May Every Wound Be Fatal - Chapter 17.2
The boy placed something into Karla’s hand.
No one witnessed the scene.
Once his task was complete, the boy quietly disappeared.
***
After visiting the cemetery, Karla was behaving strangely.
She seemed unable to feel any pain, and she refused to eat.
Even when Reyna attempted to feed her, Karla would not open her mouth.
She seemed shocked by the small, desolate grave of her child. It was something Reyna had feared.
Reyna, who had volunteered to care for Karla, moved her to Reyna’s own bedroom.
Yet Karla’s condition showed little sign of improvement.
On the second day of her refusal to eat, Reyna, reaching the height of her anxiety, asked in a devastated voice,
“Do you really intend to starve to death like this?”
“……”
Karla sat propped against the head of the bed, staring into the distance.
At the moment Reyna weakly set down the spoon, Karla moved her lips as if trying to say something. Her voice did not come out well.
Reyna carefully brought a wet cloth to Karla’s lips and allowed her to sip some water. She then poured small amounts into her mouth with the spoon.
“It’s alright. Take your time. Try to say anything you want.”
“…Your Highness.”
At last, the dry eyes that had been staring into empty space turned to look at Reyna.
“Good.”
For a moment, Reyna felt a small hope.
“…The Duke and the young duke were whipped in front of the crowd. Their bodies were torn to the point where it looked as if all the blood had drained out.”
Horrible stories began spilling from Karla’s mouth without hesitation.
“Then they were hanged by the neck. Their heads were displayed above the gates of Elmaril, and their bodies were cut into four parts and exhibited in other cities.”
It was a cruel punishment Reyna had never heard of. The faint hope she had felt slowly faded from her expression.
“The nobles and knights of Dazbel suffered the same fate. Most were beheaded, and even now, their heads hang on the burned Red Fortress.”
It was too horrifying. But it did not end there.
“Women and children were locked in windowless rooms, and poison was mixed into their food to kill them. The bodies were thrown from the castle walls into the sea. Some parts of the bodies could not even be found…”
Reyna could not bear to hear any more.
“Karla, stop. Stop now. You…”
She could not believe what she had just heard. Reyna stared at Karla, mouth agape in shock, before refusing to accept it.
“Wake up. It is all lies.”
Yet the kind maid who had always supported her remained silent.
“Karla, look at me. Who would dare tell you such terrible lies?”
At that moment, Karla’s face contorted.
“It is something even a child would know. Even a very young child… Only Your Highness and I were trapped here, knowing nothing else.”
Reyna was momentarily speechless. Karla silently held both of Reyna’s hands. Her touch was chilling and dry.
“Your Highness.”
“Karla…”
“I do not want to live anymore. I cannot live.”
Reyna shook her head in disbelief.
“…No, stop.”
“I am sorry.”
“Karla…”
At that moment, Karla’s complexion changed rapidly. She convulsed, and her breathing became shallow.
Reyna held Karla’s trembling shoulders.
“…Karla? What is happening? Why are you like this? Stop it.”
Karla’s throat swelled, and foam appeared at her mouth.
“Wa, Your Highness…”
She tried to say more, clutching Reyna’s supporting arm, but her voice broke, and no words came out.
Soon, dark red blood ran down her cheeks.
“Kar, Karla…”
Almost simultaneously, blood began gushing from her nose and lips. Her painful groans were accompanied by a crimson flow spilling from her mouth.
The maids screamed.
Hearing this, Lyman and the other knights, who had been outside, rushed into the room.
“G-guilty…”
At that moment, Karla collapsed onto one of Reyna’s shoulders, clutching her arm.
She was still breathing. Each breath caused her to cough, and dark red blood splashed over Reyna.
Someone ran off to fetch the academic advisor.
But immediately afterward, Reyna felt with her whole body that Karla’s breathing had stopped.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
