Chapter 36: Flowers in the Snow

Daemon had always wanted to know more about Roxanna.

Not just the surface things, but the quiet ones. What made her smile when no one was watching.

What she was afraid of. What she still hoped for after everything she had lost. Time had never given them the chance to talk properly.

Until now.

She sat beside him in the tent, still bare from the night before, her voice low and steady as she finally opened the door to her past.

Daemon kept his eyes closed, pretending to sleep, but every word sank deep into him.

"My marriage with Garrick was a love marriage," Roxanna began.

"We met in college. He was kind back then... or at least I believed he was.

We spent almost every day together. After graduation he decided to become a Hunter.

I wanted to help people too, so becoming a healer felt like the right path. For a while, we were happy."

She paused, fingers tightening around the edge of the blanket.

"He always refused to go further before the wedding.

He said we should wait until we were married. I thought it was respect.

I never pushed him. After the wedding I finally learned the truth.

He was impotent.

He had hidden it from me the entire time.

And after that... he started to change. He became controlling.

Everything had to be done his way. My opinions stopped mattering."

Her voice grew quieter.

"One day he suggested artificial insemination.

I had always wanted a child, so I said yes without thinking twice.

When I got pregnant, I was happier than I had ever been.

But during that period many dungeon gates opened at the same time.

I went out to help the injured. I thought I was doing the right thing."

She swallowed.

"I was hurt badly. When I woke up in the hospital... the baby was gone.

After the miscarriage Garrick completely changed. He blamed me.

He said it was my fault for leaving the house. Slowly I started to believe him.

I stopped knowing what I liked. I stopped knowing who I was.

I thought everything bad that happened was because of me."

Roxanna looked down at her hands.

"Then I met you, Daemon.

You didn’t treat me like I was broken. You showed me I could still smile.

That I could still choose my own life. For the first time in a long while, I felt like a person again... not just someone’s wife who kept making mistakes."

She took a small breath and gave a soft, tired smile.

"Once we return to the city, I want a divorce."

Sana, who had been listening in silence, reached over and squeezed her shoulder firmly.

"You did nothing wrong. You’re too kind.

That’s why people like him take advantage of you. I won’t let it happen again.

" A small smirk tugged at her lips. "Besides, look at you. Even Daemon couldn’t stop staring at your chest last night."

Roxanna’s face turned scarlet.

At that exact moment, Daemon’s body reacted strongly under the blanket.

Both women noticed. Sana’s eyes widened slightly, then she turned and lightly flicked his forehead.

"I know you’re awake. Get up. We need to move... unless you want the three of us to stay naked in this tent forever."

Daemon finally opened his eyes. He sat up without a word and began putting on his clothes.

The two women followed. The air inside the tent still held the leftover warmth from the night, but outside the world had gone quiet.

The snowstorm had passed.

They stepped out into a landscape covered in white.

The sky was pale and clear.

"I don’t know which direction leads to the next floor," Daemon said. "Let’s find a stream or river and follow it."

Sana pointed toward a distant line of mountains.

"That way. The land slopes down there."

As they walked, Daemon quietly asked the System,

"Where do I need to go to clear this floor? And why haven’t I received any proper rewards yet?"

The reply came at once.

[Rewards will be generated once you clear this Undead floor.]

[The floor boss has not been defeated.]

Daemon’s expression hardened. They were still not finished here.

A short while later Sana suddenly stopped and crouched.

"Look."

Scattered across the frozen ground were pieces of old armor, rusted swords, torn cloaks, and broken tools.

None of them looked modern. There was no plastic, no metal alloys, no electronics.

Daemon picked up a dented helmet and turned it over in his hands.

"These belong to an older civilization. This place might not have always been a dungeon."

Roxanna nodded slowly, her eyes thoughtful.

The further they walked, the more the snow began to thin. Patches of grass appeared.

Then they started finding newer items — ceramic cups, glass bottles, wooden plates.

Things that looked as if they had been used not long ago.

Sana’s voice dropped.

"These aren’t ancient. Someone is still living here."

While the two of them examined the objects, Roxanna’s attention was caught by something else.

Wild flowers were pushing up through the last patches of snow, their colors bright against the white ground.

She began picking them one by one, her arms slowly filling with soft blues, pale yellows, and deep violets.

Daemon watched her for a long moment. The tension in her shoulders had eased.

For the first time since he met her, she looked almost peaceful.

He walked over.

"You really love flowers."

Roxanna glanced up, a little embarrassed. "Yes. I’ve never seen many of these before.

They’re beautiful. One day I want a garden of my own... a place that belongs only to me."

She held out a small blue flower toward him.

Daemon stepped closer to help her gather more.

Without realizing it, he moved so near that she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes.

Her shoulders only reached his chest.

Roxanna’s breath caught.

Daemon didn’t step away. Instead he gently took several of the flowers from her arms, his fingers moving with quiet care as he wove them together.

When he finished, he placed the small flower crown on her head, adjusting it so it sat evenly.

"It suits you," he said, his voice low. "I want you to stay this happy... and this bright. Forever."

The words were simple. They should not have carried so much weight.

But something inside Roxanna’s chest tightened almost painfully.

Her heart began beating so hard she was certain he could hear it.

She had never felt this before — not with Garrick, not with anyone.

In that single moment she finally understood what the feeling was.

Before fear or doubt could stop her, she rose onto her toes and kissed him.

Sana, standing only a few steps away, froze completely.

Daemon’s eyes widened in shock.

But Roxanna did not pull back. She kept her lips against his in the middle of the open field, the flower crown resting in her hair, the cold wind gently moving around them.

For the first time in years, she was not thinking about guilt or duty or someone else’s anger.

She was simply choosing something for herself.

When she finally drew away, her face was flushed and her eyes were bright.

A familiar sound rang inside Daemon’s mind.

Ding!

[Affection threshold reached.]

[Bond conditions with Roxanna Sterling are progressing.]

Daemon stared at her, still feeling the warmth of her lips, while Sana looked between them with an expression that was equal parts surprise and sharp interest.

None of them spoke for a long moment.

The flowers in Roxanna’s arms trembled slightly in the wind.