I woke up to the sensation of something pressing down on my chest.
The drowsy haze vanished instantly, replaced by sharp tension.
A heavy weight on my chest, and a cold hand covering my mouth.
My breath was caught in my throat.
Through the forcibly opened view of my surroundings, I saw tangled golden hair and bloodshot blue eyes.
It was the lord’s daughter.
A loosely worn leather armor hung off her shoulders, and in one hand, she gripped a gleaming dagger.
The flickering torchlight cast wild shadows across her face.
The cynical expression she had earlier was nowhere to be seen, replaced by one filled with anxiety and desperation.
Beads of sweat dripped from the ends of her messy hair down to her chin.
The hand covering my mouth carried the mixed scent of sweat and iron, stinging my nose.
“Shh, stay quiet!”
Her voice, low and rough, whispered directly into my ear.
Her hot breath brushed against my skin.
Her arm was trembling violently.
“It’s bad. Really bad!”
Her breathing grew increasingly ragged, and the hand holding the dagger was faintly shaking.
The faint moonlight streaming through the window glinted ominously off the blade.
“Damn it, damn it! There’s no time to explain properly!”
She groaned low and grit her teeth.
“They’ll be here soon… everyone’s going to die!”
Her voice, desperate and broken, trembled in my ear.
The deep blue eyes, once filled with scorn, now held nothing but raw fear.
“Damn it, there’s no time!”
She suddenly grabbed my arm and yanked me.
Even through the thin fabric of my sleeve, I could feel the pressure of her grip bruising my skin.
Before I could resist, the cold night air hit me.
The view beyond the terrace railing was colder than daylight.
The shadows of the garden trees stretched long under the high moon.
Her blue eyes quivered.
“If we stay here, we’re finished! This city, you, and… me too!”
The lord’s daughter growled lowly, her voice shaking and tangled with desperation.
“The wizard… yes, that damned wizard my father hired! That bastard is framing our entire family as traitors!”
Her grip on my arm tightened, her nails digging into my flesh.
“You’re royalty! At least you can talk to those higher up and get them to reduce the sentence. Please, save me!”
The eyes that met mine were filled with desperation.
She looked at me with a face that seemed like tears could fall at any moment.
Without giving me a chance to hesitate, she leapt over the railing.
I watched her action in stunned silence.
Her body cut through the wind and descended, landing on the ground below.
After a low, dull thud, she immediately rose to her feet.
She landed lightly on both legs, dusting herself off as if nothing had happened.
Then, looking up at me, she extended her hand.
“Jump! I’ll catch you! Hurry!”
Her voice, laced with urgency and desperation, cut through the night air and echoed far and wide.
I looked past her outstretched hand and into her face.
Under the moonlight, her features glowed pale.
“This is our last chance—your chance to live, and mine!”
From the direction of the door came an ominous sound.
Something was pounding on the door with such force that it seemed like it would break through at any moment.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, I jumped.
Moments later, I felt a jolt as strong arms wrapped around my back, holding me tightly.
The lord’s daughter grabbed me firmly and began to run as if her life depended on it.
The suffocating pressure of her grip tightened around my body, and her ragged breaths rang close to my ears.
The stiff texture of cheap leather armor pressing against my back was unmistakable.
“Damn it!”
A sharp curse pierced my ears.
“That bastard wizard—damn it… he’s a spy for the Demon King’s army!”
Her enraged voice echoed in the night.
As she carried me, her wild movements caused my vision to blur and shake.
The darkness below the terrace zipped past in an instant.
“I don’t know what filthy deal my father made with him…!”
She muttered between labored breaths, her words laced with curses.
“He’s got my father dancing like a puppet, doing whatever he wants! In this entire mansion, you and I are the only ones with any sense left!”
Her voice, filled with fury, spilled out as she ran even faster.
The cold night air brushed past my face, and the sound of wind weaving through the leaves filled my ears.
The heat radiating from her body against my back seemed to grow hotter.
“Damn it, we have to move faster!”
Her voice trembled with desperation.
Feeling her grip tighten further as she ran, I shivered.
My body, slung over her shoulder, jolted violently with each step.
Then, suddenly, she stopped.
Her strides, which had been cutting through the garden, came to an abrupt halt as if she had turned to stone.
A low, chilling voice split the air ahead of us.
At the mansion’s entrance, under the faint moonlight, stood a man.
The man slowly spread his arms wide, his sharp, snake-like eyes glinting beneath the tall, pointed brim of his wizard’s hat.
What unfolded behind him froze my breath in my chest.
Still and lifeless, the corpses stood in eerie silence—duke’s family members, attendants, servants.
Just moments ago, they had been alive and breathing, but now they were like puppets.
Empty eyes, tightly shut lips, and twisted expressions marked their faces.
Even in death, their features bore the unmistakable traces of horrific agony.
The stench of death wafted through the air, carried by the wind, stabbing into my nose.
“Damn it!”
The lord’s daughter let out a low groan, faltering as if she might collapse.
The cold air felt like it was crushing my lungs.
“Half-elf.”
The wizard fixed his gaze on me, speaking in a sticky, venomous tone.
“It’s the Demon King’s order. I’m to retrieve your dragon heart.”
His eyes scanned me with disdain.
I couldn’t avoid his cold, piercing gaze.
“And… Lilian,” he added, turning his gaze to her with a cruel smile.
“You’re such a waste of potential.”
Tilting his head slightly, his icy smile widened.
“That youthful vitality of yours would make an excellent catalyst.
It would be such a pity to ruin you like this, wouldn’t it?”
The wizard’s eyes turned cold as they settled on Lilian.
“Stop your foolishness and come quietly. Otherwise… I’ll make you like those poor souls.”
His voice was low but laced with menace.
With a simple wave of his hand, the corpses tilted their heads limply.
The sound of their necks snapping pierced the air like brittle twigs breaking.
“Like hell I’ll let that happen!”
Lilian snarled through gritted teeth, lowering her stance as if preparing to fight.
Her voice carried a mix of defiance and resignation.
Placing me down gently, she looked at me and spoke.
“Half-breed, do what you want—run or sit there frozen. It doesn’t matter.
Though, let’s be real, this is probably the end for us anyway.”
Her words dripped with bitterness and despair.
“Damn bastard wizard…”
She cursed under her breath, her teeth clenched tightly.
And she was right—the situation had spiraled irreversibly out of control.
The lifeless corpses before us stood as silent, grim proof of that reality.
“Go ahead, let’s see what you’ve got, little girl.”
The wizard’s lips twisted into a mocking smirk as he flicked his fingers.
At that moment, a grotesque blue light flared in the empty eyes of the corpses.
The once-stiff bodies, rigid like mannequins, suddenly began to move.
With their twisted and broken necks, the corpses staggered forward, emitting creaking sounds with each step.
The sight was utterly horrifying.
The foul stench of decay mixed with the metallic tang of rust pierced my nose.
“Let’s see how long your pathetic courage lasts,” the wizard said, his voice a blend of mockery and amusement.
Behind him, the row of corpses moved slowly but steadily toward us.
“Damn it…!”
Lilian growled lowly and charged at the undead.
Her blade sliced through the air, piercing the corpses’ bodies, but the dead, feeling no pain, showed no signs of stopping.
With trembling hands, I pulled out the gloves.
If I used this power, I could surely escape this situation. But the price…
There was no time to hesitate.
I put on the gloves and drew upon the dormant power of the dragon heart.
Something wild rampaged through my veins, tearing through my insides.
Heat surged to my fingertips, searing and uncontrollable.
I couldn’t endure it any longer.
Thrusting my hand forward, an explosion erupted, and a blinding flash of light tore through the darkness.
The light grazed the wizard, shattering the door behind him but nothing more.
I had missed. I couldn’t control it.
My heart pounded like it would burst, and my legs refused to move.
With trembling hands, I dug through my bag, pulling out two small spheres.
I bit my lip hard.
“I can’t do this twice! Close your eyes and run straight ahead!”
Lilian, grasping the situation, scooped me into her arms and sprinted toward the shattered door at full speed.
At the same time, the spheres fell from my hand, hitting the ground.
Blinding light burst forth, spreading in every direction like an explosion.
Rays of sharp light slashed through the darkness, pushing it back entirely.
When the light faded, the corpses that had been advancing froze in place.
Staggering mid-motion, their stiffened forms remained frozen.
The fingers that had been grasping at the air halted, and their grotesque expressions were preserved, lifelike yet macabre.
The wizard stumbled, covering his face with his hand.
“Argh…!”
A pained groan escaped his lips.
“You damned half-elf…!”
As we passed him, I caught a glimpse of his eyes burning with fury through the gaps in his fingers.