The Survival Strategy of the Contract Duchess - Chapter 61

The monster made heavy, dragging footsteps as it slowly approached Sasha. Somehow, she found the courage to lift her head and look straight at it.

It’s rough, thick skin looked impossible to pierce with something as small as a kitchen knife. It’s strange, terrifying appearance and wide, cloudy gray eyes locked directly onto hers.

The monster let out a slow, eerie sound.

“Sasha!”

Its mouth opened, revealing sharp, dripping fangs. Sasha’s focus was stuck on those terrifying teeth.

The monster made another sound, but this time it was different. The tone had changed. It no longer sounded like a beast ready to attack. Its mouth opened in a strange way, almost as if it wasn’t preparing to bite her at all.

“What are you trying to say? I don’t understand.”

“Get away, Sasha!”

Sasha had been staring at the monster’s mouth and eyes, trying to figure out what it was doing. When she heard Kyler’s voice suddenly close by, she turned her head quickly.

Kyler charged in with a shout and drove his sword deep into the monster’s side. The creature let out a deafening scream and began to thrash wildly. Blood sprayed from the wound, and Sasha, watching in shock, felt tears run down her face.

But the monster, in its pain, swung its wings violently and struck Sasha hard. She tumbled away, rolling across the ground. Thankfully, she landed beyond the monster’s reach.

Seeing his chance, Kyler pulled his sword free. Blood poured over him as he lifted the weapon again and drove it up into the creature’s heart with all his strength.

The monsters that had appeared so suddenly were taken down just as fast. Kyler struck once more, cutting through the fallen creature’s neck to make sure it was dead. Then, without a second to catch his breath, he ran to Sasha.

He tore off his blood-soaked coat and threw it aside. Then he carefully lifted her from where she had fallen.

“Sasha.”

“I’m okay.”

She frowned in pain but spoke quickly to reassure him. His arms were holding her so gently and protectively, and she wanted to give him a response, even if it hurt to speak.

The pale look on his face when he had rushed toward her remained in her mind like a flash of light. That was fear. If her face had looked the same while watching him fight, then she could only imagine how terrified he must have felt.

Her whole body ached, and the pain in her arm was sharp enough that she was scared to move it. Still, she raised her other arm and wrapped it around his neck.

“Kyler.”

“Tell me where it hurts. I can’t hold you like this unless I know. Please, tell me. Where are you hurt?”

She had never expected him to speak in such a rushed and worried tone. With her face pressed against his neck, Sasha answered softly.

“Just my left arm. That’s where it hit me. It hurts a lot.”

She forced a smile and gave him the only answer she could. Nothing else seemed seriously injured.

Kyler carefully touched and lifted her arm to check. The pain made her wince, but it wasn’t unbearable.

“It’s not broken. There might be a small fracture.”

His voice said it was a relief, but the look on his face was still full of concern. Sasha let out a quiet sigh, feeling a little more at ease.

“I think I can walk. We should get out of here quickly.”

Without saying a word, Kyler gently placed her left arm across her stomach and lifted her into his arms. Her uninjured arm rested comfortably against his chest as he held her tightly.

“Kyler, I can walk. Please put me down.”

“Stay still. I will take you to safety.”

Sasha stopped talking. What had happened was still weighing on his mind. The memory of his face frozen in fear remained clear in hers, so she could only imagine how much it affected him.

That was how their peaceful outing ended.

“Duke!”

At the edge of the forest, Dylan saw them and immediately ran toward them. He had sensed something was wrong. The sound of monsters had echoed through the trees, but it seemed the two had gone deep into the forest where they couldn’t be heard from outside.

There was a short burst of chaos, but soon they boarded the carriage and returned to the estate.

The ducal estate was in complete panic. It was not uncommon for the duke to leave for monster hunts, sometimes multiple times a month, but for the duchess to be injured by a monster during a simple outing was a shocking event.

Kyler quickly made sure the news would not spread outside the estate. The idea of monsters appearing in Uhalin Forest could not be allowed to reach the public. Instead, he dispatched knights to patrol the area. They would remain there for several days, blocking civilian access and watching for any further activity.

“Since that day, there have been no more sightings of monsters in the forest. According to some reports from locals, they heard strange cries deep inside, though not near the outer areas.”

“Is it close to the mountain range?”

“Yes, sir. The issue is that monsters have begun appearing along forest paths they had never crossed before.”

Dylan finished reporting his visit to Uhalin Forest to Kyler, who sat with his eyes gently closed.

Kyler remained silent, listening intently with his eyes shut, as if deep in thought. Even after the report ended, he didn’t move or respond. Dylan stood silently, watching him, then hesitated several times before finally speaking.

“Your Grace, how is the Duchess?”

Kyler, who had simply been sitting with his eyes closed, now squeezed them tightly shut.

He still couldn’t forget the fear he had felt that day. It brought back memories from his childhood.

Though most of the memory had faded with time, the fear had returned in sharp detail. The experience had stirred something deep within him that he thought he had forgotten.

Dylan, unsure of what to say next, stood quietly. Just as he turned to leave, he stopped in his tracks. How could he almost forget something so important? His concern for Sasha and Kyler’s unusual reaction had nearly made him miss a critical part of the report.

“Your Grace.”

He called out again, and Kyler, his expression now calm and unreadable, opened his eyes just slightly as Dylan continued.

“The situation in Geranel seems troubling. Since monsters have started appearing that far south, I suspected something was wrong and looked into it.”

“What exactly do you mean by troubling?”

Kyler spoke at last, leaning back in his chair. He didn’t seem particularly interested in Geranel at first.

“They’re supposed to be keeping the monsters under control, but it seems they’re no longer able to. That’s why some monsters have started slipping into the forest.”

“They should’ve found a way to close the gate by now, not just manage what comes through.”

Kyler rarely expressed criticism, but this time, he did. Dylan nodded in agreement. No one had ever figured out exactly how monsters were created. Those who fought them often described the phenomenon as gates to the demon realm opening.

“Because they’ve managed the gates for so long, the monsters had been kept near the mountains. This could become a real problem.”

“And so, taking advantage of the chaos, I dug a little deeper…”

Dylan wasn’t finished yet.

The unexpected events in the forest had clearly shaken others as much as it had shaken them. And for the people of Geranel, it was likely more than just an isolated incident.

“I see.”

Kyler was still caught in his own thoughts about that day, but he knew this wasn’t something to dismiss. Although his mind remained clouded with what had happened, he forced himself to keep listening.

“About twenty years ago, when the current head of Geranel had a daughter, there was a similar incident. And now that same daughter recently got married… and the same kind of thing has started happening again. They find it strange.”

“A daughter… twenty years ago…”

The control of the monsters in Geranel was said to come from a secret tradition passed down through generations, combining the powers of priests and magicians. That method had never been shared with the outside world.

Outside of Geranel, there were only two options when it came to monsters—kill them or be killed.

If even Geranel was losing control, and the only clue pointed to the head’s daughter, then there was clearly something more to the story.

“This isn’t the first time.”

“No. Back then, the monsters never crossed into the ridges near the Marquess of Ibern’s land. It caused a lot of trouble. At that time, that was the only route people could use.”

There was a strange feeling in Kyler’s chest. The story had nothing to do with him. It was just another problem happening somewhere else. And yet it felt like something he shouldn’t ignore, like a thread he had to follow.

Kyler’s instincts stirred.

“And… this part, I wasn’t sure if I should report. But I’ll say it anyway.”

Dylan usually made very precise judgments. He wasn’t the type to report unnecessary details.

So the fact that he added this now meant it was worth hearing. Kyler relaxed slightly and gave him his full attention.

“They say that, when she was a baby, the head’s daughter once came face to face with a monster.”

Kyler’s eyes snapped open. A woman… who had encountered a monster.

Dylan noticed the reaction but kept going.

“A monster appeared near the head’s estate, and it came into contact with the child. I didn’t get many details, but what stood out was that the girl survived. They said it was strange how she lived through it unharmed.”

That incident happened during the time when monster control was weakest. The information came from someone who claimed to have seen it with their own eyes.

Kyler didn’t know if it was fact or rumor, or exactly how it happened. But he stared at Dylan and kept replaying those words over and over in his mind.

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