The blood from Yu Zhizhi's palm dripped, drop by drop, across the blade of the sword, like a seared red mark.
Wild Dog watched her shoulders tremble slightly. He thought of the timid little rabbit she once was and realized the immense determination it must have taken for her to want to escape the Duke's control forever.
To be free.
A breeze gradually picked up over the sea, and the thick white fog began to show signs of dissipating.
A flicker of hope sparked in Yu Zhizhi's heart—
'Is the Duke leaving?'
She couldn't help but gaze out at the distant sea. Through the swirling Cloud Mist, she saw the long, deep purple shadow and his face, half-shrouded by the fog.
The Duke's golden, vertical pupils held an emotion she couldn't decipher.
He saw the red of the little rabbit's blood staining the blade. Every word, every syllable she had just spoken, echoed in his mind.
