Chapter 16

I glanced at the clock in the bedroom; it wasn’t even six o’clock yet. Could Lambert have transformed into a beast early again?

I got out of bed, wanting to see what was happening but afraid of interrupting them. If Ophelia were using her kindness to calm the beastly Lambert, my sudden appearance would be awkward.

Thinking this, I walked to the balcony, leaning on the railing, planning to wait until the commotion downstairs subsided before checking. The castle was always shrouded in thick gray clouds, with lightning-like white shark fins occasionally cutting through the dark fog. The distant mountains and villages were bathed in purple-red sunset. This place, filled with the world’s grandeur and luxury, was a cursed land that never saw daylight.

I thought the screams would soon stop, but after a few minutes, they grew more intense:
“Help—help! Someone save me. Your Highness, Your Highness! Save me! Don’t come near, go away, go away!”

Why this reaction?
Could it be that it wasn’t Lambert transforming but another beast entering the castle?

It’s possible. If it was the giant snake I encountered last time, Ophelia’s reaction would make sense.

Damn it, a giant snake entered the castle, and I left Ophelia alone in the hall. I put on tight boots to ensure they wouldn’t fail me later. I wanted to find a stick for self-defense, but after searching for a long time, I couldn’t find one. Finally, I broke a hoop from the wardrobe and tied it into a sturdy stick with a rope. After doing all this, I opened the door and rushed out, shouting, “Don’t be afraid, Ophelia! I’m coming!”

What I saw made me freeze: no giant snake, no beast, just a disfigured monster on the castle’s marble floor. It was Lambert. His pupils were blood-red, his clothes nearly in tatters, his fingers bent grotesquely, his limbs like a lizard’s again, and black scales rapidly covering his skin. His appearance startled even me, let alone Ophelia, who was seeing his beastly form for the first time.

“Miss Rosalind…” Even now, she insists on calling me by my full name. Sometimes this girl was smart, sometimes incredibly rigid, “Although I hope you can save me, this… this thing is clearly beyond your ability! Go to the second floor and wake up His Highness. I called him many times, but he didn’t respond, probably because he’s asleep!”

I stood there, unable to move forward or retreat. I couldn’t bear to tell her that the prince she hoped would save her was actually the monster standing before her.

After hesitating for just two seconds, Lambert teleported in front of Ophelia. She fell to the ground, covering her face with her hands, tears of fear seeping through her fingers. After transforming, Lambert’s body had become abnormally tall, and his legs were unnaturally long. Initially, he was only a head taller than Ophelia, but now, she couldn’t even reach his chest. He looked down at her, his eyes devoid of any rational emotion, filled only with the primal desire to hunt, like a wolf eyeing a sheep or a leopard eyeing a deer.

Perhaps out of sheer terror, Ophelia finally remembered to resist. She retreated while grabbing small objects around her and threw them heavily at Lambert: “Stay away, stay away! You ugly monster! My brother is the bravest knight in the northern kingdom. If you dare touch me, my brother will skin you alive and hang your hide on the wall!”

Spoons, forks, candlesticks, and vases were all thrown at Lambert, but his expression remained unchanged. He didn’t even bother blocking them with his hand, as if they didn’t hurt.

Seeing no way out, Ophelia’s back pressed against the wall, her face showing a resolve to die: “Ugly monster… Even if I die, I, Ophelia De Lancaster, will not let you defile me.” She drew a jeweled dagger and aimed it at her throat. “Miss Rosalind, everyone has their own desires. I can understand no matter your reasons for not daring to call the prince to deal with this monster. But please, fulfill my last wish and send me back to the northern lands. I want to be buried in the Lancaster family tomb. Tell my family that I died intact, without a single hair harmed by this monster!”

I didn’t expect her to seek death, so I hurriedly shouted, “Wait!” Ophelia, holding the dagger, looked at me with some confusion.

A few words couldn’t explain it clearly, and Lambert had already walked to her side. I ran downstairs at the fastest speed of my life and threw the crinoline in my hand: “Look at me!”

The crinoline hit the back of his head and fell to the ground with a “bang.”

Lambert slowly turned his head, his scarlet eyes coldly staring at me, his pupils contracting into needles, looking as if he had no irises from a distance. No wonder Ophelia was so scared. His initially thin and angular face had turned into a triangular snake head, with no trace of his high nose bridge and beautiful lips. It was no wonder Ophelia couldn’t recognize him. But I couldn’t blame her; I probably wouldn’t have recognized him if I hadn’t known beforehand.

I wondered if he still had memories from before his beast transformation.

“Come here.” I softened my tone, “Come to my side.”

Ophelia looked at me in shock: “Miss Rosalind, why are you being so gentle with a monster?”

I didn’t know how to answer, hesitated for a moment, and decided to tell her the truth: “He… is not a monster. This is what Lambert looks like after transforming into a beast.”

Ophelia’s mouth opened slightly, and she looked at Lambert in disbelief. Her sky-blue eyes instantly filled with tears, as sorrowful as the lonely autumn sky: “No wonder you stood still just now. I thought you didn’t want to save me. So that’s how it is.”

I silently shook my head.

She wiped her tears and murmured, “How could His Highness become like this? I was waiting for him to be crowned king.” She looked sadly at Lambert’s back. “He should have been wearing the most solemn white robe, crowned, and receiving the worship of his subjects and people, not living like this… like this,” her voice grew smaller, “he might as well be dead.”

I always thought Ophelia was kind, and she indeed was. Even in the face of life and death, when she mistakenly thought I didn’t want to save her, she could still forgive me. However, such a kind person thought that Lambert, who had turned into a beast, shouldn’t be alive.

Perhaps for the nobility, living in disgrace is worse than dying with dignity. This might be why she had the will to die just now.

But I couldn’t understand this way of thinking. Lambert’s beast transformation was temporary. If she truly liked Lambert, shouldn’t she sympathize with his plight and stay in the castle to find a way to break the curse and help him return to his original form?

I didn’t have the chance to ask these questions because Lambert had already come to me. His lips, initially thin and beautiful, had now become flat and ugly like a snake’s. If he kissed me like this, I would probably be terrified, too. Fortunately, he had no intention of kissing me, only staring at me coldly. If I moved even slightly, his throat would emit a hiss, revealing his sharp white teeth in a threatening manner.

What a tricky situation. I didn’t know if he still remembered me. If he didn’t, trying to soothe him with a kiss might get me clawed to death. If I had known this would happen, I would have learned a few tricks from the circus animal trainers. I swallowed and tentatively reached out a hand: “Lambert…”

In the past, if I reached out like this, he wouldn’t have reacted, but today he was particularly irritable. Before my fingers even entered his line of sight, he squinted his eyes, bared his teeth, and growled, his breath like scorching flames spraying onto my fingertips. It was too hot. I couldn’t help but withdraw my hand.

Why had his condition suddenly worsened?

Was it because of Ophelia’s fear or because I had given up on him?

The weather above the castle seemed to be connected to his emotions. At this moment, he was surrounded by gloom and irritability. The gray clouds in the sky almost touched the ground, lightning flashed, thunder roared, and the torrential rain was like thousands of drumsticks fiercely beating on the castle’s towers and stained glass windows. Often, the weather directly affects people’s moods. Listening to the pouring rain, my mood gradually became anxious.

Ophelia’s voice rang out through the rain: “Miss Rosalind! Don’t get so close to His Highness. It’s very dangerous! He is no longer the prince we knew!”

His nature, knowledge, and demeanor were still there, just hidden by his instincts and beastly appearance. As long as the curse was broken, he could return to his original self. Why say he was no longer Lambert?

I grew increasingly anxious, took a deep breath, and tentatively reached out again: “Lambert, can you hear me?”

This time, he didn’t react violently. He even extended his forked tongue to touch my finger. It felt like being burned by fire. I endured the stinging pain in my fingertips, wanting to touch his face and soothe his overly irritable emotions. However, before I could touch his skin, he suddenly grabbed my neck with one hand and pressed me to the ground. He seemed to have truly turned into a beast, losing all his previous memories. His eyes sometimes squinted fiercely, sometimes turned cunningly, as if contemplating how to deal with me.

At this moment, I saw Ophelia approaching from behind, holding a dagger high. She wanted to save me. This girl was a good person, just a bit too rigid in her thinking. I shook my head and waved my hand with all my might, signaling her to stay away.

My actions didn’t stop Ophelia; instead, they piqued Lambert’s curiosity. He grabbed my wrists with his other hand, his nose twitching slightly as he sniffed my fingers. His palms were cold, but his breath was like boiling water, making me clench my fists. As the cold gleam of Ophelia’s dagger drew closer, he lost interest in my fingers and shifted his gaze to my lips.
The scene that followed was horrifying and bizarre: in the pouring rain of a dark night, inside a gloomy and dim ancient castle, a monster with a snake-like head, lizard-like hands, and a body covered in black scales held a human woman’s neck, grasped her wrists, and leaned in to kiss her. Behind them, a beautiful woman wearing a blue feathered headdress and luxurious clothes took two steps back, dropped the dagger with a clang, and covered her mouth in disbelief.

…

After the kiss, Lambert’s scarlet eyes turned, and an unmistakable look of pleasure appeared on his ugly face.