Zhao Tian gently caressed Velnorah’s cheek as she kept her gaze lowered "I am really surprised, Velnorah..."
Her body twitched upon hearing this and he continued, "...but I am sure you had your reasons."
Velnorah raised her gaze to look at him and he leaned forward, pressing his lips against hers.
She hesitatingly reciprocated the kiss and a little later, they pulled back from the kiss.
Looking into his eyes, she asked "How... did you find out?"
With a sigh, he replied "I was in the capital.. and someone was following me around."
She tilted her head in confusion, her brows furrowing. "Following you?"
He nodded, then continued, "At first, I thought it was just some curious people, but their behavior was... off. I confronted them, two women, and we fought."
"During the fight, I realized those two were vampires."
"Well, they were strong... but then I was caught off guard and fell unconscious."
"When I woke up.. I realized I was hit by an aphrodisiac and those two vampires were naked in front of me..."
"Ha... then I somehow escaped from those two women."
H-Huh? Velnorah stared at him in disbelief. "H-Huh? Those... bitches..."
Zhao Tian raised an eyebrow at her reaction. "You know them?"
Hurriedly shaking her head, she asked "T-Tian, how do they look?"
She hoped that those two women were not the ones she was expecting, though a flicker in her heart told her that it must be them.@@@@
With a nod, he replied "One of them had black hair and red eyes like you... the other had black hair and green eyes."
Velnorah gasped in surprise as she stumbled back on the wall "H-How did they find you?"
"No, No, No, No.." she clutched her forehead in distress as she thought about it.
Zhao Tian was confused by her reaction. "Velnorah?"
Velnorah’s tone grew colder "She despised him, of course. The very idea of being with anyone other than Selena was repulsive to her. But she obeyed... because she had no other choice. And from that loveless union... I was born."
"She hated me from the moment she knew she was pregnant,"
Velnorah continued, her voice quieter now. "To her, I was nothing but a reminder of everything she had lost. She gave birth to me unwillingly, and she made sure I never forgot it."
She turned to look at him, "After my grandfather’s death, she finally broke off the marriage and went to live with her sister. But even then... she couldn’t let go of her hatred for me."
"She blamed me for everything... her unhappiness, her lost love, her ruined dreams. And she took it out on me every chance she got."
Velnorah’s gaze dropped to the floor. "She abused me every day. Physically, emotionally... even publicly. She made sure everyone in the clan knew that I was a mistake."
"And yet... I stayed. I endured it all because I thought... maybe one day, I could prove my worth. Maybe one day, she would look at me and see more than a mistake."
"But that day never came."
"So, when this mission was offered to me... I took it. I thought if I could achieve the Dusk rank, she’d have no choice but to acknowledge me. She’d have to respect me."
Her voice trembled, and Zhao Tian saw a single tear slide down her cheek. "But now... now I realize how foolish I was."
"Even if I earned the Dusk rank, it wouldn’t have changed anything. She would’ve found another way to hurt me."
Zhao Tian’s heart ached as he listened to her and he reached out, gently wiping the tear from her cheek.
"Velnorah..."
He gently hugged her and she leaned forward, resting her head on his chest.
Patting her head, he closed his eyes ’Good thing I decided to listen to her instead of lashing out...’
A bit later, her breathing steadied, and she gently pulled herself from the hug, looking at him.
Gently patting her head, he spoke "It must have been very hard for you, Velnorah... You are brave for enduring all of this for years."
A faint smile bloomed on her lips hearing this "Thank you, Tian..."
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I hope you guys liked this chapter!