Lady Devil - Chapter 99

#99

I made eye contact with Alyona, who couldn’t even cross the threshold. At that moment, the girl’s gaze dropped sharply, but she couldn’t hide her uneasy expression. Putting it this way might sound a bit amusing. Alyona’s hesitant steps as she barely crossed the threshold resembled a chick heading towards a slaughterhouse.

“You came early today.”

I tried to strike up a conversation while brushing back my messy hair near my ears. I found it difficult to look directly at the girl. It wasn’t just an ordinary night, and seeing Alyona approach with forced steps made me feel awkward for no reason.

“Yes, yes. You see… Yesterday, the knight said that the young lady seemed to have improved a lot… He suggested we try steam therapy along with monitoring your back condition. But since the peddlers are coming today, I wanted to prepare early… and…”

Alyona, who had been mumbling excuses, suddenly fell silent. Her inability to continue speaking seemed unusual. I raised my gaze and only then noticed why the girl was so flustered.

Alyona’s eyes were fixed on my wrists. I quickly lowered my sleeves, hiding the reddish marks left from the night’s abrasions. My entire face felt like it was on fire. It seemed as if the innocent girl had completely discovered the events of last night, which could hardly be called normal.

Alyona couldn’t compose herself in front of me. The girl hesitantly reached for my nightgown as the awkward silence between us deepened.

“So, um… I’ll just check your back, young lady.”

“Okay.”

I silently closed my eyes, unable to calm my racing heart. Because of this, I didn’t see how shocked Alyona was as my nightgown was opened and removed. I only slightly opened my eyes, wondering why the girl’s hands seemed to be trembling more and more.

In other words, I had thought that hiding just my wrists would be enough. I hadn’t considered the bite marks and red traces Johannes had left on my body. The girl’s gaze was fixed on the area around my chest.

By my guess, from that day on, Alyona seemed to look at Johannes as if he were some kind of beast. Being an inherently innocent and kind-hearted girl, she might have even felt a sense of mission to save me from that beast.

So, could it be that she encouraged my transgression?

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