An liyue opened the curtains letting the sunlight in , feeling alive, she took a deep breath, stood for a while and turned back, only for her eyes to land on the black bed.
And there she recalled the night.
"Sleep on the floor again and you'll be eating from the floor!"
His words rang in her ears.
An Liyue shook her head.
She couldn't live this way.
Why didn't he just let her die?
It was better than becoming a slave!
Staring outside the window, An Liyue was left with only one thought.
Run away...
Or do the worst...
End it herself... And in the fastest way possible.
With that, she got into the shower to refresh herself.
She simply stood, letting the water trickle down her body.
Shortly after, she came out only to find a dress on the bed once again.
She stared at it as though it might hurt her if she got any closer.
' now that?... should stop '
It was creepy.
She couldn't tell which exactly gave her the chills.
The fact that she wasn't the only one with access to the room and as such anything could happen.
Or that, she was being monitored, cause how the hell was it that there were always clothes waiting for her immediately after her shower.
She quickly looked around for hidden cameras but saw nothing.
Either way, she couldn't deny that she needed something to wear, so she dismissed the possibility of being monitored from her mind, cause that was definitely the last thing she wanted to think of.
Being watched while dressing...
Ugh! An liyue shuddered.
After putting on the clothes, she checked herself out in the mirror.
The cloth didn't quite fit, given her slender figure.
So it could only probably be because, her measurements weren't taken, or...
The cloth actually belonged to someone else.
She couldn't help it, her instinct told her something was off.
Knock knock!
The sound snapped her out of her thoughts.
" Who-who's it? Y- You can come in "
She was sure it wasn't Han Raviel, that devil would definitely not knock.
On the other end of the door was a servant, and given his status, he wasn't expected to enter her room unless instructed by Han Raviel himself.
But curiosity got the better of him, as he still couldn't get over the fact that the person in the room was a woman,and she was actually living under the same roof as him and Raviel.
So, after a brief hesitation he stepped in.
His gaze landed on her and straight-up entered full lock mode.
He didn't even blink, leaving An liyue feeling uncomfortable.
Noticing his hesitation An liyue gulped and mouthed " I'm alive ".
Only then did the butler come back to his senses as he quickly lowered his head, " M-miss, Lord han request your prescence in the garden"
" My-my presence?" An liyue blinked. " he wants to see me? "
" Not actually, the sun is rising and the flowers are blooming, so, he suggests you watch them "
" ... "
An liyue was stunned speechless.
Was that supposed to be caring or what exactly?!
Well, " I -i'm okay, I don't feel like coming "
" I'm sorry miss...it's not a choice "
" !!! "
Of course!
What had she just dream of?
Having a choice in this place?
Heh!
" Mm! I'll be there shortly " she gave in.
The butler bowed slightly, " I'll be waiting outside miss "
She gave a small nod.
A moment later, she came out.
" Miss " the butler gestured ahead as he towards her to the garden.
"... "
On arriving, her steps slowed.
The view that greeted An liyue didn't feel real.
It felt like she had stepped into a completely different part of the world.
Flowers of different colors stretched endlessly throughout the garden blooming in quietness.
Butterflies roaming the whole place, moving from petal to petal as though the garden was made for them.
An liyue stood still for a moment, utterly mesmerised.
It clearly contrasted Han Raviel's personality.
She moved forward slowly, still half-disbelieving what she was seeing.
For a brief moment, the peaceful environment almost made her forget the idea of escaping.
But then, reality returned to her as quickly as it had slipped away.
Staying in Han Raviel's villa didn't mean she would remain in the garden.
And plus remembering how Han Raviel had ignored her earlier, only made her feel an ache in her ache.
She couldn't stay here this way
If she couldn't find a way? Then would have to try something else...
Even though it was dangerous...and she had been warned.
As she walked deeper into the garden, she suddenly felt... Like she was being watched.
She paused and turned slightly.
It was only the butler standing behind her.
Nothing else.
She continued walking, however, something caught her eyes.
A flower.
But not just any flower.
It was highly poisonous as it was beautiful.
An Liyue recognized it instantly.
About 10 years ago she had witnessed a poisoning where someone had squeezed its extracts into a drink and given to a woman who consumed it and was gone in seconds.
Fast, too fast.
Seeing it, An liyue's heart began racing faster than usual as anxiety crept in.
When she glanced back, the butler's attention wasn't on her.
She took a sharp breath as she gulped.
' This– this should be the best decision, right? '
Just then, Han Raviel's warning echoed in her mind, ' try it next time without my say... and it will be worse than falling off the building '
She shuddered as a nervous vibration ran through her body.
Her hands were now cold as though she was caught red-handed while stealing.
She was getting more and more anxious as each second passed.
Falling from the roof of the five-star hotel would surely take more than ten seconds.
But the flower in front of her, would take effect in less than ten maybe even five seconds.
Maybe... the only reason Han Raviel was able to act was because of the distance.
But with this?
Yes...this should work!!!
She couldn't hide it, her mind raced uncontrollably and her heart was definitely not far behind.
But one thing was clear,
Living with Han Raviel...
Was already worse than death.
There surely was a reason for him taking her in and when that reason was gone, he would definitely not hesitate to erase her.
But until then, she would live as nothing more than a slave.
And running away wasn't an option either, as she would only endanger herself by falling into the hands of the family of the man she had killed allegedly.
An liyue analyzed her life status as she managed to steady herself.
So looking at the flower, she reached out slowly, gathering the little courage she had left as she plucked it.
And without giving herself time to hesitate, she shoved it into her mouth forcing it down her throat.
However,
Almost immediately,
She heard a voice, the one voice which would have certainly sent chills down her spine if she didn't believe she only had seconds left.
She slowly turned and...
Right there, was the demon with a smirk on his face and the usual red eyes.
Damnit!
It was a trap!!!