The Savior Who Bites My Neck (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 8

The sun was bright, and the wind, filled with the scent of flowers, was wonderfully warm.

Where am I? Elaina, who had been sitting beneath a tree, looked around. But unable to find an answer, she instinctively rose to her feet.

And then she realized—her right leg, which had felt as heavy as a burden, moved freely.

…So Elaina understood that this was a dream.

“Elaina.”

Startled by a voice suddenly calling from behind her, she turned her head slowly. There, before her, was the face of someone she had long forgotten—or rather, had desperately tried to forget.

Golden hair, shimmering brilliantly in the sunlight, as if spun strand by strand from molten gold.

Eyes of a gemlike golden hue, matching her hair. Skin as pale as hers. And delicate, exquisite features that filled her small face.

“…Len.”

Elaina gazed at him blankly, whispering his name cautiously.

I never thought I’d ever speak your name again.

You don’t understand, do you? How much I hated you, how much I cursed your name, and how much I… missed you.

Elaina fell into thought.

“…”

The boy called Len slowly extended his hand, gently arranging the tangled strands of Elaina’s black hair with tender care.

“You’ve always been such a handful, Elaina.”

“Always…?”

“Yes. Always.”

Len smiled.

“See? I’ve come to take you again. Just like before.”

…To take me?

Where to?

Elaina stared at Len with trembling eyes.

“You don’t remember?”

Whether she looked adorable or ridiculous, Len chuckled to himself and continued.

“We made a promise—to leave together.”

“…”

“Far away.”

That’s right. There was a time we made that promise. Before everything fell apart. Before all our dreams shattered like sharp shards of glass. Back when we could move as freely as we do in this dream.

“I’ll leave the Asweld family… and you’ll abandon yours…?”

“Yes.”

Len replied with a bright smile.

“It’s all right now, Elaina.”

Then, gently stroking her head, he added:

“When we leave this place—when we escape Edenbell—nothing will ever harm us again.”

“…”

“You don’t need to worry about anything. I’ll keep protecting you. Just as I always have.”

At Len’s words, Elaina’s expression was neither a smile nor a tear.

But you abandoned me. You watched me break apart. You left me behind—and never came back. Not even after I waited and waited for you here.

Rotten thoughts, bitter emotions, rose like acid in her chest, clawing their way up her throat.

But Elaina swallowed the knife-like words.

And very slowly, her dry lips moved.

“Mm.”

Even so, I still wanted to leave with you. Just as we promised.

“I’ll do it. I’ll go with you.”

Even if this is just a dream…

Elaina’s blue eyes shimmered with sorrow.

“…”

Len said nothing in reply. He only smiled brightly, like the sun, and clasped her small hand tightly—as if he would never let go.

“Let’s go, Elaina.”

“Mm.”

Suddenly, Len’s warm, gentle voice echoed faintly from afar. Elaina clung to his hand as he had done, but the warmth she had felt just moments ago slipped away like grains of sand between her fingers.

No. Don’t leave me again.

Elaina struggled desperately to hold onto him, but her vision began to fade into blinding white.

“We won’t part anymore.”

Even as everything slowly dissolved, Len’s whisper reached her softly.

“No matter what happens, I’ll be with you. I swear it with everything I have.”

Do you understand… Elaina?

Elaina tried desperately to answer, but all that escaped her lips was a cold, shallow breath.

…And that was the end of the dream.

[This is the timeline separator]

Her tightly shut eyes snapped open.

“Huff…”

Gasping involuntarily, Elaina regained consciousness. She still felt as though someone had pressed a cloth—reeked of some unknown medicine—over her nose and mouth.

After several deep breaths, she quickly composed herself and looked around.

And only then did she realize she was in a place she had never imagined.

‘A carriage…?’

Elaina sat inside a carriage dazzlingly opulent within. More accurately, she was trapped.

‘Where exactly…?’

She tried to look outside urgently, but the windows refused to open. When she lifted her head, she saw several nails driven into the frame. Probably Melvin’s doing.

Then what about the door?

It wouldn’t keep racing forever. Maybe if the speed dropped, she could jump out?

As Elaina’s thoughts reached this point, she shifted slightly toward the door.

“…”

Elaina froze abruptly, staring down at herself in a daze.

A dress so scandalously revealing it was nearly naked. And upon it, dazzling ornaments wrapped around her body like chains.

But the most absurd thing of all was this:

“Shoes…?”

Even Layla, who loved lavish attire, had never worn shoes like these.

Delicately high heels that looked ready to snap her ankles. Red leather shoes, starkly contrasting against her black dress.

…Elaina could barely limp along even in comfortable footwear. Melvin’s intent was painfully obvious—she almost laughed.

He only wanted to catch the filthy gaze of others, to provoke their disgusting desires.

What’s the difference between me and an animal led to slaughter?

Suddenly, a memory flashed through her mind.

[As I said, this is the most suitable place for you. Duke Hank will cherish you greatly.]

“Ha…”

[He has rather peculiar tastes. He was delighted to hear you couldn’t move properly.]

Now she understood. Where she was being taken.

No—where she was being sold…

He must have feared I might accept Sinclair’s proposal. He was afraid. So he did this. Even thinking about it made her feel ridiculous.

It was clear: she would be delivered to Duke Hank like a slaughtered offering. And once there, she’d never be able to escape the mansion.

She felt utterly trapped.

“…”

A faint moisture glistened in Elaina’s trembling blue eyes.

She had endured so much, she thought. She had convinced herself she’d never feel fear again…

[You don’t need to worry about anything.]

Why did Len’s kind, gentle whisper from the dream keep echoing in her mind?

[I’ll keep protecting you. Just as I always have.]

But now, no one would protect her. She couldn’t wait passively for someone’s mercy. Elaina knew, with heartbreaking clarity, her own place in this world.

She bit down hard on her lips, fighting back tears.

‘I have to escape this place.’

She reached for the door, but like the windows, it didn’t budge. No nails held it shut—but whether it could only be opened from the outside, she threw all her strength against it with no response.

‘The driver…’

Elaina whirled her head toward the small window connected to the driver’s seat.

The window wasn’t locked.

Melvin must not have thought she’d try to escape through it—after all, it was meant for communication with the driver.

“Hey!”

Elaina shouted, forcing her voice to sound louder to mask her trembling.

“Please stop the carriage! I feel terribly ill!”

“What?”

The driver’s voice dripped with irritation.

“Let me rest for a moment! It’s too stuffy inside—I can barely breathe—”

“I was given no such orders from the Earl.”

“…”

“He told me not to care if you’re dead or alive—just deliver you to Duke Hank, then open the door.”

Damn it. Elaina’s teeth grated together.

“He said once you reach the Duke, you’ll feel like you’ve been washed clean. Honestly, you won’t have time to care whether you’re nauseous or can’t breathe.”

The driver chuckled crudely, as if he already saw Elaina’s future—endlessly tormented and violated.

“So just bear with it a little longer—”

Suddenly, the driver’s voice cut off as if struck by magic.

“Aaagh! Wh-what is this…!”

A few seconds later, a horrific scream pierced the air.

And simultaneously, the speeding carriage came to a violent halt in the middle of the forest path.

Bandits? What was happening? She didn’t know—but this was her only chance.

“Help! Someone’s trapped inside!”

Elaina pounded desperately on the carriage door, her fists bleeding, yet feeling nothing.

“Please, open the door…!”

At that very moment—

The door, which had seemed destined to never open, crashed to the ground with a deafening roar.

“Hello, Elaina Asweld. Good evening.”

A familiar voice settled gently beside her ear.

“But I said I’d give you time to think—not time to marry another man.”

Isn’t that right?

Sinclair, now standing before her, smiled faintly.