𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 ✔

Chapter Sixteen

"Possibly. However, I do not think we shall be burned to death today." I let out a reassuring chuckle. I myself did not feel terror like the others, well excluding Lottie, and the absence of fear was awful. I felt like a hollow shell, the only thing that kept me going was the curiosity I held, and the excitement caused by the situation. Sebastian was nowhere to be seen and I thanked every single God, and Goddess I could name off the top of my head.

"I wish you all good luck and do hope to see some or God willing, all of your faces again. We the townspeople, thank you for your sacrifices to save the collective." The look on Lord Chambren's face did not coincide with what he was saying or how he was saying it. He looked unbearably miserable.

In a way, I think he blamed himself partly for whatever was going to happen to us, because he was the one who carried the weight of the guilt that the town was supposed to have felt on his own back. No one else truly cared as much as he did, and the only reason he was placed in the position was because he had been appointed by, his highness, the Emperor to aid the Prince as he grew to rule over, not only our town but, the whole of what was once France. "Au revoir Mademoiselles and may God watch over you."

I waved at Madame and discreetly flashed Lord Chambren a smile before the carriage started forward. Alveary clung to me tightly as the four of us made our journey from the market. We passed all the estates one by one before we made the uphill ascent to the castle, that was perched on a plateau just off the side of the jagged mountain range which towered behind it.

It was a strategically placed fortress that, in summer let alone winter, must have been quite cold at night. Though, it was a magnificent structure which the closer we got the larger it grew in size. From the poor side of town, you could see only half of the castle from it being obstructed by trees, but also that part of town was lower than the rest, where the town itself was on a slight uphill slope that was a part of the Mountain's highlands. The estates were dotted along the highlands themselves leading towards the base of the mountain, where a steep, yet thick path was carved into the plateau itself which led to the front gate of the large stone wall that surrounded the front of the castle and met with the mountain itself.

It occurred to me that I knew little about the castle other than its outwards appearance. After spending all that time at the Fontaine estate, not once did I ask about the construction, layout nor details of it, which was foolish on my part. Though, not knowing anything about the place I had been sent to, made the whole experience rather fascinating. To finally see what the mysterious haunting structure on the mountain looked like up close and what secrets it held inside was unbearably enticing. That was, if you disregarded the fact there might have been a man-eating monster lurking inside.

I suppose deep down inside I had always wanted to be sent to the castle out of pure curiosity, but perhaps my secret desire to go was stemmed from not truly believing the rumors which circulated about the place and the entity that was said to be inside. Or maybe it was the dreams.

It was hard to deny the existence of a beast when I had lived in a town cut off from the rest of the world by a curse, but something with the term beast never quite set right with me. Even more so when Lord Chambren read the contents of the black letter to us not many days ago. If there was anyone in the castle, I believed it was to be its very owner, Prince Leroux. Now, what he was if he was not entirely himself, I could not say.

I looked at the other girls to see if they were doing well as we neared the start of the carved path. Lottie looked fine, but Justine's legs shook as she kept looking at her hands that laid on her lap.

"You aren't afraid of heights, are you?" I asked to Justine.

"I am, and you best not make fun of me for it." She mumbled, not once looking up.