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However, most importantly, the things that danced in her mind were all the precious moments that she had shared with Everard.

She had a sad smile on her face as she mindlessly climbed the stairs of the dungeon. But then, reality hit her. ‘I should have never followed him here... At least then, I would only have fond memories of him. I shouldn’t have overstayed my welcome.’

Without even realizing it, tears started to roll down her eyes like streams that flowed down the mountains.

‘It was his duty to say that he would protect me, or that I was a part of his family and his clan. After all, he was the one who made me this way... But I shouldn’t have taken his words too literally. I could have started a new life in Lavinya rather than following him here.’

Ruby chuckled at her own stupidity and thought while shaking her head, ‘What was I even thinking when I agreed to follow him here?’

The expression on her face suddenly became sad when she recalled the day Everard had come to get her before traveling together to Xanmar. ‘Right... I followed him because he looked like he desperately needed me. And I couldn’t say no.’

‘But it’s okay to run away now. After all, he said with his own mouth that he doesn’t need me, that we will never be close...’ A shooting pain ran down her heart when the thought of never seeing Everard again crossed her mind.

However, she clenched her fists and kept on walking. ‘I hope I will eventually forget about him. No... I SHOULD forget about him.’

.....

A sudden anger boiled up inside her heart when she recalled how her life took a permanent turn after encountering Everard.

‘I should have never stepped inside the woods that day. I should have run back to the town to get some help... Or I could have just pretended to have never heard those screams! At least I would still be living in my own town, with my loving parents who would never say such hurtful words to me.’

Her throat suddenly became very dry and she started having difficulty in breathing. She felt great discomfort at the pit of her stomach, almost as though something was terribly wrong.

She suddenly stopped in her path and held her stomach. She grimaced in pain and wondered, ‘How are my parents doing? The vampires haven’t done anything to them... right?’

She gulped and nervously chuckled. ‘No, why would they do anything to my parents? It wasn’t them who did anything wrong. It wasn’t me either, but well... here I am. Running and hiding from everyone.’

Ruby heaved a deep sigh and thought to herself, ‘But I really hope they are doing okay. They must be crying a lot though, right? Their only daughter is lost, after all.’

‘Should I just run back to Sorvando instead of going to Lavinya?’ A dangerous thought crossed her mind. ‘At least the vampires will attack me physically, and not emotionally. Bearing that physical pain is much easier than the emotional pit that I am in right now.’

She sighed again and mumbled, “At least I might get to see my parents one last time before the vampires kill me... I didn’t even get to say a proper goodbye to them.”

Her eyes became heavily blurred and she could barely see where she was going. She even bumped into the wall and almost slipped down the stairs while she was lost deep in her thoughts. So, she closed her eyes and let all the tears clear out of her eyes.

She sniffled and wiped her eyes. And she gazed ahead at the door of the dungeon.

Her sharp ears could hear all the chatters and the footsteps of the people outside. She took a few deep breaths and kept on standing there for a while to calm herself down.

And when her head cleared up a little, she began thinking about her escape route.

‘Should I just sprint at the top of my speed? No! That will only make me look suspicious.’ She narrowed her eyes and then thought, ‘Maybe I could just walk normally and try to blend in with the crowd. I might be able to slip past the gate if I just keep my head low and don’t attract any attention to myself.’

She held out her hand and grabbed the door handle of the dungeon. But before pulling the door open, she recalled all the things that Everard had gifted her.

She placed her palm over her chest and then breathed shakily. She didn’t want to start crying again.

‘I think I can take a gown with me? It won’t be stealing if I take it with me, right? Those were gifted to me. And I don’t think anyone will ever wear those clothes anyway.’

She cleared her throat and nodded. ‘Yes, let’s just take one gown... as a memory of this place, and as a piece of souvenir to remember the wonderful times I spent with him.’

With that thought in mind, Ruby pulled the door open. Suddenly, her eyes were hit by the warm evening light, which was too bright for her since she hadn’t seen the sun for about two weeks now.

After her eyesight adapted to the sudden change in the source of light, she looked around in front of her. Since it was the furthest corner of the castle, there weren’t many people lingering right outside. So, she took a brave step outside of the dungeon, looked around again, and began walking toward her room.

A few pairs of eyes kept on following her since she looked like a lady in her expensive gown, but at the same time, because of her disheveled hair and crumpled-up clothes, she also looked very out of the place.

Nevertheless, she somehow managed to reach her room without being found out by the guards or Everard.

She was even a little sad when she didn’t encounter Everard. But she pushed that feeling aside and entered her room.

She hurriedly opened the closet and then began to look for a specific maroon-colored gown that she adored. ‘Where did I keep it? Come on! I don’t have much time. I can’t be found out by anyone,’ she kept on shouting at herself in her mind as she rummaged through her wardrobe.

However, to her utmost horror, she heard a voice from outside her room, “Miss Ruby?”