The Beast of the Albard Mansion - Chapter 2
First of all, I didn’t have any friends. My older sister, the one and only person who took care of me, was attending the academy, and my two brothers found me very annoying.
Additionally, my father, who had a sensitive nature akin to someone with a cleanliness obsession, extremely disliked having others visit the mansion. Thus, the mansion was always quietly asleep.
That meant I couldn’t play with children my age. My father disapproved of me playing with just anyone. He taught me that I should only associate with children from families of significant heritage and wealth, not to mention avoiding commoners. But such prestigious children never played with me, I was left endlessly lonesome.
Because of this, I couldn’t ignore the presence that appeared in my lonely and boring life. I eventually stepped on the last stair of the dungeon. As soon as I saw the black figure lying in the corner of the dungeon, I gasped in shock.
“Ah—”
Despite my keen interest in Desi, he was in no condition to play with me. Desi’s entire body was red and bruised as if he had been beaten. He was so exhausted that he couldn’t even open his eyes.
Desi wore a heavy, thick iron collar, which had caused the skin on his neck to become raw and festering. His wrists and ankles were also bound by chains, which were securely fastened to the wall, preventing him from moving more than a meter. Desi lay on the cold floor, barely breathing.
Seeing him like that, I was terrified and ran away. It felt like facing a life fading away in pain. I felt pity and fear at the same time. The mere thought of witnessing someone’s death enveloped me in a consuming terror.
That was my second encounter with Desi. I saw him trembling, alone—and that intense memory completely changed my image of Desi.
The shock was so great that I couldn’t sleep for several days. The pitiful image of Desi haunted me like a nightmare. I constantly feared that Desi might be freezing to death in that cold dungeon.
I lost my appetite, and the lack of sleep drained my energy. I couldn’t bear the turmoil in my heart. I had no choice but to head back to the dungeon where Desi was. I couldn’t ignore the thought of Desi lying in the dungeon.
This feeling was similar to when my beloved skylark died. The day the skylark died, my sister covered it with a fine handkerchief and asked if I wanted to say my last goodbye.
Should I uncover the handkerchief to see the dead skylark, or should I just let it go? I pondered. The sadness and tension made it hard to breathe. I gathered the courage to lift the handkerchief and found the cold, dead skylark.
I felt the same tension as I did right before lifting the handkerchief. I stood in front of the dungeon, conflicted. But just like I did back then, I made the same decision again.
There might be something worse than a nightmare waiting at the bottom of the dark stairs. I suppressed my fear and took a step forward.
The dungeon I had once descended with light steps now felt heavy, as if I were being dragged down reluctantly the second time.
As I reached the bottom of the dungeon,
“Grrrrr—”
I heard a beastly growl. Desi was glaring at me sharply with his bright yellow eyes. He drooled and growled ferociously. He was watching me with a fierce gaze, and I felt relieved. I was so worried that he might have frozen to death, that just seeing him alive made me feel better. I didn’t mind at all that he was growling at me.
“You’re alive. Thank goodness.”
I let out a sigh of relief.
Clink, clink—
Desi’s body trembled as if he would pounce on me any second, but the chains fastened to the wall held him back. His eyes were filled with a deadly look, so I couldn’t approach him and had to stand at a distance. He was so vicious that he couldn’t stay still, constantly on guard against me. The more Desi struggled, the more the collar choked him, reopening his wounds.
I was worried that he might hurt himself even more. His savage behavior made my heart tighten, and I hurried out of the dungeon as if fleeing.
Desi was as ferocious as a wild animal that hadn’t been tamed. But perhaps because I had seen him lying on the cold dungeon floor, breathing weakly in pain, his ferocity seemed like the puffed-up fur of a frightened kitten trying to hide its fear.
‘He must be scared.’
I wanted to get closer to Desi. I started thinking about how I could calm that fearful beast, how I could break through his guard.
