were already circulated and misinterpreted by the people.

“It doesn’t matter either way.”

Larkshid scanned the brief document a few times. Yuri’s mother was of foreign origin. A woman who was punished by working in a temple after her mother killed the Duke’s daughter, who was the successor of the Duke. A woman who has recently been pardoned and has regained her position as a princess.

“Which one do you think she is?”

“If possible…… The latter would be better.”

“You mean the spy?”

“Yes.”

“Then, at least she won’t be a fool.”

Larkshid began memorizing some information about Yuri. After a while, he got up from his seat and opened the window.

“I have to go see that woman.”

“Are you going now?”

“Yes, if I leave now, I’ll be there tomorrow.”

Larkshid immediately jumped out of the window. The soft moonlight was shining. Larkshid’s body, bathed in the soft moonlight, soon began to slowly be covered with hair. After a while, his body soon took on the form of a wolf-like beast.

‘I can’t get used to that no matter how many times I see it.’

Larkshid’s butler, John, thought as he closed the window. The five families who had helped the goddess and fought against the devil were all cursed by the devil. The curse that was placed on Erentail, the protectors of the north, was ‘beast’.

Humans acquired powers that were truly unimaginable. However, they often turned into a beast and killed people around them. Many of the hostesses of the Erentail family were killed by the beast headmasters.

It was due to anger.

‘But…… You’re in perfect control now.’

Larkshid was different from other Erentail’s lords. Instead of being unable to use his powers, he was able to control his beast form. He didn’t tell anyone, and nobody knew why.

‘You will surely succeed in getting revenge on the madam.’

John began to clean up the place Larkshid had left. He remembered Larkshid on the day Senahan died. Such a horrific incident should never happen again.

‘I will be with him until the day he strikes the emperor.’

John looked out the window where his master had disappeared. The white moon was shining coldly.