Thought It Was 'The End', Only to Return to a Changed Genre - Chapter 151
“Tell me. What is it that you’re so afraid of?”
But Adeline continued to stubbornly keep her mouth shut.
What could she possibly say?
That what she feared wasn’t the sorcerer, but the world itself, which wanted her dead?
That nightmares followed her like shadows every night?
That if she revealed everything, those who listened would be in danger too?
That in her dreams, Shane had killed her dozens of times, and she was terrified that one day he might actually do it?
In the end, it was just a dream, a mere illusion.
Perhaps it was all just delusion.
But to Adeline, it was a desperate reality, a horrific truth. It had been the problem of her entire life.
Shane approached her and gripped her chin.
Her tears kept blurring her vision, but she tried not to look away from the blue eyes staring down at her.
She had always thought that using tears as a weapon was cowardly, yet here she was doing exactly that. She didn’t want to cry, but she couldn’t control it.
Out of stubbornness, she bit down on her lip, and Shane slipped his finger between her lips.
His cold gaze remained unchanged.
As he stared into her eyes, Shane played with her plump lips and asked,
“Still don’t want to talk?”
“……”
If it were something she could easily talk about, she would have already spilled everything and felt relieved.
“Fine. I didn’t expect someone as stubborn as you to be scared just because I locked you up. I only came to give you a warning today.”
“…What war, ning?”
Her voice was muffled by her sobs.
“If you don’t tell me anything, I’ll have no choice but to eliminate everything I suspect.”
“Are you threatening to kill everyone again? Don’t you ever get tired of it?”
“I do.”
Shane suddenly let out a dry laugh.
“I’m sick and tired of it.”
“……”
“I’m sick of holding you every night while you tremble in fear. I’m sick of feeling my heart burn with worry.”
“……”
“I’m tired of seeing you wake up in cold sweats, crying, only to hug me and lie through your teeth that you’re fine, with that pale face of yours.”
“……”
“Look at you. You’re shutting your mouth again. Just that makes me the most miserable, powerless bastard in the world, damn it!”
Shane took a rough breath, covering his face with his hand as he stepped back two paces.
He was so furious that he didn’t know what to do, yet he kept his distance, afraid he might hurt Adeline if he got too close.
After several heavy breaths, he ran his hand through his hair in frustration, biting his lip. Then he looked at Adeline with a sharp gaze, before letting out a sigh and speaking.
“Princess Mia of the Brubewein Kingdom will be named as the poisoner.”
“What? Wait, Patrick said she had nothing to do with it! He said they were watching her! And there’s no evidence…”
“There’s no evidence, but it’s already decided. It doesn’t matter who the actual perpetrator is.”
“What kind of nonsense is that?! The Imperial Crown Prince was there too! This could have killed him, and you’re going to pin it on someone without any proof? If it turns out the princess did it, this won’t just be a personal crime…”
Adeline trailed off, suddenly inhaling sharply.
The words “It doesn’t matter who the actual perpetrator is” explained everything.
They intended to use the poisoning attempt as a catalyst.
That’s how they decided.
‘You insane bastards!’
With a pale face, Adeline sprang to her feet. She had to get out of here immediately and talk to Edwin or Viola. She had to tell them this was madness.
But Adeline’s legs didn’t even make it off the bed.
Shane grabbed her shoulders and forced her back down, and Adeline screamed.
“You crazy bastard, if you’re going to go insane, at least do it gracefully!”
“I have gone mad, yes.”
“What good does it do to know that, you lunatic! Stop dragging innocent people into this and go stop it! The princess is innocent!”
“Are you sure the princess is innocent?”
“She is! No one’s guilty! This is completely insane… Who would allow this? The Empress won’t, there’s no way she would!”
“You seem to be forgetting that the Empress is close friends with your mother.”
“And Prince Edwin…”
“Fortunately or unfortunately, I’m not the only one who’s fallen for you.”
