To the One Who's Only Cold to Me - Chapter 111

“Why are you so surprised? You chose your father over me and abandoned me. So, you’re part of my revenge now. Did you think I’d let you go?”

“I’m going to completely ruin your life. Ah… and don’t even think about dying just because you’ve become a slave. I’ll keep at least one of your family members alive just barely breathing to keep you on a leash.”

At his words that had crossed a cruel line, Aisha froze in place. Ian watched her and let out a low, mocking laugh before slowly removing the hand that had been gripping her chin. Then, his large hand traced down her slender neck, brushed over her deep collarbone, and reached even lower. Being forced to endure his weight was already shameful enough, but as he began to toy with her, tears flowed from Aisha’s pale blue eyes.

“Aisha, do you even know how much your face and body can drive a man crazy?”

“Don’t do this, Ian. Please… please, don’t…”

Her voice, barely strong enough to say no, was weak. But unlike Aisha’s dimming eyes, Ian’s were burning with heated emotion. Lust twisted with hatred, fierce longing mixed with obsession. In truth, those dark desires were far stronger than the hatred. Hatred just stuck out the most, like the tip of a sharp blade.

“I’m going to trample you, over and over. And when I get bored of you, I’ll sell you off right away. No matter how attractive you are, you think that’ll last more than three years?”

Ian moved his fingers toward the chest slightly exposed through her dress. As his hand pressed into her skin, Aisha let out an unconscious whimper, and Ian looked up and smiled with his eyes curved.

“But what if you end up pregnant while you’re by my side? I’m not going to give birth control to a slave.”

The very idea of speaking about having a child with a slave disgusted her. But the pain she was feeling kept growing by the second, and all Aisha could do was gasp for breath. As she continued to say nothing and wouldn’t even look at him, Ian placed his hand on her aching stomach and continued.

“A bastard born from a slave. If the child looks exactly like me, maybe I’ll let you have a small room in the marquis’ house, as the mother. But if the child shows even a hint of your father’s features”

“Ugh…”

“I’ll kill it.”

“Get your hands off me!”

His cold voice was filled with cruelty. Aisha, unable to bear it anymore, gathered all her remaining strength and slapped Ian’s hand away.

Smack.

“Fine. I’ll stop for today.”

She had no strength left, so Ian didn’t feel any pain from the slap. But perhaps her message got through he finally pulled himself off her. Even though his weight was gone, the pain didn’t fade. In fact, it somehow grew worse.

Aisha bent over in agony, then struggled to sit up. Ian reached out as if to help her, seeing how fragile she looked trying to lift her body, but his hand stopped in midair.

He blinked once, hiding the concern in his eyes, then turned away without a word. Aisha, watching his fading figure with blurry vision, gripped her stomach with both hands. It felt like a blade was tearing through her insides. There was also a strange wetness between her legs.

‘It must be my period… That’s all it is…’

She told herself that as she desperately tried to get up. But no matter how many times she tried, her legs wouldn’t support her. After five tries, she ended up rolling off the couch. The carpet cushioned her fall, but her body ached sharply.

‘Something’s wrong.’

Through her blurry eyes, she saw a flash of red. At the same time, a sharp, metallic smell stung her nose. Boom! Thunder crashed so loudly it felt like it might burst her eardrums. Wind howled, shaking the windows with a loud rattle.

“Haa…”

The constant lightning made her already hazy vision even darker. Lying on the floor, Aisha stared at the parlor door. Ian had left, so someone would surely come soon but the pain was so intense that even a short wait felt unbearable.

Fortunately, just before her eyes completely closed, the door opened and a familiar figure rushed in. Aisha gave a faint smile and called out.

“M-Marie.”

“Miss? Miss, what’s wrong? Miss!”

“Mari, something’s wrong with my stomach. It hurts… so much… Call the doctor…”

“Miss? Please stay with me! Miss!”

Ian’s back as he left the mansion in the rain had already felt ominous. But finding the lady collapsed in the parlor just after that made Marie panic. She shook Aisha, who was blinking slowly, then caught the scent of blood mixed with the smell of rain.

“Aaaaah!”

Marie screamed when she saw Aisha’s yellow dress turning red. Her scream was louder than the thunder, and footsteps hurried toward the parlor.

“Get the doctor! Butler, call the doctor, now!”

Shaking with fear, Marie snapped back to her senses when the butler arrived and immediately sent for the doctor.

“This blood… Hurry! Get the doctor right now!”

The butler, seeing Aisha collapsed and the growing pool of blood, also shouted for the doctor. As the servants rushed around in panic, a bolt of lightning struck the estate, burning down an old lemon tree. Though the rain quickly turned it to black ash, the once-strong tree collapsed, stripped of all life.

The sounds of rain and thunder drowned out the voices calling for the doctor. But Ian, who had just left, caught the faint word “doctor” through the rain.

‘Doctor…’

He muttered it in his mind and instinctively turned back, his eyes landing on Aisha’s window.

His foot was just about to hit the muddy ground again when lightning flashed silently across his vision. The world turned blue, and Ian suddenly remembered the blue faces of his parents lying in their coffins on the day of their funeral.

Ian clenched his teeth and turned back around. He stared into the blinding rain and stomped forward.

Whinny.

But the horse wouldn’t budge. Afraid of the storm, it lifted its front legs in fear and refused to move.

Only after a long struggle did Ian manage to calm the horse and leave the estate. But during that time, his mind had been filled with thoughts of Aisha. Even after leaving the estate, he kept glancing back.

“Why should I care? I’m going to ruin her anyway. She won’t die just from being sick.”

He spoke the words out loud, trying to convince himself. If he didn’t, he felt like he might turn the horse around at any moment.

He rode for a long time. When the thunder grew distant and the rain lightened a bit, he finally slowed down. Despite the cold, rainy weather, the horse was steaming with heat from running so hard.

Riding slowly through the muddy road made Ian feel even gloomier. As soon as the horse caught its breath, he planned to speed up again when something caught his eye in the distance. A fork in the road.

‘That’s the way to Farne.’

Turning right would lead back to the marquis’ estate, but Ian chose the left path, leading out of the capital.

Farne. A small town known for its beautiful lake. Right next to that lake stood a quaint, old villa—like something out of a painting.

It was close enough to reach in a few hours on horseback from the capital. The previous Marquis Lloyd and his wife had often visited the villa. But unlike them, Ian and his sister Sophia had never even spoken of the place, let alone visited.

Ian’s parents had died on a rainy mountain road while heading to that villa. He had only visited on their death anniversaries, never on other days.

But now, things were different. He would return there, revisit the memory of his parents, and complete his revenge.

The road to Farne wasn’t easy even in good weather. The horse stumbled several times, but even in those dangerous moments, Ian didn’t blink. His expression stayed cold.

‘Good. Now that I’ve told Aisha everything, the Count will soon learn about my revenge. And once he does, I’ll take the duke’s offer and destroy House Parden.’

‘I won’t let you go. You’re staying by my side until I get tired of you. You’ll be my outlet for all my rage.’

In his mind, Ian imagined the fall of House Parden and Aisha, reduced to a lowly status, forced to stay by his side.

Then came even darker thoughts. Vile, degrading fantasies that made Ian smirk.

‘Ian…’

He imagined Aisha sobbing beneath him, calling his name. He saw her face over and over—then forced himself to erase it.

By the time he had repeated that image dozens of times, the lake finally came into view. And just beyond it, the small villa slowly revealed itself.

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