Grant me Your Grace Chapter 84

As if he had said something he should never have let slip, Khankundra noticeably searched for somewhere else to look and let out an awkward, hollow laugh.

 

“The… the divine power is a blessing granted by the goddess solely for the imperial family of Baran. Who would dare to so presumptuously receive the supernatural ability that belongs to the imperial bloodline?”

 

It was a denial so awkward it was almost laughable—enough to make one snort in disbelief. 

 

Hissin abruptly released Khankundra’s hand as though throwing it away and stood up from his seat.

 

“I was already starting to get sick of tormenting you just to find one relic that should have been destroyed long ago. Looks like I’ve just been given one more perfect justification to wring your neck.”

 

“Stop talking nonsense and bring Dahlia to me! Give me back my daughter right now!”

 

Leaving the wildly thrashing Khankundra—who clearly didn’t know his place—behind, Hissin rose from his seat. 

 

He planned to stop here for today and slowly start digging into the secrets these people were hiding starting tomorrow.

 

But this foolish bastard… why did he have to trample even on the minimal mercy that had been extended to him?

 

“Or at least give me that child’s blood!”

 

Khankundra, clinging to the iron bars, begged like a dog licking at food waste.

 

“Just one sip… even just one mouthful would be enough… please, that child’s blood…!”

 

Hissin, who had been turning to leave, suddenly froze in place. 

 

‘Ha.’ He let out a short, derisive laugh, and in an instant, his eyes blazed with fierce, searing fire.

 

In the blink of an eye, Hissin snatched the keys from the guard, strode straight into the cell, and pounced on Khankundra. Then he began mercilessly slamming his fists into the man’s face.

 

The still-heated metal floor of the cell seared his legs, but the rage-filled Hissin felt nothing at all.

 

“Aaagh! Urk! Haaah…!”

 

With every powerful blow that landed, Khankundra’s face became more and more ruined. When an enormous amount of blood burst from his collapsed nose bridge, he gasped as though he might suffocate at any moment.

 

Just as the crazed Hissin raised his fist high, seemingly ready to end Khankundra’s life once and for all—

 

“Lord Levitzenna.”

 

The low voice that rang through the interrogation chamber made Hissin freeze mid-motion. When he turned his head, Hovan was standing there with an extremely grave expression.

 

“What is it?”

 

The murderous red gaze shot straight toward him, and Hovan swallowed hard. 

 

Seeing the blood splattered below, he was startled once more but pretended he had seen nothing and continued speaking.

 

“It seems… you should go to Her Highness the Princess for a moment.”

 

Princess. 

 

At those two words alone, the ferocious red light softened gently. The cruel gleam vanished, and his face quickly returned to its usual cool, composed expression.

 

Hissin exhaled lowly and released the now unconscious Khankundra, rising from his spot.

 

“Clean this up.”

 

“Yes.”

 

Leaving the limp Khankundra behind, Hissin exited the interrogation chamber. Hovan hurriedly followed behind him and explained the situation.

 

“While I stepped away briefly, I had another child bring food to Her Highness… and it appears Her Highness harmed the child and… fed her blood.”

 

“Fed her blood?”

 

Hissin’s eyes narrowed sharply, and Hovan bowed his head deeply in apology.

 

“I am deeply sorry. No matter what, I should never have left my post… This is entirely my fault. Please punish me.”

 

Hissin furrowed his brow. If she had harmed someone and immediately let them consume her blood, red spots would already be spreading across Dahlia’s body by now. 

 

There was no time to delay.

 

“The interrogation can wait. This matter is more urgent.”

 

Hissin quickened his pace even more, heading straight toward Dahlia’s room.

 

As he crossed the corridor, he could see soldiers guarding the door in the distance and a young woman standing there. 

 

The woman was deathly pale and crying. She must be the one Hovan had just mentioned.

 

The moment she spotted Hissin, she hurriedly threw herself to the floor.

 

“I-I’m so sorry, Lord Levitzenna! I tried my best to stop her, but it happened so quickly…”

 

There were still traces of blood around the woman’s mouth that she hadn’t managed to wipe away. 

 

Hissin’s heart grew even more urgent.

 

“Open it.”

 

“Yes.”

 

The soldier had barely inserted the key into the lock and turned it when Hissin flung the door open wide. In the center of the room, on the bed, Dahlia was sitting quietly.

 

At first glance, no spots were visible on her. 

 

Hissin quickly scanned her with his eyes, then fixed his gaze on her and spoke to those standing behind him.

 

“Everyone, leave. Until I call for you, no one is to come near this door.”

 

“Yes, Lady Leviyanna.”

 

Soon, Hovan led the soldier and the woman away from the front of the room. Once he confirmed they had completely disappeared, Hissin closed the door.

 

Click—

 

After locking it, he looked at Dahlia. 

 

Even though she knew he had come, she stubbornly refused to lift her head. She merely stared at the floor, her breathing faintly trembling.

 

It was a protest. Why did Hissin only come now?

 

Saying he had been busy dealing with matters concerning the Baran kingdom was nothing but an excuse. 

 

The real reason he only visited when she was asleep, silently gazing at her peaceful face for a long time before leaving, was that he lacked the confidence to face her fierce resentment without his resolve wavering.

 

He feared that seeing her suffering face would make him want to give up everything. 

 

That he would inevitably want to return it all to her embrace.

 

Even though he knew he could never do that—and must never do that.

 

Swallowing the twisting emotions in his heart, Hissin spoke in a mocking tone.

 

“Looks like you’ve already adapted to this place. You’ve even mastered how to summon me.”

 

At those words, he saw Dahlia bite down hard on her lower lip. The lip painfully pressed between her teeth drew Hissin’s gaze like a hook.

 

Was she holding back her anger? Or enduring pain? 

 

The sight of her clearly uncomfortable yet stubbornly enduring it only irritated Hissin’s nerves even more.

 

Hissin strode forward and seized Dahlia’s chin. 

 

Even when he pressed down on her jaw, she refused to release her lip, so he jerked her head up forcefully. Dahlia’s eyes flew wide open as she glared at him.

 

Examining her spotless white neck, Hissin said,

 

“Missed this body, did you? Then you should have said so earlier.”

 

The corner of his lips twisted up cruelly.

 

“If you had, I could have come here to spread your legs without all this fuss.”

 

At the deliberately humiliating words, Dahlia flung his hand away.

 

“I… I just wanted to tell you to either kill me or let me out of this damned place. This petty pain—whether you’re here or not, it’ll disappear on its own once time passes anyway.”

 

“Why bother stubbornly enduring it like an idiot? One touch from me and it would all vanish without a trace.”

 

Hissin grabbed Dahlia’s arm. While he was inspecting her forearm and shoulder in search of red spots, he suddenly frowned at her wrist—noticeably thinner than he remembered.

 

He turned his head toward the bedside table. 

 

The untouched molokhia soup had gone cold, and pieces of bread that seemed to have been knocked over during the recent scuffle with the woman were scattered across the floor.

 

“Let go.”

 

Even now, Dahlia was desperately trying to wrench her captured arm free. 

 

It seemed she was exerting every ounce of strength she had, yet all she managed was to make his arm sway ever so slightly.

 

To think that pulling with all her might only amounted to this. The sheer weakness of her made Hissin’s irritation surge even higher.

 

“Ah!”

 

Hissin caught her other hand—the one that had been wildly hitting and scratching at his arm—with a single grip. 

 

Then he scooped up the cold soup and pressed it to Dahlia’s mouth.

 

“Eat. You need to eat something to get your strength back so you can either kill me or do whatever you want, right?”

 

“You really have all sorts of ways to make me miserable. Even if I die by your hand, it wouldn’t be enough, and now you want me to commit yet another sin against you?”

 

“There’s no greater punishment for me than watching you fall apart like this.”

 

“If you’re not going to kill me right here and now or send me back to the Baran kingdom, then just leave me alone. Even if you bury my corpse in Moron, I’ll repay Baran’s sins that way.”

 

Dahlia pressed her lips tightly together and turned her head away.

 

Was she seriously planning to starve herself to death? 

 

Her body, which had been barely surviving on water and tea for days, had become so emaciated that it wouldn’t be strange if she collapsed at any moment.

 

If Hovan hadn’t moistened her sleeping lips with milk and let it trickle down yesterday, she would have already fainted from dehydration or malnutrition by now.

 

At this rate, how was she any different from Khankundra trapped in the cage under the sun?

 

“I’ve felt this for a long time, but your stubbornness really deserves recognition.”

 

Hissin lifted the soup bowl to his own mouth. 

 

After filling his mouth with a generous amount of soup, he immediately pressed both of Dahlia’s cheeks, forcing her mouth open. Then he kissed her and let the soup flow inside.

 

“Mmph…!”

 

Dahlia shook her head in resistance, but with her jaw firmly held by Hissin, she couldn’t break free. 

 

The soup he pushed with the tip of his tongue slid down her throat without resistance.

 

“Cough, puh, ah…”

 

Having swallowed food after so long, Dahlia coughed painfully. 

 

But Hissin immediately lifted the bowl again, took another mouthful of soup, and kissed her once more.

 

Determined not to let it happen a second time, Dahlia desperately clamped her lips shut. She bit down hard enough on her lower lip to hurt, but her sealed mouth refused to open easily.

 

Hissin narrowed his eyes in displeasure and pushed her down onto the bed with his body.

 

“Ughh…!”

 

Then he grasped her prominently rising chest with one hand.