Chapter 56: Fatal
“I’m going out for a bit.”
On a rainy night, Mines whispered.
Although no one answered, she still spoke, her gaze fixed on the old wooden door rattling in the wind.
Rain lashed against the house, seeping through the cracks in the door. The floor was damp, the air thick with the humid heat of evaporating rainwater.
This summer storm had arrived unexpectedly.
One moment, cicadas and frogs chirped, the next, it was as if a dark knight riding through a storm had blessed them with a downpour.
Mines hadn’t even had time to exchange her winnings from the deathmatch for a spacious cabin from the hat-wearing merchants before the sudden storm forced her into their cramped, cheap shack.
She huddled with her twelve younger siblings.
In the pitch-black darkness, familiar breathing sounds rose and fell.
Listening to her siblings’ murmurs in their sleep, Mines comforted herself, promising to find a better shelter tomorrow, so they wouldn’t have to suffer with her anymore…
“Master must be waiting.”
Mines hugged her legs, as if to encourage herself. Yes, she would rush out and return Master’s ring.
“It’s beautiful, but it doesn’t belong to me.”
With this thought in mind, the frail girl, like a small dove, stood up, quietly opened the door a crack, and slipped out into the rainy night.
Pitter-patter—
Her boots splashed through the water, her footsteps fading into the distance.
The receding night scene flashed before her eyes like a revolving lantern. The closed doors and windows of the shops and the dark, deep alleys seemed like gaping maws, waiting to devour their prey.
The rain blurred Mines’s vision.
The stinging sensation made her blink back tears, but it wasn’t sadness she felt, but a bitterness spreading through her mouth…
She could have kept the ring, sold it, and secured her family’s livelihood.
But such a decision would be foolish. The Falmouth family was one of the most powerful forces in the city. Keeping or selling the ring would be illegal, and Mines didn’t want to sell it anyway, she simply wanted to return it to its rightful owner…
“Will Master be happy to have it back?”
Master would probably arrest her as a thief, but she hadn’t stolen it, it was just because…
Well, who would believe the words of a stranger? She was already grateful that Master hadn’t rejected her…
“Forgive me, Master, but I can’t tell you my profession. You’ll be scared…”
Thinking of her secret, Mines bit her lip.
She had already decided, hadn’t she? To keep it hidden forever, to pretend it didn’t exist, to avoid the burden, to avoid facing it.
It would only bring disaster…
“Cough, cough…” Following the directions to the mansion she remembered, Mines started coughing violently halfway there, the heavy rain soaking her red feather dress, slowing her down.
Like a drenched dove, Mines found shelter, waiting for the rain to subside before continuing.
“Master’s dress… it’s dirty…”
The wet fabric clung to her skin, the warmth rapidly dissipating. Even her boots were filled with water. Mines felt cold, but she had to return the ring to Master.
Wringing out the feather decorations on her skirt, she removed her boots, pouring out the rainwater mixed with the citrus scent of her sweat, then tucked a strand of wet hair behind her ear, a faint blush appearing on her pale cheeks.
“Master…”
She whispered, her voice filled with unspoken emotions, a mixture of suppressed grief and sorrow, released in the rain. Mines murmured to the falling raindrops, “It’s so late, Master, you must be asleep. Can… can I disturb you…?”
…
Sleep was impossible, absolutely impossible. Lena tossed and turned, staring at the empty brocade box, sighing… she had only herself to blame.
Knock, knock, knock.
Someone was knocking at the door.
Knock, knock, knock…
The knocking continued, repeating at intervals.
Who the hell was disturbing her sleep at this hour?!
Lena’s mood soured, her footsteps echoing as she walked towards the door, her tall figure swaying in the dim light, her gray eyes burning with anger.
“I won’t forgive anyone who disturbs my sleep.”
If it was Ling Ling, she would scold her and send her away. If it was Angel… hmph, then she had no one to blame but herself!
The door opened.
A drenched little dove stood before her, her eyes downcast, still wearing the red feather dress Lena had given her, water dripping from her short black hair, the burn scars on her back starkly visible, her usual suit jacket missing.
“You came alone?”
Lena didn’t ask why Mines was at her door, simply pulling her inside and closing it.
Like a feather gently falling, a citrus fragrance filled the air.
Mines’s long eyelashes tickled Lena’s cheek, but it was her heart that truly pounded.
“A journey of a thousand miles shouldn’t end with just a kiss.”
Lena seemed to savor the lingering citrus fragrance of the kiss, a light, feathery sensation that made her heart flutter, like ants crawling beneath her skin.
Mines whispered, “Does Master also like feathers?”
“Why do you ask?”
“You sometimes resemble them… languid, slow, I can’t grasp you, hoping you’ll stay, but the next moment you’re gone, without a trace…”
Damn, why did she have to be so alluring?!
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