Night Monarch's Cannon Fodder Bride-Chapter 36: Dreams of 24 Pinster Street

Past.

Hot, red blood from Severine’s lips spilled on the cold floor. Her lungs burned as she struggled to inhale a tiny bit of oxygen in a labored gasp.

It hurts. It hurts... Everything hurts so bad...

She tried to gather some strength into her legs, so she could leave the room filled with suffocating coercion.

But Damien had no wish to leave her just yet.

As the terrifying aura of a wolf Awakener rained down on her, forcing her body further into the cold floorboards, a heavy weight settled on her leg.

"Was it the left leg?" he murmured to himself before putting pressure on it.

Snap.

The bone inside her ankle snapped.

"Ugh!"

She couldn’t let out the scream she so desired. Her tongue had long since become useless, unable to form any sound. Only broken whimpers rumbled in her throat.

Her once long black hair was tangled in a bloody mess.

Blood trickled down her nose, the result of her overexertion. Or perhaps it was the toxin given to her by her new boss.

Her new boss was a lackey of Damien.

For a second, she thought that time had rewound to when they were still students. When that yellow-haired rat Awakener, Ethen—Damien and Emily’s right-hand man—used to beat her.

Damien seemed to find her muffled screams amusing. With a crushing force, he pressed onto her leg, twisting his shoe as if he were snuffing out a used cigarette.

Pain erupted in every inch of her bruised body.

There was not a shred of dignity left in the once-rich heiress as she crawled forward toward the door.

Her nails dug into the cheap wooden floorboard, reminding her all over again why she was in such a mess.

Because she "bullied" Alina Hart. Because she was afraid to stand against Damien. Because her parents didn’t love her. Because she wasn’t an Awakener. Because she was weak.

"I am sure my Ali would like this gift, right?" Damien asked with genuine expectation.

To him, bullying the young Severine during their academy years was such a minor thing that he didn’t even remember it. He was only there to avenge his beloved and hurt the villain, bringing justice like a righteous hero.

How laughable... Severine nearly scoffed, but the pain didn’t allow her to lose her clenched teeth.

When the young master didn’t get any answer, he let out a soft laugh.

"Once I get rid of all the people who dared to bully her, she will finally smile like before."

His blue eyes were soft, as if containing the gentlest of emotions inside.

With the same smile, he walked forward.

Step. Step.

Each of those steps fell directly on her heart, making her breathless.

The doors were ajar, letting in warm sunlight. The exit was there.

Just a bit more... crawl a bit more.

"I remember now," the young master’s voice slithered down her spine.

A terrible shudder shook her entire body as she spurted out another mouthful of blood.

"It was the right leg. My memory of the academy has gotten a bit blurry, you see."

Then, he stepped on her right leg with the same ferocity of a hungry wolf pouncing on its prey.

A sickening crack echoed in her ears.

"Oh well, I need to change my shoes again."

When Severine looked up at the tall figure, she saw the same disgust filling his eyes.

To him, she had always been a vile bacterium. An existence that could be trampled on at will, but too dirty to do it personally.

The only difference all those years had made was her circumstances. They were even more dire.

All of it was the result of her uploading evidence of Emily’s bullying—both during their school years, in higher studies, and later, in her acting career.

Due to that, the once proud Emily Rhodes couldn’t openly come on camera as before. Her life as a celebrity was over.

Damien didn’t bother staying a minute longer. He left, not caring if the person inside would live another day.

Ah, not that.

In his eyes, she was never a person to begin with.

Amidst the darkness that descended upon her from all directions, she saw a tiny glimmer of light in her vision.

Is this my satisfaction for ruining Emily? she mused with a wry smile before closing her eyes.

That day, the young resident of 24 Pinster Street died due to falling from the bed and injuring herself.

When the neighbor smelled the rotten stench after nearly two weeks, they opened the room to see the horrifying scene.

Or at least the official news covered the incident as such.

- - - -

The first thing Severine noticed after opening her eyes wasn’t the magnificent room adorned with exquisite trinkets, nor the way the soft bed cradled her battered body.

It was the blurry shadows dancing in her vision.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

A distant beeping sound filled the surrounding. Yet she was too focused on something else to hear it.

Bright golden specks like burning embers dotted her sight, slowly gathering together into a tiny ball of... fire?

It was too small, like a droplet of water tracing down the glass. The fireball, surrounded by many tiny specks, also slid down until it vanished from her sight.

Then it hit her.

The suffering.

Furious pain spiked in her throat. It expanded in her chest before traveling down her spine and to her toes.

Before she knew, she was curling into herself. Breathing became a chore. It was as if someone had plowed a clothes hanger down her throat and twisted it mercilessly.

Or someone had shoved a crimson fire inside her, leaving her burning from the inside out.

Hiss.

A familiar sizzling hiss echoed in the room, and her chest caved in desperation for another breath.

Am I dying again? Just like that dream?

This was the first time she had seen her death so vividly. It wasn’t just a vague blip or fractured scene anymore, but a clear, dazzling memory.

A memory filled with her blood and Damien’s tall figure happily walking toward his precious lover.

Damien Rhodes...

The name ignited an unnamed anger inside her.

Her jaw ached from how intensely she had been clenching her teeth, refusing to whimper and show her weakness.

The fabric of her clothes was drenched with sweat. It clung to her thin back while her mind flashed with many images from her past.

Being threatened into breaking Alina’s leg. Failing the academy exams. Disappointing her parents.

Then Damien signed a deal with her father Victor Lockwood, her disownment in exchange for the Vale Enterprise becoming a more promising business.

Her father had hidden her away from prying eyes then. It took her almost a year to run away and start a new life in 24 Pinster Street.

The once Vale Enterprise turned into Lockwood Corp., and the new leader of her family business was none other than Austin Lockwood, her half-brother.

What was her role in all of this? She just wanted to make her parents proud and live a normal life.

Why? Why?!

[Calm down, Severine. Your anger will burn your essence.]

’Who?’ she yelled inside her mind. Her crescent-shaped fingernails desperately clawed at the soft fabric of the sheets.

[Who else but you?]

The unexpected answer made her temples throb even more.