Time of the Blind Beast - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The Beast’s Mansion

She awoke to a storm shaking the windows. The way the clouds had been swept away in the afternoon was unusual, and now it seemed they were the harbinger of a dense downpour. The persistent sound of rain quickly turned into a heavy shower. Thunder roared, and lightning struck. Startled, she bolted upright at the flash that pierced through the dark curtains.

Without the time to throw anything over her nightgown, she left the bedroom. The corridor lined with glass windows was even more chaotic. The strong wind rattled the latches, and gusts leaked through, causing the curtains that reached the floor to billow darkly.

She hurried past the shaking windows and ran down the stairs to stand before the door at the end of the hallway. The servants had already gathered there. Considering the size of the mansion, their numbers were far too few.

From beyond the tightly closed door, there came a raspy groaning sound. Every time lightning flashed irregularly, the groans grew louder.

Tension rose at the clear signs of pain.

“What should we do? I opened the windows in the afternoon to let in some fresh air, but it seems I didn’t secure them properly,” someone nervously whispered, searching for the chamberlain.

“Where is Madam Serva?”

“She must have gotten stranded because of the storm. Of all the days to be away…”

Everyone shifted nervously, but no one dared to volunteer to enter the room first. It was because there was no guarantee one would walk out the same way they had walked in.

She bypassed the hesitant servants and grabbed the handle of the tightly shut door. The sound of the door creaking open silenced everyone. Yet no one stopped her. After all, someone had to go inside to settle things, and if someone was willing to volunteer, it was a relief.

She stepped inside.

The door closed heavily behind her with a thud.

The room was filled with the musty smell of water brought by the rainstorm. The unlatched window swayed in the wind, and the double-layered curtains kept rising into the air. Thunder rumbled, and lightning flashed. The pale light briefly illuminated the room before vanishing again.

The man lay on the bed, covering his eyes with both hands. Though he was trying to suppress his groans, his clenched jaw kept twitching with pain. It seemed the blanket had fallen to the floor, leaving him without anything to shield his face.

She quickly picked up the fallen blanket and draped it over the man. Then she went to the window and fastened the loose latch. Even though the latch wobbled a bit, she tightly secured the curtain’s hem to the hook beneath the wall so it wouldn’t billow. The lower curtain hook was something only this room had.

The rain was still pouring outside, but once the light was blocked, the man’s groans slowly quieted.

Didn’t they say that even the faintest light caused a splitting headache for the man?

A person’s eyes, regardless of their build, are a vital weakness, and the eyelids are too delicate and thin to protect that weakness. Every flash of lightning was undoubtedly torture for the man.

This was why the mansion’s windows were all draped with black curtains.

Though the storm still raged outside, the double curtains were enough to block the light. However, there were moments when the shadows in the room grew even darker.

She slowly approached the man. “Are you feeling better now…?”

Before she could finish her sentence, her vision flipped abruptly. Without even time to gasp, she was pulled into the blanket. It was an animal-like swiftness that made it hard to believe the man was blind.

The thick blanket blocked her vision entirely. The faint outlines she could perceive were gone, and darkness enveloped her completely. Whether her eyes were open or closed, the colors didn’t change. It was an overwhelming blackness.

The warmth soaked into the blanket, mixed with the unfamiliar scent of another person. There was the slightly bitter smell of medicinal tea, known for its benefits for headaches and sleep, along with the heavy alcoholic scent of strong wine. Among it all, there was a strangely sweet hint of herbs.

Medicine and alcohol—such contradictory elements. Yet the man showed no signs of sleep or intoxication.

The sudden grip that roughly grabbed her body jolted her back to reality. But the man’s hands had already crossed her wrists above her head, binding them. It wasn’t just his hands—her thighs, pinned by his firm knee, throbbed painfully. His movements were quick. Her limbs were restrained. It was a wonder she hadn’t screamed.

Suddenly, warm breath tickled her left cheek. The man’s face was closer than she’d anticipated.

“When maids sneak into their master’s bedroom, they usually have one of two purposes.”

As he spoke, his face moved even closer, his breath brushing her ear. She could feel the hard contours of his bones. It was warm, but not as soft as lips—probably his nose.

His whisper, low and chilling, followed, “An assassination attempt.”

The man, who had been supporting himself like a table over her, slowly bent his upper body. His knee, pressing into her thigh, slid down, and the pain was so intense that her breath caught. By tomorrow, a long bruise would undoubtedly mark the path of his knee.

In the meantime, the man fully pressed his body against hers, pinning her with his weight. The pressure felt like a boulder.

“Or sex.”

There was no point in struggling against a man who far outweighed and overpowered her.

“Or maybe both?”

His breathing quickened, making his chest rise and fall against hers. She had rushed out without putting on an outer garment, and now the warmth of their bodies was trapped within the thin blanket. The man was likely sharing the same sensation.

She took a slow, measured breath. “If that was my intention, wouldn’t someone stealthier, perhaps skilled with a weapon, or a woman more seductive than me have been sent?”

A mocking laugh escaped him. “Why, did something get a little crushed?”

“…I’m not particularly attractive.”

“Like a blind fool could tell. They could put a face with a missing nose, mouth, or eye in front of me, and I wouldn’t know. They must have figured as long as there’s a hole to stick it in, it’d be enough.”

“You’re just picking a fight.”

“Picking a fight?”

The grip on her wrists tightened harshly. His other hand moved from her cheek, past her chin, and gripped her neck.

“Do you know who ruined my eyes?”

“……”

“It was a maid just like you.”

The pressure on her throat made her cough.

“Do you know how she did it?”

“……”

“She poured poison into my eyes.”

His hand tightened around her throat, cutting off her air.

“While I was drunk and asleep, she slipped in. It was the welcome gift I received from my brother the moment I returned home victorious from the war.”

The man’s tone was leisurely, showing no concern for the fact that she was choking.

“In a single day, I became a cripple who stumbled with every step and couldn’t even hold a spoonful of soup.”

“Ah…”

“But do you think Akenaus was reassured just because I became a cripple?”

The man answered his own question, “Of course not. Even though I’m blind, my lower half still works. What if I secretly fathered a child somewhere? That would be a disaster, wouldn’t it?”

“Ah…”

“His pathetic fear probably made him desperate enough to want to wipe out my entire bloodline.”

“Uh…”

“Now tell me. What did Akenaus promise you for coming here?”

His tone was suddenly tender, as if pretending to care.

“I…”

“Did he offer you a generous payment?”

Her consciousness flickered. Her limbs trembled uncontrollably. Her heartbeat pounded loudly, only to fade again. Her vision had already been black for some time.

Her limp limbs sagged. Sensing the danger of her impending suffocation, the man’s grip on her throat loosened slightly.

Air rushed in just in time. Instinctively, she gasped for breath. A fierce headache accompanied the violent coughing fit that followed. Unconsciously, tears dripped down her face, and she drooled. Her nose stung, and her ears rang. It was as if every part of her body had been overwhelmed at once, simply because she could breathe again.

“I was… closing the windows,” she spoke, doubting her own hearing for a moment. The voice that came out of her throat was so raspy it was hard to believe it belonged to her. It sounded like metal scraping against a steel plate. Her vocal cords were completely shot.

Before he could choke her again, she managed to croak out an explanation. “I was… closing the windows because of the storm…”

“How boring.”

His response was emotionless. From his tone alone, she couldn’t guess what kind of expression he had. Not that it mattered. With the blanket completely blocking her sight, she was as good as blind.

“I… I will… prove it.”

She didn’t even have time to recover from her coughing fit. There was no time to clear her throat; she just had to speak.

“Prove? Prove what?”

His casual question was devoid of any warmth.

“Somewhere on my body…”

Even as she spoke those few syllables, another round of coughing erupted.

“Check if such a poison is hidden on me. Search me thoroughly, feel and examine everything. And if you still have doubts after that, do with me as you will. I’ll comply.”