Chapter 139: Chapter 139 - The Memory of that Day!

The memory surfaced within Sahira’s mind with uncomfortable clarity after his question, dragging the atmosphere backward into a period of time far uglier than the quiet nights the Valecrest Manor experienced now. Back then, the manor had not carried this strange fragile peace surrounding it lately. Fear had openly lingered throughout every corridor, every staircase, and every room within the estate, because everyone living there knew exactly how unstable the young heir’s temper had become after the death of the Duchess.

And at the center of that fear—

Was Damon himself.

Inside the large bedroom illuminated by shattered mana lamps and overturned furniture, violent crashing sounds echoed repeatedly against the walls as Damon stood amidst complete destruction, his breathing rough and unstable while rage twisted his handsome face into something frighteningly volatile. Broken glass and splintered wood already littered nearly the entire floor, expensive decorations lay destroyed against the walls, and even the heavy curtains had partially torn apart from the uncontrolled bursts of mana erupting through the room.

CRASH—

Another expensive vase exploded violently against the marble wall as Damon hurled it away without restraint.

"JUST BECAUSE I HIT SOME NOBODY THEY THINK THEY CAN EXPEL ME?!" Damon roared furiously, veins visible along his neck while unstable mana surged violently around him in chaotic bursts. "WHO THE HELL DO THOSE PEOPLE THINK THEY ARE?!"

A nearby table overturned beneath a furious kick, sending stacks of books and documents scattering wildly across the room.

Outside the bedroom—

Several servants stood frozen in fear.

None of them dared enter.

None of them even dared knock.

Because everyone already knew what happened whenever the young master lost control like this.

Meanwhile, inside the room itself, Damon’s fury only continued spiraling further.

"They humiliated me over trash!" he shouted again while grabbing another decorative object from the shelf and smashing it directly into the floor. "A weak insect who couldn’t even survive a few hits dares ruin MY future?!"

His breathing became heavier with every passing moment.

The unstable mana fluctuating around him continuously distorted the air itself.

Then suddenly—

The bedroom door slowly opened.

Sahira carefully stepped inside.

Even back then, her body visibly trembled the moment she entered the room, frightened eyes quickly scanning the complete destruction surrounding her while Damon stood at the center of it like a storm barely contained within human skin.

"Y-young master..."

Her timid voice barely rose above a whisper.

The moment Damon heard it, he instantly turned toward her.

"WHAT?!"

The sheer fury exploding from his voice caused Sahira to visibly flinch, yet despite the fear spreading clearly across her face, she still forced herself to step further inside the room.

"P-please calm down..." she said softly while tightly clutching her hands together. "Y-you might hurt yourself..."

Damon stared at her in disbelief before a harsh laugh escaped him.

"Hurt myself?" he repeated mockingly. "You think I care about that right now?!"

Another chair flew violently across the room afterward.

BANG—

The wooden frame shattered completely against the wall.

"They all keep trying to interfere with me!" Damon shouted furiously while pacing through the ruined room. "That useless academy... those arrogant elders... even Father keeps looking at me like I’m some disappointment—!"

His unstable mana surged again violently enough to crack part of the nearby wall.

Meanwhile, Sahira herself looked genuinely frightened now, yet despite visibly trembling, she still slowly approached him.

"Y-young master..." she whispered carefully again. "P-please stop throwing things..."

Damon immediately snapped toward her once more.

"Then what should I do instead?!"

The roar itself shook the room hard enough that Sahira instinctively shrank backward slightly.

But she still did not leave.

Instead, she slowly gathered courage again before speaking in a small trembling voice.

"P-please calm down... y-you are only hurting yourself more..."

The words themselves barely made sense.

Yet somehow—

That only irritated Damon further.

A dangerous laugh escaped him afterward.

"Hurting myself?" Damon repeated while grabbing another heavy mana lamp from the nearby table. "Do you even understand what they’re trying to do to me right now?!"

His grip tightened around the lamp.

"They think they can decide my future because of some weak trash who couldn’t endure pain?!"

The unstable mana around him surged again.

Meanwhile, Sahira’s frightened eyes widened the moment she realized Damon was about to throw the heavy object again.

But instead of retreating—

She suddenly rushed forward.

And before Damon could react—

Sahira wrapped both arms tightly around him.

The moment Sahira suddenly wrapped both arms tightly around him, Damon visibly flinched in shock, his entire body stiffening almost instantly as though his mind itself had momentarily stopped processing what had just happened. Even the unstable mana fluctuating violently throughout the room seemed to falter for a brief second alongside him, while Sahira herself trembled badly against his chest, her frightened breathing uneven and unstable as though she herself could not believe she had gathered enough courage to do something so reckless.

Then—

Damon’s expression darkened immediately afterward.

"How dare you touch me?!"

His furious voice exploded throughout the destroyed room while he forcefully grabbed Sahira by the shoulders and shoved her backward hard enough that she nearly lost her footing entirely. Sahira stumbled several steps across the shattered floor, fragments of broken glass crunching beneath her shoes as she barely managed to steady herself before falling.

Yet despite the fear clearly spreading across her face—

She still did not run away.

Instead, she immediately shook her head repeatedly while looking toward Damon with trembling eyes filled not with resentment or anger, but only panic and worry.

"P-please calm down..." she whispered desperately while clutching her hands together tightly enough that her knuckles turned pale. "Y-young master can shout at me... y-you can scold me... b-but please stop hurting yourself..."

Damon stared at her as though she had spoken complete nonsense.

"Hurt myself?" he repeated mockingly while breathing heavily, unstable mana still crackling faintly around him. "Do you seriously think throwing a few useless objects means anything to me?!"

Sahira visibly flinched again from the sheer anger within his voice, yet despite her fear, she still slowly raised her eyes toward him again.

"Y-young master’s hands are bleeding..."

Only then did Damon briefly glance downward.

Small cuts had indeed spread across his fingers and knuckles from smashing furniture and glass apart recklessly throughout the room, thin streams of blood slowly trailing down his hands before dripping quietly onto the ruined floor beneath him.

But Damon simply laughed coldly afterward.

"And?"

The atmosphere around him grew even heavier.

Meanwhile, Sahira’s voice became even softer after seeing his reaction.

"I-it hurts..." she whispered quietly. "E-even if young master says it doesn’t..."

Damon’s golden eyes narrowed dangerously.

"You really think you understand anything about me?"

Sahira immediately lowered her head fearfully.

"N-no..."

"Then stop pretending like you do."

Silence briefly filled the destroyed room afterward, broken only by Damon’s rough breathing and the occasional sound of shattered fragments shifting beneath his footsteps whenever he moved.

Yet even then—

Sahira still slowly stepped closer again.

The fear within her eyes remained obvious.

Her hands trembled continuously.

Even her breathing shook nervously.

But despite all of it—

She still forced herself to gather enough courage to quietly speak once more.

"E-even if young master gets angry... i-it’s alright..."

Damon looked at her silently.

Sahira tightly clutched her own sleeves while continuing in a shaking voice.

"Y-young master can shout at me... o-or even hit me if it helps calm down..." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

The words themselves sounded painfully sincere.

Not manipulative.

Not calculated.

Only genuine.

"But..." Sahira whispered softly afterward while trying not to cry from fear, "p-please don’t hurt yourself anymore..."

For several long moments afterward—

Damon simply stared at her without speaking.

Then suddenly—

A harsh laugh escaped him.

"You really think you can do anything?"

The bitterness hidden within that laugh lingered heavily throughout the destroyed room afterward, because despite the mockery within his words, even Damon himself no longer seemed entirely certain whether he was laughing at Sahira... or at himself.

And after that—

The rest had unfolded exactly as Damon could imagine.

"Let’s see how you handle this then!?"

The memory slowly faded afterward.

Returning once more to the present.

Back inside the quiet room illuminated by soft mana lamps and pale moonlight filtering through the balcony curtains, Damon silently listened as Sahira awkwardly explained the events from that night, her face completely red from embarrassment while she struggled to even maintain eye contact throughout the explanation.

Meanwhile, Damon himself remained unusually quiet afterward.

Because the more he listened—

The stranger the feeling within him became.

Not guilt.

Not exactly.

But something uncomfortably close to it.

His gaze slowly lowered slightly while his thoughts moved quietly through his mind.

...This body really was a complete mess.

Another silence gradually settled between them afterward.

Then finally—

Damon awkwardly looked away before speaking in a quieter voice than usual.

"...Sorry."

The single word caused Sahira to freeze completely.

Her eyes widened slightly while she stared toward Damon in visible confusion.

"...Huh?"

Meanwhile, Damon himself frowned faintly afterward, almost looking annoyed at his own actions.

Why am I even apologizing for something I didn’t do?