Chapter 73: Villainess Princess × Slave (36)

By the time Lyra’s eyelashes fluttered open, the bright afternoon sun was already sinking low, casting long, fiery orange hues across the horizon. Lyra let out a yawn, blinking sleepily as she took in her surroundings.

"Oh, shit... I slept way too long," Lyra mumbled to herself, her eyes widening in panic as she noticed the sunset. "Grandma must be waiting for me to help close up the shop!"

She hurriedly pushed herself up from the soft grass, dusted off her skirt, and sprinted down the path toward the village as fast as possible.

However, as she approached the outer edges of the village, a strange, suffocating unease washed over her. For some reason, the road was entirely too silent. There were no children playing, no merchants shouting, and no stray dogs barking.

What on earth is going on...? Lyra thought, her steps slowing down as a cold sweat broke out on her neck.

As she reached the main open square of the village, a massive object caught her eyes, making her blood run completely cold. Parked right in the middle of the cobblestone square was a carriage- not just any ordinary wooden cart, but a luxurious, black-and-gold carriage bearing the unmistakable imperial crest of the capital.

Lyra’s eyes shook violently.

"System..." Lyra gasped out, her soul screaming in pure terror. "What is going on?! Did Cassian find me?! No, no, no, this can’t be happening!"

Panicking instantly, Lyra stopped dead in her tracks, turned on her heel, and prepared to bolt back into the woods.

"Ayra! Darling, where have you been?! I’ve been waiting for you all afternoon!"

Her grandmother’s warm, familiar voice suddenly called out from the doorway of the apothecary shop.

Lyra froze. She slowly turned her head, seeing her sweet grandmother standing alone on the porch. "Grandma... this... I..."

Before Lyra could even finish her sentence, her grandmother rushed forward, grabbed her by the arm, and eagerly dragged her inside the shop. "Come inside! We have important guests!"

The moment the wooden shop door swung open, Lyra’s eyes bulged out of her head in absolute, paralyzing horror.

Standing right in the middle of the cozy shop, surrounded by a dozen imperial guards holding naked steel swords, was no one else but Cassian Draven.

He wore his black imperial robe his tall, broad frame casting an intimidating shadow. His pitch-black eyes were locked directly onto her the second she crossed the threshold, burning with a dark intensity that made her breath hitch.

Her grandmother, completely oblivious to the tension in the room, smiled warmly and gestured toward Cassian.

"Your Highness, I told you! This is my granddaughter, Ayra, not our missing princess," the old woman chided gently, turning to Lyra with a frown. "Ayra, why aren’t you bowing to such a distinguished gentleman? What manners!"

Lyra’s soul practically left her body. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could turn around and run for her life, two knights stepped forward, instantly blocking the exit door behind her.

A familiar, chilling scent of rain and wild snow lotus reached her nose.

Cassian had moved with, silent speed. Before Lyra could even blink, he was standing right behind her. His large hands wrapped firmly around her small waist, pulling her back against his solid chest as he lowered his head, breathing deeply in the sweet fragrance of her hair.

"This slave... has finally found his master," Cassian murmured raspy and low right against her ear, his voice dripping with dark, possessive devotion. "My dear Princess..."

Lyra struggled frantically against his grip, trying to twist away. "L-Let me go!"

Cassian’s arms tightened around her like an unyielding iron vice. His lips brushed softly against her skin as his sweet, low warning slipped through his teeth: "Shh... don’t move, Princess... or else."

"Or else what?!" Lyra breathed out defiantly, her heart pounding loudly.

Cassian let out a low, dark chuckle. He slowly raised his hand, placing his broad, warm palm directly over her eyes, completely blocking her vision.

"Let me show you," Cassian whispered softly.

With his hand covering her eyes, he slowly guided her backward through the shop and opened the back door leading out to the village storage yard.

When he finally dropped his hand and let her see, Lyra’s breath caught in her throat. Her dark eyes shook with utter horror.

Lined up across the yard under the cold sunset were all the innocent villagers, shopkeepers, and farmers who had taken her in and cared for her over the past two weeks- all of them surrounded by imperial guards with swords pressed against their necks.

"One word... and they all die, my dear Princess," Cassian stated coldly, his pitch-black eyes completely devoid of mercy.

Lyra’s eyes shook violently. This... this...

She couldn’t utter a single word. Her chest tightened painfully. These villagers had given her a home, fed her, and treated her with pure kindness when she was a helpless runaway. She knew that in the original logic of this novel, this was just a system mission world and NPCs technically didn’t matter... but seeing real, living people about to be slaughtered because of her made her stomach churn with fierce agony.

The villagers looked at her with wide, terrified eyes. They couldn’t believe the sweet, lovely village girl named Ayra was actually the infamous imperial princess. Yet, despite knowing she was a dreaded tyrant, none of them cried out or cursed her. They simply lowered their heads, quietly accepting their tragic fate to protect the village.

A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the yard.

Then, a soft, trembling voice broke through the tension.

"Don’t harm them!" Lyra cried out, her voice cracking as tears pricked the corners of her dark eyes. She clenched her fists tightly. "Fine! I’ll return with you! Just let them go!"

A dark, triumphant smirk played on Cassian’s lips. Yet, the moment he saw the genuine distress and heartbreak on her face as she looked at the villagers, his smile faded slightly. A flash of possessive jealousy twisted deep within his pitch-black eyes.

He stepped closer, his voice dropping into a dangerous whisper: "Why does the Princess care so much about these mere lives...? Do you pity everyone like you once pitied me, hm? Tell me, my dear Princess. Do they mean that much to you?"

Lyra’s eyebrows furrowed sharply. She glared up at him with sudden, fierce anger.

"You crazy bastard!" Lyra snapped, her voice trembling with frustration. "Why would I pity you, huh?! You’re a monster!"

Cassian’s eyes turned deathly cold for a fraction of a second, before returning to their calm, unhinged depth.

"It’s not good to lie to me now, Princess," Cassian murmured smoothly, his gaze slowly dropping down toward her feet.

He noticed that her simple cloth sandals were covered in village dust and mud from her walk through the fields. Without giving her a moment to process his actions, Cassian bent down and simply swept her off her feet, scooping her up effortlessly into his arms.

Yelp!

Lyra gasped in utter surprise, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck. "What are you doing?!"

"Carrying you back to where you belong," Cassian replied calmly.

While she struggled and kicked against his chest, he carried her out of the village square and straight toward the luxurious black-and-gold imperial carriage. The surrounding royal guards bowed low in absolute reverence as they approached.

"Wait! But what about my grandma?!" Lyra panicked, looking back over his shoulder. She hadn’t even had the time to explain anything to the old woman who had treated her like her own granddaughter.

"Don’t worry," Cassian said coldly, opening the carriage door and stepping inside. "She will be perfectly fine... as long as you remain a good and obedient."

He placed her gently down onto the plush seat of the carriage. Before Lyra could scramble toward the opposite door to escape, Cassian climbed in right after her, pulling out a clean white silk handkerchief from his pocket.

He reached out, grabbing her ankles firmly.

"Hey! What are you- !" Lyra squeaked, trying to pull her feet away.

"Keep still," Cassian commanded softly.

Ignoring her protests, he pinned her feet gently in his lap and began meticulously wiping the dust and dirt off her skin with the handkerchief, his movements surprisingly tender yet inescapable.

Lyra felt a strange, tickling itch. She tried to move her feet away, but he held them tightly in his large, warm hands, continuing his task with absolute focus.

Deep inside her chest, despite her panic and anger, Lyra felt her heart give a strange little flutter- a sudden, unwanted tingling sensation that made her breath hitch.

Wait... Lyra thought, her eyes widening in panic as she stared down at his handsome face. Is he cleaning my feet just to chop them off later so I can never run away again?!

As if reading her chaotic thoughts right out of her head, Cassian paused. He raised his dark eyes, his face inches from her knees, and let out a low, breathy chuckle.

"I am not going to hurt you, Princess," Cassian whispered, his soft breath falling warmly against her skin. "But... if you insist on running away again, then I will simply have to lock you away where no one can ever look at you."

Lyra gasped loudly, her hands flying over her mouth in horror.

Did I say that out loud?! Lyra screamed frantically in her mind! Did I literally just voice my paranoid thoughts?!

Cassian smirked with absolute satisfaction, seeing her wide, flustered eyes, knowing that she was completely, hopelessly trapped in his grasp once and for all.