Night Monarch's Cannon Fodder Bride-Chapter 35: Run. Run. Run!

"Get lost," Severine snarled through gritted teeth and slammed her head into the waiter.

The waiter hadn’t expected her to still have any strength left. The sudden blow crushed his nose.

"Fuck! You bitch!"

Slap!

The impact of the slap sent Severine crashing into the driver’s seat. The car nearly veered off course.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" the driver yelled. His foot slammed onto the brake just before they crashed into an old tree.

Although it saved them from serious harm, the car wasn’t as lucky. The sudden stop sent it skidding forward. The metallic body slammed into the thick trunk, leaving behind a deep dent and a shattered headlight.

I will be scolded again, the driver thought, enraged.

The waiter clutched his face. Blood trickled down between his fingers. His eyes welled with tears of pain and fury as they trailed down his cheeks.

The pain of getting hit on the sensitive nose was too much to bear. Even a grown man like him could do nothing but hiss and sob.

"Tie her up," he said through gritted teeth. It was all his fault for going easy on her just because she looked fragile.

The driver sighed. "You always cause trouble," he mumbled before stepping out and opening the door.

He grabbed the woman trapped in the narrow space between the back seat and the front seat’s backrest.

One side of her cheek was red, a clear handprint standing out against her pale skin. Whether from biting her lip too hard or from the slap, the corner of her mouth was bleeding.

He pulled the wooden box from the hidden compartment under the seat, grabbing a rope.

His movements were rough as he untied it, not caring how Severine slumped forward, hitting her forehead against the wooden drawer now resting on the seat.

"Urgh."

Tsk. "Can’t you sit still?" the driver snapped, annoyed by the extra work. All the while, the waiter pressed a handkerchief onto his face.

"I need to take a piss," he announced all of a sudden, slamming the door behind him.

It was clear that if not for his master’s orders to bring her back intact, he wouldn’t have been satisfied with just one slap.

Left alone with the cold driver, Severine blinked rapidly, trying to get rid of the blurriness from her vision.

The blood sliding down her face mixed with her tears and slipped past her lip. Her vision turned red as she subconsciously licked it, tasting the metallic tang of rust.

It hurts...

The ache pounding in her forehead managed to pull her scattered thoughts back, barely keeping her senses alive.

She felt a rough tug at her arms. The driver was going to bind her hands behind her back, disabling her movements.

Her relaxed body tensed.

Smack!

She grabbed the hammer from the still open compartment and backhandedly swung it at the driver’s head with all her remaining force.

This time, she accurately hit the target.

"Ah!"

A loud scream echoed on the deserted road.

Severine didn’t care if the man was still pissing or not.

Forcing her wobbling feet to move, she dashed into the trees lining the road.

"Fuck—catch that slut!"

"If the master finds we missed her, we’ll be dead meat before sunrise!"

A bout of disgruntled swearing broke out.

Severine rushed deeper, not caring if she ended up encountering some wild animal on the way.

The hammer remained tightly clutched inside her palm. At one point, she had lost her heels.

The sharp branches dug into her skin, scratching her legs and arms.

Crimson streaks covered her from head to toe. Yet it was exactly that pain which kept her sober enough to run.

Her speed, for some baffling reason, kept increasing, and so did the warmth in her chest.

As if a small sun were buried inside her body, the burst of heat made her sweat. Her desire to pull her clothes intensified further.

All she wanted was to soak in cool water.

Without any clear direction, she plunged headfirst into the darkness.

Minutes, or maybe hours?

The concept of timing felt foreign to her. Her throat felt parched, and her lips cracked.

She vaguely sensed a sizzling coming from her chest. The burning scent seemed to fill her senses.

What is burning?

She could no longer hear the vulgar curses, only the terrible thrum of her heart and wretched heat that refused to dissipate even after bleeding this much.

The scattered trees gave way to the distant light. The small twinkles, like little stars, willed her to keep moving.

Light meant life. Light meant human. I need to find father... and water.

Her ears strained to catch the words floating in the air.

"Hey, you can’t be like this. What’s the point of the party if you aren’t even drinking?"

"Come on, young master. Your parents aren’t here to scold you."

There was a jeer of laughter in distance.

Party, young master... Ah, have I returned to the banquet?

Her mind spun as she willed her legs to move forward for the one last time. She was so close.

"Found you!"

Severine’s body shuddered. She hastily turned around, but she didn’t catch a glimpse of those kidnappers.

"Hahaha... you sure found them easily. Come on, next round!"

The voices were coming from the light. The thought put her mind at ease.

She took another step toward the booming voices, finally passing the trees and reaching the wide area filled with twinkling lights.

The blurry figures filled her sight, giving her the long-lost relief.

"H-help me," she croaked. But her words were too soft to be heard by anyone, dissipating in the cold wind.

The adrenaline had started wearing out, leaving her body shaking.

Thud!

The hammer slipped from her fingers, crashing onto the floor where a small light was placed.

The glass shattered, splintering in every direction. A jagged shard pierced her already bleeding ankle.

"What the hell?"

"Shit, she is going to collapse!"

The approaching figures twisted into streams of light, dancing in her vision.

Something warm—different from the sizzling heat inside her—engulfed her before she hit the floor like a hammer. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Then, all the voices vanished, and silence engulfed her.