Chapter 30 CHAPTER 30
One of the servant creatures.
It was crouched beside the wall, shaking slightly. Up close, it looked smaller than I remembered, barely reaching my waist. Its long ears were pinned back, and one of its little arms had a deep scratch running across it.
“Oh…”
The creature looked up at me instantly. Those huge dark eyes widened, and for a second I thought it would show those razor sharp teeth again.
Instead, it whimpered.
Actually whimpered.
I stared at it in shock.
“You’re hurt?” I asked quietly.
The creature made a soft clicking sound and backed further against the wall, clearly frightened.
Not of me.
Of something else.
That uneasy feeling in my stomach returned immediately.
Slowly, I crouched down a little, trying not to scare it. “Hey… I’m not going to hurt you.”
The creature’s nose twitched slightly like it was sniffing the air around me.
Then—
A deep growl echoed from somewhere below.
The servant creature froze.
So did I.
Another sound followed.
Claws scraping stone.
Slow.
Heavy.
My heart immediately started pounding.
The creature suddenly rushed toward me so fast I nearly fell backwards. It grabbed onto the oversized sleeve of my shirt with its tiny claws and hid behind me trembling.
“What the hell—”
A dark shape moved at the end of the hallway.
I froze instantly.
At first, I couldn’t fully make it out in the shadows. It was too large. Too twisted. Long limbs dragged across the floor while glowing eyes stared straight at us from the darkness.
Wet breathing echoed down the hallway.
My entire body went cold.
The thing moved forward slowly, and I finally saw enough to know one thing.
That was not human.
Fear slammed into me so hard I couldn’t move. The servant creature clung tighter behind me, shaking violently while the thing let out another low growl.
Then it suddenly lunged.
A roar exploded through the hallway before the creature could reach me.
The beast.
He slammed into the thing so hard both creatures crashed into the wall, stone cracking beneath them. The hallway shook with growls and snarls while claws ripped through the air faster than my eyes could follow.
“RUN!” the beast roared.
I didn’t need to be told twice.
I grabbed the servant creature and stumbled backwards down the hallway while terror pounded through me. Behind us, the sounds only got worse. Roaring. Claws scraping stone. Something smashing through wood.
Then suddenly—
Silence.
My breathing came out fast and uneven while I stared down the dark hallway.
A few seconds later, the beast slowly stepped out from the shadows.
Blood dripped from one of his claws.
And his glowing eyes locked straight onto me.
His glowing eyes locked onto mine as he stepped out from the shadows, breathing heavily. Blood dripped from one of his claws onto the stone floor beneath him, but he still looked terrifying standing there, towering over the hallway like the monster from every nightmare I had ever had.
“Did I not warn you?” he growled.
The sound snapped me out of my frozen state.
“I didn’t know that thing was here!” I shot back, my voice shaking despite my attempt to sound brave. “You just said stay away from the lower halls!”
“And where do you think this hallway leads?” he snarled.
I opened my mouth, ready to argue again, but honestly… I had no idea where I was. Panic and adrenaline had carried me through the castle without thinking.
The servant creature tightened its grip on my sleeve behind me, trembling violently. My eyes dropped toward it for a second before lifting back to the beast.
“What was that thing?” I asked quietly.
Something dark passed over his face.
“A failed curse.”
The words sent a chill through me.
Before I could ask what that meant, he suddenly staggered slightly.
My brows pulled together.
The beast caught himself against the wall with one massive hand, breathing harder now. At first, I thought he was just angry again, but then he dropped to one knee with a low grunt.
My stomach dropped instantly.
The servant creature let out a panicked squeak beside me.
Blood.
A lot of it.
My eyes widened as I finally saw the deep claw marks ripped across his back, cutting through his dark fur. Blood soaked into it, dripping steadily onto the stone floor beneath him.
“Oh my God…”
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
The beast immediately straightened slightly, like he hated that I noticed. “It’s nothing,” he growled.
Nothing?
He looked like he had been ripped apart.
“You’re bleeding everywhere!”
“I’ve had worse.”
“You can barely stand!”
His glowing eyes snapped toward me instantly. “I said it’s nothing.”
I flinched slightly at the sharpness in his voice, but it didn’t stop the guilt twisting in my stomach. He got hurt because of me. Because I ignored his warning. Because I just had to wander around like an idiot instead of staying where it was safe.
I wanted to kick myself again.
The beast suddenly pushed himself back to his feet with visible effort, though his body looked tense now, like every movement hurt.
“I’m taking you back to your chamber,” he muttered.
“You need help.”
“I do not.”
“You’re literally dripping blood!”
A low growl rumbled from his chest, weaker this time. “Little hunter…”
“You saved me.”
The words came out before I could stop them.
Silence hit the hallway instantly.
The beast stared at me, his breathing heavy, while something unreadable passed through his glowing eyes.
Then he looked away first.
The servant creature peeked out carefully from behind me, its huge eyes locked onto the beast.
Then, slowly, it padded toward him.
I tensed instantly, expecting him to snap at it, but instead the beast stayed still while the tiny creature nervously reached for his arm.
It made a soft clicking sound again.
Almost worried.
Something about that made my chest tighten strangely.
The beast looked down at it with visible annoyance. “I’m fine.”
The creature clearly disagreed.
So did I.
“You’re not fine,” I muttered.
His glowing eyes slid back to mine. “You speak too much.”
“And you almost died.”
A low growl rumbled in his chest again, but this time it lacked its usual force.
He swayed slightly.
My stomach dropped again.
Without thinking, I stepped closer and grabbed onto his chest before he could fall.
The second my hand touched him, his entire body went rigid.
Heat.
That was the first thing I noticed.
He was burning up.
My eyes widened. “You have a fever.”
“It will pass.”
“You’re injured and sick?”
“I said it will pass.”
“You’re impossible.”
For a second, I thought he might snap at me again.
Instead, he just stared at me.
Really stared at me.
Then his gaze slowly dropped to where my hand still rested against his chest.
I immediately let go like I had touched fire.
Something unreadable crossed his face again before he looked away.
“Go back to your chamber,” he muttered.
I crossed my arms stubbornly. “Not until someone looks at those wounds.”
“I do not need care from a human.”
“Well, clearly you do.”
His jaw clenched.
The servant creature suddenly tugged on the bottom of my sleeve again before quickly pointing down another hallway.
I blinked in surprise.
“You understand us?”
The creature puffed its chest proudly for half a second before immediately shrinking again when the beast looked at it.
“Traitor,” the beast muttered darkly.
To my shock, the tiny creature hissed at him.
I stared at both of them.
Then somehow, despite the blood, the terrifying castle, and the monster standing in front of me…
I laughed.