The Cursed Beast Caught My Leash - Chapter 36

“I’ll be taking my leave now. Thank you for everything, Father.”

“The honor was mine, Your Highness. I’m grateful for the brief opportunity to serve you.” Padro’s face softened into a gentle smile, no longer showing any sign of the darkness that once clouded it.

***

It was already dusk by the time Stella and Islay left the chapel, the evening shrouded in a soft twilight. As they walked back towards the inner castle, Stella’s steps were sluggish, her mind preoccupied with other thoughts. Normally, the solid presence beside her would have made her tense, but today she barely registered the gaze fixed on her profile.

“Estella,” a calm, deep voice broke through the silence, making Stella flinch as she lifted her chin to meet it. The red eyes that met hers seemed even more intense in the dim light, the black hair tousled by the wind only accentuating his sharp features. It was a face one couldn’t look away from once caught in its gaze.

“I heard you encountered the Elder,” he said in his usual dry tone, finally capturing her attention.

“Ah… yes, I did,” she replied.

“If she was rude to you, I apologize. I should have ensured you wouldn’t cross paths.”

“No, there’s no need to apologize,” Stella shook her head once. “She was quite… fanatical. It’s easy to see why you’d want to avoid her.”

She offered a faint smile, but Islay remained silent, an uncomfortable silence settling between them. Had she overstepped? Stella wondered, but then began to share her thoughts on today’s experiences.

“You were right about one thing, though. I do have the ability of the Mind’s Eye.”

“……”

“You believed I was necessary because of a prophecy, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

…Then you should have just said so from the beginning.

But even if he had, she wouldn’t have been able to accept it fully until after the festival had begun. It was clear that Islay hadn’t felt the need to share such information with her either. To him, she was merely an ‘eye’ to help find a precious gem, just one of many possibilities as he had mentioned before.

Everything made sense now. Yet, there was still a lingering unease, a faint suspicion that the priest was hiding something and the prophecy was far from complete.

As they passed through the castle gates into the forecourt, the sound of fireworks bursting and the cheers that followed echoed from somewhere nearby. Startled, Stella grabbed Islay’s arm, halting in her tracks. He stopped as well, matching her stride.

White paper confetti floated on the breeze. Stella took a deep breath of the fragrant air and looked up at the man beside her. Their eyes met in the air. Islay was already watching her, his Adam’s apple bobbing visibly.

“There’s something I’ve been curious about,” she said.

“What is it?”

“You said the ancient gem is just an empty shell. If you find it, what do you plan to do?”

“That’s the same question as last time. If you were trying to break a curse that could turn you into a monster, what would be your first step?”

“Hmm…” Stella lowered her lashes, thinking for a moment. It didn’t take long for her to come up with an answer.

“I’d start by identifying the source of the curse—who cast it, what method they used, and what objects were involved.”

“Correct.” He smiled slightly. “The high priest who cursed Peruno slit his own arteries and spilled his blood over a sacred relic to wield its power. He sacrificed his life to invoke a powerful force.”

To slit one’s veins and pour blood over a gem—Stella’s eyes met his, filled with disbelief.

“After the prophecy, my ancestors began searching for the ancient gem, intending to recreate the exact method used for the curse.”

“Recreate…?”

“They believed the blood running through Peruno’s veins was the source of the curse. By pouring that blood back into the empty gem, they hoped to restore its original power.”

“Wouldn’t that endanger your life?”

“Peruno has extraordinary regenerative abilities, so he might survive by sheer luck. Even if he dies, it would be a meaningful death. Breaking the curse would rid Calis of all the monsters that now roam it.”

The thought of those two-legged beasts made Stella swallow hard. The black beasts were indeed the scourge of the north.

But…

“But how could you possibly find such an ordinary-looking gem, one that’s lost even its original color? My family has spent centuries gathering treasures like crows across the continent. Then, miraculously, the prophecy came.”

“Only the ‘Mind’s Eye’ can stop the disaster tied to Peruno’s blood?”

Another distant explosion of fireworks echoed, signaling the approaching end of the festival.

Only the star that shines alone in the fading darkness will stop the disaster.

What had Islay said when they first met at Prince Hendrick’s villa?

“The star of Largo. It’s not a name one can easily ignore.”

“So that’s why you brought me to Calis,” she said.

“Yes. Even if I die, I want to remain a rational human being.”

“……”

“Do you understand now?”

Stella silently nodded. It was hard to shake off the growing sense of unease, like a dark cloud looming overhead.

At some point, they had reached the stairs leading to the castle’s interior.

“It’s late. You should go inside. If you want to go out again, summon Mikel.”

Stella paused halfway up the stairs and glanced back at him. Islay stood a step below her, yet he still cast a shadow taller than her.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“I’m going back to my chambers.”

She glanced briefly at the door before them. Judging by his intent to turn away from the inner castle, he was heading somewhere else.

Weren’t they staying in the same building all this time?

“Where are your chambers?”

“Why, are you planning to visit?”

Stella’s eyes widened at his unfiltered jest. Islay turned his gaze, pointing somewhere. “My chambers are in that tower.”

“That’s….”

A watchtower?

The tower stood isolated at a distance, unmistakably a sentry tower. It looked like a watchtower at best and a prison for a condemned man at worst.

So he had been staying in that solitary tower, far from the main building. Shouldn’t the lord of the castle reside in the grandest and most luxurious room in the inner keep?

“You’ve been living alone in that tower?”

“Who could sleep soundly in the same building as someone who might turn into a monster?”

“But…”

“At night, I lock the entrance and have at least six guards stationed to watch over it in shifts.”

“Is it really necessary to imprison yourself every night? Didn’t you say you’d only transform into the black beast at a certain age?”

“There’s my father’s precedent.”

His words made Stella fall silent.

“Many fear I might change my mind and flee. Who wouldn’t be afraid?”

Just then, the gate guard opened the door. As the heavy door creaked open, Stella met Islay’s eyes from the step below.

A man who had to imprison himself for as long as he lived. If he failed to break the curse, he would become a monstrous beast, and even if he found the ancient gem, he might lose his life. Yet, Islay did not abandon the burden he carried.

There was a strong resolve in him to end the disaster that bound his blood.

But this resolve wasn’t for a new life or the dream of meeting someone he loved and starting a family. It was solely for the peace of the North and his desire to remain a rational man, even in death.

Stella gazed at the man, who stood out starkly against the snowy landscape. She took in the sight of his dark hair fluttering in the cold air, his chiseled features, and his desolate eyes.

The mischievous man who had once smirked like a boy was nowhere to be seen. Now, his face was expressionless, devoid of light.

Stella suddenly thought that Islay, who possessed this vast land and beautiful castle, seemed just as lonely as she was.

‘…Lonely?’

It was an emotion that didn’t suit such a strong man.

Yet, Stella couldn’t shake the thought. She stood there in the open doorway, staring at Islay for a long time, unaware of the ripples stirring within her eyes.