Beauty and the Beast: Rose Castle 5

Lambert glanced at him coldly, “You are too presumptuous, Ulysses.”

“I am too presumptuous, and then what? Are you going to reprimand me like before, tell Father about my actions, and sow discord like a petty person?”

Lambert paused, “Are you now the heir to the throne?”

“Of course. Because the most excellent elder brother has turned into an ugly beast. Otherwise, someone as despicable as me wouldn’t even have the right to covet the throne.”

Ulysses kept provoking Lambert, seemingly trying to make him lose control or get angry, but Lambert’s emotions remained as calm as a lake, without any fluctuations. I remember at the beginning, he couldn’t even tolerate a few taunts from Ulysses, but in the past two days, he seems to have become more rational and calm, more like a well-mannered prince…

This is probably his true nature.

“Since you are already the heir to the throne, you should act more maturely.” Lambert turned a page of the book without looking up, “The way you are now is no different from a beggar who suddenly became rich.”

Ulysses’ face changed, and he jumped off the long table, drawing his sword and pointing it at Lambert. “I really don’t know where you get the confidence to lecture me.”

My heart tightened, fearing the sword might cut him. Lambert, however, was unfazed. He pinched the sword with two fingers. “Thanks to the witch you hired, swords and knives are now useless against me.” With that, he broke the sharp, hard blade.

Ulysses looked at the broken sword, his expression changing. After a moment, he sneered, “I don’t care what method you used to delay the beast transformation… Let me tell you, it’s all in vain. The curse can only be broken when you truly fall in love with someone. Someone as cold-blooded as you, how could you ever give your heart? Just wait for your end!”

Lambert tilted his head and glanced at him, smiling slightly. “How do you know I won’t?”

Seeing that smile, I felt as if my heart was submerged in boiling water. I took two steps back, my back pressing against the cold stone pillar, unable to describe my feelings.

Ulysses’ words… Could it mean that only when he truly loves someone will the beast transformation be delayed? Lambert used to be so sensitive and irritable, but he has been rational and clear-headed in the past two days. Could it be because… I dared not think further, but the answer kept surfacing in my mind: Yes, he has feelings for you. Otherwise, how could he respond to Ulysses like that?

Thinking of this, my mind went blank, and I could no longer think rationally. I could only be sure of one thing: at this moment, I didn’t want him to know that I approached him because of my father’s serious illness.

But I had to tell him.

I closed my eyes and slid down the pillar to sit on the ground. The dull pain was like a heavy stone pressing on my heart.

Ulysses left. The castle hall returned to its quiet state. Lambert sat by the fireplace, calmly reading his book. I looked at his figure, lost in thought for a moment, then returned to my room and took a bath. I tried to act as if nothing had happened, focusing on how to reveal the truth to him. But no matter how hard I tried to concentrate, his slight smile kept appearing in my mind.

This feeling of being unable to control myself was really terrible.

At noon, Lambert came upstairs and invited me down for lunch. Even though we hadn’t seen each other for just a morning, his human features were more apparent: his fingers were no longer as hideous and sharp as a lizard’s, becoming long and well-defined, and the black scales on both sides of his neck had reduced significantly. The lines from his jaw to his Adam’s apple were becoming clearer and more beautiful.

I glanced at him and quickly looked away as if burned. His voice sounded above me, with a slight smile, “Good afternoon, Rosa. Let’s go down for lunch.”

My heart skipped a beat. Maybe it was my illusion, but his voice had changed too. It was no longer hoarse but deep and pleasant, with an elegant and ancient pronunciation typical of royalty.

At the dining table, I was lost in thought about how to reveal the truth to him, somewhat absent-minded, and only ate a little. He came over and sat beside me casually, “Don’t you like the food?”

A clear yet wild masculine scent surrounded me. My hand trembled slightly, and I shook my head.

“Then why are you eating so little?”

His tone was concerned, but I suddenly felt repulsed by how he spoke as if we were very close…

We had only known each other for three days, had two meals together, and danced once. I pursed my lips and moved the plate away a bit. “No appetite.”

I regretted it as soon as I said it and was about to say something to make up for it when I heard him say softly, “It seems I offended you. Sorry.”

Why apologize, why care about my feelings…

My thoughts were a mess. He paused and continued, “By the way, I will be leaving for a few days. There are other people in the castle, and meals will be delivered to your room on time, so don’t worry about food and lodging.”

I only heard the first sentence: “Where are you going?”

He pondered for a moment, then smiled lightly and said, “It’s okay to tell you.”

This sentence made me realize that this might be something very private. Once I heard it, our relationship would become even more ambiguous. I wanted to stop him, but my mouth stayed shut, waiting for him to continue.

“You know, snakes and lizards shed their skin, and since I have characteristics of both animals, I can’t escape the shedding period either. In the next few days, I will be in a semi-rigid state, unable to see or walk.” His tone was light, as if he didn’t think these were secrets concerning his life, “So, I need to find a place to hide.”

His attitude was so frank, yet I felt that his gaze, tone, and breath were all filled with flirtation. When he was still human, there must have been many women who were infatuated with him.

Thinking of this, I lost my appetite completely and rudely put down my knife and fork. “…I’m done eating.”

Not wanting this sentence to seem too abrupt, I added, “Take care of yourself.”

He looked into my eyes and said, “I will.”

I practically fled. Half an hour after returning to my room, I realized I had forgotten to confront him. I went downstairs to find him, but he was nowhere to be found. He must have already left.

A strong sense of frustration washed over me. It felt like… I had wasted so many days for nothing. But even if I found him, it wouldn’t help; he was already struggling with his own issues. How could he have time to care about my father? Since he had already left, there was no need for me to stay here any longer. I should go home and take care of my father.

I put on a hooded cloak and took one last look at the castle. Perhaps because of those strange sounds, the castle no longer seemed so eerie and frightening to me; it even felt somewhat familiar. Thinking of the beautiful sky garden, the dance, and Lambert, I closed my eyes, suppressed the sadness of parting, and whispered, “Goodbye… never again.”

I opened the door and ran back the way I came without looking back. The path was clear. To my surprise, the horse was still there and neighed when it saw me. I didn’t dare delay, mounted the horse, and pulled the reins. “Home!”

The afternoon sun was warm and bright, but the castle behind me remained under a cloud. The endless rose fields surrounded it, casting a beautiful rose hue on the castle’s stone walls.

Such a dreamy color, such a dreamy few days.

The journey back was smooth. After seeing the luxurious interior of the castle for so long, the rows of low houses in the village felt a bit jarring. Not wanting the villagers to know I had been to the castle, I took a small path home.

After putting the horse in the stable, I turned and pushed open the gate. About to enter the house, I saw my father looking at me with a serious expression.

I was stunned, then delighted. “Dad, you can walk?”

“Where have you been these past two days?”

I looked around. “Let’s talk inside.”

Once inside, I checked his body, feeling confused. “I remember when I left, you had been unconscious for several days… What happened?”

“You knew I was unconscious!” My father snorted. “Where exactly have you been these past few days?”

Knowing my father was safe and sound, the heavy stone in my heart finally lifted. Then, the sadness of leaving Lambert surged up. Maybe because I suddenly saw my family and had someone to rely on, my nose tingled, and I wanted to tell him everything that had happened in the past few days. But thinking that in most people’s eyes, Lambert was evil and terrifying, I swallowed my words to avoid worrying my father, who had just recovered from a severe illness. I said I had just gone out to find a doctor.

My father warned me, “Don’t wander around these days. The snake in the castle seems to have gone mad and has bitten several passing travelers to death in the past two days.”

The past two days?

In the past two days, Lambert had been in the castle, becoming more human in appearance and demeanor. How could he have gone out and killed people? It was most likely a rumor spread by Ulysses to consolidate his throne.

Thinking of this, I wanted to defend Lambert, then shook my head. Why should I defend him? My father didn’t even know who Lambert and Ulysses were. Since my father had recovered, I should just forget about the past few days.

So, I forced myself to return to normal life and lived peacefully for a month. Until an accident happened in the village, forcing me to recall everything related to Lambert.