Ensnaring his Dark Moon-Chapter 273: Forced daughter

To think that there would be a day like this when Esme and Cardan would be on the same page.

’’You are not answering my question,’’ Luciana glared at the man.

Cardan shrugged one shoulder, ’’He is my brother,’’ was all he said as if he was talking about the weather.

Despite expecting it, Luciana was stunned. It seemed like the brothers were not on bad terms like she was thinking.

Four simple words but coming from Cardan’s mouth, she could feel the depth in them.

’He is my brother so there is no question of getting along well or not’

’He is my brother despite what happened in the past’

Those simple words said a lot of things that she could hear without Cardan elaborating on any of them.

’’Then...’’ Luciana hesitated for a moment before she asked, ’’In the past year, did you keep an eye on Esme because of your brother?"

A disdainful expression appeared on Cardan’s face, ’’What else? He was writhing there like a dying pest. I was worried he would jump into the dark lake when he stood there for nights just staring at the water,’’ his body shivered just at the thought of having to witness that side of Aleister.

Luciana’s gaze turned complicated. So... did she misunderstand Cardan all along? All those harsh words that she said to him...

Her heart ached unknowingly.

She tried to suppress the feelings bubbling in her heart before he could notice anything amiss, ’’You don’t even have clothes to wear. Why did you have to follow me with nothing?" she glanced at the man’s royal blue coat that he had been wearing.

Cardan snapped his fingers and suddenly, he was donned in forest green, the color surprisingly familiar.

Luciana’s eyes widened.

Cardan looked at those green eyes as he smirked.

He winked at her, ’’Are we going to stand here and stare at each other? I do not mind it....’’

His words were yet to finish when Luciana turned around and rushed towards the room which was assigned to her.

She closed the door behind her and leaned back on it as she placed her hand on her wildly beating heart.

...

’’...And here, these are the books recorded about the remaining gods.’’

Esme marveled at the shelves of books in front of her.

The sea library that Luciana showed her was beautiful because she had never seen anything like that before. Water was drowning all those books but it could not even crumple the pages. But apart from its beauty, there was nothing much to the sea library. While it mentioned the gods, heavens, the origins of mers, and many such things, those things were very vaguely trodden on.

And rather than giving her answers, they only gave her more questions.

Esme picked up a book and ran her finger through its edges, ’’But who wrote these books?" How did that person know so much about heaven?

She tilted her head to look at the King, just in time to catch an unnatural look that passed on his face, ’’These books have been here in the royal library for years. They were written by our ancestors who gained knowledge about heaven from our God himself.’’

Esme nodded, deep in contemplation.

At this time, her ears picked up the sound of approaching footsteps.

She glanced at the King who had also turned his head to the side.

The royal library’s entrance was like that of a hidden dungeon, with long stairs that led down to a straight path.

On either side of the path were tall shelves with rows and rows of books that were illuminated by the glow of a lantern next to each shelf.

"Your Majesty,’’ an old voice sounded from the other side before the person who was speaking stepped out of the shadows.

The royal physician. Esme recognized the old man, not just from during her stay in the castle but also because he was the first mer she had seen in Visteria.

She had bought a scroll from the old man. And the old man had looked at her strangely.

Back then, she did not know why he looked at her the way he did. But looking back, he must have recognized her as one of his kind.

"My Lady, how are you feeling now?" The old man looked at her.

Esme nodded at him, knowing that he was the one who take care of her when she lost consciousness, ’’I have been well.’’

The old man then turned to look at the King wordlessly.

Black lines appeared on the King’s face, ’’What did I tell you about not disturbing me when I am showing my daughter around the library?"

Esme’s lips twitched. How did he sound more and more convincing calling her his daughter?

Esme had heard of people forcing girls to be their wives or even slaves but it was her first time witnessing what it was like to be forced to become someone’s daughter. And the victim here was her.

The Royal Physician was nowhere as playful as he had looked amidst the humans. He kept a straight face, ’’My Lady, would you mind waiting for His Majesty?"

Even though he was the royal physician but Esme could tell that his identity was not just that. He was more like the King’s right-hand man. She could not even believe that back then, he was just like a crude old man, digging his nose and looking poor and homeless.

Esme shook her head at him before she glanced at the King, ’’Your Majesty, I can look around by myself.’’

The man’s face turned darker than the bottom of a pot, ’’Father, precious,’’ he frowned, ’’Address me as father.’’

Esme: "_"

The royal physician: "_" This man is not our King

Rezeph flicked his sleeves and walked out of the library, not before shooting a strong glare at the old man who interrupted his time with his precious.

With two dogs wagging their tails around her to get her attention, it was hard as it was for him to even see her.

But he remembered that she loved reading books.