Chapter 72: Chapter 72: AVOIDING ME

VALORIA WILDEROSE

Two days have passed since my sisters summoned me out of my room just to mess with me, and surprisingly, they haven’t bothered me since.

It’s impossible to believe, but it’s almost as if they’ve completely lost interest in making my life hell.

So for the past two days, I’ve kept to my room to avoid running into them and reminding them of how long it’s been.

In the meantime, all my meals have been brought to the room, along with books to read and things to keep me busy.

The servants bring things I don’t even ask for, treating me more like an actual person for the first time.

I find it weird and concerning. I wonder if everyone is sick or has lost their marbles, but I don’t complain.

Everything is almost perfect, aside from the fact that for some reason Azrael has been avoiding me.

I know he still comes into the room when I’m sleeping based on how messy his side of the bed looks early in the morning and the wet towel that hangs right next to mine.

I don’t know if it’s his latest trick to mess with me, but I find it extremely annoying. Not that I care that he does it — because I don’t.

But because I don’t know why.

It was his idea to plop me right next to him to watch my suffering up close, and now, for no apparent reason, he just ditches me whenever he wants to.

And just when I’ve begun to find some usefulness in him. I want to practice my speech and hear my voice without the stutter.

“His Majesty and I will be out for the entire day carrying out investigations on the Wilderose pack as a whole. In the meantime, he advises that you stay in your room as you’ve been doing for the past two days.” Eros reads an order from the king out loud from a small notepad in his hand while standing by the door.

He drops the white book below his gaze to look at me when he’s done, waiting for a response, and I’m pissed to say the least. I glare with my arms folded below my chest.

“W-W-Why isn’t he h-here telling m-me all of-f this?”

He raises the notepad to eye level again to read another jotted line.

“He told me to say ’he’s busy’ if you asked that.”

I roll my eyes at his pettiness, wondering how someone so dismissive and lazy has been able to rule a whole kingdom and become the scariest man alive with that attitude of his.

Why do I even bother expecting anything from the devil himself?

“S-Si-Since you’re h-here, I’ve been me-m-meaning to ask if y-y-you know w-where the rest of m-m-my clothes are?”

I noticed a day ago that half my things are missing. I already packed a small bag of clothes I’d gotten since being a concubine, and now that small bag’s contents have been halved overnight.

It wasn’t so obvious when all I needed before was a nightie and the next day I was given a new dress. I have no idea when it happened either.

“’I burned them as a joke,’ is what he said to respond if you asked that as well.” Eros continues to read off his notepad.

I feel a nerve on my temple constrict, tempted to pop and let me bleed to death. I grind my teeth with concealed rage.

“I su-s-suppose he ha-has a resp-ponse for ev-v-verything I’m g-going to say.”

“’Yes,’ is what I’m supposed to reply to that.”

Motherfucker!

I jump to my feet, pointing fingers and yelling without restraint.

“T-T-Tell His Ma-ma-Majesty that if-f he’s half t-the man he c-cl-claims to be, h-he’ll m-m-meet me face to face ins-st-stead of through a m-middle m-man!”

I pause to catch my breath again, staring at Eros, who watches on silently for the first few seconds.

I feel a small amount of pride knowing I have a somewhat last say — until, very slowly, he pulls the notepad up again, staring at the prewritten words on another page.

“’It’s Azrael, pet.’” he reads, mimicking his voice too.

I shudder from disgust before my shoulders slump with defeat.

I fall back on the bed fully exhausted from this pointless petty argument with a man who isn’t even here to laud his victory over me.

“Never mind,” I wave off, surrendering.

He tucks the notepad into his back pocket, seemingly grateful that I’ve given up, giving me the impression that there’s more written on there in the event that I continued to fight back.

I have no idea what to feel knowing that he sat down and predicted everything I’d argue about and wrote down a reply to every possible response I’d come up with.

And that he did that just to avoid talking with me face to face.

“Despite his annoying childish tendencies, in all seriousness Lady Valoria, do not step out of your room — until I get back at least.” Eros speaks up once the dust has settled in a more serious tone that has me sitting upright to look at him.

A not-so-good feeling settles in my gut watching those brown eyes stare at me cautiously.

“When y-y-you say it l-like t-that, it k-ki-kinda sou-s-sounds s-scary. Is so-something wro-ng with the m-mission?”

“Nothing you need to worry about. His Majesty is… handling it.”

Handling it?

“O-Okay…” I nod without questioning it further.

Azrael refused to give me a hint about what they’re doing, Eros sure as hell won’t spill a single drop about it, and I’m not curious enough to insist.

The Beta takes a bow before turning to leave me alone in the silence of my room again.

I fall backwards with a sigh, wondering what it is they’re up to before my mind floats to other things.

For the next two hours, I busy myself with a book and some snacks, relishing in the beautiful silence and the joys of my own company, flipping page by page through an old atlas of our world.

I read about other places and countries and the kinds of people that live there, wondering what it would be like if I was there myself.

My silent dream, after all of this is over and I’m no longer shackled by a debt or by people, is to travel the world and see places I could never have dreamed of when I was locked in like a servant.

I want to experience life outside my little bubble, go on adventures, and have friends all over.

It’s a bit childish considering that I made it up when I was only five, but I’ve held onto it for years like a ray of sunshine in my dark, gloomy world.

A knock on my door interrupts my daydreaming, and I look towards it.

“Wh-Who is it?” I ask, hoping that Eros would respond… or maybe Azrael, that is, if he’s done playing his avoiding game.

But there’s nothing, just silence, and then another three well-spaced knocks echo again.

I pause from my reading, slowly sitting up from the bed, looking at the door as an ominous feeling settles into my chest.

If Eros hadn’t warned me about leaving my room earlier, I wouldn’t be so terrified right now.

But it’s probably nothing. It could be maids bringing more books; plus, opening a door is very different from leaving the room.

“Y-Yes?” I respond, opening the door.

Sure enough, there are maids waiting on the other side—four of them.

I notice their grim expressions first, and then the fact that their hands are without books or snacks, folded against their chests in an intimidating stance.

“C-C-Can I h-help you?” I ask timidly, hiding partially behind the door.

“Alpha Ottomar has requested your presence in his office,” the tallest one announces harshly.

“U-Uhm… I’m n-not sup-p-posed to leave m-m-my room.”

“How rude,” she snaps with an obvious glare. “Your father has called you, and you’re refusing his summon because you don’t want to leave your room? I see three weeks away from home has made you disrespectful.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep