The Crown and The Rose
Chapter 69: Nasty Creatures

Chapter 69: Nasty Creatures

The Crown

"Lush, I have my fair share of doubt about your sanity at this moment." Erick drops the garment and looks at me with disbelief.

My grin widens, "You are mistaken my dear guard dog. Because at this point, I am pretty sure that I have lost my conscience and have gone completely out of my mind." I am not being sarcastic, I am being logical. Because I too have my fair share of doubt about being sane after falling in love with the demon lord that I am absolutely forbidden to.

The nature law, the gods, and every single being on this planet forbid the relationship that I want to have with Vermilion. This is almost comical and I want to laugh at how ironic it is. A me who has never been in love and a he, who doesn’t know how to love. I have given a man my heart who will crush my heart into pieces and bury it six feet under the ground no doubt.

Erick sighs. He knows he doesn’t have any other option but to do what I tell him to. But he will try for a last time, "Can’t you have Zhen Xin—that cat-like tiger—do the job for you?"

"I sent him to another job. And now stop complaining and jump." I insist once again, looking down at the unforgiving hard ground as I wonder if a free fall from this height can crush one person’s bones the way it did to Mira. And the result of my conclusion is: absolutely no. It is close to impossible to get that result if a normal human being falls from here.

Erick blows out a defeated sigh and leaps out of the window without another word. I wait patiently until he hits the ground with a loud thud. I lithely climb down the height and join Erick. He has sat up and I double over to inspect him. Mira’s corpse still lays on the ground just a few feet away from us. The infuriating stench of crusted blood still lingers in the air. I don’t let my eyes stray to it.

"Any unusual injury?" I scrutinize his form under the night sky and red lantern lights, "What do you think?"

Erick purses his lips as he stretches his arms and pops the muscles in his body, "I have a sprained ankle, bruised ribs, and a few of them are broken. I didn’t fall on my head so it’s intact." He concludes and I make a humming noise in acknowledgment.

Then how the hell did Mira manage to be injured that severely?

Erick is a noble-blooded demon so obviously he wouldn’t be hurt that much but still if it were any human being then they would have a few broken bones at max. How come Mira turned into a mush after the fall? Or did she even fall?

I have questions but no one to answer them. It’s a tragedy I brought upon myself. Only Gods know what I am supposed to do now. No leads, no hints... what the hell this situation is?!

I straighten up and at last, allow myself to look at the corpse on the ground beside us. And I notice something that I haven’t noticed before.

Her nails.

Something is stuck on her nails.

Mira is a prostitute. She needs to look beautiful every second of the day. Clean, attractive, and sinful. But her nails are dirty, beyond dirty. Something dark is stuck in there. It’s like dark smoke. I can sense dark energy wafting off from it. I take a step closer to Mira’s dead body and crouch down once more. I narrow my eyes on her nails and pick up his hand to study the abnormality.

I try to touch her bloody nails but as soon as the smoke contacts with my skin, it makes my skin scorch. I flinch my hand away from it and stumble back, tubing my incriminated finger with my thumb.

"You found something?" Erick stands behind me and pulls up on my feet from the dusty ground.

I climb back to my feet and heal myself with one swift motion. I don’t take my eyes off the corpse on the ground. I may have a lead now. But I can’t tell if I am actually happy with it. I hope, I truly hope this deed was committed by a human. No, I pray that it was committed by a human because I am over dealing with nasty creatures.

I do not wish for another ride of something wild, unhinged, and absolutely dangerous. Because I know I will get myself in deep shit and Vermilion will come rushing to rescue me once again. Or not. Because we parted on very bad terms and I am half doubtful that he will even bother to come this time if I were to find myself in something unpleasant and life threatening.

But this is not the only reason, I have my own pride and the thing with Vermilion is something that my high self-esteem would never allow me to do. Even if Vermilion came to rescue me, I would rather die than take his hand and forget all the things that he has said to me and down to me.

Yes, I am angry. I am angry at how he treated me and how he appeared so nonchalant about it, how he tossed me away like I never mattered—even if I actually didn’t. He took me in, used me the way he wished, and then tossed me away like I was yesterday’s trash. I am a crown prince. And I have my dignity.

Hmph! As if I am going back to him.

"Your Highness, I have escorted the crown princess to the palace." Zhen Xin approaches us with his tiny legs. He climbs up to my shoulder and takes his usual position

I let my eyes drift to him before I finally answer Erick’s question. "Mira is killed by dark magic...or at least a dark magic user."

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