Nightmare Came to The Place I Escaped - Chapter 71

 

“Stop it, let’s go. Okay?”

 

As if just noticed the young ladies standing beside her, Ian gave them a small nod, and started to lead Rachel away.

 

“I don’t like it here.”

“….”

 

Ian grabbed Rachel’s wrist without saying another word, and began to walk. Rachel couldn’t resist in the slightest because of the force on her wrist.

 

She looked down at his tight grip, then looked up at Ian.

 

Rachel tried to stop with some effort, but was eventually pulled forward by the force Ian was exerting. It wasn’t until Rachel stumbled a little bit that Ian finally realized Rachel was trying to stop, so he paused.

 

“Why are you saying that it’s dangerous?”

 

What was the danger?

 

This was a distinctly different Ian, raising his voice and running.

 

He was certainly acting strange.

 

“The wild animals may come out, and you may get lost.”

 

Rachel’s face froze at Ian’s words.

 

That was what she’d once told him.

 

“I don’t know. I don’t like it.”

 

Ian seemed to be agitated.

 

“So, don’t come here.”

 

Ian was acting like a stubborn child, and pulled Rachel again. She now walked where he led without saying a word.

 

“We’ll go to the hall, okay? If you’re bored, I’ll stay with you.”

 

After leaving the hunting grounds, Ian finally slowed down his pace.

 

He spoke in a soft voice that would normally be used to soothe a child, but it was Ian who was clinging to Rachel.

 

Nothing he said reached Rachel’s ears though. Her heart was beating so fast that her head was hurting.

 

‘I won’t catch a cold as easily as you.’

‘There might be wild animals.’

 

Just like her, he certainly remembered that time when she disappeared. He remembered the events at the Avery’s estate, that hut, as well as the sound of the trumpets that hit their ears while they were in the Emperor’s hunting grounds.

 

Ian was like her, he remembered all those moments.

 

But he pretended not to know. He’d deceived her on purpose.

 

“Your Majesty, I don’t want to go back.”
“…What?”

“I think I should go home because I’m not feeling well.”

 

At that, Ian stopped walking and looked back at Rachel.

 

Ian frowned as if he was worried about Rachel, who wouldn’t raise her face and look him in the eyes. He raised his hand and brought it towards the side of her face.

 

It seemed that he wanted Rachel to meet his eyes.

 

“Rachel.”

 

Her voice was unusually cold, and her long drooping mouth was unsettling. He wanted to see her eyes.

 

He wanted to make eye contact with Rachel, who seemed to be angry. Why was she speaking so stiffly?

 

Why did she run away after she saw him in the hallway?

 

“I want to go now.”

 

Rachel avoided Ian’s approaching hand.

 

Ian’s outstretched hand wouldn’t reach Rachel.

 

“Okay, I’ll take you there.”
“…I want to go alone.”

 

Ian closed his mouth, as if he was speechless at Rachel’s words.

 

“…Rachel. Why all of a sudden?”

“I can get to the Oates estate by myself.”

“…Yes, let’s do that.”

 

Ian nodded his head.

 

“I’ll just take you to the carriage then. Is that okay?”

 

Ian sighed softly and asked.

 

He was just going to make sure she got into the carriage.

 

He wanted to hold her cheek, and make her look at him. He would be able to tell by looking into Rachel’s bright green eyes.

 

Why was she doing this?

 

Maybe she found out what he was hiding, and maybe that was why she was drawing a line like this. Maybe that’s why she freaked out and ran away from him.

 

He should tell her.

 

But Ian didn’t.

 

If Rachel had found out what he was hiding. What should he do now?

 

Would she accept his apology? Ian couldn’t be sure of anything when it came to that question.

 

Everything that seemed to be easy was so difficult.

 

What if he brought it up first, and Rachel said she was leaving?

 

He wanted to cover it all up. He was afraid that this might be the last time he saw her like this.

 

“Let me just do that.”

 

Rachel wanted Ian to stop and leave her alone, but she just shook her head because she didn’t want to talk any longer.

 

***

 

The butler worriedly approached Rachel, who’d returned without Mike. He tried asking, but Rachel cut the butler off with a short response. Then she went to her room, and closed the door.

 

Click.

 

“Your Majesty…”

 

Ian was just like her.

 

Like her, he’d returned from the past. With all those memories.

 

That’s why he changed.

 

The fact that he suddenly came to say he liked her. Being nice to her. That he didn’t like hunting.

 

Did he regret it?

 

Did he regret killing her like that? Was that why he was so kind to her now?

 

“….”

 

But no matter how much he regretted it, no matter how good he was to her now, what he did to her hadn’t changed a bit.

 

Ian eventually abandoned her, and killed her.

 

She thought the current Ian was different from his past self. He didn’t abandon her or kill her, so she thought that time was gone. She thought that the Ian now and the Ian then were different.

 

She thought she shouldn’t hate him because he didn’t do anything wrong to her.

 

‘You lied to me.’

 

In the end, he tricked her again.

 

Was it funny watching her follow him around without knowing anything?

 

‘Cruel until the end.’

 

Ian was cruel to her until the very end.

 

If he regretted his actions even a little, if he felt sorry for what he did to her, he should’ve apologized to her rather than deceive her again.

 

No, he shouldn’t have come to her in the first place.

 

‘You shouldn’t have come to me and shook me up.’

 

He was always her first.

 

In everything, in every way.

 

Between her and Ian, Ian always came first. Even so, Rachel had never hated it. He was a prince, and she was a maid.

 

For now, she hated him so much. Even though he was so harsh to her, she only thought of him until the end.

 

Couldn’t he have understood how she felt for a moment?

 

“Uh, ugh.”

 

Ian certainly said so.

 

He liked her. She was sure he was sincere.

 

Rachel wanted to quit. To follow Ian, and to match everything with him.

 

At least this time, she didn’t want to follow Ian’s will.

 

She wanted him to understand her feelings a little bit, and feel her pain.

 

No, she wanted to leave all of that behind, she just hated him. She was hateful.

 

The past was approaching her with a smile as if it were nothing. He didn’t know all the ways that he hurt her, and he was shameless.

 

She hated Ian, who liked Diana and her.

 

Everything he did to her was deceitful.

 

She hated him like crazy. She hated it so much.

 

Enough to want to hurt him. She hoped he hurt as much as she did.

 

Rachel cursed him with all her heart. Has she ever hated someone so much?

 

The day she died to Ian and went back in time, Rachel was sad and in pain. She hated Ian, but she didn’t hate him as much as she did at this moment.

 

Tap Tap

 

“Ha, ugh.”

 

Rachel tapped her chest as if it was painful to breathe.

 

She didn’t know when they’d started to flow, but her face was already ruined from her tears. She wanted to stop crying stupidly, but even that was beyond Rachel’s control.

 

Instead, Rachel bit her lip as hard as she could.

 

So that the sound of her crying didn’t leak out.

 

Hoping that no one would know. No one should know.

 

That was something she could do.

 

***

 

Knock Knock

 

When the sun had started to set.

 

The sound of knocking at the door reached Rachel’s ears, through the duvet that covered her head.

 

Knock Knock

 

Rachel wasn’t asleep, but she didn’t answer the knock.

 

“Rachel.”

 

Mike’s voice, which was as subdued as the twilight that had descended outside the window, was heard.

 

“Can I come in for a moment?”

 

Rachel couldn’t open her mouth despite his worried question.

 

Until this morning, he was like family. Now that moment felt like the distant past.

 

Rachel’s heart grew heavy when she thought of poor Mike and the Duke of Oates, who were associated with her.

 

“Okay, I’ll be coming in for a second.”

 

Mike opened the door, even though he didn’t get permission.

 

“Rachel.”

 

She knew he’d entered the room, but Rachel didn’t move from underneath the blanket, even though it was obvious that she wasn’t sleeping.

 

At the end of the hunting contest, Mike went crazy when he heard about Rachel and Ian.

 

Ian had run to the hunting ground in search of Rachel, then there was an argument and a hug between the two.

 

The hunting competition was pushed to the back of everyone’s mind, and their attention was now focused on the lover’s quarrel between Rachel and Ian.

 

The rumor was that Rachel and Ian were having secret encounters so far. Rachel was displeased at Ian, who was hiding their relationship, and she blew up in anger at him. In order to soothe Rachel, Ian ran to her in the forest.

 

What the heck was the truth?

 

Mike was also confused.

 

‘What happened with His Majesty? Did they have a fight?’

 

“Rachel, are you okay?”
“I’m alright.”

 

The blanket moved slightly, perhaps she was nodding underneath the blanket.

 

Rachel’s voice was soft as usual, but the end of the sentence fell short, as if she didn’t want to say anything more.

 

Mike paused at the euphemism that she didn’t want his attention.

 

“Yeah, you must be tired, I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Rachel, please show me your face tomorrow.”

 

Mike said soothingly to Rachel.

 

He didn’t know what happened with Ian during his absence, but Rachel looked very sad.

 

Mike was more distressed by her voice, which sounded as if she’d been crying.

 

What the heck happened to Rachel?

 

But Mike didn’t want to force her to speak. He decided to wait a little longer because she thought she needed some time alone.

 

“I don’t know what happened, but you can come to the study anytime if you want. I’ve got papers to take care of all night tonight. All right, Rachel?”

 

Rachel nodded at Mike’s request.

 

Mike almost let out a frustrated sigh, but he closed his mouth and carefully left the room.

 

***